Transcripts

Mike Carruthers:
So, there are kids on your Christmas shopping list and you need some cool ideas - well, here you go…

Marianne Szymanski:
There was one toy that really comes to mind - it's called Zoombox and it's made by Hasbro and basically what it is, is a DVD player but…

Marianne Szymanski, Publisher of Toy Tips Magazine and Toytips.com…

Basically you give it to a child, you put a movie in but you can project it on a ceiling or on just a blank wall - and that's really fun. It's different - children can lay in their sleeping bags on the floor, it's great for slumber parties, it's great for family nights. Make a bowl of popcorn, get a great movie that's age-appropriate for the whole family - and I thought that was really interesting and the technology on it was really nice.

For younger kids, Marianne says there's a new Radio Flyer wagon…

And you might think, "Ok, what's so great about a wagon?" Well, this actually has seats, two seats that you can fit two children in sitting, that are belted, there's cup holders and I think that it's just great because there's a cover on it - and that tested really well, everyone loved the whole fact that it had a cover.

And when choosing a toy, Marianne says think about toys you can play with, with your child.

The parent interaction, grandparent interaction (and they need those social skills) - sometimes toys are hard to play by yourself. I mean think about the erector sets - you probably had one when you were a child. It's not just something you can do by yourself - usually you need someone to help you in the beginning until you get the hang of it. And a lot of times if you play with them, they are very happy about that.

You can link to Marianne's website from ours: somethingyoushouldknow.net - I'm Mike Carruthers and that's Something You Should Know.