Tag Archives: kids

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Give Your Child a Green Thumb: Gardening Items for Kids

Indianapolis Toy StoreSpring has sprung, so it’s definitely time to send the kids outside to play. And not a moment too soon, right?

One great way to enjoy the great outdoors (and beautify the yard) is to get your kids involved in planting flowers and veggies. Earth Explorer Toys has a great gardening set that includes a rake, shovel and a spray bottle for watering. It all comes in a cute canvas carrying bag.

Once the flowers have been planted, the kids might enjoy making a stepping stone for the garden. This great kit, appropriately named Make Your Garden Stepping Stone ($9.99) contains everything you’ll need to make one gardening stone 5.5″ x 7.5″.  It includes concrete mix, mixing bag, disposable gloves, stone template, glass marbles, plastic crystals and instructions. You might as well get a few kits because your kids will have a blast making the stepping stones and they’ll be so proud of their useful works of art!

Another great nature activity is to have your kids create a butterfly garden. EET carries an award-winning and best selling kit that allows your children to witness metamorphosis. The Butterfly Garden ($19.99) includes habitat, guide, send-away certificate for 5 larvae and food. The Painted Lady Butterflies that “hatch” are indigenous to all 50 states and can be confidently released into the environment.

How do you get your child involved in gardening?

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Cold Day Activities for Kids

Indianapolis toysKids have energy to burn, whether it’s 75 degrees or -5 degrees outside, and cold days can often make for long days when kids are stuck inside.

To keep kids from bouncing off the walls (and furniture), you might want to pick up the Fold and Go Trampoline ($89.99) from Earth Explorer Toys. It’s easy to set up. All you have to do is attach the legs and handle to the trampoline base, and it’s ready to go.

Try setting up the trampoline next to some kid-friendly music and let your little jumping beans bounce and dance to their heart’s content. The Fold and Go Trampoline is great for independent play and develops motor skills. It’s also ASTM safety approved and holds one child up to 150 pounds at a time.

Or, you could always let the kids play hockey inside – Tabletop Air Hockey, that is! This indoor toy is not only packed with action, it’s also great for developing cooperative play skills and motor skills. TableTop Air Hockey ($29.99) has authentic arcade action that allows pucks to glide on a smooth cushion of air. It has a manual scorekeeper and includes three pucks and two paddles. Batteries required. Makes for hours of fun entertainment with little to no mess!

Earth Explorer Toys thinks choosing either of these toys (or both!) is a win-win for parents and kids struggling through the long winter days. What do you do to stay busy inside on cold days?

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Toys to Encourage Your Budding Artist

Earth Explorer Toys in Zionsville, INPainting, drawing and other art projects aren’t just for rainy days. Some kids love to create every day, and there are so many great products out there that encourage a child’s creative side.

One way to get started is to think about what your child is interested in. For example, does your child love Star Wars movies and all the action figures? Maybe your little Luke Skywalker or Princess Leia would like Draw Star Wars: The Clone Wars ($16.95). This drawing set, made by Klutz, takes your child through all the steps and levels of tracing stick figures, practicing shapes and ultimately learning the correct way to draw a figure from the inside out. The book really is an amazing lesson in drawing techniques.

For kids who like a little free-flow painting, our Deluxe Easel ($79.99) is a great choice. The easel is made of natural hard maple in Minnesota, includes a storage shelf and is suitable for children aged 3-8, so it will grow with your child. We also carry an Easel Companion Supply set that includes easel paper roll, rainbow chalk, paint cups, medium paint brushes and more. Kids will love painting or drawing and being able to let creativity flow. You’ll just have to make room on the wall for all their masterpieces! And when the weather is great, consider taking the easel outside for a little plein air painting!

We also have a lot of great kits, such as the Young Artist Coloring Gift Set ($19.99). This award-winning kit includes 12 Faber-Castell beeswax crayons, 6 duo-tip markers, 6 jumbo colored eco-pencils, paper and more, all in a cool bag.

In addition to creating every day masterpieces, consider getting one of these kits to help entertain your child while you’re traveling or at a restaurant. They also make perfect gifts. Plus, they’re not drawing on the walls, and that’s a good thing, right?