by Jeff McKinney (follow me on Twitter)

I’ve got several Nintendo nuggets to share with you this week starting with the news of a price drop for the Wii. Effective a couple of days ago, the Wii has dropped it’s retail price from $250 to $200. The uber-popular game system still comes with a motion-sensing Wii Remote controller, Nunchuk controller and Wii Sports game.

Speaking of Wii Sports, the latest addition to the Sports line, Wii Sports Resort–the game that utilizes the incredible MotionPlus accessory–will be sold with two MotionPlus units for $60. The game is normally sold with one unit for $50 with individual MotionPlus units selling for $20 so you will save $10 with this new bundle. The game plus two-unit bundle pack will be available starting October 12 for a limited time.

Finally, Nintendo has announced a release date for New Super Mario Bros. Wii, the first Super Mario Bros game for the Wii and first Mario Bros game to allow multiple people to play together. Look for the game in stores on November 15 and check out the video game reviews section on TimetoPlayMag.com for the full review on the same day.

Play Categories: Video Games

By Jim Silver (Follow me on twitter)

As I’ve previously written, the Construction category is a very hot category in the toy business. From Lego having another banner year, to the great early success of Halo Wars from Mega brands, kids have rediscovered building toys.

There’s a new player entering the market this year, as Fisher-Price has entered the building category with Trio. The Trio building system is specially designed to make building easier for even the smallest of hands. Three “grow with me” building levels make building a snap. Kids can feel and hear the click when they’ve connected the building pieces and the pieces will stay together throughout play, only coming apart when kids are ready to take them apart.

When I first saw Trio a year ago, my initial thought was “do we need another building system”? However, after personally playing with the blocks, and watching kids play with Trio and not wanting to stop, I’ve realized Trio is different and a welcome addition that younger kids will enjoy playing with.

Play Categories: products

by Jeff McKinney (follow me on Twitter)

Next month, the big-screen adaptation of Maurice Sendak’s classic “Where the Wild Things Are,” arrives in theaters and judging by everything I’ve seen so far, it looks as if director Spike Jonze has done the book justice. I’m also pleased to report that the video game inspired by the movie and book looks to be equally entertaining and true to the original illustrated Sendak material.

In the game, players take on the role of Max as he travels through the world of the Wild Things. This unique adventure game brings the artwork of the book to life and allows players to explore familiar settings and interact with Sendak’s creatures. Players will learn to work with the Wild Things to accomplish tasks, unlock power-ups and progress through the game. No game based on this book would be complete without getting to ride on the shoulders of the Wild Things and fortunately, there is plenty of that in the game.

Where The Wild Thing Are: The Video Game will probably be a little too difficult for kids younger than seven but slightly older kids, especially ages seven through 12, are going to love it. Parents will also get a kick out of seeing Max and the Wild Things in a game version and might enjoy playing the game as well.

Look for Where The Wild Things Are: The Video Game in stores October 13, 2009 for the Nintendo DS and Wii, PlayStation3 and Xbox 360. The film will be in theaters October 16.

Play Categories: Video Games

By Leanne Heilman, Editor, Blogger, Rave and Review

When I was young, not one of my friends had a “play room”. Instead, our bedrooms were our domains and we stuffed them with toys, games, posters and memorabilia accordingly. Since then, the play room has become the new house must-have and designated rooms for toys and games are popping up in a number of friend’s houses around town.

At first, I was very drawn to the idea of a play room and all that it promised – a toy-free living room! Peace and quiet while the children play! And then, to the horror of my new mom’s group, hubby and I opted not to create one in our house plan. It’s not that we didn’t have the space – in fact, we currently have an empty room that one day is going to be my craft room – it’s just that the play room layout simply did not work for us and our lifestyle, at least not right now.

The thought of corralling all baby’s pink, pink (and more pink) plastic atrocities into one (hopefully shut tight) room in the house is certainly appealing. No more apologizing that a slightly hideous play kitchen is now occupying my favorite room in the house, and no more noisy and annoying toys making up the soundtrack of our home. I’ll admit it, there’s a lot to love about play rooms.

But then the reality of creating a space for a toddler really set in. Certainly I wasn’t going to let her loose in the play room alone, shutting the door behind me and going about my grownup business while she played. And if that’s not an option, that means I’m sitting in a play room all day long. Now, there’s something to be said about this scenario in terms of quality play time with kids and no outside distractions, but this clearly is not a permanent solution or every day plan for any mom that has anything at all on her personal schedule.

Thus the play room was out, at least for the time being, and instead we set about to bring a little play into every room in the house. We found that a little creativity went a long way in including baby-friendly areas in very grownup rooms, and the result was a much more flexible and parent-friendly solution to spending as much time as possible with our daughter.

We started our plan in the main living areas, carving out little spaces for play and making those areas as appealing as possible. While still a work in progress, the plan below outlines a few of the changes made to invite play into the every day:

Our first task was to convert an under the stairs closet in our living room into a child haven by adding a little paint and pizzazz. The boat-like shape of the closet was our inspiration and we called in an artfully inclined sister to help us paint it up to look like a pirate ship on the sea, complete with a water horizon and tropical island in the distance that is just begging for imaginations to run wild. We added a light, a flag and a soft sided treasure chest with a few pirate themed toys and dress up kits and the “Scrog Pit” was ready for play. With just a little bit of extra work we turned this semi-useless little closet into the favorite “room” of the house for all our little visitors and really maximized the potential of our living space. The kids like that they can go inside and shut the door for privacy and I love that even with the door shut they are completely safe, as I am never more than a few feet away. The loud sounds of play and the mess are fully contained within the closet and my living room stays intact, enabling me to work, entertain friends or merely cook dinner while they play. The best part about it is that when the closet is shut it looks like any other door, but when you open it up, the painted mural has a glowing effect that is nearly impossible to resist, even as an adult.

Then to really bring some creative fun in the kitchen, we added a kid’s play kitchen to the space so that we could talk and interact while we cook, clean and create together. While the plastic play kitchen leaves a lot to be desired in terms of style and sophistication, we have big plans to design a wood play kitchen that will sit right beside our cabinets and be stained to match, becoming more like an extension of our current kitchen plan and something that we won’t mind keeping around for years and years to come. Hubby even has plans to make the oven the size of our cookie cooling racks so we can put our baked goods in the play oven to cool and really include our kids in the cooking process.

When the main living areas were finished we set about the final step in our Life Without a Play Room plan and added some parent space into the nursery. Since the nursery is already fully baby proofed and stuffed with toys, it made sense to us to add a place where we could sit and play, work from home, or blog while keeping an eye out. We ended up finding a toy box that could be used as a seat for us and then used a lap desk to create a mini office. So far it has worked out perfectly in that we can carry our work station around the house into whatever room we were playing in and still get our work done while supervising.

Since the plan has shaped up and the play spaces have really come to life, we couldn’t be happier about our decision to cut out the play room. The end result has been a house that really is for all of us and encourages as much play and interaction as possible. We feel safer knowing the kids are close by at all times and they seem happier being part of the action and not sequestered into a back room. Besides being safe and enjoyable for both kids and adults, the huge added benefit of multiple play areas means that if the attention does wane, we can move the play to another area and reignite the play again.

So, have we written off play rooms for good? Absolutely not. Instead, we are going to continually re-evaluate the needs of our family and keep creating better ways for us to all share the house… even if that means giving up my craft room.

For more creative tips, fun giveaways, in-depth reviews for “the stuff families use,” and tips on how to simplify busy life with baby, don’t forget to visit Leanne at Rave and Review and follow her on Twitter.

Play Categories: Time to Play Guest Blogger

By Christopher Byrne (Follow me on Twitter)

In the city neighborhood where I grew up in Wilmington, Delaware, there were more than 53 kids between the ages of 4 and 12 within the two-block area that was our “base.” There were no organized activities. No little league. The occasional Boy or Girl Scout. Our lives were defined by school, church and home, and though they were different for many of us, we all came together in the neighborhood. There were groups and cliques and subsets, but for the most part, though parents were never far away, we were on our own.

Our games were pick-up games. Rules were negotiated. No adults told us how to play or what to play. This, to us and our parents, was normal. The inevitable conflicts that arose in games were resolved by us, and it was very rare that an adult ever got involved in a resolution.

One of the most hotly contested elements of any game was the “do-over,” a chance to take back a choice or a turn or to try again. “No do-overs” was pretty much the law of the land for us. If you clipped a ball badly or slipped on the grass, that was the way it was. The only opportunity for do-overs was when outside forces prevailed—say a car turned onto the street just after you hit the ball, or a dog came and took the ball or decided that your run to whatever was designated as first base was the perfect time to jump up on you, giving an opponent a chance to tag you out. Sometimes we argued. And sometimes we were upset by the outcomes, but the game went on. More importantly, the kid that asked for a do-over was diminished in our eyes.

With adult eyes, I see that “no do-overs” was a terrific rule. We learned, within the context of our games, that our actions have consequences, that fate is unpredictable and that you’d better give it your best shot because…who knows? Most importantly, this rule taught us to accept the consequences of our actions.

In recent weeks, I’ve been fascinated by the number of reports on television and heart-wrenching interviews from people who are, essentially, asking for do-overs. In one case, a family whose child was being treated for an eating disorder found that they were stuck with an enormous bill because their health insurance wouldn’t pay for it. There was a tearful interview with a family, saying their financial lives were devastated. There was the requisite vilification of the insurance company and a TV anchor trying to portray the company as unfeeling. Yet, the spokesman for the insurance company could only say, “That’s not the policy that they bought.”

I’ve been reading online reviews of companies where companies are trashed virulently. Yet, as I read, I saw that in the case of a car rental company, the consumer hadn’t read the contract and blamed the company for his or her own choices.

The constant defense in both these cases was that the stipulations were “in small print.” The implication is that a company is trying to hoodwink a consumer with font size. Sorry, to me that doesn’t fly. How does that excuse the person who made a bad choice? Is it a company’s fault if you don’t read a contract and understand what you’re signing?

I could go on for hours. But I’ll spare you.

I do ask you to look at these “protect the consumer” reports and notice how often the “wronged consumer” has made a gamble that would be advantageous to them in the short term—lower health insurance premium, passing on rental car insurance—but that has ended up biting them on the behind because of something unforeseen or because they didn’t take responsibility for themselves and the consequences of their actions.

Sorry, no do-over.

I don’t for a moment minimize the hardship of a situation nor am I insensitive to someone’s tragedy or misfortune. However, how much healthier is it to acknowledge that you took a risk and you lost? You make your choices. No do-overs.

These are the kinds of lessons that play teaches us, and the role of play is to prepare us for life. Whether it’s a Candy Land game or baseball, we don’t win every time. The idea is not to blame outside forces but to take full responsibility for ourselves and our actions, to manage what we can and try our best to respond to things beyond our control when they happen—and they will.

Kids who repeatedly whined for do-overs in our games didn’t last very long because in our kid-controlled world, there weren’t parents forcing us to cave on our principles. We didn’t have a lot of patience for someone who wouldn’t really play the game—accepting the good outcomes or bad. And, after all, if you lost today, you could always play tomorrow.

We do kids no favors when we don’t let them lose at a game or face the consequences of their choices. Some parents think that the self-esteem of their little precious is the most important thing. Yet self-esteem doesn’t come from having the way constantly smoothed or from an outside force (parent) taking away all the “bad” consequences and leaving only the good. Self-esteem comes from overcoming challenges you didn’t think you could, from finding inner resources that you didn’t know you had and developing an ability to take whatever life throws at you and keep going on.

Let our kids learn that through play and in the context of games and peers while they’re kids. Our role is to let them know that they can keep going despite the setback, not take the setback away.

If we condition kids to expect do-overs, they’ll be mightily surprised. A well-meaning parent can make that happen. The “real world” is not so accommodating.

Play Categories: Advice

by Jeff McKinney (follow me on Twitter)

Yesterday I met with Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment for some hands-on time with some of their upcoming video game releases. The games division of Warner Bros. has a lot of great games coming out between now and the end of the year but I wanted to tell you about one in particular that the kids in your life are really going to love, Scooby-Doo! First Frights.

You may have already seen the commercials for “Scooby-Doo: The Mystery Begins”, the new live-action and CGI DVD movie. First Frights is the video game compliment to this movie and puts players in the role of a young Scooby along with the rest of the Mystery Inc., team as they set out on some of their earliest mystery solving adventures.

In the game, kids will play as Scooby, Shaggy, Fred, Velma and Daphne in an action-adventure game packed with puzzles and, of course, creepy villains. One of the coolest aspects of the game is the two-player feature that allows a second player to grab a controller and jump into (or out of) the game at any point. Kids will love the game’s humor, which ranges from Scooby using a sausage-link nunchuk as a weapon to Velma rolling over enemies in a giant, inflatable sumo-suit.

Scooby-Doo! First Frights will be available for the PlayStation 2, Nintendo DS and Wii. Look for the game in stores on September 22 and check back here for a full review of the game when it comes out.

Play Categories: Video Games

By Tara Hernandez, Professional Mom Blogger, Hula Hooping Mom

Imagination, pretend play, and dress up are something all children have in common. Imagination plays a very important role in a child’s up bringing. It helps them to be creative thinkers and will help them to “branch” out of normal everyday life. When we think of pretend play we usually think of small children, but really pretend play is good for any age. Not only can small children use pretend play to play Doctor, Mom, Dad, Teacher, etc… but we can also use pretend play to teach children how to react to certain situations and about different occupations. Here are some ideas to get the imagination flowing in your children.

• Pots & Pans – Get out the pots, pans and wooden spoons and start a marching band. We save our kids old dress shoes / boots to wear and make hats out of newspaper. They then each get a pot, pan and spoon. They love marching around the house. This is a good way to get them interested in music and playing instruments.
• Can I be the Teacher? Since my youngest daughter started school this is by far her favorite past time! She will line up all her dolls and stuffed animals in her room. She will then put on her sun glasses and some nice shoes. Reading is her favorite thing to do, besides scolding the “students” who are not listening!
• Once a month have an “Around the World” dinner. Do some research with your children about different countries and Ethnics? Decorate your dining room to give it the feeling of the Country. Serve that countries food, look up some of their traditions and dress the part. You can buy a map at the dollar store to help, this will not only teach the kids about different cultures, but will help them learn where each country is located; which is required in school.
• Save your Halloween costumes and use them for dress up. Put on your princess gown and make believe you are going to the ball. My son loves his Air Force jump suit and puts it on at least once a month, he also was a pirate one year, and we used that costume at his last birthday party where the theme was Pirates!
• To help teach the cost of money to our kids we play store. It helps them to learn the value of money. Set up store on your dining table. Place a price tag on each item, and then give your children a certain amount in play money. Let them bring it to you, the cashier and try to figure out how much money will add up to the amount of the price tag.
• Use large boxes to create a cave in the forest where the bears live, or lay sheets over two chairs and make a tent for a campout.
• Be a pirate and go on a treasure hunt! Use black eyeliner as face paint to help create that pirate look. Hide fun treasures around the yard or in the home and create a treasure map to the treasure.
• Reverse the rolls. You and your husband be the children and have your little ones be the parents. This also lets you see how your children see you. I don’t do that, do I? LOL!

Things are so different today than they were years ago. Technology today is taking away the time we spend with our children. To often time is rushed and the days are hurried through. Turn off the TV, video games, cell phones and the computers. Use your imagination, get down to your children’s level and see what fun you can create.

Tara’s site Hula Hooping Mom just received a total blog makeover! Stop by and check it out and to learn more about her family, favorite family-friendly company news, product reviews, giveaways, and life as a Hula Hooping parent. Also, don’t forget to visit Tara at Hula Hooping Mom and follow her on Twitter.

Play Categories: Time to Play Guest Blogger

by Jeff McKinney (follow me on Twitter)

The Beatles: Rock Band, the latest Rock Band music game, has received so much hype before arriving in stores that you might think the original Beatles had magically reunited. So why is this game generating so much attention? Because it’s The Beatles!

The original Rock Band game has been around for a while now and The Beatles edition is the latest single-band version available. The game features 46 original Beatles songs (no covers) and allows you to play through each song with one of the four Rock Band instruments (Guitar, Drums, Bass, Vocals).

Each song features unique background images that match the time period in the Beatles history in which the song was released. Early hits, such as “I Saw Her Standing There” and “I Want to Hold Your Hand”, showcase the band on a stage while later tracks, such as “Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds”, showcase trippy fractal images, Blue Meanies and Yellow Submarines. The game also introduces vocal harmonies, which, for the first time, allows players to sing together in three part harmony.

The Beatles: Rock Band is in stores today for the PS3, Xbox360 and Wii. The game is sold alone for $59.99 and works with the instruments from previous Rock Band and Guitar Hero games. There is also an exclusive line of instrument controllers inspired by the Beatles’ instruments sold together for $249.99.

So is the game worth the hype? For Beatles fans, absolutely! In additional to the 46 songs on the game disc, look for additional songs to become available for download later.

Play Categories: Video Games

By Karen Coutu, Founder, author, and editor 3 Garnets & 2 Sapphires

Planning birthdays in regards to boy/girl twins is difficult enough, but when you throw a 3rd child’s birthday into the mix just two weeks prior, things become even more complicated. This is exactly the case in our household. Our twins will turn 3 years old in mid January. Our older son will be turning 6 at the beginning of the same month. Not wanting to have any one child feel shortchanged, how do we celebrate each birthday with both his or her peers and our family members?

For the past two years, we have thrown a party for our oldest son and his classmates on or around his birthday. Then we have a party for the twins on their birthday to which we invite just family. Even though the cake does not have our oldest son’s name on it, family members are there to celebrate his birthday as well. In fact, they would save his birthday gifts to give to him at the family party. This has worked out well for us so far because the twins have not minded missing their older brother’s parties (which usually take place at locations away from the house) and our oldest son did not mind receiving belated gifts.

We might be able to get away with this scenario for one more year, but when the next set of birthdays roll around, the twins will likely be attending preschool and will have peers of their own. So that none of the children feel left out, we will most likely need to increase the number of parties to three . . . one for our oldest son and his classmates, one for the twins and their classmates, and one to celebrate all three birthdays with family. The only way this would work is for me to brainstorm additional birthday themes for the twin celebration that would please both boys and girls. In the past we have done JoJo’s Circus and just a general balloons theme. Here is my list so far . . .

• Backyardigans
• Blue’s Clues
• Bolt
• Circus
• Dora & Diego
• Kungfu Panda
• Max and Ruby
• Mickey and Minnie Mouse
• Rock ‘n’ Roll
• Superman and Supergirl
• Wonder Pets
• Yo Gabba Gabba

Since our children’s birthdays all fall in January and immediately follow Christmas, I usually start planning in September. I also purchase all their birthday gifts while I do my holiday shopping. I find starting the planning process early truly helps to avoid the stress of finalizing plans right in the middle of the holidays!

For more helpful tips on raising 3 January Babies, as well as great giveaways, reviews, videos, and “Silly Monkey Stories,” don’t forget to visit Karen at 3 Garnets & 2 Sapphires and follow her on Twitter.

Play Categories: Time to Play Guest Blogger