First snowfall of my holiday season, here in beautiful Saskatoon! Shared the joys of holiday gift-giving with Jeremy, on the CTV Morning News, and with Jeff on the CTV News at Noon. Happy and joyous Holiday Cheer!
Black Friday Toys 2017
Originally posted on dailylounge.com
Reyne Rice has this season’s gift ideas just in time for Black Friday & Cyber Monday!
Kids love construction sets and younger kids can have fun practicing real world activities or using their imagination to create an entirely new world. The LEGO DUPLO Family House is designed for a child’s smaller hands to develop motor skills, and introduce children as young as 1 1/2 to LEGO building, with bricks that are twice the size of a classic brick. With endless playing possibilities and loads of elements and colors to spark their imagination, they learn to stack, build, and role-play as they act out everyday life. Visit shop.lego.com to learn more!
Playing games is a great way to bond as a family over the holidays. Catch the Fox by Goliath Games was named toy of the year in France, bringing laughter and fun to the family when uh oh – the Fox is in the hen house. This greedy fox is snapping up the chickens and stuffing them into his pockets. But when there are too many chickens, his pants will fall down, sending the chickens scurrying so it keeps everyone guessing. Be the first to return 5 chickens to your coop to win! Click here to learn more.
This is the Merge Cube, an award-winning 3D Augmented Reality toy that you use with your smartphone or tablet. This cube allows kids to hold digital, holographic objects in the palm of their hand! Many kids are hands-on learners, and this is enhancing the learning experience in a fun way that they will remember! Just download free or paid apps to activate and play with 3D games, characters and learning tools, like a skull, a rotating labyrinth, a chomping piranha, and so much more…all for less than $15! Click here to learn more!
Getting kids outdoors is always a plus. Kids will get hours of enjoyment out of these Passback Sports footballs. It is a one-of-a-kind training tool that is thrown like a regulation ball but engineered to hit a surface and come spiraling back. Aim the flat side of the ball to any wall surface and be amazed as it boomerangs back to the person who threw it. It’s like having a perfect practice partner when no one is around! It comes in three sizes: Pee Wee, Junior and an official Full size. Click here to learn more!
2017 Holiday Toys Sneak Peek!
Last Minute Gifts for Kids 2015
Originally posted on DailyLounge.com.
Christmas is next week, are you ready? Yeah, we’re not either. Good thing we have Toy Trend Expert, Reyne Rice, to give us a heads up on some of the hottest Last Minute Gifts for kids this holiday season!
GameStop is THE PLACE to help holiday shoppers find the gaming and tech items on their lists. With the LEGO Dimensions starter pack, you’ve got the classic LEGO building bricks, mini-figures, and the added magic of video gaming in the newest toys to life creation. It features Batman fighting side by side with Gandalf and Wyldstyle! GameStop has ALL the games that feature interactive figures like Skylanders, Disney Infinity, and Nintendo’s amiibo. Now you and your kids can play together with the characters you remember from YOUR childhood, too! They have deals on games for the whole family on ANY gaming system. Visit GameStop.com to learn more!
The award-winning Bunchems by Spin Master are the latest creation for kids. Bunchems are soft plastic spheres that squish, connect and stick together for hours of fun. Kids can pull them apart and start fresh. With over 400 pieces in the MegaPack, kids can start playing right out of the box. Accessories like eyes, wings, hats, and feet personalize kids’ creations. For children who may want some idea-starters, there are easy-to-follow instructions for creating owls, bears, cars, monkeys and more! The smaller Creation Packs have 60 pieces to create things like bugs and pets which are great stocking stuffers. Click here to learn more.
The original light-up brick construction toy is Laser Pegs which combine lights and building, two things every kids loves! Children will have fun constructing illuminated helicopters, jets, cars and more. Laser Pegs come with a patented “Slide, Stack and Spin” feature. These translucent colored blocks foster STEM concepts using technology, engineering, and math skills. They also encourage hand-eye coordination, creativity, and language learning. They offer a great value becauase you can build multiple models and they are compatible with other “leading” brick sets. Visit LaserPegs.com to learn more!
A fast, simple strategy game to continue your kids’ STEM education in a fun way is Matermind from Pressman Toy. It is one of the best-selling games of all time for kids ages 8 and up. The Codemaker sets a secret code, then the Codebreaker tries to match the code using logic, deduction, and a little bit of luck. It’s an easy-to-learn quick moving game with more than 2,000 possible code combinations. It makes the game different every time it’s played! Parents will love that all of the game’s pieces can be stored in the game board. No mess! Click here to learn more.
Early Holiday Toys 2015
Originally posted on DailyLounge.com.
The holidays are right around the corner and we have an insider’s look at the hottest toys and games of the season!
Guitar Hero, the pop culture phenomenon from Activision, makes its return with Guitar Hero Live. It’s a first-person, live-action gaming experience where the player is the star of the show! Feel the rush of being on stage and experience the reaction of the crowd. The game also introduces GHTV, a 24-hour playable music video network that lets fans play along to a constantly-updated collection of official music videos from classic rock to the newest hits. Players can compete with their friends, as well as players from across the globe. The guitar controller has been redesigned to feature six buttons so it looks and feels more authentic and is fun for players of all abilities. Learn more about Guitar Hero Live here.
Laser Pegs is the original light-up brick construction toy that combines lights and building, two things every kid loves! Imagine the fun children will have when constructing illuminated monster trucks, space jets, cars, animals, tanks, and more! Each kit includes instructions to build multiple models. Laser Pegs come with a patented “Slide, Stack, and Spin” feature. The sets provide STEM learning, hand/eye coordination, creativity, math, spatial and language skills. A great value because they are compatible with the “Leading” brick sets. Learn more here.
Kids will love role-playing with Hazel, the popular lead character from the new Little Charmers TV show. Bring home all the magic of Charmville with 12″ Hazel Magic Doll from Spin Master. She is dressed in her signature “charmer-in-training” outfit that includes her removable hat and extraordinary cape. Watch as Hazel’s cape magically disappears with just the press of a button! She comes with her charismatic kitty, Seven, her special magic wand, a hairbrush, and can say eight charming phrases! This is great for ages 3+. Learn more here.
Summer Fun 2015
Originally posted on DailyLounge.com.
With the school year wrapping up, many parents are making plans for a summer getaway with the kids. Reyne Rice is here with the Summer Fun must-haves this season!
Many parents use their cell phones to capture family memories but those photos weren’t always the sharpest shots. Now, LG has a new smartphone with a 16 megapixel digital camera that takes professional photos, even in poor lighting and is easy to use! The LG G4 is on par with a DSLR camera and its laser auto-focus captures photos in milli-seconds, so you don’t miss that perfect shot. You can admire your pics on a brilliant 5.5 inch Quad HD IPS Quantum Display. It will be available in genuine full-grain leather (in six colors!) through Verizon, AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, US Cellular and Best Buy.
ETY Kids Safe-Listening Earphones
Ever hear sounds blaring from your child’s headphones in the backseat? The ETY Kids safe-listening earphones from Etymotic block background noise so your child can hear every sound in near hi-definition detail WITHOUT turning up the volume! Even at the maximum volume setting on portable players, kids can listen safely for up to four hours per day. Learn more here.
No longer do you need to scramble to find crayons, coloring books, snacks or other items as you rush out the door. Invented by a mom, ZoomKIT is a portable activity table-top that you can grab and go. It works great with your car seats and strollers or as a stand-alone activity center. It is designed to hold modular, swappable activity kits. This portable system allows parents to keep moving and keeps kids engaged during travel and wait times such as doctor’s offices, road trips, airplanes and more! Learn more here.
Summer blockbuster movies inspire toys that allow kids to re-create all the thrilling action from the film. In LEGO Indominus Rex Breakout, the huge Indominus Rex from the movie Jurassic World is on the loose in the impound! You can set off in hot pursuit in the helicopter making sure to evade the dinosaur’s snapping jaws and swiping claws! You must get that dangerous dino safely back in the pen. It includes 4 minifigures with accessories: Zach, an ACU trooper, Dr. Wu and a vet. Visit LEGO.com for more information.
Hot Wheels Avengers Tower Takeover Track Set
This awesome track set is inspired by the new Avengers: Age of Ultron movie. You use the multi-speed launcher to send your Iron Man car whipping around the track at lightning-fast speeds. Get your speed and timing right and save the day by defeating Ultron and making him explode! Visit HotWheels.com to learn more!
Black Friday Toys 2014
Originally posted on DailyLounge.com.
Written and Produced By: Amelia Floyd
As we all know, Black Friday is right around the corner! Do you have kids on your holiday shopping lists? Sure you do! We have picked some of the best toys and tech for kids this holiday season to make shopping a little easier for you!
LEGO Friends Jungle Rescue Base
The popular LEGO Friends collection takes kids on an adventure into the jungle with the LEGO Friends Jungle Rescue Base. This deluxe set includes living quarters, a boat, zip line, slide, 2 mini figures and 4 animals. They combine building, imagination and storytelling adventures for hours of fun! Compatible with sets from the jungle series, or even existing LEGO pieces, based on the freinds from Heartlake City. Available at the LEGO shop.
VTech Bronco the RC Triceratops
For younger kids, VTech has Bronco the RC Triceratops, their first remote control dino, a new addition to their Switch & Go Turbo line. See how it easily transforms from a fierce dinosaur to a sleek race car with the push of a button! Using the remote, you can move it around and charge the turbo boost lever to give it a burst of speed! Learn dino facts and hear wild sound effects too! Get it at VtechKids.com!
Get your kids off the couch and active with the Moff Band, a smart wearable toy! Powered by motion sensors and kids’ creativity, everyday objects can be made into a toy – a stick becomes a knight’s sword, a banana turns into a laser, the broom is an air guitar, and a whisk becomes a magic wand – and their imagination is the only thing a kid needs to play. With regular free app updates, there are always new sounds and activities so kids will never get bored. Simple to set up and easy to play with, grab 2 bands and kids can play together for even more fun! Watch a video and learn more about this awesome toy here.
Kids love playing with tablets, and from the makers of Tiggly Shapes, we introduce Tiggly Counts. It is the first hands-on math toy that interacts with your tablet to make learning math fun! By physically moving the Tiggly Counts pieces, children can see, touch and connect with the math concepts. It comes with three award winning apps that help teach counting, addition and number lines in a fun and engaging way. Perfect for children aged 3 and up. Learn more and order yours here.