From the moment I was introduced to Green Toys I loved them. It was a little bit of a culture shock (I think that’s the right thing to call it) to be so enamored with plastic toys when I had spent months and months searching for and reviewing wood toys to add to our line-up. Finding a plastic toy that I liked seemed somehow . . . wrong.
Recycling Truck
Fun recycling truck made from 100% recycled milk jugs.
CLICK HERE TO ORDER
But I forced myself to see beyond the plastic. Honesty the plastic used by Green Toysis in a category of its own, anyway. This is not “cheap plastic crap” that you pick up at the dime store and it breaks the next day. Made from post-consumer milk-jug plastic, one of the safest and cleanest plasitcs (HDPE – High-density polyethelene).Green Toys are also made in the USA, in California to be exact. They’re recycling plastic and creating jobs. What could be better? And another little plug for plastic, while we’re at it. Even though wood seems somehow more “green” and natural, plastic is infinitely recycleable. When (IF!) your kids are done with their toy, it can be recycled into something else. Over and over and over again without losing the integrity of the material. If that’s not green, I don’t know what is!

It’s a time of uncertainty for our country, when many people are out of jobs and we’re unsure how to get them back to work. Green Toys is on the front line, creating jobs and doing good for the environment at the same time.

Here’s the president and co-founder of Green Toys recapping the jobs that are created when you buy a US-made Green Toys product. How can you help but be proud of them, proud to be part of their success, and prod to own one of their toys?

Not a Green Toys owner yet? What’s stopping you? You won’t find a better bang for your buck that helps support US jobs. If only every purchase was so easy. If only we could find more companies and more consumers who are committed to strengthening the US economy by keeping their dollars here.

The wheels on a Green Toys truck are thick and chunky, strong enough to put up with a toddler’s rough play. The truck bodies are strong, with all working parts able to withstand the abuse you know your kids can throw at it!

The Green Toys Tea Set, Dish Set, Chef set and the Cookware and Dining Set (which is a combined set of the Dish and Chef items) were so popular with kids and parents alike that the Green Eats line was launched. Parents were serving kids with the proportionately-sized plates and cups, and why not when they’re dishwasher safe?

Block Set	Sandwich Shop	Stacking Cups	School Bus
CLICK HERE TO ORDER	CLICK HERE TO ORDER	CLICK HERE TO ORDER	CLICK HERE TO ORDER

The quick success of the brand brought many new toys to the lineup. Their “My First Green Toys” are classics aimed at babies and toddlers. The Stacking Cups are a must for every toy box, sandbox and bathtub. The Stacker is a simple stacking toy that babies and toddlers love. New this year are the Sandwich Shop and Pizza Parlor, bringing the success of their kitchen items to new heights. We are also welcoming the Green Toys School Bus for 2011 Holiday (and I’m sure it will be a success).

Green Toys - Keep it Local

Help us welcome Oomfy to Sprout Soup!

With true stories of the animals who were rescued and inspired the stuffed version, these little creatures are adorable. Made from recycled polyester and stuffed with organic cotton. Each is baby safe, with no pellet stuffing and no removable eyes or noses. They’re extremely soft and cuddly!

Two sizes are available, small are $16.95 and large are $24.95. Come on in and adopt one today!

Sprout Soup’s Top Ten Gift Guide for 0-6 Month Olds

This is the first in our Holiday Gift Guide Series. Preview them online, or come on in to the store where we have shopping guides for all ages ready for use!

1. Yellow Label Star Doll These Waldorf soft and cuddly dolls are great for on-the-go snuggles. Fits easily into a bag or carrier. We have two great shapes to keep baby entertained; a ball and a star doll.
2. Yellow Label Cuddle Doll Same brand, different size. These snuggly Waldorf dolls will make a charming companion for any child. No removable parts means no choking hazards, even for the littlest baby.
3. Bla Bla Dolls The adorable doll with the funny name! These crocheted dolls come in a wide range of shapes and sizes and are sure to become a treasured companion of any child! Again, no removable parts make then a safe toy for a child of any age.
4. Sophie the Giraffe This adorable giraffe is the “World’s Most Famous Teething Toy.” The natural rubber toy is a hit because it stimulates all five senses, fits perfectly into tiny little hands and is easy for a baby to grip. She is completely safe to chew on, and the soft texture soothes sore gums while teething.
5. Dandelion Safe and Soft Toys These organic plush toys are absolutely too cute for words! They come in a wide variety of different shapes—each one suter than the last. The hard part will be deciding which one you want to become the perfect first friend for baby.
6. Kathe Kruse Nikki Babies These soft and plush Waldorf dolls make an excellent addition to any baby’s toy chest.
7. Kathe Kruse Towel Dolls The Kathe Kruse line of toys are just to cute! The towel dolls are made from soft cotton fabric that encourages snuggling, and the adorable characters will make you smile.
8. Natursutten Organic Pacifier Some babies suck! This natural need can give a tired mom a well-deserved break without exposing baby to any harmful chemicals. These pacifiers are molded from a single piece of natural rubber and are PVC, BPA and phthalate free. They are available with rounded and orthodontic nubs.
9. Mally Bibs Baby will rock the fashion scene in this totally amazing leather bib. Each bib has an adorable applique and a food-catcher pocket in the back.
10. Any of the adorable outfits! Sprout Soup carries a wide range of absolutely adorable clothes to clad baby in style. With so many cute choices—many of which are completely organic—baby is sure to be the best dressed in town!

We love the holidays! The music, the decorations, the lights! You might like the hustle and bustle of shopping, or you might not be. Either way we thought you might like a few gift ideas for those on your list. For the first seven days in December we’ll cover a different age group and make some suggestions for good gifts that have lasting play value.

If you’re a fan of Sprout Soup, or even if this is your first visit here, you probably can tell we’re a different kind of store. We don’t stock our shelves with light-up, battery operated toys. What we have are high play-value, classic toys, many of which will live on and become heirlooms for your grandchildren or grandchildrens’ children.

We like to support Fair Trade and Made in the USA. We’re vigilant about safety, both in our toys and feeding products. We think green, reduce, reuse and recycle. Our top picks will uphold those values.

Product: Think-ets
Manufacturer: Think A Lot Toys
Manufacturer Recommended Age: 8 years
Price: $9.99
Batteries: battery-free toy

This is a great game that will stimulate the imagination of your little ones. It seems simple – just a bunch of “trinkets” but it is incredibly versitile. It comes with instructions for a bunch of different games that are all simple enough for a 3 year old to understand. My son loves to play “what’s missing?” or “make up a story”.

One thing I really like about this game is that it is very small and can be shoved into any bag to be pulled out in an “emergency” to entertain the kids.

Summer is here, or at least summer weather has arrived. Here in Ohio we’ve hit 90 the past few days. It’s HOT. So with the sun and warm weather our thoughts start turning toward getting away. Time to take a family vacation!

Getting away is grand! Seeing the sights, playing with your kids all day, a temporary hiatus from your responsibilities. Sometimes, though, getting to your destination can cause stress and dampen the excitement. Here’s a couple ideas of games to play in the car or on a plane that can help keep your children occupied and looking forward to the trip.

Children ages 4 and up will enjoy keeping a scrapbook of their trip. While the younger ones may not have the ability to keep the book organized or neat, they will still enjoy making a book all their own. We found a small photo book with blank pages for our son to use on a trip we took last year. We gave it to him at the airport and explained what it was for. I also packed glue, safety scissors and colored pencils for him to use. He had a great time searching for things to add to his book, like pamphlets from the places we saw, ticket stubs and fliers. In the evening we helped him write down what he remembered from the places we visited.

Pack your bags with fun things to do in the car or on the plane. Older kids will enjoy writing and coloring, doing activity books or reading. Younger children might need something a bit more entertaining, but if traveling by plane, realize your fellow travelers may not appreciate noisy toys.

Magnetic mazes are great for kids over 2. The Colorback Sea Turtle Magnetic Maze from HaPe has multiple uses for kids of all ages.

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These are so adorable and I love that they are recycled or reclaimed wood.

A creek runs behind our house. My boys could spend hours down there, digging in the sand, throwing rocks in the water, generally getting dirty and having fun. We took our little wooden boat down and had fun letting it float around in a part of the creek where it was safe from the strong currents and kept getting pushed back toward shore.

For a little more adventure, we could have secured some fishing line to the boat’s mast and let it go on its merry way while we held on to the end and ran along side the creek. I suppose that in the summer the boys won’t care too much about how far the boat goes and they will just jump right in the water after it.

Spring and warmer weather is here!
Recycled Wood Floating Boat
$9.95

Product: Peek-a-Blocks – Tumblin’ Sounds Giraffe
Manufacturer: Fisher Price
Sets Reviewed: Tumblin’ Sounds Giraffe
Manufacturer Recommended Age: 0 – 2 years
Price: $21.99
Batteries: 3 AA batteries required

This is another set int he Peek-a-Blocks family of toys. The colorful blocks are filled with zoo creatures that will delight and entertain your child. The colorful giraffe is a good height for young kids to sit and work on their hand-eye coordination. This is not a battery-free toy but fortunately you can remove the batteries and it will continue to captivate your child.

Overall the Tumblin’ Sounds Giraffe is one of the better Peek-a-Blocks sets out there.

Product: Crayola Color Wonders Markers
Manufacturer: Crayola
Sets Reviewed: Crayola Color Wonders Markers – 6 Pack
Manufacturer Recommended Age: 3 – 6 Years
Price: $4.75
Batteries: battery-free toy

Once your child reaches the stage when he wants to color and create works of art to hang on the fridge these Color Wonders Markers are a necessity. Basically these markers only color on the special paper. This prevents “accidents” from happening where “somehow” marker appears on the wall. Not that this ever happened in our house (but if it does Mr. Clean Magic Erasers are AMAZING). Anyway, back on topic.

These markers come in a variety of colors and will keep your budding artist busy for as long as his imagination will go.

I highly recommend these over normal markers for your toddler and preschool age child.

The news has been flooded with announcements of toy recalls lately. It leaves parents wondering what is safe for their children to play with, and what might be recalled next. Items made in China are under the most scruitiny.

Twenty five years ago the majority of the toys in my toybox were made in America. This doesn’t mean they were without their faults, but with stricter guidelines in the States, toys were less-likely to contain harmful substances like the ones being recalled today. This surge in recalls has taken us back to looking for toys made domestically. Sadly, however, these toys are hard to come by. The past twenty years has seen a dramatic shift from quality to quantity, from small and simple operations to large-scale manufacturing, deep discounts and the need to source from overseas where labor is cheaper.

The few remaining companies who create American-made items have been overwhelmed this Christmas season with unprecedented volume. My favorite American toymaker announced yesterday that they can no longer accept orders. We’re about four weeks away from Christmas and they have already recieved the maximum number of orders they can comfortably fill in time. Last year they were easily filling orders a week before Christmas. This year they prepared in advance by stockpiling toys, but those stores have been long gone, and orders were taking two weeks to fill in early October.  The facility in Vermont is at full capacity. They are operating 17 hours a day. While they are hopeful that they will be able to get back to their normal schedules once the holiday season is over, I am sure the demand for their quaitiy wooden toys will not decrease.

This creates a strange dynamic. On one hand you have something great, a strong demand for quality, wood toys and labor right here in the USA. On the other hand, why did it take these recalls to come to this? Why did we wait until this wake up call to make a decision to buy American?  Where were all of you last year?

I’m so sad that we’ll have to stop filling orders for these quality toys three weeks too soon. There are still some toys in stock, and I expect more next week, but when those are gone, they’re gone until 2008. And maybe that will be a year of great expansion for American toymakers!