Our Best Travel Toy Recommendations

We've been working on developing a list of our best travel toy recommendations, which is something we get asked about a lot in the store.

What is a good travel toy? A good travel to should be self-contained, portable, small, lightweight, safe and fun. Our recommendations are based on the age of your child, since their interests and abilities change dramatically over time. In general, younger children need lots of little interesting items while older kids enjoy portable activity kits designed for longer play. Explore our recommendations for ages 0-3 years, 3-5 years, and 5+ years.

We asked our followers on Facebook to share their favorite travel toys, too. Their recommendations include: Books, masking tape; a spiral-bound drawing pad and crayons/ colored pencils; books on CD; coloring sets where you fill the "marker" with plain water; rocks, sticks and plastic hotel cups; "Scratch & Sketch" books; "Guess and Know" books, Travel Bingo; a tray for the car seat or lap; and Sakol velcro blocks. More great ideas!

Here's some of our favorite travel toys:

Box Set Airplane and Airport Portable Wood Playset	Airplanes Magnetic Design Set by Mudpuppy	Educo Train Magnetic Maze
Baby Paper	eeBoo Elodie & Naomi Musician & Artist Paper Dolls	Sophie the Giraffe

Press Release: Great Cloth Diaper Change on 4/21 -- World Record Attempt

Local Businesses Team up to Break World Record in Support of Cloth Diapering

ST. PAUL, MN: On Saturday, April 21, local business owners and cloth diaper advocates will team up with over 305 other sites in 16 countries around the world in an attempt to break the record for the most cloth diapers changed at the same moment.

The event, dubbed The Great Cloth Diaper Change, seeks to promote the environmental and health benefits of cloth diapering. "Cloth diapering has been a growing trend for several years", said Brittany Kubricky, co-owner of ,BabyLove an Eagan business which teaches classes about cloth diapering. "Parents are looking for ways to be more environmentally-friendy," she added, "and cloth diapers are a big part of that."

Peter Allen, owner of Do Good Diapers in Minneapolis, a cloth diaper service, agrees. "Whether you have clean diapers delivered by a service or wash them yourself, they're a lot easier than they used to be." Allen, who also serves on the board the Real Diaper Industry Association, a national trade group of cloth diaper businesses, added, "Once they get started, parents really see the benefits of cloth diapering. Not only are they greener, but they're a lot more affordable than disposables".

Millie Adelsheim, the owner of Peapods Natural Toys and Baby Care, the host of the event, said, "We're really excited to host the Great Cloth Diaper Change. We see it not just as a world record attempt, but as a celebration of cloth diapers. We hope it'll be a lot of fun." Adelsheim, who's been selling cloth diapers at her St. Paul store since 1999, added, "Cloth Diapers have come a long way in the past 13 years. We have so many more great choices available now."

Other participating local businesses in the diaper change event will be Amanda Erickson, owner of And All That Scrap, a local cloth diaper maker; Jenene Johnson, owner of Sign2Say, a Baby Sign Language educator; and Megan Crown of Megan Crown Photography, a local birth, child, and family photographer. Interested participants should preregister at http://www.peapods.com/page.cfm/GCDC.html.

Baby Carrier Comparison Chart - 2012

We've created this chart as a quick way to compare the best features of the different baby carriers we sell. These are just our opinions, based on 13 years of experience in helping parents choose the right baby carrier. Let us know if you have questions; we can (and do!) expound upon every check mark in this chart.

	Optimum Ages*	Quick on/off	Best for Long Periods of Use	One Size Fits All Adults	Use While Nursing**	Baby Can Ride Facing Forward	Toddler Can Ride on Back	Best Feature
Slings & Wraps
Sakura Bloom Ring Sling	Birth-2yrs							Very Versatile
Moby Wrap	Birth-12mos							Very Secure & Balanced
Boba Wrap	Birth-12mos							Very Secure & Balanced. Springs Back to Snug Fit
Soft Structured Carriers
Ergo Baby Carrier	6mo-3yrs younger w/ infant insert							Comfortably Distributes Weight to Hips
Boba Baby Carrier	Birth-3yrs No special infant insert needed.							Built-in support for young babies, stirrups for toddlers.
Beco Gemini Baby Carrier	Birth-3yrs No special infant insert needed.							Adjustable seat expands carrier as baby grows.
Beco Soleil Baby Carrier	6mo-3yrs younger w/ infant insert							Cute, wide-bodied toddler carrier

Beco Baby Carriers		Boba Baby Carriers
Ergo Baby Carriers	Moby Wrap	Sakura Bloom

The Enduring Playability of KEVA Planks

This picture was taken by our son Duncan at his homeschool co-op. Every week, he and his friends play with Keva Planks between classes. Sometimes they work together to build the tallest structure possible, standing on chairs to place the final pieces before it all comes tumbling down. Sometimes, they work in smaller groups, building multiple structures. It's amazing to watch these kids play cooperatively like this week after week, always coming up with new ideas.

We've always loved KEVA planks. In their simplicity, they aren't pre-programmed with an adult's conception of how to play. They rely 100% on inborn inventiveness. We love seeing them in action!