ellynbot
Member Since: August 17, 2018Reviews
Bakugan Battle Planet Deka Jumbo Collectible Transforming Figure
Before we received our new Bakugan Battle Planet Jumbo Bakucore, we didn't know anything about these toys. Opening it up, we were faced with a mystery- how do we transform this ball into a dragon? It doesn't come with instructions, but with a quick... +
Before we received our new Bakugan Battle Planet Jumbo Bakucore, we didn't know anything about these toys. Opening it up, we were faced with a mystery- how do we transform this ball into a dragon? It doesn't come with instructions, but with a quick Google search we learned that the paper hexagon in the package was actually the key! My six year old slapped that orb down on that tile and BOOM. It unrolled into a pretty cool dragon figure! Obviously we did that a bunch of times because magnets are cool. Sometimes it automatically unrolls into the figure, but sometimes a piece or two unlocks and then you have to jimmy the rest of it open. None of that bothered my son though- he was delighted.
The main purpose of the toy is playing a battle game and there is an online component that we haven't explored. I don't usually let my kids play app games; I buy my kids toys to give them an alternative to screen time. I may download the app, but I haven't yet.
Since we only have the one Bakugan, we haven't been able to battle with it yet. I actually think it's pretty cool though, and if my son wants another one I would probably buy it for him on the next gift occasion. We really like to play board and card games in our house, and this seems like it would be a fun new game to play with a cool toy component!
My main concern is keeping the paper tile (or Deka) with the magnet in it in good condition and with the Bakucore. I have a pretty destructive three year old, so this is a real danger in our house. I wish the tile was made of a sturdier material. Other than that though, this seems like a solid toy and if you had enough of them to play the game, it would be used enough to make it a toy that has a lot of replay value in our house.
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Hatchimals Hatchibabies - Cheetree
I was excited when my family received this, but I had never considered buying one for my kids. I remembered a couple of years ago when they were the Christmas toy no one could keep in stock and then I remember that there a lot of complaints about... +
I was excited when my family received this, but I had never considered buying one for my kids. I remembered a couple of years ago when they were the Christmas toy no one could keep in stock and then I remember that there a lot of complaints about defects. That being said, my kids were DELIGHTED to play with this.
We opened up the box and got out the colorful egg, removed the keys from the bottom and it came to life, wiggling and cooing. My five year old son *immediately* went into daddy mode and started nurturing the heck out of it, hugging it and snuggling it, kissing it and singing to it. That alone was worth the purchase of this toy. If you have kids that love to take care of things and are good at being sweet and gentle, this little toy will provide some pretty cute moments right off the bat.
He then put the egg to sleep and we ended up having to do some trouble shooting to get it to turn back on. Luckily- with the power of YouTube on my side, we figured out how to restart it. By putting one of the original locks from the bottom of the egg back in and wiggling it around, we got it to wake back up and then it was getting all rainbow-eyed and ready to hatch.
The hatching is pretty funny, you can hear a little motor whirring inside the egg, shoving the baby up through the pre-scored "cracks." My son was overjoyed and my two year old daughter started to get excited too. We broke him free of the remaining eggshell and found that we had a Hatchiboy!
In the eggs are little compartments with a brush (my daughter's favorite item), a bottle, a rattle and a little plastic animal buddy. The Hatchibaby responds to these items in different ways, depending on its needs at the time, which you can tell from eye color. Purple eyes mean the baby is hungry, so you jam the tiny bottle in its little beak until its eyes turn yellow and then you get to burp it, which is obviously a riot for little kids. If its eyes turn blue it's sad, but can be cheered up easily with hugs or its little snuggle animal toy. The rattle prompts it to sing and dance and the brush is just for fussing over it. There are also little games you can play with it, which are totally lost on my two year old, but perfect for my five year old who loves responding to the babies needs accordingly.
I waited to write this for a couple of days, because I think that how long your kids play with something counts a lot for its value. In this case, my kids have fought over who gets to hold it in the car two mornings in a row, and it's been picked up and coddled several times throughout the day as well.
As far as drawbacks go, there's only a couple of things I can think of. By some miracle we haven't lost any of its accessories yet, but it's only a matter of time. The egg base itself is supposed to be a place where you can sit the baby, but it's completely unstable and would only end up knocking over a glass of milk or something if I let them use it. Other than those two qualms and the troubleshooting we had to do on the egg, it's been a great toy! If they keep playing with it over the next couple of weeks I might have to get another one for them for Christmas.
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Aquaphor Baby Healing Ointment
My first born has had several mild cases of allergic eczema since he was a baby. This is the first line of defense against it and it almost always works. I hardly ever have had to resort to steroid creams, because Aquaphor almost always does the... +
My first born has had several mild cases of allergic eczema since he was a baby. This is the first line of defense against it and it almost always works. I hardly ever have had to resort to steroid creams, because Aquaphor almost always does the trick. And, obvs, it also works great to protect little butts from diapers. -
Dawn Ultra Dishwashing Liquid - Original
I really, really dislike the smell of blue Dawn so I don't use it on my dishes. However, it's the best stain remover for clothing that I've found! I just rub a little into the stain, let it sit and wash as normal. Works great on grease stains, which... +
I really, really dislike the smell of blue Dawn so I don't use it on my dishes. However, it's the best stain remover for clothing that I've found! I just rub a little into the stain, let it sit and wash as normal. Works great on grease stains, which I get a lot of. -
Ecover Automatic Dishwasher Tablets
I like these, because I have tendency to over-pour my dishwasher detergent and then I find dried powder all up in the crevices of my dishes. These tablets reduce that occurring, but it still happens occasionally. Liquid detergent is the only way to... +
I like these, because I have tendency to over-pour my dishwasher detergent and then I find dried powder all up in the crevices of my dishes. These tablets reduce that occurring, but it still happens occasionally. Liquid detergent is the only way to mostly avoid buildup like that. But my dishes are clean and don't smell like chemicals which is the most important part for me. -
Mr. Clean Magic Eraser
I use Magic Erasers mainly in my kitchen. Weird dirty oil splatters on the knob and clock part of your stove- GONE. Weird colored set-up goo in microwave- GONE. Dingy fridge handle- CLEAN. I love these things.
I use Magic Erasers mainly in my kitchen. Weird dirty oil splatters on the knob and clock part of your stove- GONE. Weird colored set-up goo in microwave- GONE. Dingy fridge handle- CLEAN. I love these things. -
20 Mule Team Borax All Natural Laundry Booster
My husband grooms dogs so his pants are perpetually damp until I wash them. Even with normal detergent and drying, sometimes they still smell like mildew- that's when I do a warm wash with some Borax and BOOM- they smell great. Plus, it's a useful... +
My husband grooms dogs so his pants are perpetually damp until I wash them. Even with normal detergent and drying, sometimes they still smell like mildew- that's when I do a warm wash with some Borax and BOOM- they smell great. Plus, it's a useful ingredient in a lot of little craft/science/chemistry projects you can do with your kids. -
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