Holiday Hours

We survived Christmas once again. I hope yours was merry and made better, in part, with toys purchased from us and given with love. We will be keeping short hours on New Years Eve - 10:00 a.m. until 4:00 p.m. and we will be closed on New Years Day. We will be closed Sundays until sometime in the spring.

Top Toy Countdown

Everyone has their list of top toys, award-winners and so on. So it is with my 15 years of experience that I hereby proclaim the top toys at Toys for the Fun of It. As with all statistics, the results will be skewed in favor of what we have in stock this late in the game :)

1) BANANAGRAMS the fun, compact word game





2) DOINKIT DARTS the best magnetic, non lethal dart set for all ages





3) RODY HORSE this fun inflatable holds up to 300 lbs !






4) POWER POPPER rapid-fire fun for everyone










5) WEDGITS unique building blocks for ages 1 to 101

Extended Hours

In case you still need to do some shopping, we have extended hours to help:

Monday through Friday 10 am until 8 pm
Saturday 10 am until 7 pm
Sunday 10 am until 4 pm

Traffic during the evening hours tends to be light, but our customers are grateful and you will get more personal attention than during the peak of crazy times. See you soon!

Fantabulus Funtastic Friday Nights

The stores in the 500 block of Main Street have gotten together to host Friday night events in December. Most of the stores will be open until 9 p.m. so you can come down and get your shopping done and have dinner downtown. Enjoy the holiday atmosphere: the festive lights and holiday windows, along with special activities in the stores. Santa will be making appearances in the 500 block and at the 560 Salon on the corner of 6th & Colorado. Stop in at Kairos Children's Boutique and let the kids make an elf hat. Enjoy games and free food courtesy of Chris Brown at Brown's Cycles. Say "Hi" to Scott & Melinda at Amber Floral and treat yourself to a seated massage with massage therapist Catie Bucher from 5;30 - 7:30. Bring the kids down to enjoy the fun or drop them off at Creative Avenues on 5th Street, just around the corner from us and enjoy an adult evening from 6-9:30. Pre-registration is required for this. (use the linktastic link above). Wow, so, what's happening at the Toy Store? We'll have a Calico Critter craft and stickers to give away. Along with that is a free 2010 critter calendar with Critter purchase and a special Critter deal for mentioning the blog. Spend $200 in the store (must include calico critters) and get a Critters play table for $50 (retail $140). We will have our campfire set up outside to keep people warm while waiting for the free carraige rides. Warm drinks and treats will be offered at several locations. Bundle up and come downtown.

Made in USA

Just in: Imagibricks from Smart Monkey Toys. These are the heavy duty cardboard blocks that are large scale and will stand up to the toughest little customer. I remember them from the play room at church when I was a kid. We sold these a few years ago, but lost track of them when our supplier quit carrying them. The cardboard is coated for easy cleaning and the blocks are strong enough to stand on. They come flat and you have to fold them into blocks before you can play with them. They are made in the USA and are made of 50% recycled materials. What's not to love?
There aren't a lot of toys still made here in the US, but we carry those we can find that are a "fit" in our store.

Do-a-Dot paints and coloring books
Harrisville Designs potholder looms & loops
Green Toys tea sets, tool sets and sand toys
Taggies natural baby blankies
Fractiles magnetic design sets
Tedco gyroscopes
...& more

Big Weekend Ahead

Downtown will be full of excitement this weekend. Friday night is the Spirit of Christmas and First Friday Art event. Live entertainment, free carriage rides and a variety of special in-store activities are planned. Come down and have dinner, then stroll along beautifully decorated Main Street. Most of the stores should be open so you can do more than just "window" shop. We're open til 9.
Bring the kids down and let them make their Santa List and make crayon rubbings in our store, or drop them off at Creative Avenues and have a night to yourselves. (pre-registration is required; see link above).
Saturday, the 26th annual parade of lights kicks off at 5 p.m. If you are new to the area, this is the must-see event of the year. Bundle up and come on down.
JUST IN...NEW CALICO CRITTERS! We just received our "Sneak Peak" shipment of Calico Critters including the undeniably cute hedgehog and elephant families and the tree house complete with hot tub and all new country furnishings. There is also a new website devoted to the critters. It has games, crafts and you-tube videos for the kids. It seems to be geared to the pre-school crowd even though many critter lovers are older. Check it out if you like calico critters. See you downtown!

Thanks "GIVING"

This year we are doing our best to make sure every child in the grand valley has a happy Christmas experience. We've been saving toys all year to donate to Toys for Tots and last week we helped them kick off the season of giving by donating nearly $4000 worth of toys. Our challenge now is to our customers. We have a big donation box in the front of our store and this year the need is almost double that of last year. Please come down and fill up our box (over & over). This is the season of giving. A great way to help your children experience giving, would be to bring them down to the toy store and have them pick out a toy they like to give to another child "just like them". Let them learn about giving and put the toy in the box. Older children might be encouraged to "earn" the toy to be given, by doing chores. Generosity, I think, is more of a "learned" behavior. By starting them young and setting a good example, you can raise the next generation of generous people.

When my son David was little, I'd take him along to deliver meals-on-wheels. The recipients were always glad to see him; he was the highlight of their day. One year, we were in Texas and he helped my sister deliver food to homeless people and when we got back home there was a package for David in the mail. One of the homeless guys had given my sister a big plastic car to give to David as a thank you. It probably came out of a dumpster or the Goodwill, but it meant a lot to Dave and I think we still have it somewhere as a reminder that both the giver and the receiver profit from the experience. Warm fuzzys all around!

Classics are Forever

Classic toys have always been best sellers for us. Why? Because they withstand the test of time. Basic construction toys from wooden blocks to lincoln logs to erector sets should be in everyone's toy box. We carry other classic items; tin toys, jack in the box, sock monkeys and always Raggedy Ann & Andy. These are not antiques, they are newly made and pass all the current safety regulations. Remember lead (or tin) soldiers? They are not considered safe toys for this generation, but we carry the "Papo" line of knights, pirates, and fantasy figurines. They are very detailed, hand painted plastic figures that the kids love to collect.
Classic toys require more imagination to play with; something that we at Toys for the Fun of It encourage. The more "open - ended" a toy is, the more play value it has. In the "active" category we have classic tricycles, pogo sticks and hop balls. When it comes down to good old fashion fun; we're here for you.
Now is the time to bring the kids down to make their wish lists. The turkey is thawing and Christmas is right around the corner.

BIG KID TOYS

Don't think that just because you're older than dirt, that you are too old for toys. Here at Toys for the Fun of It we will admit that one does have to grow older... but growing up is optional. Some of our best selling toys have no age limit. We have a fully stocked section for adult games, puzzles and brainteasers. And what big kid doesn't need an inflatable fruit cake or a Sigmund Freud action figure under the tree. Skill toys are also popular with the young at heart. We can teach you to juggle or do amazing yo yo tricks and our most popular book from Klutz Press is "The Encyclopedia of Immaturity". It was so popular last year that they came out with volume 2 for this holiday season. Let's make some big kids smile :)

Thanksgiving comes before Christmas

.... and we have our inflatable turkey in the window to prove it! I can also promise that we won't play Christmas music in the store until AFTER Thanksgiving.
With that said, there is no reason not to start shopping early. Every year there are items that we run out of and/or can't get back in stock before Christmas. This year is no exception. Because of both the slower economy and the new toy testing laws, we've seen both price increases and product "trickling in" as available. In the coming weeks, I will highlight some of our best sellers, classics and what's new. We want to see each and every customer this season so that on Christmas morning I will know there are thousands of happy kids (of all ages) because we could help you pick the perfect gift for everyone on your giving list.

Do Boys Ever Outgrow Marble Runs?

We have a pretty good supply of Marble Runs in stock for all the guys on your list. I shouldn't be sexist because I remember loving to send marbles down when I was a little girl and I think I might have really enjoyed playing with them again when my boys were young. The cool part about today's marble runs is that you can build them many different ways. They combine engineering with gravity to equal fun. From simple to complex, in price ranges from $20 to $99, we have a marble run for you.

What's New

bilibo




The bilibo is a unique, open-ended toy invented by Swiss designer, Alex Hochstrasser. It immediately won local awards and it's popularity is still expanding. It holds a Dr Toy award here in the States from back in 2002. I hope I am not ahead of the curve introducing this cool toy to my Grand Junction customers. Kids seem to instinctively know what to do with it, but parents often give me the "whaah???" look. Click on the video link above and maybe it will become clear why everyone should have at least one of these.

Product Testing

No, this is not about CPSIA (consumer product safety improvement act). Our products are tested and safe. This is about Efrem, our 3 month old grandson that we visited last week. Of course, we never go anywhere empty handed... The results are pictured here. The clinical results of our product testing; great toys = happy baby!!!

Oktoberfest & Marching Bands Saturday, Oct. 3rd

It's time again for the annual Oktoberfest downtown. Sorry, I have to use the same picture from last year's blog. My computer died this summer, taking random unsaved photos with it. I wanted to show the wiener dog races that were so much fun. SO, you just need to come downtown and see for yourselves. The day begins with the marching band contest starting at 10 a.m. After the parade you can uhmpah till the cows come home, eat brats and, check out the races. We don't have any special activity at the store, but we do have a new shipment of dress-up in time for halloween. We are steadily stocking up for Christmas at this point even though you don't want to think about it yet. Come down and join the fun this weekend...the weather should be back to beautiful by then.

Car Show Saturday, Sept. 26th

This Saturday come down to Main Street for the annual Car Show. The weather is cooler, the cars are the coolest and the stores are open. Shop, dine, play and enjoy downtown at it's best. Several blocks of Main Street will be closed for this event until 4pm, but there is plenty of parking in the parking garage (free on weekends and after 4pm on weekdays). We just got in the new Carrera Go! set from the movie "Cars" in. The Go sets are 1:43 scale and great for kids ages 8+. Come in and see our selection.

Last Farmer's Market

This Thursday at Farmer's Market we will feature Calico Critters, one of our most popular lines. These little animals are just too cute for words. You have to come in and play with them. I found out today that our Critter display area was chosen as second best in the whole country by the company. Our sales rep took a picture in our store last time he was in town as part of a contest I didn't even know about. So.... a pat on the back for our little store out here in western Colorado. The last Farmer's Market is always bittersweet; Thursday is a really long day for us, but also a good one. We love seeing our "regulars" and I hope you keep coming. We are starting to buy for that holiday coming up in December and I will be highlighting new products as we come into the next season. Thanks for a good summer.

Holiday Weekend

We will be open both Sunday and Monday (Labor Day) from 11:00 am to 3:00 pm. This blogger is going on a river trip, so I have to do the weekly update now. Thursday for Farmer's Market we will have a free take home activity, since we will be a little short handed. Please do stop by, shop, and take home an "eco house" courtesy of Plan Toys to make out of recycled cardboard. This project is recycled from earth day in April :)

Have a "Groovy" Farmer's Market

This week we invite you down to meet the new groovy girls dolls. Not all the new ones are here yet; they are coming in as available. We will have some groovy coloring pages and some groovy give-aways for our groovy customers. If you are not familiar with groovy girls, they are wonderful soft dolls that the kids really play with. They have clothing and furniture and a horse and little pets - all cute and fun.
We have carried them since they were first introduced - way before they were so popular. Some of the dolls come with an on-line code so you can go to their website and play games and download songs. Put on your grooviest outfit and come down to Farmer's Market this Thursday evening.

Giant Games & Puzzles

This week for Farmer's Market we will showcase our Giant sized demos for the Rush Hour Puzzle (our best selling brain teaser ever) and a brand new game called "Chickyboom" from Blue / Orange games. Chickyboom is for the younger set, but still lots of fun for all ages. It's a balancing game of fun and strategy. Rush Hour is for ages 8+, however some of the easier puzzles can be done by younger kids and I had a teacher tell me that she uses it as a "following directions" activity. The solutions to the puzzles are on the back side of the puzzle card and she would read the steps and have the child follow the directions.
We have plenty of brainteasers and games & puzzles for all ages. We have played most of them and have samples to play with customers if you have questions. In this economy, a game is a great investment. You can play it many times and it is a great way to interact with your kids and friends. Whether you like strategy or just a fun party game, talk to us, we ARE the Toy Guys!

Velvet Art on Thursday, Aug 20

The Klutz guys do it best. This book is full of fun pictures to color and includes bright markers to fill in the space between the velvet. Stop by this Thursday during Farmer's Market and color your own picture or bookmark while supplies last. This craft is pretty much foolproof because you can't really color outside the lines (thick velvet). Everyone's work of art will be picture perfect. Take a break from "back to school" and have some fun downtown!

Immediate Consumption Day

Sometimes you just have to rip open the packaging and start playing !

Kid's Night - Thursday, Aug 13

This week, Farmer's Market is THE place for Kids to have fun. At Toys for the Fun of It, we will take over 5th Street next to Summit Canyon to play with outdoor toys. We will feature all time favorites like the giant bubble wand, stomp rockets, ram rockets, and hula hoops. Maybe we'll play a game of Boochie Ball or hopscotch. For sure - a good time will be had by all.
This is a special Kid-oriented market... The last Hurrah before school starts. Come down with the whole family and have some FUN!

Aug. 6th Play with Puzzibits

This week during Farmer's Market we will have a big pile of puzzibits out to play with. Puzzibits are colorful hexagonal pieces made of a thick, flexible vinyl that "weave" together. You can make flat designs or 3-D items with them. You can follow directions or create your own designs. I love toys that are open-ended like that. We have put them in our puzzle section, but they could just as easily be a construction toy or a craft. Puzzibits are for kids ages 5+, maybe younger with adult supervision. Come down this Thursday and play with us!

Building Castles during Farmer's Market

This Thursday you can come down and build castles with the Klutz Book of castle cards. We have both the original castle and the Harry Potter castle book in stock.
Klutz got it's start back in 1977 in Palo Alto, CA. Three college friends thought they could get rich quick by teaching juggling. They sewed beanbags in their garage and typed up some instructions. They didn't get rich quick, but they created an empire. In 2002, they sold to Scholastic. All their activity books are fun, easy to understand. They delight kids from age 4 to 104. (our best seller is the encyclopedia of immaturity)
A word about sunglasses. We carry the Julbo brand of cool shades for kids. They are top of the line protection for little eyes that need protecting, even more so at higher altitudes where the UV rays are stronger. Julbo provides maximum protection. Their line of baby shades are our best sellers. They come in 3 sizes now. Start early so your child gets used to wearing them. Who's that cute baby in the shades? Efrem W. Allen at 3 weeks old!

Sand Art at Farmer's Market

This Thursday we have some samples of Sand Art for you to try out. This project might not be as messy as it sounds. We'll find out for sure on Thursday from 5-8 pm.
Alex is our main manufacturer of art supplies and craft kits. We were reminiscing the other day that the very first order we placed when we opened our store was with Alex. We agonized over every item and flinched at the thought of having to buy 12 of any one item; would we ever sell that many?! 14 years later, Alex is still on our shelves and has always been one of our top selling lines. Kids of all ages need to explore their artistic side. Up until age 5, I always say "make a joyful mess!" Around 5, kids want to create, but they want their creations to look just like the picture on the box. Older kids need to explore different mediums and be more creative. Alex makes kits for all these needs.
Last Saturday we were in Fresno California visiting our brand new grandbaby Efrem (and his parents). We went to the Farmer's Market there. It was a great experience. Everything was grown locally and the variety was amazing.

It's SNOWING at Toys For the Fun of It

Science Fun will be the theme this Thursday during Farmers' Market. Join us and make some snow; a pretty cool thing to do in July. We will also shoot off a couple of diet coke and mentos geysers again just for fun.
Summer is a great time to pick up a couple of science kits. It keeps the brain tuned up and all of our kits have "fun" built in. We have kits for kids as young as 4. With a little adult supervision, there's nothing better than exploring science. From ant farms to chemistry to electronic snap circuits, we'll keep you entertained.

Farmer's Market Activity

Finally, it's summer! This week at Farmer's Market we will have our Do-a-Dot sets out for you to test drive. These paints come in a tube with a sponge tip to keep the messy factor to a minimum. They last a LONG time and are popular with my day care providers and pre-schools. Big kids like them, too. And they are made in the USA! Come down and try before you buy.

We also just got in some "green" wooden toys this week from Maxim Toys. I ordered them back in March and had about forgotten them when they showed up. I'm impressed with the quality and price.