Posted by swistle on 27th April 2011
Categories: Books, Crafts and activities, Gifts, Toys
7 comments
Henry has recently cooled on his dinosaur obsession, and seems to be starting up a new thing with knights and castles. His birthday is next month, so I’m looking for ideas.
Fisher-Price TRIO Wizard’s Castle (photo from Amazon.com). This is the castle Henry liked best of all the ones we looked at. My mom bought it for her playroom right away when I told her.
Knights to go with it. (Photo from Amazon.com.) And more knights, so there can be fighting.
Melissa and Doug Knight Costume Set (photo from Amazon.com) for dress-up play. This is highly likely to be one of Henry’s birthday gifts from us.
Knight’s Castle Play Tent (photo from Amazon.com). We’re less likely to buy this, because of the space it takes up—but the reviews are really good, and WITH the costume it might be irresistible. Imagine the photos!
Castle, by David Macaulay (photo from Amazon.com). This is too old for him, but I think he’d like looking through it anyway. (And may I suggest that if you want to search for books about knights, you first select the “Children’s Books” category? Evidently there is a bit of a fantasy genre for adults built around knights.) (And HOLY ORDER OF THE GARTER, be sure not to search “knights” in the Health & Personal Care section.)
Knight stickers (photo from Amazon.com). I wouldn’t be able to be in the room while he used these, or else I’d end up taking over so it would be done “right.”
Dragon Sticky Mosaics (photo from Amazon.com). These sticker mosaic sets are SO FUN. Elizabeth and I have done several of them, and in our opinion they’re well worth the price. Henry might be too young (he’s turning 4), but maybe not.
Crocodile Creek “Jouster” Backpack, Lunch Box, and Water Bottle Set (photo from Amazon.com). If Henry’s still on this kick when he starts kindergarten, I’ll be sorely tempted. We have the Crocodile Creek dinosaur backpack and plates, and they’re GREAT. Note: I used the photo of the set of three items, but as of posting it’s cheaper to buy them separately: backpack for $14.99 down from $28.00, lunch box for $14.90, water bottle for $7.44 down from $10.00—which is a total of $37.33, while the set of three is $47.99. (If you see different prices when you click, they may have changed as the prices on Amazon seem to do every few hours—but also check under More Buying Choices to the right: Amazon is supposed to take you automatically to the best price, but there are flaws in that system.)
Of course I had to search for the personal care knights. At first I didn’t get it, then I scrolled, scrolled, scrolled and OH!
TheGoriWife | April 27th, 2011 at 1:51 pm
A castle is a great gift for a 4 year old. My son got one when he was that age and played with it constantly until quite recently (he’s almost 10) and now his 5-year-old sister plays with it every day. Pretty much whenever a kid between the ages of 3 and 8 or 9 walks in our door, he or she goes straight for the caste.
StephLove | April 27th, 2011 at 2:56 pm
My son is a bit younger than Henry but also very into knights and princes and things. FYI I have found some knight garb (breastplate, shield, sword) at our local dollar store, for a cheaper option. Don’t expect it to hold up as well over time, of course, but I’ll also feel less guilt if it gets broken or his obsession cools.
Auntie G | April 27th, 2011 at 4:20 pm
Um, maybe it is tacky for me to say so, but Usborne has some great Castles and Knights books…
http://www.myubam.com/ecommerce/main.asp?sid=D3923&gid=113126844
Just search for either!
Kelsey | April 28th, 2011 at 3:29 am
We have that Castle book, but… meh. It was a hand-me-down from my 11 year old baby brother to my toddler, and it’s just pretty boring. I adore that play tent and costume set. SO cute.
Lynnette | April 28th, 2011 at 3:54 am
I had that castle book as a kid & loved looking at all the pictures!! Might be a little too old for your kiddo tho
Meg | May 1st, 2011 at 11:10 pm
Our kids have the Playmobil Take-A-Long Castle and they love, love, love it. Even my husband and I love it! It’s a bit pricey ($58) but oh, so fun. We have 3 boys and 1 girl so the price is not so bad spread out over several children and several years of play. It does have some pretty small pieces. I would not recommend it for a child that is prone to putting things in his mouth.
1hot&tiredmama | May 2nd, 2011 at 6:27 pm