So much of the holiday season is about the little ones in your life. The bright eyes, the expectant looks make this season shine.
Early Wonder & Open-Ended Play
For the youngest dreamers, these toys grow with each developmental stage while inviting storytelling, pretending and hands-on discovery.
The Play Kits
Beautiful, enriching toys everyone will love, each Play Kit is targeted to your child’s developmental stage. Order as a subscription or pick and choose, $30-$300.
Ages: up to 4 years. Pricing: $80-$120. Available at lovevery.com.
Living Puppets
Fanciful puppets make special playmates, cuddly friends, imagination developers and confidants for children. These finely crafted puppets of people, animals, colorful monsters or everyday items are sure to delight. Artful Folkmanis Puppets also available; at Little Richard’s Toy Store (poorrichardsdowntown.com) or living-puppets.de/en. Ages: 1-99. Pricing: $40-$100.
Little Richard’s Toy Store address: 324 N Tejon St, Colorado Springs, CO 80903
Tegu Magnetic Blocks
Build things like never before with a magnetic twist on the classic toy. Creative toy innovations Magna-Tiles, K’NEX and the Q-Ba-Maze let kids build their own marble maze. Ages: 1-99. Pricing $20-$160. Available at tegu.com and Little Richard’s Toy Store.
Little Richard’s Toy Store address: 324 N Tejon St, Colorado Springs, CO 80903
Worlds to Build & Stories to Tell
For kids who love to rearrange, reimagine and reinvent their surroundings, these gifts turn rooms and shelves into stages, forts and scenes.
AirFort
Instead of arranging couch cushions and blankets, what if you could retreat to your blow-up fort? Play pretend in a fire engine, mushroom house, spaceship, barn, jungle outpost or under the stars, all powered by a household box-fan. Ages: 1-99. Pricing: $60.
Available at Little Richard’s Toy Store or airfort.com.
Little Richard’s Toy Store address: 324 N Tejon St, Colorado Springs, CO 80903
Book Nook
Fill empty spots in your bookcase with these creative miniatures that add whimsy and wonder. Hand-build an intricate scene from kits that include all the parts as well as a small warm light to illuminate the finished creation. These exquisite models and miniatures are challenging and beautiful. Ages: 8 and older or 14 and older. Pricing: $15-$50. Available at rolifeonline.com and Theo’s Toys in Manitou Springs.
Theo’s Toys address: 934 Manitou Ave Ste 103, Manitou Springs, CO 80829
Liberty Puzzles
Jigsaw puzzles were originally made from wood, hand-cut with a scroll saw. By the 1940s, cheaper die-cut paperboard versions had left the original artistry in the dust. For the past 20 years, however, Boulder-based Liberty Puzzles has made it possible to gift the nostalgia of a bygone era. These beautiful wooden jigsaw puzzles are sure to become heirlooms. Pricing: $50-200, and piece counts from less than 100 to more than 750. Available at libertypuzzles.com.
Cosmic Curiosity & Big Skies
For kids who are always looking up, these gifts take their sense of wonder from the playroom to the night sky and beyond.
Telescope
Travel the universe with your eyes. See Mile High Astronomy’s list of “Best Telescopes for Kids & Families” list and “How to Choose a Telescope for Kids” article to find one that’s just right for your child’s celestial adventures.
The store experts can help evaluate the options and recommend size, type and other features. Good models to start with are Celestron’s StarSense Explorer or NexStar, or a smart telescope like ZWO’s Seestar S50.
Membership in the Colorado Springs Astronomical Society (csastro.org) completes the gift. Ages: 5 and older. Pricing: $399-$1,700. Visit Mile High Astronomy (Denver) or milehighastro.com/collections/best-telescopes-for-kids .
Mile High Astronomy address: 9797 W Colfax Ave #3vv, Lakewood, CO 80215
Bonus Gift: Name a Star
Gaze up and marvel at your personal star from celestial naming service International Star Registry (ISR). Ages: birth to 99. Pricing: $30-$250. Visit StarRegistry.com.
All images courtesy of the manufacturers and retailers