Who wants to spend the whole holidays building toys? Toy Insider Editor-in-Chief Marissa DiBartolo stopped by Better Connecticut in Hartford to show off some great toys that are ready to play with right out of the box. For more on the items featured in this segment, check out the product notes below, and for the complete rundown of the best toys of the holiday season, be sure to check our complete Toy Insider Holiday Gift Guide.
TOUCH & DISCOVER SENSORY TURTLE (VTECH)
- When the Touch & Discover Sensory Turtle comes out of his shell, he’s sure to entertain your little one!
- This cuddly plush turtle features a variety of textures, colors, and patterns to stimulate baby’s senses and encourage fine motor skills.
- Play peek-a-boo with the cute and cuddly turtle by tucking in his head and legs to change him into a soft, wobbly ball for two-in-one play.
- The chunky button on the top of the shell is easy for little ones to press and lights up in a variety of colors as it responds with sounds, music, and cute phrases.
- The shell includes a baby-safe mirror, a rattle, and a ring.
- Ages: 3 mos.+
- MSRP: $19.99
- Available: Amazon, Walmart, Target
- Adorable collectible plush that are born in mystery eggs and feature exciting elements, from reversible sequins to hair play to enchanted creatures.
- Every Rainbocorn comes in a big pink mystery reusable egg.
- Kids can collect the 12 different Rainbocorns based on six cuddly cute animals and every animal comes in two fun, funky designs.
- Puppycorns, Kittycorns, Hamstercorns, Bunnycorns, Unicorns, and Monkeycorns come with 12 unique sequin surprises that reveal what each plush loves.
- Each Rainbocorn comes with a baby Boo-Boocorn—a tiny collectible baby hidden in a secret egg for another layer of surprise.
- There are more than 20 Boo-Boocorns to collect including the rare twin Boo-Boocorns.
- Ages: 3+
- MSRP $24.99
- Available: Amazon, Target
- Rescue Runts need a home to call their own! The super soft plush puppies show up on your doorstep with matted fur, dirty paws, boo boos and fleas
- Care for your Rescue Runt using the included grooming kit!
- Use the tweezers to pluck out “fleas”
- Wipe their tears away and clean their dirty paws with the towel
- Brush their messy fur with the brush
- Remove their bandages, perk up their ears and make them smile to complete the transformation from ragged runt into perfect pet!
- Write their name on the collar and adoption certificate to make the adoption official
- Rescue Runts’ messy fur, downturned ears, dirty paws, and bandages can be restored for repeat animal rescue play
- Age: 3+
- MSRP: $19.99
- Available: Walmart
- This nerve-wracking bead-stacking game teaches kids about balance and weight while refining their fine motor skills.
- Appealing to both children and parents, this strategy game is fun for the whole family!
- To win Tumball, carefully place all your white beads on top of the suspended colorful balls using the wand. With every bead you add, the colorful balls become more unstable. If you push your luck too far or make one false move…TUMBALL!
- You must add the fallen beads to your collection. Get rid of all your beads to win!
- The package includes 14 colored balls, 24 white beads, 7 hangers, 4 wands, 2 assembly rings, 1 base, 1 arm, 1 hook, 1 ring and Instructions.
- Age: 5+
- MSRP: $24.99
- Available: Amazon, Walmart, Meijer, Fred Meyer, Learning Express
SMOOSHY MUSHY BABIES (REDWOODVENTURES)
- Special Delivery: It’s Smooshy Mushy Babies!
- A magic baby bottle holds the Smooshy babies you’ve been waiting to adopt.
- Pop the top to find out which baby the stork brought.
- Each baby also comes with a cute squishy plushies Bestie.
- There are six to collect in the first wave!
- Ages: 5+
- MSRP: $14.99
- Available: Amazon, Target, Walmart
SMASHY MASHY (REDWOODVENTURES)
- Squish doesn’t have to be ALL cute! Open up your super-goo-filled container but watch out! A Smashy Mashy character and its disgusting, spoiled buddy are lurking inside.
- Available in characters such as an ‘out of this world’ alien, a ‘far out’ hippie llama, and more. You can collect loads of smelly Smashy Mashy characters.
- Age: 5+
- MSRP: $9.99
- Available: Walmart
EXIT: THE GAME, ORIENT EXPRESS OR SUNKEN TREASURE (THAMES & KOSMOS)
- This party game designed for up to six players brings the hit Escape-Room concept to home use.
- Solve a series of riddles and puzzles to escape from a room. Each correct solution brings you to another riddle. How fast can you escape the room?
- Each unique game involves strategy, skill, and teamwork.
- New titles include Orient Express and Sunken Treasure.
- In Orient Express, the culprit is still on board your train, and there is not much time until the train reaches the terminal. The case is perplexing and must be solved quickly so that the perpetrator does not escape!
- In Sunken Treasure, you’re searching for the legendary treasure of Santa Maria and embarking on a dangerous adventure. However, something goes wrong and you become trapped deep in the sea. Can you solve the riddles of the old wreck and recover the treasure?
- Ages: 12+
- MSRP: $14.95
- Available: Specialty stores, Amazon
