Bead Asssortment (52 Pieces) Review

I wanted to buy a lacing set for my toddler to use (supervised, of course!) to practice fine motor skills. I love the HABA brand and wanted something safe. And you can't beat the design elements that HABA always come through with. This set seemed like a great value for the money, with 52 pieces. However, the photo shows hearts, bells, and other shaped beads and there were only three "special" beads in the set. The rest are plain ovals or circles. Blah. What fun is that? I should have just gone to the craft store and picked up some unfinished beads.
These are also a lot smaller than I was expecting. I didn't think they'd be huge, but the biggest one- a heart (and remember, that's one of THREE large beads)- is a little less than an inch long and the hole is teeny. My daughter can thread the shoelace through these with assistance and she would have been able to do it on her own if the holes were bigger. There's one shoelace included, and you can't fit all the beads on it. Extra shoelaces are easy to find, but still.
I wanted to purchase a second set of beads in the future to add to the fun, maybe one of the cute Bambini sets that are more interesting. Now I think I'm going to hold off, unless I can see them in person first. And I'm going to pay a lot more attention to product dimensions in the future.

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Product Description:
ow many red beads can you put on this yellow string?How many beads are left over?An excellent counting toy, this 52 Bead Assortment will keep little hands busy creating colorful patterns and helping them count, too!Multiple coats of natural, water-based, non-toxic lacquers ensure that this collection of beads' colors will stay vivid and bright for years to come. A quality toy that was crafted to withstand years, even generations, of childhood adoration and play.

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Ear Tug Review

Another fabulous game from Haba! It is a take on any other bingo style game, with a few twists.

Ear Tug consists of 9 heavy cardboard squares, each decorated with an animal with cut outs where the ears should be. There is a blue fabric bag that contains 21 wooden and colored shapes, that represent the ears.

The object is to pick a card (or 2 or 3 or 4 depending on the number of players). Each player puts their hand into the bag, which you cannot see through. You must pick out a shape and if it matches one of your cards, you place it on that card and play on. There are 3 blue pieces that cannot be used, just to keep things interesting. The person who wins is the one that fills their cards first.

We bought this 3 years ago for my now 6 year old. She and her brother, age 3, love to play this game together. There is no need for parental help, reading or counting. It is simply a your turn/ my turn type game.

It has held up and is quite durable. I recommend this!

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Product Description:
A great color and shape recognition game. Players pick an ear out of the bag and need to find the animal it belongs to. A game to train the sense of touch and classifying abilities. Contains 9 animal cards, 21 wooden ears and a cloth bag. Game lasts approx. 5-10 minutes.Recommended for 3 years and up. Made in Germany.

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Haba Lucky Sock Dip Card Game Review

This is one of those games made for kids to play with each other and not against a parent. It is mostly a matching game, with an added element of time and counting.

Each person has to find 5 matches and then grab the 'sock monster'. We have the "Socken Zocken" version, so you are also supposed to yell "SOCKEN ZOCKEN"! The person to win 3 games total is the overall winner.

This game is great for kids to play with each other. But to add an adult in, there is a need for the adult to hold back quite a bit. (Not that there is anything wrong with this, it just doesn't make it very enjoyable to play as a family.)

It is good for learning matching skills, colors and beginner counting. My 6 year old got bored of the game before she became good at it. So while we played it for a good year, now it sits in the closet until her 3 year old brother can grasp the concept. Perhaps then she will want to play again, too?

It is colorful and more interesting than many of the other matching type games we have tried. Haba is always impressive with their quality and design.

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Product Description:
Oh dear, the sock monster has been in the cupboard again! Now it's the job of the sock pickers to rummage in the heap of socks and find the matching pairs. Unfortunately the socks all look very similar! A monstrously quick searching game for 2 - 6 player. Includes variation for expert sock pickers. - 3615 Recommended for 4 - 99 years old. Made in Germany.

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Curioso Fabric Shape Sorter with 8 Discovery Blocks Review

This is a nice toy, and the blocks are fun and interesting.However, I just don't find it to be educational as a shape sorter.The problem is that the sorter is made of cloth and the cutout holes are not very true to shape.The blocks don't fit in with ease.If I had it to do again I would get one of the wooden sorters that Haba makes.

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Product Description:
Which blocks fits where? The Curioso shape sorter is a matching game that acquaints children with shapes and colors. The acoustic and optical elements of the colored blocks stimulate perception. Includes eight discovery blocks. Made of cotton/polyester, plastic.

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