Great Gifts for Kids 2021

Kids love the holidays, and their excitement is catching. While adults may want the gift of time spent together, or to give and get homemade items, most still want to have something store-bought for the kids to open. 

I'm posting this a little early due to headlines about the supply chain interruptions and slower delivery times. Aside from being practical, it never hurts to get things early in any case!

SO FUN YOU'LL WANT ONE

The Jump2It indoor trampoline comes highly recommended! With room enough for two kids, it is a great way to exercise AND to get all that reserve energy out so they sleep well at night!  The handle bar provides stability and it holds up to 180 lbs. Assembly is required but once it is, it's able to be folded and easily stored under most beds.  Looks like so much fun maybe you'll want to try it out! 

It's a little reduced ($128 down from $139) through 11/17 but you can get 20% off if you sign up for their email on Hearthtsong worth perusing by age as the site offers many unique things.

WHISTLES AND BELLS

I was looking at ye olde train set, to see what was out there.  Lionel is a trusted name in traditional train sets. They have a Christmas themed one called the North Pole Central that features a 4 battery powered pieces with authentic train sounds, announcements, bells and whistles! it also has a working headlight. For the track they provide 24 curved and 8 straight pieces, and of course you can buy more track. Batteries are not include. 

There's much more detail to check out if you like, but it all sounds pretty great for $99 on AMAZON. Google around for others - plenty to be found on the Lionel website too - if you'd like one without a holiday theme.  

IT'S ALIVE!

FatBrain Toys are also fantastic. Well built and unique, there's much to choose from. Check out their whole catalogue (and order early, remember?).  Hard to recommend just one but this is pretty special and delivers: a butterfly garden right inside the home!  There's a great description of how you'll get a voucher for a cup (including their food) of live caterpillars which can be watched for 10-12 days until they grow up to 10X their size. Then they begin to cover themselves with strands of silk till a hard chrysalis forms. 

Place them in their pop up habitat and wait for the beautiful butterflies to emerge. Amazing for kids and adults alike... And you can set them free if and reuse the habitat to grow more! It's $25, and they'll wrap it in a gift sack for $3 more.

WE ONLY HAD TROLLS

Funko is about collectibles and they are all the rage. Characters range from Disney, Star Wars, and Marvel characters, to Gremlins and Ninja Turtles, to Run DMC, Green Day and sports figures like Tom Brady (in a Buckaneers uniform, sorry Patriot fans) —you name it, all about 4" tall in vinyl. There are soft fabric versions too. They also have themed apparel, pins, watches, ornaments, mugs, luggage tags... somebody stop me!

I picked this Harry Potter Funko to highlight because you don't just get the figurine, you get the office with Hogwort Letters for $30. Add other characters solo like Hermoine with her wand for only $12. 

TIP: Free shipping on orders over $50. 

TOO COOL SCHOOLIN'

National Geographic has come out with a version of their fantastic magazine specially for kids age 6-9. Turning the pages is educational, creates curiosity and developed respect for the wonders of nature and all life. Get a peek of an issue HERE: At for only $20 for 10 issues, that's a lot of learning, fun, brain development, entertainment and adventure for your buck! Subscribe here!

AN EDIBLE EDUCATION

If the kid in your life take an interest in what's happening in the kitchen, The Raddish Culinary Club will be a hit! 

Each month you get  recipes and shopping lists for them (including a way to check if you have some  in the pantry) tip sheets for teaching cooking skills, a utensil to add to their arsenal, and they have kitchen patches you can collect as you go. 

There's an online community, and other activities such as doing art that connects with the culture the meal is based on, etc..  TOO MUCH to tell here. Visit their website to learn more. 

Even if you don't have a budding chef, this can be a lot of fun if they have related skills - painting (flavors mix with textures), putting puzzles together (following a recipe) or are great at math (measuring). Who knows what skills will enter them into the world of cooking. 

TIP: As of this date, save $15  On A 6 Month Subscription + Get A Free Cook-Along Kit! And they offer 20% off the first order to give them your email.

DIVERSE, EMPOWERING PLAY 

Lottie Dolls are great for kids of any gender. Based on the average proportions of a nine-year-old child (rather than those of an adult), Lottie Dolls empower kids by encouraging them to be themselves by representing diversity of looks, ethnicity, gender, talent, and abilities. 

There are a whopping 31 dolls to choose froms. Clothes fit any gender, joints bend to maximize poses and they are waterproof - so they make a great take-along pal.  Some in the collection are modeled on real kids -a boy with autism who is a loyal friend, another little girl with Downs Syndrome named Rosie Boo, yet another is in hospital garb. How nice to find a doll that's relatable to the Little in your life.

Learning the stories of the real kids behind the dolls and engaging in play with their models can help kids become more familiar and accepting of those different than them, all in a spirit of play. Starting as low as $19.99 on sale, the average price for a doll is between $24-26. 

Add on, if you wish, by getting any of their accessories and set covering interests like musical instruments, cooking, ballet, pets, stables, ponies, science, painting, camping, space and canoeing. All to set the stage for imaginative play! There's quite an array of bundles and choices.

Maybe pick a doll like your child and one totally different than them! Or pick by price, age and interests. TIP: I recommend shopping their website when you're fresh, and have a good 30 minutes to look around and order. 

YOUR LITTLE DRAGONS FLY

There's a lot kinds can do with a little fabric and their big imaginations. Dragon Wings certainly will create lots of good old fashioned play!  These double sided, colorful, 47" wide wings are beautifully detailed with scales and dragon anatomy. The hood that helps secure it (along with finger loops) has 3-D details that can fit little or bigger dragons. Pick from blue or red for $34.95 on Hearthsong.com.

LOOK MA, I'M UPSIDE DOWN!

Oh, this looks like a kid pleaser- and probably pretty cool for adults to join in: The Gravity Defying Hot Wheels Set has 42.5 feet of linear track with two inverted loops that the car's velocity (with a little help from magnets)  Comes with 2 cars with headlights and remote controls that puts the kids in the driver's seat. It's not noisy either, but the kids are sure to be making an excited ruckus while enjoying it!

Offered on Hammacher Schlemmer for $129, batteries not included. That's gotta be fun!  

TIP: A word to Santa: several comments said it took awhile to assemble, so figure in a plan for that (maybe assemble after they open it?).

This is HARDLY a comprehensive list, but I hope something here jumps out at you, or leads to something that does. Check out past posts by looking at the labels to the right on this page, or by taking a LOOKY HERE at the entire category of past posts of Great Gift ideas for kids!

BUY LOCAL WHEN YOU CAN!

KEEP YOUR NEIGHBORS IN BUSINESS 

and KEEP YOUR TOWN SPECIAL.

Big thank you to Sara, Nicole, Tina, Lola, Elaine, Pandora and Kevin for some tried and true recommendations.