Product Review: Parents Brand Toys

I really like the Parents brand toys; they are durable, clever, and entertaining.  We have a play cellphone, the Bee Bop Band, and the stacking buckets.  The cellphone can be a bit annoying because it makes sounds and plays music, "Please hit a different button!!".  But, it's so handy to have in the car, or at the store, or restaurant.  It keeps K entertained and is small enough to tote around.  You can also record your voice on it, and leave a message for your child.  That's K's favorite feature of his cell phone.

A great toy to keep kids busy when you're out and about.

The Bee Bop Band includes a clear plastic drum that holds the rest of the instruments.  It's so cute how everything is shaped to look like a bug of some sort.  They've also managed to incorporate the letters ABC into the toys.  This is a toy that I like to put away for a while and then reintroduce when we're in the mood to be goofy and musical.  We turn up the music and play along.  The drum tends to be the favorite, but also can be a trouble maker as the sticks are sometimes turned into mock weapons.  (Boys will be boys!)

Bee Bop Band, fun when you're in the mood to be loud and crazy.  Hide it if you want quiet!

I've saved the best for last; the stacking buckets are very cool.  Once the tower is built, it's about three feet tall.  Kids young and old enjoy playing with these.  Company always finds them fascinating and asks where we got them.  I purchased them, in January, for about $20 on Amazon.   Color sorting, identifying biggest to smallest, problem solving, cooperation, and sharing are some of the things K has learned from this toy.  Plus there are a number of ways you can build the tower or multiple towers.  Of the three Parents toys we have, I'd highly recommend the buckets.

A favorite toy at our house.  Worth buying.

Post Script: Wouldn't you know it, Amazon is out of stock!  I checked Target.com also with no luck.  My Google searches were fruitless.  I'm sorry that they don't seem to be available anymore.  However, if you find them at a garage sale or on Ebay, get them!  I found three alternatives on Amazon that you may like since the Parents stacking buckets are mysteriously not available: Nest & Stack Buckets by iPlay for about $15, or Toysmith Battat Sort & Stack Toy  for under $13.  An almost identical set to the Battat one is Megco's Carry Along Stacking Cups and Sorter Bucket for around $20.   We don't own any of these, but they look similar to our buckets and also have an added feature of a lid for the biggest bucket with cut outs to slip shapes, like stars and squares, into.  So they are stacking and sorting toys all in one.  The main attraction though is being able to build a tall tower, and all three brands seem to stack up to about three feet.  That's what makes them so much fun for kids, I think, and therefore worth purchasing.  If you own any of these brands, please give me some feed back.  Thanks!