Toys & Play

Switch it up this season with gifts that are pre-loved, yet full of meaning.

Dr. Risa Hoshino weighs in on how to treat anxiety in kids.

It's got that retro flair — and is incredibly simple (no sewing required!). This is also a super-fun holiday activity with kids.

Dr. Risa Hoshino weighs in on doable ways to prevent your child from catching all the many germs that float around in daycare and schools.

We've got the perfect game to empower them to declutter their belongings without any arguments. Bonus: this is a GREAT time to practice some before-holiday minimizing.

Just a few simple steps — and some trusty products you can grab easily — turned this underused space into one we all love.

High-quality kids' furniture and products at deep discounts? It's every parent's dream.

These are the deals flying off the virtual shelves — hurry, before they're all gone.

From colorful jewelry trays to watercolor portraits, these ideas are brimming with creativity and fun. Let your kids give loved ones a handmade gift they'll be excited to display.

It makes the mornings SO much better — and gives that much-needed jolt of energy for parenting a newborn.

We've got the cutest picks around from one of our very favorite kids' brands. And they are all at steep discounts!

It helps with ouchies and looks adorable in a stocking.

Pom-pom wreaths, holiday crafts, and even matching PJs — our favorite retailer in red has it all this season.

Their adorable reactions will be an added bonus!

From adorable play kitchens they won't be able to resist to awesome inflatable bounce houses and tablets galore, these are Walmart's all-star deals.

This simple nightly ritual keeps us connected as a family.

Rainy afternoons home with my toddlers are turning us into absolute beasts — we’re all so grumpy and I have zero creative energy left. Any ideas for a fun indoors activity that they might not have tried yet?GraceDear Grace,As the father of one girl, I must confess that I feel I never had it THAT hard. Young girls tend to be far less restless than young boys, so I’m guessing that you have at least one boy in your home.

We tapped the pros (who happen to parents themselves) for their very best tips, from choosing a photographer, finding a location, and what to do with your lovely photos afterwards.

These are the ones that truly stand up to the test for me and my kiddo.

It arrives on my doorstep, has unlimited creative possibilities, and ISN'T a toy?! Miracle.

We really missed you, Toys”R”Us, and we’re so happy that you’re back! Every millennial has a soft spot in their hearts for this beloved toy store, and it was pretty heartbreaking when the company closed their brick and mortar storefronts a few years ago. But just in time for the 2021 holiday season, Toys”R”Us has made its official comeback with Macy’s.

What’s the best Halloween candy out there, hands down?EllieDear Ellie,I love you! You handed me a softball of a question and one that I KNEW I COULD ACE. Here you go (from a few good sources):Chupa Chups Lollipops or Airheads, but NOT DumDums! Lollipops are VERY POPULAR again.. Skittles in fun size bags — ALWAYS a fave….

These fun new traditions are getting another spin this year.

It's an opportunity for us all to get organized and resolve conflict — plus, have a little fun too!

Quilts with rustic farm scenes to a snuggly science-themed kids chair — these new launches have it all.

These tasks are really are so simple and kid-friendly that she can't wait to help. (Plus, I can get some cleaning done myself while she's occupied!)

They may not say it aloud — but these practical gifts are what new parents REALLY need.

You don't have to spend a lot of money OR time to get a show-stopping, IG-worthy group costume.

Creative kids are natural problem solvers. Here, doable tips to nurture their creative impulses.

For long-lasting pieces, ditch the cutesy trends and focus on classic products like these.

As parents, we're much too tired for date nights — so we got creative for some necessary R&R.

We tried everything ... but this inexpensive Amazon gadget was the secret to peaceful slumber for my kiddo.

Affordable, stylish art and home design picks for kids.

We never thought we'd use one — but now, we can't imagine going back.

It contains the clutter AND saves space — win-win.

New popular characters, classic favorites, and adorable baby costumes ... we've got the best of the best!

DC Superhero girls, Pokemon, and racing games — we've got the insider scoop on the hottest kids video games for fall.

Throw blankets, thermoses, and orange blossom candles — your home is about to get a cozy level-up.

It’s one thing to renovate a home — which is a lot of work in itself — but revitalizing an entire town? That’s what you call next-level. Ben and Erin Napier, who host HGTV’s “Home Town,” took the task on in their new show “Home Town Takeover,” where they’ve chosen the lucky town of Wetumpka, Alabama, to be the star of the series.

From coloring rolls you can store in your bag all the way to Star Wars characters with a twist.

If you’ve got a box full of ‘90s toys in the attic of your childhood home, you might want to spend some time rummaging through the collectibles. A nostalgic new report from TheToyZone reveals the iconic ‘90s toys worth a fortune today — and the highest childhood treasure is valued at $50,000, so there is that. According to the toy review site, the most expensive toy sold has been a Rainbow the Chameleon Beanie Baby from 1997, raking in a whopping $50K.

Must-have furniture, baby gear, toys, and so much more — at steep discounts.

Cubby spoke to this food icon about cooking with her daughter and mother, the practice of writing recipes, and balancing her creative pursuits with parenting.

Print out our latest Cubby coloring page for the littles and get them excited about going back to school.

Illustrator Christian Robinson designed every single product I could possibly want in a kid's room.

I'm a former English teacher, so I've personally read every single one of these — they are my must-haves.

Since you’re so amazing at gifts: can you suggest a gift that will truly delight a 7-year-old who doesn’t like much more than video games?DonDear Don,Great challenge! Let’s see what we can do. Before I start I’ll also say, no matter what you think of my response, don’t give up!

This piece was created for Cubby, our weekly newsletter for families at home. Want more? Sign up here for a weekly splash of fun and good ideas for families with kids. Join us over on Instagram for more! Before the pandemic, we always packed our schedules. We jammed the day full of playdates, visits to museums, and trips to somewhere local or far away, all before bedtime (and sometimes, way past it). We never wasted a single minute.

Nothing says back to school more than these bright essentials!

This piece was created for Cubby, our weekly newsletter for families at home. Want more? Sign up here for a weekly splash of fun and good ideas for families with kids. Join us over on Instagram for more! Birthdays are endlessly magical for children (and teens, even). Before my daughter recently turned 3, we made a paper-chain countdown so she could visually see how many days were left until her birthday. The paper chain managed to cut the “How long until my birthday?

This piece was created for Cubby, our weekly newsletter for families at home. Want more? Sign up here for a weekly splash of fun and good ideas for families with kids. Join us over on Instagram for more! Growing up, we kept boxes filled with sets of door wreaths, window decorations, streamers, and ornaments for every holiday.

This piece was created for Cubby, our weekly newsletter for families at home. Want more? Sign up here for a weekly splash of fun and good ideas for families with kids. Join us over on Instagram for more! Another birthday means another party theme, and *cue deep thought* — figuring out how to entertain a bunch of kids! Even if the theme is as specific as “Doll and Donut Dance” of all things, do not panic — I got you.

This piece was created for Cubby, our weekly newsletter for families at home. Want more? Sign up here for a weekly splash of fun and good ideas for families with kids. Join us over on Instagram for more! Summer is in full swing, and it’s too hot to think straight, let alone come up with creative activities for the kids. Allow me to introduce you to the easiest, most open-ended and sustainable activity in my toy closet: The Tinker Box.

When I had kids, I was told my longstanding relationship with hotels was over. So long, lavender-scented cold towels! Bye-bye, crisp sheets! See ya, infinity pool! Arrivederci, lobby bar of my dreams! It was nice knowing you. Based on the advice of many parents I know, vacation homes seemed to be the only option in the 2.0 version of my life. “When you have a family, it’s just easier with a kitchen, you’ll see,” they told me.

This piece was created for Cubby, our weekly newsletter for families at home. Want more? Sign up here for a weekly splash of fun and good ideas for families with kids. Join us over on Instagram for more! My earliest memories of getting presents all revolve around LEGOs. I still remember my very first sets: a tow truck, a family car, and a little road repair cart. Those initial gifts turned into a lifelong love of the plastic building bricks.

This piece was created for Cubby, our weekly newsletter for families at home. Want more? Sign up here for a weekly splash of fun and good ideas for families with kids. Join us over on Instagram for more! Every time I saw an ad for the Yoto Player peppering my social media feed, I was totally fascinated. Bright, colorful, completely kid-controlled — what’s not to love?

This piece was created for Cubby, our weekly newsletter for families at home. Want more? Sign up here for a weekly splash of fun and good ideas for families with kids. Join us over on Instagram for more! As adults, we only really get one day a year to dress up and play “make believe” without feeling totally out of place, right? The occasion is called Halloween, and it’s still months away … sigh.

This piece was created for Cubby, our weekly newsletter for families at home. Want more? Sign up here for a weekly splash of fun and good ideas for families with kids. Join us over on Instagram for more! Over the years, my Saturdays developed a dependable rhythm. After being awakened by the crow of our youngest family member, we threw on jackets over our PJs and wandered down the street to our favorite coffee shop and then, the neighborhood farmers market.

This piece was created for Cubby, our weekly newsletter for families at home. Want more? Sign up here for a weekly splash of fun and good ideas for families with kids. When I was a kid, family game night usually ended with someone toppling the board, hurling tokens and fake money, and stomping to their room in anger and frustration at losing AGAIN to a craftier player. (When I say “someone” I mean 4-year-old me.

This piece was created for Cubby, our weekly newsletter for families at home. Want more? Sign up here for a weekly splash of fun and good ideas for families with kids. Join us over on Instagram for more! Look: We’ve all had those days, when everything feels just, well, kinda terrible, often for no big reason at all.

This piece was created for Cubby, our weekly newsletter for families at home. Want more? Sign up here for a weekly splash of fun and good ideas for families with kids. Join us over on Instagram for more! Flashback fashion has been having a fierce renaissance in the last few years, and we’d be lying if we said we weren’t completely here for it.

This piece was created for Cubby, our weekly newsletter for families at home. Want more? Sign up here for a weekly splash of fun and good ideas for families with kids. Join us over on Instagram for more! Let’s face it: After spending much of last summer cooped up inside of our homes, we’re all itching for some serious adventure in the coming months. That said, if 2021 is anything like last year, the highways could be jammed up with all kinds of road-trippers.

For the pun-loving father-figures in our lives, we made this deliciously fun coloring card. Let your soup-er star know just how much you love him! Just download, print, color, and fold it up.

This piece was created for Cubby, our weekly newsletter for families at home. Want more? Sign up here for a weekly splash of fun and good ideas for families with kids. Lately, it seems like everywhere you turn, there’s another article about kids and screens — or rather, what you should be doing instead of letting your kids use them.

This piece was created for Cubby, our weekly newsletter for families at home. Want more? Sign up here for a weekly splash of fun and good ideas for families with kids. We all want our kids to get outside and be active. We also long for those seemingly elusive toys that allow our kids to play while we sit back and relax. Enter: active toys with wheels.

This piece was created for Cubby, our weekly newsletter for families at home. Want more? Sign up here for a weekly splash of fun and good ideas for families with kids. As we welcome warmer weather, newly skinned knees and shoulders tinted red like lobsters have us thinking about all the items we need to stock up on for summer first aid. Unlike the kit we have floating around in the car, you might need a few extras beyond band-aids and bacitracin for summer care.

This piece was created for Cubby, our weekly newsletter for families at home. Want more? Sign up here for a weekly splash of fun and good ideas for families with kids. Over this past year, parents really flexed their multi-tasking muscles. Before, we juggled the requirements of caretaking, school, professions, and self-care. But then, we needed to do it simultaneously. And exercise was no exception.

This piece was created for Cubby, our weekly newsletter for families at home. Want more? Sign up here for a weekly splash of fun and good ideas for families with kids. Is there any Father’s Day gift better than waking to the adoring, smiling faces of your children? Of course not … but there are a ton of things that are a really, really close second.

This piece was created for Cubby, our weekly newsletter for families at home. Want more? Sign up here for a weekly splash of fun and good ideas for families with kids. I know exactly what toys my soon-to-be 5-year-old wants at all times — except for when her birthday actually rolls around. All the grandparents and aunties call to ask what to get her, and frankly — I’ve forgotten almost everything we talked about over the past year.

This piece was created for Cubby, our weekly newsletter for families at home. Want more? Sign up here for a weekly splash of fun and good ideas for families with kids. To celebrate this beautiful month of Pride, Cubby editors rounded up a few of our favorite books with LGBTQ representation. Joyful, meaningful, complex, and utterly moving, each picture book helps shade in the many vibrant hues of the rainbow of identity.

This piece was created for Cubby, our weekly newsletter for families at home. Want more? Sign up here for a weekly splash of fun and good ideas for families with kids. There’s no shortage of coverage on generational wars. The anti-millennial discourse has shifted to rhetoric about Boomers and Karens and jokes about Tide Pods. But as an elder millennial myself, I feel somehow centered in all of it. Defending myself from the older generation (millennials are not teenagers!

This piece was created for Cubby, our weekly newsletter for families at home. Want more? Sign up here for a weekly splash of fun and good ideas for families with kids. Six years ago, the first road trip my husband and I took as new parents was a journey from the San Francisco Bay Area to Southern Oregon, for a funeral. Our 1-year-old had always been generally happy riding in the car, but she chose this opportunity to snooze and scream, alternately, every 15 minutes.