Gift Ideas for Dinosaur Lovers and Scurvy Pirates

Still looking for gift ideas for your beloved? Today Kobold has selected his favorites for dinosaur lovers and survy pirates.

Kobold's picks for dinosaur lovers include:

1. I Dream I Was a Dinosaur board book from Barefoot Books. Join a young boy on a dreamland adventure to prehistoric times, where he meets dinosaurs of all shapes and sizes. The rhyme filled text is followed by fascinating notes about the age of dinosaurs and includes illustrations by Kobold's favorite Clare Beaton.

2. The 63 piece Mighty Dinosaur puzzle is is a wonderful gift for advanced puzzler. Kobold Toys also offers an adorable puzzle for the starter set with Shure's "My Dinosaur's Puzzle & Book."

3. For the artsy dinosaur lover, Kobold recommends the Calafant Dinosaur craft (only $6.99!). Children can use their imagination and creativity to color their own dinosaur and then play with it. This beautiful craft is made of pre-punched white cardboard, so it can be put together without glue or scissors. In addition, it comes with 6 markers and building instructions, all sealed in a plastic bag.

You will not have to walk the plank if you take Kobold's suggestions and wrap up these gifts that the scurviest of pirates will love:

1. The Little Pirate Bag of Books set lets your child set sail with this merry crew and enjoy all sorts of pirate fun with Port Side Pirates! with music CD and Pirates: Fun Activities, filled with puzzles, mazes, treasure maps and reusable stickers which will keep young landlubbers happily occupied for hours.

2. If you have a Pirate Girl, consider the cute pirate tooth pillow doll by North American Bear Co.

3. Pirates encounter many dangers in the deep blue sea. The Bloco Marine Creatures Scholastic set lets your child build and learm about sharks and other creatures so your pirate is prepared!

Have fun learning! And for more gift ideas and discounted items, visit the website every day.

Happy Holidays!

Kobold Celebrates Author Clare Beaton

On one of his many adventures around the world, our little Kobold discovered the talents of Clare Beaton. Ms. Beaton is an award-winning artist and author who creates children's books using a colourful range of mostly vintage materials. She is a highly sought-after creator of handcrafted children's picture books. She has had nearly fifty books published, many of which Kobold is happy to offer through Kobold Toys. The illustrations in her books are filled with color and texture, sure to captivate the eyes and mind of any child.

Here are some of Kobold's favorites- sure to be wonderful additions to your child's libary:

There's a cow in the cabbage patch, moo, moo, moo! She should be in the dairy, what shall we do? Tour the farmyard and help all of the animals find their way to their rightful spots in this topsy turvy jaunt. Rhyme and repetition complement the story of a farm full of animals that are each exploring another's home.

Elusive Moose. Search for the elusive moose in the snowy north, and meet lots of other northland animals on the journey. The hardcover edition includes endnotes about all the creatures, a guessing game of animal footprints, and a page of informative facts about the moose.

I Dreamt I Was a Dinosaur. Join a young boy on a dreamland adventure to prehistoric times, where he meets dinosaurs of all shapes and sizes. The rhyme filled text is followed by fascinating notes about the age of dinosaurs.

Playtime Rhymes for Little People. Act out each of the imaginative selections in this hand-sewn anthology. The forty rhymes and games encourage active play and participation with step-by-step instructions to follow. Book with CD edition includes songs and rhymes performed by Susan Reed.

Welcome a new baby into the world with Baby’s First Book, featuring Clare Beaton’s exquisite hand-sewn collages. Paired with a cuddly White Bunny Rabbit puppet, this gift set makes the perfect present and is presented in an eco-friendly, reusable green shopper tote with a gift tag to personalize it.

We know you'll love these illustrated books as much as Kobold does. Kobold Toys has a wide selection of books available on our site for ages newborn to seven. Happy Reading!

Celebrate Discovery!

Columbus Day honors the day Christopher Columbus discovered America. The first Columbus Day celebration was held in New York City in 1792 - the city celebrated the 300th anniversary of the landing. Columbus Day has been celebrated annually since 1920. I am sure many of your children are learning about Christopher Columbus this mon and grateful for the holiday. It is a wonderful time to celebrate discovery with crafts and projects.

Miss E is just starting to ask questions about the world. And a globe is on her growing wish list for Santa Claus. Kobold Toys is happy to share some of our favorite toys to help expand your child's mind about the world in which we live.

Kobold loves the Ravensburger Children's Globe which builds on the 3D puzzle concept. The strong, durable and slightly curved puzzle pieces fit together very well, to ensure a secure ball once complete. It is easy to assemble and has great stability. The puzzle comes with a booklet that includes information about different locations around the world making this puzzle a complete learning experience.

The Global Adventure Book set from Barefoot Books is a perfect gift for your young explorer. The set includes We All Went on Safari: A Counting Journey Through Tanzania, We’re Sailing Down the Nile: A Journey through Egypt, and My Granny Went to Market: A Round the World Counting Rhyme. This set is packed in an eco-friendly, reusable green shopper tote with a gift tag to personalize.

Mudpuppy's challenging new 100-piece U.S.A. States & Capitals puzzle comes in an irresistible hinged storage tin. The illustrations by Janell Genovese keep the fun factor!

We also love the Culture Club Tote which introduces your child to to different cultures with five multicultural dolls. The zipper tote features five outside clear pockets, each sporting a soft 5" doll that represents a different culture. Also, included with the tote is a flashcard with how to say "hello" in Spanish, French, Swahili, Hindi, and Mandarin. Everything is soft and surface washable.

And as they say in Spain, Diviértete aprendiendo!

Feed Their Imagination With Books!

My family loves to read (anyone who knows me, knows that this is an understatement). Miss E goes to bed after two stories with at least four to five books to "read." Her brother at 18 months just started throwing a sofa pillow on the floor and snuggling down to look at books and pretend to read. So exciting! If you read to your child, you know the magic that happens and the value books bring to your child's development. Plus, I enjoy reading classics from my childhood and finding new "classics" from this generation of writers. I just love books (like my mother and brother), and I enjoy passing this love on to my own children.

Kobold Toys is introducing an entire new book section to our website, and WE ARE EXCITED! We are featuring the wonderful titles from Barefoot Books. Barefoot Books began with two mothers who wanted their children to have books that would feed the imagination, while instilling a respect for diversity and a love of the planet. Today, they are a world-wide community of writers, artists, storytellers, musicians, and others who are committed to providing timeless stories and captivating art that can help children become happy, engaged members of a global society.

If you love gifting books (and in our house aunts, uncles, Papas, and even Santa and the Easter Bunny know books are the gift of choice), Kobold Toys is offering "Bag of Books" gift sets in various themes- from baby to pirates! Here are some of our favorites...so far. These collections are wonderful gifts for any occasion.

Singalong Gift Set. Get ready to sing and dance along to these lively tunes! Barefoot best-sellers The Animal Boogie, The Journey Home from Grandpa’s, and The Farmyard Jamboree — all with singalong CDs — are packaged in an eco-friendly, reusable green shopper tote with gift tag to personalize. (Age 2+)

ABC's and 123's Gift Set. Develop counting and alphabet skills with these fun and educational books. Featuring Alligator Alphabet, Counting Cockatoos, One Moose, Twenty Mice and Zoe and her Zebra. Packed in an eco-friendly, reusable green shopper tote with a gift tag to personalize. (Ages 1-4)

Storytime Gift Set. Fuel the imagination and expand your library with classic stories as well as modern tales. Featuring Storytime: First Tales for Sharing with story CD, The Story Tree: Tales to Read Aloud with story CD, The Gigantic Turnip, Jack and the Beanstalk, and The Prince’s Bedtime, paired with a charming Prince puppet. Packed in a colorful canvas tote with a gift tag to personalize. LOVE IT! (Ages 3-7)

Kobold Toys hopes you are as excited as we are about this new line of books. By reading aloud to your child, you will be sharing one of life's most valuable gifts and opening all kinds of doors for the future. Plus who doesn't love snuggling down with your little ones for any reason?!

Have fun reading (and maybe learning too)!

P.S. Don't forget to write a review of any of our books or toys. Each review submitted through November 1 will automatically be entered into our sweepstakes for a $50 gift certificate. The more reviews you complete, the more opportunities to win. Perfect to use towards that must-have toy on your holiday list!