Top Toys This Year

This year, you’re going to have a hard time choosing which of the top toys you’ll buy for your children, so I’m going to help you narrow down the decision and show you toys that won’t be a waste of your money!

Let’s start off with a gender-friendly choice (and the current #1 bestseller online right now in toys) – the Stomp Rocket Junior for ages 3 and up. Boys and girls alike love the stomp rockets and you can get them for younger kids or older ones – there are different sets (view them all here: Stomp Rocket Kits).

Basically, you can get your kids to release all that pent up energy by letting them make the rockets go airborne – by stomping on a blast pad. The foam rockets shoot up (they glow in the dark too, making it extra fun at night) – and this is both an outdoor AND an indoor toy!

This top toy won the iParenting Media Award and Top Toy of the Year from Creative Child magazine. But don’t buy based on that – buy because almost 100 customers have given it an almost perfect 5 star rating.

Here’s another couple of reasons you’ll want to buy the Stomp Rocket launch pad for your child – it requires zero assembly (bless you, manufacturer!) and NO batteries (money in your pocket!). Oh, and did I fail to mention it’s CHEAP, too? Under 10 bucks. And it qualifies for Free Shipping if you order from the image above to the right. Nice, right?

Also, word of warning – don’t buy the Stomp Rocket Parachute or the Stomp Rocket Triple Threat – they’ve gotten poor reviews – stick with what everyone’s raving about so you don’t waste your money on a toy that doesn’t work!

Let’s look at a few of the cool Stomp Rocket stuff below and then further down the page, move on to Top Toys for Girls, Top Toys for Boys, Top Toys for Preschoolers and Top Toys for Budget-Minded Parents.

More Stomp Rocket Toys and Refills:

Top Toys for Girls

On the top toys for girls list, we’re going to cover a few options. We can’t ignore the obvious – on the top 10 bestselling toys list, there’s one product that takes up FOUR out of the top 10 spots – Silly Bandz! They’re rubber bands in many colors and shapes – from Princess wands to rock guitars.

Girls love them (actually, so do boys now), and as a parent, you’ll love that they’re dirt cheap – so you can stock up on a whole bunch of different packs. See all of the different packs here: Silly Bandz Styles.

I have a 17 year old son, a 10 year old son, and a 5 year old daughter and guess what? They ALL wear Silly Bandz – so do their friends. It’s a weird toy that crosses all age and gender boundaries. The most popular one for girls is shown to the right.

Aside from shaped rubber bands, what other top toys for girls are selling like hot cakes this year? Well the Barbie Toy Story 3 Made for Each Other set (shown below) is doing great. If you’ve taken your child to see Toy Story 3, then you know Ken and Barbie have important roles in the movie. And if you press Barbie’s back, she gives Ken a kiss.

Another great toy for girls is the same as it was last year – and get this – it rules 8 out of the 10 top spots in bestselling electronic toys. Can you guess what it is? Zhu Zhu Pets! Nugget the Zhu Zhu Pet is still the #1 bestselling Zhu Zhu but the others on the top 10 list are: Scoodles, Fluffy Bunny, Jilly, Pipsqueek, Mr. Squiggles, and the Zhu Zhu Adventure Ball and House Starter Set!

You can see Nugget below or visit the page to view all Zhu Zhu Pets and Accessories that are available. Oh, and make sure you take notice that most of them offer Free Shipping, too!

And there’s one more toy girls always ask for – a new dollhouse. I’ve been through three – moving up the stages of my daughter’s age group. Right now she’s moved on to the Barbie Pink 3-Story Dream Townhouse and I have to say it’s awesome!

The townhouse has an elevator, the outdoor hot tub has lights, the toilet flushes, she sings when you put her in the shower and the TV screen pops up and has a roaring fireplace below (to name a few functions) – it’s very interactive and my little girl loves it.

It’s sturdy too. We haven’t had any issues with it and judging from its almost perfect feedback online, I can confidently say most consumers are pleased with their purchase. Check it out below or click to see all of the bestelling Barbie toys in order from most popular to least that are for sale right now!

Barbie and Zhu Zhu Are the Top Toys for Girls This Year

Top Toys for Boys

I sat down with my two sons and picked their brains aside form doing some research to find out what the top toys for boys are this year. There are three age groups for boys – the little guys, tweens and older boys. So let’s talk about all three groups.

First, the little ones – the toy to the right is the one they’re clamoring for – it’s the #1 bestseller AND the #1 most wished for in action figures. It’s none other than Buzz Lightyear from Toy Story 3 – a 12” action figure that ships FREE when you buy from the image here.

He talks, he has laser lights and pop out wings – and he knows when he’s in a position to fly or stand. But what’s really cool is that he responds when you talk to him and moves his head like he’s having a real conversation with your child! Check out the bestselling Toy Story 3 Toys in order from most popular to least and decide which ones your little guy would most like. Oh and guess what they have there Toy Story 3 Silly Bandz! LOL – Told ya they’re popular!

Now for the tween group of boys we have to take in mind that they love to use their imagination and build things. My kids LOVE their Legos and you can go two different routes with this one.

You could buy the most popular toy in the Construction section (it’s spent over 1,000 days in the #1 spot if that’s any indication of its popularity) – it’s the Lego Ultimate Building Set – 405 Pieces and yes, my son has it – he’s 10. When he can keep his little sister out of it, he’s very happy. This set lets them freestyle with their Lego building and my kids have built some amazing things!

Or, you could invest in a specialty set – the number two bestselling toy in Construction for boys is the LEGO Star Wars Clone Walker Battle Pack where you can build a Clone Walker and it comes with 2 Clone Troopers, a Clone Gunner and Clone Commander and some ARC troop gear. (See below). Or, click to see a full list of the bestselling action figures in order from most popular to least and that way you’ll have help deciding if you should be getting Transformers action figures or Batman or Iron Man or whatever other Super Hero du jour is making kids salivate.

Now moving on to the older boys. My kids tell me that Longboarding is now the rage. And online toy stores back up that theory. Instead of skateboards, longboards are like surfing – with wheels.

They’re not trick boards – they’re more for exactly the same moves you see surfers using on those giant Hawaii waves – big turns or short carves. I’m going to show you the most popular one below – but you can also check out the full list of bestselling longboards, too, including some plain ones they can design and deck out themselves.

Top Toys for Boys Include Toy Story 3, Star Wars Legos and Longboards

Top Toys for Preschoolers

The toddler years are so precious and if you’re anything like me, you might go a bit overboard on buying toys. That’s okay – after all, you’re getting to know your child’s unique personality and determining what toys suit them best is part of the good parenting process.

For the toddlers, there’s one toy that’s going to hands down be the BIG one this year – it’s the Fisher Price iXL (shown to the right). This is for all those moms and dads who hate having their toddler yank their iPhone away from them. It includes all this: Digital Book Reader, Game Player, Digital Art Book, MP3 Music Player, Notepad and Photo Viewer. Check out the bestselling list for the iXL software which includes Ni Hao Kai Lan, Disney Princess, Batman, Scooby Doo, Toy Story, Handy Manny, Spongebob Squarepants and Shrek!

I also have the scoop about another fantastic toy for toddlers that’s already big in the UK and is now going to be craved by toddlers in America, too – and my daughter wants one and was SO worried that at age 5, she’d be too big – but she’s not! It’s a toy called the Gymnic Rody Hopping Horse and it’s kind of like the Hippity Hop but more a toddler’s size – and it’s shaped like a horse.

The Rody Hopping Horse comes in many colors – even peach! And it has a base you can attach to it for the teeny tots who aren’t quite ready to bounce all around just yet. I LOVE these toys – and consumers do too – reviews are glowing about them. Check out the entire line of Rody Hopping Horses here and take a peak at the best selling color Rody below!

But still, the #1 bestselling toddler toy is still the Step 2 WaterWheel Activity Table. I know my kids always loved bath time, but some kids get intimidated with baths. This activity table lets them play in a tiny bit of water and have fun – without being scared.

Get this – it has over 300 almost perfect reviews online – and real customers say the play value has not decreased even a bit. Many parents use it filled with water outside but then bring it in either with less water or empty as an indoor play table, too. Check it out below:

Top Toys for Toddlers Include the iXL, Rody Hopping Horse and WaterWheel Table

Top Toys for Families on a Budget

The economy is forcing parents to watch their dime – so I have the best toys for budget-conscious parents. The first thing I have to say is that I primarily link you to Amazon here and here’s why – they offer free shipping on just about everything AND beat most other online prices.

But sometimes you get a better deal at eBay or Toys R Us, so some links might take you there if I’ve found the best pricing for you.

Toy-wise, you want your kids to get the most fun for your money. The Stomp Rockets at the top of the page are definitely the top cheap toy available right now – and in high demand.

Other top cheap toys include:

The Insect Lore Live Butterfly Garden –shown to the right - we did this as a family and my kids (and me and my husband) LOVED watching the worms grow and cocoon themselves and then blossom into butterflies. We released them and it was a great experience – all but one hatched.

It’s not gross at all – and almost 300 other consumers agree that this budget-friendly toy (about $15) is well worth it! The worms are sent in this little container atop a platform of food that they eat and grow. They hang themselves in the cocoon in the container and you put them in the butterfly house until they hatch. I brought home some fresh flowers and sprinkled some sugar water on them after the hatched so we could enjoy them a short time before we released them and they loved it.

The LeapFrog Scribble and Write toy. There are 4 modes of learning, including drawing shapes or designs to writing the alphabet in lower and upper case letters. And there’s a parental connection where you can customize the experience.

The Bananagrams game is on the top seller list and it’s under $12. This is a fun and educational toy that’s fun for many ages. Close to 400 PERFECT five star reviews, too! It can act as a travel game or a game for your home.

I’m going to link you to a special place for under $25 toys here and then below I’ll show you a few more of my personal favorites:

More Cheap Toys for a Budget Conscious Shopper