My inbox has been on fire recently as dozens of brands announce their Christmas promotions. It therefore came as no surprise when Kiddicare got in touch to let me know about their fabulous Christmas 3 for 2 offer available on all toys in the Buzzing Brains, Safari and Woodland ranges. What did come as a very welcome shock, was that they wanted Dexter to road test one of their top ten toys. Of course we were absolutely delighted and all too happy to take on this assignment.
I chose the Buzzing Brains Activity Table as I imagined this would be a big hit with Dexter. He seems to love similar toys at playgroup but the bigger kids are always pushing him out of the way. I thought it would be a major treat for him to have one of his own.
It hasn’t been a disappointment.
This bad boy has saved me from many a breakdown recently. It’s well worth its £29.99 price tag and has occupied Dex when all else has failed. If you’re struggling to come up with present ideas for your 12-30 month old, this simply has to go on your list to Father Christmas.
This activity table features tons of activities that aim to stimulate young minds. There are buttons that play animal noises, a mini piano, a sliding bee that buzzes, a mirror, and to indulge Dexter’s love of trains, a gearshift that lets off a little ‘choo choo’ and a train toy that can be pushed along an ‘alphabet track’. Everything you press, pull, or manipulate on the table will kick-start a melody or light-up before your child’s eyes. It’s definitely built to engage the senses.
Highlights for me are the fact that you can easily detach the legs if your little one isn’t quite steady on their feet yet. I’m also thankful there’s a loud and a medium volume setting so you can hear yourself think whilst he’s bashing away. Also, as well as the countless melodies there are some great spoken voice features too to help your child with early language skills. For example, when Dexter plays with the bee and the butterfly, the activity table will explain to him that “Bee’s buzz around” and “Butterflies fly from flower to flower” - they’re nice little extras that help with word association.
Dexter hasn’t quite mastered pushing the little train along the track yet and prefers to play with this away from the table. I do worry that he’ll misplace it (I found it in the downstairs loo this afternoon) so perhaps it would have been better if this was somehow attached to the table. If you do play with the train correctly however, and send it along the circular track, it’ll sing the alphabet to you.
The only thing that irks me slightly is that when you press a number different activities in quick succession the noises do not always override one another. This means that if your tiny tot decides to hit all the keys at once, you end up with an irritating cacophony of sounds. It clearly doesn’t bother my little man but it can trigger the odd headache for mums and dads. Of course I have been prone to migraines with this pregnancy so maybe I’m just over-sensitive at the moment.
All in all - it’s a very reasonably priced toy for tots Dexter’s age (18 months), and I’d happily recommend it to family and friends. I can say with certainty that it will last this family for a few years yet as the new baby will inherit it from their big brother. When we’re all played out with it, it’ll have a fabulous new home at our local playgroup.
The Kiddicare 3 for 2 promotion runs from 5th November to 22nd December, in-store, online and via the mobile app. There are hundreds of plastic, wooden and cloth toys aimed at children from birth to five years - so well worth visiting if you’re stuck for inspiration.
Disclaimer: I received this product free of charge in return for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
