Toy prices are rather fluid this year. It’s all about supply and demand. We reported on 11/15 that the D-REX Interactive Dinosaur was on sale for $129.  Consumers should have grabbed it then because it is back up to $148.  Kota the Triceratops Dinosaur had dropped from $299 to $239 and is even lower today at $199 including a $15 eGift card. Reviews are excellent on Kota but we suspect the price tag and size have prevented it from being a top seller.  The Hasbro FurReal Biscuit My Lovin Pup dropped to $149 on 11/8 and is now available for $129.  Another fun product with great reviews, now at an excellent price! Finally the Giddyup Pony which was selling for $149 is expected to be back in stock in late November but you won’t see it at $149, Amazon and others are now showing it back at $199.

Will the prices go lower? We think not on Kota and Biscuit.  Possibly on DREX but sales are very strong even at the current prices so to wait might cause disappointment on Christmas (if DREX sells out).

We are surprised to see that Walmart (and others) are out of stock already on some of the higher priced items.  We are not sure why, either they didn’t get enough inventory to start with or they are holding back inventory for the stores or for sales later on.  In any case, we will be watching to see if the following toys come back in stock.  The good news is that Amazon still has inventory, great prices, no taxes in most states, and free shipping on many items! That is hard to beat! 

The D-REX Interactive Dinosaur is in stock at Amazon for $129.99 Here’s a link to find all of the fun new dinosaur toys for 2008.  Besides D-REX, we have Spike, Kota, PLEO (from 2007) and more.

The High School Musical 3 High School Playset is still available for $99.99 at Amazon.

The Giddyup N Go Ride On Pony is $149.99 at Amazon and you will have to pay for shipping.  There are also some other great ride on animals including zebra, lions, and tigers but they are considerably higher priced at about $300 each. The exception is the FurReal Butterscotch Pony and S’Mores Pony.  These great toys have been around since 2006 and 2007 and there are some great sale prices.

Inventory and prices are dynamic and we suggest purchasing now if you find what you want.  The retailers are worried more than ever about overall holiday sales this year and inventories might be lower than usual on many items.

As we noted yesterday, there are many popular toys that have gone on sale already. The retailers really want your business now.  If you know what you want, now is a good time to pick up bargains before they go out of stock.

The Fisher-Price Smart Cycle was a top seller for the holidays of 2007.  The appeal of the Smart Cycle is that your child can get exercise while playing video games.  The suggested retail is $108.99 but it has been listed for about $89 and just dropped to $68.52 at Target with free shipping. There are several optional software programs with popular characters and you’ll want to pick them up for some variety of games. Find the Smart Cycle and Software here.

Walmart consistently seems to have the best selection and prices of Kids Play Kitchens.  Right now the Step2 LIfestyle Custom Kitchen is just $79.84 reduced from $99.  This is the smallest of the Step2 play kitchens and if you are tight on space, small can be a good thing! Another inexpensive and smaller kitchen is the American Plastics Homestyle Kitchen.  It receives great reviews for value and quality but comes in “a zillion” pieces so allow plenty of time for assembly. If you want to avoid plastics, the KidKraft products are very reasonably priced.  The KidKraft Sweet Pastel Kitchen is $125 at Walmart.  It is $129 at Target. Find these great Play Kitchens and many more including some beautiful wooden play appliances.

We’ll continue to post with great toy bargains for the season as we find them.

Everyone is worried about the economy this year and the retailers are no exception. Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, is traditionally the day when they are out of the red ink and into the black for the year.  Black Friday falls late in the month on Nov 28, 2008.  According to the Wall Street Journal, “Retailers have decided they can’t wait for the sales boost they usually get through doorbuster discounts that day (Black Friday) and already are rolling out deep cuts.”  Below are some great toy bargains that I have found. Note, that a retailer’s price can vary from day to day and even from hour to hour.  If you find a great price right now and it’s something you really want for the kids, I would suggest picking it up early before it sells out or the price goes back up.

One of the biggest discounts going right now is on Playskool Kota My Triceratops Dinosaur.  Just $239.99 and free shipping at Amazon.  No sales tax either unless you are in NY or another state that requires taxes be collected from Internet sales.  Just a month ago, Kota was selling for $299.  Kota is stil $269 at Walmart but does come with a $15 eGift card and free shipping to store, $.97 to ship to home. Target has matched Amazon’s price of $239.99 but shipping charges and sales tax may apply.  Find links to the best deals on Kota here.  In case you are not familiar with Kota, it is a fun ride on dinosaur for pre-schoolers.  There is only one review so far on Amazon and it is a 5 star review from a parent of an 18 month old that loves Kota.

The newest product from FurReal Friends is a realistic puppy called My Lovin’ Pup Biscuit.  Last month he was listed at $179 and today Target has the best price at $149.99 with free shipping. Target lists this as a temporary price cut.  Amazon has Fur Real Friends Biscuit My Lovin Pup for $156.14 and free shipping.  Walmart is $158.88 and free shipping to store.  There is one review at Target and it is 5 star, 4 reviews at Walmart all 5 star, and there are also great reviews on Amazon although one person complained that they paid $199 and now it is down to $149. Find Fur Real Friends Biscuit at a great price now!  Biscuit is suggested for ages 5 and up.

The new High School Musical 3 movie was a big hit and there are fun new dolls and an East High playset to go with it.  The East High playset has just dropped in price this week-end.  It had been listed at $129 and is now down to $99.97 at Amazon with free shipping. Walmart has the East High School Playset at $119.97 with free shipping to store.  Target is out of stock and is still showing $129.99 as the price. Don’t forget that you’ll want to pick up the dolls to go with the playset so $99 is just the starting price. Find the High School Musical Playset and Dolls.

Check back often this month as I will continue to post great toy bargains as I find them!

This is the time of year for the retailers to reveal their top toys! We start with the Fabulous 15 Best of the Holiday Season from Toys R Us.  Toys R Us released their list of 36 top products on Sept 25, 2008. From the 36, they narrowed it down to the Fabulous 15.  We’ll profile a few of them here.

The 50’s Diner from Step2 is a retro kid’s play kitchen.  There are two sides, the play kitchen on one side and the diner booth on the other.  It comes with 54 pieces including utensils, dishes, food, fryer and accessories. The griddle and coffee pot both have electronic sizzling and bugbling sounds. This kitchen is small, sized for the 2 - 3 year old crowd.  Find the Retro Diner and more great Play Kitchens for 2008.

The most expensive toy on the list is the Hasbro FurReal Biscuit My Lovin Pup at $179. This seems high for an animated puppy but then the last two years the FurReal Butterscotch and Smores ponies were very popular at $250 - $275. Biscuit is a lifelike puppy that responds to voice and has realistic motions and playful puppy sounds.  He even does tricks on command! Biscuit is suitable for ages 5 to 8 years and is receiving 5 star reviews at both amazon and walmart.  Find the new Fur Real Biscuit along with many other Fur Real Friends.

The Radio Flyer Classic LIghts & Sounds Trike is a new pre-school tricycle with a retro look and modern technology.  This tricycle has blinking turn signals, plays music, and a honking horn.  There is storage under the seat and it is built with a sturdy steel construciont (yea - not plastic). The trike is $65 and comes in both red and pink. Ages 3 and up.

The Bakubelt Action Kit is part of a collection of Bakugan toys and games that are all the rage with the young boys.  Bakkugan is a strategic card game played with magnetic, spring loaded marbles.  It is based on a Japanese anime series and is in the USA on the Cartoon Network. The pieces are inexpensive but of course your son will want more, more, more.  Find the Bakugan arena and playing pieces.

Once again Elmo makes the top list.  Elmo Live is due out in mid October and pre-orders have sold out most everywhere.  Elmo has more moves than ever and is sure to be hard to find this year. Take a look at Elmo Live and order now if you want it!

Other toys for the younger kids include the Circus Ring from Playmobil (Playmobil toys are always quality), Girl Gourmet Cupcake Maker from Jakks Pacific (make real cupcakes), Little Mommy Baby Knows Dolls, and the Pink Tag Reading System from LeapFrog.

For the older kids, the Star Wars: The Clone Wars The Twlight from LEGO makes the list as well as the new ipod nano, and Wii Fit from Nintendo.  Wii Fit is a great product for all ages, unfortunately it is still hard to find in stock.

Take a look at all of the Fabulous 15 Toys from Toys R Us.

Have you seen the news video of the woman that can’t stop crying when she sees Wall-E? Don’t put these Wall-E toys in front of her! The Wall-E robots are fun and there are several to choose from. Your kids will want them all! The ultimate Wall-E robot which is a high tech wonder, is pre-order only, available in the fall. At $249 this probably wouldn’t be your choice for the young kids anyway.

U Command Wall-E is the robot for kids. He has realistic expressions, light up eyes, and voice and sound effects from the movie. He can take orders or be programmed with a sequence of actions.  Initial reviews at Amazon, show that the kids love him! He needs to operate on a flat floor or else he is a bit unstable.

Interaction Wall-E is also a robot with light up eyes, moving head and arms, and voice and sound effects. You can talk to him and he responds. Probably the best fun with this interactive Wall-E is to purchase interactive Eve robot and they will interact together! Eve also has great expressions, action, voice and sound effects. She also has a flying mode!

But wait there’s more! The i-Dance Wall-E dances to your favorite music and can be connected to an MP3 player. His eyes light up and blink in sync with the music. He also responds to voice with actions.  There is also a less expensive Dance N Tap Wall-E that dances when you pull his cord.

Beyond robots, there are more great Wall-E toys. The transforming Wall-E action figure, transforms from cube to fully poseable action figure and back.  U-Repair Wall-E is a fun snap together Wall-E which can be built and taken apart and re-built.

We wouldn’t be complete without Wall-E games. The Wall-E video games are available on all platforms but we think the most popular are on the handhelds (DS, PS2, PS3), the Wii, and the PC.  One Dad comments on Amazon, “My kid cant get enough of it. If you liked the movie, you will love this game.”  Also available for the younger crowd is the LeapFrog Leapster Learning Game for Wall-E.

You may notice that I switch back and forth from WALL-E to Wall-E.  WALL-E is the official Disney spelling as it is an acronym for Waste Allocation Load LIfter Earth-Class, however, all caps does so look like shouting on the Internet that many retailers are spelling it as Wall-E.

Find all the great Wall-E toys and robots along with some adorable kids clothing.

The kids are out of school or will be soon and it is time to organize activities for the summer!  We think that the inflatable water slides are a great backyard activity that will keep the kids cool in the heat and entertained for hours.  And although they may seem kind of pricey with ranges from $200 to $800, compare that to a day at a public waterpark and it’s a bargain. Afterall, you’ll have your waterslide all summer.  Now there have been instances when the waterslides are packed away for the year and then when opened up there is a big disappointment when they no longer hold air. My suggestion is to budget as though it will only last one year and then it’s a bonus if you get another year out of your waterslide.  The other problem with the waterslides is getting them back in their original bag. Have you ever tried to get anthing inflatable back in it’s bag? You’ll have to figure out a way to store it folded up the best you can.

The inflatable water slides became popular in 2006 with the original Banzai Falls water slide. Last year, Little Tikes came out with two water parks and Banzai added several new water slides. There are other brands but Banzai and Little Tikes continue to be the most popular water slides in 2008.  If you are expecting to have more than one or two kids playing at a time, the double sildes will keep everyone moving. There are several this year. One of the newest and biggest is the Banzai Vortex Spin and Slide Aqua Park (also called the Banzai Pipeline Twist Aqua Park). It has two huge slides and a large splash pool.  Two water cannons add to the fun!

The Banzai Sidewinder Falls was the most popular waterslide in 2007 and it’s back this year.  The Sidewinder waterslide comes packaged with body board and water blaster guns or with cannons.  It has a climbing wall, large water slide and tunnel.

Little Tikes also has a hit this year with their Super Splash Waterpark and Crashing Waves Water Slide.  The Little Tikes Super Splash has a long slide, water cannons, spray to keep the slides wet and bouncy obstacle course. There are lots of activities to keep several kids active and engaged at once!

There are also two double slides - Banzai Double Drop Falls and Banzai Double Drop Raceway which are back this year. These would be great for Birthday parties where you want to get some racing game activities.  They could be complemented with inexpensive racing Slip n Slides.

Enough said, take a look at the entire product line of backyard waterslides here. If you can’t find the slide you’re looking for it either doesn’t exist or it’s out of stock.  Big tip, check the shipping charges.  Amazon has several with free shipping and Walmart has free shipping site to store on most of their waterslides.

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull opened this week with lots of publicity and excitement. This is a movie franchise that started 27 years ago with the Raiders of the Lost Ark.  Many fans of the Indiana Jones movies are 35 plus years old and parents themselves - now bringing their kids to see the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. Many of us want to go back and see the original movies again and yes they are available in a new special edition DVD. This history of the movie franchise makes for lots of nostalgia about the first 3 movies. We think we’ll see the parents just as interested in the toys as the kids!

Amazon is showing the LEGO Indiana Jones Jungle Duel from the new movie as the current bestselling Indiana Jones toy. It’s a 90 piece playset for only $9.99 and suitable for ages 6 and up. It comes with Indiana Jones, Mutt Williams, and Irina Spalkoi minifigures.

The second most popular Indiana Jones toy at Amazon is the LEGO Indiana Jones and the Lost Tomb.  It depicts the memorable scene from the 1984 movie with Indiana Jones and Marian trapped in the tomb with poisonous snakes.

If you have an older kid that likes to put together more complex sets, the LEGO Indiana Jones Temple of the Crystal Skull will be an awesome project and fun playset when it is completed. The scene is the intricate Temple of the Crystal Skull with moving parts. It comes with several minifigures. This LEGO set is suggested for ages 8 and up.

Of course the Indiana Jones action figures will be popular toys and the ones that crack the whip and speak famous phrases will be a conversation piece at your Indiana Jones party.  Popular phrases include Trust me! Snakes, why did it have to be snakes? and I hate these guys.

Mutt Williams as the new young guy in the movie is popular with the kids too and the Mutt Williams action figure comes brandishing his sword and knife.

Besides the toys to play with, it’s fun to dress the part and actually be Indiana Jones! Yes, there are many new Indiana Jones costumes coming for Halloween 2008.  Some are available now but most will be in stock by the end of the summer.  If you are an adult wanting to play the part, you can pick up a genuine Indiana Jones felt fedora.

Find the new and old Indiana Jones Toys in stock now.  Pick up the child and adult Indiana Jones costumes here.

The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian won the box office race this week-end, coming in number 1 with Iron Man in second place.  It’s a movie the whole family will love and there are some great toys too.  The castle play set is quite detailed with rotating disks, functional doors and windows, drawbridge, lights and sound. You’ll need to pick up the action figures to go with it as none are included. The action figiures include Prince Caspian Peter, King Miraz, Prince Caspian Glenstorm, Peepiceek (the mouse),  and Lucy Pevensie.

The Chronicles of Narnia Monopoly game includes scenes from both Prince Caspian and the Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.  It comes with collectible pewter tokens of Miraz’s helmet, Peter’s sword, Susan’s horn, Peter’s shield, Lucy’s cordial and Peter’s helmet.

New video games from the Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian are available for DS, Wii, Xbox, and all major game platforms.  It’s a role playing adventure game with non-linear levels so that players can explore different paths in the order they choose. Multi-players can work together both locally and online.

The Narnia toys would not be complete without the role playing shield and sword.  Combine these with some awesome new Lucy and Prince Caspian costumes from Disney and have great fun now and popular costumes for Halloween.

Check out the Narnia Action Figures and Toys. Many are only available online for purchase. There are some free shipping options good through the end of May.

The Speed Racer movie came in 2nd to Iron Man at the box office this past week-end.  Although the movie may not have been the biggest hit, the toys are cool and we know that boys will love the cars! There are several different versions of the remote controlled speed racer cars. The Mattel Speed Racer Hero Battle Morph Mach 6 pictured here is one of the most popular ones and is suggested for ages 4 and up.

The LEGO sets are designed for the pre-teen ages of 9 - 14.  This one comes with 3 cars, Speed’s Mach 6 race car, Gray Ghost’s car, and Cannonball Taylor’s car.  Eight minifigures are also included.

There is also a cool helmet with racing sounds, lights and movie phrases. The helmet is for ages 4 to 8. Later this summer there will be some cool Speed Racer costumes for Halloween.

The Speed Racer Special Effects Steering Wheel has interactive play with lights and sounds. The kids dodge the bad guys by turning right or left and the wrong move brings on crashing noises.

Check here for where to purchase the new Speed Racer toys!