blocks Archives - Mommy Kat and Kids

New Mega Bloks #AmericanBuilders Sets Are Full of Tough-Built Fun

March 31, 2014 by Kathryn Leave a Comment

Mega Bloks has so many great new sets for older children this year and as my oldest son is hugely obsessed with building sets, I couldn’t be happier about it. Recently, Mega Bloks released the brand new American Builders line, a collection of building sets featuring the Jeep and CAT and John Deere vehicles. We received the Mega Bloks American Builders Jeep Off-Road Adventure set to review and as my boys both have a huge love of vehicles, I knew this was a set that they would both enjoy.

Zackary is old enough now to tackle large, intricate building sets on his own, so he was happy to have the chance to put this set together. He worked on it from start to finish and it took him a full afternoon, but when he was done, I could see that this set would be providing a lot more fun in the coming days! [Read more…]

NanoBlock Building Sets are Big Fun in a Small Size

September 30, 2013 by Kathryn 2 Comments

Building sets are a big thing in our house right now and both my boys are at their happiest when they’re either assembling a new set or putting together pieces from previous sets to create new creations. We have a variety of brands and styles of construction sets and I have to admit that I thought I had seen pretty much all there was to see in this toy category. But then NanoBlock building blocks came along and changed my mind!

NanoBlocks are micro-sized building block sets with pieces that are mere millimetres. The tiny size means that the blocks can be used to create beautiful and elaborate sculptures that are full of detail, yet only inches tall! I was so excited when I received one of the NanoBlock Sites to See Series building sets from RP Toys to check out for myself. [Read more…]

Let Your Child Build an Adventure with New Mega Bloks Building Sets-Giveaway

September 16, 2013 by Kathryn 110 Comments

My oldest son Zackary has always loved building with blocks and over the years, he’s developed from building huge towers with large Mega Bloks to putting together intricate sets of favourite characters. What I love about building sets is that they don’t just give kids a chance to build a fun model. The characters and models are also good for hours and hours of imaginative play once the building is complete!

Recently Mega Bloks Canada sent me three of its newest building sets to review. When I was younger, the only Mega Bloks available were the larger First Builders variety perfect for toddlers just learning to build or kids with larger-than-life dreams for their creation. But the company has changed a lot since then and now it has a variety of sets appropriate for all ages! My boys were so excited to see the Mega Bloks Fire Truck Finn First Builders set with the original building blocks I remembered from my own childhood and the Hot Wheels and Skylanders Giants Mega Bloks sets featuring small blocks perfect for older children!

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Giving Back During the Holidays with LEGO DUPLO-Giveaway #LEGODUPLOPlay

November 5, 2012 by Kathryn 157 Comments

Christmas is a time of giving, but it’s also a time of giving back. While I love the fun and excitement of finding great gifts for my family, my friends and my boys, I also want to make sure that I raise my boys knowing that what really make Christmas special is helping others. That’s why every year I make sure that we’re thinking about the people outside of our family as well as our loved ones.

I have a strong belief in community and that’s why my number one cause to support is the local food bank. Every year food banks provide needy families with special Christmas hampers containing the food to make a Christmas dinner and a present for each child in the house. While food donations are a huge help to our Regina Food Bank during most of the year, Christmas is different. The items for the hampers are purchased fresh and so monetary donations are incredibly important when the holiday season arrives.
food [Read more…]

LEGO DUPLO Makes Learning Part of the Fun #LEGODUPLOplay

October 27, 2012 by Kathryn 9 Comments

What I love about playtime is that it’s really not ever just playtime at all. Life is full of learning and there’s no better way of illustrating that than by watching a child engaged in what seems like simple entertainment. Whether it’s two toddlers developing basic social skills by sharing toys with one another or older kids learning to follow instructions by assembling a complex toy, children are almost always learning, even when it looks like they’re not!

In fact, one of my very favourite pastimes is to take a few minutes and just watch my boys playing together because it gives me a glimpse into the way that unstructured play can help them learn. That’s why I was absolutely thrilled when I was chosen to become a LEGO DUPLO Play Agent. Building with LEGO bricks is one of those activities that just naturally encourages creativity and both my boys have loved LEGO DUPLO since they received a tub of the bricks for Christmas two years ago. So having the chance to test out new LEGO DUPLO products each month had both boys absolutely giddy with anticipation.

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