Talk about trauma! Three of my grandkids were busy working on their Webkinz sites last week when they all got a notice that their one-year plan was up in two weeks! If they didn't add a new Webkinz pet code in the next couple of weeks, all the virtual pets they already had in Webkinz-land would disappear forever into the netherworld of the internet! 

Having found Target and Walgreens to be great ways to save money on cute Webkinz toys, I checked on their stock later in the week when running errands. I was disappointed to find that Target had sold out of most of their Webkinz during Christmas. Walgreens had a couple of the little Webkinz for $6.99 which isn't bad, but all the rest were the big ones and more expensive. I picked up those two to use as birthday gifts for the grand-twins and headed home. Spotting a second Walgreens as I got near my house, I popped in and was thrilled to discover they had a bunch of the bigger Webkinz left over from their Black Friday sale for only $5! WOW! Definitely a great way for this grandma to save money. 

I now have a huge bag of Webkinz in my "gift" closet, full of presents for everyone's birthday gifts for the year AND some extras for those unexpected needs that always seem to crop up at the worst times. And being the care-giving grandma I am, I've let all the parents know that if any of the grandkid's codes give out BEFORE their birthday, to let me know. We can always add the code in early, and save the actual stuffed animal to wrap up on the actual day. 

Webkinz is one of my favorite ways to save money, add a special treat to a birthday gift, and have fun with my grandchildren. In fact, this week found me playing a snow sled game with one grandkid, a great educational word game with a second grandchild, and even adding some Webkinz dollars along with some strawberry seeds to the account of a third grandchild who lives at a distance. How fun is that!  

I don't know if anyone else's Walgreens is offering this great deal but it's certainly worth checking out. And if you spot some great prices on Webkinz toys for grandkids in your neck of the woods, do give us a holler in the comments section.  :) 

My grandkids and I love to play! From freeze tag to Cranium Cariboo, from riding Razor Scooters to playing Pictureka, from Old Maid to Crazy 8s, we do have lots of fun with educational toys and games. And yes, I meant that word EDUCATIONAL to be there. You might not think of all these toys and games as educational, and yet they are. My grandkids are learning important character traits like good sportsmanship and how to share at the same time they are learning critical thinking skills and how to read numbers, not to mention how to balance well.

Two new games we’ve tried in the last couple of months are Bakugan Battle Brawlers and Sequence for Kids. After spending some time with both, I wanted to share our thoughts about them. Bakugan Brawl Board Game: My grandsons love Bakugan. When I spotted this game at Walmart, I recognized the name and stopped. The description on the front states, “A Game of Strategy & Intense Bakugan Brawling” and “5+.” The picture looked somewhat like chess or checkers. “WooHoo,” I thought. An interesting, critical thinking skills game that would be right up their alley. The timing was perfect since I would be babysitting them for a few days that week, so I purchased the game and brought it home.

I made the mistake of setting it up while they were there. It’s always better to take it apart, set it up, and learn the game when you are alone, but my schedule hadn’t allowed for that. Still, we had fun putting it together. Then we worked through the rules. I don’t know who decided it was a game for 5 and up. My grandkids are quite bright but even the 7 year old didn’t really understand the concepts. It was even confusing for me! The game itself looks like it would be fun and interesting for an older crowd. But if you are looking for Christmas gift ideas for kids under 10, I can’t recommend it for them.

Sequence for Kids: Even though the front cover states it is for ages 3-6, this game has turned out to be great for my all my east coast grandkids, including their big sister of 13. She’d probably also enjoy the older kids’ version, but we’ve all had fun with this colorful game. I brought it with us for a long road trip, and it was great to play with one or two at a time each morning before the rest woke up. They have to get four chips in a row up and down, sideways, or diagonally.

There are two special cards – a UNICORN that lets you place your chip anywhere and a DRAGON that lets you remove your opponent’s chip from anywhere. The one hard part, that can be a bit difficult if you have younger children or if any of yours are on the autism spectrum or with certain learning disabilities, is the DRAGON card. We found it can be fairly frustrating, especially if the one losing the chip is almost at four chips to win the game. I wound up playing the game with each of my grandkids individually several times. We started off really easy. If I got the DRAGON card, I used it at the beginning of the game when it wouldn’t bother them. As we continued to play the game, I made it just a wee bit more challenging for them each time.

Eventually they have all reached the point where they are enjoying the game even when they lose a crucial chip at the end of the game. Overall, this game is entertaining, interesting, and fun – even for me. I also like that they are learning to deal with frustration in a positive manner. I highly recommend this game, and, for much older grandkids, its big brother, Sequence. The company also makes Sequence – Numbers – to help them learn to add and subtract and Sequence – States and Capitals – perfect for around 4th or 5th grade when they are learning those; and several other interesting sounding games. All in all, they are definitely fun for board game activities for grandparents and their grandchildren! I'm looking forward to playing it with my west coast kids next time I get to visit them.

Kaye