Easy, and fun...for mommy too!
599198
My 6 year old and I checked out this book (and his Drawing World) one from the library.  It's been a really fun activity for us to do together.  I help to explain the directions (which really, are pretty simple), and we choose what we want to draw.  You can follow the directions exactly, or use them as a jumping off point to do your own thing.  My son is always saying, "no, I don't want to add that, or can I put this on?" and always wanting to change the color on stuff. Sure why not! I on the other hand, have the personality that likes to follow the directions exactly!  It works for both of us.

Beware that the drawings are very simple and cartoony.  This can be a good thing, or might not be what you're looking for.

We like it so well, I will probably end up buying this one, and maybe one of his other drawing books as well.
4196989
As simple as these may be, my 9 mo old loves them.  Esp the one with the little pop up person.  We take them whenever we travel.  Easy entertainment.  Different textures and 'functions' on each ball.  One has spinny things, (that's a technical term :) ) one is weighted so it has a wobble-y roll, and the others are fun and easy to grab and manipulate. She loves: I love them.
3535730
These little sticker paper doll books are surprisingly fun! A friend of mine gave me the "Little Goth Girl" one for Christmas as a "stocking stuffer" present. I thought it was cute, but that I'd never play with it. I now must confess that, at 51, I not only played with it, I bought more! You see, I'm quite "fidgety," so when I just sit and watch TV or movies at home with nothing to do with my hands, I tend to gnaw on my nails or mess with my cuticles. These little books are a perfect distraction! They aren't too "attention-intensive" and they don't make a mess, so you don't miss out on what you're watching, and they give you something to do with your hands. (The other thing I do is color - Dover's books are great!)

These would be perfect for little kids (about age 4+) at church. Keep them occupied, and it's a quiet, non-messy, unobtrusive activity. And if you accidentally lose parts or leave the book behind, they're cheap and easy to replace.

I'm not a "Manga" fan (nor do I dislike it), but this booklet is CUTE! There is a "doll" on both the front and back pages, so you get "two for the price of one!" The stickers stay on well but also remove well for repeated use. I have several different kinds of these books and I love them all. The sticky stays sticky, without being messy at all. You can use and re-use them for a surprisingly long period of time. Mine still haven't worn out!

The only caution on all of these books is, when you have a large "outfit" or one with many "parts" (as in, an outfit with long sleeves that are somewhat thinner than the main body of the outfit/sticker), be careful when you peel them up, as they can rip at the "junction" portions of the outfit (like at the armpit on long sleeves). Just peel slowly and take up edges on elaborate outfits so you can peel toward the center or toward a thicker portion of the outfit, then lift carefully. It's easy once you get the hang of it, and it doesn't take much practice to get good at it. Doing so will keep the stickers pretty for a long time.

I highly recommend this product. It's inexpensive, cute, and fun!
4188480
This book got my little boy to potty train, and made it fun and easy!
4418441
I bought this for my 2 year old daughter. At first she played with it minimally, and wasn't so interested, but children develop skills like these so quickly...just a few short months later she plays with it EVERY day...often more than once a day. It really is among her favorite activities.

Because of the choking hazard warning for kids under 3 I did remove the smaller shoes and hats. I also make sure she plays with it only when I'm with her. (She prefers it that way...she hands me one of the dolls and she dresses the other).

It's so fun how she has favorite outfits she always goes back to, (memory development), has learned to place the items correctly lined up, (motor skills), and chooses various tops and bottoms, (color matching).

The magnets are strong enough to truly hold the clothing in place as dolls stand in their stands.

The choices are many, as far as outfits.

There's no lid, but all the pieces fit easily into the various compartments. It's less than 1" tall laying flat, so it's very easy to slide under a bed, bookcase, whatever to keep it out of the way w/o spilling.

Easily a five star item that will last long enough to keep for HER children to play with..we love Melissa and Doug pretend food for her play kitchen too!
4766225
I went back and forth trying to decide whether to buy this for my 5 year old daughter for easter because some of the reviews and the age recommendation suggested that it wouldn't be suitable for her age. I decided to buy it anyways however, thinking that if it was too hard for her I could always put it away and pull it back out down the road. I can't even tell you how glad I am that I bought this game and how much time we've spent playing it over the past couple of months! It took a game or two for her to understand what each card did, but once she figured it out boy was I in trouble... I've lost many games since!
We deviate from the directions ever so slightly to make it more age appropriate: you can discard number cards in one of three ways, a single number card, a pair or an equation. An equation would be for example, if you had a 2 card a 3 card and a 5 card, you could discard all three because 2+3=5. This concept is still slightly over her head so we don't use that as a discard option.
The nice thing about this game, as a parent, is that it's enjoyable to play as an adult as well. It's fun and complex enough to not be boring, but easy enough for a 5 year old to play as well.

I highly recommend this game!
4436854
After reading some of the negative reviews I had to share my opinion.  This program, while at first glance may sound strict, has made motherhood a great experience.  Several mothers I know suggested this program and they swear by it, as do i.  My 10 week old is sleeping 9-10 hours at night and naps regularly after each meal.  His awake time is great and he is happy!  I can lay him down while he is wide awake and he falls asleep on his own.  He can sleep anywhere...not just in a swing, not just in his crib, not just in a bouncy seat, and more importantly...never with me and my husband :) he had signs of colic early on, but I think it has been subdued because of the schedule.  My advice to moms is take EVERYTHING you read with a grain of salt.  No human is predictable, but we are all conditioned by schedules (whether some would like to admit that or not). and a schedule, if anything, will help a new mom feel better and in turn be a better mom.  I know exactly when I can shower, do the dishes, run to the store, eat lunch, fix dinner, and spend time with my husband alone.  It has made all the difference for us, and I suggest all moms to give it a try.  Be flexible and don't beat yourself up if you can't get it perfect all the time everyday. That's impossible.  But the book describes a great goal to strive for.
3433641
I had this game on my Amazon wish list, and a good friend purchased it as a "big brother" gift for my two eldest when their baby brother was born. Since they had lots of toys already, I kept it hidden in my closet for the right day... when the baby would be awake, the downstairs neighbors would be gone, etc.

Well, I pulled it out today, popped the batteries in, and voila! Like magic, my normally squabbling 3 1/2 and 6 1/2 year olds were giggling, bouncing, and leaping all over the place. The great thing is that it's an active game, but they have to listen to the game's instructions, so they don't get overly wild. This is a terrific game for a small birthday party (though you can order spare game pads from Cranium and use it for bigger groups or classes), or just to bring out when the kids are bored and can't go burn off energy outside.

The game is really simple; it comes with the battery-operated pod and 16 pads that you scatter on the floor. They vary in shapes, colors, and emblems (things like animals, instruments, and food). The players have to listen to the pod's instructions (ie "spin over to a circle! Touch your nose to an animal!"), and after a certain number of instructions, the game will tell the players to freeze, and announce that if anyone is standing on a certain pad, they're the winner, and should take a bow or do a funky dance.

I was thrilled to have a game that's active and something that both my kids could play together -- since it's essentially a listening-to-instructions game of luck, one wouldn't necessarily beat the other.

This is a terrific example of how well-thought-out the Cranium games are. I'm sure we'll get lots of use out of this!
3940223
I bought this for myself (a grandmother) and for my daughter with her two children aged 14 months and 5 years and for my daughter in law with two children aged two and almost four.  There are lots of fun, quick, easy projects in it that required varying degrees of supervision for different ages, but can be done by all ages.  I think I'll even have fun with some of them, without the children!  The most complicated element is spray painting, and most projects have 5 steps or less and 5 "ingredients" or less.  It's a fun book to have around if you have kids and go nuts on rainy days!  Lots of the projects are made with things you'll probably find around the house anyway.  It's probably a good idea to pick a few, lay in the things you'll need, and be ready for the winter blizzards and snow days!
4912460
We've really been looking for a simple game we could play as a family with my 3 year old with a relatively short attention span. This is it! He loves it and we all have a good time playing together. I didn't have any problems with it tipping over too easily.
2218163
Easy to follow, interactive...my infant loves them and though she doesn't sign regularly, she understands much of what we say. Great product!
383453
This is the first early learning game we tried and it's definitely my favorite for my almost-two year old! It's perfect for the 1-3 age range, though it could go a little older, in my opinion. It teaches nursery rhymes, baby sign language, and vocabulary.

I love all the different nursery rhymes (there are 25 of them!) as some are ones that I'd never heard of and some are ones that I'd nearly forgotten about. Now, my little one gets to hear them all and she loves it. I even catch her "singing" along with them sometimes, which is just cuteness overload! The baby sign language has actually been a really fun thing for us too, and helpful with Sophia, because she is a bit slower with her speech (though far ahead with other things). The baby sign language is helping her to communicate, which helps us all to be less frustrated!

We received a complimentary game.
1266886
Great fun! Easy to use. A bit cheap. But for the price and the fun that my child gets... it's a great find.
4507204
Fun, simple game. Always a blast! Even toddlers can play--we showed my 2-year-old videos on YouTube of people playing Jenga, and she immediately got it...and she's really good! Great for fine motor development.
1659205
Simple and fun, great for our almost two year old.
576513
I'm a 33 y.o. mom who recently started playing this game. I do not usually get into games because they are way too hard. This game is easy enough that it is enjoyable to play. I still find myself occasionally having to repeat levels several times before I pass, but it's not "beat your head against the wall" frustrating. The characters are really cute and crack me up. My 8 y.o. even loves to play it. Great fun!
3779316
Cute, simple, and fun. My four year old is able to easily manipulate the mouse and maneuver it around the screen. She enjoys clicking on the random things around the house and is able to play the games independently. Gives me about 20 mins of peace to do my things while she's entertained and learning!