Intuitive combination of animals and music - perfect for any child!
581425
This book reminds me of my childhood greats - "Where the Wild Things Are," "Goodnight Moon," "The Giving Tree."  A great story with beautiful illustrations - and a great way to introduce a variety of animals and musical instruments to any child. Definitely give this a read!
3420147
I bought this Dimple Animal Bus & Musician Double Sided Play Mat for my 4 years old and 6 months old. As soon as we got the package my daughter was so excited to open it. This is a double sided mat, one is for different sounds of animals and the other one is for different instruments. It takes 2x AA batteries not included in the package. There is a box which is the main unit for sounds and the battery compartment. There is alos the button for on and off. The matt has a volume up and down. There is a pictures of 10 different animals like dog, sheep, cat, cow, mouse, frog, and duck. The other side is the 10 musical instruments like trumpet, drum, xylophone and more. When they press the mat it makes sounds. You don't feel the buttons on the mat. Sometimes when you press it , it doesnt makes sounds so you need to press it hard. This mat is awesome and my kids love them and they are very happy. The mat is very soft and easy to fold for storage. In the morning I put my baby on it. I gave this mat 5 star for good quality and great toy. I received this product for discount in exchange for my honest review.
2724424
My 2 year old is guitar-obsessed, and thankfully (since there just aren't that many books with guitars in them!), he's decided that all string instruments are 'tars, so he loves this book with it's "violin-tar" and "cello-tar" (his words for the instruments).  (He wakes up in the morning saying "want to read zin zin zin violin-tar", I kid you not.  But, in case that alone doesn't sell the book for you, the illustrations are very colorful and creative, and as another reviewer said, the rhyming text actually reads really smoothly and well (unlike many of our other books).  I also find the cat/mouse/dog very entertaining, and imagine my son will too as he gets a bit older and stops just turning the pages until he finds the violin!
3442578
This drum set is full of fun and inspiration. Though the instruments are plastic, their sound is pleasant and better quality than you'd expect. The two drum stick can also be rubbed together or banged against each other. The gazelle is a slide whistle, the giraffe maracas are a good size for little hands, and the drum top is also a tambourine. My favorite instrument is the twisting little mini drum. I'm sure it has a real name, but when you spin the stick in your hands, the beads on the side hit the drum nicely. My least favorite instrument is the yellow bird whistle.

My 1 year old grandson can stand and play this drum. It's a perfect height for him to pull up and bang on the top. My 4 year old and 7 year old are especially loving the instruments, but I've even seen my 9, 11, and 13 year olds playing along. And yes, I join in, too.  This is good for a family wanting to encourage children to make music, or a preschool or daycare. The instruments are durable, and easy to play.  The animal decorations just make them so much more fun!
1977858
This is the best music CD for families I've ever found. The music is fun, mostly swing-influenced, and subtly funny. My 4-year-old son constantly requests to hear "Figadebby Chickens", even though he has to hear "Cows" first for his life to be complete. He sings along to every song, dances when we're at home, and generally loves it. My 1-year-old bounces up and down and cackles while he listens and watches his big brother.
I sing "Snuggle Puppy" to the baby as I put him to sleep. I tell every family I know about Philadelphia Chickens, just because I love it so much. It has actually spurred an interest in music in my older son. I can't give it higher praise than that.
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814347
Getting the attention of kids is relatively simple compared to holding their attention. This record does both with lan Id say; with catchy tunes and simple accompaniment and harmony that makes it all the more pleasing to the ear. THE GREEN GRASS GREW ALL AROUND and OVER IN THE MEADOW fit right in here. Then the all time favourites such as HERE WE GO LOOPTY LOO, THE MORE WE GET TOGETHER and YOU ARE MY SUNSHINE never fail to get folks singing along. Stories like THE THREE LITTLE PIGS and STROLLING IN THE GARDEN are spoken out well and the I SPY game is an ingenious addition!
4789625
My 5 yo LOVES this book, and especially the music CD. We've only read a few pages, and already she knows what a composer is, who Vivaldi was, and even what color hair Vivaldi had. Okay, so that last one is mostly just useless trivia, but my daughter also can tell me a little about what makes a concerto a concerto, and she also recognizes by sound one of the pieces from Vivaldi's Four Seasons.

The first time we sat down with this book, we played the sample of the Spring portion of the Four Seasons. Both girls, ages 3 and 5, got up and danced like little birds and butterflies, then the 5 yo did an impression of a new flower growing. The 5 yo begged to take the CD to bed with her at naptime (she's allowed to listen to music on her CD player). She listened to that one track over and over for days during her naps. Then one day when I went to get her up from her nap, I found she had decided to listen to the other tracks. She had found another song that had captivated her interest--"It's SOOO beautiful, Mommy!"

The facts and information in this book are advanced enough to educate me (and I've played one instrument or another for most of my life), while being straightforward and interesting enough to fascinate preschoolers. I like the organization of the information into tidbits all over the page--that makes it much easier to remember more of it. I love the interaction with the CD, so that we can learn the sounds of songs and instruments. We also have posters on our wall featuring different instruments, and the girls love to find the instrument we're discussing on the poster, then ask about other instruments that are similar. (Vivaldi was primarily a violinist, by the way!)

And in case you're wondering, Vivaldi's hair was red. That's why they called him "The Red Priest." :)
4563192
I first bought this CD for my granddaughter Zi when she was about 2 years old because I was looking for a version of Teddy Bears Picnic for her.  Little did I realize what a great CD this would turn out to be.  From the opening "Oh, I used to be a dinosaur" (lamenting the loss of his former glory) to the closing, achingly beautiful "Lullaby", and all the songs in between, this CD is enjoyable throughout.  It's now a favorite CD not only for our granddaughter, but for her mother, and my wife and me as well.  The music is just a joy to listen to, with clever lyrics that are really a hoot.  (There's even a tongue-twister in there - "Proper Cup of Coffee"). The CD stands up exeptionally well to repeated listenings, and it needs to because your kid will want to play it over and over.  After my first purchase of this CD, I bought another 2 copies for 2 more grandchildren.  Both of them have taken to it, and now they like to sing the songs.  Today, I just purchased another 2 copies for our most recent 3-year-old family additions because I know they will have lots of fun with it.  You will too!
4903500
I discovered this CD at our library and my family loved it so much we had to have our own copy.  It is important to me that my children-- ages 4, 7, and 10-- have a fondness for classical music.  This CD is ideal.  The musical pieces are beautifully woven together.  They are ideal for calming the entire household (which is marvelous for me!).  We listen to this CD at bedtime, while playing evening board games, and I've even used it while teaching yoga classes-- all with great success.
3915271
My brother wanted to get our 4 year old niece a CD with Peter & the Wolf, & I said I'm sure they have it on Amazon! I found this one with 3 different musical selections & thought it was good choice per reviews. My brother listened to it before giving it as Christmas present to make sure it was what he expected, & it was and more! Turns out, one of the other musical pieces on there was from a ballet that they had gone to together, so that was an added bonus! We wanted her to have something cultural, classic, and educational, & this fit the bill. Our sister (her mother) loved the choice, & my niece even recognized the music from the ballet on there. They couldn't be happier with the choice, & my niece is very bright & listens to it a lot, and it's something that is agreeable & not too "kidsy" or annoying like some children's music can be. Family is Very happy with selection!
4076491
I bought this for my daughter when she was 16 months, and she loves it!! She loves to bee bop to the music that plays when you push the Tad character. She is too young to understand how to fit the pieces together, but she tries. Eventually she'll get it and then she'll have other musical surprises for each combination she makes. I can't wait to see her reaction! She can play with this for a long time.
1921051
Such sweet songs, loved both by my 5 year old, and the baby (18 months). Peanut has a lovely voice and also includes delightful poetry. Many of the songs have motions attached to them, and listen to this music has made our long commute so much fun! There is even a song, (Over in the Meadow) that is so full of heart and sweetness, I tear up when listening to it. Unlike some other children's music, this is so nice to listen to. Also: Trilingual! Highly recommend!
3403480
Our children recently started using this CD and we're all very impressed by it. It's perfect for all ages and all ranges of experience from none to lots. Our daughters, ages 10, 8, and 6, all love the lessons and the games. The first lesson helped them to develop the ability to distinguish pitch/sound of notes in an interactive way. I highly recommend this!
4586407
This is cute!

My 11-week-old is too young to really enjoy it yet, but we got it for him to use when he hits 12 months. However, even at this age, he was captivated by the lights and music, and my husband and I had fun trying everything.

What I love most is the quality of the music and vocals. I was very surprised by how clear the voice is of the child singing the songs! It was not at all what I expected to come out of an electronic toy. My son is going to LOVE playing along with the games, not to mention he'll be able to rock and ride the pony through the house!

Honestly, I can't wait for him to be big enough to really use this toy. From a parent's perspective, this is very cute and a great value for a toy that is this well-made and does this much.
4639654
As technology continues to progress, it's cool to see new products like this VTech Baby Snuggle and Sleep Musical Sheep come on the market. It combines two things that babies and toddlers alike love--something cuddly to hold and soothing music. Now you get BOTH thanks to the built-in MP3 where lullabies and kid-friendly music is played to help them sleep and have companionship when mommy and daddy aren't around.

The interactive nature of this thing is incredible allowing children to singalong or have a song play for them when the sheep detects your kid is crying. AMAZING! This is especially helpful at night when kids are trying to sleep and may wake up to a nightmare. The VTech helps calm them enough to get back to sleep again. I'm impressed that this is only $35 because it's worth a lot more than that.
1484530
An amazing mix of music to use with infants for lullabies and tickles to finger plays and dancing songs with toddlers and preschoolers.
3049399
I really love this and so does my 5 and 2 year olds.  We are a musical family and find the quality of the sound to be just perfect for a toy instrument.  Far superior to the metal versions.  Each bar has its own accurate and very pleasant tone, not too loud and not too quiet.  You really can play little songs on it.  My son takes piano and he sits with it in his lap playing the songs he knows - they sound very nice.  Highly recommended.  What they don't mention is that near the handle is a little slot to store the mallats when it is not in play - great feature!