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Last Thursday, I had the awesome opportunity to be at Time to Play Magazine’s press conference in New York City, where Chris Byrne – The Toy Guy (@thetoyguy) and Jim Silver – editor in chief of Time to Play Magazine (@jimsilver) unveiled the magazine’s list of what they believe are the Most Wanted Toys of the 2009 Holiday Season. Sixteen (16) toys were highlighted overall. Feel free to check out the list in detail, but I’m gong to highlight my three favorite toys that were presented. We had an opportunity to interview Hasbro, Mattel & Wild Planet who represent these products, so check back for the video posts to see these toys in action!

For preschool and elementary school aged children, Hasbro has created a 60th anniversary edition of Candyland, called the Candyland Sweet Celebration game. How exciting is it that your child now has the power to create a unique Candyland adventure every time, as the pieces snap together like a puzzle to create the gameboard! What a great addition to such a classic game!

For young toddler boys who love their dumptrucks, Mattel/Matchbox has created Rocky the Robot Dump Truck. Not only does Rocky function as a regular dump truck, but he has been developed with a personality! We had the pleasure of interviewing Dr. Michael Shore, who discussed all the behind the scenes work that Mattel does for research to bring products to children that are developmentally sound, especially with regard to Rocky. It’s no wonder their toys are always among my personal favorites!

Lastly, Wild Planet has paired up with Crayola to create Crayola Town. There are different sets to purchase such as a zoo, ranch, house, and airport. The child first colors in the mat and puts together 3D aspects of the play mat. There are a few play mats included in each set, though there is an opportunity to download more online for free. Each set comes with different pieces as well, to turn your child’s crayons into animals, cars, etc. so that after they are finished coloring, they can make their pictures come to life with a pretend play experience!

I know my mind has not yet focused specifically on the holiday season, but hopefully these three suggestions may make the stress of creating your gift buying list a little easier!