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Health & Fitness

Ten Toys Your Kids Will Love

In a perfect world, Christmas shopping would be filled with the same joy as Christmas morning.

Guess what? That world actually exists. It’s a shocking thought, but holiday errands can be fun. What if your shopping experience were more holistic? Amse Hammershaimb, a Philadelphia area realtor, finds the one stop shopping at her local orchard a vastly improved experience over conventional big box toy hunting. Every year, she and a group of moms pile into a minivan and head to Knowlton Road. “When we go to Linvilla, we have outside time, socializing, the Farm Market, the bakery where we can find nice bread or a special dessert, and then we visit the Garden Center to buy gifts. It’s all there in one place,” says Hammershaimb, who grew up picking fruit in her grandmother’s orchard. Shopping at Linvilla is a holistic experience, she explains.

Suchita Edwards, mother of two, says Linvilla is a great place for stocking stuffers and crafting gifts. “This year we went to cut our own tree, and then stopped at the Garden Center for presents.” Edwards also loves the ability to buy for the whole range of people on her checklist, and considers Linvilla the best place for hostess gifts. “If we pick up a pie and an ornament, that’s a great present to bring to a family Christmas gathering.” Even before she was a mom, Edwards says Linvilla has always been one her favorite places to go in the Delaware Valley.

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From the overall atmosphere to specifics like the easy check out, the farm is a welcome alternative to both national chains and upscale boutiques. “The toys are competitively priced. They have the largest selection of Melissa & Doug items I have ever seen in one place,” she remarks. It’s quick, warm, friendly, and local.

Here are ten great kid’s gift options you can find at Linvilla this season.

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Age 3 and under:

Bring the farm experience home with plush toys in all shapes and sizes. Pick up a cow, or at least the miniature version. There are adorable sheep, precious pigs and more conventional species as well.

For the littlest farm machine enthusiasts in your family, Ertl’s tractors and other John Deere toy trucks, front loaders and tool kits are high quality, colorful products with a great reputation for long lasting play indoors and out.

The Corey Combine Book is two gifts in one: a rugged green and yellow tractor with working wheels opens to reveal a fun ten page book about life on the farm.

If you’re a fan of natural materials, consider one of the many wood hewn toys on offer at Linvilla, like a wooden toy train set, made to last through endless imaginary cross country voyages.

Ages 4-7:

There are real apples, and then there’s Apples to Apples, a family card game that’s so entertaining it should be illegal. Games Magazine named it Party Game of the Year. In fact every age player will have a good time.

Stickers, puzzles and travel games are just a few of the items in the wide selection of Melissa & Doug brand toys available at Linvilla. Both moms we interviewed rave about Linvilla’s offering of the toy maker’s wares.

Magnetic dress up kits take the idea of paper dolls and do it one better. You can choose from a fireman for the boys on your list, or a princess for your little girl.

Ages 8 and up:

A recent study found that experiential gifts make recipients happiest, and for kids, that means crafts. Even better when those crafts incorporate common household items. How about a potato powered clock kit? Makes a great stocking stuffer.

There are stories, and then there are the absurd homespun tales of Mad Libs. Suchita Edwards finds that car rides are far more fun when the family is filling in verbs, adjectives and nouns to spin an improbable and giggle inducing yarn.

Kids love to build, and what better way to inspire the mechanical mind than with one of the many science oriented sets on offer, such as the Hovercraft Kit, which makes a gliding toy that moves over smooth surfaces on a cushion of air.

If You Go:

After you’ve selected your tree and picked your pie, head over to Linvilla’s Garden Center where you will find the gifts listed here, plus hundreds more. While you’re there, consider shopping for the grown ups on your list as well, and pick up a Poinsettia or two. Avoid the long lines of big chains and the high prices of the fancy boutiques at Linvilla, which is open seven days a week for your shopping convenience, 9 to 6 Sunday through Thursday, and until 8 pm Friday and Saturday. Visit www.linvilla.com for details and directions.

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