Moments in Childhood: Testing the Water

We only get one shot at childhood. As parents, we hope to be mindful of the many beautiful moments we find along the way. Every Monday, we will honor one of these moments in our series, Moments in Childhood. If you have a Moment in Childhood you would like to share, please email us at blog@amusetoys.com!

Moments in Childhood is sponsored by theWAIREHOUSE

From the Archives "Made by US: Name Trains"

It's our goal to provide our customers with the world's most beautiful, purposeful playthings. Many of our award-winning toys are designed and manufactured right here in the US. For the next few weeks, we will feature American-made toys in a series entitled, "Made by US."

Every child needs a NameTrain by Maple Landmark. They make a beautiful keepsake, a unique gift or a playful room decoration. Each piece is artfully crafted in Vermont by the dedicated employees of Maple Landmark.

NameTrains are a colorful, personalised, multi-piece train that are cherished throughout childhood. They are fully compatible with all the other major train sets including, Melissa & Doug, Thomas the Tank Engine & Brio. Children learn color & letter recognition when they pretend play with their NameTrains.

They are beautifully crafted from solid Rock Maple wood, which is responsibly harvested from locally sourced trees. Maple Landmark makes it a point to do business with other local companies, such as Lathrop's Maple Supply of Bristol, Vermont. Lathrop's Maple Supply provides all wood for Maple Landmark's products, and their family has been in the timber business in their community for 125 years. Both companies are careful to assure that no resources go to waste in the creation of their products. This effort is recognized by Dr. Toy with the Green Toy Company Award.

Maple Landmark is a family-owned business run by husand and wife team, Mike & Jill Rainville. Their two sons help out with the business when they are not away at school. The company provides many long-term, well-paying jobs to members of their community. They are committed to manufacturing the highest quality, safest toys on the market.

Moments in Childhood: Peek-a-Boo

We only get one shot at childhood. As parents, we hope to be mindful of the many beautiful moments we find along the way. Every Monday, we will honor one of these moments in our series, Moments in Childhood. If you have a Moment in Childhood you would like to share, please email us at blog@amusetoys.com!

Moments in Childhood is sponsored by theWAIREHOUSE

From the Archives: Game University Trigger

When Spot It! by Blue Orange Gameswas released last year, we knew it was going to be huge fun in a tiny tin. Since then, it's become one of our most commonly requested games. You can imagine our excitement when we were introduced to Blue Orange's newest game in a travel-friendly tin, Trigger!

Trigger is a fast-paced true or false card game that requires quick thinking and speedy action. It includes one target and 60 question cards. To play, shuffle the cards and put the target in the middle of the playing area. Deal five cards to each player and choose someone to be the first-round moderator. This person will be the one to determines the player that has given the correct answer to the stated question the quickest.

To start the round, the moderator takes the top card on their pile and reads one of the six questions listed. Each question has a different color behind it, which will be important later. However, for the first round the moderator chooses whichever question they please and reads it aloud. They range in difficulty depending on who is asking and in what context you are playing the game. Bear in mind that the use of the word "I" always refers to the moderator asking the questions, and the word "you" always refers to you. Here are some example questions so you can get the gist:

"The chair you are sitting on belongs to you."
"If Thursday is in two days, then today is Tuesday."
"At least one player here is more than 6 feet tall."
"At least two of the players' first names end with the same letter."
"The last syllable of this month is "BER."

The questions require information processing, observation, some knowledge of science or math and other common-knowledge facts. Often they are worded in such a way that you really need to thinkbefore giving your answer.

Giving your answer is where the game gets a little crazy. Your right hand is associated with "true" and your left with "false." As soon as you can, shout your answer and place the corresponding hand on the target. The order the hands stack up on the target is the order points will be awarded. The first player who has the correct hand down on the target earns the question card as a point. Before they pick up a card from the draw pile, they check what color the back of their point question card is. This determines the question they will ask on the next round. The winner picks up a card from the draw pile and reads the next question.

If someone has answered incorrectly, they lose point a card. No changing your answers! Once your hand is down, it stays down. The player at the end of the game who has collected the most cards wins the game.

Trigger is a great party game for 3 or more people ages 8+. It only takes a few minutes to play, and its small tin makes it easy to take anywhere. Please stop by either aMuse Toys location and play a few rounds with us. We know you're going to love it just as much as we do!

Make room for it in your travel bag, because Trigger has just won a Dr. Toy's Best Vacation Product award!

Moments in Childhood: High in the Sky!

We only get one shot at childhood. As parents, we hope to be mindful of the many beautiful moments we find along the way. Every Monday, we will honor one of these moments in our series, Moments in Childhood. If you have a Moment in Childhood you would like to share, please email us at blog@amusetoys.com!

Moments in Childhood is sponsored by theWAIREHOUSE