Thursday, April 16, 2015

Giveaway! The Coolest Earth Day Gifts for Your Family!

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TeamTimeCar.com-BTTF DeLorean Time Machine-OtoGodfrey.com

By Terabass (Own work) [CC BY-SA 4.0 ], via Wikimedia Commons


Name the two things the Back to the Future car and this science toy has in common.   One of these is part of the giveaway!!!!  Photo: MudWatt


WHAT: A follow up to my post at Forbes
It's all about being more effective about Earth Day in exceptionally cool ways!
TOOLS: Express Yourself, Think Like a Scientist Engineer
This giveaway is brought to you by Toys Are Tools, nay Forbes.com



photo: MudWatt

Answer #1:  Both are running on garbage (though the car is fictional).   That is right, this little "battery" is made of mud.  MudWatt, designed by a young engineer, decided to make a toy version of what scientists are trying to do right now when it comes to creating sources of sustainable energy.  After the Kickstarter project is done (already fully funded), the MudWatts will go for about $30 but there will be other options. 


If you have more than one, you can use it to see what would produce more energy. What would your child put in there? Can you guess what my child put in here?  We got our mud from the neighborhood park. 


You get to put it all in this container, and no soldering is necessary.  A free app allows you to measure the wattage coming out based on the LED blink rate!  FASCINATING!   Can anyone say science project???????


Okay, check out these crazy tracks!!!!!

Tobo Track – ($31.00 and above)


The numbers are very cool.  There must be an algorithm or something in there.

These are Tobo Toys and they have been selling already but now there is a Kickstarter launched to make Tobo compatible with LEGO and Thomas-style tracks! Isn't that amazing?


If you would like to be one of the first to have these, in the world!!!!! then get to that link and support it before 4/21/15


Green Toys Dig and Discover Set- ($24.95)    You will never have to buy another pail and shovel again. This one is built to last (in a very ec0-supportive way of course).




These toys are sooooooo strong.   You have no idea.   Yes, they cost more than the cheap plastic ones that you would find in a drugstore but seriously, I have converted now.  Just listen to this!

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-----we now interrupt this blog post to remind you that the original post is at Forbes! These are just the extra pics!------


Incredible Plate Tectonics – ($7.95)

Excuse me but how cool is this book?  This subject is something that every elementary school student must learn in school. It's a great investment!




This book isn't long.  Maybe 40 pages?  I love it. 


Scratch Map Deluxe – ($29.95)
Here is my secret.  Use an eraser.  Don't use a coin.  Erasers work best! This map is gorgeous gorgeous gorgeous!










How to bring more calm to a room?   Just hang up natural materials like paper and felt.  It's not just for parties.  If your kids are rougher than average, then go for the felt.   I love these.

somewhat translucent, no?



My kids like to run a lot but somehow, the garlands make it harder for them to do so. 

This was an exhibit at the NY Hall of Science.  Look how these strips create moving shadows and imagine how they would effect the light in a room. 

This is my felt ball fidget.  It's still a work in progress but it is totally awesome!!!! Thank you Giftsland. 









YOXO Toys Mega Builder - ($59.99)

Can the world be built with just Y's, X's, and O's?   Does this look very simple to you? Think again.

The Minecraft Piggy.
Some other Minecraft character

You can win the Original in this giveaway!



Geek & Co. Grass Head – ($19.95)

This was unbelievably fun!   



It comes with a little extra soild and stocking and so I made one too! 




And they are still growing!





I never knew that you could actually make your own seed bombs but you totally can!



I think we added too much plaster.  The good thing is that the molds are reusable. 







Use Skitch to keep track of where you planted the little pirates. 

DO NOT FORGET TO ENTER THE GIVEAWAY!
Help breathe back some life into Toys are Tools! WE are just going through a little transition right now but I assure you we are still testing away!


a Rafflecopter giveaway

Answer # 2: Both MudWatt and Mr. Fusion from the storied car have the year 2015 in common. MudWatt launched their Kickstarter in 2015 and when the Professor came back to 1985 to get Marty and Jennifer and take them back to the future, they were going to 2015 because the professor said that this was what people in the future (aka 2015!) were using then. OY!




Disclosure:  Toys are Tools was not compensated by the manufacturers of anything mentioned here for the publication of this review.  The reviewed items were provided to Toys are Tools to facilitate a review.  Reviews are never promised


38 comments:

  1. I had never heard if the thames and Kosmos grass head before, so cool :)

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  2. I love the Green Toys Dig and Discover Set because my boys have already been trying to dig in the garden and we still have snow! they would love yjis

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  3. I hope that we can one day turn garbage into our main fuel source instead of turning our main fuel source into garbage (ie. disposable diapers and plastic bags) Sadly I do not see this happening any time soon.

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  4. I really hope it is accomplished soon, because it would be great to clean up all the waste and start putting it to good use. But at the same time, waste needs to be reduced and hopefully when it's gone, there will be more solar energy running things.

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  5. It's a really hard choice to choose just one, but if I had to, it would be the Tobo Tracks. Because my son would be obsessed with them!

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  6. Most of these toys were new to me. Specifically Tobo Tracks, YOXO Mega Builder and the felt balls toy for fidgeting.

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  7. Yes I think garbage will be fuel some day! Probably not for another 10yrs or more. I like the Tobo Tracks because they are compatible with the Lego's we already have invested into and the kids love them.

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  8. They were all new to me thanks for sharing them with me!

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  9. I really liked the Tobo Tracks the best . I think they would be a big hit with the kids too. We have tons of lego's so this would make an old set new again.

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  10. We have a waste to energy plant here, required recycling bins, and optional green composting bins. I think some parts of the country are off to a good start, but being smart about what we purchase is important, too. I sure hope we find a way to get more energy out of trash. Kids playing with toys like this is a great way to inspire inventors, that's for sure!

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  11. I've seen the YoXo toys, the felt balls, and the green garden tools (I LOVE anything that company makes!) before. Intriguing choices here.

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  12. the MuddWatts is my favorite (you know how hard it is for me to narrow it down to one!) at this moment. I can see all sorts of fun activities

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  13. My favorite is the Tobo tracks! They look very cool and environmentally friendly.

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  14. This was new: MudWatt.

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  15. I think garbage will be a source of fuel when we learn to convert compost scraps back to energy. Hopefully during my lifetime.

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  16. I had never heard of the grass heads before. Adorable!

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  17. I think my grand kids favorite would be the YOXO builders because they enjoy building things.

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  18. My favorite is the tobo track, that looks like so much fun and would go great with our train track

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  19. This is new: Seriously, all of them! What a great assortment of toys. Would love to try all the gardening ones most!

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  20. This was new: Mudwatts--how neat!

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  21. It would be nice if we had a way to turn garbage into fuel. I have no guess as to when that might happen.

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  22. My favorite is the Green Toys set because my son loves to play in the dirt.

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  23. I don't see using garbage as fuel.

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  24. Tobo Track.. my two youngest would have a blast with this.

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  25. All of them are new to me. I've never heard of any of these.
    I love finding new products for my kids.

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  26. I like the Green Toys Dig and Discover Set.

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  27. I have really come to love and trust anything by #ThamesandKosmos so anything by them would be my favorite. I want to get my hands on that MudWatt

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  28. i can't imagine garbage becoming fuel. I would love to see that happen of course but with all the different types of trash from food to chemicals to plastics, I don't believe there will be a way to use it.

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  29. the YOXO, MudWatt, and the Scratch map were both SUPER COOL and totally new to me and looked super cool!

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  30. It would be great to turn garbage into fuel. In the mean time, we should work towards creating products with less waste that are more recyclable.

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  31. My favorite is the map - how fun! Hadn't heard of the felt balls before...

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  32. I had never heard of most these before surprisingly! I absolutely adore the Giftsland Felt Balls though!

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  33. My favorite is definitely the Giftsland Felt Balls! They are genius! There are so many possibilities!

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  34. I hope that garbage will be a source of fuel one day and science is really coming along so who knows!

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  35. this was new.. the felt balls.

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  36. I hope garbage could be used as a potential source.

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  37. I almost bought the YOXO bug flye (a different iteration of the one described here, but with fewer pieces) for my 7 year old son who's always building something. It also seemed topical (what, with Earth Day and all...) or perhaps I was just looking for an excuse to buy it. I haven't gotten it yet, but it seems like a good toy: it's ingenious, open-ended and (seemingly) substantial enough to allow for good, creative building.

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