Etsy seller Kimsieboldstudios creates beautiful children’s art illustration prints, perfect for hanging in a nursery or child’s room. I particularly like this one, Boys and Their Toys, which is an 8″ x 10″ print. This would even look good in a parent’s room or office. Printed with Claria Hi-Definition Ink on Epson Enhanced Matter Paper, the print sells for just $17.

Amolia Mae sells these beautiful Powell Craft brand handcrafted, embroidered pajamas for boys. Along with that, they sell teddy bears wearing matching pajamas. What could delight a little boy more? My almost six-year-old was recently treated to a sample pair of pajamas and teddy bear from Amolia Mae. It arrived at the perfect time, while he was quarantined inside our house with strep throat during the Blizzard of 2010. The pajamas are long-sleeve, beautiful 100% fine cotton, and arrive in an Organza case. The matching teddy bear is darling as well. My son has a friend now to take to bed every night (and a favorite pair of pajamas as well!) You can purchase these for your own child, at a price of $42 for the pajamas and about $20 for the bear, at AmoliaMae.com.

As a child growing up in the late 1970s/early 1980s, I have fond memories of spending rainy afternoons making Shrinky Dinks in the oven with my mom or babysitter. Once I colored them, these little plastic pieces would amazingly shrink up in the oven. Today’s Shrinky Dinks robots are pre-cut, making the process even easier. Colored pencils are included, and you can mix and match heads, bodies, and feet. An adult needs to put them in the oven, and when they’re finished “baking,” your child has his own mini-robots that he helped create. A ring on the top helps to attach the mini-robot to a backpack so it won’t be easily lost. Recommended for ages 5 and up (with adult supervision), Shrinky Dinks Robots sell for $4.99 for a set of 9 pieces (makes 3 robots) at ThinkGeek.com. A great rainy-day activity.

These handmade ice cream cone rattles look good enough to eat! Made by a fair trade women’s cooperative in Bangladesh, these knit rattles measure 5″ long. They are available in strawberry, mint chocolate chip, and french vanilla, and are sold individually for $9 each at Elsewares.com.

This is something I considered getting for my son for Christmas, but wasn’t sure. If you don’t mind having ants in your house, your child might love it. Fascinations Antworks Illuminated is filled with a blue, translucent, illuminated, nutritious gel that feeds the ants who tunnel through it. It requires no food, water, or maintenance, and says it lets children study ants over a period of weeks. A few customers, however, have said that the kit arrived with dead ants, so be prepared. If it would work, it would be a fun learning tool. It says it’s recommended for ages 8 and up, but I could see my 5 year old enjoying this with parental supervision. You can view and purchase it for about $30 at Amazon.com.

I found Discovery Totes on Etsy seller HELICOPTERstudios shop and am quite intrigued by them. I love that they fold up into a tote and unfold into a dream world. It’s a wonderful travel toy that your child can carry a few little people and houses in and unfold to play with anywhere. I especially like A Day for a Hike. Because it’s made of wool felt, it is eco friendly and it won’t overwhelm your child with lights and sounds. It’s paired with the imagination only, no batteries. $60 and a real delight.

My littlest boy loves wooden wire and bead toys. Among his collection is the Sesame Street Elmo & Friends Wood Busy Beads. It was actually a gift his brother was given when he was a baby but he never really took to those sorts of toys. Luckily, our 14-month-old is a wire and bead maze aficionado and seems to enjoy them very much. Since it’s not a toy out this year, you can find it by keeping your eye on amazon for a good price or kijiji for a good deal. I would hazard a guess that it could be found at a second hand store near you as well.

The Little Tikes Apple Grove Pals Friends Packs are adorable, easy for small hands to manipulate, and they have interchangeable hats. They also come with a book. To go with the fun little animals, there are several play sets and accessories. We have The Great Pancake Caper set of 3 and the Heroes Are Everywhere set. Though it can be messy letting a 14 month old play with figurines that have removable hats, I think they will provide fun for him for some time to come. They’re for ages 18-48 months at littletikes.com.

Go-La Rolla makes a great, stylish, high-quality yet still lightweight portable play mat. It also has handy carrying straps, making portability a cinch. There are loops on the side where you can attach some of baby’s favorite toys. Best of all, it’s made of organic cotton, so you can be sure of baby’s safety while playing on it. This is the perfect solution to take with you when visiting friends or relatives who might not have a clean, safe surface for baby to play on or to enjoy tummy time. The cover is also removable and washable. Available in a variety of colors, you can purchase this mat for $99.99 at GoLaRolla.com.

These winter-themed pajamas from American Girl are very cute, but the added bonus is that girls can get a matching pair for their dolls. These flame-resistant pjs feature a fun snowflake and penguin print on a bright magenta background. The doll’s pajamas come with a coordinating pair of penguin slippers and a book, Give the Gift of Green. The girls’ pajamas retail for $40, and the doll set for $24. You can save by purchasing them together for $58 at store.americangirl.com.

My 4-year-old son got Rocky the Robot from his grandparents for Christmas this year. He loves dancing with Rocky and loading Rocky up to see him tip and dump. This interactive toy has a lot of great features that we haven’t even discovered yet. My son’s favorite Rocky phrase is “You’re the boss!” I think he likes being the guy in charge. It’s $49 at walmart.com.

I scored some great deals at the Land of Nod Winter Wonder Sale last year, and it looks like there are some equally-great finds to be had this time around. One great deal I saw was this organic Under the Nile Farm Fresh Veggie Crate for $18.95 (down from $30). We have some of these veggies and they are a lot of fun. You can purchase this set at landofnod.com, or check out the entire sale at landofnod.com/sale. Be ready to sift through a lot of superficial markdowns to find real savings.

I just stumbled upon this Color Doudous Game from Djeco, and I think it looks like a lot of fun. This card game is designed for children ages 4-7 and requires kids to match cards according to color or animal type. The cards have the zany appeal of Djeco’s animal toys. You can purchase the game for $13.50 at moolka.com. While I haven’t played it, I can vouch for the quality of the many Djeco toys we already own.

For Christmas, we got our youngest son, who is 14 months old, a wooden race car from Toys ’R Us. Not only is it the perfect size for his little hands but it is environmentally friendly, it rolls very nicely, and is attractive as well. He likes taking the race car driver in and out of the car and the slot fits his new Apple Grove Pals inside it quite nicely as well. Only $4.98 and not the only wooden toy to be chosen from (there was also another vehicle and a shape sorter at our Toys ’R Us store.) It’s recommended for ages 2+.

Pottery barn Kids is currently having their annual Happy Holiday Sale. You can find many items that are on sale for up to 75% off their original price. I have found some great deals at this sale in the past. This year, some great deals include this wooden airplane set for $29.99 (It was originally $69.), an $89 quilted diaper bag for $39.99, or a silver charm key chain for $7.99 (down from $22). You can  shop the sale at potterybarnkids.com. My one piece of advice is to read the item descriptions carefully as I have been fooled a few times. Once, for example, I bought what I thought was a felt tree house with fairies. It turns out that it was just the tree house, and the fairies were sold separately, and sold out. We’re still trying to figure out what to do with that thing!