Go, Go, Domino!

Who doesn't enjoy watching a crazy pattern of dominoes fall??  Check out this video from a store in Finland! They literally line every single aisle of the store with objects, including pallets, cereal boxes, shelving, cases of drinks and many other products found throughout the store. How fun, but could you imagine the clean up process when it's all over!??



That was neat, right?? How about creating your own domino rally at home with these cool domino and ball track sets from HABA! It's super fun and the clean up is a cinch!

LIKE us on Facebook & Enter to Win a Mother's Day Prize pack!

Can you believe it is MAY already? In just over a week, it will be Mother's Day 2012!  To show our appreciation to all of the hardworking mothers out there, we'd like to do a few giveaways!

Mothers and Grandmothers, share a picture of you and your Children and/or Grandchildren on our facebook page and you will be entered to win a prize pack valued at $40 with select item(s) from HABA, Dabbwalla, GLOB Natural Paints and more! Contest begins 5/4/12 and ends 5/13/12. Winners will be notified through facebook!

So head on over to our facebook page and flaunt your pride and joy with us. We can't wait to see all of the beautiful faces of our customers and their amazing children!

Pretend Building, But For Real!

This just might be one of the coolest additions to our store here at Maukilo!  We've all built with building blocks, but this takes it to a whole new and more importantly, exciting level.  It almost reminds us of building a gingerbread house, but instead uses real bricks and mortar, plus it won't attract ants!

This is great fun for the whole family, especially for budding architects, engineers and builders.  The Teifoc building sets will not only help children learn how to follow directions, but it also gives them the opportunity to use their imagination to create real, tangible four-dimensional buildings.  In an age where most creating is done on a computer, children will really love the chance to physically spread the mortar, lay the bricks and hold in their hands what they created. The best part is, the mortar is made of a sand/corn mixture that is water soluble so creations when dried are study, but can be soaked with water, taken a part and built again.  This is definitely much more than a toy, and something that is sure to last!

Teifoc is a unique build and play system that uses real reusable bricks to create fun and elaborate structures and creations. Use the real clay bricks and cement mortar to create this large house and garage, follow one of the 5 other plans included or design one from scratch. When it is time to have another go simply soak the model in water, dry the bricks and start again.

Check out this time-lapse video we found on pinterest of a house being built. How cool!?

View our selection of Teifoc sets here

Three, Two, One...Race to the Treasure!

Congratulations to Peaceable Kingdom's Race to the Treasure Game for being awarded the 2012 Oppenheim Gold Seal!  We are so proud to carry this fantastic cooperative board game on Maukilo.com, and hope that it brings lots and lots of educational fun to the families that shop with us!

This challenging and fun strategy board game builds cooperation and problem solving skills! Cooperation board games encourage players to work together as a team, not against each other, emphasizing play, not competition.

The object is to get to the end of the path before the Orge does. To do this, players must work together to collect the keys to open treasures along the way and create the path as they go. Race to the Treasure! Fosters non-stressful play situations, emotional development, shared decision-making, creative problem solving, a sense of community, and positive self esteem.

Includes: 1 game board, 1 pair of dice, 37 game cards, 4 key tokens and 1 Ogre snack. For 2-4 players, ages 5 and Up.

All Peaceable Kingdom Press cooperative games are printed with soy-based inks on FSC paper and include parts made only with recycled plastics. Games that are good for our planet and good for our kids!

Purchase this game in our online store!

Check out Caine's Arcade!

9 year old Caine Monroy, who built an elaborate cardboard arcade inside his dad’s used auto parts store, is about to have the best day of his life.

We ran across this feel-good story this weekend. It's a great example of how important it is to encourage pretend play. Children have so many thoughts and ideas going through their heads, providing them a way to create and solve problems independently will unlock their greatest potentials!

Check out the short film about Caine and learn about how you can donate to the foundation here!

It warms our hearts here at Maukilo to know that Caine and other children who will benefit from Caine's foundation will have the opportunity to go to college. We can't wait to see what Caine comes up with next!

Zoom into Spring on a New Push Bike!

The birds are chirping, the trees are starting to blossom, the days are getting longer - you know what that means... Spring is in the air! The weather is perfect for zooming around on one of the many wooden push bikes we offer. If you have never seen one, at first glance it might look like something is missing. And you're right; push bikes are pedal-less and are propelled as your child pushes and coasts. (Check out the video below of an example.) Doesn't it look like fun? Push bikes are a great tool for beginners, and will help develop balance and coordination even better than training wheels.

Check out our full selection of Push Bikes here!

Put on a show with HABA Little Miss Fidget!

Check out this brand new video demo of HABA's Little Miss Fidget hand puppet toy! Bet you didn't know it has so many fun little ways to occupy your little one.

Like what you see? Purchase it!