This is a sponsored opportunity from Walmart, but the opinions are 100% my own.
Can you believe it’s already mid-October?! Where has the year gone? Psst… there are only 74 more sleeps until Christmas! So it’s not too early to think about holiday shopping and when it comes to toys I got the low down on the hottest ones of the season back in July, at the Walmart Chosen By You Expo.Walmart knows the experts on what’s hot for seasonal gift giving aren’t the brands or the gift givers, they are the gift receivers and in this case that means Chosen By Kids themselves! So they have an annual Chosen By You Expo where they display toys for all ages and let the children decide which toys are going to be the hot sellers. While I didn’t have a young one with me when I attended the event, I wandered around and had a good idea of what my daughter would have liked when she was younger, plus I got to spend some time with my friend Dawn’s daughter Ava, and hear what toys she would like to find under the tree.Video games reign supreme in our home and so I knew that of all the toys that were out to view, Disney Infinity 3.0 would be the rock star at our place Christmas morning. With new and classic Disney, Star Wars and Marvel characters to interact with, the game figures are as much collectibles as they are toys. It’s a fun way for families to spend time together, and there are different game styles for everyone’s preference.Frozen is not ‘so last year,’ the movie characters are still young girls’ favorites. Ava thought the Elsa and Anna Paint Your Own Bank would be a fun way to spend an afternoon and then to save some money in!Despite the fact that we do not have young children around, we are still fans of those delightful Minions from the movies. I found the Minions Talking Bob with Teddy Bear so cute! Bob interacts with his Teddy Bear! Plug his Teddy Bear, Tim, into his side and Bob recognizes that and talks. You can press Bob’s pocket button for more phrases and reactions. I was trying to figure out how I could smuggle one of these home with me!I have a friend whose daughter is completely obsessed with Shopkins. I honestly had no clue what they were, but when I saw them at the Chosen By You Expo…well I understood why the little girls love them so! Believe me when I say the Shopkins Scoops Ice Cream Truck Playset is going to be one of the hottest toys of this season. If you know a little girl who loves Shopkins go out and get this NOW! They will love you forever 🙂Now my daughter has never been a ‘girly-girl’ and her favorite ‘girl’ characters have always been along the lines of Mulan and Merida or Katniss from the Hunger Games rather than the ‘traditional’ princess types. The Nerf Rebelle Secrets & Spies Arrow Revolution Bow Blaster would have been right up her alley a few years ago. 6 whistling arrows can be unleashed with fast fire and without reloading, and it blasts arrows at targets up to 90 feet (27 meters) away.Some of these ‘toys’ have grown up appeal too! The Candy Craft Chocolate Pen is something I would want myself! A great gift for girls or boys – they can have fun in the kitchen, express their creativity and then eat what they’ve made! 🙂I also think I’d enjoy crafting with the Crayola Magic Thread Wrapper as much as any child would! With this you can wrap your favorite accessories with thread. Re-use, re-purpose and customize. It comes with the unit, thread and a fabric marker. Crayola provides an easy and fun way for girls to customize their favorite accessories and gadgets. They can wrap headphones, bracelets, pens, necklaces, sunglasses and more!For those kids that like to be on the edge of technology the 3DIT Character Creator let’s them create and customize their very own unique characters. Kids can turn a stick of wax into a great looking character in a matter of minutes. They just place the skeleton parts into the mold and insert the mold into the machine, pick out their wax color, and heat up the 3DiT Character Creator. In a matter of minutes, they have a great looking character to assemble and customize with decals and accessories. A bit like a 3D printer without the cost!I moved on from the toys for a bit to other areas of the Chosen By You Expo to find gifts for the teens and grown ups. I’m always looking for the latest technology and so at the top of my list was the Nextbook Flexx 11.6″ 2-in-1 Tablet. I was intrigued by the thought of having a compact laptop that is also a tablet, but even more so with the price (which is right now only $182.00 at Walmart). The problem with seeing Christmas gift ideas in July? December is a long way away. Yeah, I didn’t last that long – I ended up getting one not long after seeing it at the expo! Merry Early Christmas to me!Being a coffee lover the Keurig K2.0 K200 Coffeemaker Brewing System available in multiple colors floated to the top of my list as well. The choice of designer colors and the price ($79.97) makes it a terrific gift for millennials or anyone who is looking to upgrade their coffee routine.
I have to admit I was getting a bit wide eyed with all the options that there were at the Walmart Chosen By You Expo, even after spending a couple of hours on the floor there were many toys and products that I never got to see! One thing I can tell you is that you can find gifts for everyone on your list this holiday season at Walmart. Grown Ups, Teens, Tweens, Children, Infants, Grandparents, Male, Female — there literally is something for everyone!
What kind of toys are your children asking for this year? What’s on your Christmas wish list?