One of the top new companies I found at New York City’s International Toy Fair this year was Fun Flex, showcasing a modular system that includes a flexible arm that connects to a clamp on one end and interchangeable infant toys on the other. Promoting “fun toys and accessories for flexible use anywhere, anytime anyway,” they sure caught the attention of our little toy testers and their moms. Mom watched, amazed, as we easily clamped the crab around the thick handle of her car seat. She said, “It’s been a challenge to find toys that fit around that bar.” Meanwhile her little one smiled instantly at the crab and got to work exploring his new friend. “He loves anything with big eyes,” she said as he looked over the face, chatting away with a healthy babble. He banged the crab, mouthed the ball, touched the eyes and laughed at the ball chimes when I pulled it down. The flexible neck allows mom to change the view as baby is interacting with the toy. This dancing crab delights kids and is a terrific toy for feeding language to your little one. Research shows that babies talk more to faces and this high contrasting colored crab did just that. With lots to talk about, parents can make play time a fun learning time too. Babies take in more language when we talk about what they are focused on whether it is his zig zag pincers (yes, use rich vocabulary with your babies), bumpy green feet, eyeballs, soft ball with stripes and polka dots and so on. Pull the ball, it goes up and down, rattles and swings! Thanks to Fun Flex, we can clamp on the language learning to a stroller, high chair, pack ‘n play or gym mat, for take along fun.
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