What are the most-wanted toys on kids’ holiday gift lists for 2011? Best to ask the experts — the kids themselves!

And that’s just what The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis does to produce its annual Top 10 list of kid-tested, kid-approved toys.

Each fall, the museum store invites children to test the newest toys, then vote on their favourites for the upcoming holiday season.

Can you begin to imagine how much fun that would be for the staff? I’m so jealous. :)

Here is the list of this year’s winners — I’ve sorted them by recommended age group — all available from The Children’s Museum Store or online:

• Barbie “Jam with Me” Rock Star Guitar (Ages 3+)
  Jam with Barbie with this toy electric guitar. Connect your MP3 player to jam along with your own tunes, take the guitar challenge and play along with Barbie, or just freeplay to create your own awesome songs!
  $39.95

• Water Wizard (Ages 3+)
  The water wizard lets you draw and create over and over again using only water! As the screen dries the images disappear leaving it ready for another amazing creation.
  $19.95

• Barbie Giant Activity Floor Pad (Ages 3+)
  This complete activity set includes crayons, marker, paints, paintbrush, scissors and gluestick along with 40 fun fashion activities!
  $14.95

• Flying Turtle (Ages 3-12)
  The best toy for active play, kids have a blast zipping around on the flying turtle! But since it is entirely kid powered, they get a ton of great exercise at the same time!
  $79.95

• Playmobil Pirates Prison with Ship (Ages 4+)
  This fun Pirate themed set from Playmobil includes large pirate ship, small row boat, island, prison, and all the people and accessories you need to create an amazing imaginary world.
  $59.95

• Darda Fireball Climb (Ages 4+)
  The World’s Fastest Motorized Cars! This race car and track set is completely kid powered! No batteries or electricity required. Just wind the car and watch it zip through the loops and twists!
  $39.95

• OgoBild Pod (Ages 6+)
  A brilliant combination of active and constructive play. Ogo Bild Pods lets your child build giant structures like bouncing balls and forts.
  $39.95

• Perplexus Original (Ages 6+)
  Perplexus Original is a bendy, trendy, can’t put it down challenge! With plenty of twists, turns, and barriers between start and finish, this puzzle ball will leave you perplexed!
  $24.95

• Laser Pegs 3D Lite Board (Ages 7+)
  This is the Ultimate Laser Pegs Kit – the world’s only lighted construction set! The 3D Lite Board gives you 40 power connectors on one board so you can build anything you can imagine.
  $85.95

• FyrFlyz (Ages 8+)
  Create amazing light shows by spinning, swinging and twirling your FyrFlyz.
  $11.95

Adults in need of holiday gift ideas for the children in their lives can make purchases from the Kid-Tested, Kid-Approved list and The Museum Store holiday toy catalogue both in the store or online at www.childrensmuseum.org/kid-tested.

What I like about most of the toys on this list — and most of the toys you’ll find carried by most museum gift shops, come to that — is that they’re both fun and educational, and especially good for stimulating the creativity of young minds. And most of the toys on this list would be fun for siblings to play with together, even where there are a couple of years between the kids in age.

Also very cool for parents’ on-going expenses, a number of these items are totally kid-powered and run on imagination — no batteries required — like that awesome Darda Fireball Climb race track!

Of course I’d love to see a most-wanted toy list where and fewer of the toys that are pointed at a particular gender (I’m looking at you, Barbie!). A losing battle, there, do you think? Okay, okay, the politically-correct Grinch is moving on…

Stay tuned for more great out of the ordinary gift ideas for kids — and for us big kids, too!

As we know, I’m a bit on the frugal side — but that doesn’t mean a lack of generosity, not by a long shot. In fact, brainstorming for the perfect gift can be a great pleasure. And a great gift doesn’t mean you have to spend a bundle — it’s all in the inspiration!

Here are 45 gift ideas to get you started –
None of these gifts need to cost you any more than $25, and most are a good bit lower in price:

1. On behalf of your nature-loving friend, adopt a Chocolate Chip Starfish at Omaha’s Henry Doorly Zoo — check with your own local zoo or a wildlife conservation group (such as the World Wildlife Fund) for other ways to support and protect animals.



2. For the fitness walker: a pedometer and a map of the local hiking trails.
3. For the whole family: a classic game that can be played, in one form or another, by all ages. (We still love those Dominoes!)
4. For the MacGyver type: a Leatherman multi-tool or Swiss Army knife.
5. For the musician: print up a stash of music-notation paper — blank staff or guitar fretboard diagrams.



6. A one-year subscription to National Geographic magazine is bargain-priced right now for holiday giving — or save a few trees and go for a two-year electronic subscription to National Geographic’s new Green Guide. For children: a paid subscription to National Geographic Kids comes with a free 12-inch inflatable world ball: “a big, bouncing, full-color globe of Earth’s continents, oceans, and nations” for even more educational fun.
7. For the pre-teen: make up some coupons that can be traded in for special treats, such as an extra hour of internet time, a ride to a friend’s house, a day without chores, whatever will mean the most to your individual child.
8. For the chatty teenager: a cell phone bag or holster.



9. For the teenager who’s into vintage goodies: Flea Market Jewelry: New Style From Old Treasures by Binky Morgan.
10. For grandma: a digital photo keychain — a new twist on the “brag book” album.
11. Everyone can find a use for a blank journal book, and there are some real beauties to suit every taste, many of which even use recycled products for the journal cover.



12. If you’re the informal tech support for your family, why not burn a few CDs of the best open-source software for their use and enjoyment? I like Firefox for a fast secure web browser, Open Office for a full-featured alternative to Microsoft’s Office suite of programs, Audacity for audio recording, the list goes on…



13. For the hardcore puzzle fan: Rubik’s Sudoku.
14. Print up a personalized calendar, using your own photographs or artwork.
15. For artsy-crafty types who like to experiment: a selection of acrylic craft paints, brushes, and unfinished wooden shapes or a plain picture frame, to paint up in personal style.
16. For the one who manages to kill all house-plants: Aloe vera — nearly indestructible!
17. For the hard-to-buy-for parents, grandparents, uncles and aunts, what about a very special book? A local history of their hometown, or a book about the family ancestors, would be a welcome gift.

    Google the place name or family name along with the word “book” to see what you can track down, and if that fails, use the yellow pages to find an independent bookstore (not one of the big chain stores) in the town you’re interested in, then phone up and ask the helpful staff if they know of any local authors who have published on the topic. It can take a bit of detective work, but that’s all part of a special gift, isn’t it?



18. For cat lovers: the Sylvester and Tweety Chia cat grass planter. How cool is this? He gets the Chia pet that he’s always secretly wanted… but he can tell people that it belongs to Kitty!
19. And for cat-loving crafters: the Cat in a Bag decoupage kit.
20. For the genealogy buff: framed art depicting your family tree — in calligraphy, embroidery, PhotoShop collage or scrapbooking style, whatever your skill.



21. For the gourmet: a collection of exotic salt.
22. For the vintage car buff: fuzzy dice to dangle from the rearview mirror, or one of those retro hula girl figurines for the dashboard.
23. For your loved one: write and record an original poem or song.
24. For your yoga buddy: flowering tea.



25. For the new dog owner: Clicker training is a fast and effective, positive, reward-based way to teach obedience to even a tiny puppy.

    For $19.95, Karen Pryor’s Dog Training Kit includes her Getting Started – Clicker Training for Dogs book, an i-Click clicker, a set of Click-a-Trick cue cards, an open-out instruction booklet teaching how to use the clicker itself, and a sample of dog treats. (Yes, I’m recommending it from personal experience!)



26. A geode for the young geologist to crack open, and a display box for her rock collection.
27. DVDs are always popular, but why not take it one step further and add a little personal meaning — get her the DVD of last season’s favourite TV show, the one she kept missing because someone forgot to tape or Tivo when she had to work late! (Depending on the show, you might need to pick it up secondhand, to keep to the budget…)
28. Food! He Who Hogs the Power Tools tells me that any homemade baked goods go down well with 90% of men…
29. Or a cluster of homemade truffles (unbelieveably easy to make) in a pretty tin or vintage dish.



30. Grab a cuddly version of the famous penquin mascot, Tux, for a Linux fan.
31. For the outdoorsy type: Eddie Bauer’s complete survival kit cleverly packed into a Neoprene water bottle.
32. Or a hand-crank no-battery FM radio with a built-in flashlight.
33. For the whole family: a giant popcorn bowl and copies of all those hokey old home movies — priceless!



34. It’s craft fair season, so get out and buy handmade from your local indie artists and crafts people. Around here, I can count on finding some stunning silk batik scarves, old-fashioned wooden toys, maple-sugar candies and barley toys in Christmas shapes, traditional Mi’kmaq baskets, handwoven shawls, beeswax candles and stained glass ornaments… something for everyone!
35. Gifts in a Jar.
36. For the hostess: a bottle of wine. And if you’re not 100% confident of your skill in picking out a high-toned wine for a budget price, play it safe with novelty and humour: I’ve been wanting to try that “kittenish” Sauvignon Blanc, Cat’s Pee on a Gooseberry Bush. Truly. It took a Bronze at the 2005 Air New Zealand Wine Awards; for about $15, how can you go wrong?



37. For the coffee lover: fair trade beans in a decorative cannister, with a small tin of homemade double chocolate biscotti on the side.
38. For a child with imagination: hand puppets or a marionette, and a one-of-a-kind puppet theatre you create from a cardboard box.
39. For her: brightly flowered wooden bangles, fair trade bling from Bali.



40. Pet portraits are always popular. No time or skill to create a custom piece of art? Check the indie shops of CafePress.com for gift items that celebrate almost any breed of dog and cat you can imagine.
41. Mr. Potato Head
42. For the avid reader: make a ribbon-and-charm bookmark.
43. Picture frames: everyone’s got a favourite photo they’d like to show off.
44. For the queen of patio parties: a solar-powered Soji lantern.
45. Wearable art! No time to create from scratch? Embellish a simple store-bought vest, fabric belt or bag with lace, beads, embroidery, applique, fabric paint, stencilling, dangling milagros and bits of chain and ribbon… whatever your imagination suggests…