Thomas’ Blankie Does your child have a special toy, blanket or comfort item? Have you ever lost it? You know the panic and the stress. That was our Christmas vacation. Thomas (6) has a special crocheted blankie made for him when he was a baby by my dear friend, Juanita. It started when Thomas […]
Win with Mutant Mania! Disclosure: I received a few sets of these toys for free in exchange for writing a blog post. All opinions are my own. Besides, it made me look like the best mom in the world on Christmas morning. It’s a kid’s paradise. Especially for boys. Imagine mutant zombie wrestlers that […]
Thomas’ Blankie Does your child have a special toy, blanket or comfort item? Have you ever lost it? You know the panic and the stress. That was our Christmas vacation. Thomas (6) has a special crocheted blankie made for him when he was a baby by my dear friend, Juanita. It started when Thomas […]
Win with Mutant Mania! Disclosure: I received a few sets of these toys for free in exchange for writing a blog post. All opinions are my own. Besides, it made me look like the best mom in the world on Christmas morning. It’s a kid’s paradise. Especially for boys. Imagine mutant zombie wrestlers that […]
Does your child have a special toy, blanket or comfort item? Have you ever lost it?
You know the panic and the stress. That was our Christmas vacation.
Thomas (6) has a special crocheted blankie made for him when he was a baby by my dear friend, Juanita.
It started when Thomas was about 10 months old. He was lying in his crib, looking up at me, and kept scrunching his fingers in the air. I had no idea what he was doing any why. Then, it finally dawned on me. He wanted the blanket so he could put his fingers through the holes and suck his thumb.
This became known as “KEE” (blankie) and came everywhere with us – from Toronto to across the Maritimes. From Charlottetown to Moncton, Cape Breton and beyond. It came on planes, trains and automobiles – and ferries. It is his beloved treasure.
That is, until we lost it.
The fateful night was December 30. We went to a party at my mom’s house (an 8 minute drive away) and Thomas brought blankie. He put it on the chair in the porch, patted it twice and said, “for safety” and ran off to play.
That is our last memory.
Later that night, my husband carried Thomas to the car (who hadn’t worn a jacket) and wrapped him up in a blanket in the car. While doing so, he put the car keys on the roof of the car. He went to get into his own car. As I was driving off, I saw him flagging me down. He grabbed the keys off the roof.
Fast forward to the next day. We were about to watch a movie and Thomas asked for blankie. That’s when we realized… we couldn’t find it!
This started the mad search for the next 5 days. We tore the house apart. We searched in every nook and cranny, under every cushion, and in every closet. My mom tore her house apart. We contacted every neighbour who was at the party. We called every store that we had been to that morning.
We played the scenario out a hundred times – working through it scientifically, methodically, trying to evoke memories.
I even thought of becoming a Catholic so I could pray to St. Anthony – the Patron Saint of Lost Things!
Nothing worked. The only scenario we could think of was that David had left it on the roof of the car with the keys and it had blown off while driving. We drove the road many times, carefully scanning the ditches. Nothing.
None of us could sleep. Thomas missed blankie. We couldn’t figure it out. It wasn’t so much the emotional attachment to blankie – Thomas has since stopped sucking his thumb and is outgrowing his “need” for blankie, so isn’t as hyper vigilant about knowing where it is.
It was more an annoying puzzle that we couldn’t work out! “Give up and you’ll find it,” said my mother. But we couldn’t.
Then, 5 days later, we were hashing it out again. Wondering how we would tell my friend that we had lost blankie! We had formally agreed to give up.
Then, out of the corner of my eye, right in front of me did suddenly appear – under the beanbag chair in the family room – was something I thought looked like a tag. I pulled on it.
It was blankie!!
We both screamed. We hugged. We cried. I couldn’t breathe. Yes, it was that dramatic!
We tore upstairs, shook Thomas awake to give him blankie (which he had no memory of from the night before) and called to let everyone know. The lost had been found.
Now, we will not let it out of our sight, and it won’t be leaving the house!
Many parents have told me similar stories. Others say that they always have a duplicate item as back up or in rotation (hard with a handmade gift, though!). But, it’s a story that many can relate to!
Disclosure: I received a few sets of these toys for free in exchange for writing a blog post. All opinions are my own. Besides, it made me look like the best mom in the world on Christmas morning.
It’s a kid’s paradise. Especially for boys.
Imagine mutant zombie wrestlers that you can build and rebuild, smash up, fight with and collect.
“Mom! This was the best Christmas present in the world!”
“I love this toy!”
“This is way better than what Santa brought us!”
That was my boys’ (6 & 8) reaction to opening a series of Mutant Mania toys on Christmas morning. Immediately, the boxes were ripped open, and the kids began to play, and haven’t stopped since!
Here are the different packages:
Mutant Mania One Pack: Things are going to get pretty ugly with the Mutant Mania blind bag! Mash together the ultimate gruesome wrestler and fight your opponents! Get mixing and matching today with the one pack complete with one head, one torso, a pair of legs and one stretchy spine. $2.99
Mutant Mania Four Pack: The Mutant Mania are here! Wacky, mix n match collectable wrestlers. Build ’em up and smash ’em down for exciting wrestling action! There are over 80 Mutant Mania wrestlers to collect in Series 1. Get mixing and matching today with the 4-Pack complete with 4 x heads, 4 x torsos, 4 x legs, 4 x stretchy spines and storage can containers. $6.99-7.99
Mutant Mania Eight Pack: The wacky, mix n match collectable wrestlers from the Mutant Mania universe have finally arrived! Build ’em up and smash ’em down for exciting wrestling action! There are over 80 Mutant Mania wrestlers to collect in Series 1. Get ready for 8 times the action and 8 times the fun with the 8pk complete with 8 x heads, 8 x torsos, 8 x legs, 8 x stretchy spine and storage can containers. $12.99-14.99
Mutant Mania Rampage Arena: A Mutant Mania smack down is about to occur. Build up your ultimate wrestlers and launch into the ring for battle. Who will survive, and who will break down in front of the crowd? Complete with crowd stands, character launcher, battle handles and exclusive characters, the Rampage Arena is a must for any MM fan! $39.99
See this toy in action!
Mutant Mania Mutant Masher Vehicle: Get ready to rumble! Kids can load up their Mutant Mania™ characters in the Mutant Masher vehicle and hit the road. For on-the-go mutant mash-ups, this vehicle comes equipped with a stretching rack for character creation and ample room for storage. Plus, no Mutant Masher would be complete without character ejector seats and an exclusive Mutant Mania character. No batteries required. Ages 5 years and up. $29.99
See this toy in action!
What the Boys Say
These toys were a HUGE HIT!
My boys immediately tore open the boxes to start playing with the toys. The 8 year old put all the pieces together and figured out how to set up the arena and build the mutants without any adult help and without reading the instructions.
I love intuitive toys!
To put the Mutants together, they connect with a long cylinder (shaped like a barbell).
The 8 year old could easily put them together. The 6 year old had a bit of trouble, as it involved a lot of fine motor skills. After a bit of practice, a lot of help, and some frustration, he is now able to do it on his own.
What the Parents Say
Although this toy involves fighting zombies, wrestling fighting, and ripping mutants apart, I’m ok with that! This is the type of play that the boys love to do, so why not give them an outlet?
This toy involves a lot of creativity. The toys do not make sounds – so the boys create their own scenarios and conversations.
The toys can be mixed and matched for hundreds of creative characters.
The only downside is that there are a lot of pieces that come with the Mutants. However, all packs come with a storage mechanism – whether it is a can, or a storage system under the arena.
Thank you to whoever thought of that!
Overall
Mutant Mania would make the perfect gift for a boy 6-10 years old on your list – whether for a birthday, Christmas, or an Easter present!
If you were to just get one of the sets, I would start with the Mutant Masher. It comes with a few Mutants included. This is the most creative of the toys. Then, start building with more packs of Mutants until you have a full arena!
Enjoy building and playing! My boys certainly did!
Here is a video from their first time playing with the Mutant Mania Arena
