You still have plenty of time left for holiday shopping, unless you're after one of the season's must-have toys. Stores have been advertising deals on toys for weeks, so the good news is that you'll find some great deals out there.
The bigger question is whether those popular toys will still be available when you need them.
Which toys to buy? The experts' suggestions
Amy Bueter struggles with which toys to buy.
"I got girls and boys," she said, "and boys are a lot harder than girls."
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So for a peek at some of the hottest toys of the year, we turned to James Zahn, a senior editor for The Toy Insider. Straight from its annual holiday gift guide, Zahn showed us:
- Play-Doh pizza delivery scooter, equipped with a built-in pizza oven
"So I can open this up," he said, "and we've got all the stuff we need inside to bake Play-Doh pizzas."
- Rainbow High Watercolor and Create fashion dolls
"Each one of these comes with all kinds of watercolors and clothing that the kids can decorate themselves," he said.
- Animatronic Stitch, from Lilo and Stitch
"Stitch, you wanna take a nap?" he asked the toy. "So we'll just tuck him in."
When it comes to price, Zahn says deals are still out there, even if you missed Black Friday.
"You might even run across one-day specials," he said.
But when it comes to finding toys, Zahn warns we're now in the "danger zone."
"We see regional outages like Stitch, for example," he warned. "I might be able to go out and find a bunch of them today here, but for someone in another city, they might be gone already."
For a change, consider vintage toys
In the meantime, if your child likes the offbeat, consider it a classic. James Sawyer, co-owner of the vintage toy store The Toy Department, is amazed by how many kids these days are into Star Wars and Transformers toys from the 90s or early 2000s.
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Plus, there's a bonus for mom and dad.
"It takes you right back to being a kid," he said.
And he says you do not have to pay hundreds of dollars for them, although some early Star Wars figurines will cost you that much. Some Star Wars toys, as well as Hot Wheels cars, are just a couple of dollars.
"We've got a whole collection that is $4 or $5 each," he said.
That way you get to relieve your memories, while your child gets to make new ones.
Visit TheToyInsider.com for more information about their toy recommendations and their complete 2024 Holiday Gift Guide.
And that way you don't waste your money.
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