I participated in this program on behalf of The Fred Rogers Company and The Motherhood. All opinions are my own.

If you have children then you know how important play is to them.  From a very young age you see babies playing and learning cause and effect and even recognizing familiar faces and places all through play.  I had the honor and privilege to talk with several people behind the Fred Roger’s Company and the show Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood last week.

First of all, we LOVE Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood.  When I first heard about the show I was ecstatic because Mr. Roger’s Neighborhood was my absolute favorite show to watch when I was little.  I missed it so much that I started pulling episodes up on PBSKIDS.org to show the boys.  So, when the opportunity presented itself to be able to speak with some of the shows creators I felt beyond honored at the thought.

On the phone with these amazing people, you could feel the love and connection they had with the program.  One of them teared up as they spoke about how important it was for them to keep the original nostalgia in the program.  Have you noticed all of the similarities in the opening sequence?  Daniel even wears the signature red sweater.  I love that they did not try to reinvent the wheel here.  You really can’t mess with a masterpiece in my opinion, and they did a beautiful job making it work for our children and those in the future.  They did such a great job that it is among the top 5 highest rated programs among moms since it first aired!

With all of that said, you knew it was only a matter of time before they came out with wonderful products to compliment the show that are available exclusively at Toys R Us.  We were sent the Daniel Tiger Trolley Playset as well as the Daniel Tiger Mini Plush.  Let’s just say that Daniel Tiger has been in Davis’s bed ever since and the Trolley has taken many strolls down our driveway and across the kitchen floor (just pull it back and it launches forward with the iconic trolley “ding”).  The Daniel Tiger Trolley Playset also includes a small Daniel Tiger figurine.   Make sure to check out the other fun toys in the line up.  Prices range from $5.99-$39.99.

Every toy was created in order to inspire imaginative play which is so important for kids.  Pretend play peeks during the preschool years which makes Daniel Tiger and the new toys such a great gift idea for the young crowd.  Research shows that young children make strong connections to TV characters and this is definitely a show I wouldn’t mind him identifying with because of the core values.

As Fred Rogers said, “In all things we must think of the children first.”  Let’s support the work of children and the vital role that play has in their lives.

I participated in this program on behalf of The Fred Rogers Company and The Motherhood. All opinions are my own.