These giveaways are now closed and the winners have been contacted. Congratulations to all the winners and thank you to everyone who entered!
It's that time of year again—time to start thinking about presents. Writing our holiday gift list can be fun, but can also sometimes be a challenge, especially if we're trying to find just the right gift for a child with a visual impairment.
If your baby is blind, you probably know what they like or don't like, but it can still be difficult to find appropriate toys at the mall or department store. And if you're shopping for a child you don't know as well, like a niece or nephew, you may be feeling completely overwhelmed.
Consider this your rescue! I've been talking to people all over the web who create toys, books and other products for blind babies and children and I've asked them to donate some of their best toys for this year's Holiday Giveaway. We have a wonderful collection of toys this year, and even if you don't win, this list can serve as the perfect shopping list!
So check out our 14 Giveaways below and enter as many as you like. Entries can either be emailed to me or left as comments on the individual giveaway pages. All giveaways will end on December 12th.
1. Perkins Panda Giveaway
The Perkins Panda Early Literacy Program is a wonderful compilation of materials designed to help you instill a love of books and reading in your child through a set of fun toys and stories. The kit comes compete with three print/braille picture books, three audio cassettes, three activity guides, and a story box. [Enter to Win!]
2. BigBear PizzaBox Video Game Giveaway
We recently discovered an amazing collection of video games designed specifically for blind preschoolers. The PizzaGames for Children collection of video games are produced by 7-128 Software. They come complete with a built in self-voicing "GameVoice" as well as subtitles. The games are simple and designed for preschoolers and they're fully accessible. [Enter to Win!]
3. Christmas Music Giveaway
Do you love holiday music and Christmas carols as much as I do? Do you sing along to all the classics and play them non-stop at home? Then this collection of children's Christmas music would be perfect for you and your family! I've collected my three favorite children's holiday CDs and bundled them together. Make Christmas special with these three Christmas CDs: Putumayo's Celtic Christmas, Ben Rudnick & Friends' It's Santa Claus, and Phil Cooke's Christmas Time is Coming. [Enter to Win!]
4. Puzzle Game Giveaway
Who doesn't love a good game? We're giving away two awesome puzzle games that are entirely accessible: the Memory Caps Game and the Slide, Twist 'n Solve Puzzle! The Memory Caps Game is a large wooden board with indented spaces where you can mix up the geometric shapes then hide them under bright red caps. The Slide Puzzle is a classic match-up game where you have to slide the pieces around until you've made a picture, but in this case the picture is in 3-D so you can feel it too. [Enter to Win!]
5. Christmas Book Giveaway
Seedlings is giving away three adorable Christmas board books to one lucky winner! Print/braille board books are a wonderful addition to your child's library. They're sturdy, a great way to introduce braille to a young child, and fun to share with other family members, like sighted siblings or grandparents. This collection includes Silent Night, Biscuit's Pet & Play Christmas, and Christmas Angel. [Enter to Win!]
6. Sign Language Book Giveaway
The best way to teach a baby sign language is to start simply and keep the conversation important and relevant. Begin by learning words that have to do with your normal every-day routines, like feeding and bathing, and incorporate signs into your daily schedule. Make the signs with your baby, help your baby make the signs with you, and above all keep it fun! This is the idea behind Marsha Peterson's book Come Sign With Us: The Adventures of Potts and Friends. [Enter to Win!]
7. Chanukah Giveaway
Have you heard of Mama Doni? She plays outrageously cool and funky music for Jewish children. We're giving away a copy of her hilariously fun Chanukah CD, Chanukah Fever. We're also giving away a copy of the book The Borrowed Hanukkah Latkes from National Braille Press in print and braille. [Enter to Win!]
8. Magic Cube Giveaway
The Munchkin Mozart Magic Cube is one of our favorite toys. Each side of the cube represents an instrument in an orchestra: a flute, a piano, a french horn, a harp, or a violin. Press the top button (with a picture of the full orchestra) to get the song playing (a classical piece by Mozart). Press the flute and suddenly the flute stops playing... press the piano and the piano is silenced. Pressing the instruments a second time will get them to come back on. [Enter to Win!]
9. Tumzee Giveaway
You know babies are supposed to sleep on their backs, but did you know that it's important that they get some time playing on their tummies, too? The Tumzee is designed to help babies lie in a prone position comfortably during play time. It's sort of like propping your baby over the edge of a pillow, but with more support and leg positioners. It's really a brilliant idea and I wish we had had one when my little guy was a baby! [Enter to Win!]
10. Tactile Toy & Book Giveaway
We love the Chunky Shapes Puzzle from NBP. It's just like the shapes puzzle you can get at your local toy store with big colorful hearts and stars, but this one also comes with braille labels so you can introduce both the shapes and braille to your little one. We're also giving away NBP's tactile Noah's Ark Set. This set comes with the print-braille picture book Noah's Ark by Jerry Pinkney, a print-braille Fun Facts About Noah's Ark book, and twelve delightful tactile illustrations depicting Noah's animals, the ark, and the flood. [Enter to Win!]
11. Music Stories Giveaway
Maestro Classics has taken some of your favorite stories and classical songs and put them together on a wonderful collection of CDs. And they did this all for children, so they keep the story fun and entertaining. We're giving away a copy of Peter and the Wolf, Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel, and The Tortoise and the Hare. [Enter to Win!]
12. Rib-It-Ball Giveaway
The Rib-It-Ball has "ribs" that make it easy to grab from just about any direction, even for little hands. Plus the ribs crinkle, which makes the ball fun to listen to, as well. The ball is also very light weight and easy to pick up and throw (even though it's pretty big at 18") and those crinkles make a great sound when it hits the ground! And did you notice that the colors are black, white, and red? Perfect for children with low vision! [Enter to Win!]
13. DidiPop and Jimmies Giveaway
Looking for some fun music to spice up your children's music collection? Look no further! We're giving away two DidiPop CDs, Everyday Adventures and DidiPop Goes to Hawai'i, and the newest CD from The Jimmies, Practically Ridiculous. These three CDs will keep you going for a while! [Enter to Win!]
14. Sudoku Touch Giveaway
Do you know someone who is a sudoku master? Are you looking for an accessible holiday gift that will get them excited and challenge their skills? Look no further! Sudoku Touch is a sudoku game everyone can play! It's perfect for blind, low vision and sighted players. [Enter to Win!]
If you have any questions about any of these products or about the giveaway rules, please contact me. Good luck!