Dear BlogHer,

We have not even met yet and you gave me sweaty palms of excitement from the moment I clicked the submit button on my non-refundable hotel stay in San Diego, because non-refundable = definite. I have been researching the conference topics, RSVP’d to some really cool parties, and talked with a few blogger friends over the past few weeks, days and hours (@kimworld, @mommyniri, @morethanmommy, @charcronicles, @MavenofSavin) who have been helpful enough to offer up some great ideas on how we can best get to know each other, minus any tears or tantrums. My husband @derekwilmot, has even given me multiple pep talks, based on his crazy experiences at South by SouthWest and the Consumer Electronics Show (CES). Though I hear how overwhelming you can be, I am so excited to spend a weekend away from my family, 3,000 miles across the country, fostering and developing all sorts of new relationships, both personally and professionally, with yes that’s right, with over 3,000 other bloggers. So if booking my hotel room stay caused that kind of reaction, I will welcome the insanity the weekend will bring, with open arms. After a few trips to Toy Fair in New York City, (which was a little humbling to my ego, introducing myself as the ToyQueen amongst a whole conference venue full of toy companies), I have a funny feeling BlogHer will be even more humbling, because I’m pretty sure I won’t be the only Queen holding court at this royal event.

We’ll see you soon!

Love, the ToyQueen

Many of you know that I make my living daily as an occupational therapist working with children.  At all sorts of events I have had the pleasure of meeting so many great people and last year at Toy Fair 2010 I met a speech pathologist, Sherry Artemenko, who writes her blog called Play on Words, where she provides suggestions on how to promote children’s language.  Sherry asked me to collaborate on a guest post for her readers on a hot topic in the therapy world called Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD). Here is a little bit of the article, but please click on the link at the bottom to head over to Sherry’s blog to read the entire post!

What is Sensory Processing Disorder?

What makes us individuals in this world, as both children and adults, is that we all have unique preferences in terms of what smells we prefer, what types of tastes we enjoy, how different fabric feels between our fingertips, what type of musical beats and tunes engage us, to even the kind of movement experiences we prefer in life, ranging from bungee jumping to simply being a couch potato. This causes numerous possibilities of interests and preferences. However, in the end, despite these preferences, we are able to navigate the challenges of life with minimal difficulties. But –

- What if the smell of a certain odor was so noxious to you that you could not conceive of eating in a restaurant because you felt like you might get sick?

- What if fireworks or the unexpected sound of a train passing by was so loud and scary that it caused you to run in panic?

- What if the way a certain fabric felt against your body made it almost painful to wear certain clothing like undergarments or jeans?

Please click here to head over to Play on Words for the entire article….

Hasbro Scrabble Alphabet Scoop for ages 6 and up. 2-4 players.

Let’s Rock Elmo

Elmo sings a variety of songs along with you, recognizing and asking for different musical instruments!

You can purchase additional instruments like a guitar and a keyboard so your child can jam along with Elmo!

Kre-O Bumblebee

Move over Lego and Mega Bloks, meet Hasbro’s new construction set, Kre-O

For the Transformers lovers in your family, use these bricks to create 3 different versions of  Bumblebee, Optimus Prime and Starscream. Don’t worry  this line will be expanding to include many different customizable Transformers!

Tonka XT Ricochet RC Stunt Pro

Kids will love developing unique stunts with this remote control car, especially since they can record 3 different stunts to show all those people who don’t believe the awesomeness that happened!

Fur-Real Friends Cookie

Cookie the golden retriever is absolutely adorable. This new new household pet will be sure to get a lot of extra special attention! She has tactile, auditory and visual sensors to respond to how you pet and interact with her!

Rescue Bots

Do you have a younger child in your house who loves Transformers, but is to young for some of the older kid manipulatives? Meet Transformers Rescue Bots!!!

Poppin’ Park Elefun Busy Ball Popper

This new infant and toddler toy from Playskool is great for young babies learning to grasp and release toys whether they can sit, crawl, stand or run! Turn the elephant’s nose so the balls can launch all around your living room!

Stay tuned for future posts including some of Hasbro’s hottest games from Toy Fair 2011!

Hasbro ToyFair 2010 Event

These snowy days in Boston have been filled with researching and planning our Toy Fair 2011 plan in New York City, starting February 12th through the 16th, 2011. Last year attending Toy Fair for the first time was such an exciting and overwhelming experience, as we were honored amongst the first to preview some of the newest and most exciting toys and games that had yet to hit production or the stores! You can read about my favorite celebrities of Toy Fair 2010 last year here.

As the days draw near, we are contacted daily by both large and small companies gearing up for one of the largest toy shows in the Western Hemisphere! Please let us know if there are specific products or companies you would like to know more about!

February 14, 2010 - New York, NY - Keri WIlmot from www.toyqueen.com at the Disney preview of Toy Story 3 in New York City gets shown some of the new toys for 2010 by one of the Disney executives

Like last year, we hope to bring you interviews with company executives and imagery of these new products to help you as a parent or caregiver make more informed decisions about the products that you purchase for the learning enhancement of the children you love.

Here is a link to some of the other Toy Fair coverage from ToyQueen.com in 2010!

February 14, 2010 - New York, NY - Toy Story toy soliders decsend from the ceiling at the Toy Story 3 event at Toy Fair 2010

February 14, 2010 - New York, NY - Toy Story 3 event at Toy Fair 2010 John Lasseter holds a lego replica of himself

February 14, 2010 - New York, NY - Toy Story 3 event at Toy Fair 2010 John Lasseter poses next to lego replica of himself

February 14, 2010 - New York, NY - John Ratzenberger poses with Keri WIlmot from www.toyqueen.com at the Disney preview of Toy Story 3 in New York City

February 14, 2010 - New York, NY - John Lasseter poses with Keri WIlmot from www.toyqueen.com at the Disney preview of Toy Story 3 in New York City

February 14, 2010 - New York, NY - Keri WIlmot from www.toyqueen.com at the Disney preview of Toy Story 3 in New York City gets shown some of the new toys for 2010 by one of the Disney executives

Hasbro ToyFair 2010 Event

Today we had the pleasure of being invited to the Times Center in New York City to preview Hasbro’s newest products for 2010. Though I always knew that Hasbro represented a multitude of brands, seeing them all under one roof and in one room was exciting to think about all the fun to be had in the upcoming year.  I never expected to feel so nostalgic since many of the toys I grew up enjoying are still on the market for our children to play with, in a new and improved, up-to-date version for today’s market.

The day began by presentations from Brian Goldner, Hasbro CEO; Jane Pitson Parsons, Hasbro’s Global Consumer Insights Leader; and Jerry Perez; Hasbro Senior Vice President Global Brand Leader Preschool Marketing. They all spoke about Hasbro’s plan to Reinvent, Reimagine and Reignite the brand. Not to mention their commitment to the social media space and to parents and caregivers worldwide, to maintain an open dialog, so that Hasbro can be the best they can be to provide an immersive play experience, as well as to foster innovation, ideation and creativity.

I was on such a high after taking a walk down memory lane remembering all my childhood experiences with Strawberry Shortcake, My Little Pony, the Easy Bake Oven, Mr. Potato Head, Play-Doh, and Candyland. After all that excitement, don’t forget the brands that exist in Hasbro’s effort to encourage family social interactions with Family Game Night such as Monopoly, Life, Trivial Pursuit, Clue, Battleship, Boggle, Guess Who, Connect 4, Sorry, Jenga, Yahtzee and Scrabble. Who knew GI Joe and Transformers were part of the Hasbro family either, as my brother and I also were able to play with these together.

However, working with young children on enhancing their development, there isn’t a day that goes by where that I don’t use Play-Doh or engage children with one of Hasbro’s awesome preschool games. Over the next few posts I’ll plan to highlight some of my 2010 favorites with Hasbro brands.