Is there a toy set in between Little People and the PlayMobile things?

[Anonymous]

I'm looking a good playset for my 3 year old DD - one of those busy sets that has a lot of manipulatives - animals to move around, things to go down chutes, open and close doors, etc. She's kind of outgrown the Little People toysets (like the Little People barn http://www.amazon.com/Fisher-Price-Little-People-Animal-Sounds/dp/B000EQGT00/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1349051027&sr=8-2&keywords=little+people ), but we bought a Playmobile set today (http://www.amazon.com/PLAYMOBIL%C2%AE-4851-Playmobil-Petting-Zoo/dp/B0032O8OHM/ref=sr_1_19?s=toys-and-games&ie=UTF8&qid=1349051541&sr=1-19&keywords=playmobile+farm) and I'm a bit dismayed by how small the pieces are. She is really enjoying it, but she's frustrated that she keeps knocking over the tiny little pieces and I'm definitely going to have to put this toy away when our newborn starts crawling - the pieces are just way too small. Is there anything in between that might be fun for her?

[Anonymous]

Playmobile has a line geared for toddlers with fewer small parts and pieces. It's called playmobile 1.2.3.

[Anonymous]

What pp said.

http://www.amazon.com/Playmobil-1-2-3-Take-Along-NOAHS/dp/B00361FUG4/ref=sr_1_28?s=toys-and-games&ie=UTF8&qid=1349052833&sr=1-28

[Anonymous]

Yes playmobile 123 is great!

[Anonymous]

Imaginext is the stage for Fisher Price.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Imaginext is the stage for Fisher Price.

I strongly recommend this line over Playmobile.

Imaginext is sturdy and so much fun for kids. The plastic quality is great (similar to Little People, or maybe stronger)

Playmobile has such cheap plastic compared to Imaginext, and like you said, the parts are so small. We bought one set (the pirate ship). It looks cool put together, but breaks apart so easily. It was the last Playmobile set we bought.

[Anonymous]

Playmobil 1, 2, 3, or lego duplo.

[Anonymous]

If she likes "girly" house type play, Fisher Price has a Loving Family dollhouse and line of accessories that my DD (4) really likes. That said, my DD - and my 6 year old DS - still play a lot with the Little People. some of the sets like the farm don't do much, but there are lots of sets that encourage more imaginative play. I just ordered a cute Halloween set and a Thanksgiving set for the kids that I think they will like.

Imaginext looks good, but the themes are more "boy" -- and I'm certainly not saying that I encourage that kind of gender specific play, just that I know my DD wouldn't be too excited about those toys.

[Anonymous]

OP here. Thanks! I had not heard of either of these sets! The imaginext sets (at least the ones on Amazon) seem to skew very boy-oriented - lots of pirates, dragons, space shuttles, etc. While I'm not opposed to my 3 year old DD playing with those things at all, I'm wondering if they have some other themes as well - maybe animals or houses, etc.?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Thanks! I had not heard of either of these sets! The imaginext sets (at least the ones on Amazon) seem to skew very boy-oriented - lots of pirates, dragons, space shuttles, etc. While I'm not opposed to my 3 year old DD playing with those things at all, I'm wondering if they have some other themes as well - maybe animals or houses, etc.?

I don't know if they still make it, but their rainforest set is very cool and would work for girly girls.

[Anonymous]

Wow I couldn't disagree more re: Playmobil quality. I think it is superb. It is true that there are many little pieces and I don't think it best in this age range.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Thanks! I had not heard of either of these sets! The imaginext sets (at least the ones on Amazon) seem to skew very boy-oriented - lots of pirates, dragons, space shuttles, etc. While I'm not opposed to my 3 year old DD playing with those things at all, I'm wondering if they have some other themes as well - maybe animals or houses, etc.?

Have you seen the Calico Critters line of dollhouses? Adorable! I always look at it longingly when I take my boys to Toys R Us

http://www.toysrus.com/family/index.jsp?categoryId=4278652

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If she likes "girly" house type play, Fisher Price has a Loving Family dollhouse and line of accessories that my DD (4) really likes. That said, my DD - and my 6 year old DS - still play a lot with the Little People. some of the sets like the farm don't do much, but there are lots of sets that encourage more imaginative play. I just ordered a cute Halloween set and a Thanksgiving set for the kids that I think they will like.

Imaginext looks good, but the themes are more "boy" -- and I'm certainly not saying that I encourage that kind of gender specific play, just that I know my DD wouldn't be too excited about those toys.

Thanks, PP - you answered my question before I even asked it!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Wow I couldn't disagree more re: Playmobil quality. I think it is superb. It is true that there are many little pieces and I don't think it best in this age range.

Obviously you don't own the pirate ship

[Anonymous]

We love Playmobil. Our kids started out with some 1-2-3 pieces then on to regular sets. Now they're approaching 10 years old and still play almost daily.