June 21 is National Smoothie Day! Here's a fun way to celebrate!
As parents and caregivers, of course we want our kids to grow up with healthful eating habits, and enjoy balanced diets full of fresh fruits and vegetables.
One way to get kids to actually eat fruits and veggies is to practice doing that through pretend play before the real meal even begins.
When you engage with your child through pretend play, you’re sending them a powerful message—kids will model the behaviors they see every day, so if you’re “pretending” to enjoy healthful smoothies, like with our Smoothie Maker Blender Set, during play, your kiddo will gravitate towards the benefits of fruits and veggies in real life, too.
Pretend play provides kids with the opportunity to immerse themselves in the story and be a part of the action, while expressing themselves creatively and expanding their imaginations. If your kiddo loves pretend play, our latest Toy Spotlight offering will fuel a new morning breakfast trend: check out our Smoothie Maker Blender Set right now.
Why Kids Will Love this Pretend Play Smoothie-Making Blender Set
Play Basics: This 22-piece pretend play blender set includes base, jar, and lid, and wooden play food ingredients: fruit and vegetables to slice, kale leaf, protein powder disc in a pouch, milk carton, 2 double-sided cup inserts.
Playful Details: Whip up delicious playtime smoothies with this pretend play blender! Use the wooden knife to slice wooden fruits and vegetables, choose other healthful ingredients, such as kale or protein powder, and pop them in the blender. Add a dash of pretend milk, spin the dial to blend, pour into a cup with lid and straw, and serve! There's a double-sided reusable menu card for taking orders, and cup inserts to add realistic color to smoothies. Any time is a good time for a smoothie!
Age: 3+ years
Parents Will Love This Feature: Any toy that attempts to introduce kale into a child’s diet should be commended for even trying! The Smoothie Maker Blender makes for a great way to introduce kids to proper nutrition and healthful eating habits.
Who Will Love This: Any kid who likes to mimic the parent who loves beverages! If you or your partner enjoys the regular smoothie, latte, iced tea, or other sippable treats, chances are your child enjoys pretending to be like mom or dad with their beverage on the go. Indulge their pretend play without the added sugar, thanks to our Smoothie Blender Maker!
Skills at Play: A great way for kids to learn about nutrition, colors, counting, and to build fine motor and social skills
Pretend play offers many developmental benefits for kids: It improves imagination, narrative, and storytelling abilities; expands their view of the world, and how they interact with it; helps them process feelings and emotions; and serves as practice for real-world scenarios that they’ll face as they reach school age.
Plays Well With: Mix & match the Smoothie Maker Blender set with other
Melissa & Doug pretend play toys:
Who wants a piece of fruit? Add to your smoothie ingredient list with our Cutting Fruit set! Includes a wooden knife and seven pieces of sliceable fruit that can be cut into a total of 17 pieces. The pieces are held together with self-stick tabs, so the food makes a fun and satisfying "crunch" sound when sliced. Helps kids practice fine motor skills and hand-eye coordination, and with so many pieces, it's a great way to introduce counting, and the concepts of part, whole, and fractions.
Kids cannot live on pretend smoothies alone—make sensational pretend play salads fresh to order with this all-inclusive 52-piece set that includes felt salad greens (kale, lettuce, and spinach) in hinged containers, and slice-able wooden vegetables (carrots, tomatoes, cucumbers, mushrooms, and green peppers), proteins (shrimp and grilled chicken), and toppings (olives and croutons). For the finishing touch, two salad dressing bottles "squirt" string. Kids and parents alike will love this healthy way to play!
Every budding young chef needs a place to hone their craft—this easy to assemble chef's kitchen includes a refrigerator/freezer with innovative working ice maker that dispenses two included "ice cubes," an oven and stovetop with dials that turn, microwave with turning plate, sink with moving faucet and handle, grocery checklist, movable hooks, and ample shelving and storage for easy cleanup.
Help kids establish good morning and nighttime habits right from the start with our sturdy wooden My Daily Routines Chart! Kids will love flipping the wooden illustrated bungee-hinged flaps to reveal a gold star when they finish doing simple tasks on their own. Empower kids to be independent and help boost self-esteem with every flip of a flap! A built-in fold-out stand allows kids to keep the chart by their bedside or they can carry it with them or hang it with the attached cord handle. Includes language stickers for non-English speakers, and some blank ones to customize the routines!
Scoop & Stack Ice Cream Cone Playset
Part of a balanced diet is enjoying the occasional frozen dessert—serve up cool treats with this pretend play magnetic ice cream play set! A magnetic scooper picks up 4 scoops of pretend ice-cream: vanilla, chocolate, strawberry, and mint chip; press the lever and the scoops drop onto wooden cones. Pieces store in a fun plastic ice cream tub. This play set is a great way for kids to practice sharing, and encourages counting, sorting, color recognition, and fine motor skill development.
Notable Quotable:
“I use this for my 3-year-old daughter’s speech therapy days at home. She says certain words then picks, or cuts, something to put in the smoothie. She LOVES this!!!”
—Crystal, in a 5-star review on MelissaAndDoug.com
Enjoy this blog post? Check out more of our great play-related content:
Shop Melissa & Doug Pretend Play
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Toy Spotlight: Yellowstone National Park Grizzly Bear Games
Toy Spotlight: Wooden Deluxe Standing Art Easel
