If you and your children felt overwhelmed at New York City Comic Con last month, then I recommend saving early November for Play Fair NY. This past weekend Play Fair NY took over the Jacob Javits Center in midtown Manhattan, and gave kids of all ages a reason to be very excited about the upcoming holiday season. Play Fair NY featured interactive toy and game areas, celebrity and character meet and greets, a 13,000 pound vat of slime, a Minecraft VR learning lab, and a chance to see all the toys nominated for 2017 Toy of the Year. The best compliment I can pay Play Fair NY though, is as a parent. Both my 13-year old son and 6-year old daughter did not want to leave and they were actively playing and engaging their minds and imaginations, rather than glued to a screen.

More below.

Walking around early in the day with my son, we came upon some cool new toys that would make great gift ideas. We met Jeff Lyon, the creator of Magnets The Game, and played a few rounds with him. The super simple and really addictive game of creating stacks of small circular magnets can work dually as a tool to help young kids with their counting skills, and perhaps more as a party game for older kids and even adults. Go to Magnets The Game for videos and to purchase.

While my son found the LEGO section and was literally swimming in lego blocks at one point, I found a few potential toys for my daughter. The first was Chalk of the Town, an erasable chalkboard t-shirt that allows kids to re-wear the same shirt time and time again, but with different handmade designs each time. You can check out how it works and their online store at Chalk of the Town.

My daughter could not get enough of Tall Tales: The Game of Infinite Storytelling, a game which inspires imaginative storytelling using small figurines and setting cards. It is perfect for family fun and even better for elementary schools. She also had fun playing at the VTech and LeapFrog stations and of course, the Play-Doh kitchen was a huge success.

A major drawing card of Play Fair NY was the chance to watch Maddie Rae and other social media slime stars set the Guinness Record for largest slime at over 13,000 pounds. Of course, my son dragged home a small vat of slime as a keepsake. Check out the video here.

Finally, the meet and greets. Again, managing to appeal to all ranges of kids, my kids got to meet WWE superstars Daniel Bryan and The Big Show and the “stars” of Disney Junior’s PJ Masks and Nick Jr’s Shimmer and Shine. I’ll let you guess which kid was more excited about each meet and greet. Play Fair NY returns next year, November 3rd and 4th and check out Play Fair for all the exhibitors and features from this year’s awesome kid-friendly show.

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