Small patches - What's New? Holiday Gifts Galore

USA Today (Society for the Advancement of Education), Nov, 2003

Bigger isn't always better. While we've nothing against video, computer, or even those real fancy board games that suddenly are in vogue, sometimes, we just like it simple. So it is that we arrive at the store each year looking for merchandise from Patch Products, Inc., Beloit, Wis. Its headliners this holiday season are Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer All-Family Jingle Bell Game ($9.99) and Christmastown Puzzle Playset ($11.99), both based on the 1964 animated classic.

"What instrument does Sam the Snowman play?" and "What does Hermey want to be?" are a couple of the trivia questions from the Jingle Bell Game that just may stump Mom and Dad, but not the kids. In Christmastown, meanwhile, put together the jigsaw puzzle play surface, set up the backdrop, and stand up the characters (like the Abominable Snow Monster and Rudolph's girlfriend, Clarice), and you're good to go on adventures in the snow, or to make toys in Santa's workshop, etc.

Outside the Christmas theme, there's A to Z Puzzles ($5.99). Each of the 26 puzzles containing an upper--and lower-case letter along with a word that starts with the letter and the word's picture. For the kids' next get-together with friends, look to the Happy Birthday Party Games: Freezy Fun!, Rodeo Relay Race, and Pin the Tail on the Donkey--$4.99 apiece. For board games, there's Buzzword ($14.99). A player gets 30 seconds to solve 10 clues. Let's say the buzzword is ball. All the answers contain that word: They plump when you cook them (Ball Park Franks); prisoner's ankle garb (ball and chain); Soccer in Europe (football). In Swap! ($5.99), the goal is to get rid of all your cards by playing them on matching colors. Careful, though, because the Super Swap card makes all players exchange hands.

This year Patch also has introduced Kids Play Workshop Activity Kits for $11.99 each. The Itty Bitty Puppet Show has all the materials for a small theater and 10 finger puppets. The enclosed 44-page flipbook is filled with funny fairy tales like "Sleeping Curie" and "Little Red Riding Bathrobe." The Hop & Skip Jump Rope contains materials for kids to make their own beaded jump rope, as well as a rhymes and jingles songbook.

For outdoor fun, be sure to get the young ones Freeze Tag (get frozen three times and you're It!); Hot Pepper (Don't be the last player to touch the hot pepper foam ball); Spike Spike (Football and basketball have gone to the dogs); and Cut the Cheese (Karate chop meets keep-away).