GIVEAWAY: Win a Voila Workbench!

This Giveaway is Now Closed! The winner is being chosen and will be notified shortly :) Purchase the Wooden Workbench by Voila WIN IT! WIN IT! WIN IT! WIN IT!

Basic Entry (MUST do this one):

Go to http://www.gummylump.com/ and pick one OTHER product your child would love. Put that in your comment for 1 entry per day. Your comment should say something like "Our family would love to have the play food ice cream set". To create a comment you must click the link at the bottom of this post where it says "XX Comments" (where XX is the number of comments, ie. "70 comments") or "Post a Comment."

Bonus Entries:

1. Make a purchase at http://www.gummylump.com/ and comment 5 times on this post with your order number for 5 entries.
2. Join Our Newsletter for 5 entries and comment 5 times on this post with "joined newsletter"
3. Post this giveaway on your blog for 5 entries. Come back here and put the link in 5 separate comments.
4. Become a Fan on Facebook for 5 entries. Comment 5 times on this post with "became a fan!"
5. Subscribe to our blog for 1 entry. Comment that you did this.
6. Follow our blog for 1 entry. Comment that you did this.
7. Follow Us on Twitter for 1 entry. Comment that you did this.
8. Tweet this giveaway on your Twitter account for 1 entry per day. Come back here and send us your tweet as a comment.
9. Digg this Post for 1 entry. Come back here and comment.
10. Bookmark this post on Delicious for 1 entry. Come back here and comment.
11. Bookmark our site http://www.gummylump.com/ on Delicious for 1 entry. Come back here and comment.
12. Favor us in Technorati (Search blog.gummylump.com) for 1 entry. Come back here and comment.

NOTES: It is very important that each entry has a separate comment. That means 5 comments with your order number if you place an order :) Any combination entries will only count as 1 entry.

Entries that do not follow the stated instructions will not be counted as entries. Please email help@gummylump.com if you have any questions about entering this contest. We are happy to help you! *Anonymous Entries will NOT be accepted UNLESS your email address is included in your post. We have to be able to contact you if you win. If your profile is private or there is any other reason we can not contact you, your prize will be forfeited 48 hours after the drawing and a new winner will be chosen.

We trust you but...if you win for an entry that says, for example, that you're following us on Twitter, and you're not, your prize is forfeited and another winner will be chosen.

Accepting entries thru midnight May 4, 2010

Purchase the Wooden Workbench by Voila

GOOD LUCK!

Wooden Workbench by Voila Toys

The Voila Workbench is hands down our best selling work bench for kids! There are so many things about this toy that we love. First, and most obvious, is the eye-pleasing design. The solid wood bench is accented with bright, beautiful colors and lots of accessories. We also like that the bench has a wide base with a bottom shelf that adds to its stability. The Voila Workbench also includes many more pieces than most other wooden work benches. For example, all of the pieces shown left are included with the Voila Workbench. Additionally, the quality of the "saw", "screwdriver", "hammer" and "wrench" is unmatched. For play value, this work bench has lots of activities. A child can use the top of the bench and the front of the bench for practicing basic carpentry. Additionally, there is a vice that can be used which is great for practicing small motor skills. One of our favorite things about this workbench is the denim tool belt that's included. Shown in the photo, it's hanging along the back of the work bench. It can be removed and worn as a tool belt. It has several pockets and a tie back. Although there are many wooden workbenches on the market, we think the Voila Workbench is the nicest looking with the most play value that we've found. For more information or to purchase: Voila Workbench Free Shipping Included :) See web site for details.

Why Buy Wooden Toys?

Many people have asked us this question over the years so we decided to tackle it. After thinking it over and getting input from fellow coworkers and parents we found that we all had about the same idea on this. Our answers can be summed up in 6 categories: Durability Hand Crafted Nostalgia Play Value Wood is a Natural Product Being Green Let's take these one by one. 1. Durability - Wooden toys tend to last longer than plastic toys. Plastic toys often have many components and once a piece breaks you end up with a sharp, jagged edge. This can make the toy unsafe immediately. Wooden toys tend not to break nearly as often. They are made of a stronger material! 2. Crafted by Hand - Many wooden toys are crafted by hand. There are parts to the process of manufacturing wooden toys that require an actual person to work on the toy. Some are made by master wood craftsmen. Wooden toys are made to last through years of play. 3. Nostalgia - Because wooden toys are made to last for so long, they are often handed down through a family. This makes the toy special because the older children (or maybe grown ups) "remember when" it was their toy. Wooden toys that are generational develop a much more sentimental importance to the family. Often the handing down of a really special toy has great family significance. 4. Play Value - Let's not forget that play value should be one of the main reasons we purchase a toy to begin with! Wooden toys lend themselves to unstructured play. What does that mean? It means that many wooden toys can be played with any way a child's imagination leads them. Wooden toys have been known to inspire inventive and truly imaginative play in children. This is probably due to the versatility inherent in most wooden toys. Wooden toys tend to be passive. The result is that the child has to become more active in their play. A more passive toy like a wooden toy may also encourage greater problem solving skills. Many plastic toys require batteries. If the batteries die and you don't have replacements on hand, that toy is useless to the child until it's "on" again. Wooden toys are always on! Wooden toys stay relevant. Wooden toys come in many varieties. Vehicles, puzzles, blocks, and manipulatives are quite common. Take at look at any large selection of wooden toys (on our web site for example!) and you will come to the conclusion that they would be as relevant in 20 years as they are today. 5. Natural Product - Wooden toys tend to be green! Many parents also love that wooden toys are a natural product..made right from trees. Children also understand this and can even be shown this process if you make your own wooden toys. Many believe that the wooden toy has a living energy to it that a child will respond to. It's the same material as the tree in the backyard that they touch every day. Many wooden toy manufacturers are cognizant of the fact that their product requires cutting down trees. This may make some people unhappy. HOWEVER, many wooden toy manufacturers have active reforestation policies and may replant as many as 5 trees to replace every one that is used. Further, wood from some trees isn't actually taken until another product has been taken from it. Take the rubberwood tree, for example. Rubberwood trees are cut for wooden toys until AFTER they have been sapped for all of their juice! BTW, contrary to the name, "rubberwood" is actually a HARD wood (much like maple). 6. Being Green - What's greener than a tree? Wooden toys are environmentally friendly DURING their production process as well as AFTER they are no longer useful. Put them in a landfill and they will decompose. What about plastic toys? Ummm....I don't think so! Many wooden toy manufacturers even use recycled materials in their packaging. We have an enormous selection of wooden toys (and furniture) on our web site, including these great manufacturers: Melissa & Doug Kidkraft Guidecraft Voila HABA Anatex Automoblox Educo Hape Heritage Playsets IggiBig Jonti-Craft Kapla Maple Landmark One to Ten Toys Quadrilla Shure The Toy Workshop Uncle Goose www.GummyLump.com Toys That Make Sweet Memories