Active Baby, Healthy Brain: 135 Fun Exercises and Activities to Maximize Your Child's Brain Development from Birth through Age 5½. Margaret Sassé, $18.95

ACTIVE BABY, HEALTHY BRAIN presents 135 massages, exercises, and activities that engage your child's love of play while also stimulating his or her brain development in multiple areas

All Together Singing in the Kitchen: Creative Ways to Make Music as a Family. Nerissa Nields & Katryna Nields, $25.95

Discover the fun of family music! Music is not only fun, but it's also a wonderful way to family harmony and connection — it can soothe a crying baby, engage an active toddler, entertain during long car rides and help everyone get through daily chores. This delightful book has all the tools you'll need — including a CD with 30 songs — to get you started.

Baby Development: Everything You Need to Know. Claire Halsey, $16.95 (birth to 2)

Maximize your baby's physical, cognitive, and emotional potential — and have fun together — with this book full of easy and practical games and activities.

Baby's First Skills: Help Your Baby Learn through Creative Play, 2nd Edition. Miriam Stoppard, $16.95

48 fun activities to enjoy with your child and help you follow your baby's progress from milestone to milestone during the first year.

The Creative Family: How to Encourage Imagination and Nurture Family Connections. Amanda Soule, $23.00

With just the simple tools around you — your imagination, basic art supplies, household objects, and natural materials — you can transform your family life, and have so much more fun!

Perfect for all families, the wide range of projects presented here offers ideas for imaginative play, art and crafts, nature explorations, and family celebrations. This book embraces a whole new way of living that will engage your children's imagination, celebrate their achievements, and help you to express love and gratitude for each other as a family.

Dig Your Hands in the Dirt: a Manual for Making Art Out of Earth. Kiko Denzer, $16.50

Brief, elegant, and generously illustrated with drawings and 32 pages of color photos, this is a book for teachers, parents, builders, artists, and kids of all ages. Looking past the pictures of giddy, muddy fun, DIG YOUR HANDS IN THE DIRT offers substantial and serious inspiration and practical lessons for artists, teachers, students, and designers, as well as builders interested in natural materials like adobe and its British counterpart, "cob."

EAT NAP PLAY: How to Get Even More Out of Your Child's Day for Less. Robyn Spizman & Evelyn Sacks, $18.95

Written by moms for moms, this timely guide centers on back-to-basics philosophies: spend quality time with your kids and spend less money. This is a fun-filled adventure, jam-packed with clever, cost-effective, low-maintenance, often nostalgic ideas you can easily slip into your existing routine. EAT, NAP, PLAY shows you how to turn everyday mayhem into precious moments to build memories, foster growth, strengthen bonds, and just have fun.

Entertaining and Educating Young Children. Caroline Young, $16.95

This easy-to-use guide is filled with activities and play ideas for every stage of a child's development up to the age of five. It covers a wide range of topics including painting and drawing, music, make-believe, books and stories, letters and numbers, food and cooking and active play. Each topic includes parenting advice and tips to help make the activities successful and Internet links to useful websites and downloadable pictures, flashcards as well as simple online activities.

15 Minutes Outside: 365 Ways to Get Out of the House and Connect with Your Kids. Rebecca Cohen, $16.99

What if you got outside every day, and what if you could get your kids to come along? It sounds modest, but the effects, as dynamic outdoor spokesperson Rebecca Cohen herself can testify, are profound. This inspiring collection of activities gives families an idea for every day of the year, requiring little planning, no expertise and relatively little resources (time, cash, or patience!), no matter where they live. Simple and inspiring, this book is bursting with hundreds of easy ways to get your family out into nature a little bit every day.

50 Dangerous Things (You Should Let Your Children Do). Gever Tulley & Julie Spiegler, $21.00

In a time when children are too often coddled, 50 DANGEROUS THINGS (YOU SHOULD LET YOUR CHILDREN DO) reminds readers that climbing trees is good for the soul, and that a pocket knife is not a weapon. Full of exciting ways children can explore the world around them, this book explains how to "Play with Fire" and "Taste Electricity" while learning about safety. With easy-to-follow instructions, it includes:

• Activities, like walking a tightrope
• Skills, like throwing a spear
• Projects, like melting glass
• Experiences, like sleeping in the wild

50 Fantastic Things to Do with Babies. Sally & Phill Featherstone, $27.00

These simple, engaging activities will delight you and your baby.

50 Fantastic Things to Do with Pre-Schoolers. Sally & Phill Featherstone, $27.00

Playtime is fun time — and it offers lots of opportunities for preschoolers to learn. Each activity in this fun book features related facts about your child's development and suggestions for more delightful ideas that will encourage exploration of their world.

50 Fantastic Things to Do with Toddlers. Sally & Phil Featherstone, $27.00

There are few things as delightful as being alongside your children as they experiment and learn. This book encourages using everyday items to help young ones in their enthusiastic exploration of the world around them.

500 Five Minute Games: Quick and Easy Activities for 3-6 Year Olds. Jackie Silberg, $22.95

These games are easy, fun, developmentally appropriate and promote learning in just five spare minutes of the day. Children unwind, get the wiggles out, communicate and build self-esteem as they have fun. Each game indicates the particular skill developed.

Fun on the Run! 324 Instant Family Activities. Cynthia Copeland, $11.95

This book offers the perfect antidotes to boring car rides, the long wait at the doctor's office, restless restaurant moments and supermarket meltdowns. Hundreds of quick games and activities to roll out at a moment's notice are to be found in this compact little volume, including tips for parents when waiting for kids to finish that ballet class or hockey game!

Games to Play with Babies. Jackie Silberg, $17.50

Over 240 fun-filled games include lots of hugs and kisses to help babies bond with their caregivers and parents as they develop necessary skills. Babies experience the interaction and nurturing they need for healthy self-esteem. This book encourages the development of happy, trusting babies who will become happy, trusting toddlers. If there's a baby in your child care center or in your family, you won't want to miss these wonderful games.

Games to Play with Toddlers. Jackie Silberg, $18.95

Completely revised with all-new illustrations and 50 new games, this indispensable book helps you develop areas important for the growth of your 12-to 24-month-old-areas such as language, creativity, coordination, confidence, problem-solving, and gross motor skills. You and your toddler will experience the joy of discovery on every fun-filled page!

Games to Play with Two Year Olds.  Jackie Silberg, $18.95

This revised and updated edition, featuring all-new illustrations and 40 new games, is packed with opportunities to build confidence and to enhance language, coordination, social interactions, and problem-solving skills. GAMES TO PLAY WITH TWO YEAR OLDS is a must-have for anyone caring for a child between the ages of two and three. Turn ordinary, everyday routines into fun learning experiences!

Get Outside: the Kids Guide to Fun in the Great Outdoors. Jane Drake & Ann Love, illustrated by Heather Collins, $17.95

Armed with GET OUTSIDE, a kid will never say, "I'm bored!" again. This book is a key to the world of fun beyond the front door. Activities are divided into four categories (Nature Lover, Outdoor Fun and Games, Cozy Inside and Look to the Sky), where readers will find instructions for making things like sundials, bird feeders and kites, as well as rules for games such as 500 Up, Spud and Shinny. 

Accompanying these descriptions are fun facts and scientific, historic and cultural context. The passage on playing jacks, for example, includes a sidebar about a similar game played by the ancient Greeks. Children in Northern climes will love learning to play traditional First Nations winter games and be thrilled to find out how to create a backyard ice rink. It's a wealth of fun and fascination that will captivate any young person — who won't mind ditching the video game for the great outdoors.

Go Out and Play! Favorite Outdoor Games from KaBOOM! $13.00

KaBOOM is an organization with a passion for creating outdoor play spaces and getting families outside. In GO OUT AND PLAY they have collected 70 well-loved games that will get kids and parents outside and having fun.

Gymboree Baby & Toddler Play. $22.95

170+ fun activities to help your child learn through play.

Gymboree's 365 Activities You and Your Child Will Love. Roni Cohen Leiderman & Wendy Masi, $19.95

Challenge and delight children from the ages of 3 to 6 with these clever activities packed creative play ideas.

How to Raise Monarch Butterflies: a Step-by-Step Guide for Kids. Carol Pasternak, $8.95

Observing a Monarch butterfly as it transforms itself from a black, white and yellow caterpillar and emerges from a chrysalis as a vivid orange, black and white butterfly is among the most thrilling experiences that nature offers. Raising Monarch butterflies from eggs collected from milkweed leaves, or from caterpillars plucked from the plant, is made easy with the help of this detailed guide to locating and hatching this distinctive insect.

With more than 50 unique, close-up photographs readers will learn about the life cycle of the Monarch and how to encourage populations in their own backyards, with tips on which plants to grow, as well as the care and feeding of their pet caterpillars. HOW TO RAISE MONARCH BUTTERFLIES explains what threats face Monarchs and how readers can help conserve the Monarch's feeding grounds from encroachment.

Humpty Who? A Crash Course in 80 Nursery Rhymes for Clueless Moms and Dads. Jennifer Griffin, $14.95

HUMPTY WHO is a classic course in Mother Goose and more, featuring poems, rhymes, songs, lullabies, rounds and riddles — and a 35-song CD starring a rollicking ensemble of musical Moms!

The Kids' Summer Fun Book: Great Games, Activities and Adventures for the Entire Family. Claire Gillman & Sam Martin, $15.99

Your guide to having fun all summer long!

Kitchen Table Play & Learn: Activities and Lesson for Building Your Preschooler's Vital Development Skills. Tara Copley & Andrea Custer, $17.95

KITCHEN TABLE PLAY & LEARN gives you structured yet fun activities to teach your preschoolers the basics of education at home. These 30 lessons include games and activities that develop children's motor skills, number and letter recognition, logic, and visual discrimination, as well as expose them to math, writing, and reading.

Learning Games: Exploring the Senses through Play. Jackie Silberg, $20.95

How do children learn about the world around them? They touch, taste, see, smell and hear it, of course! With over 200 activities, LEARNING GAMES will delight children as they expand their learning by engaging all of their senses. The chapters are organized by each of the five senses, with a bonus chapter of multi-sensory activities.

Let's Go Outside! Jennifer Ward, illustrated by Susie Ghahremani, $17.95

LET'S GO OUTSIDE offers a range of activities perfect for fun in the city, the country and everything in between. Get outside and run, jump, play, explore, dance, hike or camp with your pre-teen and engage your child in outdoor activities and projects that will get the whole family closer to nature.

Let's Play and Learn Together. Roni Cohen Leiderman & Wendy Masi, $21.50

Fill your baby's day with creative activities that are fun and enhance development. More than 300 innovative yet simple activities for infants, toddlers and preschoolers promote creativity and imagination; develop language and motor skills and math, alphabet and vocabulary skills.

Made to Play! Handmade Toys & Crafts for Growing Imaginations. Joel Henriques, $18.95

From the creative mind of Joel Henriques come these small, simple-to-make projects with big results! These playful projects are sure to spark creative discovery, encourage open-ended play and delight the young people in your life.

Make Stuff Together: 24 Simple Projects to Create as a Family. Bernadette Noll & Kathie Sever, $23.99

Slow down, reconnect and get back to basics. One of the best ways for families to share experiences and meaningful time together is through crafting. This book invites you to look around your house you're your neighbourhood to discover materials that are just waiting to find a new life.

Whether you're a parent looking for innovative projects for your kids, or an advocate of the slow family movement, MAKE STUFF TOGETHER gives you 24 fun, versatile projects that help you build family connections while being creative and crafty.

Nature's Playground: Activities, Crafts and Games to Encourage Children to Get Outdoors. Fiona Danks & Jo Schofeld, $21.95

This wonderful book leads parents, teachers and children through fields, across streams, and over mountains. From making a dam with sticks and stones to cairn lanterns on the beach at night, NATURE'S PLAYGROUND is packed with activities, games, crafts and adventures that will bring children outdoors for year-round fun and bring back memories of one of the chief joys of childhood for adults — exploring the natural world.

Outdoor Parents, Outdoor Kids: a Guide to Getting Your Kids Active in the Great Outdoors. Eugene Buchanan, $20.50

With an informative and entertaining look at biking, camping, swimming, paddling, fishing, snow sports, hiking, climbing and more, Eugene Buchanan extends parents a helping hand in getting their kids outside and instilling in them a respect for their health and the environment. It's a fantastic guide toconnecting with kids and nature.

Playful Learning: Develop Your Child's Sense of Joy and Wonder.  Mariah Bruehl, $25.95

Simple activities to promote reading, writing, math, science and social skills in children ages 4 to 8.

Playskool Toddler's Busy Play Book. Robin McClure, $19.95

Over 500 creative games, activities, crafts and recipes for your very busy toddler.

Ready, Set, Play! Parents and Children Bonding through Sports. Mark Schereth & Mark Preisler, $24.95

A heartfelt book that will inspire families to find creative and fun ways to stay active together. Featuring essays by (and about) top athletes and their children.

The Rhythm of Family: Discovering a Sense of Wonder through the Seasons. Amanda Blake Soule & Stephen Soule, $22.95

Many of us with busy families yearn for a slower and simpler life with our kids. THE RHYTHM OF FAMILY is a guide to living such a life for any family.

Following the course of a year through the passing of the seasons, this book explores the ways we can create deep family connections and meaningful memories through living in tune with the cycles of nature. From stomping around in mud boots in the spring to gathering around the woodstove in winter, our activities naturally change from season to season—from the rhythms of the seasons comes the rhythms in our homes, our hearts, our families, and our every day. Paying attention to these changes slows us down, inspires new types of creative play and exploration, instills a sense of family togetherness, and deepens an awareness of nature and self that can make our lives, days, family, and earth grow stronger.

THE RHYTHM OF FAMILY explores what we learn and can gain as parents and families by encouraging and experiencing creativity and nature exploration with our children, the seasons can provide us with a rhythm that brings us close to the Earth and closer to our children.

Sneaky Fitness: Fun, Foolproof Ways to Slip Fitness into Your Child's Everyday Life. Missy Chase Lapine & Larysa Didio, $25.00

Sneaky strategies for fitting in more exercise and calorie-burning activities into their child's daily routine, including:

• Age-appropriate exercises and games to get any resistant little exerciser up and moving (with targeted chapters for preschoolers, grade-school kids and 'tweens)
• Tips on specific toys and games that encourage exercise
• More healthy (and sneaky) recipes for fueling newly-active kids

1001 Fun Ways to Play: Quick, Easy Activities for Your Baby and Child. Susan Davis & Nancy Wilson Hall, $19.95

The best way to teach children — through play — also happens to be the most fun! This new book from Gymboree is full of entertaining, enriching activities for children from birth to five years. 1001 FUN WAYS TO PLAY is a must-have resource that will give babies, toddlers and preschoolers hours of fun.

Unplugged Play: No Batteries – No Plugs – Pure Fun. Bobbi Conner, $21.50

710 games and activities for ages 12 months to 10 years that stretch the imagination, spark creativity, build strong bodies and forge deep friendships.

The Wiggle & Giggle Busy Book: 365 Fun, Physical Activities for Toddlers & Preschoolers. Trish Kuffner, $11.95

The Preschooler's Busy Book: 365 Creative Learning Games and Activities to Keep Your 3 to 6 Year Old Busy. Trish Kuffner, $11.95

The Toddler's Busy Book: 365 Creative Learning Games and Activities to Keep Your 1½ to 3 Year Old Busy. Trish Kuffner, $11.50

These BUSY BOOKS by Trish Kuffner are packed with creative, fun, simple activities to keep toddlers and preschoolers busy. Terrific alternatives to watching TV or playing video games, the books show parents and care providers how to encourage physical, emotional and cognitive growth and stimulate a child's natural curiosity.

Yoga Fun for Toddlers, Children & You. Juliet Pegrum, $22.75

Yoga is a fantastic exercise for children of all ages and this fun, safe guide shows you and your children how to achieve and enjoy more than 70 classic poses together. Yoga helps promote flexibility, concentration, posture, coordination, energy, relaxation — and fun!