When my son was 2, he shouted, "ELMO!" when he spotted a balloon in the drug store. He recognized the Sesame Street brand immediately, but he was so little! Companies spend billions to attach Elmo or Dora or SpongeBob to everything from diapers to snacks, and they're counting on kids to want them and parents to buy them.

Some licensed items sell well because the quality is great and the character smiling back at the child is a bonus. Others sell because we know what our kids like, and sometimes we'll buy just about anything with that character on it.

My 4-year-old son was completely obsessed with Thomas the Tank Engine. Aside from the lead-paint problems that caused some Thomas cars to be recalled, the tracks and trains are generally well made and will last far beyond my son's obsession with them.

Now that he's seen Disney's Cars movie, he only wants to play with his die-cast cars. Let me tell you...he can spot a Cars character a mile away. If it was on a box of light bulbs he'd want me to buy those light bulbs.

The bottom line is that there's nothing wrong with licensed products. I mean, I put the Dora Links doll in my Top 10 list of new Christmas toys this year! But all of us should think hard, stick to our guns and insist on high quality when buying any toy.

Some questions to consider include:

• How long will the toy keep your child's attention?

• Could it be passed on to his little brother, or even your grandchildren someday?

• Would you still buy it if it didn't have Cookie Monster all over it?

Companies will listen if parents insist on quality and only buy the best toys, whether they feature favorite characters or not.

Photo © Sesame Street

Like every mom I have a box of gizmos from outlet-finger-stoppers to doorknob-no-turners in my house. Mine is labeled (in big letters with my label maker) "Safety Proofing." This is because I think "Safety Proofing" is a hilarious term and I like to amuse myself at any opportunity. I mean, you've gotta keep that safety away from the babies, right?

I've used the phrase in public and I've gotten a few chuckles, but today I feel truly validated. One Step Ahead, which is a great site with clever kid-related gadgets and toys, sent out a marketing email with the subject, "Holiday Safety-Proofing Solutions."

I laughed. I can't help myself! I mean, what's in the catalog? Recalled toys from Christmas past?

The holidays do pose many safety hazards for babies and toy safety should be taken very seriously, but it's baby proofing or child proofing, not safety proofing!

I think I'm probably slightly ahead of the "green" curve, and in an effort to reduce my impact on the environment, I try to shop locally whenever I can, but even I have my limits.

Yesterday I (stupidly) bribed my 4-year-old with a specific car from the Cars movie. He performed like a champion and now I'm on the hunt. By the time the preschool bell rings, I must locate and purchase Doc Hudson with blinking eyes.

Easy! Sure! Three local toy stores later, (One clerk said with a wink, "Good luck with that!") I'm headed for the big box stores. I wish I lived on Sesame Street and I could walk down the street to Mr. Hooper's store and get everything I needed, from TP to toys, but it just doesn't work that way.

Our local toy stores are wonderful but they're small. If you're looking for something specific (like Doc Hudson with the blinking eyes) you're often out of luck. And their hours are funky. They are open one evening a week, closed on Mondays, and it's hit or miss when Guy Fawkes Day rolls around or one of the employees is getting married.

So exactly how dedicated am I to supporting local, family-run businesses? Is it worth the hassle of hauling two kids in and out of car seats three times and zigzagging across town before I find what I'm looking for? I guess I get karmic credit for starting there first, and I'll have to live with myself for driving 12 miles (one way) to the giant toy store to make a little boy happy. Next time we need something, we'll try to plan ahead so we can patronize the local toy shop.

The child did, after all, put ALL his toys away so I could vacuum.

How dedicated are you to shopping locally?

When I was pregnant with my second child we bought a baby doll for my first son, who was 2 1/2. The plan was to introduce a baby into his daily routine before the real thing arrived. We didn't know the baby's gender so we sought out a gender-neutral doll that would appeal to a toddler boy.

He promptly named the doll "Donarina." We will never know why.

Donarina went with us to the store, where she rode in the shopping cart in her toy infant seat. She went on walks with us and my son pushed her in a toy stroller I had scored at the consignment store for five bucks.

Donarina didn't make baby noises or baby smells, and she didn't take away my attention from my precious firstborn, but she was a good tool for us. It got him excited about having a little brother or sister. (In the end, he got a brother!)

The classic French doll company Corolle has some of the loveliest baby dolls around, so I've reviewed a pink doll, a blue doll and a plain white baby doll that would all be perfect for preparing a toddler for a new sibling.

Photo © Corolle