Hot New Toys for Girls

Top Picks for Christmas Gifts

Penbo is a bright pink, robotic penguin who responds when you pet her. She blinks her eyes and flaps her wings and waddles around. Then, SURPRISE! She lays an egg! And out pops a little baby penguin that has little penguin conversations with its mother. (The manufacturer calls the language "Penguish.")

Penbo can play five games like hide and seek, and she makes little cooing sounds to show she's happy. She even plays peek-a-boo! They're definitely in the "unusual" category, but I think they're fun.

Our Generation Dolls are beautiful 18-inch dolls that come with their own storybooks and lots of accessories. Each girl has a positive message about independence or ingenuity. One new doll, Lily Anna, is a horseback rider who solves a mystery in her story.

I recommend these for preschoolers who are just getting into dolls but might not be ready for a doll that costs more than $100. At around $35 each, Our Generation Dolls are a much more affordable option. And if one of the more expensive dolls joins her collection later, the dolls can share clothes.

If my kids ever want a cat, they're totally out of luck. I'm so allergic that I'd have to move out. They could have a Furreal Friends Lulu, My Cuddlin' Kitty. The Furreal Friends have been around for a while, but Lulu is brand new for Christmas.

Just like a real cat, Lulu purrs when she's content, preens and licks her paw and rolls over on her back to have her tummy rubbed. She feels so soft and lifelike and she's awfully cute.

The myWallaby Doll Carrier is a clever purse that easily converts to a doll carrier. It's made in the USA and is really cute to boot!

The bright, canvas purse comes in five color combinations and is big enough to comfortably carry large dolls like Our Generation or American Girl dolls, and there's still room for the little things girls take along with them.

The design is tough enough to take what girls dish out, and sweet enough to become a real favorite.

The Mia My Jacket is a clever invention designed to help girls express themselves. The white jacket features comes with four markers so kids can decorate like crazy. In case of a change of heart it gets tossed in the wash and *POOF*! No sign of the original design anywhere.

This would be a clever birthday gift. All the party guests make their mark and the birthday girl would have a timeless memento at the end.

They come in sizes 4-14 and cost about $50.

Sprig Toys is an eco-friendly toy company based in Colorado. Their new toys, called Story Builders, are terrific for stimulating imagination and creative play, and they're good for the environment.

Princess Penny's Story Building Palace has 95 pieces including 10 characters, 24 large story blocks and 62 printed panels to make the fences, castle walls and more. It's rated for ages 3+ and it's easy for even the little ones to build a first-rate castle.

I'm a big fan of this company because they make cool toys with an ecological conscience and this is a large kit for about $30.

American Girl dolls are extremely popular among girls, not only in America, but around the world. Their beautiful clothes, sweet faces and accompanying stories are very compelling and girls get very attached to them. At around $100 apiece, they're an investment and many see them as collectors' items.

Beautiful dolls who resemble the girls are available, as are matching dresses for the doll and the child. New for the holidays is a stunning, sparkly plum party dress for girls. And if you're going for the lookalike effect, it's available for dolls, too. The doll dress comes with tights, sequined shoes, a headband and a book called Holiday Stories.

Calafant makes beautiful, detailed models of a castle, a pirate ship and even a treehouse out of simple, white, recyclable cardboard. Brand new this year is their fabulous dollhouse, just waiting to be taken home, built and decorated by hand.

I built the beautiful castle last year and let two little boys have their way with it, and it lasted and lasted. I expected it to be fragile, with its working drawbridge and everything, but it really took what my kids dished out.

Turn it into an art project that you can do together and I promise they won't disappoint.

The Littlest Pet Shop Cozy Care Adoption Center is really a must-have for any fan of the detailed sets. This intricate toy is a full activity center where kids can bathe, groom, feed and take care of the two included pets. About a zillion tiny accessories like brushes and toys complete the package. Parents with an aversion to tiny pieces might want to avoid this, but girls who like it play with it for hours and hours.

Dora is growing up and Mattel wants girls to grow with her instead of outgrowing her. The new "tween" Dora is so cute in her tunic and leggings, and this doll is amazing. When girls connect her to a PC (Dora's bilingual but she doesn't speak "Mac") they can change her eye color, her jewelry and even the length of her hair. At the press of a button the doll's hair grows or gets shorter!

Dora Links has an extensive online world where she solves puzzles and has great adventures with her friends. There's a lot of buzz around Dora Links and I think it's well deserved.

This amazing new LEGO kit features nearly 1000 pieces including a bird bath, picnic table, shutters and awnings. But the coolest thing is that it can be built three ways. It can be the cute cottage, a bungalow or a Mediterranean villa.

Each colorful variation is so cute and different from the rest! This is a perfect gift for a budding architect.