There’s not much that beats getting on the floor and just playing with your kids. It’s laugh time, learning time, tickle time, and cuddle time. One of the toys I love to play with my sons are puzzles. I really love watching them think as they try to solve them or as we help each other piece it together. Melissa and Doug Floor Puzzles are perfect for this.

We’ve been playing with the “Beginning Skills” set that include 4 smaller 12-piece puzzles. Each highlights a different skill including color recognition, shape identification, letter knowledge, and counting. The pieces are especially durable as they are made from heavy duty cardboard. My son’s favorite puzzle includes illustrations of different types of pets. The Pets puzzle is created from 24 extra-thick pieces. When complete, the puzzle spans 2 by 3 feet. Once it’s together, my little man just loves looking at each animal and is so proud of his accomplishment.

You can find Melissa and Doug Floor Puzzles at Blooming-Babies.com. Blooming-Babies.com is an online boutique with toys, clothes, feeding gear, and products for moms. If you make an order before May 15, 2008, you can use the code ‘mommiesstuff 10′ to receive 10% off your order.