Magic 8-Ball — $7.99

Many variations of this soothsayer — from the clever (the Sarcastic Ball) to the totally unnecessary (Hannah Montana 8-Ball) have appeared since the Magic 8-Ball's 1946 creation, but don't treat your brood to anything less than the classic version. Oh, and since you're wondering: Will one of your kids crack open the Magic 8-Ball to see what sort of liquid is inside? "It is decidedly so."

Ages 6 and up.

Get it at Amazon.

View-Master — $8.11

Unlike a lot of old-school toys, View-Master (which turned sixty-nine this year) has kept pushing forward with its design since first being introduced to the world. That's all well and good — every Dora and Wonder Pets! fan deserves a customized viewer — but the humble red View-Master remains our pick for the best way to experience those 3D reels. Start your kids with the classics; they'll work their way up in time.

Ages 3 and up.

Get it at Amazon.

Wish Come True Series by Friends With You — $8

Nothing is finer than making a new friend. And if the friend won't eat all your cookies, doesn't talk too much and is small enough to be stowed away in a Christmas stocking, well that's just down right wonderful. The Wish Come True figures by Friends With You produced by the amazing toy company featured here before, StrangeCo, are a series of six figures. They are about three inches tall, have weighted bottoms and feature built-in bell chimes. These whimsical toys are offered in "blind box" form, so you won't know which one you'll get when purchasing, and that's a big part of the fun.

Ages 18 months and up.

Get it at Friends With You.

Slinky — $3.49

Like Silly Putty and Post-It Notes, the Slinky began life with far more serious ambition than it came to embody. But more than sixty years after it was dreamed up as a device to stabilize ship instruments, the old silver spring is still crawling along . . . Oh, enough with the history lesson: It's Slinky, dammit, and for fun, it's still a wonderful toy.

Ages 5 and up.

Get it at Amazon.

Sock Monkey Soapsicle — $5

This gussied up bar of soap takes the iconic colors of the sock monkey and molds them into a popsicle shape. We love this as a stocking stuffer because it's also got the "psyche" factor. Hey — that's not a sweet treat, you clean your dirty self with it! Hehehe.

Ages 2 and up.

Get it from Etsy.

We have a Sock Monkey Soapsicle to give away! Drop us a line at babblecontest@gmail.com with the subject line Soapsicle to win.