Mother Stories
At Home With Artist Dana Haim & Fat Brain Toys
Written by Katie Hintz-Zambrano
Photography by Jessica Kassin
Nov 18, 2022
With so many options out there for holiday gifting, Fat Brain Toys is always a safe bet for affordable, educational, crowd-pleasing gifts for kids of all ages. The Nebraska-based company offers hundreds of creative, brain-boosting toys and activities for babies, toddlers, kids, teens, and even adults!
To put some of their top picks of the season to the test, we invited Miami-based artist and mama Dana Haim to try them out with her brood—which includes husband Jaron, and kiddos Orion, 6, Luca, 3, and Vivian, 1. From the most beautiful rainbow-hued Montessori Lens Blocks and Personalized Name Puzzles to on-the-go friendly Squiqz and the new family favorite game Heap-O-Sheep—take a look below as you complete your own holiday wishlist.
This article is brought to you by Mother + Fat Brain Toys.
-
-
Meet the family! Artist Dana Haim (left) with her children—Vivian, 1, Luca, 3, and Orion, 6—and husband Jaron.
Montessori Woodwerks Lens Blocks (56-piece set), $199.95, Fat Brain Toys.
-
-
"It’s a free for all. We are currently (and have been for the last 2 years) living in a transient way. We moved from San Francisco back to Miami, where my husband and I both grew up, right in the midst of Covid 2020. We hastily moved into my late grandmother's empty apartment from our Airstream, in which we had been traveling the country in and living out of the 6 months prior. So we were accustomed to small space living and being intimately intertwined with our kids and their stuff."
"We have always been pretty loose as far as letting them play where they want and how they want—as long as it’s safe and non-violent. We optimize for ease and harmony."
"We also don’t mind seeing their stuff scattered around. It’s cute and temporary—and a sure sign of fun being had. Sometimes, as an exercise in futility, I try to impose some toy and basket organization for them, but more often than not, they like to scramble it all up and play with everything all mixed up. The neurotic in me struggles with this, but I have learned to let go. I will however ruthlessly give away puzzles with missing pieces, no problem."
Montessori Woodwerks Lens Blocks (56-piece set), $199.95, Fat Brain Toys.
-
-
Orion plays with the extremely easy-on-the-eyes Montessori Woodwerks Lens Blocks, which encourage little ones to explore light, color, art, and architecture, all while boosting fine motor skills, spatial reasoning, creativity, and experimentation.
Each heirloom-quality block features a high-quality acrylic lens built into a solid wood frame. Kids can stack them to mix colors, arrange them into a rainbow skyline, create a cathedral of vibrant hues—the options are endless!
The unique set of 56 blocks—in various shapes, colors, and sizes—is masterfully crafted, incredibly durable, and complete with a solid-wood storage crate that's built to last for generations.
Montessori Woodwerks Lens Blocks (56-piece set), $199.95, Fat Brain Toys.
-
-
"We look for toys that are well and ethically made, ideally sustainable in some way, aligned with the kids' interests, and of course a bonus if they are educational and look good."
"I don’t really push too hard though. Sometimes they make toys out of sticks, cardboard, and paper, which are usually their favorite ones. They often bring home natural objects, found objects, and trash they find at their school and those will also rank as the favorites during that period."
"We try to avoid toys that light up or make noises that startle you in the middle of the night with sudden, jarring sounds. Somehow those seem to be the ones that chase us around and haunt us the most, but they are not the ones we bring home ourselves. We tend to steer clear of anything that requires batteries if we can help it."
Montessori Woodwerks Lens Blocks (56-piece set), $199.95, Fat Brain Toys.
-
-
"The Montessori Woodwerks Lens Blocks are so much fun. As soon as we opened up the box, we were all so excited to pull them out and start building," says Dana. "The boys love making monsters and building worlds. I was immediately drawn to building a tall tower or structure. I love the beauty and freedom of these simple toys. They also happen to be stunning."
Montessori Woodwerks Lens Blocks (56-piece set), $199.95, Fat Brain Toys.
-
-
"My oldest, Orion, is completely obsessed with anything nature related. He knows so many facts about random creatures and is very fascinated by the 'wild.' He frequently talks about wishing we could live in the wild. He loves Wild Kratts and his National Geographic magazines and books about Alaska. He loves surfing, paddle boarding, and anything that involves the ocean. Collecting 'treasures' and items for his nature box is thrilling for him and he is good at finding incredible things like snake skin, crystals, shark teeth, and more."
"Luca, who is 3, pretty much loves anything Orion loves. He is always watching his brother’s every move and is right there with him ready to stir up some trouble with a cheeky smile. He is quite good at his scooter, he loves dinosaurs and superheroes right now. Together they love inventing games and obstacle courses around the apartment, dressing up in costumes, making messes, destroying whatever is in their path, jumping from bed to bed and all over the furniture, and generally just being rambunctious boys together."
"Vivian is still a baby, but is very much a food lover and fruit devourer. She loves setting herself up right in the middle of what the boys are doing. She is just 14 months, but so sharp and already feels like she understands everything and communicates so well. She loves physical rough play like her brothers, stealing their food when they are not looking and then getting all up in their business. She is so funny and so sweet and is every day more curious about toys."
Montessori Woodwerks Lens Blocks (56-piece set), $199.95, Fat Brain Toys.
Tugl Cube, $15.95, Fat Brain Toys.
-
-
"I was into all my Sanrio/Hello Kitty collections of stickers, little papers, stationary, and notepads. My sisters and I had a gum wrapper collection that I adored. I was a Barbie girl for sure, but loved designing their wardrobes, houses, and sets more than I even loved actually playing. I was very into imaginative play and creating worlds, playing dolls, playing office, playing radio station where we would record tapes of ourselves as radio hosts while playing songs we had pre-recorded from live radio. My friends and I would pretend that we owned Gap, Limited, and Benetton and would act out how busy and stressed we were with our jobs. We took it all very seriously with props and tools of the trade."
InnyBin, $25.95, Fat Brain Toys.
Personalized Name Puzzle, $26.95, Fat Brain Toys.
-
-
A Fat Brain Toys classic, the vibrantly hued Personalized Name Puzzle is beloved by toddlers, preschoolers, elementary-aged kids—and the parents who named them!
Each hand-crafted, personalized puzzle features large pieces that are ideal for even the smallest of hands—encouraging fine motor skills, letter recognition, logic, name spelling, and self-esteem.
The ultimate baby gift, the puzzle can be up to 9 characters in length and each of the letters come in a beautiful array of red, orange, yellow, green, blue and purple.
"I always love a name puzzle and am so excited to have this for her new room," says Dana. "Vivian was immediately drawn to this and started pulling the pieces apart."
Personalized Name Puzzle, $26.95, Fat Brain Toys.
-
-
A favorite for bathtime and beyond, Squiqz connect to each other and to any solid, non-porous surface—flexing, sticking, and sucking kids in with limitless possibilities to get creative!
Plus, the POP! sound that occurs when separating these colorful little innovations is undeniably addictive.
"All three kids had fun with these," says Dana. "The boys loved making snakes and creatures with them and Vivian loved chewing and sucking on them."
The Squiqz Starter Set is made of BPA-free, latex-free, 100% food-grade silicone, leaves no residue or marks on surfaces, and encourages creativity, fine motor skills, interaction, and playful experimentation.
The 8 different, versatile shapes pair well with the bathtub, walls, windows, school lockers, tabletops, desktops, and is a great toy on-the-go.
Squigz Starter Set, $26.95, Fat Brain Toys.
-
-
"We have our kids in a child-led, play-based outdoor program. After the pandemic year and the craziness that has subsequently followed, we spent a lot of time with our kids outside deep in nature, where they (and us) most seemed to flourish. Once we were here in Miami, it felt extreme for us to put them straight into a public school or even a traditional school where they would be indoors all day. Being that they were so young and that it was still peak Covid time, this felt right for us at the time."
"Now, two years later, we really love the program they are in and that they have the chance to play outside most of the day. They are gaining so much confidence and practical knowledge about our planet and about problem solving and community building, that we really don’t miss the traditional educational modalities. I’m sure we are sacrificing something by not being in a more traditional learning environment, but I believe they are gaining so much more, so we are choosing to continue there for now and being flexible about what their education will look like moving forward."
"We are huge believers in travel being the best education, so that’s something we talk about and dream about constantly."
Squigz Starter Set, $26.95, Fat Brain Toys.
-
-
"To say that we are outnumbered is a massive understatement. I couldn’t really anticipate what that would be like in real time, there is no preparing for the feeling of being so spread thin where you know one of them is not getting something they need because you have to give it to the other. That can be really tough, especially when one of them is crying and the other two are demanding so much of your time, energy, attention, and you can’t go to the crier fast enough and you can’t clone yourself. Or when I just don’t get to spend nearly as much time with the baby as I did with the other two, because I need to drive the boys all around town."
"It’s hard to not get down on yourself in those moments, but I always try to remember that we are doing the best we can for all of them at any given moment, that we love them so darn much—no matter how spread thin we are, and that we are just so very grateful for every second of it. Even if it’s not perfect and usually pretty chaotic."
"I always thought I would have a big family, being that I came from a big family myself and Jaron did as well."
Tugl Cube, $15.95, Fat Brain Toys.
SpinAgain, $29.95, Fat Brain Toys.
-
-
Vivian explores the innovative InnyBin, which encourages little ones to push six chunky, textured shapes through a cube laced with elastic bands.
"All of them had fun with this one," says Dana. "Vivian likes pulling and teething on the little toys and the boys like playing catch with it and also stealing the little toys that go inside for their personal collections."
The special shape-sorting box promotes fine motor skills, tactile exploration, and experimentation—creating a frustration-free shape-learning experience for babies and toddlers.
SpinAgain, $29.95, Fat Brain Toys.
InnyBin, $25.95, Fat Brain Toys.
-
-
Meanwhile, big brother Orion teaches his little sis how to use the SpinAgain, the first-ever stacking and swirling toy!
Simply drop the vibrant discs onto the threaded corkscrew pole and watch as they spin fast and smooth to settle onto the reversible base. Choosing how to set the base is half the fun—selecting either the wobble base or turning it over for a solid seat.
Each disc on the SpinAgain is dual-colored, and from largest to smallest, they form a dynamic rainbow utilizing fun shades like magenta, lime, teal, lemon, red, and sky blue. The star-like discs alternate between daisy style and star-burst shapes, too.
All together, it's a visually stimulating toy that will keep little ones enthralled as they practice their hand-eye coordination and early engineering skills!
SpinAgain, $29.95, Fat Brain Toys.
InnyBin, $25.95, Fat Brain Toys.
-
-
"All of my kids immediately got wild on this toy and competed to see who could spin it faster," says Dana. "I like the SpinAgain, because it keeps them busy for a long time—enough time for me to clean up and prep dinner."
SpinAgain, $29.95, Fat Brain Toys.
-
-
The patent-pending Tugl Cube invites kids of all ages to pull, pop, and discover!
Built into each side of this sturdy, rounded cube is a soft silicone bubble with a tab to grab and pull. Fingers can't help but push them, pull them, and pop them again and again.
Fine motor skills grow as little ones explore cause-and-effect. For teen and adult fans of the toy, the Tugl Cube keeps hands captivated and the mind at ease.
"This was super satisfying to play with," says Dana. "Vivian loves chewing on the little knobs and then pulling them out. The boys of course liked throwing it like a ball."
Tugl Cube, $15.95, Fat Brain Toys.
-
-
"It’s definitely true what they say about your heart not splitting, but rather doubling, or in my case, tripling in size. I was and often still am scared about not giving them each individual quality or undivided attention, but I try to reel it in by remembering that no matter what they may be lacking as a result of us being outnumbered, unorganized, and too busy, they have the most important thing, which is unconditional love and support. It’s also very true that birth order is real!"
InnyBin, $25.95, Fat Brain Toys.
SpinAgain, $29.95, Fat Brain Toys.
-
-
"This is tough, because I know that this journey looks so different for many people. We had an unexpected pregnancy between Orion and Luca and it ended at 10 weeks. While I was devastated at the time, I remember what helped me feel better was actually posting about it and then talking about it openly. I didn’t want to hide it as something to be ashamed of. Actually the only balm for me was the comments that came in from other women that had or were going through the same thing. It made me feel so much better to talk about it and know that I wasn’t alone at all. That 1 in 4 pregnancies end in loss. It felt scary and vulnerable to share that at the time, but it really helped me to archive that moment and hold the proper space for it and then move forward. So many women reached out to me thanking me for sharing, so that also made me feel good knowing that I got to inadvertently help others."
InnyBin, $25.95, Fat Brain Toys.
SpinAgain, $29.95, Fat Brain Toys.
-
-
A new family classic, Heap-O-Sheep asks players to use a springboard (a.k.a. "sheep-apult") to launch one's sheep onto the paddock.
Each sheep is covered with hook and loop fabric, so they can pleasantly pile up on eachother. That is, if you aim right and stick your landing!
The first to get all of their sheep to stay in the field without bouncing out wins the game.
"The boys love playing this simple game," says Dana. "The act of bouncing the sheep requires the perfect amount of restraint and it was fun for them to realize this, find their stride, and then actually be able to play."
Heap-O-Sheep, $29.95, Fat Brain Toys.
-
-
"The stage the boys are in is very exciting. They genuinely love playing with one another, which makes us so happy as people who are very close with their own siblings. They are also starting to show some signs of coming out of the toddler years, which is also super exciting because as cute as they are, it can be very draining, heavy, and demanding to live in a house full of toddlers. Watching their personalities evolve and unravel is amazing to witness and it’s really cool to see them enter a new, slightly more mature phase."
"It’s also incredible to watch Vivian start to come into her toddler years and to see her personality start to crack open. She is such a sweet delight and this new phase with her is beyond adorable. She is walking and talking like a drunken sailor and we are all here for it. We are also about to move into our first family home, which after 2.5 years of post-pandemic transient condo-living out of boxes, is extremely exciting and welcome!"
Montessori Woodwerks Lens Blocks (56-piece set), $199.95, Fat Brain Toys.
-
-
"The same things that excite me, also make me nervous. As they grow and their problems grow with them, I worry about what tomorrow will bring. I fear not being able to protect them. For them not being able to protect themselves. Especially in the world that we currently live in with all the gun violence and climate change, and so many other challenges we face, these things definitely keep me up at night and are a big motivations for the decision making that guides our life."
"I worry about how good of a job we are doing in being their protectors and caretakers but also as their guides and preparers. Everything we do and say shapes who they are and I want to be sure we are always doing right by them and the world at large as a result. I could probably go on for several paragraphs about all the things that make me nervous but rather than honing in on all my anxieties, I have found that staying as present as possible and being in gratitude every moment that I can, really helps me flip that fear-based perspective into something much more productive and positive."
Montessori Woodwerks Lens Blocks (56-piece set), $199.95, Fat Brain Toys.
-
-
"Just before Covid, I was designing new textiles and ready to launch another collection of homewares. Then, when Covid shut down the world, my artisan partners and manufacturers got into major supply chain issues, as many businesses did. This big interruption in my business, along with being stuck at home with the kids and very little time left to work, forced me to take a good hard look at what I was doing and why I was doing it. It also gave me the opportunity to go inward and explore other things that I’d like to do."
"I realized running my business the way I was running it no longer served me and my family and I had to take a holistic approach to my work that would both fulfill me and also be aligned with my role as a committed and hands-on mom. Since then, I had Vivian, moved cross country, and decided that I wanted to put the textiles production on pause while my colleagues adjust and so that I could adjust to my new life."
"During that time, I started painting again. This new body of work explores the meditative and transcendent feelings that emerge when beach-combing and treasure-hunting with my children. These special moments are the ones that I want to remember. As a parent, one is often pulled in a million directions, so that sometimes the simple act of looking for stones, patterns, or colors within rock groupings with the kids can feel like the perfect respite. To engage with the earth and at once forget about life’s demands—even for just a moment—is both soothing, refreshing, and something itself to treasure. I honor these sacred moments by tuning into the subtle frequencies of their micro-details, exploring each pebble, stone, or object as a world unto its own. With all the chaos that raising young children entails, it’s easy to let these fleeting memories slip through the cracks. Instead, I choose to zoom in on them, celebrate them, and remember them forever. A way to etch my love into stone."
"I’ve always loved painting and used it as my medium to escape. I used it as my medium to meditate and to design my textiles as well. This time, I felt like painting from my heart, from my experience as a mom, and to just get idle hands working again. I’m inspired by the monastic practice that parenting and caretaking have offered me these past few years. As hard and long as these days can often be, I know that ultimately these wild and chaotic years of early parenting will be ones that I will look back on with such happiness and joy, so I feel it’s important to fully be in them and embrace them while they are happening."
Montessori Woodwerks Lens Blocks (56-piece set), $199.95, Fat Brain Toys.
-
-
"Every day that we are alive and healthy and together is something I am thankful for. I try to remember that every single day. Right now, I am also very grateful that we were able to purchase a home when we did and that we will be moving into it very soon. I am hopeful that the move to the house will help ground us and connect us more with the place we are in and with one another."
Montessori Woodwerks Lens Blocks (56-piece set), $199.95, Fat Brain Toys.
-
-
For more on Dana, her artwork, and her adorable family, be sure to follow her @deehaim on Instagram and at DeeHaim.com.
To explore the toys in this feature—and hundreds more!—head over to FatBrainToys.com.
Share this story
