I've been looking at bath products a fair bit recently, including the Flexibath and a round up of some of the best bath-time gadgets. This time, I'm looking at the brand new range of bath toys from Mothercare, called Little Squirts, and some of the Early Learning Centre bath toys.

The Little Squirts range is set to be released later on in the Spring, and offers a selection of aquatic style products for babies, suitable from birth.

Mr Turtle on the right is a bath tidy and toy scoop (£28). The scoop can be used to collect the toys from the bath and store them securely out of the way.

The Floaty Foamies (£8) are a selection of floating toys for babies to grab in order to improve their co-ordination. They'll also stick against the bath tiles when wet.

So we're almost a month on from Christmas, but doesn't it feel like yesterday? I think the snow helped to prolong the festive feelings.

Every year it amazes me that the big toy hits of Christmas are not what you expected them to be. The toy that was at the top of your child's wish list, that you searched high and low to find, gets played with for about five minutes. And the throwaway stocking filler that you picked up for about 50p at the supermarket turns out to be the real joy. Meanwhile, babies and toddlers ignore their lavish gifts to confirm the cliché that all they really want is some nice rustly wrapping paper.

So, one month in, which toys are your children still gaga about?

These were the big hits in our house:

There's been some good news coming from the Toy and Games Fair in Hong Kong - parents won't necessarily have to spend a fortune to provide their children with great toys.

According to the experts, the future in toys is all about play value rather than the price. The more time a child can spend playing with one toy, the higher the value. In other words, a crayon for £2 can turn out a much better choice than a game for £200.

With the current popularity of the Go Go Hamsters, kids seem to be going mad for mini robot-style pets. So it's no surprise to see Tomy launch a new selection of toys called Micropets-i, the second generation of Micropets.

The first generation flew out of the shops, and the new range has infra-red technology that allows the 'pets' to sense whether something is in front of them.

Tomy sent over one of the toys for me to try out at home, and they're definitely cute. The toys have four main functions: Chase, Stroll, Song and Duet.

So now we've got the big girls and boys sorted out, what would the little kids like for Christmas?

For under-twos, they really aren't aware of the festivities, and would be just as happy with some crinkly paper as a big fancy toy. But from two onwards, children do have definite preferences.

So here are some last minute recommendations for toys your under-fives will love:

First up is Night Night Timmy, featuring the popular CBeebies star of Timmy Time. Lie this Timmy down at bedtime and you'll see that he's tired – his eyes close and he starts to snore. Additionally, when his hand is pressed he'll 'baa' a welcome at you, meaning that toddlers will have a friend to talk to and hold hands with when mum and dad aren't around. How cute!

The amount some parents spend on their kids at Christmas is quite horrifying.

A glance at some of the online forums shows that some people think it's perfectly acceptable to spend thousands on presents for their children.

A survey by Bic Kids reveals that parents in the North East of England spend the most on toys and gifts for their kids - a massive £286.70 on average.

Parents in Northern Ireland, Wales, the Midlands, Scotland, the North West and Yorkshire all spend more than £200.

Surprisingly parents in London spend the least, an average of £164.02.

Two-thirds of parents also admit to feeling stressed in the run-up to Christmas. I'm not surprised, if they're forking out that amount of money.

There are so many special offers around right now, you can really make the most of your Christmas budget and pick up some nifty gifts in the process. Sainsbury's, Superdrug and Boots all have 3 for 2 offers across their ranges. Woolworths, which has now migrated online, recently announced cutbacks in toy prices of up to 50%.

Heck, even GoGo Hamsters are back in the shops and available for £9.99 and not the crazy prices some fools were trying to flog them for on eBay.

Here's a round up of some of the coolest gifts under £10 around right now to delight your family:

The makers of Mr Squiggles, the Go Go Hamster, have assured parents it is safe after claims over chemical levels found on the toy.

The hamster is one of the most popular Christmas toys this year.

US consumer organisation GoodGuide has claimed that a chemical found on the toy is at possibly dangerous levels.

It says there is more than the allowed level of the metal antimony on the hamster.

However the manufacturer Cepia rejects these claims and says the toy has passed "the most rigorous testing in the toy industry".

As I've been having a clearout and thinking about what to buy for Christmas, one thing has become apparent: the toys with lasting value are very thin on the ground. By this I mean the ones that your children return to again and again. Because this year, in the spirit of reduce, reuse, recycle, I would love to only invest in toys that will have lasting appeal. Though really you can never predict what children will latch on to – sometimes it's the little things that they love the most.

However, I also wonder whether we parents latch on to classic toys a bit too much, and underestimate how much children enjoy the latest short-lived fads.

So which of your children's toys stand the test of time? These are mine:

As a child, I always used to look forward to visiting my nan. Not just because she's lovely and in possession of unlimited chocolate biscuits, but because she had a beautiful doll's house filled with teeny tiny pieces of furniture.

Buying a doll's house is by no means a cheap option, but they're one of those toys that stays in fashion long after the latest console and the newest gadget go in the bin. As long as it's properly cared for, it can even be profitable later on down the line.

Fancy treating your son or daughter to a little home of their own? We've rounded up the best dolls' houses out there.

This Victorian Doll's House (right, £149) is from BrightMinds, and has three floors to fill with furniture. BrightMinds has plenty of furniture too, like this contemporary living room set.

Recently we looked at what girls might want for Christmas, but what about the boys? Here's a round-up of some of the newest and best toys hoping to win a place on your little man's wish list.

For four and under
Until they start school, boys tend to be less aware of the toy ranges based on TV programmes. So you can be fairly safe with generic stuff like pirates, dinosaurs and robots. Discount retailer Aldi currently has some great toys for younger boys in store, including wooden magnetic vehicles and walking dinosaurs. This is also a good age to introduce a scooter.

One toy that will bring out your little boy's caring side is the Playskool baby dinosaur range. My son played with one of these for about 5 minutes in August and still talks about it. And from Hasbro, the Helmet Heroes range is a great toy to encourage imaginary play. Don't tell him, but I've ordered one of these for my four year old nephew.

For boys aged four to six
Once boys get to school, peer pressure kicks in, and boys of this age seem to move in packs, hunting out the same stuff. Well established boy favourites like Playmobil, Ben 10 and Power Rangers all have new ranges available. Ben 10 is now a teenager, battling alien forces. But this is still mainly a range for younger boys - by around six or seven they've probably moved on. The main reason for this being Lego Star Wars. Ask any little boy of this age what he's after, and it seems to be Lego Star Wars all the way.

The Star Wars brand is huge this year - probably helped along by dads getting nostalgic about toys they would have loved as a kid. So as well as figures of the main characters, you can now get jigsaws, duvet covers, Play Doh - even a kit to build Darth Vader's robotic arm. And how about a Darth Vader costume for your teddy. How cool is that?

Electronic animals definitely seem to be a big theme in Christmas toys this year. Earlier in the week we reported on the rush to snap up a GoGo Hamster. But Mr Squiggles and Chunk aren't the only pretend pets vying for your affection this year. Technology has advanced to the extent that these toys are much more sophisticated than they used to be, and will go quite a long way to mimicking a real animal's behaviour.

Take a look at LuLu My Cuddlin' Kitty for starters. Just like a real cat, when you pet her she purrs and miaows, rolls back, moves her head and looks into your eyes. Unlike a real cat, she doesn't poop in the recycling box or attack your toes when you're reading the paper. I can see the attraction.

Alas for LuLu, she's not the most photogenic of creatures and does tend to look quite odd in pictures, though in real life she's got a lot more charm. Widely available from around £38.

But if your child wants a more exotic pet, here are some options:

It might be tempting to splurge on toys for your little pride and joy, but you needn't fork out at all to keep him or her happy and occupied. In fact, some of the most popular baby toys are things you'll have in the house anyway...

The Eighties have reigned supreme in recent popular culture, inspiring a wide array of fashion designers and beauty experts; the music and film industries also taking note of the craze. With this in mind, it seems only appropriate to go to some of the decade's quintessential children's toys when racking your brains for original Christmas presents for the little ones (or the grown-ups) this year. Here's my pick of the top five.

1. Care Bears
These soft toys with magic powers symbolised on their tummies are one of the all-time iconic Eighties toys. The colourful bears became a force of nature in their own right, as videos, home-ware, books and clothing were all emblazoned with their adorable faces.

With numerous different models, each named after their power, they were, and still are, highly collectable and just as charming now as when they originally launched over two decades ago. A friend for life, they are available to buy on Amazon.co.uk.

Go on, admit it. You're thinking about Christmas, just a tiny bit. Even if you haven't bought a thing, and don't intend to for several months, it's at the back of your mind isn't it?

What's going to be the wow gift for the kids this year? And how do I make the few pennies the credit crunch has left me with, stretch to pay for it all?

The toy industry naturally starts planning for Christmas months in advance. They need to predict demand so that they have enough stock to meet it, but not so much that it's still taking up shelf space in January.

Argos have just issued their prediction of what's going to be big this Yuletide. Toy retailer Hamleys released their top 10 prediction way back in July. So what do the toy experts think Santa's going to be stuffing his sack with this year?