My mother-in-law has a holiday movie that she loves to watch every single year. Actually, it’s just one scene from this movie that she HAS to watch. She laughs SO hard just thinking about it. It’s HILARIOUS to watch her as she conducts her annual ritual of watching “the squirrel scene” from National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation.

If you are not familiar with this scene, it involves a squirrel being discovered hanging out inside the family’s Christmas tree. MUCH hilarity ensues when the squirrel decides to attack! Here’s a clip (WARNING: bad language is present in this clip).

This year I was able to add an extra dose of laughter to our family’s Christmas celebration by placing a VERY realistic squirrel in the tree for my mother-in-law to discover. She laughed and laughed when she found it, and now I’m on a mission to get another squirrel just like the one I have for her.

Darah has dibs on this one, though. She loves to chase after squirrels in the park, and when she first saw this squirrel, she thought it was real and was a bit nervous about touching it! That just how real it looks, people! This squirrel is from The Animal Place, a company that makes gorgeous, handcrafted animal toys. Their products have been endorsed by major conservation organizations because of their excellent attention to detail. These are the products of skilled workmanship, as is evidenced by the distinctive features of each animal.

Most every child has a favorite animal, and the odds are good that The Animal Place has a representation of that exact animal. After all, they have over 150 species represented and 10 different collections. They even have extraordinary life-sized reproductions that can hold riders up to 250 pounds! Woah!

I have to say that I’m extremely impressed with the quality of the toy we received. I believe it is going to hold up very well to years and years of play. The squirrel we received retails for $23.82 and the quality does justify the price. The dragon you see above is certainly a splurge, but it is life-sized and can come flying into your home for $927.00.

The Animal Place is pleased to offer a discount to Stuff Parents Need readers! Use code NEWYEAR2012 to save 15% off your order! Woo hoo!

Disclosure: I received a complimentary product for review purposes. All thoughts and opinions expressed here are strictly my own.