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Goodbye to Little Window Shoppe

May 18, 2009 by Emily · 62 Comments 

My Dearest Window Shoppe Readers and Friends,

This post has taken me over a month to write - partly because this is my last post on this blog. I am so sad to announce that as of today, Little Window Shoppe is closing for good.

The decision was not taken lightly and was really hard to make, but a combination of factors came together that brought me to this post…very much wanting to spend more time with my family (I have a very busy two year old who needs more mommy-time), getting ready for baby #2 in November (I’ve been out sick for two months! But it’s totally worth it as we’re so excited to have a new baby come to our family), and finally getting ready for a move to a new state with my family this Summer (my hubby is starting a new job).

{Photo source: Wilson Library Reserve}

I have learned so much from blogging at Little Window Shoppe and will be forever grateful for the kind friends I have made and the amazing experiences that I have had here!! Thank you so much for taking time to make Little Window shoppe a part of your lives and for being such a fantastic community. And also, thank you for all of the nice emails and inquiries about how we are doing.

Before I say goodbye for good, I want to thank a few people who helped me along the way:

First and foremost, my husband Scott. He is an incredibly supportive husband and friend and was the first person to listen to my every idea and concern throughout my blogging adventures. He has also been Superman at my house and has cooked, cleaned, taken care of our two year old and helped me out while I was sick over the last seven weeks! I couldn’t ask for a better man in my life and I love him so much!!

I also wanted to thank Holly of Tutus and Turtles. She is so cool and listened and talked to me for hours on the phone as I worked out how I would end my Window Shoppe blogging days. Her blog has been an inspiration to me from the beginning and I think that her blog ideas rock!!

Finally, I wanted to thank each of the writers and contributors for Little Window Shoppe. Each of them had creative and beautiful ideas to share and I’m so grateful and honored that they wanted to be part of this blog with me. They have become some of my dearest friends and were the best group of writers a blog ever had! They even sent me tulips when I was sick (just about made me cry, I felt so loved).

Please visit each of their blogs to keep up with their cool ideas!

• Vanessa - her blog: I Never Grew Up
• Lauren - her blog: Supermom Central
• Michelle - her shoppe: Sweet Mady’s Paper
• Michaelle - her blog: Monkeys Momma
• Cassie - her shoppe: Madison Envy
• Kelly - her blog: Albany Mommy

Also, I wanted to leave you with a few additional recommendations of blogs I love - in case you are looking for new places to subscribe:

• www.simplemom.net - this is my absolute favorite blog to follow…it has the best family tips and ideas that make sense, the ideas are easy to follow and I just can’t get enough of its coolness.
• www.howaboutorange.blogspot.com - artsy, tons of crafts, diy ideas, printouts, and the best time-wasters ever.
• www.thepioneerwoman.com - recipes, photoshop tutorials, photography 101, down-to-earth life.
• www.makeandtakes.com - the coolest (and most creative) kids crafts ever!
• www.metropolitanmama.net - and for all you contest lovers, this Metro Mama has excellent giveaways all of the time - and she writes helpful articles with tips for parents. Love it.

There are so many more…but I think this is a great start.

If you want to stay in touch with me, you can follow me at a few sites:

• www.emilyjune.com (I’ll still be designing blogs and websites - starting again this fall). 
• I’m also going to be checking in and updating my facebook page and my family blog regularly. They will have weekly updates of my family life and the cool fun things we are doing.

**If you want to stay in touch with me at my family blog or on facebook, just email me or leave a comment letting me know and I’ll send you the links.**

Thank you again for making this the best blogging experience I have ever had!!
Always,
Emily

Make Your Own I Spy Bottle

January 13, 2009 by Vanessa · 8 Comments 

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle!

This was a very fun simple craft to do and will help me when my daughter needs something quietly to play. I have been keeping it in my purse and it has gotten me out of a few tantrums all ready.

• First, find a plastic bottle – I found the Bolthouse Juice bottles work the best, they are the perfect size and have no ridges or indentations on them. Clean and dry it out very well.
• We collected anything we thought could fit in the bottle from bottle-caps to charms to stickers. When we used a sticker we just rubbed whatever substance we were going to fill the bottle with (sand, rice, beans) on the back side of the sticker so it would not stick to the edge of the bottle.

• Then we added rice, beans, or sand (or a mixture to the bottle) to the bottle (fill it up just enough so that when you twirl the bottle around you can find the objects). Note: If using sand, make sure the bottle is absolutely dry, I even took a blow dryer to it, or it will make a big mess for you.
• Finally, I put some glue on the lid and screwed it shut. While adding the objects to the bottle we kept a list going. Then I typed up the list on the computer, laminated it, and attached it with a string. A perfect craft to do with any age.

You could also try these ideas for fillers:

• A bottle with alphabet letters in it, to help your kids recognize their alphabet.
• A bottle with numbers in it.
• Bottles to go along with each season.

Written by Vanessa of I Never Grew Up

Win It: Design Your Very Own Doll

January 9, 2009 by Emily · 293 Comments 

Contest Update:

*We have a winner!! The randomly chosen winner for this contest is: #108 Mia J. Congratulations! Thank you to everyone who participated - please stop by again as there are new contests each week.*

I’m so excited to introduce My Face Dollies to you today. These cloth dolls are super cool and unique since they are individually handmade the way you want.

You can even create a doll to resemble your own child or loved one, simply decide how her hair will look, the color of her eyes, her fabric design and which accessories you want her to have.

Win It:

One lucky Window Shoppe Reader will win your very own custom-made doll!

To Enter:

Simply visit this link to check out the doll preferences and leave a quick comment letting us know which fabric you like most and we’ll finalize the rest of the individual doll details later if you win.

This giveaway ends on Sunday, January 18th at midnight PST. The winner will be chosen randomly and will be announced at this post Monday, January 19th. Good luck, everyone!!

(Please feel free to read our contest rules for additional details)

Umecrafts Felt Treats That You Can Make

December 17, 2008 by Emily · 3 Comments 

Imaginary play is an important part of any child’s life. And for a little girl, her toy box and play kitchen isn’t quite complete without a play tea party set. Best of all, you can make this felt set yourself!

One of Little Window Shoppe’s fabulous sponsors, Lit’l Brown Bird, has the cutest shoppe called Umecrafts. All Umecrafts tutorials come with actual cut-out pdf patterns and easy to follow step-by-step detailed colored instructions to help you along the way. {Priced between $4 and $10}.

And don’t forget to add a few delightful treats to your tea party too. These felt cakes look almost yummy enough to eat…

Discount:

Enjoy a 20% DISCOUNT on ALL patterns from now untill December 25th! (See Umecrafts’ shoppe for more discount details).

Help Save Handmade Toys (and Toy Shoppes!)

December 17, 2008 by Emily · 4 Comments 

Have you heard of the new Consumer Products Safety Improvement Act? If not, read this post!

THE ISSUE

Do you remember the issue in 2007 when there were frequent reports about toy manufacturers selling toys with dangerously high lead content and toys that had small unsafe parts? I remember hearing about it on the news all the time and often heard from friends that they were throwing away toys that they were concerned about. Ultimately, this series of events violated the public’s trust caused the United States Congress to recognize that more needed to be done.

Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA)

So, the US passed the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA) in August, 2008 with good intentions. In order to strengthen the safety standards of mass-produced toys, clothes, and accessories made in China, the CPSIA is banning lead and phthalates in toys and is mandating third-party testing and certification for all toys.

THE CONCERN

Unfortunately, this process is expensive ($4,000 fee per toy) and while all of these changes will be fairly easy for large, multinational toy manufacturers to comply with, the costs of mandatory testing for small toymakers, however, may likely drive them out of business.

(You can read even more details of this issue here: Handmade Toy Alliance)

HOW THIS AFFECTS US

With this act going into effect February 10, 2009 (just two months away) many of our favorite shoppes making handmade items for children will be affected: Shoppes who make beautiful handmade hair accessories, dolls, dresses, stuffed animals, blankets, diaper cases will no longer be able to sell their goods, unless they can cover the costs of third-party testing and labeling to prove that their items are not toxic.

IMPROVEMENTS

The Handmade Toy Alliance (and all of us too!) value the quality and diversity of toys and believe that our country’s children deserve hand crafted toys, and as such, they have made worthy proposals that will help to improve the CPSIA. They sound perfectly reasonable and make a lot of sense. You can check out their proposals here: Proposal to Improve the CPSIA

HOW TO GET INVOLVED

To help to keep the handmade community alive, you can help by writing to your United States Congress Person and Senator to request changes in the CPSIA to save handmade toys. You can find your Congress Person here and Senator here.

MORE HELPFUL RESOURCES

Cool Mom Picks has dedicated a page to this issue as well, and since they have a plethora of fantastic resources, related press links and the latest breaking news updates already set up, I’m going to refer you to their awesome link: Save Handmade

You can also see a blog gallery of handmade products endangered by the CPSIA and submit yours too at Endangered Whimsy.

And if you’re looking for a few clips about it, here are two motivating videos that you can watch on YouTube regarding the CPSIA: Wood Toymaker Video and Mr. Sun Video.

Dr. Seuss Games and a Charity Giveaway

December 8, 2008 by Emily · 10 Comments 

Contest Update:

Thank you for your help - after evaluating your comments and suggestions, we have decided that it will be best to donate this item to Toys for Tots. Happy Holidays!

A few weeks ago, we were introduced to I Can Do That! Games by Rookie Moms and soon after received a fantastic Dr. Seuss game from I Can Do That! Games - called Green Eggs and Ham Speedy Diner.

All the games are aimed at getting kids moving around - running, jumping, singing and laughing. They are intended to build self-esteem by focusing on what the kids CAN do.  The games are inspired by some of the Dr. Seuss classics that we all know and a few have won top awards too. They are meant for children age 4 to 8 and since my little boy is not quite two, I gave the game to my friend JaNece to play with her son to see how they liked it.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Green Eggs and Ham Speedy Diner ~ Review by JaNece

This afternoon, my 4 year-old son and I played “Green Eggs and Ham Speedy Diner“. It comes with a cute chef’s hat and musical menu. It only took us a few minutes to read the instructions and figure out how to play.  It reminded me of a fun game show where you are running around trying to put things in their right place before the time runs out.

My son, Lukas had a blast!  I would shout out an order and he’d run to get the food and deliver it to the right customer.  Playing this game helped him with his colors, shapes and following directions.  So not only was it super FUN, but educational too! Now he can’t wait for his friends to come over to play with him. Two thumbs up! 

JaNece’s shoppe: Design by JaNece - pretty handmade totes, aprons and more.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Charity Giveaway:

In the spirit of the holiday season, we would like to donate this item to a deserving charity or person. This isn’t a typical LWS giveaway - as you will not win this item directly, BUT you do have the chance to help give this to either a cause or someone you care about. 

We have one extra game called Cat in the Hat - I Can Do That! and we would like to give it away to a charity (or boy or girl) identified by you who you think really deserves this game this year. What better way to say how much we appreciate you as our readers than to contribute to a cause you really care about.

Please leave a comment with one or two sentences on why you think this person or cause is important and if applicable, include a link to the charity of your choosing. *(Note: if including a charity, link must be to a valid charity).

We’ll review all entries and post the name of the charity who will receive this game on December 15th. Thank you so much for your help.

Kobold Toy Contest

December 5, 2008 by Emily · 200 Comments 

Contest Update:

*We have a winner!! The randomly chosen winner for this contest is: Leah I. Congratulations! Thank you to everyone who participated - please stop by again as there are new contests each week.*

After looking through a plethora of toys this season, I keep coming back to Kobold Toys where their goal is to provide “Educational Toys for your Little Beloved.” It is one of my very favorite toy shoppes and this year they want to offer one Little Window Shoppe reader these three items to include in your holiday gift-giving:

Discount: Save 15% for orders of $35 or more with code: CG99EB

Win It: One lucky Window Shoppe reader will win:

1. Brio’s Magnetic Wooden Blocks - they are super cute for toddlers, small, easy to grab, colorful, minimalist.
2. 4M’s Dinosaur Origami
3. Penton Overseas Book “My Bag and Me” - a story that introduces children to recycling.

To enter, stop by Kobold Toys and in a comment let us know your favorite toy! That’s it.

This giveaway ends on Sunday, December 14th at midnight PST. The winner will be chosen randomly and will be announced here Monday, December 15th. For this contest, continental US residents only please. Thank you and Good luck, everyone!

(Please feel free to read our contest rules for additional details)

Little Urbanites - Holiday Gift Guides

November 21, 2008 by Emily · 4 Comments 

Next week is the big shopping week! Are you ready? Do you go out the day after Thanksgiving? Or do you prefer to avoid the crowds? I have friends who every year without fail, camp out in front of their favorite stores with a map in hand ready to grab the best sales imaginable. I’m not that into it (I can’t say that I’ve ever camped out in front of a store), but I definitely love window shopping (of course) through children’s stores and shoppes that are displaying holiday items. It makes it feel like Christmas is really almost here!

Today’s little window shopping adventure is with Little Urbanites. This is a children’s retail store and modern design center based in Portland, OR that recently brought their brick-and-mortar online for all of us to enjoy. 

They have everything from apparel to strollers and I love the store gift guides that they have listed for baby and for the holidays. Each one has three different sections (organized by price) where you can shop through a variety books, toys, gear, bath essentials and general gifts that are priced under $25, $50 or $150. Enjoy!

Tis the Season for Board Games

November 11, 2008 by Vanessa · 5 Comments 

The Perfect Doll

November 4, 2008 by Vanessa · 6 Comments 

For the past month I have been searching for the perfect doll to give my niece this year for Christmas. Dolls are very special in my house, both of my daughters have a certain doll they sleep with every night and talk about throughout the day.

I wanted the doll to be unique, funky, cuddly, eco-friendly, handmade and colorful. To my surprise I found quite a few that fit all of the things I wanted.

 

Poot & Boogie dolls were my top pick, I fell in love them instantly. The dolls are individually handcrafted and prewashed and shrunk with 100% cotton and 100% wool materials, stuffed with Eco-friendly fiberfill derived from EcoCraft corn. They are “handcrafted with love and smiles” in a small house on a hobby farm in Aldergrove BC. They accept custom orders and you can purchase the dolls through Natural Pod for $34.95 each.

These Modern Rag Dolls from the Etsy shop IkdDesigns are being sold to raise funds for the owner’s upcoming Ethiopian adoption. I love how colorful and cuddly the dolls look, the owner has quite a collection of dolls that are priced at $40 each.

Here are just a few of the other wonderful dolls I found on Etsy:

Doodle Girls from Bit of Whimsyprims $32

1. Beth Ann from Madison’s Craft Nook $25
2. Fiona from Baby Bomb $35
3. Mermaid Dolls from Tiny Green Apples $30

Vanessa’s blog: http://www.inevergrewup.net - Ideas and Reviews to Help Parents Entertain, Care for and Educate their Children.

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