Christmas Wish Lists... Ms. Rozzlyn...

AHHHH! I could go on for hours and hours putting together all the things I would just LOVE LOVE LOVE to have for Ms. Rozzlyn. But I won't... Ill just put together my 5 favorites so you can drool over them with me too :)

Rocky The Zombie: Time for the next size up! 1/2 for Ms. Rozz!

Quinn: Because we CAN NOT have too many rag dolls :)

Wooden Name Puzzle: Because we want every wooden puzzle we can get our hands on... but we NEEEEED one that says Rozzlyn in cute pastels! :)

CaustinThreads: Because Cupcakes & Skulls are two of our favorite things. Pink in 18 months!

TwoChicksandaFish: Im so totally in love with these waldorf style unicorns... I think we need a white one with rainbow hair!

BellasLilBoutique: Rozz is getting to the age when she's interested in coloring... some nice big chunky crayons would be AWESOME for her to grab on to and scribble with.

Giveaway #9: Stella Grace Boutique

If you remember, last week we talked about creative play for kids... and sort of detaching from all the flashing lights and sounds of the high tech toys and gadgets on the market. Today I want to ramble on about Stella Grace Boutique... A shop focusing on toys inspired by a Waldorf Education. "The educational philosophy's overarching goals are to provide young people the basis on which to develop into free, morally responsible and integrated individuals, and to help every child fulfill his or her unique destiny, the existence of which anthroposophy posits." (thanks Wikipedia) Long story short... a Waldorf Education focuses on imagination and a creative approach to play time... And Stella Grace Boutique has all the goodies you need to support that type of environment.

Kara, the mama behind Stella Grace boutique has some of the cutest toys on the market. I should know... I have quite the collection ;) Over the last few months we have bought one of the 18 inch dolls...a mini blanket baby... a sensory owl rattle...  and Zavery has a custom dinosaur... all skully themed of course :) One of the things on our list to buy are her play silks... 

You get 6 hand dyed - rainbow colored play silks... they are "17 inch by 17 inch playsilks. They are wonderful for imaginative play, dress up, peek a boo, music and movement, circle time, and SO much more!" But the next MUST HAVE on our list will require a bit of penny saving. Waldorf dolls are pretty expensive, as they are made with very high quality, natural materials... "The face is made from bamboo cotton interlock and you can select a sleeper made from either knit or velour fabrics. The head is formed with 100% clean carded wool, in the traditional waldorf method. With a interlock body stuffed with carded wool too!!" to make it a little easier on the pocket book, she has an 11 inch "baby doll" listed. And we definitely want one :) With some sort of adorable skull nighty of course!

Last but definitely not least, we love her Teething Ring Blanket Loveys... They are "12x12 knit fabric, backed with soft hand dyed cotton velour fabric." Each one has a wooden ring attached with a snap for teething, and can be taken off when the lovey needs to be washed.  Kara made one special for Ashely out of the cutest "I Love You This Much" fabric... with a beautiful blue velour on the back... and of course, one lucky winner will get one too! The winner of this giveaway will get their choice of any custom Teething Lovey...

How to win:
(EACH ENTRY MUST BE IN ITS OWN SEPARATE COMMENT BELOW TO BE COUNTED ACCURATELY)
#1: Heart Stella Grace Boutique on Etsy.
#2: Heart your favorite pair of item(s) in the Stella Grace Boutique Etsy shop, then come back and comment below, telling us what you love!
#3: Fan the Stella Grace Boutique facebook page.
#4: Fan the RockerByeBaby facebook page.
#5: Heart RockerByeBaby on Etsy.
#6: Follow the RockerByeBaby blog. (in the upper right hand side.)
#7: Blog about this baby shower giveaway! Linking back to our blog... when you are done come here and comment below with the link to where we can see the post!

Giveaway #5: OllieBeez

I can't even begin to count the number of times that I was completely overwhelmed by the flashing lights and annoying sounds of an interactive toy.  I have 3 kids... I've been parenting for over 5 years now, and there have been so many toys in and out of our house that as the years go on, I am starting to change my thoughts on play time. At first as a new mom I wanted all the most interactive gadgets for my baby/toddler that I could get my hands on. But, looking back now, I wish I would have never given in to those things. It seems like now a days so many kids aren't even capable of just "playing"... Asking my oldest to go to the play room to play with the Thomas the Train set, or color in a coloring book is like a terrible chore for him... By the time I got to my middle son, I had realized how these things have changed their play time, and really started pushing more classic toys and creative play. It shows... he loves puzzles, coloring, playdough, etc. He is great at entertaining himself and doesn't need to constantly be stimulated like my oldest. And now this time around with Rozzlyn, I want to be really sure that we are going back to basics. With this is mind, I came across OllieBeez.

OllieBeez is a super cute shop specializing in custom wooden blocks for kids. She has everything from cowgirls to Dr. Seuss to shabby chic styles, monkeys and more. There is something for everyone. Not only are these blocks adorable decorations propped on a shelf in a nursery, but they are perfect creative play toys. Stacking, sorting, and building with blocks are a great way to stimulate your little ones imagination. And not only that but each block has 2 letters on it, all 13 combined represent the entire alphabet... therefore making it a great educational toy as well. Each block is hand painted with non-toxic paint, the papers cut and letters placed by hand as well. Then Sealed with non-toxic sealant making it safe for babies and toddlers. But always use common sense... they're play blocks, not teething toys ;) While searching through OllieBeez shop, I came across the CUTEST block set that I will have to get for Rozzlyn. They are perfectly girly, but still a twist of hidden Rock N Roll when you look closely. There are little skulls in the duck and the rattle! Love, love love ;)

When OllieBeez agreed to do this giveaway I was so excited. They seemed right up her alley. The mama behind the blocks was so sweet to work with and I can see that as a customer, her customer service is amazing. She responded promptly and was eager to get started on the project.  And did I mention, a mom to 4 month old TWINS!? Where does she find the time!? Together she and I came up with the closest match to Ashley's nursery colors as possible (on short notice). If we had a little more time we could have gotten even closer by ordering specialty papers! But I think the final look is just perfect. We chose a light yellow base for the block... and then all sorts of shabby chic graphics in light aqua blues, grays, etc. I think it will go great with Ashley's modern with a vintage twist nursery... and can already picture the little man playing in his room stacking up blocks with mommy :)

Adorable, right? Well, don't feel left out. OllieBeez has been SO sweet as to give us a set for you... but not just any set - one special just for you :) The winner will choose from a custom designed block set from OllieBeez. Match your nursery, your play room, any place you want. Or maybe just your favorite character or theme! The options are endless. Good Luck!

How to win:
(EACH ENTRY MUST BE IN ITS OWN SEPARATE COMMENT BELOW TO BE COUNTED ACCURATELY)
#1: Heart OllieBeez on Etsy.
#2: Heart your favorite pair of booties in the OllieBeez shop, then come back and comment below, telling us which one you would choose if you win.
#3: Fan the OllieBeez facebook page.
#4: Fan the RockerByeBaby facebook page.
#5: Heart RockerByeBaby on Etsy.
#6: Follow the RockerByeBaby blog. (in the upper right hand side.)

A little effing "toy story" for you...

I wanna share a little about my day with you... and I want to start by saying, Zavery is absolutely obsessed with Toy Story... now, at first I found this to be ADORABLE, because I remember growing up when my little brother Austin would drag around his Woody doll... literally everywhere. we. would. go. So it was cute to see Zave follow in those same steps with Buzz... This all started walking through Wal-Mart barf one day to get some poly-fill... As we walked past the toy isle because I am a total idiot Zave saw a buzz dolll, and went absolutely nuts for it... Giant piece of plastic crap? No... Flashing lights, loud noises... and real live ninja chopping action? NO thank you... wings that pop out like weapons and flash lights? Umm. duh. $30? Abso-friggen-luetely not... I found cute little toddler style buzz... the wings snapped on and popped off... the helmet stayed open... and there was ONE button... and a nice soft plastic... just one button to get him to say his 3 little sayings... This cute little buzz was totally tot friendly... about half the size as the big one and not nearly as obnoxious... oh... and most importantly? It was like $10... 



(as i write this he is literally climbing on top of me to point out that its a picture of buzz...)
This Buzz kept him completely happy and content for over a month... it went everywhere with us... It jumped from couch to couch with Zave saying "To Infinity & Beyond" and even with all my anti platic toy-ness... i liked it. HE was being creative... and I loved watching him create these little adventures with Buzz... and I loved the comfort it gave him when going to bed... now - last night all that changed... hubby went one a little shopping spree trip with his boss to check out the local competition... merchandising... blah blah blah BORING and on this trip... He dropped into the Disney store... (are you cringing yet? You know where this is going) Daddy saw the big Buzz... now for the Buzz crazed toddler this is heaven, right? Wrong.. its been an absolute effing disaster... Daddy was SOOO excited... he had already taken bux outta the box and all the wires and what not holding him in... ready for fun... and when daddy pulled that buzz outta the box it was like all his hopes and dreams came true... The real. big. buzz.

• Press button to hear five different Buzz phrases  
• Features voice sampler and sound effects
• Press button for wing release
• Press arm laser button for laser light and sound!
• Retractable helmet
• Poseable joints
• Buzz's Space Ranger suit features special glow in the dark effect! 
• Plastic
• 12'' H
• Requires  2 AA batteries, included
• Ages 3+

WARNING: CHOKING HAZARD - Small Parts. Not for children under 3 years. 

This Buzz is SO over the top that is has been nothing but drama since he opened it... My little TWO year old Zavery just can't keep up with Buzz... since he is totally jointed, he doesn't stand on his own like he wants him two... The wing release button is so hard to push that he can't do it... and when Daddy offer to help its a total meltdown... cuz little Zavery is still throwing two year old tantrums... He is hard plastic (and already scratched up), clunky and loud... and most likely lt will be broken with the month. Last night... Zave was up until almost 11pm fighting about buzz... finally, I had to take him away... Zavery drifted off to sleep... Big buzz was downstairs... and Little Buzz slept alone on the floor under the bed :( I woke up this morning to a screaming toddler who had snuck downstairs before me... OMG is everything ok!? No... its a disaster... Buzz's wings wont open... OH YES, because he still can't push the damn button in... In the two hours that we have been awake it has been nothing but Buzz Drama...Which is awesome... because Zavery is pretty much drama all the time anyways... so extra drama is always welcomed...  the wings... those STUPID wings!! And if I have to hear the static of that laser one more time, i may have to cut off buzz's arm...  I can already feel myself plotting the disappearance of Big Buzz... Craigslist? Maybe I can trick someone into buying him on Diaper Swappeers... Cute Buzzlight year toy! haha NOT So yeah, I feel so bad because daddy tried so hard to come up with such a fun surprise for him... and now were both ready to lose our minds over this little effing "toy story"... i miss little buzz... *pout*

Swinger Sunday - Hardcore mom of four.

Hey guys! Yet another Swinger Sunday... and this week, the beautiful... amazing... hardcore mama of Tout-est-des-roses... read... comment... and love her posts like i do... :) Also... (when you finish here of course... scoot over and read this post... it may be my all time favorite blog post I've ever written. I keep it bookmarked in my toolbar. It was a huge inspiration to me and really helped me make some big changes in parenting and inspired our creative play Christmas... 

My name is Sara Sophia.
I have four children and I home-school, parent naturally and wear fairy wings while I garden.
I believe in being happy wherever you can, and with whatever you have--be that little or much.
I believe moments spent increasing faith and joy are the only moments worth counting.
I love babies.
I love ponies.
I love Jesus.
I love chocolate.
I love my husband.
I love organics.
I love life...kittens....butterscotch....

(not necessarily in that order)

And dude, I completely realize how hokey I sound. 
No--for real.

I realize that when you are a grown woman,
and you wear fairy wings in your garden,
that people think you have issues.
I realize that when all you really want to talk about
is love and patience and peace and joy--
that people think you are an idiot.
(Really, worse than that--
they think you are a self-absorbed, naive, ridiculous idiot)

But, I'm not.
I'm really and truly NOT an idiot:)

I am comfortable with who I am.
I am comfortable with my love of the whimsical and the childlike.
I am comfortable with the fact that I love my childrens toys
almost as much as they do (Etsy stuff is AWESOME).
I am comfortable with the fact that I will always be happy
wearing polka dots WITH stripes (Mother:).
I am comfortable with my beliefs
and my gratefulness for life and its blessings.

It is who I am. Candy fluff and all.

When reading the post  Kyle of Barley and Birch wrote for Amber the other day,
on how being eco-friendly was hardcore
(because all she basically does is work her butt off)
---it really hit home for me.
When you fight for what you believe in,
and stay true to your ideals---no matter how small,
YOU are making a difference.
You can change the world.
Just by being comfortable enough with yourself to say,
"this is how we do things".

And its all good.

Because being comfortable with who you are, is hardcore.

Super Special Friday Giveaway! Featuring BabyBooFelt

Attention.... ATTENTION PLEASE! *ahem* thanks.... i am PLEASED to announce that Ailie, the mama behind BabyBooFelt had her beautiful baby girl on Wednesday... after a LONG few days... lots of worries... LOTS of contractions... she was brought into the world via. Emergency C Section... Talk about making a diva style entrance!! The first couple days were a little rough... she was about 2 weeks early and weighed in at just over 4 pounds... in the photo below she still had a breathing tube, which is gone now and she is breathing on her own, YAY!

Last night mommy got to nurse her, and she did great...  

Shes doing better and better each day... Ailie gets to go home Saturday but Lilly will have to stay a bit longer.... so lets keep her busy with LOTS of felt food orders :) Congrats to Ailie & Dan and big brother Gavin... a new addition to your beautiful family :) Now, On with the giveaway!!

Most of you know about my felt food obsession... we have very quickly acquired to giant tubs full... Im not sure who likes it more, me? Or the boys... well, either way Ailie is the best of the best when it comes to adorably hand crafted felt snacks :) We have everything from little shrimps & tofu... breakfast sets... taco's... chicken nuggets and fries... and the newest addition... chocolate cake with strawberries!!

 First off, they love anything dessert related... that always gets their attention... like the cookies... donuts.... etc. Second, I love the the cake comes in pieces... 1 big cake... with a ton of little strawberries that you can pile on top... or take them off and play with them separately... totally adorable!!Lastly... the come in lots of different flavors for the ultimate "creative play" experience... Strawberry, Vanilla & Chocolate...

amazing right!? I dunno how she has the patience for it all... so many tiny little details... Now, I started the felt obsession around christmas time... Zavery is behind in his speech just like Gavin was (her son) She really urged using the food as a way to help him to develop faster and it REALLY has helped. Im so grateful for her advice... we talk about the names of the food... the colors of the food... how we eat the food... what we put with the food... we could the foods... we could the seeds/dots on the food... and the list goes on and on... its been such an amazing way to get him to sit down & learn & practice without him even knowing it... he has made great strides in the last month and I really think alot of it has to do with their little kitchen & felt food. *Keep it up Zave, mama's proud of you!*

So obviously you see where im going with this... ;) You guys are quick! There is a giveaway this week... but not with one... TWO prizes... we have ONE VANILLA/Strawberry cake to giveaway... and ONE STRAWBERRY/Strawberry cake to giveaway... but before I get to that... i wanna say really quick - i would love to see alot of sales in the BABYBOOFELT shop while they are stuck in the hospital... I went and bought a hot dog and the m&m candies... help her out with hospital bills, keep her busy while she is waiting for tiny little Lilly to come home... Im sure they will appreciate it... now- back to business ;)

#1:  Mandatory entry:  Tell us one item that you just LOVE from the BabyBooFelt etsy store.

Extra entries?? But of course :)
EACH ENTRY MUST BE LEFT IN A SEPARATE COMMENT TO COUNT!!!!!

#2) Follow us publicly here on (blogger) - Leave a separate comment for being a (old or new) follower on our blog.
#3) Follow/Tweet us (Twitter) - Leave a separate comment for being a follower and TWEETING about this giveaway on Twitter... If your already a twitter follower of ours, TWEET about it for an extra entry anyways :) Can tweet once daily for extra entries!

Tweet This: "Free Giveaway: TWO WINNERS felt food for creative play - handmade by @babyboofelt Prize = a vanilla or strawberry cake http://bit.ly/aJrrKZ"

#4) Be brave... tell me something you LOVE about yourself.

#5) Fan RockerByeBaby on Facebook...

#6)"Heart" the BabyBooFelt etsy page, and "favorite/heart" two items...

#7) "Heart" the RockerByeBaby etsy page, and "favorite/heart" two items...

#8) Follow BabyBooFelt on twitter!

#9) BIG BONUS: Make a purchase from BabyBooFelt... any $ amount, just a purchase... come back here and leave FIVE comments with the link to the transaction.... thats 5 extra entries... 

Wood Shop Bob! Handmade Wooden cars...

Oh be still my heart! Wood Shop Bob has made my day... Im sure you all have  read my previous posts ranting about our creative play christmas... felt food... wooden toys and all that good stuffs... now - as much as I LOVE all these types of goodies... i HATE how expensive they can be... now - as usual Etsy has some rocking sellers that make some of these amazing things at affordable prices. For instance, my girlie girl Baby Boo Felt , she makes adorable felt food that keeps my kids content for hours... while playing with their new wooden kitchen... Another of their favorite "creative play" toys is their Thomas the train set. But lets face it... mass produced and there are hundreds... no - hundreds of thousands of them out there in the world... where's the fun in that? But never fear - Wood Shop Bob has solved all of our problems!! And I think I just fell in love... ;)

If you remember a few weeks ago... there was an adorable set of little wooden cars featured in my Favorites Friday...

He got in touch with me and offered to send a set for review! I was ecstatic... and when they showed up, they completely blown away. Each little car was perfectly crafted... perfectly sanded... perfect size for the boys... and PERFECTLY unique... every one is different... the grains in the wood... the shades... shapes and styles... and i love, love, love the little wheels... i completely adore them! And of course, so do the boys!

How could they POSSIBLY be any cooler you ask? Oh well they can... while Zave was playing, he realized they fit PERFECTLY on his Thomas the Train tracks!!

So he pushes his "vroom-vrooms" around the track with his "choo-choos" ... They have really been an amazing addition to our wooden toy collection... and i REALLY suggest you go pick up a pack right away... The little 10 pack of cars is just $12!! You can get them here.

Prefer Trucks? He has those too!!

Just $15 for those... he also has bigger trucks... tractors... and all sorts of other goodies... you MUST check it out :)

If you decide to snatch up a set, be sure to tell him that you found him from the RockerByeBaby blog! Then come back and tell us all about it!

*Edit*

GUESS WHAT!? WoodShopBob is giving away a set to one lucky reader!! How lucky are you guys!?

How to win:

#1:  Mandatory entry:  Tell us why you want to win the car set, and who you want to win it for!

Extra entries?? But of course :)
EACH ENTRY MUST BE LEFT IN A SEPARATE COMMENT TO COUNT!!!!!

#2) Follow us publicly here on (blogger) - Leave a separate comment for being a (old or new) follower on our blog.
#3) Follow/Tweet us (Twitter) - Leave a separate comment for being a follower and TWEETING about this giveaway on Twitter... If your already a twitter follower of ours, TWEET about it for an extra entry anyways :)

Tweet This: "The WOOD SHOP BOB post is NOW A FREE #giveaway!! Enter here to win a free set of wooden #handmade cars!! http://bit.ly/7k6lNQ"
#4) Write a blog about this giveaway and link back to this review. Leave an extra comment with the link to the blog.
#5) Fan RockerByeBaby on Facebook...

#6)"Heart" the WoodShopBob etsy page, and "favorite" two items...

#7) "Heart" the RockerByeBaby etsy page, and "favorite" two items...

#8) GET TWO EXTRA ENTRIES - by making a purchase from WoodShopBob... come back here with an order/transaction number and leave 2 comments telling us what you bought :)

Note to Self Saturday: Xmas Success!

Ohhh what a day... Cali may not be "home"... and Christmas sure doesn't feel the same when its 70 & sunny... but it sure went off without a hitch! We spent Christmas Eve at the Settimis house and it was amazing... such great company... amazing Prime Rib... and BEAUTIFUL baby girls ;) (which only helped to make me want a little lady even MORE!!)  But the boys were great... they had a ton of fun... and we were able to stay until almost 11pm!! My boys are usually melting down by 7pm and ready for bed! So that was definitely a nice treat...  we finished off the night with champagne & exchanging presents with hubby after the kids went to bed. It was perfect. I was the luckiest girl in the world! He got me a brand spankin new sewing machine, and  bad ass camera, lol Cannon Rebel XSi... two lenses and a case. *dies* I have had SO MUCH FUN taking pictures... and was so happy to have it for xmas morning... its everything i could have possibly wanted and MORE! He definitely earned the #1 hubby award, lol.

i got him a new grill and a bunch of other randomness...

hes doing a wonderful job at being excited... though a feel like a total failure next to his gifts. lol

The boys had a ton of fun opening gifts... the kitchen & felt food has been a HUGE hit. But I think izzaq's favorite is the Melissa & Doug Birthday cake... He has been with it for like 6 hours! (yay for creative play - click photos to zoom)

My girl Ailie @ Baby Boo Felt has been so generous in helping us build our felt food collection... Not sure how likes it better, the boys or myself... but I just cant wait to start buying more :)

Zavery's favorite toy was probably the Mater truck. He loves it so much he even slept with it last night, lol

 

After presents there was a TON of playing... lots of snuggling... and then finally napping... kinda. (i think they were just too excited) Daddy took a good nap though... *good job daddy* while zaq napped and the boys pretended to, I started prepping stuffing. Zaq's mom makes the best sausage, rice & bread crumb stuffing... and for Thanksgiving zaq took a crack at making it... fail, lol So for x-mas it was my turn... I must say (and he will agree) i did a much better job... but it still wasn't Nana's stuffing...

Zaq was in charge of the rest... he likes cooking and holidays make it lots of fun for him to prepare the meal.

(notice the Vikings apron he got from santa... i think santa is even COOLER now that i know he shops on etsy!)

For dinner zaq made big fluffy squishy yummy rolls...

a HUGE bowl of mashed potatoes... (and this makes me laugh)

 Healthy Organic milk... with about 3 sticks a butter, lol

and of course... a christmas "roast beast"...

With all the playing and eating... there was bound to be lots of snuggling... Zavery went over and plopped himself right onto the floor with his "b's" it was the cutest thing in the world...

Then after some snuggling with daddy it was time for bed...

The day was great... I couldnt have asked for anything more... and now today the countdown to Santa has switched to the countdown to Nana and Papa... The should be here in about 8 more hours! Not much time left seeing as the started the 30 hour drive yesterday! We are really excited to see them... its been about 4 months :( Hope everyone else had a great holiday! Be sure to leave some comment love, id love to hear all about your day!

Favorites Friday: Creative Play

Merry Christmas to my readers that celebrate it! If you dont, Happy Friday! ;)  In honor of this christmas "creative play" trend this week... I wanted to use that as inspiration for todays post! Full of items that I bought... that I want... and that I hope to get soon! As always... click the photo to enlarge and the links below coordinate with the numbers!  Oh, and to any of the stores below that Im in love with... my kids would LOVE for me to host a review & giveaway of your items for a full writeup and week of adv. :) just email or comment if interested...

#1: MamaMayI: I always love a good memory game... make it wood and hand inked & im sold... such a cute idea :)
#2: ChaseDreams: Recycled Lego Crayons bought these for their stockings in both brights & Primary colors. Even cuter in person!
#3: LinenKids: You know my love for sewing (obviously) this WILL be mine... for sure... its hearted and after this has been posted for a few days im totally going back to get one. Izzaq will LOVE getting to help mommy "work"
#4: BabyLoveBlankies: We searched and searched for cool skully ISpy bags for xmas with no luck... and NOW after its too late for xmas, here they are, lol just my luck... Have to snag these up later!
#5: WoodShopBob: 12 Piece Wooden Mini cars... insanely adorable... i NEED to buy these... 3 inches long... what an awesome deal!! Zavery will LOVE it.
#6: BeeDot: My girl Mandy is so darn talented... I just love her Amigurumi creations... so I asked her to make me two ice cream comes and they are easily some of the cutest and most well made things i have ever seen come from etsy... I cant wait to get more!
#7: BabyBooFelt: We got SO MUCH felt for from her for christmas... its amazing!! The fruit basket is next on our list!
#8: LittleSapplingToys: 10 pin Wooden Bowling Set... I have been drooling over this all year. Izzaq is obsessed with bowling and i know would just go nuts to have this. Wish I would have found it before I was done xmas shopping!
#9: BabyBolt: Skull crayon roll made in my favorite print... lusting over this one for sure!

Wordless Wednesday: Creative Play

3 kids... one wooden toy = Creative Play that even SaraSophia would be proud of ;)

 

Maddie: Her mommy runs BDPhotography

Early in the month we won this Labyrinth from the @FentonSlee She has a Blog called Paisley and Pretty's. This christmas has been all about wooden toys & handmade goodies & creative play... so winning this was jsut the icing on the cake! The kids sat there quietly for about 45 minutes... not kidding... MY KIDS!  and were VERY involved with making the balls make their way through the maze... Im so excited for our Creative Play christmas and seeing them with this just ensured that all my thoughts were right... Shortly after I decided to go this route for xmas - SaraSophia posted an AMAZING blog about their transition from plastic, overwhelming commercialized toys to real, true creative play... and it only inspired me MORE! I urge everyone to take a second to read it... its wonderful. So, as usual my Wordless Wednesday is full of words... I guess you could say I have a big mouth... err...keyboard? I dunno, lol but Ill hush up now so you can go read Saras post... then come back here and tell me what you think :)