Category Archives: kids

Best of Elmo – Top 6 Elmo Toys

My daughter’s fascination with Elmo has finally started subsiding. I am not sure what happened, but you know what they say about looking a gift horse in the mouth. Unfortunately, at the peak of her obsession I was diligently researching some fun Elmo toys to perhaps surprise her on her birthday/Christmas/Easter or whatever else was coming up. Even though I am no longer going to be making use of my research (until either she gets her Elmo kick back or Ducky takes it up), I am going to share my findings with you. Hopefully this helps you shop for your Elmo-crazed little one.
Sesame Street Let’s Rock Elmo

We love music in our house. We buy the kids toy drums, pianos, maracas, guitars, etc. So I thought this toy was perfect, combining some of the kids’ favorite things. And Elmo kind of looks cute. But I didn’t say that.

Sesame Street Elmo Plush

This one is one of my favorites because it is so simple. Elmo isn’t doing anything, but with a child’s imagination he can be doing anything. Your kid can play with him, snuggle him, taking him anywhere. I love the versatility.

Fisher Price Tickle Baby Elmo

Ok, I have to admit is kind of cute. And you can quote me on that. This Elmo is considered a collectible, so it can be high in price. But if you are just getting it for your kid to play with, I recommend a knock off.

Sesame Street Elmo’s Find and Learn Alphabet Blocks

I love instructional toys, so I was very glad (even though not surprised) that Fisher Price made an Elmo alphabet set. Even though Munchie has several alphabet/number sets, one more, especially in a favorite character, can’t hurt. I may still get this one even if she is no longer a huge Elmo fan.

Sesame Street Car Seat Cover

I thought this one would be great to lure her into the car. Um… that kind of sounded wrong. But seriously, sometimes she just doesn’t want to get in the car. This is really frustrating in the mornings. So I thought this may be a little incentive. Also, if it doesn’t work as planned, at least I would have an easily removable car seat cover as opposed to having Hubby take the car seat out every time and hosing it done in the back yard, making it so I can’t take the kids anywhere in my car for a few days while it dries. All sorts of problems just got solved.

Fisher Price Elmo Live

Ok, this one is a little pricey if you buy it new. So your kid has to be absolutely devoted to Elmo. But if you can spare it, it is a pretty cool toy. You can also get it used. I personally have no problem with that, but I know some people would. Yet I could not have a Best of Elmo list without at least mentioning Live Elmo.

Are there any I have missed? What other Elmo toys are out there? 

Wordless Wednesday

So apparently Wordless Wednesday is a thing now… I mean, I have been noticing it on several blogs for a while, but now I am seeing it everywhere. Obviously I have to try it… or maybe invent my own Silent Saturday… except that being wordless and silent are not the same thing… and I am totally defeating the purpose here….

Munchie, playing with her Ducky collection, and her favorite Duck.

Birthday Fun

Yesterday we had our first kid’s birthday party. Not the kind of party you have for a kid’s first birthday where you invite all of your friends and family and everyone celebrates that you have managed to keep the kid alive for a whole year. No, this was a kid’s birthday party where everyone invited has kids. A lot of kids. At one point we had almost two dozen kids in our house, with the majority averaging about 3 years old and under.
It was pure, unadulterated chaos, and it was absolutely wonderful! I loved that we could host this many people, and everyone could have a good time. Babies were being passed back and forth. Little boys and girls were running rampant through the back yard. The toy/play room looked like an atomic bomb hit, and I reveled in all the giggles, and laughs.
Even the prep was fun. I made this four tier cup cake cake with all the trim. We handed out goody bags and included a bunch of fun stuff (which was super fun shopping for). I got to spend hours in the toy aisles picking out the little toys, stuff that I even wanted to play with. Then I got to look through all the cool activities they had and pick my favorites and watch the kids play with them (even though we never got past the first game of pin the tail on the donkey).
Munchie was absolutely gorgeous in her little party dress, that we eventually got her to wear. Now if I could just get her to let me put pretty ribbons in her hair we will be all set! She was the perfect little hostess playing with all the kids, and running around greeting people. Even though she usually gets very shy around a lot of people, she was able to shed the shyness yesterday and have loads of fun.
I got to see friends and family we have not seen in a long time, and oh my God, did I mention all the cute babies! I wanted to keep them all. The next time we go to a kid’s party I am bringing a giant purse and stealing all the cute babies. I am kidding! Sort of.
Yesterday I realized how truly blessed we are to have such awesome friends and for Munchie to have so many little ones to play with. And the best part, having multiple kids means we get to do this twice a year! Until we have another, and then we can do this every few months. The Dugger mom was on to something there. Hubby, if you are reading this, I am joking. Sort of.
What is your favorite part about kids’ parties? Do you do themes?