My Friend Doll Beauty Salon (Hair Repair)

We're big fans of the Fisher Price My Friend Dolls from the 1970-1980s.  I have been able to purchase brand new in box dolls for my youngest and she currently has 3 of the 5 made.  As I've said before my youngest (currently age 6) doesn't quite grasp that these are really old dolls!  Especially since they come to her brand new.  She doesn't understand that they've been sitting in a closet somewhere waiting to be loved for 30+ years.  She thinks I buy them at Target, ha!

When she discovered that a friend of hers had a Mandy doll too (her mom's) she was very excited.  We set up a playdate so the girls could get the dolls (and all their clothes) together!  The morning before our get-together her mom told me that Mandy needed some hair TLC stat.  They'd tried to condition it once before but it was still pretty tangled and damaged.  

I love a challenge so in the few hours before I got the girls I gave Mandy a deep conditioning treatment and it turned out pretty well.  

Check out these before and afters.  Not too shabby!  And now a comb can go through all of the hair.  I think another longer (overnight) treatment might work on those ends a little more.

Here's what you will need: Wide tooth comb, regular comb, bowl, fabric softener, washcloth and some patience. :)

1. Put a couple cap fulls of fabric softener in a bowl.  Not too much because you don't want to waste it.  Then put the doll's hair in the bowl and slowly work the fabric softener through all of the hair.  Take time to get it into the tangles or any knots.

2. After the hair is coated, carefully place the doll aside on a washcloth and leave her alone for between 1hr and overnight depending on damage level.  Due to time constraints Mandy had the softener on her hair for about 2 hrs.

3. Slowly and carefully comb through the doll's hair, starting with the wide side of a comb.  Gently work through the tangles until you can get the comb all the way through.  Then move to the small side of the comb and do the same.

4. Rinse, rinse, rinse.  Carefully comb through the hair while it is under running water until you can feel that the hair is rinsed.  Leaving fabric conditioner on the hair long term can damage it.  

5. Lightly towel dry the hair (press don't rub) and comb through it again. Allow to air dry, don't use a dryer!

All set!  Does she look amazing?

My daughter's friend was super excited to see that her Mandy had softer and more manageable hair.  Not perfect but MUCH better.  Hooray!

All ready for a play-date!  Note by the way that both blond dolls are "Mandy".  The far left is the last 1980s version and the visiting Mandy was one of the first editions. (for reference the other two dolls are Jenny and Nicky)

For more information on her Fisher Price Dolls

#204 Baby Ann (a soft doll) 

#206 My Friend Nicky  

#4009 Special Birthday Mandy  

#209 My Friend Jenny

A familiar childhood treat is now (sort-of) Natural - Hello juice Otter Pops!!

This summer we discovered a treat that my kids love and I don't mind saying yes to.  A mommy friend brought a box of these juice treats to a pool party and I was surprised to see that they were Otter Pops!  

They had the original looking box and familiar flavors but without the old-school artificial dyes, sugar and general junk.  

Now I'm not saying they are healthy exactly, but they are made with water, apple juice and sugar (not HFCS).  And your kids won't end up with blue, red or green mouths! Which may be a drawback for some, ha!

The only trick was trying to find the juice version.  I went to a few major stores and grocery stores but no luck.  I finally found them at Costco (which by the way my friend had initially informed me they were from....whoops).  A big box of 80 pops for only $8, it's a steal!  

We are enjoying them at home and also with friends.  If we're having a pool play date I bring a bunch to share.  Lets just say they're a big hit!  And I love that any leftovers just go back in the freezer, no muss no fuss.

So go find some and don't forget to take a pair of scissors if you bring them to play dates, so much easier than using teeth...!

TOP SECRET: Fisher Price Birthday Present

Can you keep a secret?  My youngest is turning 6 next week and I wanted to share one of her birthday presents today since it's Fisher Price Friday.  On the top of her wish-list were the Fisher Price My Friend Dolls Jenny and Becky.  She already has Nicky and Mandy, presents for her last birthday and Christmas.

She's in love with these little girl dolls and has NO idea that they're from the 1980s.  In fact when she requested Jenny (numerous times) she asked me to go to Target to look for her.

So we did. ;)  We went to Target this week but she wasn't there!  She then asked where I bought the other two dolls and I told her the Internet, ha!

But she need not worry, I already had Jenny wrapped up and ready to go.  I also found a Becky but she'll be hidden until Christmas.

Jenny is new-in-box, not an easy feat for a 1984 doll!  But here she is in her aerobics outfit glory (including leg warmers!!).

I'll be back with more details after the birthday girl opens her up.

I've also found some more My Friend Doll clothes to give her, a few odds and ends that I found on eBay.  My mom got her an almost complete ballet outfit (#228 Ballerina Outfit).  She'll be thrilled.

Here is her current collection of #204 Baby Ann (a soft doll), #206 Nicky and #4009 Special Birthday Mandy.  She's excited to have one more doll to love. :)

So stay tuned and Shhhh, don't tell!

Fidget Cube or Knock Off? A Side by Side Comparison!

Fidget Cubes and spinners are taking over the planet!  It's the Giga/Nano pet of this generation.  At least this one doesn't require batteries. :)

We looked into getting a Fidget Cube for our fidget friendly family.  Let's just say I've broken many a pen while fidgeting with the clip portion.  And my kids and husband wanted to try them too.

We bought our first Faux-Fidget at a local itsugar store for $9.95. We planned on giving this one to our 9 year old daughter to use.

Then a week later I ordered my husband the original Fidget Cube from the inventor of the product.  This project started on Kickstarter and the inventors raised over $6.5 Million (so far) of their original $15k goal.  Wow!  You can now purchase the original Fidget Cube from that company for $22 (mine was $25 with tax/shipping).  So...it's a lot more than the knock-off cube.

So how do they compare?  Let's look at them side by side.

They look almost exactly the same at first glance.  Both have the same features which include: Click, Glide, Flip, Breathe, Roll & Spin.  Both of the fidgets have a similar weight although the original one feels a bit more solid and is a bit smaller. 

Although they are very similar each has a benefit over the other.  The Fidget Cube has a smooth spinning circle (top R photo) while the knock off barely moves.  However, the knock off spinning circle (bottom R) both spins and clicks (pushes down) while the Fidget Cube only spins.

So which do we like better?  Well the family is divided, 1/2 like the original and 1/2 the knock off.  So save your money and get the cheaper one! :)

Road Trip Bags for School Aged Kids (aka how to reduce travel bickering)

Do you have summer road trip plans?  Ready to pack up your family and hit the open road?  It's all fun and games until the kids keep whining and the radio won't pick up a decent signal.  Or maybe that's just me?

I've shared other traveling tips in the past and now my sweet angels (ah-hem) are both school aged (5 3/4 and 9 1/2 yrs old). In preparation for a week long trip this summer that includes 3 separate (!!!) days of driving I prepared the following keep-em-busy-organized-and-fed bags.  Perhaps I should call it a KEBOAFB instead.  Hmm, still not working.  I'll have to think about that some more.l

Anyhoo, I have been preparing these bags-of-fun (ooo that's better) for a while now; picking up goodies at the Target Dollar Spot, dollar stores, clearance sales, etc.  

The bags are personalized for each of my precious pumpkins from Shutterfly using free codes so I only had to pay shipping.  They ended up costing $5.50 each.  Well worth it to me as they're:

1. Adorable
2. Fold able
3. Reusable
4. Easy to figure out which goes to which child! (aka no fighting)

Inside each bag I included (so far)

-new book(s)
-activity book(s)
-candy
-art supplies
-sticky note books ($1! on clearance)
-activity to do at the hotel (growing dinosaur eggs)
-a couple child specific goodies

Other things to remember/consider packing for road trips include:

*Game player packet w/charger (or extra batteries) and games.
*Headphones 
*pillows/blankets to get cozy
*ipods/ipads with individual playlists and games

I found this fantastic road trip book a couple months ago and put it away for this trip.  It has activities and car games to help make the trip more interactive.  You could also get car bingo or other road-trip specific books/games for travel. 

 

And don't forget snacks!  I made bags for each day of travel that were clearly marked.  And yes, I'm keeping Day #2/#3 somewhere else since my kids are awesome but not super-human.  If they had all the snacks in a bag they would eat them!

For travel friendly car snacks I recommend:

-Apple Sauce
-Snack Bars (I'm all about fruit/nuts lately, protein for the win!)
-Gummy Bunnies
-Hard candies (they can take awhile to eat, careful with the smaller kids for choking hazards)
-Pretzels (less messy than crackers)
-Nuts
-Fruit Tape
-Jelly Beans
-clementines

And don't forget to pack in a separate cooler:

-Cheese Sticks
-Yogurt Sticks (freeze them first if possible)
-sandwiches
-juice boxes/water bottles
-cubed meat chunks
-apple slices

You get the idea.  The more you pack ahead the less junk you'll be tempted to buy at a random 7-11 with questionably clean restrooms and selections that only included beef jerky, cheese in a can or candy bars that are most likely expired.  Just saying.

Now I'm not a travel scrooge, we'll plan stops for Slurpee's and M&M's here and there, I just prefer that the snacks be more healthy and less $$ if possible.

I plan on putting the bags-oh-fun in their carseats the morning that we take off.  I'm excited to see their reactions but preparing myself for the inevitable "no fair she got _____".  Sigh.  

ETA: Guess what they were a hit and I didn't hear them say "no fair"!!  Hooray. 

For more travel trips check out:

Road Trips with Babies & Pre-Schoolers
Traveling with a Toddler - Airplane Activity Kits
Drugging Your Kids and Other Ways to Survive a Red Eye Flight
Disneyland with Small Children - Tips and Tricks

Vintage Fisher Price + Shopkins + Trolls = Creative Play

My kids are pretty organized in their play, using one type of toy at a time.  Perhaps they get that from their mom...I may be a *tiny* bit OCD. ;)  

So I was surprised and a bit delighted to find them playing with different toy types recently.  I'd find Trolls in the Play Family Castle #993 and Shopkins in the Play Family House #952.  

Then last week after we pulled out the Lift & Load Railroad #943 I found that my little one added her Shopkins to the party.  

Love. It.

How do your kids add the 1970/80s to the 2010's? :)

End of the Year Teacher Gifts - Pinterest for the win!

Ah Pinterest, I have a bittersweet relationship with you.  Projects look so shiny, beautiful and easy.  Teacher Gifts are so clever, complicated and...time consuming.  Yet your siren song calls me year after year.

That said I decided to improve on a past Pinterest Teacher Gift by making it bigger and better.  Sigh.  I thought I'd take my go-to "Thanks for Helping Me Bloom" gift (don't judge it's a classic) and fancy it up with some extra decorations and pizazz.

Here's how it ended up looking.  I think it's a Pinterest win and it was actually pretty easy!

This is what we did:

1. We bought a potted flower/plant (kids picked out) and asked the florist for a few extra floral sticks.
2. Had the kids make flowers out of construction paper and stuck on a photo of them (from my nifty Polaroid Zip - coolest toy ever!).
3. Added a gift card (or 2 or 3 depending on how challenging your kid was this year) on another stick.

4. Had the kids write thank-you cards and stuck those on sticks too.  Bonus if your cards are personalized like my daughter's (from Shutterfly, how cute are they???).

5. Have the kids fill out an adorable "my favorite" fill in the blank form for their teacher.  My girls LOVED doing this.  I found 2 different sheets since I had a K and a 3rd grader.  Fold them up and put it on you guessed it, another stick.

6. Don't forget to add a parent thank you note too!  I wrote my notes on the back of the construction paper flowers.

7. Last but not least add a pretty bow, or decorate the actual pot for extra credit, super special Pinterest Parents have their kid's hand prints painted on the side, just saying.

Voila, a lovely end of the year gift!

What do you think?

Bye Bye Big Baby

During the process of de-cluttering our house we also got rid of quite a few of my girl's toys, dolls and books (even FPLP!!!).  One of the toys that left our house was the much loved "Big Baby" doll.  Big Baby got her name back when my oldest was only 2.  At the time all of her dolls had inspired names like: Pink Baby, Blue Baby, Little Baby, etc.  So obviously this huge doll had to be named "Big Baby".

Big Baby was fantastic since she was big enough to wear my daughter's baby clothes and she looked like a real baby (which sometimes gave me a start when I'd come into a room and see her sitting there).

Often my daughter would insist on pushing Big Baby around in her stroller and would buckle her into the seat next to her in the car.

Big Baby was still in the house when my youngest daughter was born.  She also loved Big Baby and we took many photos of them side by side.

These are just a few of the dozens of photos we've taken over the years with our girls and Big Baby.  So you can imagine that I was a bit sentimental about this big huge doll that had been with my girls all this time.  But, following the De-Cluttering checklist I saw that it was time.

So we took one last photo of Big Baby with the girls before we donated it.  Now hopefully another little person is loving on Big Baby!

Popsicle Pool Float and other Spring Break Grocery Store adventures

Yesterday was the first day of spring and my girls first day of Spring Break.  What fun activity did I plan for them?  Why a trip to the grocery store of course. :)  But hey, I made it fun by letting them take turns pushing the cart (yikes!), Starbucks ice-tea (free refills!) and a random gigantic pool float purchase.

Oh that's right, we found this amazing Popsicle Pool Float for wait for it.....only $4.99! It was on sale but even the regular price ($5.99) is pretty awesome.  They had them in boxes but the already inflated ones were my pick because, man, no one likes to fill those things!!

The only downside (or upside depending on how you look at it) was trying to get that big ole thing through the store.  It made for some funny moments and looks (or glares) from other shoppers. 

This fun popsicle is going to look awesome with our donut float from last summer!  And...it might make me want more sweets.  Ha!

If it is still winter in your land and/or you don't have an Albertsons then check out this float on Amazon, it's the same one for just a bit more.  And for the donut float look here at Target.



PS - It was 92 degrees yesterday....just saying that this pool float is just in time!

On our way out the kids convinced me to play the Albertson's Monopoly game.  We hung out in the Starbucks (more free refills!) for over an hour looking for pieces (yay letter/number searching for my youngest).  Just when we'd finish up our pile another shopper would see us and give us their stack of tickets.  So. Fun.  I might have to take them back again today.   

So if you have kids that's my tip, hang out near the checkouts doing the game and nice people will share with you.  And no, we haven't won a million dollars yet but here's hoping!

Cute and Inexpensive Kid's Swimsuits - I 💗 Target!

Last month we took our first cruise with the girls.  I realized a week before we left that my girls had outgrown most of their swimsuits.  I shopped online and found these adorable and affordable suits from my favorite store, Target!

They were both under $20 (one was only $14.99) and they worked out perfectly.  I thought I'd share them with you in case you have some warm weather travel plans this winter, or if you just want to plan ahead.  Or.....if you live in AZ and are already having your kids suit up in our 80 degree weather (don't hate us but it's coming back by the end of this week).

First up is the Girl's Breaking Waves Polka-dot swimsuit. with rainbow ties.  It is my favorite and got so so many comments when she wore it.  It also photographed pretty well.  
It ran true to size, my 5 year old wore a size 5.  It costs only $14.99.

Next up was my big girl's Chevron one piece with rash guard.  The rash guard is white with pink sleeves and a chevron heart.  It wasn't particularly hot on our cruise so she didn't wear it as much, but I'm sure we'll get plenty of use out of it this summer!
The front of the suit was rainbow chevron print and the back a bright pink.  It made her easy to find on the beach. :)

They have so so many cute and affordable suits at Target for kids, check them out before they're gone!

Winter Styling thanks to Target Part 2

Last week I shared my youngest daughter's newest winter gear, thanks to Target.  Well I didn't want to leave my big girl out so when she had a head-to-toe Target day I had to share it with you.

She's got on her new Cat & Jack Anorak coat (check it out, they've been having amazing sales lately).  It has a removable fur trim.  Now it isn't super heavy, but this is an Arizona winter we're talking about. :)  We'll add more layers when we visit the family in Washington.

Next up is her favorite-to-wear-to-music-class long sleeved t-shirt.  By Cat & Jack naturally and only $7!  Her jeans are the same dark wash jeggings from last week.  They're on heavy rotation right now.

Last but not least she's got some adorable boots, also from Target but those cuties were from last season.  They have some even cuter shoes this year, have you checked them out lately?  So so cute.  We've got some adorable leapard print boots for her coming in the mail, can't. wait. 

So there you go.  My girls + Target clothes = Happy Mommy

Finally Feeling Chilly aka Keeping Target in Business

I am very happy that there is finally a sustained chill in the air.  I'm talking highs in the 50's lows in the 40's...almost 30's.  Woot woot.  

Cold temperatures take forever to arrive here in Phoenix and only stay for a little while so we enjoy them while we can.  Today my girls wore coats to school for the first time this season.  They also added hats and scarves, which may have been overkill but hey, we're thin blooded!

My youngest was sporting her new Cat & Jack super soft bear zip sweatshirt, favorite polka dot dress and new silver zip booties.  She LOVES her new Dollar Spot scarf with built in hand warmers.  So so cute!  Basically she's head-to-toe Target today.  What can I say, it's my favorite place to buy her clothes right now. :)

By the way, the sweatshirt is only $14.99 and Target has FREE shipping and an extra 15% off right now.  Target for the win!

Now not to leave out my big girl, she's got some Target on there too.  She's wearing her new Cat & Jack dark wash jeggings, also only $14.99 and 15% off!  

Photo Books of Kids Art

Today I have to show off our super cute Art Photo books that I made for each girl.  I am a pretty sentimental and as a result I save everything from baby clothes to lost teeth to kid's art projects.  However, I am trying to do better/save-less and found a pretty easy way to downsize the kid's art.

Since my oldest was a little I've used our ottoman to store her art.  It was pretty under control until we added a second artist.  This summer I decided to do something about it so I sorted, labeled and then photographed their best/favorite pieces.

I ended up with 3 garbage bags of recycling when we were all done.  It was freeing and I didn't feel the loss since I had photos!

After uploading the photos to Shutterfly I made an 8x11 photo book for each girl.  I called them each "Volume 1" since I'll be making more of these in the future.

Both photo books were practically free (just shipping) as I waited to order them until Shutterfly had a free book promotion.

Shutterfly already had a template for little artists so it was very simple to slide in my photos and use the existing embellishments.  I also added a few photos of my artists in action.  

I recommend using the full page layout feature when possible as it makes a big impact visually.

And don't forget to take photos of other forms of art, not just paintings/drawings.

On the back of the book I included big photos of my cuties.

The ottoman is already starting to fill up again, looks like I'll be making another volume before I know it. :)

Tip: As projects come home from school take photos before recycling them.  I'm also taking photos of dioramas (for social studies) and science projects.

Shutterfly often has great promotions on photo books especially around the holidays.  Until November 14th if you're a new customer you can get a free 8x8 book using this link.  It will only cost a little to upgrade to the more art friendly 8x11 size.

For more of my Shutterfly projects check out:

Shutterfly Tips and Hints

Fisher Price ABCs Book

Little People Playing Cards

The thrill of the hunt....

I was raised in a family of hunters.  Not animal hunters but bargain hunters.  My parents were big on garage sales, thrift stores, swap meets, church bazaars, antique stores, etc.  I spent hours and hours as a kid looking around for treasures with my parents.

The thrill of finding a bargain has not left me; although I now prefer to hunt more in Nordstrom and less in garage sales. :)

Which brings me to why I am writing today.  I have discovered a store called DownEast Home.  There is a store up in North Phoenix that carries furniture (their line), clothing and hundreds of personalized Pottery Barn Kids items at incredibly rock bottom prices (ie - PBK lunch box/bag for $5.99!).    

I spent over an hour digging through piles and stacks and baskets full of personalized backpacks, pencil bags, towels, suitcases, etc looking for my little girl's names as well as the names of friends.  If your child has a trendy or classic name you have to check this place out.  There were so many to look through and I was able to find a few items that had our names or initials.  They have grown up brands too so I found one goodie for myself.

I ended up with a PBK lunch bag ($5.99), PBK pencil pouch ($5.99), PBK pillow case ($1.99), PBK canvas tote and a personalized leather zip bag (not sure of the brand) for only $23 total!

So if you live in my area or have a DownEast Home near you check them out.  

You're welcome.

Sending my baby to Kindergarten

Yesterday was the first day of school for our girls.  It was my youngest daughter's first day of full day Kindergarten.  She *just* turned 5 so this was a harder transition for her (or maybe me!!) than when her big sister started half day Kindergarten at almost 6 yrs old.

Like with my oldest I planned ahead to help all of us with the transition.  I talked about school for MONTHS ahead and brought it into daily conversations.  We also visited the school in the summer and went to Meet the Teacher night.  

Last weekend I rearranged their closets so both girls could reach their own clothes (my youngest used to have hers up high) and made sure they had enough school appropriate outfits.  This can be a challenge here in HOT HOT AZ as they're back to school even though it's still 100+ degrees outside.  They aren't allowed to wear thin strapped tops or dresses which is well, pretty much all they wear in this weather!

The night before school started we had a special dinner with sparkling grape juice toasts, picked out first day dresses, read 4 books about starting school and I gave my youngest a special matching necklace.  I did the same with my oldest when she started K.  She wears a necklace and I wear a matching one so that when we miss each other we can touch our necklaces and remember that the other person is missing us/thinking of us. Basically it's a cute and easy transition object (remember I used to be a therapist....using my skills people, using my skills).

1. We Like Kindergarten - A little Golden Book from the 60s.  Honestly it isn't very relevant for school today as those little kids had nap time, juice and cookies and clay play...but still a fun book.
2. The Night Before Kindergarten by Natasha Wing - This book was my favorite and I will admit to crying at the end.  Sigh.  Highly recommend!  
3. Teachers are for Reading Stories by Harriet Ziefert.  We have a few books from this series (cousins, mommies, daddies, etc) and my girls loved the lift-the-flaps aspect of it.
4. Last but not least: Katy's First Day a vintage 1970's "Tell-A-Tale" book.  I LOVE these tiny little vintage hardback books and have collected dozens for my kids.  This sweet story is about a reluctant kindergarten girl who starts out not participating in the school day but ends up loving it!  It's the cutest.  Here is another copy on Etsy.

She loved her necklace and I made sure to add an initial for my oldest to my necklace so she knew I was missing her too!  They are both birds and mine has an extra pearl added.  I purchased them from an Etsy shop rememberZEN.  

The morning of school I snuck little love notes into their lunch boxes and pennies in their pockets (as a mommy surprise).  We got to school early and I walked both of them to class.  

The Kindergarten teacher had the kids sit down in the reading circle and she read "The Night Before Kindergarten".  I mentioned that book above, it is one of the books I read the night before so I knew what to expect.  Basically the book is about a first day and how the kids were fine but the parents were surprisingly emotional and teary.  In the book the teacher reads a book and then the kids give their parents hugs and send them on their way.  

Well that was exactly what my daughter's teacher did which was both humorous and emotional.  And oh yes, I did cry as she gave me that last goodbye hug and a cheery "by mom, see you later".  

She was totally fine but I was a wreck.  It's a big transition for both of us as I no longer have any littles at home!  Boo hoo.  

They both had a great first day and I'm easing into my new normal...will keep you posted. :)

For more first day of school tips check out my oldest's Kindergarten transition back in 2013.