Sick & Tired

So for the past two weeks I have had sick children. My thirteen month old son was diagnosed with pneumonia. My three year old daughter was coughing and running a high fever periodically (never at the doctor's office, of course!). My super tomboy also caught her foot in the spokes of a bike in March and suffered an ankle injury that requires daily wound dressings. In the past two weeks I have made seven trips to pediatricians and specialists, plus almost daily visits to a pharmacy. Thankfully they are both on the mend.

If this were a more personal blog I would be lambasting health insurance, giving critical reviews of health care professionals I have had to endure, or suggesting wines that ease worry. I am going to choose to focus on one of my stress reducing techniques- online shopping. In case your beloved is under the weather, I searched through Kobold Toys for some entertainment ideas. For long wait times at the doctor's office or for hospital stays, Kobold recommends these take-along toys:

Playmobil's Take-Along Island. This fascinating set includes three figures, the island, firing cannon and other accessories. The island has a handle and folds up very easily. Perfect for your pirate lover!

Lilliputien's Farmhouse and Animals. We love the plush toys from Lilliputiens and the farmhouse does not disappoint. It holds 7 chunky plush animals plus a farmer and a tractor. The farmhouse has a play mat that opens to reveal 6 field sections and folds neatly underneath the house for storage.

The smART Bag. My daughter received this art case as a gift last year, and it is a favorite. Perfect for holding crayons and pencils to decorate the exam room paper roll!

Daisy Girl Dress Ups by Shure. Dress Lilly in her favorite dress-up clothes! This engaging wooden book contains watercolor illustrations of pretend scenes and whimsical outfits. The removable wooden doll and 21 wooden outfit pieces attach with hook and loop tape to mix and match for hours of pretend play fun!

My children love the animal figures by Papo. We have quite the menagerie-- from the sea turtle to the spinosaurus. These are easy to throw in a your purse or in a back pack for pretend play on the go.

I am a member of a children's book club. It drives me crazy because I always forget to cancel the selection of the month. Last week four books about Maisy Mouse arrived. I was immediately frustrated that I had not declined the offering, but as fate would have it, these were experience books relevant to the week we were having. Maisy Goes to the Hospital was an instant hit because we were considering surgery for my daughter's ankle. I definitely recommend this book for the preschooler with hospital anxiety. We also enjoyed reading about Maisy going to the dentist, the museum and the library.

For me having a sick or injured child is the scariest aspect of parenting. We are fortunate to have friends and family who are medical professionals, and they kindly provide guidance upon request. I believe this also reduces the frequency in which I have to channel my inner "Aurora Greenway" with doctors and our insurance company- only one "outburst" in fourteen days is pretty good for me.

Stay well, use your hand sanitizer and start shopping! - Ashley

Crikey! Kobold Welcomes Bindi!

Need a friend for Barbie who is less into her pink convertible and more into adventure? Say G'day to Kobold's mate, Bindi. Bindi is ten inches tall and cares more about wildlife than fashion. Modeled after the famous child conservationist, Bindi Irwin, and recorded with Bindi's real voice, the doll recites 10 environmentally empowering phrases. Bindi also comes with accessories for pretend wildlife and nature exploration. At Kobold Toys, you can choose from Bindi Ocean & Surf Rescue or Bindi Wildlife Rescue.


You'll need to broaden your Aussie vocabulary to interact with Bindi- here are some of Kobold's favorite Aussie terms:

Bonzer! - Great

Dinkie-Di- Genuine, honest

Greenie - Environmentalist

Hooroo - Goodbye

Lolly- Candy

Stickybeak - Nosy Person

Wog- An illness, like the flu


If your child is a fan of the Never Never and is in need of a new cobber (friend), Bindi is the perfect addition. Also, consider Bindi's outback animal collections.

Tune into Bindi the Jungle Girl to learn more about wildlife conservation.

Zip A Dee Doo Dah! Zip Bins!

Spring Break. Summer Vacation. Grandparent's House. Family Reunion. These all lead to toy transportation issues and general headaches for the parent.

Kobold is a fan of the ZipBin from Neat-Oh! ZipBins are a line of attractively designed, transportable and collapsible interactive storage products that unzip to become activity or play surfaces, and then zip back up to storage bin form. Click here to view a product demo video!

THESE ARE TERRIFIC! At Kobold Toys, you can find a ZipBin in the shape of an airport, racetrack, horse stable, train depot and fairy castle. Kobold's favorites include:

ZipBin Street Racer

ZipBin® Street Racer Playpack™ is a backpack that looks like and is shaped like a race car. It’s the perfect way to carry your vehicles. And then it opens to reveal a city street with drivable roadways. Now it’s the perfect place to play with those vehicles. And it includes two die cast sports cars.

ZipBin Airport
ZipBin® Shape Airport looks like and is shaped like an airplane hangar. It’s the perfect way to store and carry your planes, helicopters and airport vehicles. It opens to reveal an operating airport with runway, control tower, heliport and hanger. Now it’s the perfect place to play with those toys. Airport includes a 3 inch die cast propeller-driven plane!


ZipBin Fairy Castle
The Fairy Castle bin's attractive, colorful exterior looks great in your child's room. When the bin is unzipped, it becomes a play mat! This activity center is perfect for dolls, ponies and other animals. Fantasy play is encouraged with a sparkling castle, a magic forest, an enchanted waterfall and shimmering ponds. This Playset includes two fairy dolls.

ZipBin Country Stable

This Country Stable Playset features Safari Ltd.® collectible Replicas! The soft-sided horse barn converts to a rider’s delight. The Playscape™ features two barns, a pond, a training paddock and ample corral. This is a must have for every horse lover.

ZipBin is the perfect solution to toy storage- at home and on holiday. Happy Travels!

Celebrate Earth Day!

Providing eco-friendly toys to you is what Kobold Toys does to “give a little bit back”. Throughout the month of April, we will donate 1% of our sales revenues to our favorite green foundation: The Nature Conservancy.

In honor of Earth day, we thought we would share some ideas and resources to help you communicate the importance of eco-friendliness to your children.

In addition to Frog Awareness Month, April is also National Garden Month! As I have mentioned in a previous blog, my daughter loves the family garden she started with my father. One resource we use is KidsGardening.org. This month's "Family Room" provides parents with a garden primer- whether you want to tackle the windowsill box or a veggie garden- this non-threatening guide will help. We are even considering creating a worm bin this spring!

Our second child is showing a sensitivity to the changing seasons. For those of you with allergies or an aversion to dirt, Mudpuppy's "In the Garden Constructible Building Set" lets you create a beautiful indoor garden complete with butterflies.

Our friend Woodsy the Owl said it best: "Give a Hoot - Don't Pollute!" For more indoor learning, our science lover Kobold suggests an experiment that will help show your kids the danger that oil spills in the ocean pose to water plants, fish and birds. (Grades 1-4)

You’ll Need:
* Four sealable plastic bags
* Water
* Marker
* Motor Oil
* 4 hard boiled eggs
* Timer

Label the bags A B C and D. Fill each with ½ cup water and ½ cup motor oil. You can use vegetable oil with a few drops of food coloring as a substitute. Place one egg in each bag. Remove the egg from bag A after 15 minutes, from bag B after 30 minutes, from bag C after one hour and from bag D after two hours. Carefully remove the shell from each hard boiled egg. Those that stay in the oil polluted water the longest will show the most damage.

Source: No-Sweat Science: Nature Experiments by Anthony D. Fredericks (Sterling Publishing Co., Inc. , 2005.

Kobold Toys believes strongly in promoting environmentalism and conservation. We hope that some of our ideas and resources will help you and your child have fun learning.

Once Upon a Time

I can still remember watching the lavish wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer in the early 80s. I was mesmerized. What little girl does not want to be a part of a fairy tale? The wedding season is approaching , and the promise of beautiful brides and exciting parties is in the air. Whether your daughter will be a flower girl in a wedding this year or just loves a romantic story, the PLAYMOBIL Church is the perfect backdrop for pretend play. Your child can press the windows of the church tower and hear the bells chime and the organ music. To complete the set, consider the "getaway" convertible and the party guest tent.

Pretend play helps foster imagaination, encourages self-expression and can help children work through their fears and feelings. I love to eavesdrop on the conversations my daughter creates with just about any object. It gives me insight into our relationship and what communication cues she is using to make sense of her world.

Right now our friend, "the scientist," has set sail on a global ocean sampling expedition aboard the Sorcerer II. He had previously sent our daughter pictures of his trip to Antarctica, complete with penguins and whales. On this expedition the team will travel from California to the European seas, and we are excited to see pictures from his trip. If you have a budding marine biologist or high seas adventurer on your hands, The PLAYMOBIL Expedition Ship will let your child explore the mysteries of the ocean and can be partnered with a shark diver and a research raft and whale.

And maybe, just maybe, the scientist will be rescued by a brilliant and bold shark diver or whale watcher during his adventure. And maybe, just maybe, they'll fall in love and have a beautiful church wedding off the coast of Italy. And maybe, just maybe, on their honeymoon, a whale will eat the scientist, and the whale watcher will pursue the naughty whale for the rest of her days. Or maybe, just maybe, they'll sail off into the sunset and live happily ever after! I'll ask my daughter and get back to you.

Cheers to Happily Ever After!~ Ashley

Sleeping Bag for your child's Best Friend!

My newest creation is a sleeping bag for a child's best friend - his/her stuffed animal. I took some quilted fabric, folded it over and sewed along the bottom edge, and added Velcro on the third side. To give the bag a little more pizazz, I added red binding at the top. This sleeping bag is modeled by my son's Golden Retriever Webkinz Dog. It is available for sale in my Etsy Shop. Click HERE for the link.

Meow Memory Matching Game

I saw these fabric in the store and know that I wanted to make another game with them. I lve the sweet little kitties and their paw prints. Remember playing memory as a child? This fun game is educational as it builds deductive reasoning and logic forming skills. There are 18 quilted game pieces, 2 of each picture, and a Fun Kitty Drawstring Bag. Visit my Etsy Shop, New England Quilter, to find this game for sale as well as other themed games as well.

Green Party Goods reviewed on Busy Mommy Product Review

Today I reviewed a great website, Green Party Goods. It is a great site that carries tableware, goodies boxes and felt bags, party favors, decorations, green toys and games, eco-friendly green gifts, and tote bags. In addition to being good for the environment, the products that she carries are gorgeous and affordable.

I have to say that one of my favorite items that she has are the party hats. Oh how I wish I had the felt princess hat for Sara Rose for her birthday party.

Another one of my favorites are the handcrafted wooden toys made in the USA. How cool is this log cabin! Can you imagine how excited a kid would be to get this? I can!

Head on over to my blog and enter to win some prizes from Green Party Goods.

Cute Jewelry For Little Girls

When your little girl starts asking you for your jewelry, it may be time to give her a set of her own. Why not?

Because those little details will express what a wonderful and happy girl she is, come see our line of cute necklaces, bracelets, rings and barettes for girls (best for ages 3 to 7). HABA, the german toy manufacturer, makes these jewelry with safe materials, bright colors, affordable and great design!

For example, here is "Lucie" bracelet...




With matching necklace...



ring...



and, of course, the hair clips!



Come to Kobold Toys to check out our collection of jewelry, for a birthday, holiday or just to say "I love how fashionable you look!".

How To Explain Emergencies To Young Kids

I read a story, last week, in the local paper about a 7-year-old who saved his grandpa from death because he knew how to use a defibrillator that his family had at home. His grandfather fainted and was unresponsive, so the kids took the defibrillator, applied it on his grandfather's chest, pushed 1 button and gave grandpa back a heart beat. Then he called 911, and the rest is a true happy ending.

I can't imagine teaching my 3-year-old to use a defibrillator yet, but that doesn't mean that I can't introduce him yet to the issue of emergencies, how to recognize one and what to do in such case. After all, I spend a lot of time alone with my little ones and who knows if some day they may be my only chance to get to a hospital (hopefully not, though).

That's why I liked so much a little book that I found in one of our vendor's catalogue (Penton Overseas): "It's Time To Call 911".






This awesome children's book teach children about emergency situations, how to dial 911 (with its key pad) and what to say to get help in an emergency. By correctly dialing "911", the child hears "911", sirens, and then a rewarding "Good Job!" from a sound chip. My son loves this book (possibly more because of the sirens than anything else) and now and then he brings up the issue of an emergency, when to call and why.


This book was featured in ABC News, Good Morning America and The Ellen DeGeneres Show. It was also chosen as a preferred title by the State Library of Kansas for the Kansas Reads to Preschoolers Program. And, of course, is one of our store's favorites.