The Latest Doll House Addition

Meet Yana. The latest addition to my daughters doll house.

When we decided to get a doll house for K1, we specifically hunted down a wooden doll house. Specifically because they are a more eco friendly option than the plastic choices out there. I have been trying to reduce the plastic in our home by limiting what I bring in, so wood was a perfect choice for us.

When I went looking for an eco friendly doll, I really had a hard time. There aren't many options on the market. I could find dolls made from wood, but they were less functional. They did not have removable clothing, and were not pose-able  in addition to being six inches or less in height. I really felt that wood dolls were not a viable option, because K1 would grow out of them too quickly.

Then I stumbled upon Zeenie Dollz.

Insert happy green hearts here. I really really love eco friendly things. I do, I do.

I was genuinely excited to receive this doll. No you read that right, I was excited. K1 didn't even know she was coming. I immediately took her over to show her off to my neighbor. Yeah, that excited.

Why? Well, Yana is made of 100% recyclable materials, so she will never live in a landfill. (Smiley faces to go around) Also all dolls are modestly dressed, and still pull of a fashion-ista level style. The part of her that I like the best, you can't even hold. It's the message that comes with each Zeenie Dollz. Let me explain a little further.

When doll hunting, I was a little turned off by most of the popular dolls on the market. It is really hard to put a finger on, but I didn't like the message that they were sending. I feel that those dolls are sending the wrong message, or maybe just a message I don't like. I am aware that it could be just fine, but if there is a better option why not go for it?

Directly from Zeenie Dollz website;

Yana is the protector of the oceans and all its marine inhabitants along with her pet dolphin Serena; together they work hard to protect the oceans from pollution and its species from over fishing.

What more could you ask for? A positive lesson without really trying to teach it. On their website there is a page dedicated to each doll where they tell their story. Here K1 and I were able to send a "zcard" with a photo that included her doll. Yana also told us about some ways that we can help protect oceans and marine life. I really liked it. I think you should check it out (even if you don't have a doll).

The first thing K1 said when I gave her the doll was, "Oooh, I love her earrings!" Which are removable by the way. Then she said "I want fish earrings like Yana." She's cute. (and impressionable) She also proceeded to sleep with her at night for the next few nights, until mean mommy put a stop to it.

Yana is a bit larger than the other dolls that we have in our home. In the photo I posted above you can see that she is about a head taller than Ariel. (Sorry there are no Barbies in this house to compare) Yana fits into our doll house perfectly. Her feet hang off the bed a little, but she didn't complain. I guess after living on a boat sleeping in any bed was cool with her.

Yana is completely pose-able, even her hands an feet. K1 really appreciates this. She loves moving her hands while she's "talking." Honestly I have been a little leery of my 17 month old, K2, getting his hands on the doll. I worry that he will break a foot off, but all has been well, and she is still in one piece holding up just fine.

Yana came with a red bracelet, luggage tag, pet dolphin, brush for her hair, and doll stand. K1 loves the bracelet. (she doesn't wear enough red, cause it never matches)

Zennia, the doll for Mother Earth, is next on our list. K1 loved her as soon as she saw her online. "Oh I love her, she's may favorite." (Everything is her favorite now a days. Thanks V!) I can't blame her I mean she does have a fabulous dress. She also liked Evee, because "she looks like me," so maybe it will be a toss up.

You can keep up with Zeenie Dollz on Facebook and Twitter for updates, information, and fun earth facts.

Is the message that a toy may send you child important to you? Does it influence your selections?

Gwen

Full Disclosure. This is not a sponsored post. I received this product to facilitate my review. All opinions expressed are my own and yours may be different. 

Bike To Work Day

Yesterday was bike to work day here in San Diego County. I am honestly not sure if it is a state or nation wide thing, but I know it happened here.

I do not go to work, that gives me a pretty handy excuse for not participating. Although that doesn't mean I wouldn't like to.

Yesterday we walked to the library for story time. I don't even take a stroller. It really is too short of a walk for it to be worth the hassle of loading the kids into the trailer, then locking and unlocking everything once there.

Then we piled into the Jeep and drove to have lunch with daddy. His work is somewhere around 20 miles away. I am so not in any shape that would allow me to bike there alone, never mind with the kiddos in tow.

All of this and no biking.

After dinner was our chance.

I guess deep down I just wanted to go for a bike ride. You know, feel active again. Bike to work day was my excuse. My reason to get up off the couch. I trudged through and forced myself to feel like I was participating.

All in all it was a nice ride. A little cool, but nice. K2 still has a hard time with his helmet. That means there was still crying after about five minutes.

We also stopped for an impromptu diaper change. I was not planning on us stopping at all, so we were completely unprepared. We just took the diaper off and told the little guy not to go potty. Thankfully he listened. He's cool like that.

That reminds me, I want to kick this whole potty training business into gear. I am sick of washing, and changing diapers. Time to be done. (I mean who doesn't prefer cleaning puddles up off of the floor?)

Have you ever biked to work? Ever wing a diaper change? What did you do?

Gwen

Another Instagrammy Update

Happy Friday!
Here's a little peek into our last few weeks through instagram.  A little bit of the story behind the photo's.

A few weeks ago I found this Tumbler account, Thug Kitchen. I forget how I found it. The first time I read through it I thought that it seemed like he was swearing just for the sake of cursing, but then some of it really is funny.

I liked the sound of some of the recipes on there, and this is one of them. Sweet Potato tacos. They were really good. You could add all your regular favorites to these tacos too.


A few weekends ago there was the Western Days parade here in town. We walked over to go check it out, I mean we had nothing else going on, and our neighbors were going too.

First could she take the yogurt thing out of her mouth while talking to people? No. Would she have kept it all day had I not taken it away? Yes. Next time I will not let someone give one to her.

Mostly, she loved all the "Princesses". It was extra sweet that they all came walking up the street through the crowd. The were just saying hi and handing cards to all who wanted them. K1 told them they had to write her name on it, so she got some personalized ones. Seriously, what am I supposed to do with these? Just waving and taking pictures would have been good enough for her. Now I have more to recycle.


"Just one."

Need I say more? Check this out https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=baDJ-ZIvYy0.


Windy beach day with family. It was really nice.

I should have taken a picture of the real view. Off shore oil rigs. I didn't realize there more that what is in the Gulf, and so close. Silly me.


If you give a girl a mermaid, she will bury her in the sand. It's okay Ariel came out of the ordeal unscathed. She lives happily in the doll house at home now.


I thought it was pretty great that she was so taken by Lego Belle that she wouldn't stop looking at her, even for a photo. This girl loves having her picture taken.

My kids are not into real Legos yet, so they have no appreciation for how much work that would take, they just like the beauty of it. (no pun intended)


Afore mentioned doll house. Happy Birthday little lady. It's bigger than she is, but she will grow and it won't.

I found an awesome deal back in December at a local store and snagged this. I then hid it, in it's box under the bed until her birthday. I had to wake up early and assemble it. Daddy did not help until it sounded like the kiddos were waking up. Together we were able to sneak it into her room before she woke up.

There were fairys we bought the night before scattered in each room. There was one present wrapped up for her to open, which was a small doll for her to play with in the doll house. She was so stunned that it took her a while to find a lunch tin and coloring book we placed on the patio of the house.

She loves it. Score!


Babycakes cupcake on her birthday. Also score one for the whole family. She looks somber in the photo, but she loves cupcakes. (Who doesn't right?)


Handmade pinata, by me. Easy, but tedious, and time consuming work. I might do it again, not certain about that. Total cost before filling $6. Nice.

This is basically what the finished product looked like. There were some last minute pull strings added. You know to ensure that it was not too difficult for the little ones. Ha ha, that was a joke. It opened, but nothing fell out. I guess I had everything too crammed in there. Oops. I'll know better for next time. That is assuming there is a next time.


That's right people. Essay for the midterm, and 2nd class essay. I'm kicking butt and taking names.

Well, except for this research paper. Which is kicking my butt and due on Thursday. Oh and I found out yesterday that I also have to give an oral presentation. Gah! Two more weeks, two more weeks, two more weeks. I'll just keep reminding myself, maybe that will help.


Dearest Pinterest, you make me crazy. Especially when it is after midnight the day before the birthday party and I look over and see the watermelon that I intended to turn into a pirate ship. Really? Yes really. Pinterest gives me great ideas and I do use them. Thankfully my super awesome neighbor gave me pumpkin carvers to use for this project earlier in the week, and they were awesome. Super awesome, like my pumpkin carving might be even more awesome with one of those.
It's not perfect, but it was completed. Good enough to eat. Hah. I mean arrrg! (because we're pirates clearly)

After being up all night finishing everything for a birthday party, this was the morning SURPRISE! 

Good news we live close enough to walk to the party location, and daddy know's how to put on a spare. So we were saved.

Bad news, we were going to Disney the next day, so new tires to go around were bought after the party. Cha ching. $$


I meant for him to look like a pirate. I think he looks like a thug. I tired, kind of. I didn't get him an eye patch, and honestly, he wouldn't have worn it.


We were sitting in Ariels grotto waiting for our table when I snapped this shot. She is getting so big. Where did I go when all this growing up business happened?

She had no idea what we were doing. She says "Ariel is my favorite" all the time, and that was exactly who was waiting at the bottom of the stairs. It was a great lunch.


Too much fun, led to more sickness. This little guy wanted to do nothing other than lay on mommy for three days straight. I really need to enjoy it, because those days are flying by faster than I realize.


The first harvest from my container garden. Don't laugh, I mean something is better than nothing. Especially considering I do not have ideal growing conditions. I picked a few more and added them to a homemade Thai curry. They say that you can taste a difference between fresh green beans and store bought green beans, but I did not notice. Maybe because I did not eat them plain. Or maybe it's a side by side comparison type of thing.


Eating grapes, watching The Land Before Time, and chilling with Uncle J. We had an awesome day in the kids pool Uncle D got. We were hanging out for Mother's Day. Grilled dinner, and didn't have to chase the kids around. The pool kept them in one place. This was the relaxing end to the day.

We won't discuss the dead car battery we went outside to find.


Wednesday I hosted a play date down by the bay. We blew lots of home made bubbles, with hand made pipe cleaner wands. After that was no longer entertaining we went on to the playground.
I think he liked it. Don't you?
What did you week look like?


Gwen

What To Do With Your Kids Art

No brother this is how you do it

That's a great question isn't it?

I often hang masterpieces on the fridge for a period of time and then I circular file them. I mean seriously I can not possibly keep every lovely piece of art they create. I am too interested in shedding "stuff." Still they are lovely and worth keeping it is just not realistic for me.

I have heard of a few different ideas, on what to do with kids art. One person suggested taking a photo of their creation to have forever. This idea also takes up minimal space.

Rainy day art work

I really like that idea, but why not take it one step further? Use your children's art work for things you need or use anyway. Like return address labels, invitations, or holiday cards.

That is what we did for the thank you cards for K1's birthday.

Through Print Art Kids we made thank you cards out of her own art work. For this project I selected the post card option. Being that she is only 3 she is not yet ready to write out thank you's, and this was a great way to go! It made the thank you cards really come from her.


With the post card option I was also able to add two small photo's on the written side of the card. Which personalized them even further. I found these to be a superior option to the store bought packs of thank you's.

I love that everything comes from Print Art Kids printed on recycled paper. I really enjoy when companies try to be part of the solution, and make better choices. They also happen to be a mom run business in the US. I prefer to support other mom's, and I also try to buy local or made in the US when possible. You can see how Print Art Kids really hit all my happy buttons.

The website is also very easy to use. Something I will note, there is not a photo editor, so be sure that the image you plan on uploading looks the way you would like it to before you get started. You can also load several photos and switch them in and out until you find the best combination for you purpose. I also liked that there were different font options. Really every aspect was personalized. I felt the the representation on screen was identical to what I received in person. There were no surprises, the product lived up to my expectation.

The cards arrived in just about 2 weeks from when I ordered them. Considering every order is a custom order that is great. They also took the time to contact me and review my uploaded photos as a few of them we questionable. I appreciate them taking the extra time to ensure everything was satisfactory. They even arrived all tied up in a pretty bow! You know it's the little things really. The quality of both the cards and printing were great. I had an awesome overall experience and will use them again in the future.
They have notepads, notebooks, holiday cards, note cards, postcards, invitations, thank-you notes, return address labels, and gift labels available. I am most interested in the return address labels, we use those a lot. I might also add an order for a notepad to send to work with daddy. Then he can have something to smile about each time he takes a mindless note.
A bit about Print Art Kids;

"PrintArtKids is a MOM-founded, MOM-developed, MOM-inspired and MOM-operated small business!! Our products are Innovative, Unique, Educational and Entertaining - ideal for inspiring kids' creativity. We transform YOUR KIDS' ART and favorite family photos into Notepads, Note Cards, Journals, Holiday Cards and other fabulous printed treasures. PrintArtKids provides parents and caregivers the opportunity to both inspire creativity in their kids and build their self-esteem by transforming their "masterpieces" into fabulous gifts and every day items."

With Father's Day coming up you might want to check them out, or I guess you could get dad another tie he won't wear, that's on you! These make great gifts.
Need and idea? 

You can follow them on twitter and Facebook for more info. 
Gwen
Full disclosure this is not a sponsored post. All opinions expressed are my own and may differ from yours. I was provided a sample to facilitate my review.