In the Garden Is an Almost 3 Year Old

Isn't she gorgeous! You will all have to humor me today as I show a bunch of the pictures I took of ER last week while at my parents' house. I think they came out really nicely and I am very proud of them. I'm quite the avid amateur photographer, but I've had the most success with landscapes and flowers. I love being outside, hiking to a beautiful sight, and capturing it all on film. A squirmy child has never been my forte. We normally take her for a studio portrait session each year around her birthday. This year we're planning on getting some outdoor family pictures done in the fall with Amanda Williams, the photographer who did my friend Melissa's wedding.

Since that is a ways off I was feeling like maybe we should take her for one or two at the studio, but somehow I always get sucked into purchasing an expensive package. I love natural settings so I really want to save our photo taking budget for the fall. I hope to get great ones among all the colorful foliage. It's also been a couple of years since we've had a formal family photo.

I've been studying the composition and poses used by professional photographers for awhile now. I've been trying to capture a few really nice ones that don't have distracting backgrounds and wasn't having much luck. The problem is that if the picture comes out nicely, she's usually is wearing play clothes and not all gussied up. Until...last Friday! I think ER did a great job posing for me; having some where for her to sit really helped.

Last year some of our pictures from Kiddie Kandids were by a bench in front of a back drop and I don't think I'm bragging too much to say that mine came out just a well. Personally, I even like mine better. Plus these really are outside and the light is natural. So I'm going to consider these her 3 year photos and the ones in the fall our family portrait session.

For the last one we moved from the bench to by my mom's roses. For all my bargain lovin' friends out there, I want to point out that the pretty little dress she's wearing I got last week from Janie & Jack, which is too expensive for me to shop at unless it's on the clearance rack. Original price a whopping 48 bucks! My price, only twelve☺ It's lined and the detailing and pin tucks are so precious.

Angel Face Designs: I'm a Tip Junkie Birthday Bash Winner

Well everyone, you are not going to believe how lucky I continue to be! Remember how I posted about Tip Junkie's Going Dot Com Birthday Bash? Well guess what? I actually won a beautiful Open Heart Name and Birthstone Necklace from Angel Face Designs! It's a really beautiful piece that I personalized with ER's first and middle name. Heather put three ruby red swarovski crystal on it to give it just the right amount of bling. I didn't realize until I received it that the heart, crystals and 1" sterling silver disc are all separate and dangle about. The necklace's movement is what makes it so special! I've already gotten several compliments on it, it's quite a gorgeous statement piece that eventually I can hand down to ER. But not for a long time, I've enjoying wearing it too much! Heather has many other wonderful hand stamped designs that I just have to share with you! Like her You Are my Sunshine with personalized Name Disc. I sing that song to ER every night before bed, only over time it's become "You Are My Sweetheart". I just love how each of her pieces the words and phrases are stamped whimsically, which contributes to their unique artisan feel. Other designs I like include her Names Around a Heart Necklace and...

My personal favorite, I Love You to the Moon and Back Necklace with Name Disc. Based on a line from bestselling children's book Guess How Much I Love You, and a well read page turner at our household. I think this design is a unique and creative version of the child's name necklace. It'd make a lovely first mother's day gift along with a copy of the book.

Heather's presentation is well thought out. I got my necklace packaged up in a small box, with her logo sticker on the lid, and in a small brown organza bag. Care instructions and a petite silver polishing pad, to keep my beautiful creation sparkling, were included.

Heather offers a lot of customized options from names to crystals, necklace length, and even switching from a bracelet to a key chain. There are a lot of ways to make the perfect custom necklace for you or as a gift! Visit Angel Face Designs and find a special piece for yourself today!

Thank you Heather for such a beautiful necklace that I will treasure for years and thank you to Laurie for hosting such a great Birthday Party! Speaking of Laurie, have you seen my Red, White, and Blue Patriotic Decorations? They were recently featured on Tip Junkie!

A Day at the Park

You probably wouldn't believe the ferocious thunderstorm we had the night before I took these, judging from how sunny and calm it looks in these pictures. But believe me, we had some exciting weather around here Thursday night. Good thing ER and I were out at my parents' house, as our neighborhood lost power and traffic lights were out all over too. Last week ER and I were at home while Brad was off in Boston living it up at a conference at Harvard. I packed our days so we'd be out and about and so the time would pass more quickly. I think I planned too much because by Friday, when these were taken we were both beat! We needed a slower paced afternoon like this. We spent Thursday night at my parents' house. The next morning we enjoyed breakfast and then my Dad and I took ER to a nearby park and walked around the pond there. ER wasn't too happy about it, as she was anxious to get back to the playground.
Aren't her new shoes cute? Thank you Grammy! These are the ones we went to buy when ER got to run through the splash zone at the mall, mentioned at the end of this post. They are so nice and lightweight. Plus now I won't hear any whining about getting pebbles, sand, or wood chips from the various playgrounds in her shoes. Speaking of shoes, now ER is pretty set for awhile with a pair of sneakers, sandals, and dress shoes. If you read my other blog, that's a hint as to our sponsored giveaway this week, look for a new one on Tuesday!

By far the most exciting part was getting to ride in the tire swing. After looking at it and wanting to ride it for over a year, this spring she finally mustered up enough nerve to get on one. Now she goes on them whenever she gets a chance.

It was a full day, playing at the park, a bike ride later on, stopping for ice cream , dinner, and then driving home. That might sound pretty uneventful to some, but I prefer to think of days like these as the exciting ones☺

Splish Splash

When we were in Philadelphia, ER got to enjoy her Uncle Jeff's and Aunt Jody's big inflatable pool in their backyard and it seems like that was the kick off to our summer water fun! It was a little cool that afternoon but she loved it anyway and has been asking to go in our little plastic wading pool ever since.

Summer has arrived in Michigan, with all it's humidity and stickiness! We've been busy finding ways to cool off. Last Tuesday we were lucky enough to get an invitation to join our friends at the local swim club. I wish it weren't so darn expensive to join and that there wasn't a two-three year waiting list. Our area does not have enough public pools!

ER hasn't been in an real outdoor pool since we moved from NM where our complex had two we used a lot that first spring and summer. She had so much fun splashing around in the zero entry kiddie pool and jumping in the bigger pool with Mommy! Thank you again to our friend Kate for inviting us! ER had great fun splashing around with T & C!

It seems that sprinker fun WITH clothes on is going to become a habit around here☺ On Thursday ER got to run through the spray zone at an outdoor mall by my parents' house. We went there to get tennis shoes for her and ended up with a soaking wet toddler! It's kind of my own fault, as I knew they had these and that they'd be working. I forgot to throw her suit in my bag when we left their house.

There is just no way you can refuse a kid on a hot summer day when there are free sprayers shooting water into the sky is there? Not even Grammy could say no to ER when she came back to get her to join in. She ended up, well lets just say refreshed too, LOL!

Friday's Gracious Giveaways

By now you probably all know I just LOVE a great giveaway! There is just something so thrilling about receiving a package in the mail packed with fun goodies. I also really enjoy finding out about new resources and companies that I'd never have found out about if it hadn't been for other bloggers.

I've said it time and time again but blogging has opened new doors for me. It's introduced me to countless new "pen pals" that I can check in on whenever I want and not just when the mailman arrives. One of the best part about blogging is the community we're all apart of and the support we give one another.

That's why I also enjoyed being on the other end and hosting giveaways for all my loyal readers. It's just as thrilling to know I going to be a part of making someone's day. Just a little reminder... don't forget I have three going on right now! Enter the Mahalo giveaway on ABC & 123 and the Jumpstart and Tiny Prints ones on KNS.

A lot of you ask how I manage to win so much; and the key there is entering and entering a lot. Another key component is looking in the right spot for giveaways. I frequent several giveaway listings and today I have a new one to share with you.

It's from Susana a Our Homeschooling Fun and what I especially like about this one is that it's primarily for three specific areas that I'm really interested in.

• homeschool/education
  
• mom/family
  
• children/baby

It's kick off was yesterday and my Jumpstart giveaway was featured so hurry on over and see what you can win and if you've got a giveaway to promote be sure to enter it in her linky! Besides featuring other blogger's giveaways, Susanna also has a great one going on herself, check out her Perler Bead Craft Kit giveaway!

Sew Fierce is Sew Cool, Our Giveaway Win & Review

Do you have special outfits from childhood that you remember, either because you really liked it or because it was heavily photographed? Maybe your mom, like mine did, even saved it carefully for when you were grown up. These were very special outfits and usually had a story behind them, like a family member made it or you wore it for a particularly important event.

I love beautifully designed and well made children's clothing, the kind that can become heirlooms and become worthy of being among the handful outfits carefully saved. I also really love monograms and customized items. When I saw my blogger friend Stephanie's custom made dresses on her online boutique specializing in children's couture clothing Sew Fierce I fell in love instantly!

It had been awhile since my daughter had a personalized clothing that fit; she'd long since outgrown the embroidered name onesie I got for her before she was even born. I'd been itching to get her something new for awhile. I thought I'd have to pick something from a large retailer and add an monogram, like I did before. It would still be personalized but lots of other little girls would have similar outfits.

We tweeted and emailed back and forth about the details for awhile and then I found out Stephanie was doing a giveaway on her blog, A Pocket Full of Buttons for one. I was so excited for just the chance at winning one. Imagine how thrilled I was to actually be the winner!
Now came the hard part, actually figuring out what I wanted! All I knew was that I wanted something ultra girly with her monogram on it, because she's getting to the age when you want to think twice about getting their first name on it. Stephanie was so helpful and on Sew Fierce's website she has a huge selection of fabrics and embroidery choices to choose from. She made suggestions and even provided me with a proof picture of the monogram for approval before making the dress to make sure I got exactly what I wanted. Didn't it turn out fabulously? The fabric is a pale pink with white swirls and hearts in white and silver. The inner lining fabric is equally as beautiful, with an ornate pink pattern with a silver pattern overlay all on top of white. It's such lovely fabric; it's a shame no one will really see it since it's on the inside. The monogram is done in matching silver gray thread in a swirly font, just like I envisioned. I LOVE it!

Stephanie takes a lot of pride in the quality of her worksmanship, "Everything is handmade by me and comes from a smoke free/ pet free home. With all my handmade clothing the seams are professionally serged, and top stitch is done for durability and longevity." So you know you're lovely garment is not going to fall apart in the wash! Another extra touch of Stephanie's is how the perfectly formed bows are attached with snaps. You can take them off when you launder the dress. That's a great feature, and one I appreciate because otherwise, even with handwashing, those bows would never look so pretty again.

Stephanie's one of a kind outfits and children's accessories can be found at both at her online boutique Sew Fierce and also at her Sew Fierce Etsy store.

Stephanie's Etsy store is where I first became a fan of her work, when I saw her Whimsy Faith Top and Ruffled Capri's. I thought the combination of fabrics that Stephanie choose went so nicely together. I liked how it had large doses of pink in it but enough other colors to balance it out. I'm sure it didn't hurt that pink and purple are one of my favorite combinations too! Aren't the ruffles on the bottom of the pants darling? Just another example of Stephanie's attention to detail. Those could've been plain pant bottoms, but no she managed to fit in another way to make the outfit even cuter.I'd have snapped this one up long ago but I was concerned because I thought my little one would be lost in the outfit. It's a 3T-4T and she's a solid 2T right now. Stephanie offerred to remake the outfit in another size, but warned me that since most of her outfits are one of a kind I would probably have to pick new fabrics. I was disappointed, because it was the color and fabric combinations that had first grabbed my eye. Then after more dialog, we realized her younger daughter is a similar size to mine. Stephanie snapped a few pictures of her in it and I could see that while it was a generous fit it wasn't so big that ER couldn't wear it this year and the next. What a bonus, I'll get to enjoy seeing my daughter in this adorable outfit for longer and she'll get more wear out of it. Stephanie is definetly and ten out of ten for customer service. She goes the extra mile to answer questions and make sure you're over a 100% happy with your purchase!I rushed to purchase it and had Stephanie ship it right out to me! I especially like the big bow you tie in the back to hold up the top. I am very happy with the customized dress I won and the two piece outfit I bought. I would definitely purchase from her again. Stephanie's clothing is so well put together, she chooses wonderful fabrics that compliment each other, and I like knowing my special outfits will truely be unique and ER's alone.
Speaking of shopping, here are some other items I've got my eye on of Stephanie's. Although I don't know why I'm telling you about them, as I want them for myself! Her Backyard Blues Garden Dress continues to be my absolute favorite item that she's made, it's just a little too big for ER right now. I love the flouncy ruffles and how the hem on one side comes up. It's so pretty and like a child's ball gown. It would make the best twirly swirly dress ever!

Another dress still too big for ER is her Sweet Tweet Apron dress. I have long loved that birdie fabric; as you all probably know by now that I have a thing for birds. I actually have some of that fabric in my own stash; this is by far the cutest and most perfect way to use it!

Have you seen these fabric covered diaper wipes before? What a fun way to dress up a utilitarian mom supply in every diaper bag. Stephanie's come with a name or monogram embroidered on it. How fabulously cool is that? You can get one customized with a coordinating snap bib and two burp cloths in her Infant Gift Set. You'll be the most stylish mom at playgroup and the envy of everyone when you whip out your wipes!

One of her newest creations to be added to her shop are these really fun tulip sun hats. They're a great way to protect your child from the sun and make sure she's the most stylist toddler at the park. They come in two sizes with the smaller one including a ribbon tie. My daughter will wear hats without a fuss but it's windy out here! She needs the larger size, but I'm sure Stephanie could be persuaded to add a tie for me. Like I said her customer service is the best!

I'd love for you to check Stephanie's work out and find out how wonderful her pieces are for yourself. Visit her at her blog A Pocket Full of Buttons, Etsy shop, or online boutique. Let her know I sent you! Thank you again Stephanie for making us such a lovely keepsake dress that we'll treasure for years and for making the adorable two piece outfit!

Potty Training Boot Camp, Now with Potty Charts

Thank you to everyone who sent along advice about potty training to me, after I wrote my last post on this subject. I think most of you could tell I was really frustrated at that point! It was really nice to hear everyone else's experiences and find out I'm not the only one who's been down in the potty training trenches.

I was already beginning to feel the time crunch with preschool starting this fall. She has to be potty trained to start the two afternoons a week program at the co-op. That was the catalyst for me, knowing it had to be done by September or else! Plus she IS going to be THREE years old and by most standards that's not exactly rushing things.

So now for the good news...the update!

Last Sunday, we only put her in training panties, the kind that are cloth with extra padding and no elastic cover. We went through NINE changes of underwear and SIX pairs of shorts but by the end of the day a break through had occurred.

The oddest thing was, she was going potty something like three times an hour, every hour. For a moment there we thought maybe she had the world's smallest bladder or at least a pea sized one. Slowly but surely she began adding stickers to her potty chart for being having dry panties and going on the potty. I didn't make it that challenging. I wanted her to get a reward quickly at first and experience some success, as you can see there were only ten slots to fill.

Monday was the big day. She earned enough stickers to fill up her first reward chart and earn a little Cinderella action figure type doll. She was very happy about that and it seems like we've turned a new leaf and now I have some hope that we may make it after all.

It's continued to get better, since then she seems a lot more aware of and wanting to go on the potty. When she doesn't make it most of the time she tells us just as she starts to go. We all run to the potty and most of the tinkles make it in where they belong. All of this is a huge improvement.

Then yesterday for the very first time ever she went on the potty in a public bathroom and did it three times. I was shocked. Just goes to show sometimes you have to take drastic action to move things along. Even if it means your floor, blanket, and couch might all take a hit, like ours did!

Thank you again for all your remarks and advice!

Oliver's Labels Product Review

When I taught kindergarten I cannot even begin to tell you how many belongings were lost or misplaced by my students. At first I thought it was because they were only five years old and since it was their first year in school, they weren't used to having to keep track of their things.

Then I saw the huge mound of of clothing, back packs, lunch bags, and even shoes in the lost and found at my school. Shoes? Why weren't they on the kid's feet and how did they make it home without a shoe on? It's amazing the propensity children have to misplacing their stuff.
Oliver's Labels are the perfect solution for busy parents to help make sure our kid's things come back home with them. Have multiple kids, different ages, all going in separate directions? Choose a different design for each child. Transportation themed ones great for a little boy, a fantasy set for your little princess, and the gender neutral toy animals. For older children, who are too cool for the cute designs you can get a basic script set and even fashion designer inspired labels like the Burberry set perfect for your little prepster. If your child has food allergies, there are even designs for specific allergies like nuts. With so many choices there is sure to be a set you like. We got a selection of the nature themed labels, personalized with ER's first name and last initial since she has a very popular name. Oliver's Labels is the only company to offer full-color graphics and I was impressed by how attractive they looked. They have a shiny finish and the colors were exactly like in the preview. They will stay looking as good as they did right out out of the package. Their special process guarantees that their image will not rub off overtime, and they are made on eco-friendly machines.
I really liked the design I picked out but by far the best feature to Oliver's Labels and what makes them stand is their Found It tracking system. This exclusive feature helps misplaced things find their way back. Your personalized nine digit code is printed on the labels. If your child looses some thing, when it's found the finder can report your item as found via Oliver's Label's website. They'll act as intermediary so you don't have to share personal information. It's not on your label and you don't have to give it out to a stranger to get your belongings back either.

In our set we got all three of their waterproof labels, the original, mini, and shoe labels. The first two which are,"Waterproof, weather-proof, scuff-proof, tear-resistant, high-performance vinyl with super-strong adhesive and high quality, full-color printing. Made to be long-lasting in a huge range of environments." The shoe labels have the same features but are made to be long-lasting in shoes.
The original labels are about two inches long and three quarters of an inch tall. They are the perfect size for anything and everything that goes to school, day care, or camp. They'll stick and stay on through the dishwasher, microwave, refrigerator, and outdoors. A lot of ER's friends have the same sippy cups as we do. We put one on ours and for once there was no confusion when we took ER's cup out of the fridge. Plus the label helped ER keep track of which one was hers too.

Older kids and adults can use them to labels their laptop, MP3 player, tote bag, water bottle and cell phone. My husband and I have the same phone, in the morning when he's rushing out the door sometimes he's grabbed the wrong one. A bright name label would certainly help prevent that!

Mini labels are great for items that are too small to easily fit an original label. The first thing I thought when I saw these was labeling school supplies. Any elementary teacher can tell you how often pencils are lost or misplaced in the classroom. Help your child keep track of his or her pencils with these. Also great for toothbrushes at camp and travel children's silverware that goes to and from the day care center. Help your provider keep things straight and get your belonging back in your day care bag.

Their small size also makes these great for more discrete labeling for adults. Put them on your Cell phone, MP3 player, pens, pencils and sunglasses.

The shoe labels are an especially neat product. How many times have we gone to an indoor play zone or into a bounce house? Shoe removal is a must and finding them again among the huge pile up can be nearly impossible. Put a set inside and you'll be so happy by how quickly you find them. Their bright color made ours stand out from the crowd the last time we went to play group. Each one comes with a right and left foot label and you don't have to worry about adding protective tape over them. It doesn't matter how many times you put them on and off, their design and the label stays put. These are great and you need these!

The last type of label we got from Oliver's Labels to review their stick-eez clothing labels. They are made of thin, flexible, high-performance material with super-strong adhesive and high quality, full-color printing. They can go into the washing machine and dryer.

I've seen clothing labels in the past that you iron on, and that type is also available from them. What makes their new stick-eez labels innovative is that they are so simple to use, quick and easy! All you do is peel and stick. I LOVE these! How easy to label your child's lunch box and school bag, Just add a sticker!

Like shoes, jackets and sweaters are taken off and on a lot and there are so many chances for them to be left behind. This helps eliminate the possibility of that happening. Use them on clothing with a care tag such as t-shirts, pants, underwear, gym clothes, snow pants, jackets, and clothing with nylon shells that can’t be ironed. The best feature? They will stick to your clothing but you can still remove them if you want to hand them down to a sibling or donate.

Oliver's Labels are a great product with so many uses. I liked the high quality and variety to choose from. Can't make up your mind which ones you need the most, you can get a variety of sizes and types in their packages. They are so handy to have on hand and help ensure your child's things won't end up in the lost and found. Every parent could benefit from having these! I'd love to hear what you'd stick Oliver's Label's on!

Try them yourself! Now through June 31st, get a 10% discount from Oliver's Labels, just enter the code: Labeleverything (one word) as a form of payment before checking out.

Disclaimer: Thank you to Oliver's Labels for providing the products for this review.

Got Buttons? and Tweeks to My Blog Design

Hi Everyone! I am so super duper exited because I have finally got my very own Katie's Nesting Spot button! I hope you all like it, I made it myself as well as the header that you were all so sweet about commenting on.

A big thank you to my blog partner Katie from A List Maker's Life for helping me figure out the code. Please use the html code to add the button graphic and link and not the picture above. That file is pretty big and will show up giant sized on your blog, that is unless you WANT a giant sized button on your blog☺ I think all the kinks are worked out, but let me know if you have any problems, please.

I'd love to exchange buttons with you! Email me or leave a comment on this post if you want to swap!

Krystal Hartley's A Beautiful World digital kit continued to inspire me, and it was really quick to whip up the design. The only thing that would make this kit perfect for me is if it had a tree in it but other than that I'm in love with it. You should all stop by and see her other designs at The Sweet Shoppe Designs. She is so talented, very nice, and even answered my newbie to digi world questions for me.

While I've got you, I'd like to point out I changed the colors for my titles from burgandy to purple and my link color to blue. I thought these matched my new header more. Any thoughts on their readability?

I've had my technical support, i.e. DH Brad working on making a simple text navigation bar and I'm going to try and remove the boxes from around my pictures soon too. I'll also be changing the column color soon, as the green no longer really matches my theme. Or do you think it still looks okay? I really like the subtle pattern and have no idea how to replace that with a different one. I will probably end up changing them to white.

Hope you're all having a great day and I will try not to inundate your inbox with updates tomorrow!

UPDATE Later On the Same Day: Just used this a tute from Split Decisionz to remove my borders around pictures in my post. Lots of great tips there, check it out!

Also, thank you for all your support and kind words of encouragement! If you were one of the first to grab my button and got a white box underneath it, please grab the new code available now and reupload I'd appreciate it! I will be adding all the button exchanges tomorrow, I hope!

Summertime Sprinkler Fun

I'm so thrilled to share with you all that I recently got accepted into the UPrinting blog sponsorship program! For those of you not familiar with them, UPrinting.com is a leading online provider of business cards, color brochures and mailing postcards.
As I love taking pictures, capturing memories, and turning them into scrapbooks UPrinting is the perfect partner for me! I would love to make stretched canvas prints of my favorite photos to create a picture display wall in my home.

UPrinting is currently running a summer photo competition; asking all us to share our favorite summer pictures. I've shared this one before, but remains my favorite summer picture because of the memories it evokes and the great fun it captures.
When I look at this picture, I can remember how still it seemed for a late summer afternoon; how all of a sudden the quiet was broken by the sounds of happy shrieks and giggles. I came outside to find this fun going on in my front lawn. You know from the expression on her face that she's having a blast on this warm August day! It was so muggy that she could't even wait to get on her bathing suit before jumping into the sprinkler, guess who let this little adventure happen? Aren't Daddy's the best for some spur of the moment fun?

Mahalo Review and Giveaway

Today on ABC & 123, we're starting a new giveaway! Here is the review I also posted there.This week we're excited to introduce you to Mahalo and feature their wonderful handmade felt puppets!

Puppets are fun to play with. Kids are quickly engaged by their colors, textures, and movement. This can lead to greater involvement in a lesson and more comprehensive learning. They facilitate conversation and can be used to elicit interaction from a child who might otherwise have a hard time talking with an adult. They are often helpful in therapeutic situations. Kinesthetic, auditory, and visual learners respond especially well to lessons incorporating puppetry and all students will gain from increased emotional, spatial, interpersonal, and intrapersonal development.

One of the most common methods of using puppets for education is as visual aides for storytelling and retelling by students. They are also helpful for the first step toward creative writing, making up imaginative and inventive oral stories. All of these practices will enhance a language program and development.
We received a Mermaid Hand Puppet and Sea Horse Friends Set from Alisha to review, only ours only ours was personalized with ER’s hair and eye color. Skin color can also be chosen for the people puppets; I think that’s a nice touch. It’s one of the many benefits of supporting small businesses like Mahalo that I like.

Our daughter’s enjoyment of her mermaid puppet and the accompanying orange fish and blue sea horse finger puppets began the second we opened the package. She immediately put the mermaid on her hand and started making her swim around the office.

I really liked the details added with fabric paint, which give the puppets an additional layer of texture. The mermaid’s fin is outlined with scales and she is modestly dressed in a sea shell bathing suit top. The little tropical flower in her hair is the perfect finish to her look. Overall it’s a very attractive puppet.

She is approximately 15 inches from the top of her hair to the longest point on her tail and is about 8.5 inches at her widest part. Her little friends are equally detailed with paint and I have to say that the tiny blue seahorse is utterly adorable. You can request specific colors for the seahorses.

That set along with Mahalo’s Neptune Hand Puppets would a great addition to an Ocean thematic unit. While mermaids are imaginary they are a fun concept for children to think about. My daughter and I had a lengthy conversation about what we would do if we lived underwater. It was a concept that was confusing for her at first; one that prior to getting the set I didn’t know she did not understand.

We liked our review set so much that we ordered a customized Polar Bear Hand Puppet set for Grandma Norma to give ER for her third birthday next month. With the new addition to her very limited puppet collection, she wants to play with Brad a lot more. He soon realized he needed more to work with or his stories were going to get limited very quickly.

We already have a lion puppet from a previous trip to the zoo and a kitty puppet my mom knitted for her. We didn’t really need the lion and leopard puppets in the set. What we did need was a little girl puppet, made to look like our ER of course, and puppy one because her fascination with dogs continues to be unending. Alisha was responded promptly to my inquiry and we were able to make the substitutions. I was very happy with Mahalo's level of customer service!

Alisha truly enjoys the challenge of making new designs for puppets. One of her latest creations was inspired by the classic tale, Three Billy Goats Gruff at the request from a Mahalo customer whose children really like that story. She’s especially proud of the troll design. If you have a special request she is happy to work with you make the perfect set for you!

When you browse through Mahalo's puppets, you will notice many sets that are perfect for the classroom or for using with small groups. Teacher customer favorites include the various bear series, such as the Brown Bear Set and Panda Bear Hand Puppet Set. Smaller finger puppet versions of of both are also available.

There are also numerous other sets perfect for storytelling and that coordinate with popluar children's books. There are also multiple sets that would enhance thematic teaching including the People in Your Neighborhood that would go great with a community unit. The Dragon, Knight, Princess Puppets would fit in with fairytales and the Circus Friends Puppet Set is perfect for lessons about under the big top. The Reciprocal Teaching Set is another teacher favorite. Sunday school teachers and religious educators will find the Armor of God Puppet and the Noah's Ark Set of particular interest.

As you can see Mahalo has many wonder puppets to offer for home or school based learning and play! However, Alisha is only half of the team of talented sisters who own Mahalo. They have a lot more than puppets to offer!

Her sister Beth makes delightful tutus, my daughter is in awe of the prima ballerina one. Tutus are also available in sets with a customized initial cape that look just darling. By far though, my favorite item by Beth is her fun complete super hero set that comes with an initial cape, mask, and wristlets. What a great dress up kit that’s suitable for boys and girls that can also double as a personalized Halloween costume! Most of the components of the sets can also be purchased separately and have customizable choices.

Interested in Mahalo? Purchase a puppet or another of their fun creations that enhance imaginative play at their Etsy shop! When you purchase from Mahalo, you are also supporting an organization that is near and dear to the sisters, Wing Haven. This non-profit organization assists women and children who are trying to escape from a life of domestic abuse, and a percentage of their profits go to benefit this organization. Learn more at www.winghaven.org .

Mahalo has generously donated a Circus Friends Puppet Set to giveaway to one of ABC & 123’s readers! You'll have to go over to my other blog ABC & 123 to find out how you can enter. DO NOT leave your entry here, unless you really want to tell me how fabulous I am! Entries will only count on the ABC & 123's Mahalo Review and Giveaway post, good luck! Hurry up and go enter, this giveaway is only open until June 29 midnight ETS.