Living Our Sunshine with Susann Deysel
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Easter Holiday Hacks to keep the kids busy

The Easter Holidays have arrived. Children across the country are celebrating, no more school for two whole weeks. Meanwhile, moms across the country are waking up in a cold sweat. No more school for two whole weeks.

Whether you work full time, work from home, or stay at home; if you’re a mom, the common childhood complaint of boredom will haunt you these holidays unless you plan ahead.

Blue Horizon Licensing, exclusive representatives of Mattel Consumer Products in South Africa for over 15 years, has pooled its brainpower to bring you five easy Easter holiday hacks to help keep the kids busy.

1) Host a Barbie picnic

Summer is drawing to a close, so take full advantage of a sunny day by hosting a Barbie-themed Easter picnic. Let your little girls invite a couple of friends over, tell them to dress in Barbie pink, and bring their favourite Barbie dolls to join in the fun. Spread a blanket on the lawn, bring out the Barbie tea set, and roll in the Barbie Food Truck. Complete the picture with a couple of jugs of water (or pink milk, if you’re feeling brave!) and a selection of real biscuits.

This picnic combines imaginative play, allowing the kids to order their ‘food’ from the truck – select from hamburgers, hotdogs, pizza slices and a variety of ice creams – with water play, as they pour and drink their ‘tea’. Water play is especially good for toddlers, helping to develop fine motor skills and hand-eye co-ordination. It is also regarded as one of the best starting blocks for building Maths and Science skills, introducing them to concepts such as empty, full, half full, and – most likely – spillage (As a bonus, give them some cloths, maybe they will learn to clean up after themselves too!)

When the picnic draws to a close, surprise them with an impromtu Easter Egg hunt in the garden. You’ll be the most popular mom on the block!

2) Build a Hot Wheels rally track

Nothing entertains children quite like toy cars, so why not host an outdoor Hot Wheels rally championship? This season’s hottest Hot Wheels includes a selection of bikes, monster trucks, drift cars and mini quads – perfect for outdoor terrain.

Build a traditional track using the Hot Wheels track builder, but encourage the kids to expand their play into the garden, using sand and mud to create their own rally courses. Up the ante by introducing Hot Wheels Light and Sound Master Blaster or Hyper Racer, or blast into turbo speed with the remote control Nitro Charger.

Sand and mud play is widely recognised as one of the joys of childhood, not only because the kids are actually encouraged to get dirty, but also for its open-endedness – there really is no limit to what kids can build, no right and wrong, and no end to the entertainment. While some kids simply enjoy the sensation of playing with mud, others will relish the opportunity to build intricate tracks, with obstacles constructed of sticks, leaves and stones. Just remember to dress the kids in old clothing – this game is bound to get dirty!

3) Throw a Slumber party

Chickens aren’t the only animals that lay eggs this Easter – Dinosaurs do too! So why not throw a Barney-themed slumber party? If the kids are too young to sleep over, suggest a ‘sleep under’ – where they come for early evening dinner and fun, but go home to sleep in their own beds. Tell the kids to bring their own Barney, you supply some Barney colouring books and colouring crayons, plus a couple of Barney floor puzzles that they can all do together. End off the evening with a selection of Barney DVDs, filled with music and fun that kids simply can’t resist. Love him or hate him, Barney holds a special place in the hearts of all children, teaching them kindness, manners and the value of good old fashioned fun.

4) Ten Pin Bowling: Barbie vs Barney

Ten pin bowling is all the rage these holidays, perfect for either indoor or outdoor play. And with the Barney Bowling set and Barbie’s Pinktastic Bowling set, you’re all set for a nail-biting Ten Pin tournament. Purple vs Pink. Barney vs Barbie.

Ball skills are another vital building block in childhood development, teaching hand eye co-ordination, motor skills and timing. Hosting a friendly tournament is also a great way to introduce young children to competitive play, teaching them the joy of winning, but also the inevitability of losing, and the importance of being a good sport, win or lose.

5) Take the kids shopping

When all else fails, it’s time to get out the house! Shopping with toddlers always sounds like a bad idea, but this Easter Toy Kingdom stores across the country are hosting a series of Easter Egg hunts. Kicking off on March 31, stores at the East Rand Mall, Gateway, Sandton, Menlyn, V&A Waterfront and Canal Walk, will host a series of eggciting Easter Egg hunts, allowing kids the freedom to run through their favourite Toy Kingdom stores and join in the search for hundreds of chocolate eggs, plus the chance to find one of 2 golden eggs per store – and win an eggstra eggciting prize! The hunt promises to keep kids busy for at least 30 minutes, just enough time for mom to grab a cup of coffee, which is sometimes all you need to restore your sanity. Follow the Toy Kingdom South Africa Facebook Page for more details.

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A day in the life of a work-from-home mom

I don’t like doing personal posts. I jealously guard over my privacy – and I’ve been like that since forever. Sometimes I will have too much Afrikoa chocolate and feel “more optimistic” and then write a post that gives glimpses into my life.

It has been a year since I left the corporate world. When I was part of that world I didn’t realise just how much it affected my well-being. Now, reflecting back on that I was blinded by my drive to succeed and chase numbers.

This week I bought cups, plates and a sweetie dish for my office. I also stocked my office cupboard with snacks. Last month I dyed my hair pink – something that my corporate contract didn’t allow for. I’ve made my home work space the creative space that I need to be happy – and I get to spend the whole day with my cats. Don’t get me wrong, I spend a lot more time working, but I choose the hours that I’m more productive and have time to do the things that I love.

I have to admit, it’s not always roses when you work from home. A teething toddler who has the nasty habit of howling at the top of her lungs after each nap makes for interesting times. Or husband coming home early and literally waltzing by like a tornado with a flurry of words… The worst however is when you get sick, there is nobody to call or stand in for you – it is all on you.

But then I can thank my stars that I don’t have to sit in traffic to Sandton anymore and wasting 2 hours of my life a day in a car.

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Gelato Surprise Princess Doll (Celebrating Easter with Prima Toys)

Last week I opened the Cupcake Surprise Princess Doll with Lexa… and over the weekend she met Gelato Surprise!

Meet Gelato Surprise Diana (blue hat) and her Cupcake surprise friend, Maya.

This week I am a little more “lucid” after fighting off bronchitis – so I can confirm, the dolls are scented!

I love that you get this little box and you take out a cupcake or gelato and then get to transform it into a doll and back into its delicious form. Lexa runs (and by that I mean she really runs all the time) with the hat/lid in her mouth – I usually just get a blur of a photo.

You can check out all the Cupcake & Gelato Surprise dolls here. There seems to be a mini version as well… and I love miniatures 🙂

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Fisher-Price – The Best Possible Start

Prima Baby just announced that they are now the proud distributors of the world-famous baby products brand, Fisher-Price.

Fisher Price Baby

Known globally as one of the leading developmental toy companies from America, Fisher-Price was established in 1930 and has grown from strength to strength, now including line of baby products that will give your child ‘the best possible start’.  Fisher-Price has always been notorious for the best in children’s toy products, and we have no doubt the baby products will meet the same standard of quality that moms have been trusting for generations.

From feeding products to gifting, décor, clothing and toys, the Fisher-Price range is an exciting new development for South African moms, allowing access to products that are quality guaranteed for newborns to toddler, all not previously available in SA.

The Fisher-Price baby ranges will be available instore from April 2018 through Prima Baby.

PS. I have one of the first products… and it is cu-ute! Check out this pacifier with natural latex.

Fisher Price Baby x Prima Baby

Lexa actually has that stacking tower so I had a little moment when I saw it 🙂

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Cupcake Surprise Princess Dolls from Prima Toys (Just in time for Easter holidays)

I love toys that transform. It’s like eating an Easter egg with a gooey filling, you know something is coming but it is always an awesome surprise.

Yesterday (on my birthday) I shared the Surprise Cupcake doll on Instagram. I love the dolls, but I really like it when she’s hidden in a cupcake. It is just so much fun. Lexa on the other hand likes to get the doll out of the cupcake and whack me with it.

I have been sick for a few days, but I’m sure that it actually smells like cupcakes.

When the cupcake doll is in her “human form” you can even pop the cupcake top on her head to use as a hat. if you don’t think that is the cutest thing ever… we can’t be friends.

I know Easter holidays are upon us and I’ll probably see all the Vaalies down at the coast (not that I’m not a Vaalie too) but if you are looking to keep the girls busy on rainy days you are going to want these dolls.

Just by the way the Cupcake Surprise Princess Dolls have friends… check out my post tomorrow about the Gelato Surprise Princess Dolls.

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It’s Fisher-Price Press ‘N Go Monster Truck time!

We have had so many awesome new toys to play with these last couple of weeks. So I’m going to share a toy a day post… because they all deserve their very own posts!

When I grew up I had die-cast cars, nothing fancy… but nowadays they make the cars so cute that I get jealous when Lexa runs around with her new toys.
Lexa got a pink (yes, pink!) Fisher-Price Press ‘N Go Monster Truck and it is awesome! She grabs it by the hair and runs with it and eventually when she sits down to play, this is when the Monster Truck reveals its true magic.

It is a wind-up toy but modified for toddlers. It can be pulled backwards to wind up or just press down on the roof and let it go. Once released it drives for about 2 – 3m. In our house that means Lexa chases after, cats try to grab it and me on my phone trying to take a video.

I need to mention that even though it is a plastic toy, Lexa has dropped it so many times and it hasn’t even chipped – so it is definitely durable. The rope hair after 2 weeks are still in place too.

Every morning I let her choose toys from her room to bring to the livingroom and she has consistently pulled the Monster Truck by the hair from her toy box.

Since I’m no professional videographer, here is the product video from Fisher Price.

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Barbie – the brand that launched a thousand dreams

Did you know that America had a female astronaut, who went to the moon before Neil Armstrong? That this same woman ran for President, six times, years before Hillary Clinton won the Democratic ticket? And that despite celebrating her 59th anniversary this year, she has one of the world’s fastest growing Instagram accounts, focusing on fashion?

Her name is Barbara Millicent Roberts; you probably know her as Barbie!

A powerful 59 year legacy

On Friday, 9 March 2018, the Barbie brand celebrates its 59th anniversary, yet this global icon remains as youthful, and relevant, as ever! Barbie is still the most popular toy and doll brand worldwide, with a 99% brand awareness across over 150 countries around the world; over 14 million Facebook fans, more than 4.5 million monthly app users, over 4 million active website users, 3.2 million YouTube subscribers, 268 000 Twitter followers, and one of the world’s fastest growing Instagram accounts – @Barbiestyle – currently sitting at a whopping 1.9 million followers.

Over the years, Barbie has been inspiring little girls, empowering them through creative play to imagine the possibilities of being anything they want to be.

She may have started her life as a teenage fashion model, but just one year later, she was promoted to fashion editor. And the year after that, she shattered the plastic ceiling and entered the working world as a ‘career gal’. She’s been an aerobics instructor, a ballerina, a fashion designer and an Olympic athlete, as well as a Marine Corps sergeant, firefighter and airline pilot. In fact, Barbie has over 180 careers on her resume; any career you can imagine, Barbie has been there and done that, inspiring little girls to dream big and reach for the sky.

In 2011, Barbie committed to entering into a new career every year, specifically those that are traditionally under-represented by women, such as computer engineering, film directing, and entrepreneurship. Of late, she has even broken into the spy world, and tried her hand at being a superhero.

Breaking boundaries, shattering stereotypes

 In 2015, in a bid to provide girls all over the world with role models who looked just like them, she broke more boundaries when she hit shelves in a variety of skin tones and hair textures. This was closely followed by different body types in 2016, to better represent a more varied and authentic reality. The stereotype-shattering Fashionista range now includes four body types (the original and three new shapes – petite, curvy, and tall), seven skin tones, 22 eye colors, 24 hairstyles and countless on-trend fashions and accessories.

Girls across the globe can now choose to play with a Barbie who looks just like them, or create a group of friends who is more like their own group of friends at school.

It’s no wonder Barbie’s image is used on over 45 consumer product categories, from clothing, shoes, accessories and linen, to stationery, games, magazines, books, sporting goods, consumer electronics and even food items.

Wherever children across the world see Barbie’s image, they don’t see a doll, but rather a world of limitless possibilities and opportunities. Barbie is a brand that celebrates the power of imaginative play, and empowers children – especially young girls – to dream big.

In South Africa alone, over 10 million units of Barbie emblazoned consumer products were sold in 2017, from clothing lines reminding kids that It’s Great to Be a Girl, and encouraging them to Make Things Happen, to school bags, stationery and scatter cushions reminding them to Dream BIG, Think the Unthinkable, and Always Show your Sparkle.

The evolution continues

 The celebration of Barbie’s 59th anniversary in March brings with it a host of new goodies for girls from all walks of life, from new dolls in the Fashionista range that better reflect the world girls see around them and bring imaginative play even closer to home; to new clothing ranges, linen lines, jewellery, accessories and sporting goods – all championing Barbie’s go getter attitude.

Today, the bedrooms, toy boxes, closets and pencil cases of girls around the world are bulging with Barbie branded goodies, serving as a constant reminder that there is no dream too big, no wish too wild, no ambition too elaborate – imagine the possibilities! #YouCanBeAnything

My whole philosophy of Barbie was that through the doll, the little girl could be anything she wanted to be. Barbie always represented the fact that a woman has choices” Ruth Handler, Barbie Creator

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Italian Baby Products Leaders Return With The Latest Model Stroller For 2018, The Foppapedretti Bikini

For over 70 years Foppapedretti has been synonymous with quality, function and safety – and this year sees the Italian-based company releasing their brand new stroller/car seat combo into the world of baby travel gear – the Foppapedretti Bikini.

With world-famous travel gear products such as the 3-Chic and the Piuleggero already in the SA market through Prima Baby, the Bikini answers the modern woman’s request for convenience, trend and quality, whilst still maintaining the compact combo-style approach to travel gear systems.

Foppapedretti Bikini

And the Bikini offers just that:

  • Stroller seat/carry cot combo
  • Chassis
  • Car Seat
  • Diaper Bag

Also included in this beautiful combo is a foot muff, storage basket, rain cover, reversible options for the seats and all the adjustability to keep baby at ultimate comfort levels.

ABOUT FOPPAPEDRETTI –  A DELIGHTFUL STORY

Foppapedretti was formed 70 years ago by the Italian Ezio Foppa Pedretti – a young man with a fierce passion for wood.

It was 1945, and Ezio was spending all his time dedicating to crafting children’s toys from off-cuts of wood from his uncle’s factory.  By 1946, the determined young carpenter had enrolled the help of his sister, brother and mother and started up the Foppapedretti Toy Factory.

The rest is history as the company grew from strength to strength, expanding to embrace other materials and aspects of a child’s development, yet they are still today one of the leading makers in authentic wooden toy products.

See more of their story at https://www.foppapedretti.it/it.

The Bikini is available is a powerful grey and a funky green at www.takealot.com, www.loot.com, www.purplepepperz.com, www.sosobabies.co.za, www.thebabyzone.co.za, Hamleys stores and selected Kids Emporium stores.

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Want to meet Thando?

I’ll admit it, I still have some of my childhood toys. I kept them because they mean something to me and they still look good.

When I attended the Prima Toys Christmas launch last year I felt like a kid on Christmas Day… there were new toys, revamped toys from my childhood and something with an African flavour…

Her name is Thando

There they were, the next generation Baby Love Dolls. They could talk and came in different skin tones – making them more relatable. Thando stood out, she was made for the South African market with the right skin tone and speaking Zulu + English!

I believe in mother tongue education, learning a second or third language and that every little girl should have a doll that reflects them. So I was blown away… here was baby Thando and she spoke 2 languages!

Thando meets Lexa

It’s always fun to introduce Lexa to new toys – and when Thando spoke for the first time… I could see just how much that interested Lexa.

I showed her a few times where to press and then Thando was out of my hands and being dragged along by one arm by a little girl. Every so often while I sit and work in my home office I hear a Zulu/English doll and Lexa’s babbling – and I smile.

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Quicksilver Outlet (Johannesburg)

This is a cool outlet… since the Billabong outlet in Woodmead Value Mart closed down (sad). You can find the Quicksilver outlet at the Brightwater Commons/Randburg Waterfront/or whatever they are now. It is on the side where the gym is.

Be warned, there is lots of construction happening there now.

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