"The Bear Party Lady!"

We're moving

2008-02-02T11:42:00.001-08:00

Come visit us over at FunOnTheArk.com for the newest updates!

Mom's Love Shopping!

2007-11-16T13:00:00.000-08:00

My friend Chele over at Mom's Love Shopping and I are working together to make your holiday shopping just a little easier this year. And you can win a fabulous Hope Bear just by entering to win! It's easy and it's free.

So how can you win?

Sign up for my birthday club using the form to the right with the special code: SHOP
Share Moms Love Shopping and this contest with your friends by creating a blog post linking back to the Momsloveshopping.com blog post and linking to the this post or my Noah's Ark website as well (link to http://www.funontheark.com).
If you don’t have a blog, tell at least 5 friends and family members after signing up for the club and then leave a comment on Chele's blog HERE to let her know that you told 5 friends!

That's it! Sign up and share - and you'll be officially entered! Here's hoping YOU win!

Mattel Toy Recall

2007-09-25T12:24:00.000-07:00

I recently found this post by Katja Presnal below and thought it was an excellent read! Enjoy:

Be smart about the toy recalls! Mattel fights back - so should you

It's been a toy recall after a toy recall. The latest recall making parents across the nation nervous is the Simplicity Crib recall - three babies have died because of poor hardware and crib design.

While the toy safety hearings at the Senate are still going, at least some news of the latest recall mania have come out. The University of Manitoba business school in Winnipeg, Canada has studied the 550 toy recalls reported by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) since 1988, and the study result shows that 77 percent of recalls, were as a result of problems attributed to design flaws - not manufacturing issues.

While it still seems that the lead in the toys was a result of greedy business men, the rest of the recalls were made because of poor design.

While we, concerned parents, have been blaming everything from the Chinese to corporate CEOs, I'd like you to think about what YOU can do.

Pointing fingers is like a barking dog - it won't hurt you, but it gets annoying after a while. I've started getting annoyed of myself by saying too many times how disgusted I am by the greed of big companies.

The good thing is that we can make a difference.

Many Moms like myself have been concerned about China-made products, and are concerned trusting big companies like Mattel again. There is talk we should start making our own toys, like in the old days.

One site, Mums the Wurd teamed up with a Canadian toy manufacturer, Natural Pod, to raise awareness of safer toys. Nature's Pod produces toys in North-America, out of wood, felt and other natural materials.

I personally think less is more, and much rather spend more for good quality toys like the ones from Natural Pod, which I know will last longer and are safer for my children. Well, except my children still play with the same wooden blocks my mother bought me, when I was growing up in Scandinavia. (My old Barbies are long gone.)

My mother always said "we can't afford to buy cheap". Not that we were poor, but not that we were rich either. What she meant was, purchasing a well-made item will last longer, and in the long run it will come less expensive than purchasing a new cheap one to replace the old broken one. Not to even mention the environmental cost of all those Dollar Store items that last for a day.

How many times you have thought "well, it was only a couple of bucks, if it breaks, we'll buy a new one"?

How about starting to think differently?

Children don't need a lot of toys. And I'm against most of the toys Mattel makes anyway. Too much stimulation, too little use of imagination. Mattel/Fisher-Price have used their imagination for complex toys, so children do not have to think.

Don't be fooled by great marketing.

Baby Einsteins and other so called educational toys and videos are not as educating as they promise.

Moms, Dads, Grands and Aunties, don't get mad at me for saying this, but it is about time for us to start using our noodle.

The only way to receive the toys our children deserve, is to stop buying the toys big giants like Mattel market nowadays. I know, it's the TV and the constant commercials to blame, and your child begging for the latest Mattel-creations she saw on TV.
How about less TV?

While Elmo might do a pretty good job teaching the letter S, you can do it better. You spending time with your child will create life long memories and a healthy and loving growing environment for today.

Also, we can not just blame toy companies if the toy malfunctions. We need to supervise our children playing. We can also buy smarter, and test the products ourselves. Of course there is no way to see that the toy has lead in it, but we can ask other questions. Does the toy have parts that might come loose? Has it been recalled? Does it have long straps in which my child can get strangled? I don't put my child's safety into anyone else's hands, and you shouldn't either.

My child deserves better. So does yours.

Buy less. Buy better quality - buy heirloom quality. New isn't always better, the old comes with memories and stories.

It is our responsibility to raise happy, smart kids. Not just consumers.

What I found really interesting that half of the latest recalls made weren't actually because of the lead paint, even though the media first made it to sound like it was.

Half of the toys recalled were recalled because of they were falling apart and posing a choking hazard.

The magnetic parts inside the toys can fall out and if more than one magnet is swallowed, they can attract inside the body and cause intestinal perforation, infection or blockage which can be fatal.

It was a designing mistake, not manufacturing.

No, not trying to get points here for the Chinese. China is still the place where the poisonous dog food and toothpaste came from, and the toys with lead paint. Not to even mention what kind of environmental burden all those cargo planes (and the amount of jet fuel used) are for the Mother Earth. After all, China is the number one source of imports to the United States.

The word is out there that we'll hear more recalls and reasons in the next couple of weeks - after the hearings on toy safety on Capitol Hill are over.

How is Mattel doing?

I started looking back at some of the Mattel's recalls in the recent years, and also how their stock and revenue had been doing.

Mattel's stock was pretty steady since the beginning of 2001 until March 2005, when it started going down for a period of six months. By the way, Mattel recalled a Batman Batmobile in April 2004. Guess what? Their stock started going up. Recall press was just good for the business.

But Mattel's domestic sales started dropping in 2004, and by 2005 Mattel knew it had to start thinking of something new. Even though the total sales still rose from 2004 to 2005, the profits went down most likely due to increased manufacturing costs.

In October 2005 the Mattel stock took it's 5-year-low-point (14.75), and Mattel started fighting back. Live Barbie shows, new philanthrophic programs, and the company increased its previously announced share repurchase program, and purchased new technologies for the new generation toys like The Fisher-Price InteracTV™ Learning System. And I would guess: re-organizing manufacturing to lower the cost.

Happy times started for Mattel, sales rose significantly, and the stock took it's 9-year peak (28.30) on April 2007. Then it started going down. But not as significantly as you would think of in the light of all the latest recalls. The first Mattel recall was August 14th, and their stock went down 10% after that, and was at it's lowest on September 10th (21.17). All this press hasn't been that bad for Mattel though. The stock started rising again, and acually was higher (23.94) last Friday than it was a day before the recalls (23.57).

Business people say that it doesn't matter what people talk about you, as long as they talk. My short financial analysis makes me think that this costly recall might become a profitable venture for Mattel in the long run.

There are people who think "poor Mattel" - it was the Chinese who did this to us. Mattel apologized to consumers. Then the Chinese got upset. No worries, Mattel apologized to the Chinese - and made themselves look like the good guy again - the good guys always say they are sorry, right?

So Mattel is working really hard to earn your trust again. I can't wait to see the sales numbers of the last quarter to see how well Mattel is doing gaining this trust back.

More press releases, more apologizes.
More new toys. Bigger advertisements, more TV commercials.

Mattel is working really, really hard to get you to buy their toys this Holiday season. Why don't I just quote Mattel's CEO, Mr. Eckert: "My number one goal is to make sure that this holiday season's toys are the safest ever."

The Holiday Season, the jolliest season of the year in the toy industry, and Mattel counts on you to make it a happy and profitable one.

Are you making it profitable for Mattel?
Or are you starting to do things differently?

You've got the power.

Thanks Katja - here's the link to the original post and see her source links if you'd like to take more action.

Fun Kid's Birthday Party Idea - A Parachute

2007-09-22T06:49:00.000-07:00

Many thanks to my friend Brenda for this easy and inexpensive activity for a birthday party. Purchase a large play parachute like the ones below:

and then have a Noah's Ark Workshop party or have the kids bring their stuffed animals. Pile all the stuffed animals onto the parachute and have the kids pull and throw and bounce them around. Easy and fun and the kids will love it!

And...it's very inexpensive!

Bananas About Books

2007-07-27T06:35:00.000-07:00

I created a Squidoo page for the Bananas About books program and wanted to put a sign up form here too. Click HERE for more information about the program and then come on back here to sign up below:

Thursday fun!

2007-07-25T17:32:00.000-07:00

My friend Crystal turned me on to this "Thursday Thirteen" site so it inspired me to create a list on my Squidoo site about 13 birthday party themes. You can check it out by clicking the link button below:

Click through to see the list

The fun thing about the Squidoo list is that other people can vote the list up and down depending on which "theme" they think is the most fun. Give it a try!

Another Collector's Club - Buttercookie

2007-07-23T11:14:00.001-07:00

Here's the newest collector's club baby! This is Buttercookie sporting his new Uncle Sam outfit! So cute and looks just like our original sized buttercookie bear too!

You can join the collector's club too and get a limited edition miniature version of our animals delivered right to your door every 8 weeks or so! So much fun!

Click HERE to join or contact me for more details!

Collecting collectible stuffed animals is a great first hobby for kids because they get excited about getting them but they also start to see the value of something that's considered "collectible". So although they'll want to "play" with their new Noah Baby every time, and they can by putting in the rainbow star, filling out the birth certificate and dressing him, you can help them see how they can keep him nice, keep his tags on, etc., to keep the collectible value. Or, even better, get two each time and keep one for the collectible value and use the other for a wonderful friend to love and play with that can have his tags cut, etc!

Want to find out more...

2007-07-17T07:37:00.000-07:00

about how the Noah's Ark Workshop business works? Take a listen to my interview with Kelly McCausey on WAHMTalkRadio.com. We talked about the business and why it might be something you'd want to look at as a business for yourself. It was great fun!

CLICK HERE
to listen to my interview about the Noah's Ark Workshop business opportunity on WAHM Talk Radio!

Monday Birthday Tips - Great Snack Containers

2007-07-16T12:50:00.001-07:00

Every Monday I'll try to post a quick birthday tip. I was inspired to do Monday tips by my friend Marie again! Thanks for keeping me "blog accountable" Marie!!

Here's a great tip from my mom-in-law for serving snacks at your large birthday party. Use coffee filters (the flat Mr. Coffee shaped ones not the cone filters). They're easy, inexpensive, won't break and you can just scoop them right into the trash when the party is over!

I use this for all my outdoor parties now too. We put goldfish, pistachios, M&Ms etc at all the different tables outside at the parties. That way I can set out several small "bowls" so the guests can munch on the run and not always have to come back to the main table for a handful of snacks. It works great!

How about you - Any good birthday quick birthday party tips to share?

Friday Favorite - Cubby Bear

2007-07-13T15:48:00.000-07:00

Each Friday (or whenever I remember) I'll highlight one of our stuffed animals and why it's my favorite (thanks for the idea Marie from Mommy Community).

Today I want you to see Cubby - one of our Noah Grands and definitely one of my favorites. Cubby is sooooo adorable, pure white fur with sweet eyes and the softest fur around. His squeeze factor is at a 10+.

I've found that Cubby is a big seller not just with kids but with adults. There's something about him that draws the "kids of all ages" thing. Just look at him!!! And he's 100x better in person!

Want your own Cubby Bear? Visit my shop at www.funontheark.com

The Great Noah's Ark Workshop animal giveaway

2007-07-07T11:59:00.000-07:00

Some of you know that we've been working with our sister blog, CrittersWhoCare.com
to give away an animal a day for a good cause, to a need child, etc. It's been fun!

The girls and I recently packed up a bunch of "no longer available" Noah's Ark Workshop animals to be given here locally to a couple of hand picked shelters and children's wards in the hospital. I'm looking forward to seeing the kids faces when we walk in with these animals. So fun!

Do you know of a news story near you of a child who might have lost a parent, be in the hospital, etc., that would enjoy one of our give-a-ways? Please send the news clipping URL to our CrittersWhoCare.com team and we'll be happy to consider it.

Thanks in advance!

I'm Bananas... are you?

2007-06-30T08:21:00.000-07:00

Are you ready for another great program from Noah's Ark Workshops?

This fall welcome our new Bananas About Books ® reading program. Help kids in your homeschool or classroom to read more books with our fabulous new reward program for your school. Ask me for more information and a school packet so we can get your school involved today!

Noah Baby Club

2007-06-26T08:44:00.000-07:00

Look what came in the mail today!

It's the first in the series of collectible Noah Baby Club stuffed animals. These adorable collectibles are the exact duplicates of our full size plush Noah's Ark workshop animals.

They come with a travel case, passport and birth certificate and star.
So cute.

And when you sign up for our unlimited membership, every 8 weeks a new Noah Baby collectible will arrive on your door ready to dress and love. What a great gift for someone you love...the gift that keeps on giving.

Find out more at www.noahbabyclub.com or contact me for more information!

Isn't this a fun way to see...

2007-06-07T20:34:00.000-07:00

some of our great Noah's Ark Workshop products? You can creat a fun slide show of your child's birthday party and post it on your family blog or website. Isn't it great?

Work together...

2007-05-25T05:09:00.001-07:00

Because I have a minimum party requirement for my Noah's Ark Workshop events occasionally I'll find a birthday mom who just doesn't want to spend my minimum. I stumbled on an idea yesterday while looking through some parenting magazines and thought...hey, that could work!

What if two moms got together and did a combo birthday party... celebrating both of their kids' birthdays together at the party. They could each invite less kids (and hence pay for less kids) and still be able to meet the minimum requirement. Easy!

Great books for your birthday party reading or for everyday

2007-05-21T18:24:00.000-07:00

My friend and Noah's Ark Workshop crew member Angie shared some GREAT books with me a couple weeks ago and so I ordered them. They came in yesterday and we were laughing and enjoying them all day today! :-) Now understand that my daughters are teenagers and these books are geared toward children but we LOVED them all... read them through several times and have shared them with Dad! :-)

Check them out at the library or get the hardcover version for your home library. They're fabulous!

Click, Clack, Moo-Cows that Type by Doreen Cronin

Giggle, Giggle, Quack and Dooby, Dooby, Moo are follow up stories with the same characters.

My Lucky Day by Keiko Kaska

Wild About Books by Judy Sierra is an adorable poem book about a librarian who sets up a library at the zoo and the animals love it. Check out the "insect haiku"... we're still laughing

We loved Stick by Steve Breen. Such an adorable ending and the illustrations are so sweet!

Spring birthdays!

2007-05-09T17:47:00.000-07:00

I posted over at the TwoMomsInABlog site about a fun idea for some spring birthday parties. I love spring and flowers and just enjoying nature for a simple birthday party. Check it out here and let me know what you think!

:-)

Big News in the Birthday Party World

2007-04-26T05:14:00.000-07:00

CRESTWOOD, Ill.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Noah's Ark Animal Workshop, the Crestwood, IL based traveling 'make your own stuffed animal' direct sales company, announces the acquisition of similar styled company "Stuff-A-Friend". The acquisition solidifies Noah's Ark position as the leader in the market of mobile stuffed animal workshops, and now boasts over 12,000 independent representatives throughout the United States and Canada.

"It is exciting to be able to reach a multitude of cities throughout the country!" said Dina Amico-Kriescher, founder and president of Noah's Ark Animal Workshop. "By strengthening our position in the market, our representatives have a better opportunity to earn income, while people everywhere now have the ability to experience in the tender thrill of creating their own stuffed animal."

Noah's Ark Animal Workshop is the original traveling "Stuff-N-Fluff" Animal Workshop where children and parents come together to stuff, name and love the animal of their choice and personalize their new friend with outfits, accessories and sound chips. With Stuff-A-Friend's similar concept, the acquisition was a natural fit for both companies. Stuff-A-Friend, the Valencia, CA based company, formerly owned by the Beverly Hills Teddy Bear Company, is elated with the level of support Noah's Ark is able to offer their representatives.

The Stuff-A-Friend representatives will now be able to experience the same benefits that Noah's Ark reps receive, including an abundant line of unique products, and a customized rewards plan that awards vacations, cruises, financial benefits and more. The Noah's Ark business model offers a one-of-a-kind business compensation plan that assists reps in local and national team building, with a generous income opportunity.

Because Noah's Ark Animal Workshop is a traveling "Stuff-N-Fluff" Workshop, it is convenient for Noah's Ark to "set up shop" at home birthday parties, baby showers and playgroups, and for groups that would otherwise not have the opportunity to participate in a unique event like this -- groups such as preschool and day care centers, scouting troops, summer camps, children's hospitals and boys and girls clubs.

For more information, call me company at 1-877-NOAH-BIZ or visit the my Web site at www.funontheark.com.

A Happy B-day Tea

2007-04-20T06:22:00.000-07:00

We spent the most delightful day yesterday with our good friends celebrating my oldest daughter's birthday. Her best friend, Emily, surprised her with a fancy tea party birthday that could rival any "retail" tea room around! She titled it "A Happy B-day Tea" and centered everything on the adorable beehive cake that she made, complete with candy bees. It was adorable.

She made some cute nametags with rubber stamped bees on them, served a wonderful menu of scones with devonshire cream, ham and mango pinwheel roll ups, banana bread, mini hot dogs in buns and pita "pizza" with hummus, basil and tomato. 3 of our favorite teas rounded out the meal and it was fabulous!!!

The beehive cake was really too beautiful to cut up and eat, but we did it anyway and it was delicious! Yum yum yum!

We love home birthday parties and this one was elegant and wonderful! Thanks for a special day!

Isn't Cake and Ice Cream still FUN?

2007-04-16T05:30:00.000-07:00

I saw this story online at an Orlando paper. 
What do you think?
Annette

--------------------
Peer pressure pumps up parties
--------------------

Laura Brost and Mark Chediak
Sentinel Staff Writers

April 14, 2007

A balloon-covered ceiling will greet Kaitlyn Buddemeyer when she walks into the
Nickelodeon Family Suites hotel room on her 10th birthday next weekend.

Hand in hand with three friends who will be along for the milestone party,
Kaitlyn will visit the hotel's food court, play on the water slides, be treated
to a manicure and finish off the day snug in a colorful suite with popcorn to
top it off.

It's a birthday party far different from one that involves Pin the Tail on the
Donkey and a few cupcakes. But birthday parties that are more akin to mega
events don't seem to be out of the ordinary for today's children.

"I would have a sleepover at my house," said Kaitlyn's mom, Krystyn Buddemeyer
of Winter Garden, who borrowed the idea for a party at the Lake Buena Vista-area
hotel from a friend. "But I think that, honestly, the kids would be bored there
the way the parties are today."

To be sure, parents have been throwing birthday parties at pizza places, bowling
alleys and other kids' hot spots for years.

But these days, moms and dads say they feel more pressed for time and pressured
to keep up. They're increasingly willing to spend a little more on a party for
junior if it means less hassle, work and cleanup for them -- and that their
party will be as spectacular as the one the neighbors threw.

All this party planning, party hosting and gift giving means one thing: big
spending. Americans likely spend billions of dollars a year on birthdays. And
when children are the guests of honor, the costs can really soar.

One blog post on a Web site that urges parents to curb their spending mentions a
Windermere party that cost more than $200,000 for a 7-year-old's birthday.

Buddemeyer estimates she'll spend "$800, minimum."

Industry of birthdays

Not surprisingly, an entire industry has sprung up to cater to the demand, with
businesses promoting everything from video games to inflatable slides as the
best party option. And that doesn't even include the theme parks, where birthday
packages at Walt Disney World and SeaWorld Orlando can run hundreds of dollars
or more.

"Birthdays self-generate," said Shylo Sorensen, co-founder of Beat the Box in
Winter Park, which boasts more than 150 video games on big-screen TVs and
theater-style chairs for players. "If you do well and the parents talk about it,
it's like free marketing."

Sorensen said parties have become a bigger slice of his business in part because
parents enjoy not having to worry about the details of hosting the event. "They
can sit back and have a glass of wine," he said.

The cost of celebrating at Beat the Box: from $5.25 a person to $250 an hour for
a private party.

At Farris and Foster's Chocolate Factory in Orlando's Baldwin Park neighborhood,
parents and children pack the Willy Wonkalike store on weekends for
chocolate-making parties that cost $10 to $11 a person.

"It seems like the parties are bigger than I remember when my kids were growing
up," owner Jon Foster Lanenga said.

Suzie Sublette, 41, took her daughter Alex and Alex's friends last week to Club
Libby Lu, where rock-star-style makeovers for young girls can cost up to $35 a
person. Sublette chose the Florida Mall store for the fun -- the girls dressed
up in glitz and glitter for Alex's ninth birthday -- as well as the convenience
and time saved.

"Nowadays, we're just too busy," said Sublette, whose husband, Bill, is a former
Republican member of the Florida House of Representatives. "There's very little
time anymore to clean your house, shop for all the stuff. Kids today are much
more precocious than we were."

At SliderZ Adventure Center, a 10,000-square-foot facility in Oviedo filled with
inflatable houses, slides and moonwalks, birthday parties make up about 90
percent of sales. The cost to throw a party ranges from $150 to $450.

Co-owner Darcy Umstead, mother of three, said she thinks the parties at her
facility are sometimes more about the parents than the kids.

"I would say a lot of it is [pressure]," Umstead said. "Sometimes it's not about
the kids anymore. . . . There is that occasional family where they're trying to
measure up to Mr. and Mrs. Jones -- and that's where it loses its focus on the
kids."

'Can be really damaging'

Lynn Hartle, associate professor of early-childhood education at the College of
Education at the University of Central Florida, said all the emphasis on the
material side of parties could end up doing more harm than good.

"They can be really damaging in terms of children's outlook about what's
important in life," Hartle said.

The quest for bigger and better celebrations led one Midwestern professor to
co-found Birthdays Without Pressure, a group that helps parents find ways to
respond to social pressure and tone down parties.

William Doherty, a professor at the College of Education and Human Development
at the University of Minnesota, said he has heard from hundreds of parents
across the country who are concerned that birthday parties have gotten out of
control.

"It's an arms race -- and it's driven by a small percentage of parents who push
the envelope deliberately," Doherty said.

It was on Doherty's Web site -- BirthdaysWithoutPressure.org -- that the lavish
Windermere party showed up in a blog entry. The posting described a $250,000
event taking place in a rented ballroom. Highlights included limousine rides to
the event as well as helicopter and horse rides.

Oviedo resident Cheryl Hittel didn't spend quite as much on a recent party at
SliderZ for her daughter Sierra's eighth birthday, but she said the price tag
still seemed steep.

"This is an expensive party," Hittel, 45, said, estimating she spent about $200
for 18 kids to bounce, open bags of goodies and eat pizza and cake.

But along with the convenience of not having a party in her home, Hittel sees
other reasons for such parties.

"[It's] the socially acceptable thing to do. This is how it is now," she said.
"I don't see it going back to having cake and ice cream."

Laura Brost can be reached at lbrost@orlandosentinel.com or 407-420-6063. Mark
Chediak can be reached at 407-420-5240 or mchediak@orlandosentinel.com.

Copyright (c) 2007, Orlando Sentinel

Visit OrlandoSentinel.com

Have your own birthday party business!

2007-04-13T12:22:00.000-07:00

I just got word that Noah's Ark Workshops has extended their special $29 starter kit. So if you've ever thought of starting a VERY FUN birthday party business yourself with your kids fill in the form below and I'll send you some quick, no obligation information on how it works! It's really fun!!!

From Trash to Treasures....more on homemade decorations

2007-04-11T21:07:00.000-07:00

As I said before, I love birthday parties at home. Such great memories. Here's another fun and easy decor idea that came through my inbox from family fun magazine that would make for a great craft for the kids to do at a girl's spring birthday party or a teddy bear tea party!

Take empty cardboard egg cartons and cut them into individual cups. Paint the cups inside and out with fun spring colors like yellow, lilac, pink, etc. Use a pencil tip to poke a hole through the bottom of the cups and insert a straw (if you can get green straws with the little bendy thing on the end) into the hole for the stem. Put two cups on each straw for a pretty colorful flower. Place several egg cup flowers into a vase for a bouquet or cut the straw and wear them as a corsage!

Fun, easy and CHEAP! And the kids will love it!

Old fashioned decorations!

2007-04-10T14:40:00.000-07:00

Sometimes we tend to forget the oldies but goodies when we're planning our birthday parties for kids. Because we can just run to the local Walmart or Target and get prepackaged everything we forget the fun of making homemade anything!

Here are some fun decoration ideas for your next party...fun to make and fun to see!

1. Paper Chains - Just cut different colored papers into long strips, glue the first strip together to form a ring, then take the next strip, slip it through the ring and glue it into a ring and so on. Use bright colored construction paper and go on forever!!!

2. Crepe streamers - take two fun colors of crepe streamers, tape them together on one end and then twist them into a spiral. Hang immediately to keep it spiral. Love this one!!

3. Balloons - buy them, blow them up and hang them on the birthday child's chair and all over the walls. Even throw them all over the floor!

4. Mobile - Create various shapes from construction paper (or gold and silver cardstock), punch a small hole in one end, string a string through the hole and hang the shapes at various lengths from a wire coat hanger that's been decorated with pipe cleaners, tinsel or crepe paper!

5. Tissue Paper Poms - Use a drinking glass to cut about 8 pieces of colored tissue paper into circles. Stack the circles on each other and then fold in half and then quarters. Sew the point of each corner with a piece of knotted thread and then open out each circle of paper. If you leave some of the thread hanging you can use the thread to hang these in doorways and windows, etc. or use floral wire to make a "pom bouquet".

Bringing back memories? There's nothing like a fun birthday at home to create a lasting memory for years to come! That's why I love my Noah's Ark Workshop business... we bring the party to the home of the birthday child. Home parties are wonderful!

So pull out the construction paper, glue, tape, streamers and more and get to fun and work! Enjoy!

Tips for a Great Teddy Bear Party

2007-04-06T05:19:00.000-07:00

Here's an article that I posted here last year but I thought you'd enjoy it again!

A great teddy bear birthday party is not a difficult thing to pull of with a little creativity and some things that you can find round your house! Here are some quick birthday party ideas for making the party "beary" fun!

Invitation ideas
Buy some inexpensive rubber stamps with bear images and let your little one make homemade invitations. Or cut a piece of cardstock into the shape of a bear and write your invitation on that. Free clipart can be found for this purpose in many places on the Internet. Make sure you include the request for all the guests to bring their own bear to the party too!

Decoration ideas
When kids think of bears they usually think of honey and bees, so a big hit for decorations is LOTS of yellow and black balloons and streamers. If possible have various teddy bears all around the room as well to tie in the theme.

Menu ideas
When you're hosting a bear event even your menu should be centered on teddy. Here's a cute way to turn Peanut Butter and Jelly sandwiches into a beary fun treat!
Spread your peanut butter and jelly onto eight whole-wheat hamburger buns. Now here's where the fun begins. Cut four of the eight buns in half. On a large tray or covered cookie sheet, arrange the buns into a shape of a teddy bear. For the tummy, put one whole bun and surround that with 4 half buns. Another whole bun becomes the head/face, with two half buns on the topsides of the head for the ears. Two whole buns become the legs and the final two half buns turn out off of the body to make arms. Garnish the face/head bun with raisin eyes and a strawberry slice mouth and you've got a bear! Use a separate tray for additional sandwiches and watch for all the smiles! Mix some honey and yogurt together for a great dip for cut fruit and your menu is complete!

Bear Party - Activities and craft ideas
Crafts with a bear theme abound but here are some quick ideas for your bear birthday party. Make a paper bear chain (paper dolls) that the kids can color and decorate. Use paper plates to make paper bear masks. Bead a bear collar (necklace). Take a picture with all the kids and their own bears and decorate a simple scrapbook page to honor the occasion. Decorate teddy bear cookies with colored icing and various decorations.

Bear Party - Game ideas
Pin the honey pot on the teddy bear - if you have an artist in the family, draw a large teddy bear on poster board and cut out honey pots. Blindfold each child individually and see if they can put the honey pot into the teddy bear's hand.

Hot Teddy Bear - like hot potato only pass the teddy bear to the music. When the music stops, the person with the teddy bear is out.

Toss the honey pot - draw a large bear head with an open mouth on poster board and lay it on the floor. Using yellow beanbags as the "honey" each child throws the bag to see if it will land in the bear's mouth.

Take home gift ideas
Purchase yellow lunch bags (available at party stores) and decorate with bee stickers. Fill with gummy bears, teddy grahams, miniature stuffed teddy bears and fun bear jewelry. Or if you want to go all out, hire a stuffed animal party planner to come and have each child make their own stuffed animal as part of the party.

A fun request

2007-04-05T05:28:00.000-07:00

I got an email from a Noah's Ark Workshop customer this week that was so fun! Her son LOVES vacuums so she wanted some vacuum birthday party ideas! What a great mom!!!!

Honestly she stumped me but when she came back with the idea of using new vacuum bags (new ones only ladies - lol) as the goodie/treat bags then my brain kicked in. She also mentioned the larger vacuum bags with vacuum attachments as the centerpieces. TOO FUN!

1. The Vacuum birthday party cake - Serve Dirt Cake

2. A birthday party game: Play plug the vac in the outlet (not with a real outlet silly... draw them) - like pin the tail on the donkey

3. Another birthday party game: Use a real vacuum with a clean bag and play a blindfolded game where you throw little foil balls on the ground and they have to take turns sucking up the balls. (kind of like the opposite of the pinata thing - ooooh wait, even better have them suck up candy pieces! YEAH!)

4. A fun birthday party activity: Search the thrift stores for a couple of old canister vacs and use the canister as a "car" for driveway vac races.

5. Another birthday party game: Use the "dump" lever of the newer bagless models of vacuums to do a relay race where they fill up the canister and then dump it into a bucket.

LOL! Maybe I better stick to Teddy Bear parties with Noah's Ark Workshops instead??

Noah's Ark Collector's Club

2007-03-28T09:39:00.000-07:00

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Annette Yen
Crew Member
Noah’s Ark Animal Workshop of Algonquin
847-594-6152
annette34@funontheark.com

Noah’s Ark Animal Workshop® Offers Exclusive Collectors Club

Direct seller introduces amazing, limited-edition plush ‘babies’ to its collection

Algonquin, IL (Grassroots Newswire) March 29, 2007 -- As the American International Toy Fair takes place, collectors and toy fanatics across the country will be waiting anxiously for the newest toys and entertainment products. Noah’s Ark Animal Workshop® of Algonquin is getting in on the new toy buzz and introducing an exclusive Collectors Club for plush collectors everywhere.

Noah’s Ark Collectors Club features a limited edition of Noah Baby collectibles–eight-inch stuffed and beanie-filled miniature plush replicas of Noah’s Ark original collection, wearing handmade costumes.

“Plush collectors are going to love this unique line of Noah’s Ark animals because they have both collect-ability prestige and a unique blend of memory making fun,” said Annette Yen, an independent crew member for the direct seller Noah’s Ark Workshop® in Algonquin. “As a Collectors Club member, you get first dibs on the Noah Baby collectibles before they sail away.”

Each collectible is given a Rainbow Wish Star to wish upon and insert, authentic Collectors Club Birth Certificate and an exclusive Noah Baby collectible display case. Included on the Noah Baby collectibles are their very own collectors tags, series stamp, and embroidered Rainbow Star, all which are a very important part of the collectibles and their value.

“This Collectors Club series combines the most lovable aspects of the original Noah’s Ark Animal friends, into one fabulous Noah Baby collectible,” Annette said. “There are 6 Noah Babies scheduled to be released in this series, including Baby Mojo Monkey, Baby Cubby Bear and Baby Coco Puppy, which are among everyone’s favorites!”

For more information on Noah’s Ark Collectors Club, please contact Annette Yen at 847-594-6152.

About Noah’s Ark Animal Workshop
Noah’s Ark Animal Workshop® was formed in 2003 when founder, Dina Amico-Kriescher, recognized the need for quality, fun, and affordable home birthday parties. Once she began her personal Noah’s Ark Animal Workshop® business, conducting Workshops throughout the southwest suburbs of Chicago, she quickly saw the need to expand Noah’s Ark Animal Workshop®. In 2004, with support and professional assistance from her family, Noah’s Ark Animal Workshop®, Inc. was launched, giving families everywhere the ability to create a boatload of memories, while also giving women the opportunity to make their dreams happen through a flexible and rewarding career! Noah’s Ark offers a variety of workshops that focus on a wide range of themes, such as the Bella Bee Workshop. Today Noah’s Ark Animal Workshop is one of the fastest growing party plan companies in the nation.

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How much will YOU spend on your child's birthday this year?

2007-03-14T06:07:00.000-07:00

Noah's Ark Workshop birthday parties average around $22 per child (you don't want those stuffed animals running around naked do you??) so I was taken a back when I read this blog post today:

... "'In San Diego, Jacqueline Jones recently rang in her fifth year
with a $1,000 mermaid-theme party. The fete, held at a community pool,
included a pinata, pizza, cake, juice boxes, customized goodie bags for
20 and a former beauty queen who arrived dressed head to toe as Ariel,
the Disney princess.'

$1,000 on a five year olds party. She goes
on to say “it’s worth it. A lot of my friends said I’m crazy, but I
mean, it’s for a memory she’ll have forever.”.   Obviously that
statement justifies it.   I don’t know how much the beauty queen cost,
but $1,000 is a little extreme for me.   Your daughter is 5 years old,
if you can’t come up with a party idea for a couple hundred dollars
that she will remember for the rest of her life then you obviously have
already set her expectations too high. " ...

Wow! $1000 on a birthday party. I've heard people spending more. To each his own I guess. Perhaps I'll contact this lady about hiring Noah's Ark workshops for her party next year???

Fun with Maddie!

2007-03-12T06:06:00.000-07:00

We had such a fun stuffed animal birthday party with our new friend Maddie who turned 7 on March 10th. She and her 11 friends gathered for a fun "animal theme" and invited us as the Noah's Ark Workshop portion. We brought our 4 favorite animals from our Noah's Ark Grands stuffed animals collection. They are so adorable and the kids (and parents) love them!

Maddie's mom was great and so gracious when we arrived a half hour late after sitting on the highway going 2 miles per hour for about 10 miles.

The kids made their animals and decorated animal tshirts. What a great job they did too...very colorful! And Maddie's mom had cupcakes with miniature animals on them to keep with the theme as well as little animal purses for all the girls as an extra take home gift! WOW... what a lucky bunch of kids!

Thanks Maddie for a great day and a wonderful party! And HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

The Ultimate Teddy Bear Tea Party

2007-03-05T18:10:00.000-08:00

We recently moved to a gorgeous property with some lovely huge trees and today was our day to investigate. Finally it was sunny so we donned our snow boots and stomped through the ice topped snow walking from tree to tree to see what we would discover. The best part was the wild coyote tracks all over the backyard but then we made a fabulous discovery... a HUGE evergreen that was like an umbrella underneath...so big we could stand up under the tree and not be seen on the outside.

All three of us said... TEA PARTY! It's big enough under there to put a little bistro table and four chairs...just perfect for a teddy bear tea party this spring. We can't wait!

Don't have a huge evergreen to sit under? No worries... find a nice tree in your own backyard or at the local park, bring a picnic blanket and a thermos of tea and cookies. Pack up your Noah's Ark Workshop teddy bears and have the ultimate teddy bear tea party this spring! Let me know about it if you do!

Princess Party Food!

2007-01-20T14:13:00.000-08:00

Birthday Party Recipes - 5 tips for the perfect Princess Party menu by Annette Yen

You're ready... your princess has invited the belles of the ball to the finest Princess Birthday Party of the year. You've purchased decorations, planned a few games and have some lovely take home gifts for your guests. Now it's time to plan the finest menu for your royal princess and her court. Let's make it so fabulous that the girls will remember this day when they're planning their future daughter's parties and one that will make your princess throw her hands around your neck and say, "Oh mom! You're the best ever!"

What follows are 5 tips for you in creating the menu of the decade for your princess birthday party.

1. Keep it simple. The last thing you need on a busy day is for you to be running around like crazy trying to make cherries flambé or tiramisu with crème fraise. However, with a little creative planning, you can make something spectacular and still be able to take photos of the lovely girls eating your birthday dainties. There are SO many recipes available at your fingertips that are not only delicious but easy to make with items you probably have in the house or can pick up in your local grocery store at minimal cost (another key!). One of my favorite recipe sites for quick recipes is http://www.freequickrecipes.com, or you can just punch a name of a recipe into your google search box and hundreds of recipes will pop up. Just keep it simple!

2. Presentation is everything. Think about it, mom. A peanut butter sandwich is nice, but, make that sandwich and cut it with petite cookie cutters into various princessly shapes and you have something spectacular. Even just cutting the sandwiches with a glass into a circle and then cutting the circles in half would work. Display them nicely on a glass plate with some red grapes or flowers and it's no longer just a boring sandwich but a delicacy that's a delight to look at AND eat.

3. Throw the "no sugar" rule out the window. Ok, I'll get hate mail for this one but c'mon mom! Your princess only has the bash of the century once a year, so break the rules a little and provide something sweet to eat. Balance it out with a lower sugar drink and other dainties that aren't sugar laden.

4. Make the drink pink! Pink lemonade, pink Kool-Aid, pink soda... anything pink in a clear plastic cup and you'll be the coolest mom on the block. Float a half of a strawberry in the cup and you may as well get a revolving door to your house. You'll be the hit of the neighborhood!

5. Work with a timeline and schedule for the day of the party. A checklist of what you'll be serving and when you need to pull it out of the freezer or fridge, what goes where, etc., and how long each thing takes will insure that you won't forget any of the details and insure that you won't go to open the fridge for a late night snack after your princess is in dream land and see the strawberries that you meant to put in the royal goblets!

The perfect, stress free Princess party menu is within reach, Mom. Just keep it simple, fancy, tasty and pink! Write out a checklist and you're all set for the finest party menu for your princess and her royal maidens!

Fun with Friendship and Bella Bee!

2007-01-16T06:07:00.000-08:00

We had a very fun birthday party on Monday with Kyra and her fabulous friends. She chose our Bella Bee party with the theme of friendship.

Kyra turned 7 and she and her friends were just delightful as they put on glitter glamour girl bubblegum blue friendship lipstick, body gel, nail gloss and glimmer stick and talked about how to be a good friend. I was really amazed at how articulate each of the girls were and how well they took the idea of friendship to heart. Later as they were opening presents together and a not so nice comment was made, the girls together commented "hey now, you're not being a good friend". They all giggled and had fun with it but the point was driven home.

That's what I love about the Bella Bee concept. We can really focus on these character traits while doing something the kids enjoy. They're relaxed and involved and the concepts sink in. I love it.

I'll post some pictures too once I get permission from her mom.

Another great party idea

2007-01-08T19:46:00.000-08:00

Too much fun! We did a Noah's Ark workshop party this weekend for an adorable little boy named Ian who was 2 years old. His mom is a party animal! She came up with the cutest idea for his party beyond our participation and I had to share it!

The theme of the party was "Planes, Trains and Automobiles" so she set up her family room like the inside of an airplane with her dining room chairs and tv trays set up in with 2 on one side and 3 on the other with an aisle in the middle... all facing forward like a plane. Then she went to work creating "airplane meals" for the guests in adorable handled lunch bags decorated with the theme. Each bag included a wrapped sandwich, bag of nuts, hand wipe and packaged plastic utencils and a wrapped cookie! What a great and inexpensive way to have a fun birthday party!

Whoo hoo to this birthday mom for being clever and creative!

2006-12-18T19:03:00.000-08:00

Quick tips for a great Teddy Bear Party! by Annette Yen

A great teddy bear party is not a difficult thing to pull of with a little creativity and some things that you can find round your house! Here are some quick ideas for making the party "beary" fun!

Invitation ideas
Buy some inexpensive rubber stamps with bear images and let your little one make homemade invitations. Or cut a piece of cardstock into the shape of a bear and write your invitation on that. Free clipart can be found for this purpose in many places on the Internet. Make sure you include the request for all the guests to bring their own bear to the party too!

Decoration ideas
When kids think of bears they usually think of honey and bees, so a big hit for decorations is LOTS of yellow and black balloons and streamers. If possible have various teddy bears all around the room as well to tie in the theme.

Menu ideas
When you're hosting a bear event even your menu should be centered on teddy. Here's a cute way to turn Peanut Butter and Jelly sandwiches into a beary fun treat!
Spread your peanut butter and jelly onto eight whole-wheat hamburger buns. Now here's where the fun begins. Cut four of the eight buns in half. On a large tray or covered cookie sheet, arrange the buns into a shape of a teddy bear. For the tummy, put one whole bun and surround that with 4 half buns. Another whole bun becomes the head/face, with two half buns on the topsides of the head for the ears. Two whole buns become the legs and the final two half buns turn out off of the body to make arms. Garnish the face/head bun with raisin eyes and a strawberry slice mouth and you've got a bear! Use a separate tray for additional sandwiches and watch for all the smiles! Mix some honey and yogurt together for a great dip for cut fruit and your menu is complete!

Bear Party - Activities and craft ideas
Crafts with a bear theme abound but here are some quick ideas for your bear birthday party. Make a paper bear chain (paper dolls) that the kids can color and decorate. Use paper plates to make paper bear masks. Bead a bear collar (necklace). Take a picture with all the kids and their own bears and decorate a simple scrapbook page to honor the occasion. Decorate teddy bear cookies with colored icing and various decorations.

Bear Party - Game ideas
Pin the honey pot on the teddy bear - if you have an artist in the family, draw a large teddy bear on poster board and cut out honey pots. Blindfold each child individually and see if they can put the honey pot into the teddy bear's hand.

Hot Teddy Bear - like hot potato only pass the teddy bear to the music. When the music stops, the person with the teddy bear is out.

Toss the honey pot - draw a large bear head with an open mouth on poster board and lay it on the floor. Using yellow beanbags as the "honey" each child throws the bag to see if it will land in the bear's mouth.

Take home gift ideas
Purchase yellow lunch bags (available at party stores) and decorate with bee stickers. Fill with gummy bears, teddy grahams, miniature stuffed teddy bears and fun bear jewelry. Or if you want to go all out, hire a stuffed animal party planner to come and have each child make their own stuffed animal as part of the party.

Fill in the form for party information

2005-05-14T16:05:00.000-07:00

Build your own Teddy Bear

2005-05-09T20:08:00.000-07:00

Build your Own Teddy Bear - with Noah's Ark Animal Workshops

Many of you have emailed and asked what it is that we do with our company. I'm glad you asked! We take the concept of the mall store where you can make your own stuffed animal, or build your own teddy bear, and bring it to YOUR location. So it's a travelling stuff and fluff animal party!

It's not just to build your own teddy bear either... we've got horses, cats, dogs, monkeys... all kinds of animals, clothing and accessories. And if you're outside of my location, I'll find you a crew member to facilitate your party, or you can order a "party in a box".

Want to know more? Email me or comment here! I'm happy to help!

Get ready to Build your own teddy bear, or other animal, today!

Annette

Birthday Party Planning

2005-05-05T12:43:00.000-07:00

As you all know the key to success of almost anything is good planning. The same goes for a fun child's birthday party. I put together a small ebooklet on Birthday Party Planning for my Noah's Ark Animal Workshops customers that walks through the process step by step. Still keeping it simple, this birthday party planning booklet helps just to make sure you cover all the bases to help make this a memorable day/event in the life of your child.

Interested? Email me at blog@sailingtosuccess.com and I'll send you a copy!

Until later-Annette

Child's Birthday Party Ideas

2005-05-02T14:47:00.000-07:00

I have two daughters and every year they come up with fun ideas for their birthday parties. When my oldest turned 3 we did a "Cinderella Princess Birthday Party". My husband, prince that he is, made a pumpkin coach out of plywood and everything. We lived in a townhouse then and I blew up hundreds (ok, an exaggeration but it sure felt like it) of balloons in gold and silver that were all over the "ballroom" floor. The kids loved it. Simple, easy (well, maybe the pumpkin coach wasn't easy but you get the idea). We did a Winnie the Pooh Birthday party one year for my youngest daughter. Again, simple, a couple of games, cake and ice cream...lots of pictures and great memories.

I prefer parties that are in your home. A LOT less expensive and usually a lot easier. That's one of the reasons we started doing our animal stuffing business - and we love it. We also did several trips to the Build a Bear mall stores for parties. We had a blast, don't get me wrong- but we can't do cake and ice cream in a mall store! :-).

I had fun making up a little ebook on planning a child's birthday party. Email me if you want a copy!

Another great week!

2005-04-30T15:52:00.000-07:00

I just love this business! I get to hear stories of new crew members who are meeting people and growing their business even before they get their starter kits! One gal, Tina, has a fabulous program going and it's just taking off like crazy. Regina in Texas had appointments and press releases ready to go even before her crew member number showed up on my report it seems! She called again today excited about meeting with 50 day care center leaders in her area! WOW! It's so fun! Laura, who joined the day after I did has over 130 in her group alone.... AMAZING! I love doing business with my friends!

I'm eager to get some reporting functions available via the home office, but until then I'm hunt and pecking my way through Excel to figure out what I need to know. Everything's a learning experience!

The DSWA has been a great resource site for me. If you're reading this and have never visited or joined, go to:
http://www.mydswa.org/member_program.asp?Affiliate=815
it's still new, but it's a fabulous source of information! I love it! Last month I decided to bite the bullet and become a lifetime member to show my support of the direct sales field in general. I'm excited to be part of a great group like this and can't wait to see what's ahead there! Check it out!

We did our first of many fundraisers this past week. We called it the "Mom and Me Stuff n Spa". The moms did a hand treatment in the dining room and the kids did the animals in the family room. A little chaotic, but VERY fun and we raised $200 for Carol's walk for breast cancer! We're doing something similar with a new friend from BeautiControl, Deb, and calling it Mojo, Mom and Me, where the kids make the Mojo monkey from Noah's Ark Animal Workshops while Deb takes the moms for the spa experience. Such fun. For that one we're helping raise funds for the 'Women Helping Others" Foundation. Thankfully our local retirement/assisted living community has offered to let us use their facilities for free to hold these events. They're great!

That's it for now! Have a great weekend!

How it all started...

2005-04-23T19:00:00.000-07:00

About 4 years ago my daughters and I discovered the stores in the malls where kids can build their own bears and the moment I walked in I said to myself, “now…if someone ever did something like this as a home party… I’m THERE!” Thankfully, someone did and even more thankfully, I found out about it not too long afterward! I can remember telling my neighbor about it at McDonalds and my girls hearing me. Their eyes lit up and on the way home in the car they both said… “Mom… you’re going to sign up for THAT business, aren’t you?”

Now, my girls know me well. I’m not shy about direct sales businesses. I’m passionate about the direct sales field in general and see it as a fabulous opportunity for moms to stay home with their kids full time while still providing some income to the family budget, getting some adult time and just having fun. I started in direct sales back in high school with door to door sales with Avon and have done similar types of businesses off an on since then - most seriously in the last 6 years with a great rubber stamp company. But when I find a product or an opportunity with a company that catches my eye, I’ve been known just to jump right in and give it a whirl just to see what might happen.

For the girls, however, this was much different. THEY were as excited about the possibility as I was. And that’s what clinched it for me. With other businesses their response to the newest “starter kit” arriving in the big brown truck was, “Another one, Mom?” With this it was…”When can WE have our first party, Mom?”

As a homeschooling mom, this is a dream come true …a chance to build a successful home business as a family. It’s not just me running out the door to do a home show, but the three of us packing up and going together to facilitate the events. Even my husband got excited. The girls help with every aspect of the business, from inventory, paperwork, financials. It fits perfectly with their schooling as they’re developing great business skills, practical mathematics, etc., as well as learning to interact with all age groups during the parties. It’s fabulous!

Besides all that, I love the fact that I am meeting women from all over the country that I never would have known about had it not been for this business opportunity. Already the group spans coast to coast with over 100 women (and some men too!) I love hearing the stories that they tell about their parties and how they are using this business to serve other people. I love how this business has gotten me and others out of our comfort zones to write something like this and share how wonderful it is to be a wife, mother and successful WAHM.

Just Starting Out...

2005-04-23T18:43:00.000-07:00

Ok, blogging... this is a new one! I can't even journal privately let alone for all the world to see. But my hope is to share a bit of my "business" journey with you all so you can see that YOU can do it too...

Hang tight with me and we'll learn this thing together!

I'm interested in more info!
Primary Email:
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Name:
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