October 2012

I updated Zoe's sizes. She is wearing at least a 5 in everything. She likes dresses very much. She could use: tights, dressy socks, & warm pajamas. She would also like some slippers, but it's hard to get shoes in the right size. She is wearing an 11 right now. It is a weird size that is between toddler & kid.

I edited the book list and added a couple more. We get books from the library and then she wants to keep them so I try to find good deals on Amazon when we come across something worth adding to our collection.

All of the toy suggestions are still valid. We haven't bought any of them over the past year and they are all still things that she would like to have. I saw a bicycle at Costco that we are going to get her. Any kind of art supplies, even a stack of white paper, is great.

Science kits are great to have - as long as they are age appropriate. Nothing toxic, flammable, or extremely messy. I do like the dinosaur digs & "gem" digs. Things that you put in water & watch grow. We could try one of these frog kits, too - they did this at preschool last year & then released it into a local pond. http://www.amazon.com/Dogs-Life-Caroline-R-Sherman/dp/0761462007/ref=sr_1_5?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1350577721&sr=1-5

update

Thanks Grandpa!
Zoe got some awesome gifts in the mail already - the Uncle Milton's Moon and the solar system, and the planetarium. WooHoo! We love them.

I will continue to post updates here and try to keep the lists current.

And I would like to mention that if anyone wants to send the the Pink Panther dvds it would be fantastic. Would you believe me if I told you that Zoe has watched them dozens and dozens of times [we stream them on Netflix]. She thinks they are hilarious. But most of them are 5 minutes long and you cannot set up a playlist on Netflix so every 5 minutes Zoe yells "Mom! Can I have more Pink Panther. PLLLLLEEEEEAAASSSSEEEEE?" and I have to come to the computer and push the Next Episode button. I am assuming that the DVDs would have a "play all" feature.

Birthday & Holiday

Wow, this takes a long time to update these lists so I hope somebody finds it useful.

Of course, because she is a kid, she enjoys playing with just about anything - including empty boxes and paper towel tubes. But I have suggested some things that I know, for certain, that she loves & enjoys.

I added several books to the list. Some of these we have borrowed from the library and she asks to read them again & again. Some of them she has at school and wants me to read them to her when I pick her up in the afternoon. Book-reading is a favorite thing around here. We can't really have too many books. And I have not bought very many lately, so her collection for her age is small. Most of her "baby" books that I bought I have donated to the Y to share with families who don't have books at home. I keep all of her books that are gifts and write on the inside cover who it is from.

There are a few movies that we don't have, but mostly because they are in the "Disney vault" and are not for sale. I am really only buying Blu-Ray with the DVD [to watch in the car/computer] and it's nice if it includes a digital copy because I see that as a huge benefit in the future when we own some kind of IPad device. I think the Movies I Own list is fairly accurate, so if you think of something and don't see it on either list, we probably don't have it and I haven't thought to buy it either.

I tried to label the Toys list so that it is organized by subject. Zoe really likes her wooden rail set and it could use some expansion track. We have the Imaginarium brand, but they are all supposed to work together. She only has one Thomas train car - it's Horace, I think, and she would love to have Thomas or Percy. Don't get the plastic ones, and I'm not sure about the "electronic" train cars. She would also love to have any of the buildings - there is a water tower, and a shaky bridge, and some train station type things.

She really likes dinosaurs and we play this game where she brings me a dinosaur encyclopedia book and then we match our dinosaurs to the pictures in the encyclopedia and learn their names. Animal Planet has a bucket of dinosaurs that looks good. There is a picture of a little girl who has her wooden train set on a dinosaur mat with palm trees and stuff - and that looks like super fun! We don't need any more of the tiny, "mini" sized dinosaurs. They don't stand up and are just not that much fun.

We have a few cans of Play-Doh that are getting very muddled and dry. Please no clay - it stains the furniture and does not come out of the carpet. We have the Play-Doh Cake Making Station.

We were at Burlington Coat Factory and Zoe saw a pink, plastic castle that she was mesmerized by. I did not want to buy it so I told her that we should start thinking about what she would like for a birthday present. She decided that that particular castle was her birthday present. I still don't want to buy it because it's kind of a big, plastic-y thing and I think we can do better. The Melissa & Doug castle looks pretty nice because it is wooden and it sort of folds in half when you want to put it away. It is a little spendy though. It is important that it is pink and looks like a proper princess castle. They also have a medieval castle that is not as pretty. If you find a nice pink castle somewhere that looks better than the M&D let me know.

We play with the Calico Critters house from Nana Jo and the little animals quite a bit. She has a few families and lots of furniture - another little house or cottage would be a good addition to the set.

Puzzles are always good. I really like the Ravensberger brand. They are sturdy and easy to put together and the images are great. We have the barnyard from Uncle Doug and I got her a unicorn puzzle, and she has an ocean/reef one too.

The moon/stars/solar system lights for her room is something I definitely want to get. Zoe has developed a fear of the dark/fear of going to bed on-time, and she has always liked space and the planets and looking at the moon.  I saw the Mr Milton Moon at a store and it is way more awesome than it looks online. I have never seen the rainbow before, but I bet it is also super cool. I was thinking that we might paint her ceiling to look like a sky.

Hello

I worked on these lists mostly from memory this morning. I think they are fairly accurate. As you can see, we have collected lots of movies. I am a member of the Disney Movie Club and they have lots of great blu-ray deals so we are replacing our dvds with combo packs. You probably shouldn't send movies for Zoe unless it's obscure & non-Disney. Dad sent School House Rock last year and it's something that I would have never bought as I never watched it myself. It is now one of Zoe's most loved dvds. And I like it too. Thanks! She calls it "house rock".
"I need House Rock, mom."

I did not update the Books I Own list. There are so many. And they are all on the other side of the house in Zoe's room. Maybe one day I will sit in her room and update the list on my phone. I will probably wait until December to sort through them and donate the "baby" books. We took a stack to the YMCA already. I intend to keep all of the books that she has been given as gifts and always write who they are from on the inside.

Hello

Zoe loved the new toys and books that you sent this month. I can't express how much I appreciate having things for her to do. Now that it's Winter... we have lots of time indoors. She really needs to be kept busy or we both become quite agitated. It seems like we play with everything that she has every single day.

I know that she would really love a dollhouse but I haven't decided which one would be best. There are 3 options. 1) a small, plain, wooden dollhouse like Melissa & Doug sell. it has lots of furniture and it's own set of people. 2) a Calico Critters dollhouse. this line of toys is extensive and adorable. she was given a bunny family last year and it opened my eyes to a new array of cuteness. Zoe has played with this stuff in stores and enjoys it. 3) a 12" dollhouse that is big and plastic-y. Kid Kraft is selling one at costco. 12" dollhouses fit Barbie dolls & furniture, which is in our future anyway. But they are really big and plastic. But they also have working lights and elevators and tiny doorknobs.

Zoe is somewhat tall, or has a long torso maybe. I started buying size 4T shirts because they fit better. But she is still in 3T pants for now. I think she'll need some bigger socks soon, too. Hers are all 36 months right now. Doug & Dad sent 2 new hoodie/jackets! Thank you!

Other things

Some other things Zoe could use include: a winter coat, socks, hoodie/fleece jacket, pants, winter pajamas [the owl flannel pj's are a little snug, but still so cute!], long-sleeved shirts, autumn dress/jumper-type outfit, leggings. She doesn't like bulky clothes. She would just wear her swimsuit everyday if we didn't need to leave the house.
She also suddenly understands dressing up and sometimes tells me that she is wearing a "costume". I think Halloween might be fun this year! If you see some cute/cheap costumes - especially when Halloween is over - she would probably enjoy having some dress-up stuff to play with. She likes pirates, princesses, robots, doctors, animals... all of the normal things. I think she would like a doctor's kit, but she gets frustrated when things don't 'really' work - like fake kid's tools where the saw doesn't actually cut anything in half - boring! She really likes stethoscopes. I'm pretty sure they're expensive. Maybe Aunt Tammy can find one laying around?

She just came in with some headphones on and said "look mom, I'm a robot!"

Hello!

I think that this blog's design is easier to read. I updated the lists this morning and I'll continue to add things as I find them in the house/car/yard.