America, America! Flag Pin Craft Fun!

Hope you are enjoying this wonderful holiday!  Did you know that Memorial Day was originally called Decoration Day? It is a day of remembrance for those who have died in the service of our United States nation.

Waterloo N.Y. was officially declared the birthplace of Memorial Day by President Lyndon Johnson in May 1966, but it’s difficult to prove the origins of the day. An interesting tid bit is that there is also evidence that a women’s group in the South decorated graves before the end of the Civil War. All in all, Memorial Day is intended to honor those who have given their all in service to our country.

Show your patriotism and make this beaded flag pin that is fun and quick.  You can hand out these pins at your Memorial Day BBQ party or have it as a fun and fashionable way to show your American pride with the family!

Follow the instructions below to create your own red, white and blue flag pins.

Items Needed:

• red, white, and blue seed beads (you can find at Michael’s or local craft store)  Note: Make sure you get seed beads with holes large enough for the pins to go through.
  
• a dozen large safety pins. (The exact number will vary a bit depending on your safety pin size.)

Steps to make your Flag Pin:

1. On your first safety pin, you will load thirteen 13 seed beads. Seven will be red and six will be white. Alternate them as you put them on the open pin: red, white, red, white, red, white, red, white, red, white, red, white, red.
2. Repeat that six more times, so that you have a total of seven safety pins with thirteen red/white beads on each of them.
3. On the eighth safety pin, you will start making the blue ‘stars’ section of the flag. It’s important that you load the blue beads first; otherwise your flag will be wrong side up. Put seven blue beads on the pin, and push them towards the hinge-spiral. Then add 3 red and 3 white, alternating. From hinge to clasp should be blue, blue, blue, blue, blue, blue, blue, white, red, white, red, white, red.
Repeat that three more times, so that you have a total of 4 pins with flag sections above the stripes.
With your last pin, you will string all the others, by putting the opened pin part through the hinge-circle of the other eleven. Put all the pins with blue beaded sections on the pin first (with the open sharp part of the pin facing your right), followed by the red-and-blue striped ones. BE CAREFUL FOR THE SHARP POINT!
Close the safety pin, and double-check that your flag is hanging correctly.
Pin on a loved one and enjoy!

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Baby State of Mind

Photo: Dave Allocca/Startraks

Grammy award winner Alicia Keys is expecting her first baby with fiancé and musician Swizz Beatz.

After many rumors of the possibility that she might be pregnant Alicia’s rep confirmed that the musicians “are expecting a baby and are engaged to be married in a private ceremony later this year.”

Congratulations to the happy couple on the announcement of their baby on the way! 

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Streamers in the Wind

Memorial Day weekend is only 1 day away!  Not only is it one of my favorite 3 day holiday weekends, it is always that first feeling of the “official” start of summer.  I am sure a lot of parents are wondering (other than BBQing) what they will do with their kids over the long weekend.  Below is a fun wind streamer craft that is patriotic and easy to do with the whole family!  Don’t worry – it doesn’t make noise (I personally get a headache from chimes!), and you cam make this craft with little more than an empty oatmeal container and colored paper.

You can also use this activity to teach younger children about the “wind” (like a science lesson) and illustrate the direction on wind and how it plays a part in the environment. Martha Stewart was my inspiration for this project. 

How to Make a Patriotic Paper Wind Streamer

Items Needed:

• Empty oatmeal container, or similar cylindrical container
• Blue craft paper
• White craft paper
• Star-shaped paper or you can cut stars out on white craft paper
• Craft glue (Elmer’s works fine!)
• Double-sided tape
• Waxed twine
• Red-and-white grosgrain flat ribbon
• Red ribbon
• White ribbon
• Paper punch

Instructions:

1. Remove the bottom of the cylindrical container.

2.  Measure and cut the blue craft paper to fit inside and outside the container. The paper should come right up to the top and bottom lip of the container.

3.  Lay the double-sided tape to the three edges of the paper on the wrong side, and stick it to the container’s interior.

4. Create stars from the white craft paper, and glue them onto the second piece of blue paper. Lay the double-sided tape to the three edges of the paper on the opposite side, and stick to the container’s exterior.

5.  With the fine paper punch, punch four holes at the north, south, east, and west points of the container’s top. Thread a piece of waxed twine through one hole and its opposite hole, and tie in place. Repeat for remaining holes.

6. Cut lengths of the red and white ribbon to create streamers, and glue them at the bottom edge of the container. Lay double-sided tape all the way around the top and bottom edges of the container, and adhere the red-and-white grosgrain ribbon.

Enjoy this colorful and patriotic craft!

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Darling of the Day: Addison

 

Addison plays tea time like Alice in Wonderland –
“I’m late / I’m late/ For a very important date. / No time to say “Hello.” / Goodbye. / I’m late, I’m late, I’m late.” 

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Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday to you, Shiloh!

They say it’s your BIRTHDAY!  Happy birthday Shiloh Jolie-Pitt! 4-years-old – how time flies by. We can’t wait to see what chic style you rock out in at your birthday party!

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Magnolia Charlie: PREMIERE RETAILER Q&A

VISIT THEIR NEW ONLINE BOUTIQUE!
LAUNCHES TODAY @http://magnoliacharlie.net 

Three, Four Knock on Magnolia Charlie’s door!  Check out our 4th premier retailer in our “Store Spotlight” series where we feature one Le Top’s best stores of the week.  Not only did they JUST launch their online boutique TODAY (where you can buy the best-of-the-best of children’s and baby clothing) – we were lucky enough to get an exclusive inside “peek” of images of her latest arrivals in her freestanding boutique in California! 

 

Karen Seeber, owner of Magnolia Charlie, gives us the So Cal low-down on what any good mommy, daddy and kiddie shoppers would want to know, plus what she would bring to a deserted island if she sailed away from Balboa Island, California! 

1.   What made you decide to enter the children’s business?
Karen: My love of children’s clothing… I had 2 children and another on the way. Everyone told me how beautiful my children were always dressed and they never knew where to shop.  So I decided to open a children’s store. 

2.   What was your background prior to this business?
Karen: I was a mom who could not find traditional style clothing so I opened Magnolia Charlie in 1997. My husband, David, a builder transformed the store into a beach cottage. I knew the look of the store was just as important as the merchandise I carry. Everything had to blend together. 

3.   The name of your store reminds of me of a Charlie’s Angels but sweet – where did the name come from?
Karen: Magnolia Charlie is a town in the south… I love the south with all their smocking, appliqués and southern hospitality – so, I wanted to bring that to Balboa Island, California. 

4.   The harbour looks beautiful in Balboa Island, describe the neighborhood your store is in for us.
Karen: Our neighborhood is small town AMERICA with a lot of tourist from all over the world. The people we meet are incredible. They come back to shop year after year whether on vacation or business.  We are always making new friends. 

5.   Who is your target customer? Do you specialize in any certain types of product?
Karen: Our target customers are grandmothers… they want their grandchildren to look like children. All completely dressed from head to toe.  We carry a wide variety of smocking and appliquéd dresses, shortalls and capri sets – all with coordinating bows, hats and shoes. 

6.   Having a store in Southern California you tend to dress the warm weather type of babies who love the water, whether it be the beach or sailing – what would you say are the 3 essential clothing items for any baby or child?
Karen: Our beach babies always need sunhats, sweater or sweatshirts.  We always seem to have a sea breeze blowing and it gets cool in the mornings and evenings.  

Magnolia Charlie features set from Le Top Baby Pretty Sea Pony, Sweet Little Rosebud, and the Cherie collections

7.   What products do your clientele like the most?Karen: Our customers like the WOW factor whenever they are giving a gift. They like dresses, capri sets, rompers, etc. all to have coordinating pieces so the child is dressed complete. That’s why Le Top does so well for us because of the coordinating hats and toys.  

8.   Any Celebrity customers over the years or do you have any celebs buying right now?
Karen: We have so many celebrities and athletes who shop with us. What an honor to see our clothing on their children whether walking around town or in magazines. 

9.   If you were a new mom and sailed away on one of the cute boats from Balboa Island and got stranded on a deserted island – what 5 items could you not live without?
Karen: Stranded on a deserted island? I could not live without…the cutest swimsuit with matching cover-up, coordinating sunhat, jog suit and my monogrammed beach towel. 

10.   Between all of the social media outlets – Facebook, Twitter, and more – what do you think about social networking and how it allows moms and dads to join cyber parenting communities where they can meet, gain knowledge, as well as get recommendations and support.
Karen: I’m just learning about Facebook and Twitter…I think it is great for new moms and dads!    

11.   Do you think that you will make the big leap soon and have Magnolia Charlie join Facebook? You know Le Top will be your first fan!
Karen: Someday we will join Facebook! I will keep you updated more on what I think about the cyber mommy and daddy world once I join! 😉 

12.   What do you feel are the three biggest keys to your success?
Karen:  My 3 keys to success: 

1. Customer Service – Having an incredible sales staff that is always kind and knowledgeable about the merchandise. We will do anything for our customers.  Even if we have to go to another store to find it!
2. Store Appearance – Your front window tells the world who you are.  Always keep your displays fresh and merchandise the walls where every grouping tells a story and color palette.
3. Knowledge – Know the fashion industry and always keep learning.

13.   How do you select your products for the store? Do you find that there is a difference between your online boutique consumers for your brand versus your typical store consumer?
Karen: I buy what I love and what I would put on my children.  Each season I have fun and pick a theme – this season it was “Nautical” – the Le Top ‘DAISY DUCK’ group was incredible.  Our web site with ecommerce capabilities is launching today!  Visit us at: http://magnoliacharlie.net/ and check out our latest arrivals to buy online! 

14.   What is one trend you are seeing now that you love and one that you want to go away for dressing children?
Karen: The trend I am seeing right now are parents buying simple, fun clothing, yet traditional in style.  Traditional clothing never goes out of style.  You can always add a bit of “trendy” to make it your own style. 

Showing off pieces from the Le Top Ribbit and the Le Top Baby Choo Choo Zoo collections

15.  If you had one piece of advice for someone entering children’s retail today, what would it be?
Karen: My advice would be to read and talk to as many people as you can in this profession. I learned from the best … Mr. Pete Frasca (He was the original kid’s sales clothing representative that taught me about the children’s industry way back when). 

Special Note from Le Top: Le Top values our sales representatives as being a very special part of the Le Top family.  As much as we value our sales representatives, we equally value our retail customers like Magnolia Charlie.  We think the relationships that are developed over the years are extraordinary and continue to make the Le Top family exceptional, loving and a unique children’s community. 

16.   You probably have seen thousands of mommies and their children come in and out of your store doors – what is one of the funniest things you have heard come out of parent or child’s mouth?
Karen: I can’t think of a thing at the moment… But what I do know is that you never know what a child will say… 

17.   What is your best or most memorable moment in your store?
Karen: My memorable moments is when I see customers from all over the country come back and buy entire wardrobes for their grandchildren and they say, “I will see you in 6 months for another season!” I love them all. 

18.   What collection or piece from Le Top and rabbitmoon are you loving from the Spring/Summer 2010 collection?
Karen: It is hard to pick one group because we do so well with Le Top. I would say Le Top’s Spring/Summer 2010 collection of Daisy Duck, and Lots O’ Fish too! 

MAGNOLIA CHARLIE
317 Marine Avenue
Balboa Island, CA 92662
949.673.0066 

SHOP TODAY ON THEIR NEWLY LAUNCHED
ONLINE BOUTIQUE AT http://magnoliacharlie.net/ 

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Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday to you, Kingston!

Feliz Cumpleanos to baby rocker Kingston Rossdale today!  He is turning 4-years-old.  Seems like only yesterday Kingston was wearing a Le Top tiger Halloween costume!

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New Guidelines for Teaching Babies to Swim?

I grew up swimming with a pool and I am a huge fan of teaching kids how to swim. The earlier the better.

Until recently it was belived that children under the age of 4 shouldn’t learn to swim because it can give them false sense of security and they may end up drowning.  However, this past Monday the nation’s largest pediatricians group is relaxing its stance against swimming lessons for children younger than 4.  Now the group says it’s fine to enroll children as young as 1 and can HELP reduce the chances of drowning! WOO-HOO!

Some studies suggest toddlers may be less likely to drown if they’ve had swim lessons. Of course, the doctors aren’t recommending lessons for every young child, and if parents feel their little ones aren’t ready, that’s okay.

I remember my boyfriend’s little cousin fell in the pool last summer and no one had been watching and she couldn’t swim – I looked over and saw a small pink body slowing sinking. I jumped in the pool and fortunately she had only just fallen in and I pulled her out of the pool safely.  Honestly, I was lucky she was okay that day.   My personal tip would be to never overreact if a child falls into the pool. Tell him or her she is “okay” and do not make the child think that something overly wrong happened or they will become fearful of the water. Try to encourage safety afterwards and swim with him or her again shortly after to show they will be “okay” and to be brave.

Connie Harvey who heads aquatics development for the American Red Cross said, “Parents should choose classes that emphasize water safety and require a parent or other adult to be in the water with the child, and have at least one instructor for every 10 students.”

The updated policy, released this Monday, May 24, 2010 by the Journal Pediatrics, also recommends fences around all pools, even with the popular inflatable ones. Kids can drown by leaning over the soft sides and falling in.

Take serious note that if you have an older pool – be weary as your kids can drown when their hair or hands get sucked into the drains of pools or spas without drain covers or proper filter-pump equipment.

The rate of childhood drowning deaths has declined in recent years. About 1,100 U.S. children drowned in 2006.

Okay, so how do you choose a swim program for your infant?  Know these few tips:

 1) Not all infant swimming instruction programs are created equal!  There are thousands of competing swimming instructors nationwide, and you can easily find someone willing to “teach swimming to your kids “. But what is IMPORTANT for parents to understand is that only Infant Swimming Resource’s nation-wide network of Instructors provide safe infant swim lessons that teach children as young as 6-months old self-rescue skills and do so in a manner that is completely safe and PROVEN.

2)  Many parents don’t realize the dangers of introducing babies to water (6-months to 4 years old)  before they know how to save their lives in an unexpected water encounter – eeks!  Those “Mommy & Me” classes can prove to be ultimately dangerous for your baby. Before your baby should feel confident to safely enjoy the water, they must first learn the skills needed for self-rescue.

3) Most recently Infant Swimming Resource was featured on NBC’s Today Show and had some great points about babies and kids and learning the importance of safety in the water – see the video clip at: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/37313517#37313517

In support of the new Prevention of Drowning Policy Statement, ISR believes this is a vital step towards keeping children safe both in and around the water. For more than 40 years, ISR has been teaching children from six months to six years aquatic Self-Rescue skills in addition to educating parents and the medical community about family water safety.

ISR’s Self-Rescue techniques were developed by Harvey Barnett, Ph.D. — focused on safety and parent education, ISR has safely and effectively taught more than 200,000 infants and young children. Today, ISR has more than 790 documented cases where former students have used their Self-Rescue to save their own life.

There’s a big problem in many parts of the country with infant and toddler drowning, a serious issue that has had me concerned for many years. I believe strongly that we as pediatricians need to do something about this epidemic, so I decided to take action and speak out on behalf of Dr. Barnett’s proven method for helping young children save their own lives in a drowning scenario. Over the last 20 years, I’ve referred all of my patients to ISR and promoted family aquatic safety by educating my physician peers and the community. Through ISR’s program, I have watched many children acquire life-saving skills and learn how to swim. The program helps babies learn self-rescue skills in the water, and ISR’s swimming method helps prevent drowning. It’s time that pediatricians do something about the drowning problem across the U.S. Observing children learn ISR’s proven techniques more than twenty years – it’s very obvious that young children can learn how to swim. ISR’s swimming lesson method works, and it helps children to save their own lives.”

–  David Carr, M.D.” – http://www.infantswim.com/

My final thoughts? All of these little babies should be wearing one of our Le Top swimsuits while they learn to swim! This is my favorite swimsuit from the Le Top Daisy Duck Collection!

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Claudia Schiffer Releases Name of Baby Girl!

Image By: Richard Young/Startraks

We mentioned on May 15 that Claudia Schiffer had a baby girl in London…It was just released that Schiffer and her husband Matthew Vaughn named her Cosima Violet. She kept her daughter’s name under wraps until both of their families had met their new bundle of joy.  Cheers again to baby girl Cosima!

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Actress Monica Belluci Welcomes Daughter Léonie

Image By: Martin Grimes/Splash News Online

Monica Belluci had a baby girl this past Friday, May 21 in Rome named Léonie.  She will join older sister Deva who is 5 ½-years-old.

It’s another little bambina for Monica Bellucci!

Just for a refresher, Monica will be featured in the alongside Nicolas Cage in the film Sorcerer’s Apprentice, as well as the film The Black Swan featuring Natalie Portman and Mila Kunis. 

You go mommy!

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