Category — Kids' Trends

In honor of my oldest niece’s 6th birthday, I have decided to chronicle the history of her obsession with the Disney Princesses, one Disney Princess at a time.

1. Princess Ariel: I believe the obsession with Princess Ariel began in the womb, since Ariel is also my sister’s favorite Disney heroine. Ariel is a cool independent thinker so I encouraged my niece’s interest in Ariel. I also like the catchy songs and Sebastian the Crab in The Little Mermaid. Seriously, who can’t appreciate the calypso rhythms of Under the Sea?

A quick guide to Disney Princess Ariel-related gifts:

• The Little Mermaid: Ariel’s Beginning limited release DVD will be released on August 26, 2008. Great for fall birthdays and Christmas stocking stuffers!
• Ariel’s Undersea Adventure for Nintendo DS
• The Little Mermaid pajamas
• Beware of Shimmering Lights Ariel!

This isn’t totally Princess Ariel-related, but if you want to really impress the little girl in your life, sign up for the inaugural Disney Princess Half Marathon weekend, March 6-8, 2009. Registration just opened on Monday, May 5th, but I have a feeling it will fill up quickly. I am sure many of the Disney Princesses will be there in person to cheer the racers, especially the kids races on Saturday, March 7.

The Blue’s Clues post is still forthcoming in my top ten countdown of kid mysteries, but this little piece of news is so noteworthy it bears mentioning now. There is a new Blue’s Clues PC game by Activision designed for pre-schoolers called Blue’s Clues: Meet Blue’s Baby Brother.

Apparently there was a Blue’s Clues 10 anniversary episode during season 7 with the same title, so Blue’s Clues obsessed pre-schoolers will really enjoy the crossover appeal of a game based on the extremely popular episode.

The game review suggest Blue’s Clues: Meet Blues Baby Brother has more entertainment value than educational value, but you can decide for yourself with Nick.com’s free trial version.

Thomas the Tank Engine has gotten something of a (deserved) bad rap recently due largely to the lead content in the paint used on the toys and the subsequent toy recalls. I am not even a parent and it bugs me to no end to think that people would use toxins in Thomas & Friends toys. But the lead contamination problem notwithstanding, Thomas the Tank Engine is one kid mystery that deserves exploration, because kids around the world love Thomas and his friends.

I think that for an adult, learning the all the characters in the Thomas universe would be like trying to learn Basque from a book. There are just too many, and the distinctions between them are very nuanced. For example, I have a hard time telling the difference between Thomas and Wilbert. To my mind, they are both blue trains with faces on them. But kids can very easily tell the difference and will correct you, so don’t even bother trying to fool them.

Here are some great Thomas guides (pun intended) to help you navigate Thomas’ world:

• MyFavoriteToys.com: Thomas the Tank Engine & Friends Character Guide
• The Origins of Thomas the Tank Engine
• Thomas and Friends’ Activities for Kids
• Thomas the Tank Engine Cake instructions
• How Thomas the Tank Engine Works
• Children with Autism and Thomas the Tank Engine — a totally fascinating and insightful read
• Parents weigh in on the question: Do autistic kids especially like Thomas the Tank Engine?
• Top 10 Ideas for Using Thomas the Tank Engine as a Teaching Tool by Lisa Jo Rudy

I think that it generally is a really good idea to have some kind of activity classes for parents and kids, because it is a great way to bond and relax and get out of the house for a while. I love the idea of mom and baby yoga classes.

My quest for information on baby yoga made me wonder if they made workout clothes for babies, and I found these adorable yoga pants, made in sizes for newborns up to size 4T:

And these awesome yoga mats:

I think they will go great with Mom’s yoga pants at Mommy and Me yoga.

Here are some great baby yoga resources:

• Yoga Baby
• Itsy Bitsy Yoga
• Yoga Journal: Yoga to Bolster Baby Development

Dora is cool because Dora is independent, interactive and bilingual. She’s a smart kid and she encourages her viewers to be smart kids. I don’t like the Wikipedia entry on Dora very much, because they make too much of an issue of her supposed tomboy-ish ness and her lacking “feminine side.” PUH-lease. First of all, she is a CARTOON created for pre-schoolers, how complex and gendered of a personality is she supposed to have? Secondly, who is this Wikipedia author to say what does and does not constitute femininity?

I find this statement particularly irksome: “Dora is somewhat tomboy-ish, not letting her status as a girl (if any disadvantages to that) hinder her progress in exploring and/or helping others.” HER STATUS AS A GIRL? WTF?????

Ok, I don’t want this to turn into a long rant about the Wikipedia entry on Dora, so let me get back to how cool Dora is. She’s got a talking monkey named Boots for a best friend. And a purple talking magical backpack. The talking backpack pure genius as far as I am concerned. You could probably give a plain old purple backpack to Dora obsessed kid and they would have fun with it, but give them a backpack with Dora’s image on it, and they will go bonkers.

The next of the kid mysteries up for explanation is Dora the Explorer. As this is my preliminary Dora post, and I am trying to write the whole thing while at work, it will probably be a brief post. But fear not–there is more Dora on the horizon. For now, some links:

• Dora the Explorer on Nick Jr.
• NPR talks about Dora
• Dora the Explorer Birthday Party Ideas
• Dora Brings in Big Bucks
• Dora Destroys Barney
• Dora’s Soulja Boy

Through some divine coincidence, the Disney Princesses are up next in my list of Kid Mysteries, and I had the chance the spend some time this weekend with a Princess-obsessed 2 year old. She insists on being called Princess, has an almost entirely pink wardrobe and a pink bedroom complete with Disney Princess bedding. It was an interesting weekend to say the least.

I have some conflicted opinions about the whole Disney Princess phenomenon, but it will require another post, because I think it will end up being a huge rant. But here are some links for a little more background on the Disney Princesses, so you can impress the little girls in your life.

• Disney Princess party ideas
• Disney Princess Make-Overs at Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique in Orlando, Florida
• Disney Princess magazine for girls aged 4-7
• Disney Princess Bridal Gowns for big girls
• Info on the Disney Princess franchise on Wikipedia
• Is is any surprise the Disney Princess franchise generated $4 billion and is “on its way to becoming the most successful marketing venture ever“?
• And, should we be scared of the Disney Princesses’ influence on little girls?
• BTW, which Disney Princess are you? I’m Pocahontas.

I was reflecting yesterday on my babysitting days, and how I was once subjected to back-to-back viewings of Spice World because of the threat of tantrums. Both of those kids are now in high school, listen to Rage Against the Machine, and adamantly deny any memory of the Spice Girl assault they launched on me. In fact, they deny ever having been radically fanatical for the Spice Girls, even though I remember the begging, pleading and crying over that stupid movie. Yet more than a decade later, I still have the pop/samba-ish chorus of Spice Up YourLife tattooed in my memory, and it’s not because I ever wanted it there.

But the incident got me thinking. These teenagers were obviously uncomfortable at the mere mention of the Spice Girls and wanted to quickly change the subject. Will the same thing happen in a few years with The Wiggles? I mean, I think the Wiggles as a child trend will persist for a while, simply because a) they are totally innocuous, and b) they aren’t fighting a losing battle against the terrifically short shelf life of a pop tart. But will the kids who go bonkers for The Wiggles now someday deny ever having obsessive passion for Hot Potato?

On a completely unrelated note, has anyone ever noticed that The Wiggles look like the could be on the crew of the Starship Enterprise?

The Wiggles are basically a group of dudes who sing pretty lame songs that for some reason, children love. The Wiggles apparently tour the US, Canada and Australia pretty frequently, so there is a good chance the child in your life may cajole you into taking them to a Wiggles concert. Unless you love Pop-y classics like “Toot Toot Chugga Chugga Big Red Car”, “Do the Monkey”, or the eponymously titled “Get Ready to Wiggle”, I recommend ear plugs (and if you have a designated driver, plenty of alcohol. I don’t know how a concert of this magnitude could be tolerable without a decent buzz.) I would recommend trying to steer the toddler in question away from the concert and towards many of The Wiggles toys and items that don’t actually play music. There are plenty of Wiggles books, backpacks and kids’ clothing options to satisfy any Wiggle-loving individual. And if the kid really, REALLY wants to sing along, Wiggles DVDs are a lot less grueling to endure than an actual concert.

I noticed a plastic Elmo toy called the Sesame Street Giggle Doodler in the back window of a Mercedes today. Yes, I am ridiculous enough to be able to identify the kind of toy I see in the back of a car driving past. Anyway, it brought to mind a few more random Elmo thoughts that I want to jot down before moving on to m next kid mystery:

• I originally thought Elmo was the result of some genetic experiment combining Grover’s DNA with a turnip, but it turns out he actually has a whole back story that includes a mother who is possibly named Gladys, a mustached father named Louie and an older sister named Daisy.
• In addition to being annoying, Elmo dolls sometimes make creepy threats–check out this video. (Notice the mother says that her son was hooked on Elmo ever since he saw Elmo on his diaper. I think she is probably referring to Pampers Pull-up, which currently feature Dora the Explorer and Go Diego Go. When I get to my post on Dora the Explorer, I will be curious to see if her face on the Pampers sparked the current Dora craze.)
• Another Elmo death threat.
• And then there’s Masochist Elmo, who demands beatings. I am starting to think someone at the manufacturing plant has a sick sense of humor.
• This makes me feel like I am truly living in The Matrix, but according to Wikipedia, “Elmo is the only Muppet ever to testify before the U.S. Congress.” Ummmmm…..all the stuff that is going on in the world, and ELMO gets to address a Congressional Subcommittee????? I am all for supporting arts education, but is Elmo really the best spokesperson? Apparently the former Congressman who proposed this as a good idea either wanted to annoy his fellow members of Congress to death, or assumed the members of Congress had the mental capacity of 3 year olds who can only refer to themselves in the third person and wanted to engage them at their own level.
  
• An Elmo impersonator was arrested and taken away in handcuffs for harassing tourists near Hollywood and Highland a few years ago.  Will there be no end to the crimes?
• O.M.G.  I just found this new Elmo toy -Elmo Live!  I am scared, and not just because of that weird Satanic altar-like background in the video.  O.M.G. Does a doll really need to do all that?  It’s freakier than the clown from Poltergeist!  Elmo Live is due for nationwide release in October, which means it will probably be high on the average toddler’s Christmas wish list.  The article mentions “A pre-sale opportunity will be available in the spring for consumers to reserve Elmo Live for delivery on October 14th.”  I think anyone who needs to shop for tots should get on that, in spite of how freaky and potentially annoying Elmo Live seems to be.  I foresee a full post devoted to Elmo Live in the future.

Ok, I’ve had all the Elmo I can stand for one day.  Next post: The Wiggles.