Saturday, December 31, 2016

Sing

The other day, I went to see Sing with my nieces, nephew and cousin. My nieces are 7 and 4, my nephew is 2 and my cousin is 15. They all liked this movie!

This movie is a fun musical that all ages will love! There are hilarious high jinks, inspirational moments and foot taping musical numbers. My only wish would have been for more music!

I highly recommend this movie to children, and adults, of all ages!

(From Wikipedia)
In a world of anthropomorphic animals, optimistic koala Buster Moon (Matthew McConaughey) owns a music theater, having been interested in show business since his father took him to his first music show as a child.
Facing financial troubles, Buster tells his friend Eddie Noodleman (John C. Reilly) that he will host a singing competition. Buster's assistant Ms. Crawley loses control of her glass eye which causes her to inadvertently append two extra zeroes to the actual $1,000 prize money. Before the fliers can be checked, they are accidentally blown out of Buster's office.
Animals from all around the city gather for auditions. Those selected include: housewife and mother of 25 piglets Rosita (Reese Witherspoon), street musician mouse Mike (Seth MacFarlane); mobster son gorilla Johnny (Taron Egerton); punk-rock porcupine Ash (Scarlett Johansson). Meena (Tori Kelly) bombs her audition out of stage fright while Ash's boyfriend Lance is dismissed from the contest and Rosita is paired with another pig contestant named Gunter for a dancing routine. Buster discovers the flyer shows a prize of $100,000, but remains optimistic. Buster visits Eddie to convince him to get an audience with Eddie's retired opera singer and actress grandmother Nana Noodleman to sponsor and to provide the show's prize money. Nana agrees on the condition that she see a private screening of the show.
Encouraged by her grandfather, Meena tries to ask Buster for another chance, but ends up helping him as a stage hand. When some of the animal acts quit, Meena is added as an act. However, their individual problems begin to hinder rehearsals. Rosita flounders in her dance routine with Gunter, having been distracted by her parenting duties that have fallen into disarray. After discovering Lance has a new girlfriend, and after throwing them out of their apartment, Ash is heartbroken and in no mood to sing the cheery "Call Me Maybe". Johnny is torn between having to help his father as the driver of the getaway car in a heist and making the practices; when he tries to do both, he doesn't show up for the planned pickup, and his father and his gang get arrested. Meena still has stage fright. Mike, assuming the prize money is as good as his, buys a fancy car to impress a girl mouse, but swindles a group of bears in a card game at a nightclub.
The day of the screening, the bear mob interrupts the show, demanding the money from Mike, who in turn, points to Buster. The bears open the chest containing the prize money but only see a bunch of random items totaling less than a thousand. The glass tank full of luminescent squids that Buster got to light up the theater breaks and floods the theater. The theater then literally comes crashing down. Homeless and crestfallen (he lived in a drawer inside his office), Buster takes up residence at Eddie's place (Nana's pool house). Although the contestants visit him and try to cheer him up, Buster is too despondent to listen to them. He starts over by opening a car wash, using the same bucket that his dad had used to earn money for Buster's theater.
When Meena goes to the theater's rubble lot and sings, Buster hears her and is inspired to reinstate the show without the prize money. They perform in front of Rosita and Meena's family members. As Rosita and Gunther perform "Shake It Off", more animals are attracted to the scene as the show is broadcast on the news. Johnny amazes his father with Elton John's "I'm Still Standing" who escapes from prison to reconcile with him. Ash impresses Lance with her original rock song. Mike, who bailed out when he heard there was no prize money, returns when his peers make fun that he wasn't able to sing like the ones on TV, singing Frank Sinatra's "My Way. Meena finally overcomes her fears and sings Stevie Wonder's "Don't You Worry 'Bout a Thing". The show becomes a success and impresses Nana who buys the lot and rebuilds the theater.

Trolls



A few weeks ago, I took  my nieces and nephew to see Trolls. My nieces are 7 and 4 and my nephew is 2. They LOVED it!

The movie starts out with the Trolls escaping the evil Bergens. The Bergens keep the trolls in cages and eat them once a year to feel happiness. After escaping, the Trolls live in happy peace for a few years until one of the Bergens find them and capture half of them to bring back to her people. Poppy, the happy, loving, fun Princess goes off to find her friends. Branch, the polar opposite of Poppy, decides to follow Poppy and help her rescue her friends. With the help of one Bergen, Poppy and Branch are able to rescue their friends, after being betrayed by another Troll and some funny adventures along the way.

This is a feel good movie with a ton of songs! I don't normally take my 2 year old nephew to the theaters, because he doesn't usually sit through a whole movie, but he LOVED this! This movie held his attention, and that of his sisters, the whole time!

Right after seeing the movie, we had to listen to the soundtrack on the ride home. Now, it has been about a month and that soundtrack is still the most popular music we listen to!

I highly recommend this movie to any child! Boys, girls, young and old will fall in love with this highly energetic, sparkly movie. The music is fun and gets everyone dancing!

Saturday, December 3, 2016

Winter clothing...




I just want to take a moment to tell people about our winter outerwear! As you can see in the photos below, we sell used winter coats, snow pants and boots that look almost new for a fraction of the price! We carry all the great brands, from the brands selected for this blog to LL Bean, Lands End, Burton and more! You can save anywhere from $30 to $100 on certain brands! Why spend full price on a jacket that the kids will only wear a few times? Come on in and save a fortune! Plus, if you bring in ones they outgrew, we will pay you for them (we pay you a third of what we will sell them for in a check form, plus a little more in store credit). Not only do we have already discounted items, but we have at least 2 sales a month! Imagine the added discounts you can get by shopping with us!



This SPYDER 2 in 1 jacket sells for $165-$190 new, we sell it for $89.99! You save $75-100!
This Columbia snow pants sell for $75 new, we sell them for $24.99. You save $50!


These Boggs sell for about $85-$100 new, we sell them for $49.99. You save $35-$50!

These Kamik boots sell for about $70 new, we sell them for $19.99! You save $50!

Thursday, December 1, 2016

Melissa and Doug Sale

I know I already posted a blog about the amazing toys that Melissa and Doug puts out, but now I want to say how great the company is!

We are a small business, part of a small franchise (about 30 total stores nation wide), and Melissa and Doug is helping us out (along with a few other small businesses). They are reducing their prices to us so we can give everyone 30% off this holiday season!

The sale runs from December 1st through December 15th!

Thank you Melissa and Doug for helping us pass on great deals to our customers! You are making some children extremely happy this holiday season!

Friday, November 25, 2016

Black Friday shopping? STOP!

Are you out fighting the crowds right now for Black Friday steals? Well, stop! We have everything you need for gifts, clothes and equipment for your child this year! We carry NEW and USED items at an amazing discount!

NEW:

  • Melissa and Doug toys
  • TY Beanie Boos and Teeny Ty stuffed animals
  • Snow Stopper Mittens
  • Hair accessories
  • Clothing
USED:
  • Toys
    • Fisher price toys
    • Cars
    • Kitchen sets
    • Doll houses
    • Melissa and Doug toys
    • Little Tikes toys
  • Equipment
    • exersaucers
    • bouncy seats
    • bumbos
    • changing tables
    • cribs
    • strollers
    • high chairs
  • Clothing
    • Preemie to size 12 years
    • Holiday wear
    • Dresses and suits
    • Every day clothing
      • Carters
      • Abercrombie
      • Gap
      • Janie and Jack
      • Mini Boden
      • Gymboree
      • American Eagle
      • Nike
      • Under Armour
    • Shoes
    • Snow wear
      • Snow suits/pants
      • Ski jackets
      • Boots

Why stand in line at the mall when you can get amazing items right here? Not only are you helping the environment by buying resale, you are helping small businesses and the community!

On top of the already discounted items, we have sales!

Upcoming sales:
  • Black Friday Weekend Sale
    • November 25th through November 27th
    • Pick a turkey at checkout for your discount
    • 40% off, 20% off, $10 cache card or a FREE book!
  • Gift Card Sale
    • November 25th through December 24th
    • For every $50 gift card you buy, we will give you a $10 gift card!
  • Melissa and Doug Sale
    • December 1st through December 15th
    • 30% off all NEW Melissa and Doug toys
  • Fill A Bag
    • December 10th 10am to 2pm (or while supplies last)
    • Fill a bag for $7 
    • We will have bins separated by size and by gender and each plastic grocery bag is $7. 
      Feel free to bring your own bags. We will be selling reusable bags that can be filled as well! Reusable bags can be brought from home, price will be told once we see the size.
    • If you bring 3 non-perishable food items, you will receive a larger bag to fill!
  • Holiday clothing sale: details to come!

Wednesday, November 9, 2016

Election 2016. President Trump

Last night and this morning, after hearing that our new President of the United States of America is Donald Trump, all I saw were negative posts on Facebook. Posts about what to say to their children that a hateful man is now our President! Whether you are a Trump supporter or not, use this as a teaching lesson:


  • Teach them that they won't always get what they want (especially the non Trump supporters).
  • Teach them to love instead of hate. If your first words out of your mouth about our new President is that "he is a hateful, horrible person", remember that your children are listening. Instead, say something about how the people chose or in 4 years he may not be President. Make your hatred for him into a positive somewhere. There has to be at least 1 good thing you can come up with to tell them. Go back to that age old saying "if you have nothing nice to say, don't say anything at all"
  • Teach them about the election process. 
  • Teach them respect by showing them you can respect someone you don't like or agree with. They will need that lesson in the future. There will be that boss that makes them work more than they are paid for or that neighbor who is a jerk or that aggressive driver that will flip them off for going speed limit. 
  • Show them goodness. Even if the world is falling apart, be there for them. Be a great role model for your children. If you see something you don't agree with, explain to your children why you think it isn't right. 
Don't just tell or explain things to your child, show them. If you don't want the world to be a hateful place when your child grows up, make it so by showing them you don't hate. If every mother/father shows their child a better world, their children will make the world a better place. Good things can be achieved by the smallest acts: That mighty elm tree started out as a tiny seed.

So, let me take this moment now to congratulate our new President. 
President Trump, I hope you do more good than bad in the next 4 years. In my eyes, you have a clean slate starting out. I want to believe you can "Make America Great" again, please don't disappoint. Good luck over the next 4 years! 

Friday, November 4, 2016

Melissa and Doug Toys

We have been selling Melissa and Doug toys for many years. Melissa and Doug has a toy for almost every child.

They have:

  • Pretend Play 
    • They sell pretend kitchen items. They have food, plates, pots and pans, cleaning supplies, appliances. Diner items and shopping items also available
    • They sell pretend school items.
    • They sell pretend tool items. They have a tool bench, tool belt, tool box.
    • They sell dress up clothing and accessories 
  • Magic Sets
    • They sell beginner sets that teach the child how to perform certain tricks
  • Arts and Crafts
    • They sell the standard paint, crayons and coloring book sets and much more!
    • They have embroiders sets, looms, stained glass, jewelry making kits, stencils, decorate your own keepsakes,  stamps.
    • They have MESS FREE art work: sand art, glitter art
  • Stickers and Activity sets
    • The best thing we have used: Reusable Puffy Sticker Play sets and the Water Wow!
    • They also have magicolor (mess free coloring), secret decoder sets.
  • Activity rugs
    • 4 in 1 game rug, hopscotch rug, road rugs (multiple types)
  • Trucks, trains and vehicles
    • Wooden trains and tracks
    • Wooden cars and trucks
    • Vehicles with people (plane, bus, firetruck)
  • Puzzles
    • All kinds from Jumbo knob puzzles for 1 year olds to giant floor puzzles for older kids and everything in between.
  • Puppets and puppet theaters
  • Baby Toys
    • Age appropriate baby toys: sit in/on toys, crawl after, pull alongs, blocks, fill and spills, shape sorters,  push toys
  • Musical Instruments
    • Bands in a box, recorders, pianos
  • Developmental Toys
    • Different motor skill toys, building and nesting toys, stacking and sorting toys, magnetic toys, alphabet and number toys, and learning mats.
  • Games and Card sets
    • magnetic puzzle games, preschool games, board games, travel games, trivia questions, classic games.
  • Dollhouses, furniture and dolls
    • They sell castles and houses (big and small) with wooden people
    • They sell Barns and stables with animals
    • Dolls and doll furniture, doll food and bath accessories, 
  • Active play and outdoor toys
    • Science and nature toys, lawn and garden toys/games, beach and pool toys
  • Plush animals 
    • Large and small stuffed animals
  • Seasonal and Religious toys
    • Christmas, Hanukkah, Biblical toys

What I like about Melissa and Doug is the toys are mostly all wooden (with the occasional plastic or metal or cloth where need be), educational without all the sounds or lights of other toys, and they put the age appropriate right on the package!

We have great sales during the year, especially during November and December, to stock up for holidays, birthdays or just every day gift giving!

#childrensorchard #childrensorchardrowley #northshore #giftideas #melissaanddoug #holidayshopping




Saturday, October 22, 2016

Alice Through the Looking Glass

Alice Through the Looking Glass is the 2nd Alice in Wonderland movie directed by Tim Burton with Johnny Depp, Mia Wasikowska, Anne Hathaway, Helena Bonham Carter and other great actors. This story follows Alice going back to Underland and finding a distraught Mad Hatter. Alice races through time to bring the Mad Hatter back to his "normal" self. While traveling through time, she changes things and has to go back a few times to make things right. Great visual effects! I highly recommend this movie!

I saw this movie in the theaters over the summer and fell in love! I took my 15 year old cousin to see it, and he liked it as well. I thought my 7 year old niece would like it too. I pre-ordered the movie in early October. The movie was delivered on a Tuesday, it is now Saturday and my niece has watched the movie EVERY day since it arrived. I ordered the DVD, BluRay and Digital Copy version, well worth the extra couple of dollars! My niece watched the DVD the first night then took it home with her (I will probably never see the DVD/BluRay again) and has watched it on my kindle since!

The movie is PG, which is perfect for her age group. She is just getting into live action movies over cartoons and this movie piqued her interest from the moment we pressed play!

Halloween Costumes

Last year, I ordered a costume for my niece online. I spent about $60 on the costume and was very disappointed with the quality, she loved it though. This year, I looked at work for a costume for her and saved money!

Why spend $60 on a cheaply made costume when you can come into The Children's Orchard and buy a gently used costume for $10-$15?

We have all kinds of costumes from infant to kid's size 12.

More importantly than saving money on buying their costume this year, you can sell last year's costume and put it towards this years! Win-Win! You make money on something that doesn't fit, save money on one that they want and you recycle all at the same time! We buy Halloween costumes from late August through early October! We buy dress up costumes all year round!

I have attached some photos of past and present costumes I have found in The Children's Orchard in Rowley, Ma!