Nickelodeon & Mattel Announces New Look for Dora!

"For nearly ten years, Dora the Explorer has had such a strong following among preschoolers, catapulting it into the number one preschool show on commercial television," says Gina Sirard, vice president of marketing for Mattel. "Girls really identify with Dora and we knew that girls would love to have their friend Dora grow up with them, and experience the new things that they were going through themselves. The brand captures girls' existing love of Dora and marries it with the fashion doll play and online experiences older girls enjoy." "We are thrilled to partner with Mattel to develop this brand extension that will enable girls to continue to learn and interact with their Latina heroine, Dora, as they grow up together."

I'm not sure how I feel about the "new" look Nickelodeon and Mattel have put together for Dora the Explorer. Carol Costello assured CNN viewers that Dora's "tweenage" look is much more conservative than the shadow profile above suggests. She assures viewers that Dora is wearing leggings under her skirt and that the new look portrays an icon growing up, not maturing sexually, and most importantly, Dora still "uses her brain" to problem solve and investigate her new mysteries.

The perks of the new Dora doll include the ability to link her to the internet so children can play in a "world" where they can dress her up, interact with her, and help solve Nancy Drew style mysteries. The new Dora moves from having adventures in the forest and jungle to the concrete jungle, and adventures in middle school. It has been told that the new Dora is geared for ages 5 and up, but somehow, I do not see my 5 year old playing with a doll that goes to middle school. I cannot help but feel the initial discontent most other bloggers have already displayed, but part of me is eager to see the new look of "tweenage" Dora. Dora's new look is scheduled to debut in fall of 2009.

Until then, what do you think of Nickelodeon & Mattel joining forces to give Dora the Explorer a new "Tweenage" look?

Do you think that the "Tweenage" Dora will grow with your children, or do you think that kids grow old of the new Dora just as quickly as the current Dora?

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Build-A-Bear Workshop & Nestle Cookie Shop 3rd Birthday Party Review!

On the 21st, we celebrated Abbigaile's 3rd birthday with eleven of her friends and family members. We decided to go to the Build-A-Bear Workshop, and then to the Nestle Toll House Cafe at one of the malls nearby.

Abbigaile was so excited to see all of her friends at Build-A-Bear! This was our first time EVER going to Build-A-Bear, so honestly- I had no idea what to expect. The staff was amazing! This was a party with guests that ranged from ages 3-10. They lined up the kids and showed them the bears they needed to pick from, and everyone chose their bears. They lined back up, chanting, "Stuff Me! Stuff Me!" and marched to the giant filling machine. The children stayed occupied while everyone stuffed their bears (or other animals!) by playing games like Simon Says. They went through the whole process of stuffing, sewing, "washing" and fluffing then lastly- dressing. All of the kids had a blast, most of them newbies to Build-A-Bear. The children were happy to hear that they could play with their new friends on Buildabearville, a place online where their new stuffed friends come to life. Unfortunately, that day the entire Build-a-Bear Workshop computers were down, so they couldn't register their bears at the store. The staff was nice enough to offer to print them when the computers were working properly, and we arranged a convenient time to pick them up.

After all of the new stuffed friends were fluffed, dressed, and boxed up in their new homes we lined the children up and marched through the mall to the Nestle Toll House Cafe. Abbie and her guests celebrated with a huge chocolate cookie cake decorated with pink and purple icing. We sang Happy Birthday to her in the food court.

All in all, her birthday party and day was quite a success! The company was great, the giant cookie cake was yummy, and Build-A-Bear was a blast! What more could a three year old ask for?

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