It didn’t take too long for me to ‘crack’ an invite into a mommy-blogging event – little Jackson is only two-and-bit months now and last week we attended our first blog outing together: a Build-a-Bear workshop in honour of “International Have a Party with your Bear day”.
Obviously being new to the whole “mom world” I wasn’t aware of what Build-a-Bear exactly was, so when we arrived at the store (located inside the Toy Kingdom store in Sandton City) I was amazed to find an assembly line for little people to make and build their furry friend. The process allows a child to choose a furry creature (everything from an original bear to a “My Little Pony” or “Finding Nemo” characters) before being stuffed and a specially-selected heart being sewed into the animal. Jackson being far too young to select his animal meant I got to feel like the child for the day in making his bear for him!
While most of the other young guests at the event went for the brightly coloured and themed creatures, I stuck to the original brown bear and chose a Christmas outfit so that I would be able to gift to him on Christmas Day; complete with a beret that I found too cute to not put on!
The French Christmas Bear (if you will!)
What makes this bear so unique is that a visit to Build-a-Bear is about the whole experience; a child gets to see their chosen friend come to “life” during the process, name it (along with receiving a birth certificate) and partake in the whole process. The staff at the Sandton store were wonderful with the kids on the day – they sang songs, coaxed out shy personalities and made each child feel involved throughout the process.
With Christmas and school holidays around the corner, I am sure many parents are wondering what to do during this period. A visit to the workshop is an ideal way to keep the little ones engaged for a couple of hours and return home with a beautiful, personal gift. I also love the idea of using the experience for a party – there are various packages available that allow guests to make up a bear based on a budget, without the hassle of cleaning up the party afterwards!
**GIVEAWAY**
One lucky Spruce reader stands the chance to win an “Ultimate Experience” with Build-a-Bear! To enter, make sure you are subscribed to Spruce and comment below telling me why you would love to win this prize! We will announce the winner via our social media pages (Facebook, Instagram and Twitter – so make sure you follow us on these platforms!) on Wednesday 29 November. The competition closes on Tuesday 28 November.
If you love the idea of letting your child tailor-make his/her own furry friend and experience all the fun the workshops have to offer then make sure you pay a visit to one of the stores this festive season. Build-a-Bear workshops are based in Jo’burg (Sandton* and Menlyn*), Cape Town (Canal Walk*, Tyger Valley) and Durban (Gateway). For more information on Build-a-Bear, check out their Facebook page and website.
* Located within Toy Kingdom
Bianca Leach
November 23, 2016 at 3:37 pm (4 years ago)I would love for my daughter Lily to win this, I’ve been eyeing out build a bear for a while now and I couldn’t think of a better way to spend a morning when we arrive in Johannesburg for our Christmas holidays. 🙂
ReplyRobyn Hoffe
November 23, 2016 at 5:18 pm (4 years ago)Ah I would love to take my Hayley Bean to make a bear. She is obsessed with stuffed toys and would just love this?
ReplyEsna Burger
November 24, 2016 at 8:16 am (4 years ago)As a single in come parent that would be working these holidays and need to leave my daughter in my mothers care. I love to do little things with her to make our time special! My daughter is a 3 and an half year old prem Alné. She fell in love with Olaf from Frozen the other day. I then had to tell her I cant give it to her on that day and we would have to return when we (the two) of us have the monies for it! So Please pick my daughter Alné! Thank you
ReplyCarmel
November 24, 2016 at 8:22 am (4 years ago)I would love to win this for my daughter Kiara. She is totally obsessed with Build-a-Bear and loves to go browse the clothes and accessories every time we’re in Sandton. This would be a great holiday experience for her.
ReplyMelinda
November 24, 2016 at 8:40 am (4 years ago)We would like to win because my little one is addicted to Build-A-Bear and would just looooove to make her Christmas special like the special little girl she is. Thank you so much for this opportunity xxx
ReplyNatasha
November 24, 2016 at 8:47 am (4 years ago)I would love to win this for my nephew to have this awesome experience, he is a Paw patrol fanatic.
ReplyReshmee Budhal
November 24, 2016 at 11:20 am (4 years ago)My first born Yashay (3 years old) has been promoted to big brother this year:) He obviously loves hes little brother a ton but I do see him struggle at times as to why there is another little human in hes space and taking up mum and dad time. To let him know that he is doing a great job in hes new role as a big brother I would love to reward him with this experience. He would go crazy seeing this:)
ReplySonja
November 24, 2016 at 8:53 pm (4 years ago)My daughter, Theresa, would love to add to her bear collection. Took her to get her very own bear two years ago for her birthday. Her bear, Snowy, goes everywhere with her.
ReplySusan Biddle
November 28, 2016 at 6:23 pm (4 years ago)My daughter has always wanted to do this and we haven’t been able to. I hope we win because she is 6 and this is probably the last year she will want to.
ReplyDebbie Wright
November 29, 2016 at 8:30 am (4 years ago)My little boy, Mackenzie, is a teddy bear FANATIC! Each of his bears has a name and personality and he takes such good care of them!! One can never have enough fluffy friends, right? He would be over. The. Moon. If he won this build a bear experience!! We are holding thumbs ✊??
ReplyKaris Munro
November 29, 2016 at 9:09 am (4 years ago)What else can I say but that this is the best thing ever invented. I wish we had a build a bear when I was growing up and so I would love to share this experience with my 3.5yr old Zara. She would be absolutely thrilled with a gift like this. How fun.
ReplyBailey Schneider
December 5, 2016 at 12:24 pm (4 years ago)This is adorable and such a fun experience for kids – so sweet and personal!
ReplyYour little one is such a cutie!
x
spruce
December 7, 2016 at 5:53 am (4 years ago)Thanks Bailey 🙂
Reply