Giveaway: Any three items from Apple Park

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Most babies have rituals and form attachments to all sorts of things— blankies, sippy cups, pacifiers, purses. At least from what I’ve seen. If you want to enjoy parenting from years 0-5, I suggest trying to control these rituals and attachments as much as possible.

For instance, if your baby’s ritual is waking up every morning at 5:15am and demanding waffles before she has even left the crib, you will not be thrilled with the turn your trip into parenthood has taken.

Likewise, if your child decides to attach herself to a purple tank top and hasn’t unattached herself in the past four years, you will begin to wonder if perhaps you made a mistake along the way.

The biggest lesson I learned with Mazzy is to make sure whatever you give your child to sleep with at night, you won’t mind them walking around with it in public during the day. Seems obvious now, I know. But four years ago, I was a newbie.

Harlow doesn’t have one attachment item like Mazzy’s Boo. She has many. Often she likes to carry them (or accessorize with them) all at once. Lately, she is really into bears and sunglasses. I took the kids out to a restaurant last night and Harlow insisted on wearing her sunglasses indoors for the entire meal. I assume this is what it is like to have a fifteen-year-old boy.

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When Mazzy was little, I had this idea to get her a handsewn doll. I thought it would be so cute for a little girl to walk around dragging a ragdoll. But I couldn’t find anything that didn’t involve buttons or loose strings, all things I didn’t deem safe for my first baby.

Mazzy never got into dolls or stuffed animals though, until she started watching television. Then she wanted Elmo and Dora plushies that I didn’t want her to carry around in public either. Plus, they made terrible room decor. I hid them in the closet when she wasn’t playing with them.

Harlow is different. She loves stuffed animals and dolls. She prefers things that are soft and subtle as opposed to the brightness of a muppet or the baldness of a Caillou. While Mazzy likes to throw her stuffed animals around, Harlow treats them with the utmost love and respect.

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Apple Park has recently become one of my favorite online shops for plush toys and lovies. For one thing, they make all their products from organic, sustainable or recycled materials. Secondly, their stuff (which also includes pajamas, towels, books and backpacks) are high quality and ridiculously adorable. Their Farm Buddies and Picnic Pals come in a huge variety of thoughtful patterns and look lovely lined up on your kid’s bed or displayed on the dresser.

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Even better, you won’t mind your child carrying one outside the house. (Unless you fear it will get dirty if they drop it in the street, or worse— LOST).

If you are looking for a great baby shower gift, I highly recommend the organic plush Picnic Pals. They are 100% safe for babies and they come in an impressively big red round box with a satin green leaf hanging off the top to make it look like an apple. Mazzy was just as enamored with the box as she was with the bunny inside.

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If you are feeling extra generous, you can pair it with the Big Picnic Pal Book which weaves a story around all Apple Park’s plush toys, so hopefully your baby can get to know them before he/she gets to know Elmo.

Every plush toy comes in a blankie version.

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My favorites are the ones that are soft on one side and patterned on the other, like this adorable owl. I think life with Mazzy would be a lot different if she were attached to one of these cute and cuddly blankies as opposed to a pile of purple rags.

Apple Park sent Mazzy and Harlow a big box of stuff right before we came out to the new house this summer. Their room here is pretty empty— all white with just a bed, a crib and a dresser, so we brought all the Apple Park stuff which has helped make their room look more like home.

If you are not a huge fan of pink, they make plenty of animals to appeal to every kid.

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Harlow likes dragging her bunny around by his long floppy ear.

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In addition to the plushies and the lovies, they sent pajamas…

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…and two big bath towels— one shaped like a butterfly and the other like a mouse.

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Usually hooded animal towels only come in infant sizes so it’s great to have two that are big enough for my growing girls. They love running around the house wearing them like capes after bath time.

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Apple Park backpacks and lunchbags are made from 100% recycled material from PET bottles (empty plastic waterbottles). You would never know it though because the process produces a strong canvas that is highly durable but also really soft.

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Mazzy, of course, fell in love with her pink bunny pack with matching lunchbag. Harlow settled for the brown bear.

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Before we came out to the summer house for the month of August, Mazzy was going to a camp a few blocks away from our apartment in the city. Every morning, Harlow insisted on wearing a backpack and walking her sister to camp. It became a family activity that Mike, Mazzy, Harlow and I shared together, since it was close enough to walk Harlow back home before I left for work.

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That’s a ritual I am going to miss next year.

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GIVEAWAY & PROMO CODE!

If you shop www.applepark.com and use the code MS20, you’ll get 20% off your entire purchase between August 13th — August 31st.

Also, I’m giving away three Apple Park products of your choice (any three products regardless of price) to one lucky reader.

All you have to do is visit the Apple Park site and tell me the three products you would choose. Plus, please “like” and/or share this post, just because it would be nice.

Winner will be announced on Friday, the 22nd.

Good luck!

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Update: Congratulations to Jennifer Lucarelli! You can now buy Max the monkey blanket, the monkey PJs and the monkey plush toy he always wanted. Please contact grace@mommyshorts.com to claim your prize.

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This post was sponsored by Apple Park but all thoughts and opinions are my own.