The Toggery excitedly and officially celebrated the Grand Opening of our new store in Pleasant Ridge Town Center March 4-6. Thank you to everyone who joined us for the fun! We had tons of giveaways, including goody bags for customers who spent more than $100. 

Saturday was our big day - Kids Activity Day! We had a balloon artist, crafts, face painting and more! The store was bustling with balloon-clad children with brightly colored cheeks! We loved it! We hope you all had as much fun as we did, and by the looks of our pictures, you did!

To view these photos and more as a slideshow, click here: Grand Opening Slideshow.mov (4.56 mb)

Our balloon man was a big hit! From mermaids to crocodiles, flowers to hats, dogs to swords... we heard all kinds of requests! 

These beaming beauties are sporting BFF headbands from The Toggery, and the sweet sisters below wore their matching party dresses from our store!

We even had some triplets scoping out the party scene while Big Sister had her face painted!

Our face painters did a great job! Check out the cheeks on these cuties!

Oh, how we love seeing a crowd of happy kiddos in front of our store! If you look closely, you can see a little girl peeking in the front door windows!

Thank you again to everyone who joined us!

Grand Opening Slideshow.mov (4.56 mb)

 Have you joined The Toggery Book Club? At The Toggery, we pride ourselves on offering an expansive collection of books - from modern tales like Fancy Nancy to classics like Where the Wild Things Are. Not only do books deepen your child's imagination and vocabulary, but they provide a special moment of stillness and fun between reader and listener.

 That's why we love The Toggery Book Club. Each time you purchase a bundle of pages in one of our stores, we'll mark your club card. After five marks, you'll get the sixth book at half price! It's a great way to expand your library - or a friend's. (Books make great gifts!)

The feel of the pages, the gentle words, the colorful images and the sweet voice of the reader... they all make books a treasure for children. (And many of our books are entertaining for the adult reader too!)

Check out some of these Book Club favorites:

I Love It When You Smile

On the Night You Were Born (so sweet!)

Llama Llama Red Pajama

Goldilicious (along with the oh-so-cute Pinkalicious and Purplicious!)

Wheels on the Go! (one of my tiny nephew's favorites!)

Humpty Who?

Pop Warhol's Top (one of several artist-based stories)

Never Too Little to Love (so true.) 

These are just a few of the beloved books that can be found on our shelves. We are certain you'll love having them in yours. You can find more here and even more in our stores.

The Toggery Book Club is free and open to all of our shoppers. Just tell an employee you're interested - you'll soon be on your way to a half-price book for a full-scale imagination! 

As you know, our panel of Santa's elves met to select the winning name of our "Name Your Elf on the Shelf" contest. It was quite the decision. They made a list (and checked it twice), chugged pots of hot cocoa, and tapped their pointy shoes on the floor. Only one stubborn elf had to be reminded that he better not pout, better not cry... At the end of it all, they selected our winning name.....

... Elfie Sneakins!

Congratulations to Emily, Maisy and Brady - Elfie Sneakins' family! You have won a $50 Toggery books gift card!

To our other entrants, THANK YOU for participating. The contest was so much fun for everyone at The Toggery, and we loved hearing our customers' names for their elves. To express our gratitude, all contest entrants will receive an e-mail coupon for 25% off one item in our store!

(If you submitted a name but don't receive your coupon this week, we may not have your e-mail address. Please e-mail amber@toggerykids.com with your previously-submitted name and current e-mail address.)

We hope you have enjoyed following our contest. Merry Christmas!

There is something about Christmas pajamas that stirs the imagination. The colors, the images, the comfort... they are a bedtime reminder that Christmas Eve dreaming is on its way, and it's okay for "visions of sugarplums" to start a little early. For a child, the calendar count-down until the big day isn't fully understood. Weeks and days seem like months, but Christmas pajamas are timeless. When they put on their Christmas pajamas, they know that Santa is coming, and he's coming soon. Because every year before, when Mom pulled out the red and green pajamas, Santa's visit soon followed. And this year won't be any different.

For parents, Christmas pajamas can serve as a reminder of their childhood and the precious holiday memories of their youth. Your kids will only be kids once; the Christmases you create for them now are the magical memories they will reflect on as adults. The pajamas you bought for them last year don't fit this year... they are growing up so fast. Every year is a year to remember, every Christmas a season to treasure.

For The Toggery, a red and green polka-dotted nightgown or a snowman shirt and pant set aren't just about looking cute for Christmas morning photos. They are about tradition - remembering holidays past, and cherishing the one at present.

My 5-year-old daughter, above, is so excited about having a cousin to share Christmas morning with this year. (Notice "Emma," our female Elf on the Shelf sitting in the tree above the kids. Dear Daughter insisted that our elf was a girl and that we name her Emma.)

These sweet, sweet brothers look precious in their holiday pajamas. This is a special Christmas for Abe, age 4, and Murphy, almost 1 year, because it will be Murphy's first Christmas! (Thank you to their Mom for sharing the photo. Your boys are so beautiful, just look at those big eyes and long eyelashes!)

These precious siblings are the grandchildren of The Toggery's owners, Phil and Penny Olinghouse. Such a cute family!

Wishing you and yours a Merry Christmas full of tradition!

* * * * *

Do you have photos of your children in Toggery Christmas pajamas? If so, we would love to see them! Please e-mail them to caroline@toggerykids.com.

Oh, the deliberation! We received so many fantastic names for our "Name Your Elf on the Shelf" contest! Our panel of Santa's elves is really having a hard time choosing a winner for the $50 book gift card! They are having so much fun reading your elf's names that they wanted me to share a few of them...

Some of the names are silly, some sweet, some Christmas themed, some unexplainable... We have such creative and cute kid shoppers! Every elf has a story, and these are a few of yours.

(Thank you to our entrants who shared their story! The quotes below were submitted via e-mail or facebook; they have only been edited for spelling, punctuation, and length.)

* * * * *

•  "My son's name is Frank Wilson ______ [last name omitted], and he goes by Wilson. When trying to come up with the best name for our new elf, I asked him what the best name was, and he of course answered, 'Wilson.' But I thought that might be a little confusing so he said, "What about 'Little Frankie'?" And Little Frankie it is."

•  A mom writes about her daughter naming their elf 'Eeny' (ee-nee): "When we asked her why she wanted to name him Eeny, she said, "Mommy, because he is teeny eeny!" She thinks that he is just magical... It is amazing to us the power that Eeny has. All we have to do is mention that Eeny is watching her, and she changes her behavior. We love this tradition, and it is truly one of the highlights of our Holiday."

 •  "My son Jacob is 2.5 years old, and I thought this would be the perfect year to start the Elf on the Shelf. I was not sure how much he would understand, but thought it would be fun! We read the book, and the next morning, looked for him and found him hiding. Jacob immediately reached out to touch him, and I reminded him we can't touch the elf. Jacob is used to me telling him not to touch things like old gum, trash cans, etc. while we are running errands. He immediately replied, "Dirty elf Mommy, no touch." I went on to explain that the elf was not dirty, but that he would disappear if we touched him. I changed the subject by telling Jacob we really needed to name our elf; he did not appear to be interested and ran off to play.... When my husband got home from work that evening, he asked Jacob what he had named his elf, and he replied, "Dirty!" Ever since then, Jacob calls the little red elf his 'Dirty Elf'."

•  "My daughter wanted to name her elf 'Nativity' but couldn't quite say it right so it's 'TIVITY'!"

•  About naming their elf 'L' or 'Elle' :  "My Papaw whom raised me just passed away Halloween, and this was the first year we started the Elf on the Shelf tradition. My three little ones under 5 said since Papaw's middle name stood for 'Lightning' (Papaw... always told people that is what it stood for; however, his middle name truly was just the initial L.) that we ought to name our elf that since our elf must be as fast as lightning to report back to Santa. I thought that was just precious. They are excited about Elle's supervision starting this year, and Mommy is very excited about Elle keeping the kiddos in line."

* * * * * 

Other Moms wrote to us about their elves' habits:

"(Willie) is spending his third Christmas here with us. He has gotten a little mischievious over the years. He loves to get into the candy bowl and find Smarties; they are his favorite candy."

"Our elf's name is Elfie Sneakins, because he is an elf that sneaks in our house every year!"

* * * * *

And yet there are some moms who cannot explain their elf's name:

"My 6-year-old daughter named our new elf 'Calessa'! ... I have no idea where the idea for the name came from, but we all thought it was fitting for an elf."

* * * * *

There are those that are a play on 'elf,' like Elfert, Elfvis, Elfwin, and Elfred.

Other children turned to movies for inspiration, naming their elves Luke Skywalker or Charlie Jack (after Charlie Brown's Christmas and Jack Frost.)

Some kids stuck to a Holiday theme for their elves: Jingles, Nick, and Christmas.

Some names are quirky, like Chickmunk, Wink, Cookie, Kick, Zippy, and Dancing Fairy, and constrasting that are the more traditional names - Larry, Lloyd, Buddy, Melvin, and Edward.

* * * * *

The list of creative names goes on and on... Our panel has a difficult decision to make! They will have their final meeting tomorrow morning, and we will be announcing the winner shortly after here on the blog and on our facebook page. Will it be Zip? Seymour? Pinky? One of the names above? A name yet-to-be shared? Check back tomorrow to learn the winning name!

If you still don't have an Elf On The Shelf, you can get one here.

At The Toggery, we love The Elf on the Shelf. The book and doll are precious, but what we love the most is the tradition it creates in families, the good behavior and excitement it stirs in children, and the fun it inspires for parents.

For those of you who have no idea what I'm talking about, The Elf on the Shelf is a book and elf doll combo that the whole family will love. The book explains the elf's purpose - he (or she, if your child insists!) watches for nice and naughty behavior and flies back to the North Pole nightly to report to Santa what he witnessed. Each morning, curious and anxious children awaken to find the "magical" elf sitting (or dangling, if you get creative) in a new viewing spot. The elf - who is named by his adoring family - makes his final report to the man in red on Christmas Eve night, taking a much-needed break in the North Pole before returning to your home the following Thanksgiving.

You can watch a video about The Elf on the Shelf here. (But beware; the jingle is quite catchy!)

Because we love this tradition so much, The Toggery is hosting a "Name Your Elf on the Shelf" contest! We want to know what YOUR family named YOUR elf! A panel of Santa's top elves will vote on the winning name, and the winner will receive a $50 gift card to use toward the purchase of Toggery books of their choice! 

Our facebook fans and e-mail subscribers have known about our contest for awhile, so we have already received some GREAT names! (Zippy! Little Frank! Beautiful! Elfvis!) The panel is loving the names so far, so keep 'em coming!

To submit your elf's name, simply post it to our facebook wall or e-mail it to elfontheshelf@toggerykids.com. Hurry! The contest ends this Saturday, Dec. 5!

While you're at it, we love to hear stories from our customers. Tell us about The Elf on the Shelf tradition in your family, what your kiddos whisper in his pointy ears, or where your little red reporter props himself in your house.

Check back here, The Toggery blog, in the days and weeks to come, as we'll be updating you on the panel's deliberation, the winning name, and more holiday stories! If you still haven't purchased an elf for your family, you can do so in one of our stores or here on our web site.

  Here is a photo of "Red Ted." He watches the behavior of two "nice" kiddos and one sweet baby from above the fireplace!

Top 5 Reasons to Buy Your Child Uggs this Fall:

5) No socks required. (Eliminating the morning hunt for clean matches!)

4) It's going to be a "bitterly cold" winter, according to the newest Farmers' Almanac. The first body parts to feel the freeze: feet!

3) Uggs are available in RED - Perfect for the holidays and those cold razorback games.

2) You and your tag along can match! You've been sporting Uggs for years; share the warmth with your budding fashionista!

1) Uggs are on sale at The Toggery Thursday, Oct. 1 - Saturday, Oct. 10!  

Get $10 off your online purchase of a pair of UGGS using the code: 10OFFUGGS, or come in our store and tell our friendly staff that you read about the promotion on the blog!  

Toggery shopper Kennedy, age 3 1/2, loves her new red UGG boots and Luigi dress.

Thanks for sending in your photos, Kennedy and Mom!

(Kennedy's Mom will receive 10 percent off of one item just for e-mailing us these adorable photos!)

Haley was ready for her first day of school - or so she thought. Among the list of school supplies was one accessory that she had overlooked: a Snap Caps necklace.

The fun and personalized bottle cap jewelry was on the back-to-school "must have" list for tween girls this year, and Haley was no exception. Snap Caps come in thousands of designs and monograms, and their magnetic backing allows them to snap to a matching necklace and bracelet or to a locker. They are also now available as hair clips! 

 

Two years ago, my family and I took my daughter to her first razorback game. We were so excited and just knew she'd love calling the hogs, meeting Pork Chop, and watching the cheerleaders. We were mostly wrong.

The loudness of "Woo Pig Sooie" left her speechless, and as for Pork Chop, the photo below can explain her feelings on that.

(We learned that she had an intense fear of oversized red pigs standing on two feet. In Pork Chop's defense, she was afraid of Chuck E. Cheese too.)

But we were right about one thing: She loved watching the cheerleaders. So much, in fact, that she was willing to return to a razorback game later that fall and has continued to cheer for the hogs while getting over her mascot phobia. (It actually has a scientific name: masklophobia!)

She has recently come to realize that each new football season brings a new razorback cheerleader outfit. Last year's no longer fits, and in her eyes, it's the only acceptable thing to wear to the game. She looks adorable, and she knows it.

To celebrate the start of the season, The Toggery is offering $20 off all Razorback cheer outfits from now through Sept. 12. Get your little cheerleader ready for the game, and while you're there, snap her picture and e-mail it to us! We would love to hear about your child's razorback game experience!

As for my daughter, she has now mastered calling the hogs, and she will be there watching and mimicking the cheerleaders... while keeping her distance from Pork Chop.

My little cheerleader calls the hogs and practices cheer moves in her razorback cheerleader outfit from The Toggery.