Valentines For A 9 Year Old Boy

As my children get older I'm finding that my concerns surrounding Valentine's Day have gone from trying to get reservations at a romantic restaurant to finding the right Valentine's Day card for my 9 year old son to distribute to his class. He's still young enough to want to celebrate, but too grown up (he thinks) for many of the Valentine's Day cards available at our local Target.

Super heroes? Mom - that's for babies! SpongeBob? Lame. Harry Potter? You can't be serious!

So, instead of spending a couple of hours in the Valentine's Day aisle, we turned to our friends at Cocoblu Studio. Owner Sarah Lemoine created the perfect custom Valentine's Day card for us.

Manly? Yes. Cool? You bet! Add some Cry Baby Bubble Gum and you've got the perfect Valentine's Day card for a 9 year old boy!

Enter discount code ITTYBITTY for 15% off your purchase of Valentine's Day cards or custom stationery at Cocoblu Studio.

The cutest Valentine's Day Cards EVER at Cocoblu Studio!

Valentine's Day will be here before you know it. Say it isn't so - didn't we just put away our holiday decorations?

Thanks to Cool Mom Picks, one of our all time favorite sites, its easy to get excited about sending out Valentines. Check out CocoBlu Studios for what we think are the cutest Valentine's Day cards EVER!

This year make it easy on yourself with the great selection of business card sized Valentines to distribute to the class or
choose from the fabulous full sized cards. Either way, you'll have the hippest Valentines in town. We love not having to bribe our children to write their names on Valentines for each of their classmates and you can be sure the grandparents will be updating their brag books with these super cute cards!

CocoBlu Studios will customize stationary, Mommy Cards and Birth Announcements. They even have stickers you can use on birthday treat bags or as return address labels.

Check out CocoBlu Studios and get 15% off your Valentine and stationary order with code ITTYBITTY.

Dwell Studio coming to Target!

Mark your calendars for February! Target is teaming up with Dwell Studio to bring you a line of modern home and nursery decor. Dwell is one of our favorite sources for high quality, fresh, funky and sophisticated crib bedding.



Dwell Studio crib bedding shown to the left. The patterns created for Target have yet to be unveiled.


Dwell Studio's nursery collection for Target will feature rugs. lamps, and window treatments in 12 exciting new patterns. Also, for the first time, Dwell Studios has designed furniture -including changing tables and cribs. We can't wait to check it out!


High design at affordable prices. Is it any wonder that my toddler who doesn't know how to read knows the symbol for Target?

To the right, a pillow from the line created by Dwell Studios for Target. 18" $19.99

A special thank you to Domino Magazine for the great news!

Megan D's Book Review - "The Manhattan Menace" A Karito Kids Adventure

We are very excited to have our first book review written by our special guest contributor, Megan D. Megan is 10 years old and is in the 4th grade. She read The Manhattan Menace, the first book in the Karito Kids Adventure series. The Manhattan Menace is about Zoe, an 11 year old girl living in present day New York City, and how she takes on a huge real estate developer to save her home and avoid having to leave the best city in the world. So, without further ado, here's Megan!

The book was perfect for me because it was an exciting mystery, which I LOVE!!!!!

One of my favorite parts of the book was when Zoe goes into an old house owned by her Mom. Zoe and her friend Hanna were searching for the missing tiara that she and Hanna heard was worth a lot of money. They tiptoed into the house and a couple of minutes later a construction man came up the stairs, grabbed them by their shirts, and shoved them down the stairs. He takes them to his boss named Barrington Smith. He told the construction man to take them to Zoe's Mom's house. Luckily she did not get in trouble.

I was on the edge of my seat when I read those few pages!

Another suspenseful part of the book was when Zoe distracted a guard by playing a special guitar in a museum while her friend Hanna hunted in a file for some information on Emma Roger's house.

To find out more about Zoe and Hanna's search for the tiara, I strongly suggest you read this book!



Thank you Megan for your terrific review! We can't wait to hear what you think about Nairobi Nightmare featuring Lulu from Kenya!

Stay tuned for more Karito Kid Adventure book reviews by Megan D.!

Asian Accents in the Nursery

Asian inspired pieces are a beautiful addition to a nursery or child's room. Asian decor is very right now and a touch of the Orient is alway a classic statement. These pieces will transition easily from nursery to young adult and even into your family room.

The light blue Chloe Etagere by Bungalow 5 is practical and beautiful. The large drawer on the bottom can be used to store extra diapers and wipes. Fill the shelves with lined baskets, books, toys and well loved stuffed animals. Top shelf for all of those precious breakable baby gifts. The Chloe Etagere comes in a variety of colors to fit your nursery decor.


Lighting is a great way to add a bit of Asian flair without going overboard. Lotus lovers will swoon over Sparkle's translation of a Tommy Parzinger 1960's original. "InStyle Home" magazine features the original chandelier in set designer Darren Ransdell's Hollywood home. We think the Lotus Blossom Chandelier would be unexpectedly exotic in a nursery or a teen's bedroom. On its own or as a pair, you can't go wrong with this chandelier.




Foo dogs are so fun and stylistically funky. Go from streamlined to ornate - you can find foo dogs at your local Asian market or at the most upscale boutiques. You can use them as bookends or delightful accent pieces.
All of the above items can be found at http://www.tonichome.com/. Enter code "luckybreaks5" to receive 25% off your entire purchase until November 30th.

Itty Bitty Ladybug Blog Up and Running!

Thanks to our amazingly talented web designer, Leigh Lambert, the Itty Bitty Ladybug Blog is up and running! We are looking forward to hearing from our friends and customers and filling you in on the latest great products and news. Our topics will range from Asian decor to children's clothing to international adoption and great books for all ages. We love to dish and virtually no topic is off limits!

Up in October we will be focusing on adding Asian accents to nursery decor. We will also feature a very special guest contributor, our good friend and neighbor Meagan D. Meagan is 10 years old and in the 4th grade. She will be reading and reviewing all of the Karito Kids books. Thanks Meagan!

Please feel free to comment and send in suggestions for future posts. We look forward to hearing from you!

Karito Kids Top Toy!

Karito Kids are here at ittybittyladybug.com

Regis & Kelly, Family Fun Magazine and Oprah have all picked the Karito Kids as a top toy for 2007. Check out our Karito Kids Boutique to read more about the Karito Kids and why they are creating such a sensation. Beat the holiday rush and order yours now at ittybittyladybug.com!