We just love the simplicity of these but were even more thrilled to see what they had in the corner . . .

An old fold-out mini Sesame Street set, complete with stoop for impromptu songs about counting.  The details were also terrific, like this “autographed” photo in one of the rooms.

For all of you mid-century enthusiasts, you will enjoy the Fisher Price “Play family A-Frame” House, complete with sliding doors.

I’m sure you can find these on ebay but they are so much more special when they are the actual houses you played with when you were a child.  It is so fun to be able to share these with your own kids and I’m sure our friends will do so . . . just remember to invite us over too!

A good looking crib that grows on you.

Thanks P&N.  The May issue is on newsstands now.

The other thing that we couldn’t help marveling over is the boy’s incredible resourcefulness and it reminds us of the tremendous power kids have to imagine,  invent and create.

Credit: NIckMom.com

I believe the actual title of this cartoon is “What you can get done in 30 minutes with/without your kids” And we wonder where the weekend goes!

Travis Kirton, a Canadian interactive designer, has developed a system that allows you to draw with type—literally having words flow out of your pen.  He explains his TypeIs system in this video and is attempting to raise funds for a commercially available version.

You really have to just see it work, but one of the most striking designs is when he used the text of Alice in Wonderland and turned it into a series of illustrations (photo credit: Travis Kirton):

Users can change the color, size, font and orientation by simply gesturing with you pen.  He is raising funds at Sokap and it’s worth a visit!

They featured the Sam Crib with Blue Whale MuuPanel and shared the following:

We’ve been pretty much in love with the Sam crib by Muu ever since we first laid eyes on it a few years ago. And it’s still one of our faves

We’re feeling all warm inside!  Check out their website for tons of good information as well as their magazine.

For those of you who are fans of the hit NBC show Parenthood  (Executive Producers Ron Howard & Brian Grazer) and developed by Jason Katmis (Friday Night Lights), you may have noticed some familiar products in the “It Is What It Is” episode.

Check out the Julia character assembling the Ray Crib on Parenthood!

Check out the Ray Crib being assembled by Erika Christensen’s character Julia.  It’s always fun to see our products on TV, although please never never never assemble your crib with a power tool!

Check out the Ray Crib over in the right corner of the shot

We hope to see the crib making an appearance in future episodes!  Thank you to the cool folks at Parenthood who included us.  The show airs Tuesday at 10/9C

Favorite quote of the piece:

By making our furniture here, we consume less energy getting products to our customers than if we made them half a world away.  Making high-quality products means that we are building things to last–and that means less unnecessary consumption, which is good for your wallet and good for the environment.

The January issue of Pregnancy & Newborn is on newsstands now.

Here’s one of some children in town raising the flag before school starts.  I was told that everyone goes out to play for recess until the temperature gets down to zero– I’m freezing just thinking about it .

Here’s another shot driving through town.

Photos inside the factory to follow in our next series.

What we love about this photo, apart from the obviously beautiful room design, is how it perfectly shows how adaptable the Sam Collection pieces are to different situations.

Calling all customers: Don’t by shy, send in your photos and we’ll publish them, especially if they are as stunning as this one.