Tips For a Fun and Healthier Holiday

Halloween is here and the holidays are near, so that means lots of sugary sweet treats — candies, chocolates and desserts. As a result, it can mean a huge dental bill and weight gain.

It is possible to make the holidays more fun and healthy for the body and mind. Try giving out themed toys that help encourage children to use their imagination and vocabulary, and eating healthier.

My precious darling princess, nieces and all her school friends have been obsessed with L.O.L. Surprise!  (“Little Outrageous Little Surprise”) recently. I was incredibly weary to let them into our home, because they are not cheap. L.O.L. Surprise! toys average approximately $10 – $15 a ball, and my daughter already has more than 50 balls in her collection. In addition, there are big surprise sets that are $69.99 – $169.99. They run out fast, and parents will unfortunately find the prices for each of these sets can increase to more than double or triple the original price on Amazon and eBay!

Kids simply love these glittery, dome shaped plastic cases, filled with 50 surprises to unwrap. They include the cutest dolls, clothing, charms and many other accessories that are all individually unwrapped. Children enjoy the pleasure of uncovering all of the toys’ colorful layers and figuring out the fun surprises inside. Some dolls can change color in cold water, cry, spit and even wee wee. If lucky, a child can unravel a rare, special limited edition doll!

I didn’t welcome L.O.L. Surprise! dolls at first, because they cut into my tight budget, but I gave in after seeing how happy and excited my little girl gets when she unwraps a special limited edition doll. I look at it as an advantage by rewarding her a ball or surprise set, only if she continues to finish her homework and does extra school work every day. It worked, because now she has an incentive to work for her favorite toy — similar to how hard I work and look forward to my holiday bonus at the end of the year. Like the saying goes, “Nothing is free in life,” so I take advantage of this opportunity to show my child why it’s important that she works towards a goal, and shouldn’t expect for everything to be available when she asks for it.

Collecting L.O.L. Surprise! dolls to a child is similar to collecting antiques or stamps to a grown-up. All collectors appreciate rare finds, because it is motivating, and the pure joy is priceless. So just imagine how spectacular kids feel when they unwrap a rare, special limited edition toy. The process of searching, locating and buying rare finds to complete a specific collection gives the collector a sense of accomplishment, pride and success. For some collectors, the simple and pure fun of a treasure hunt and the moment of actually finding and successfully acquiring a unique item is invaluable. This is similar to what my kids go through when they collect L.O.L. Surprise! dolls. They enjoy the moment when they get praised by friends who also collect these dolls, and love the feeling of joy every time their peers give positive feedback about their collection.

1. Communication: I can enter my daughter’s imaginary world, and find out what’s precious to her. When I play with her, it helps me learn more about her interests, what makes her happy or unhappy and it increases the communication between me and my little girl.
2. Emotional development: When my little girl lost one of her rare L.O.L. Surprise! dolls, she cried all night to bed, and woke up with puffy eyes. It broke my heart, because she lost something precious, something that took much time and care to collect. So going forward, she learned to put all her significant toys away after she finishes playing with them.
3. Financial planning and goal setting: As I previously stated, L.O.L. Surprise! dolls average approximately $10 – $15 each ball, and the sets start at $69.99 and can go up to $169.99 or more each. Thus, I’m not able to gift them to her on a regular basis. We planned to save for the big glittery ball. This is her goal, and we talked about how we can work to earn money to buy the special big ball.
4. Imagination and Memory: The range of dolls are endless, and I just love how she puts herself into the dolls’ imaginary world during play time. Her ability to remember which dolls and pets she has, which limited edition she does and does not have amazes me!
5. Vocabulary: When my darling daughter plays with her favorite L.O.L. Surprise! dolls and pets, she speaks to them in a very caring, kind and cooperative way — similar to how I communicate with her.