July Sponsor: Mildred & Dildred

* The winner is number 11 Rachel Tidd. Congratulations! 

Today I am happy to welcome my newest July sponsor Mildred & Dildred. It is a local toy shop here in Tucson specializing in more alternative toys. I first visited this shop when I was pregnant with Sofia. I was blown away at how lovely it was; not like any other toy store I've ever seen. The ladies who run this store have created something really special: it's more than just a toy store, they create a space where children can come and explore. I sat down with Autumn Ruhe to talk a bit about the store.

Mildred & Dildred rolls off the tongue in such a lovely way. What was your inspiration for the name of your shop?

Mildred & Dildred came from my Grandpa. He would tell my sister and I stories about two little girls named Mildred and Dildred. The girls were sort of dopey, and would always get into some sort of trouble (trapped in a cave full of bears, for example), and then their brave and handsome grandpa would save them. We would always roll our eyes and be like TELL US A DIFFERENT STORY. But he helped with the creation of the store, and I thought it would be nice to sort of name it after him.

What brought you to selling alternative and eco-friendly toys? 

As a local shop, we want to be a positive influence in our community, especially in terms of what we sell.  It feels good to know we are selling things that don't make as big an environmental footprint on the world.

What were your 5 favorite toys as a child? 

My 5 favorite toys: #1 Playmobil.  My sister and I were crazy for Playmobil... I think that's the main reason the store devotes so much space to it. We would play for hours, and the older we got, the more sophisticated and hilarious the plots would become. I really think Playmobil helped me develop my sense of humor, and obviously my imagination.  

        #2 Playmobil again.  Seriously that was such an important toy for me.

        #3 Play food

        #4 Corolle Dolls- I still have my Corolle doll. She looks terrible at this point, but I really loved her.  

       #5 Cardboard Boxes- As a toy store owner, I probably shouldn't be saying this, but plain cardboard boxes were really important. My sister and I made a lot of our toys. One time I made a cash register out of a shoe box. It even had a cash drawer. I was pretty proud of it.

You have a great selection of books in your shop. What was your favorite book as a kid? What is your favorite book now?

I love the book section!  It's my baby.  I really liked "Jumanji" and "A Light in the Attic" as a kid.  My current favorite book always changes, but right now it's "Here Comes the Rat!"  It was written in the 80s by a Russian and an American, and it's about how something that seems scary can actually be really wonderful.  The illustrations are great too.  

If you could put some toys in a box and send them into space for some aliens to find what would you put in? 

Toys in space- I guess I'd put my current favorite book in there, a Corolle doll, the Playmobil motorhome (that's the coolest one), a wooden robot, and a whoopie cushion.  I think they'd have fun with that.

Thank you Autumn! Check out their website at here and on Facebook.
              --------------------------------------------Giveaway--------------------------------------------
In light of today being my blog's 3rd anniversary, I've asked Autumn if we could do a giveaway of baby toys, since alternative baby toys is what brought me into her shop.  This giveaway is really lovely! She has given me a whole bag of things for one of you lovely readers. In the bag are:

• Haba pacifier chain
• My Love for You by Susan L. Roth
• Under the Nile plush tomato
• Natural Rubber Teether
• tag toy from Dandelion

These are five awesome items for baby, which I photographed on top of our play fridge! We have the natural rubber teether and Viola loves it.

To enter to win simply leave your name and e-mail address in the form below. I will pick a winner via random number generator July 14th at 8pm and announce it here. Good luck.