"Somebunny Loves You" Valentines!

Roses are red,

Violets are blue,

Bunnies are lovely,

And so are you!

Bouncing bunnies!
We were busy in the craft room yesterday, creating our own Valentine's Day cards that celebrate love, and recognize the Year of the Rabbit too.  

We can't wait to "share the love" by giving these cards out to all of our friends and family, and of course that includes you!
We appreciate each one of you so much, and "hop" your Valentine's Day is filled with the love of friends and family. 
If you'd like, create a couple of these cards with your kids and pass the love on.
If you do, be sure to post about it on our facebook wall. You'll earn a special 8% Ape 2 Zebra discount card just for posting, and also be entered into a draw to win a $50 Ape 2 Zebra. 

Did we mention that we'll be making a donation to charity for each posting too?  Share the love with "somebunny" special today!

Somebunny Loves You Bunny Face Card

What You Need:
One half sheet of construction paper or card stock, folded in half to make a card measuring approximately 15 cm x 11.5 cm
One large pink heart (for the bunny's face)
One small red heart (for the bunny's nose)
Two small white hearts (approximately the size of the nose, to be used for the bunny's eyes)
Two black hearts, slightly smaller than the white hearts (for the bunny's eyes)
One large, narrow red heart (for the bunny's ears)
One large, narrow white heart, slightly smaller than the narrow red heart (for the bunny's ears)
Narrow strips of black paper (for the bunny's whiskers)
One small red semi circle (for the bunny's mouth)
Glue of your choice
Fine tipped pen

What You Need to Do:
1. Cut large, narrow red heart vertically in half to form two ears.  Repeat with large narrow white heart.  Glue the white pieces of the ears to the red pieces.  Glue ears in place towards the top of the card.
2. Glue large pink heart to the card, placing it so that the point of the heart is positioned towards the top of the card, and the heart just covers the ends of the bunny's ears.
3. Glue small black hearts onto small white hearts.  Glue onto the top part of the pink heart to form the bunny's eyes.
4. Glue small red heart to the middle of the large pink heart to form the bunny's nose, placing it with the point of the heart positioned upward.
5. Glue the red semi circle just underneath pink heart to form the bunny's mouth.
6. Glue the black strips onto the pink heart to form the bunny's whiskers.
7. Underneath the bunny, write the Valentine's Day sentiment of your choice.  Some ideas include: "Somebunny Loves You", "Somebunny is wishing you a Happy Valentines Day", or "Somebunny's Special to Me, Can You Guess Who?"

 

Thumbunny Cards

What You Need:
White Cardstock, cut and folded to form cards measuring approximately 15 cm x 11 cm
Coloured Cardstock, cut to measure approximately 14 cm x 10 cm
White card stock, cut to measure approximately 12.5 cm x 9 cm
Washable markers (or a stampad, or liquid paint)
A fine tipped pen
Glue, or adhesive of your choice

What You Need to Do:
1. Colour your child's thumb and pinky finger with a washable marker (this makes clean up really easy, but a ink pad, or paint, would work too).  Press thumb onto small piece of white cardstock to form the bunny's body.  Press pinky just overlapping the thumbprint to form the bunny's head. 

For the "Thumbunny Hopes Your Valentine's Day is Sweet" card, we coloured our fingers three different colours and made three bunnies. 

For the "I 'Hop" Your Valentines Day is Happy" card we made one bunny in the righthand corner of the card, but feel free to be creative!

Making the thumbprints is a great way to get even the tiniest tots involved in sharing the love!

2. Once your bunny prints have been completed, use a fine tipped marker to add details such as ears, eyes, and paws to the bunnies.  Depending on the age you are doing this with, it may be an "adult" job.

3.  Add sentiments of your choice. 
Some ideas include:

"Thumbunny wishes you a Happy Valentine's Day" ,

"Thumbunny loves you, Can you guess who",

and "I "hop" your Valentines Day is Happy", but feel free to use your creativity!

4. Attach thumbprinted white cardstock to coloured cardstock with glue or other adhesive.  Glue coloured cardstock to white folded card.

We sure "hop" you have fun with these Bunny Valentines!

Beary Truly Yours,

Theodore Bear

Blow a Kiss This Valentine's Day

Bear oh Bear!

As everyone here knows, I love my sweets (especially honey), but sometimes too much sugar hurts even my tummy!

I've also been told it's not beary good for my teeth, and so sometimes it's nice to have a sugar free way to celebrate.
If you are looking for a fabulous, food and fuss free way
to wish friends or family a Happy Valentine's Day,
why not blow them a kiss?

We made these customized "Blow a Kiss" bottles of bubble solution in the toy shop this morning, and they were so fast and fun, and frugal too.

Here's What You Need:

Small bottles of bubble solution

Scrapbook, or other paper with a pretty pattern, to make the label

Solid coloured paper to make the large hearts

White (or contrasting solid coloured) paper to make the small hearts

A fine tipped marker or pen

Double sided tape, or alternate glue or adhesive of your choice


Here's What You Need To Do:

1. Measure the width of the label on your bottle of bubble solution, and cut patterned paper into strips of an equal width.

2. Measure the circumference of your bottle of bubble solution and trim your strips of patterned paper to fit around your bottle, with a bit of extra to overlap at the seam.

3. Wrap your strip of patterned paper tightly around the bottle, and secure with double sided tape at the seam (glue would work too, or you could even just tape a strip of regular clear tape over the seam.

4. Cut larger hearts out of solid paper, and smaller hearts out of white paper.

5. Write or print "Blow a Kiss" onto white hearts with a fine tipped pen.

6. Attach one white hearts to each solid coloured heart with double sided tape or glue.

7. Use double sided tape or glue to secure one completed heart to eacah bottle of bubble solution, centering the heart in the middle of your new scrapbook paper label.

8. Share the love and "Blow a Kiss" to your friends and family!

Remember to stop by our facebook page and write a post on our wall telling us how you and your family are "Sharing the Love" this Valentine's Season.

You'll earn a special 8% Ape 2 Zebra Discount, and be entered into a draw to win a $50 Ape to Zebra Gift Card.

We will also be donating $1 to charity for each post we receive.

You have to be beary quick though, because the contest closes on Monday, February 14, 2011.

Blowing you kisses!

Theodore Bear and the Ape 2 Zebra Animal Associates

Share the Love for a Chance to Win a $50 Ape 2 Zebra Gift Card !

Bon bons and baking, do I love Valentines Day!

The treats are terrific, but what I really love is having the chance to tell everyone in my life how much I appreciate them. Where would I be without Cornel's kindness, Orson's safety advice, or the Penguin Pack's help with all of the parcels?


Of course, you, our customers, are beary special to all of us here at Ape 2 Zebra too, and we want you know how much we appreciate each of you. So, in the spirit of the day, we are giving you the opportunity to earn a special 8% Ape 2 Zebra Toys discount code, and the chance to win a $50 Ape to Zebra gift card!

Entering is easy. All you have to do is to go out (starting today) and share some love, then head on over to our facebook page and let us know what you have done by posting on our wall. The way that choose to "Share Love" could really be anything, from making a valentines card for a senior at a care centre, leaving a children's book in the waiting room of a clinic, or bringing hot chocolate to the crossing guard. We don't want to limit anyone and would also love to hear from our younger friends if they did something to "share the love".

Everyone that makes a "Sharing the Love" post to our wall will get a 8% discount coupon that will be valid for orders placed at Ape 2 Zebra's online store (but remember, you have to be a Facebook Friend of Ape 2 Zebra to qualify for the discount code). All entries will be entered into a draw to win a $50 Ape 2 Zebra Gift Card, and yes you can post more than one entry as long as it is not the same post. Please make sure you have actually done what you have said you have done too - that is the whole idea of sharing the love!

We at Ape 2 Zebra are sharing the love with others too!
For every "Share the Love" entry we get, we will also make a $1 donation to charity.
We haven't finalized a charity yet, but we are leaning towards one that provide support for abused children and mothers. If you have a charity you want to suggest then please let us know about that too! "Sharing the Love" starts now and we will do the draw on February 15, 2011.

Let's start "sharing the love" today!

Beary Truly Yours,
Theodore Bear (on behalf of myself, and all of my Ape 2 Zebra friends)

Valentines Day Gifts for Boys and Girls

Ape to Zebra's Valentines Day Sale is in full swing!

High quality, European toys that have been hand picked especially for Valentines Day. It doesn't matter if you purchase an adorable baby rattle or this unique, solid wood mushroom dollhouse for Snow White and the seven dwarfs, all our toys says I love you like none other.

We have also gone the extra mile to sweeten your Valentines day shopping even more - our unique selection is priced right and kids will love decorating their own T-Shirts with the T-Shirt transfer kit that will ship FREE with every order over $100 (after discount).

Our Valentine's Day Gifts and Toys will only be on sale for this week and the free gift event will end January 15, 2010.

Visit Ape to Zebra Toys today to pick up something special for your heart's desire today!