On Tacy’s sixth birthday, she wanted to go to Build-a-Bear Workshop.

We drove to the location where we thought there was a Build-a-Bear, only to discover that we were wrong. Thanks to the lousy weather that afternoon (snow…on April 9…ugh), we decided to forego looking for another location and went out for pizza instead.

But she hasn’t forgotten about Build-a-Bear. So when fellow blogger Average Jane asked if we’d like to check out Tropical Hello Kitty, courtesy of Build-a-Bear Workshop, I jumped at the chance. It’s not like we needed another stuffed animal around here, but unlike almost all of the others, I knew Hello Kitty would be special.

And she is. The girls ADORE her. We’ve had to draft a schedule for her sleeping arrangements. Clothing has been sacrificed by American Girl dolls so that Hello Kitty can change her clothes a dozen times a day. The little girl two doors down has a Hello Kitty too, and the two cats got together for a playdate yesterday.

What makes this kitty so entrancing? I’ve got to admit, she is extremely huggable. Much more huggable than any real live cat I’ve owned. Plus, I love her because she doesn’t shed. A huggable, hairless cat - my favorite.

Tacy agrees with the huggability factor. When I asked her, “Why do you love Hello Kitty?” she gave me a look as if to say, “Well, DUH. Why do you think?” When pressed for actual words to describe that love, she told me, “She’s beautiful and soft and cuddly.”

On the Build-a-Bear site, you can purchase your own Hello Kitty and dress her up any way you please. Check out all the furry friends there - personally, I love the donation animals, where a portion of the proceeds are donated to local pet shelters and rescue organizations.

I’ve got a $25 Bear Bucks card to give away to a lucky reader! Email me at mothergoosemouse AT mothergoosemouse DOT com by midnight PST on Monday, June 9, and tell me how you’d spend your Bear Bucks at the Build-a-Bear site. I’ll draw one winner at random (US and Canada only!) and announce on mothergoosemouse on Wednesday, June 11.

Don’t tell my kids, but on my dresser there’s a small bowl which holds all of the barrettes, clips, pony tail holders, and other hair accessories that I find around the house.  I started collecting them a few days ago, and while they still have plenty of goodies left in their bathroom, slowly but surely the quantity is dwindling.  I will be thoroughly amused on the day that they can’t find a single hair accessory anywhere in the house - and believe me, that day is coming.

This is why I don’t spend big bucks on barrettes.  I’m a confessed Gymboree addict, but you’ll never catch me purchasing the matching hair accessories.  Just like the matching socks, they usually disappear after one wearing.  Pointless, at least in this house.

So as you can imagine, special hair accessories must be kept under tight security around here.  That’s why the gorgeous clips we received from Maiden America live here, in my kitchen, on top of the stack of “Mommy stuff” that no one except me - not even Kyle - is allowed to touch.

The girls are allowed to wear these beauties on special occasions, under strict orders that they are NOT to remove them.  While in their younger days my girls had barely enough hair to hold a clip, they now have plenty of hair and much greater manual dexterity - along with apparent aspirations to become hair stylists.  Instead of styling their dolls, they style themselves.  Methinks it might be time for a couple of pixie cuts…

Except I won’t do that because I honestly love how cute they look with these gorgeous clips in their ‘dos.

Maiden America is known for their non-slip hair clips - and I will tell you that these suckers really don’t budge.  Kyle wore one for a whole evening before he realized it - and he’s got short, fine hair.  So perhaps a pixie cut isn’t out of the question after all, since even a military-style man’s cut can hold these clips.

My only suggestion to Maiden America is that they might introduce a line of clips with simpler styles and fewer embellishments.  My girls actually have a plethora of fancy dresses (thanks to my mother, who has great taste to go along with her Neiman’s charge) and wear them fairly often, but I’m pretty sure they’re in the minority.

Oh, and if you check out the Maiden America site and you’re dismayed by the prices (which start around $6-7), think about the money you’ve spent on clips that have slipped out, fallen out, been yanked out, and are now lost forever.  Really, if you’d just bought a few of these beauties to start with instead, you’d have come out ahead.

Check out Parent Bloggers Network for more reviews of Maiden America non-slip hair clips!