One of the more popular posts on this blog, from a traffic standpoint, is the “An experienced mom’s guide to kid birthday parties in Ottawa.” It seems parents are looking for inspiration when it comes to hosting birthday parties for their kids.
Consider this set of three posts the other side of that fence: let me tell you about how Indigo Kids is making birthday party gift giving as painless an experience as possible. Heck, I might even go so far as to say it’s fun!
This post is inspired in part by my own experiences with Indigo Kids in the last few months, which I meant to share at the time but never did get around to blogging. (Twitter really does mess with my supply of blog fodder!) So when I saw that Mom Central Canada was hosting a blog tour and giveaway as part of a promotional campaign, I knew it was a perfect opportunity to share my experiences AND give you a chance to win a gift card.
Last fall, Simon had been invited to a birthday party for one of his classmates in Grade 2. I’d just started back at work downtown, and one day on my lunch hour I popped into the Chapters store on Rideau Street, thinking I’d pick out a Pokemon book or something similar as a gift. Since it had been a while since I’d been in the downtown Chapters, I was surprised and delighted to see that they carried a full line of great toys for a wide range of ages, and that they were great quality toys as well.
I perused for a while, and finally settled on a Super Mario Bros Yahtzee set as the perfect gift. I knew Simon’s little buddy shared his love of Nintendo games, and in fact my boys have the same game and love it. As I went to grab one, I realized that stacked behind a couple of the boxes were more wrapped in bright, happy gift paper. I grabbed one and brought it to the clerk, and asked how much extra it was for the gift-wrapped version. “Oh, that’s free!” she said. “We like to make things a little easier for busy parents.”
I was so impressed, and noticed that almost all of the more popular toys had a few wrapped and unwrapped versions available. I meant to blog it at the time, but well, you know. Best of intentions and all of that!
So that’s the FIRST time I was impressed by Indigo Kids this year. (I’ve actually been impressed by Indigo Kids many times over the years, as they’ve made their toy sections comfortable, warm places for kids and adults to spend a little bit or even a lot of time. Maybe this series needs to be four posts long?) But now, the giveaway!
Would you like to win a gift card for Indigo Kids? I knew you would! Here’s the details:
- This is a giveaway for a $35 Indigo gift card.
- To enter the giveaway, simply leave a comment on this post telling me why you love Indigo Kids or how you think Indigo Kids could be helpful to you.
- This giveaway is open only to Canadian residents, excluding residents of Quebec. (sorry!)
- This giveaway will run from today through April 30.
- One winner will be chosen from all comments posted on any of the three contest posts on this blog.
- You can comment as many times as you like, but you will only be entered into the giveaway once.
- You can also enter to win on other blogs, but you can only win once.
- If you win, you must be willing to provide your full name and address to me, to share with Mom Central Canada, in order to claim your gift card.
- Gift cards will be sent 4 to 6 weeks after the close of the giveaway.
And if you haven’t get checked out the great new Indigo Kids section of your favourite Chapters/Indigo store, this store locator link will help you find a location near you.
Disclosure: I am participating in the Indigo Kids program by Mom Central Canada. I received compensation for my participation in this campaign, but the opinions on this blog are ALWAYS my own. I only participate in promotional campaigns for products and services I feel I can personally endorse.
I would venture to say that I love the train table set up in their Kids area as much as my one and an half year old does.
I’ve always been a fan of Chapters Indigo and their Kids section rocks. Not only do they have great stuff and lots of stuff to do but the staff in the kids section really REALLY know their stuff. Always super helpful.
I would be thrilled to win a gift card. 🙂
I have a 7 year old girl that devours books so we’re always on the hunt for a series that will capture her(she’s fussy too). The staff at Indigo Kids in Barrhaven always take the time with her to listen to what she likes(and doesn’t). They are able to give her 3 or 4 recommendations based on her preferences-we always leave with a book.Always. I appreciate that level of customer service.
I’m not easily impressed but Indigo Kids gets the thumbs up from our family.
I love that I can browse and my kid has a place to play and I don’t have to worry about her. In fact, Indigo is what one of my favourite places to take her when we have a bit of time to spare. I love being surrounded by books, and I have a chance to browse without her getting bored.
I love that the Indigo Kids at the Chapters here in Markham revamped their space a year or so ago and added a big selection of french language kids’ books. There isn’t a large francophone population around here, but there are lots of kids enrolled in french immersion programs (including my own kids) so it’s nice to have a local place to shop for french books.
I love that the selection of toys at Indigo Kids has been so thoughtfully chosen. Almost every toy, craft or game is of high quality, with some of my favourite brands (Melissa and Doug, Klutz, Alex Toys) making a strong showing. A great range in prices makes it easy to pick up something any child I shop for will love, no matter the occasion.
I like that the Chapters has a selection of good quality interesting kid products. It’s a much more interesting selection than the typical discount department store. And I never say no when the kids ask for a book! 🙂
Indigo Kids has really interesting, cool, high-quality products for kids of all ages! Love them!
Do we really need to say anything except “FINALLY”. That’s what I say when I get into the kids section! With my starbucks in hand, I can actually sit and relax for once while the kids play with the toys/games/trains/blocks – I could go on….
I love getting birthday gifts from there – I too discovered the free gift wrapping. Its the icing on the cake.
I love that they have games and costumes and teaching materials in addition to books. At ours they have a train table and a teacup to sit in and read. There’s lots of things to inspire little learners and older readers.
I love Indigo Kids. It is one of my favourite places to shop for kids birthday presents. One stop-shopping: card, wrapping, gift = done! It is also a good place to find more educational gifts – I can get a book about Star Wars and a small Star Wars Lego set. Also? I can browse for me. And get a chai to drink. (Yum.) Which is way better than shopping at the big box toy store. *shudder*
I love the train table area. The only problem is getting my 3 year old to leave.
My son refers to the store as the “train store” because of their play area which he just loves. Gives me a little time to sit and browse through a few selections while he plays.
The train table! It’s what makes my 4 y/o agree to go to the mall with me to get him new clothes, I promise a stop in indigo to play with the trains.
How do I love Indigo Kids? Let me count the ways! The train table and other activities in the kids area help occupy my children while I shop. The staff are friendly and fairly knowledgeable. And I like that many of the toys they carry are from quality brands, not just plastic stuff related to the latest movies and tv shows. (And the fact that I can grab a coffee from Starbucks before menadering over just makes the experience better!)
My guys love the train table and the plasma cars. My four year old loves that they have every single Berenstain Bear book out there. I love that the Indigo Kids areas are a great mix of playspace and consumer space but that you feel comfortable browsing and not buying something every time you visit. Although, we usually end up with a magazine or two because the kids’ area usually gives one of the parents time to browse!!!
They also have a pretty amazing lineup of free activities, at least at South Keys. I appreciate that these aren’t just hocking products and services at me either. Good quality programming, though of course the location does mean that it’s easy to purchase as well.
Actually, attending the Thursday morning circle time put on by Andrew Fleck (?) is how I discovered the french language playgroup for non-francophones that we go to.
As others have mentioned, I love the train table and play area for kids while shopping. I also liked that the one near us had (has?) a story time – we visited a few times when Sammy was smaller. AND that they have (clean) washrooms – a real bonus when you’re running around with a kid-in-training.
Well, this doesn’t necesarily fit your criteria for “comment” guidelines, but I intended to post anyway to say I purchased that very same SM Yahtzee for Sawyer yesterday! While I was initially disappointed to see I could have had it gift wrapped, I then realized that’s not how the Easter Bunny usually delivers his goodies! Good to know they have this option.
Our whole family are huge fans of Indigo!!
I love the train set – my wee ones love that! And the big table covered in paper for colouring at the South Keys location, and the fact that there is a Starbucks close by, and the fact that the Disney costumes are to one side where my daughter won’t necessarily see them!
When the Little Man (now 5.5 years old) was a wee babe, a friend would come over and watch him for a few hours a few afternoons a week, so I could have a wee break. More often than not, I’d end up at Chapters/Indigo, curled up with a cup of tea and a good book. But on many of those trips, I also end up wandering around . . . speed reading books on colic, sleep, reflux, just to name a few. I also spent hours in the Indigo Kids section – in love with the great toys and the books from my own childhood. The thing I appreciated the most though, was the great selection of French books for children!
And now that the Baby Man is on the scene – I’m back to my favourite haunt, at least a couple of times a week. Just last week, I took advantage of their LEGO sale to pick up some Easter and birthday gifts!
I love indigo kids because there is so much to keep them occupied and busy. It is a treat for the kids to go and visit
bluebelle0367(at)hotmail(dot)com
I LOVE the new Indigo Kids near us. I think having suggestions for each age range and prewrapped presents is completely fantastic. I have used it several times. I’ve found it especially useful when having to shop for a boy, as my older child is a girl and I’m never sure what boys her age are into!
I love Indigo kids because they have a huge selection of products and i love the play area for the kids
thanks
flower_child_23(at)hotmail(dot)com
My kids both adores reading and I just love that they have their own colourful, playful section where they can go and peruse the shelves while I sit and watch them. They of course also love looking at all the cool toys as well 😉