What A Little Girl Wants

I was once a little girl who loved to play and enjoyed most outside playing Patintero, Taguan (hide and seek), Piko (hopscotch), 10-20 using chinese garter just to name a few. It makes me smile thinking of those childhood memories. But those were the outdoor play I had. Indoors, I played with Barbie dolls, jackstones, pick-up sticks, etc. And like most girls, I loved playing luto-lutuan 🙂 Our “food” were ipil-ipil leaves and aratelis cooked in improvised cookware and prepared in plastic plates and cups. Of course, to feel the mood of being a lady cook, I remember wearing necklace and bracelet made of Santan flowers.

Now that I have my own daughter, I can’t help but think what I enjoyed when I was a kid and want her to try them too. Since 3 years old, Kelsea loves playing with toy plates, cups, tea sets and other cookware and enjoys preparing food for mommy and daddy. Little girls love this kind of pretend play. We were able to buy a kitchen playset made of plastic from the mall. It became too little for her as she grew taller. Since then, every time I ask her to make a wish list for her birthday and Christmas, a “big kitchen set” is always in her list.

So when she was 4, I started looking online for durable kitchen playsets. My daughter’s fond of watching YouTube videos of kitchen playsets made by KidKraft but they were too expensive when already sold here in Manila. But I found a local manufacturer of kitchen playsets. It was still expensive but achievable. I just need to save for it.

Last end of January, my online friends from n@w had a group buy of that kitchen set I’ve been longing for Kelsea now that she’s already 5 years old. Group buy means getting that item for a lower price as long as we meet the minimum no. of buyers and we did! The designs well custom-designed by one of the mommies. I was so excited for my daughter. The lead time is around 4 weeks so we expect it to be delivered by 1st week of March. I had it delivered to my parents house in Las Pinas and planning to give it to Kelsea after her Recognition Day as a gift for enjoying and doing well in school.

On the big day of surprise, I led her down the stairs while her eyes were closed (don’t worry, I was closely by her side and holding her hand). It was a super happy day for her 🙂 (And one of my #100happydays project)

Her reaction was priceless upon seeing her big surprise. I really felt her happiness when she hugged me so tight. Her old cooking stuff now has a storage and her pretend play is now more fun. It was a little dream that came true for my dear (and for me, too lol!). I love the kitchen playset because it is made of wood making it more durable then plastic and more safe for kids. It can also be passed on to her future siblings and cousins because of the good quality. The kitchen playset was manufactured by Handicrafts, Atbp.   

Last weekend, we bought her additional stuff for her kitchen.

Do you agree with me that most of our lovely daughters really want these toys? And I guess some little boys too who are budding little chefs 🙂 This kind of pretend play enhances their imagination and lets them appreciate the thought of preparing food for their love ones.

I also have a friend who makes bigger kitchen sets for kids like this one:

That is more expensive than Kelsea’s kitchen playset because it’s 4ft x 4ft x 4ft. If you can afford it, why not? 🙂 It’s also good for production plays and schools. If interested, you can contact my friend Jen of Wooden Kidikraft.