Noah’s Pals is Parents’ Choice Approved!

Noah’s Pals has been designated a 2007 Parents’ Choice Approved award winner!

We are very, very proud to win this award.

The Parents’ Choice Foundation identifies the very best products for children. Less than 15% of items submitted receive a commendation. The Parents’ Choice Approved seal is awarded based on the “production, entertainment and human values they exemplify.” The Approved seal also “indicates a wholesome product that helps children enjoy developing physical, emotional, social or academic skills.”

Here’s an excerpt about our award-winning line:

Assembling a top-notch zoo in the playroom just got a little easier. These well-crafted realistic looking humorously named animals are packaged as a pair—a male and female of each species. The cards that accompany the animals detail information about the habitat and size of each species.

Thank you Parents’ Choice Foundation!

The humps on camels’ backs…

Yesterday’s post noted that the Dromedary Camel has one hump and the Bactrian Camel has two humps. Bactrian camels stick to cold climates, while Dromedaries (like our Cody + Carly) prefer the desert.

The big hump on Dromedary Camels’ backs are necessary for long trips across the dry desert. Humps can grow up to 2.5 feet out of an adult camel’s body. And they can weigh up to 80 pounds!

While it seems logical that water is stored in the humps like a big water cooler, they really are made up of deposits of fat that provide needed energy for the next oasis many miles away.  As a camel makes long journeys without food and water, the hump will become smaller and smaller.

Camels can survive two weeks without food… But they’d prefer to not wait that long and they will eat and drink just about anything.  Including Coca-Cola:

Camel Humps… D or B?

Yesterday I was visiting with my parents and my dad was carefully examining the Cody + Carly Camel (Dromedary) packaging. He asked, “If there’s a camel that’s a Dromedary, there must be at least one other type of camel, right?”

I explained to him that there indeed is another type of camel. And it’s easy to remember their names based on the shape of the humps. The Dromedary, like the first letter “D” of its name, has one hump. I then noted to my dad that the other type of camel begins with the letter “B” and it has two humps. He yelled out, “Ahhhhh… The Bromedary!”

Actually, it’s the “Bactrian” Camel.

I’m taking my dad to a zoo as soon as possible.

More about camels and their humps tomorrow!

Watch out for storks!

In a previous post, we mentioned the impressive wingspans of Marabou Storks.

Here’s a cute clip of someone that experience a close encounter with a stork at a State Fair:

Stork (Marabou): Immense scavengers with impressive wingspans

Scottie + Susan Stork (Marabou) are, along with Owen + Olivia Ostrich and Peter + Pia Penguin (Emperor), the big birds in our collection. These storks live in Africa, south of the Sahara, in habitats that are usually near human habitation — especially garbage dumps. It’s a scavenger and lets other animals (and humans) do the dirty work that it then cleans up. Marabous love leftovers!

They are known for their huge size and can stand up to five feet tall. They also have an impressive wingspan that expands up to ten feet. Marabou storks do not have a voice box and they communicate by clacking their beaks.

Here’s a quick clip on YouTube of a pair of storks, enjoying some sunshine:

Congratulations to Lance + Linda Lion…

… as they have been awarded a Seal of Approval from The National Parenting Center!

The National Parenting Center has a comprehensive testing program that independently reviews children’s products. Here’s the great feedback on Lance + Linda Lion:

“Having a nice set of animals for imagination play is great for parents putting together an entertainment pack for children for waiting times such as in restaurants or doctor’s offices. These are particularly nice because of the care and detail Caboodle put into crafting this lion couple… If you are in fact putting together a whole ark scene, these two might be first up the ramp.”

Thank you The National Parenting Center! We’re very proud that our lions are award winners.

Aardvarks: Determined underground dwellers that dig, dig, dig

Anthony + Angela Aardvark are among our favorite pairs of Noah’s Pals.

The name “aardvark” comes from the Afrikaans/Dutch phrase for “earth pig” (aarde = earth, varken = pig).  The aardvarks connection to pigs is in name only, they are not a closely related mammal.

Aardvarks live across most of Africa in savannas, grasslands, and woodlands — everywhere but the Sahara desert.  If there are ants or termites in an area, aardvarks will find a home by digging a nearby burrow where it will sleep away the days in anticipation of its nocturnal adventures.  The long nose and big ears of aardvarks help with finding food.  Aardvarks will swing their noses side to side to find the scent of food.  And those ears also are extremely sensitive and can listen for danger so they can keep away from lions, leopards and other predators.

When aardvarks find food, they spring into action and will furiously dig into ant and termite mounds.  The long tongues in their long snouts will reach out and pick up the insects for a delicious meal.

Here’s a video clip of an adorable aardvark up close:

Congratulations to Sebastian + Shannon Seal

… as they’ve won an iParenting Media Award™!

iParenting analyzes and recognizes the best products in the market, including toys like Sebastian + Shannon SEAL (NORTHERN FUR). They run a very thorough program and we received great feedback from the independent reviewers:

“The Noah’s Pals seals are attractive and have realistic-looking detail. It is fun to look for the differences between the male and female seal. I think it is an excellent toy to teach children about animals, especially with the facts included on the ID cards and on the Noah’s Pals website.”

“The Noah’s Pals website has a lot of fun information, including a coloring book of all of the animals. It is easy to create an account and enter ID codes for animals you have collected. It is fun to see the other animals that are available, and I love the fact that all of the animals are created to the same scale. I appreciate the fact that the company donates 5% of its net profits to the Wildlife Conservation Society.”

“The Shannon and Sebastien seals are lifelike and well made. The packaging teaches about seal life and leads children to want to learn more about wildlife and endangered species.”

We’re proud that our seals are award winners. Thank you iParenting! And congrats again to Sebastian + Shannon!

Noah’s Pals in I.D. Magazine

When you walk by a newsstand this month, please be sure to buy a copy of I.D. magazine (aka “The International Design Magazine”). Inside the May issue, Noah’s Pals is named as a ‘new and notable’ product! It’s one of the top publications featuring product design, and we’re very proud to be included so quickly after debuting at Toy Fair.

Look for us on page 44!

Awards from “The Toy Man”

Noah’s Pals recently received several awards from “The Toy Man” including the Award of Excellence, Editor’s Choice Award, and Seal of Approval. We encourage you to read the full review, and trust us… Noah is blushing! Here’s an excerpt:

“Noah’s Pals breaks the barriers and creates it’s own path for others to follow… There is no question that Noah’s Pals have created an entirely new dimension in collectibles.

The evaluation of the Noah’s Pals was quite different than most. With such detail and so much to consider in the evaluation, the evaluation process was far more intense. Every participant in our evaluation process was quite impressed with Noah’s Pals. As Patricia Newton, an elementary school teacher in California expressed, “Noah’s Pals is one of the most wonderful products I have seen in quite some time.” “The detail is so defined and children will find the animals irresistable.” “Now, considering the information on each card, the combination of the cards and the animals is a prized possession for any family member.” From the educational standpoint, this is a perfect addition to a classroom.” Patricia’s opinion gives an excellent viewpoint which was considered in the evaluation process.”

Be sure to read the whole thing. Thank you The Toy Man!