Juno at FAO

I have mentioned before that we love Juno Baby around here. We were thrilled when the company announced that their merchandise is now being sold at the world famous FAO Schwarz! We went for the opening and their special puppet show back in September. (We loved it so much we went again the following Saturday.)

It seemed like we were the only ones "ooh-ing" and "ah-ing" at the displays in that crowded store until we made it to the second floor to view the show. We were greeted by the original puppets from the DVDs and a large gathering waiting to see the show. I think I might have been more excited than little Liam. The actual show was sort of an introduction to Juno Baby's new line for preschoolers called Juno Jr. My absolute favorite part of the show, was the rendition of their new hit song, "Tweet." Shoppers and store workers were drawn to the show when they heard that piece. It's that sweet. You only have to listen to it once and you're hooked. Beautiful!

Can't wait to get my hands on the new Juno Jr. DVDs and CD. We have all the rest of their Juno Baby merchandise. How? Just lucky, I guess. We actually won a couple of giveaways. Plus, we got a consolation prize for the contest we entered back in the summer. It included DVDs, CDs, plush toys, magnets (not sold), and a nice navy canvas tote. The second giveaway (that we won just this year) with the Juno Jr. DVDs should arrive here in a couple of weeks. Yippee!

Holding hands with Juno herself.

Second floor

Nice bird's eye view

 By main entrance

 Window displays

Meeting some of the Juno Baby puppets and puppeteers

Meet Murphy, Liam's favorite

 Of course, we can never leave without catching this favorite FAO Schwarz show

 

 "Playing" the big piano

 

Walking in Manhattan while holding hands with mama

(Two of my favorite things to do in the whole world!)

 Saying hello to the people on the double decker tour bus

Checking out the artwork of a street vendor and wishing we could buy one of each.

 Taking in some of the sights and sounds. 

Here he is just mesmerized by the drumming. 

(He's the son of a drummer, after all.)

 You never know who you're going to bump into in the NYC subway!

Tickling the ivories

As you know, we are huge fans of Juno Baby. Well, those fabulously talented people are in the process of creating more videos and a Juno Junior line for older children. They have invited their fans to have their children audition for a chance to appear in one of their future videos. We would really love for Liam to appear in one of their wonderful videos, so we are asking (more like begging) our family and friends to please check out the video online and vote 5 stars. The video clip may not look like much since we all know what Liam's personality is really like, but we hope that by getting the votes he will be chosen and perform his best at the actual taping of the video. Note: There were technical difficulties on their part (battery ran out), so when Liam was ready, they weren't and vice versa. Liam is, after all, only 3 years old and his patience wears thin when it comes to waiting it out. So, in the end, this is the video clip they captured of Liam.

http://enter.junobaby.com/watch.html?bctid=0000441743035001

We are in the process ourselves of uploading one of Liam's many private performances here at home, so be sure to check that one out, too!

Thanks again, everyone!

Juno Baby

Did I ever mention before how much we love Juno Baby at our house?

I came across Juno Baby when Liam was almost a year old when I was researching baby videos. Now, I know about the FDA's recommendation of no TV for babies under two years old, but Liam was exposed to a baby video while visiting a friend and he seemed captivated by it, so I began my research. I came across the less promoted Juno Baby produced by a very small company in California. Its co-founder and composer is Emmy-award winning Belinda Takahashi, Ph.D who creates all the music and is performed by live orchestral musicians. I bought their original video, Juno's Wonderful Day (the only one that was being sold at the time since the others were still in production) and loved it immediately. Some aspects of the video are similar to its large competitor, but we fell in love with the beautiful theme song. Still, to this day, we often catch ourselves humming it throughout the day. The Juno Baby characters are: Juno (girl), Murphy - the smart, colorful worm (boy), Indie - a white, fat kitty (boy?), and Bunny - a pink rabbit (girl). The latest addition is a baby (boy) named Rai Rai, Juno's baby brother whom I am sure will appear in future DVDs. Liam's favorite character is, of course, Murphy.

Yesterday, we had the rare opportunity to meet Juno Baby in person at the Brooklyn Children's Museum. We met and danced with Juno, listened to the songs, got a free t-shirt, entered a raffle for a basket filled with Juno Baby products (but didn't win), and entered Liam into the Rising Stars Search for a chance to be selected to appear in one of their future DVDs. All he had to do was sing one of their songs, dance, or play (or rather pretend to play) a musical instrument. We just thought, if he actually does something on cue, cool, of not, that's okay too. We just wanted him to see the Juno world in person and this was the rare opportunity to do so.

Liam was a bit intimidated by the loud microphone, so he opted for the piano keyboard (sorry, no pic). So much fun, though! We doubt Liam will be chosen. It is hard to put a three-year old on the spotlight like that and just expect him to perform when told to do so. It was Liam's very first time, too, and he was unprepared, meaning I didn't any spend time coaching him on the songs like the other parents did, even though he knows the videos and the songs by heart. Boy, you should have seen this one little Asian girl singing! No doubt she will be selected. It was a fun experience, nonetheless, and I was happy that we went to show our support of this small company and thank them for putting out such nice DVDs.

Liam couldn't stop talking about it on the car ride home and ran inside the house to tell daddy who later had to get the clearer version from me. Here are a few pics of our experience:

He either caught sight of Juno or the microphone.

Oh, happy day!

Surprised that he had to wait his turn.

He clammed up at the mic, so he chose to have fun at the piano keyboard instead.

 (Sorry no pic or video.)

A special gift from Juno Baby just for Liam.