it takes a Village…

in the spring of 2008, we were living in keller, pregnant with “baby ya ya” and looking for nursery furniture. but everything we’d seen in the Metroplex looked so plain and cheaply made, or just ridiculously expensive. so while in abilene for the Easter holiday, we stopped by a relatively new store in town for all things baby, aptly named kids village. the owner and sales associates were genuinely friendly and amazingly helpful for two rookie parents and one anxious grandmother. the options seemed endless and overwhelming, but with much guidance, we selected furniture, a chicco car seat & travel system and my rocking chair. it’s such a monumental purchase and special time as soon-to-be parents that it felt like an instant bond to their establishment.

so each time we’d come into town, I made it a point to stop by kids village for the latest gear and necessities, and visit with the ladies. in the spring of 2010, we again went straight to kids village for new furniture for drew when we were expecting little miss to move into the nursery room. then we moved to abilene in fall of 2010, just 6 weeks after callie was born. the connections and community they have provided are invaluable.

• I had to take my mom to see the store and meet the staff the first time she came to abilene.
• my MIL does a lot of their monogramming.
• their temporary “village toys” store last holiday provided a much-needed alternative to the big chains.
• of course, I went to them for cloth diapering advice when we transitioned callie.
• with their encouragement, I had a booth at the 4th annual abilene baby expo to talk about greener and safer environments for children.
• and I have even been given the opportunity to publish a few product spotlight blogs for them.

so after a quick remodel/expansion and just a few days closed for the transition, kids village reopened today in their new huge space (still in river oaks shopping center) for the big black friday shopping event.

I hadn’t really planned to do any holiday shopping, but knew we had to visit on their big re-opening day. and it didn’t disappoint. the space is HUGE, which I’m sure will just provide even more space for more toys, more books, more clothing, more gear and more furniture for babies, big kids and their grateful mommies and daddies.

josh’s mom had a small quilt shop in abilene for twenty something years and josh has been involved with private pharmacies for almost ten years (shout out to Ty’s Drug Store!!), so we are very appreciative and conscious to support local business, farmers and culture. kids village is one of many locals we gladly continue to support for their extensive selection, excellent customer service, community involvement and reasonable prices.

november 26 is the 2nd annual small business saturday (sponsored by american express). on one of the busiest shopping weekends of the year, they are asking millions of people to “shop small” at their favorite local stores to help fuel the economy.

if we all shop small, it will be huge.