BABYSITTING IS FUN!

Lately I've been spending some time babysitting a sweet little prim baby. Miley Hannah is a good baby and I love being with her. She lets me know when it's time to feed her, change her (p-hew!) or when she's bored, and she giggles and coos when I sing her a lullaby or kiss her sweet little face. I made a bassinet for her to go sleepies in too, although she's happiest when I hold her and rock her in my arms.

Miley Hannah's first home was the Child Avatar Center in the Grimes sim (8, 204, 57) and I'm so glad I found her!

There's also a dancing studio there, with plenty of ballet moves. I love pretending I'm a ballerina, I'm so girly-girl that way! *giggle*

LITTLE RASCALS HAS VANISHED!

The Little Rascals shopping center for kids has vanished! There is only land where my store used to be. Those of us in the group received a group notice that the woman who ran the center was busy in RL, and would try to get it sorted out ASAP. But for now, it's gone.

The rents at Little Rascals were reasonable by SL standards--64L a month for 50 prims! I loved my spacious store. It also had a cute playground where I took great pictures of myself and a large pool. What a shame that it's closed. :-(

IRISHY GOODNESS INDEED!

St. Patrick's Day was two days ago as I write this, but you can get that Irish spirit year-round at a wonderful store I've discovered, Pocket Pfeffer. It's on the Goremoor sim (151, 157, 96) and has lots of Irish textures for things like Celtic crosses, foods and even a package of Irish potato crisps (chips)! There are also gorgeous gowns and casual dresses that would look really pretty on your grown-up alts and templates for making outfits on an application like Photoshop.

There is also a small thatched cottage on the grounds of Pocket Pfeffer. It's called The Cottage of Irishy Goodness and holds stuffs like signs, posters and an Irish teddy bear who is holding a glass of Guinness, which we're too young to drink yet! *giggle*

Pocket is also one of the very sweetest people I've met in SL. I belong in her group now and saw how she was trying to help someone use her templates--she couldn't have been nicer. I really like her AND her store!!!

MAKING AN UNEXPECTED FRIEND

Today I came home from exploring when I found a lady in my future home for kids, Chez Sleepies! I was scared at first, because I was all by myself and you never know if a grownup is going to be mean to you cause you're a kid. But I was so lucky...she turned out to be a very sweet, nice woman who just likes exploring and happened to come upon my house in the Scotia sim. She'd lived in SL for 6 months, but she never met a little kid avi before!!!

It's this kind of unexpected meeting that really makes SL a special place. She lives 1,000 miles from me in RL, and here we were, talking to each other. It was a special meeting, and a nice way to end a LONG work day in RL.

The picture here is of me and another visitor, Abigail. She's a prim baby who likes to stop by from time to time.

LET'S BUILD SOMETHING!!!

Kids in SL love to build things, and that's to be expected--the use of prims makes making stuff soooo easy! There's some fun options for those of us who want to learn how to become better builders. Alexandra Daikon is going to teach an elective building class at HardKnock Elementary on Monday, Wednesdays and Fridays after the morning classes and before the evening classes, and its emphasis will be on building things YOU want to make. The class size is limited to 25 HKE students, so if you want to be part of this program, you need to sign up now.

Charmed Tech School is a new school for SL kids with an emphasis on building. Students must own Photoshop or a similar program to attend, which is why I couldn't go there. :-(

Of course, there's always TUi classes too! Right now Reno Katscher has a great class that teaches how to make a vanity table with a pose, and a hairbrush included...you can brush your hair in front of a mirror! Lizzyox Allen has lots of fun classes on making unique avatars, like a shamrock avatar and a snowman avatar. Then there's me...I am currently teaching a Child's Toy Box and Activity Rug class and will hold a session on Saturday, March 15 at 4 am.

Update: I was reading through the Events Calendar and found a listing for a class at Auburn Hills Estates. It's at 11:30 am on Monday, March 17 and will teach kids how to make sculptie mary janes and ballet slippers. The cost is 50L. I would so be there, but RL work...phooey!!!

HKE UPDATE

Hardknock Elementary certainly is a busy place! Kids are joining lots of fun clubs, and practices are in full swing.

Today was the first meeting of the Ballet/Equestrian Club. Dancers are going to put on at least one show before the end of the school year, and possibly a performance during graduation. The equestrian club will feature lots of horseback riding!

The Fencing Club is also going now, and I'm glad. I got a sword and a HUD today and I can't wait to start poking at people with it!!! *giggle*

PINBALL PRINCESS!

I went to Bratz & Angels Adoption Agency to see if they'd included the hat I made for their Blue Flower Girl outfit in their girls freebie box (they did!), and no one was playing their pinball machine. Of course, I just had to start playing!!! It's another cute camping pad, and it's fun to use. There's also an easel on the playground where you can create an art masterpiece and make moneys too!

Speaking of moneys, Bratz & Angels is hiring counselors, including kids! You can pick up an application at their front desk.

CHANGES AFOOT AT LITTLE JEWELS

Members of the Little Jewels group received several group notices on the evening of March 11 telling of changes at the shopping center. All vendors were to be evicted, and the rents were to be raised from the extremely low 2L a week. The notices mentioned that "we will not keep sitting back and be used and bad mouthed either by the kids who rent from us and do not bother to show up here to know or care what happens here." Vendors who visited Little Jewels often and who became friends of the family due to these visits would be warmly welcomed back into the revamped shopping area.

I had a cute little shop area at Little Jewels, and they did try hard to have events for us kids. I got my picture taken for free at their photo studio, and I really appreciate that they did this for me. There was also a snowball fight that was supposedly lots of fun, and a home where kids with no mommies and daddies could go sleepies.

Then again, there are only so many hours in a day, and there are more and more places for kids to hang out. And when shopkeepers have several locations, it can be tough to divide your time among all of them. I know there are weeks I can't visit my stores because I am just too busy!

It will be interesting to see the new Little Jewels when the renovations are done.

Update: Little Jewels will now charge 25L per week for a selling spot, which is still reasonable by SL standards. There will be separate areas for clothing and toys, and if you wish to sell both clothing and toys, you need to rent spaces in both places.

HUNTING FOR FREEBIES AT GINGERBREAD VILLAGE MALL

There's an Easter Egg Hunt going on at the Gingerbread Village Mall on the Isle of You sim, and there are plenty of wonderful freebies inside those little eggs. I LOVE LOVE LOVE this dress that was inside an egg at the Angelic Visions of Love store--soooo pretty!!! Eggs are located outside as well as inside the stores, and some stores have more than one egg. I need to go back there and hunt some more.

If you haven't been to Gingerbread Village Mall in a while, you're in for a treat! The booths have been replaced by individual stores, and there is a lovely playground with a fairy theme in a central area. There's also a choo-choo train that goes around the mall and the surrounding area. It really looks great and will be especially lovely at Christmastime!

The Easter Egg Hunt will take place until March 24. Happy hunting!!!

THANKIES MARIANNE!!!

We're famous!!! We're famous!!! Marianne McCann mentioned this blog in an article about new kids blogs in an article in the Metaverse Messenger! Thankies, Marianne! I especially liked that the paper used a picture of Justine Colville's blog, and it had a picture of me on it! *giggle*

Hmm...maybe I can make some moneys by signing autographs! *belly laugh*

SAFE HAVEN IS GONE

I was looking through the Search ads and saw that Safe Haven Adoption Agency had a "Peer Gynt" shopping center listed as the location. Uh ohs. That usually means another business has taken over that part of the sim. I TPed over, and sure enough, there was a shopping center where Safe Haven used to be.

I recently spoke to Kiara Hudson via IM, and she said that yes, Safe Haven is gone. That's sad. The people who worked at Safe Haven, like Kiara and Brittany Barry, were personally very kind to me. They also took your personality into account when they matched you up with parents. They cared--you weren't just a picture on a wall. So I'm personally sorry to see Safe Haven go. Kiara would like to reopen it some time in the future, which would be great for the homeless kids and prospective parents in SL.

This picture was taken of me at Safe Haven during one of my visits there.

LAG MONSTER STALKS SL STUDENTS!!!

So, it looks like the opening of HardKnock Elementary was successful, except that the lag was terrible! As Marianne McCann told me, "School was tons of fun, but kinda laggy too." I've heard from other kids that this problem was especially bad during lunchtime, and made it hard to get around.

Ms. Jill Caldera sent out a group notice mentioning the lag problem, and said that school hours would be extended from 5 pm to 8 pm SLT.

And it appears that HKE students have lots of school spirit! Sixteen students have signed up for cheerleading already, while 24 want to join the theater club! Fifteen want to be on the swim team, while eight want to join the fencing club and seven want to be on the soccer team. Go HKE!!!

KID SCOUTS HAS A BLOG, TOO!

I was going to write about Kid Scouts one of these days, but our troop leader Ms. Beth beat me to it!!! She started a blog, http://kidscouts.blogspot.com. You can read all about this week's meetings (which I missed for TUi classes), what you need to do to get badges and more!This picture shows meeting postings at the Kid Scouts meeting place.

I love Kid Scouts, and am very proud that I'm a Junior Scout. It's a great opportunity to meet other kids in SL, especially since not all kids go to school.

BYE CLOWNTOWN! HELLO TINY TYKES!!!

Clowntown is now Tiny Tykes. I visited Tiny Tykes yesterday, and I liked it! The aging summer resort town look of the place has been changed to a cartooony appearance. Just about every store has big googly eyes on it and some have a ramp that looks like a tongue! It looks like something you'd see at a circus and I think it's cute!

When you first TP into Tiny Tykes, there is a playground area that includes a really fun monkey swing. There are also plenty of toys for tinies, including a drum kit. I always get weirded out when I try a tinies toy, because it shrinks my arms and legs and I lose my hands and feet! But if you're a tinie, it would be lots of funs for you.

There are plenty of shops at Tiny Tykes. I especially liked Timeless Creations, which has many pretty clothes. Robin (Sojourner) Wood has a store with her lovely shapes, skins and clothes, and Marianne McCann has a booth here with her homemade toys. There are still some openings for stores if you'd like to become a shopkeeper.

Tiny Tykes has an adoption agency with really neat things in it, like a fun train and a coloring/computer table. It also has beddies for kids who are registered with the agency.

The BEST thing about Tiny Tykes is the puppet show that YOU put on. You click a booth and it gives you two bear puppets. You wear the puppets, sit in the booth and put on a show. Now I can add "Puppeteer" to my ever-growing SL resume. What makes it even better is you get moneys for making this show or for watching it! The animations for audience members are soooo cute too, as you laugh and clap for the show. It's the funnest camping set-up I've ever seen.

The people I met at Tiny Tykes are really nice, too. Love Brokken, who runs the adoption agency, is really sweet and the kids who hang out there seem full of fun. Good luck to her and this sim!

Update: There is going to be a talent show at Tiny Tykes on Saturday, March 8, at 5 pm SLT. Those in it will get four minutes to perform, and everyone in it will get a trophy for appearing, not just the winners. The winner will get 200L and a 300L gift card. The second place prize is a 200L gift card and third place is a 150L gift card. IM Love Brokken for more info on what should be a very fun night--wish I could go! (RL work, phooey!)

BACK TO SCHOOL!

Well, today is the first day of HardKnock Elementary. I'm not there, because us 3H kids don't start until March 18! And I was going to go down there, but I realized that the sim is going to be soooo crowded because it is the first day, that my spot should go to someone who actually has class today! I asked Ms. Jill and a friend to let me know how it goes, and I'll write about it then.

I HAVE snuck into my 3H classroom a couple of times, though! (Shhh, it's a secret!) Here I am writing on a chalkboard. It's a really nice room that captures the spirit of our little red schoolhouse.

GREAT GIFTS FOR MOMMIE!

It's not too early to think about Mother's Day presents! My friend from Camp HardKnock, Mahja Aja, is selling these pretty vases near her home. Prices range from 25L to 100L--similar vases can cost up to 250L!!! I especially like the one with the pink pattern and the one with the child's hands pattern--that's perfect for a mommie!

You can find Mahja's vases at Sunflower Island (198, 75, 24).

And if you're a kid involved in a project like making pretty vases, be sure to let SL STAR FOR KIDS know all about it!

SPEAKING OF STUPIDHEADS...

...my Yahoo mail account is not working right! I can't get into it!!! This keeps happening with them, but I have to keep trying, otherwise I'm going to have to make this whole blog all over again!!!

If you want to reach me, please IM me inworld or post a comment in this blog. Thankies.

DON'T GIVE UP!

An editorial by StellaStarr Soderstrom

It can be heartbreaking to be an SL kid. Too many of my friends have left this place. Maybe they've created new avies, or maybe they've left altogether. All I know is, they're gone, and I miss them.

I've nearly left too. I've almost grown myself up and stopped being a kid a couple of times. Late July/early August was NOT a good time for me here. The picture in this column was taken at that time. I left Camp HardKnock early because a couple of girls were mean to me. My then-mommie and I had a big falling out, with my aunt/alt and RL lady both getting involved and--wow, would we all do things differently now!!! The place where my aunt and I stayed turned out to be real poopieheads about kids living on the sim, which also made me feel unwelcome in SL. Then, I had a sad experience with a prospective mommie and daddie--they liked another girl more than me, someone they met after me, and when I didn't want to be her sissy they didn't want me anymore! My heart was so broken!

But I couldn't stay away from this place for more than a couple of days. I went to classes at TUi and went to Happy Days and explored SL like I love to do. And one day, I went to a class at TUi to learn how to make a caramel apple. The teacher was a student teacher, and she was sooooo nice to me. And that teacher, Kimber, is now my best friend/mommie/guardian/cool big sister in SL!!! I chose her over a couple of families that decided they wanted to adopt me at MAW...I went from no one wanting me to everyone wanting me!!!

So you see, things can change for the better. It's like RL...you never know what wonderful thing can happen, right around the corner. When things seem tough, it could be very much worth it to stick it out.

And if anyone reading this ever feels really sads, and needs someone to talk to...I'm here, and I'll listen.

I want to turn this over to our readers. Have you ever felt really sads and wanted to leave SL? What made you stay? Remember, people who write in can choose two items from my With Love from StellaStarr stores as a thankies for being published here!

Hugs to all the sad kids. It will get better, you'll see!

Love,
StellaStarr

WHAT A PRETTY FREEBIE!

I'm not going to post about fashion much in this blog. Justine Colville has a blog about kids fashion, and Maxi Rehula (YAAAAY Maxi!) has a blog that mentions kids stores, so I'd rather leave that talk to them. But I just had to let everyone know about this pretty freebie I found in a Girls Starter Kit at Bratz and Angels Adoption Agency! It's called Blue Flower Girl, and doesn't it look nice! I made the hat and sent a copy of it to the person who put the kit together; I hope she includes it in the box. If anyone reading this wants a copy of this hat free, IM me on line or respond to this blog post and I'll send one to you!!!

I've changed my hair AGAIN, if only for a little while! It's by Calla, and it's called Purple Lilacs. It's in their discounted styles area, and only cost 100L! I think it's very cute, and being a redhead is a new thing for me! *giggle* And you can't tell from this picture, but it has two ponytails going down the back. I love it!