Toys

When a mother has a baby, she often throws a party to celebrate. Blaire Dollinger opened a store. ?A couple of years ago I was really, really sick,? said Dollinger, 40. ?I had cancer, and they weren?t sure after my treatment if I could even get pregnant.? But after overcoming her illness, the owner of newly opened Magnolia Park store Totz Only decided to give pregnancy a shot. ?I got pregnant on the first try, so he?s kind of our miracle baby,? she said of her 11-month-old son, Jackson.

CUB SCOUTS COLLECT FOOD FOR AID CENTER Cub Scout Pack 225, along with hundreds of other Scouts throughout Southern California, participated in the Scouting for Food drive on Nov. 17. This ?Good Turn for America? is an annual Scout tradition developed to attack head on the problem of hunger in our own communities. Scouts went door to door in their own neighborhood picking up donated bags of nonperishable food. About 75 Cub Scouts from Pack 225, assisted by 15 leaders and many parent volunteers, collected more than 350 bags for the Burbank Temporary Aid Center.

BURBANK — At the Downtown Metrolink station Friday night, hundreds of people were waiting for a train. Not just any train, but the Holiday Toy Express — twinkling with Christmas lights and holiday decorations and marking the arrival of the holiday season. The event was a cooperative effort between Metrolink and the Burbank Fire Department to collect toys for the “Spark of Love” toy drive, which distributes holiday gifts to needy children. The Burbank station was alive with giving and good cheer as people in the crowd sipped hot chocolate, dropped gifts into the “Spark of Love” collection boxes and checked out the live entertainment.

W al-Mart is test-marketing biblical action figures ? Jesus, Moses, Mary, Noah, David and Samson among them. And Target will do the same on its website. There is at least some concern, however, among consumers ? parents ? that such figures may prompt children to equate biblical heroes and heroines with secular figures. And while some may see the action figures as a learning tool, others may see them as gag gifts. What do you think of the idea of biblical action figures? ?

BURBANK — After three highly publicized recalls by Mattel this summer involving thousands of Chinese-made, lead-tainted toys, the Walt Disney Co. and Toys ‘R’ Us both announced steps to independently test their products. “We will enhance our compliance process,” Disney spokeswoman Nidia Tatalovich said. “This sends a message to [manufacturers] that says, ‘We are looking over your shoulder.’” Previously, Disney would license the production of toys to manufacturers, which would submit documentation back to Disney based on the toys’ safety standards.

Members of the San Fernando/Antelope Valley Chapter of the California Credit Union League employed an unusual tactic for one of their annual community service projects this year. They collected stuffed animals. During a nearly three-month drive, credit union employees brought in more than 175 stuffed toys, or "trauma teddies," which will be given to children to comfort them after traumatic events, said Burbank resident Linda Walmsley, who is on the board of governors for the California Credit Union.

"The Last Mimzy" is an interesting and unusual family movie that is fun to watch but ultimately leaves no lasting impression. It's too bad because the story has great potential but falls short of groundbreaking status. If the word mimzy strikes a chord of recognition, you probably read Lewis Carroll's "Jabberwocky" as a child. And the allusion is intended. Mimzy is the name of a stuffed bunny (think the White Rabbit) that the little girl in the film finds on the beaches of Whidbey Island.

Spark of Love needs to spark more giving The Burbank Fire Department's Spark of Love toy drive is in need of more donations as Christmas Day approaches. "The facilities we donate to are pretty thin right now," Fire Department Engineer John Freeborn said. "So we're hoping to give them a bump." There are collection sites for the program at CVS Pharmacies in Burbank, as well as at all Burbank Fire Stations, Freeborn said. The toys are donated to the Burbank Temporary Aid Center and the Family Services Agency, which distribute the toys to needy children.