Real Baby Loves Sophie!

Once Upon a time, a simple story….

The Little giraffe was born on the 25th of May in the year 1961…St Sophie’s day! In those days, the only animal toys available were farm animal or pet figures.. That is why one day in France, a certain Monsieur RAMPEAU, who was an expert in transforming sap from the HEVEA tree using the rotational molding of rubber as a toy-making concept, came up with the idea of designing a giraffe.

Such an exotic wildlife figure would be a first on the market, and its size and shape would be ideal for a baby’s small hands to grasp. Sophie the Giraffe, who looked exactly the same then as she does today, went into production on a Thursday, May 25th, whence her name. She was an immediate success.

Young mothers straightaway saw that she was a must for their children when the first signs of teething appear, Sophie the Giraffe helps baby stop crying!By simple word of mouth, the little Giraffe’s fame spread.From then on in Europe, generation upon generation of children were to love hearing Sophie squeak whenever they pressed her tummy and head!Vulli, a company based in Rumilly in the Haute-Savoie Region of France has continued to keep the jealously-guarded secret of how this wonder toy is made.SOPHIE is still “traditionally” produced to this day, a process that involves more than 14 manual operations. She is made from 100% natural rubber derived from the sap of the Hevea Tree.

Why is Sophie such a huge success? Sophie the Giraffe is BABYS FIRST TOY, stimulating EACH OF HIS SENSES from the age of 3 months:

•Sight: At the age of 3 months, a baby’s eyesight is still limited and he can only make out high contrasts. The Dark and contrasting attention-catching spots all over Sophie the Giraffe’s body provide visual stimulation and she soon becomes a familiar and reassuring object for baby.

•Hearing:Sophie’s the Giraffe squeaker keeps baby amused and stimulates his hearing. To begin with, the funny sound Sophie makes when she is squeezed helps to stimulate baby’s hearing, and then later, helps him to understand the link between cause and effect.

•Taste:A Sophie the Giraffe is made of 100% natural rubber and food paint, and is completely safe to chew, just like a feeding bottle teat. Her soft texture and numerous chewable parts (ears, horns, legs), make her perfect for soothing baby’s sore gums during teething.

•Touch: Touch is the first means a baby has of communicating with the outside world. Sophie the Giraffe’s soft feel, like baby’s mother’s skin, stimulates physiological and emotional response that soothe baby and promote healthy growth and well-being..

•Smell: The singular scent of natural rubber from the Hevea tree makes Sophie the Giraffe very special and easy for your child to identify amid all his other toys.

•Easy to grip: Sophie the Giraffe’s shape and 18 cm (7 inches) size are perfect for baby’s small hands. She is very light, and her long legs and neck are easy for baby to grip, even from his earliest days.

Still the same, even after more than 46 years…
She hasn’t dated in the slightest..

More than 30 million Sophies have been sold…   Purchase Sophie Here!

 An eco-friendly company dedicated to making the best toys 

the right way.

Sprig Toys is Inspired by their collective desire to keep kids active and the planet healthy, Team Sprig is dedicated to infusing creativity, smart design, quality manufacturing, earth-friendly materials, product satisfaction and responsible business practices into a superior line of fun, kid-powered toys.

Sprig Toys help make the world a better place and we get kids off the couch. Pretty cool, huh?

Find all your cool Sprig toys at Real Baby!

The holiday's have past and we are all back to our routines. I woke this morning, and remembered one of my favorite memories from this season.  Our store Real Baby collected toys this Christmas for the Toys for Tots campaign.  I arrived at the store to pick up our huge brightly wrapped box that was over flowing with toys. Like everyone at Christmas time, I was in a hurry, and late, and still had 10 things to do for a dinner party that night, but I had to deliver this box to its final destination 40 minutes away.  I drove fast and took chances.  I missed and exit and cursed at my misfortune.  I was in a bad mood.  I arrived at the Toys for Tots warehouse within in one hour of them closing, on the last day of them being able to accept toys.  I rushed up to the office door to find a nice girl behind a desk in a completely empty room.  She told me to go to bay #11.  "Great, bay #11, how far away is that ?"  I thought.   "Just pull your car up and someone will help you," she said.  I jumped back into my car and checked my watch.  Running out of time.  I pulled up to  giant bay door  #11 of the massive warehouse.  The door was lifted open and I was greeted by a gentleman wearing a santa hat and coke bottle glasses.  "Welcome to Santa's workshop!," he shouted.  I stood  speechless for a moment.  The warehouse was the size of 3 football fields, and it was packed end to end, 15 feet high with toys.  Countless workers were stacking, packing, and boxing.  Christmas music blared through the loud speakers.  Santa's helper jumped down and unloaded the box of toys from my car.  He was thrilled!  Here was a guy who had enough toys to fill a aircraft carrier, and me dropping off just minutes before his deadline.   He says,  "Merry Christmas," to me and shakes my hand.  He was full of joy and excited at my selection of toys.  Three of his helpers came over to see what I had brought.  All of them thanked me, shook my hand and wished me a Merry Christmas.  The massive door was thrown shut.  I was left alone, standing in the quiet, on the oil stained gravel parking lot.  I could not stop smiling.  Time slowed down.  I had not a care in the world.  I was just touched by the true meaning of Christmas at a random warehouse in the middle of Colorado.  Sharing with others, caring for others, the kindness of strangers, giving and not caring about receiving.  I drove slowly, blaring Christmas tunes all the way home.