A Perfect Find at Union River Book and Toy Co.
On a quiet, sunny Saturday morning, I brought my 3-year-old daughter, Dylan, to Union River Book & Toy Co. She had been asking for a “blue kitty” all week. Not only had she been on her best behavior, but we had recently traveled to Maine and her toy stash was a bit sparse, so when she asked nicely with a please, I decided a trip to the local toy store was in order.
Union River Book & Toy Co. in downtown Ellsworth came highly recommended by my mom. After some other errands at Reny’s (also a great destination with kids), we headed over to the toy store. I parked on Main St., but that was before I had discovered the great parking around downtown – I would recommend parking in the lot next to The Ellsworth American building, it has a cute little flower-lined walkway that leads right to Main St.
Now, I didn’t know I would be writing about our stop, and we were there with a purpose, so I didn’t take in all of the store. But, I do remember there was a good selection of stuffed animals to choose from, bookshelves with options organized by age groups and a super friendly gentleman behind the counter (I later learned he is the owner). When we entered the store, we headed straight for the U-shaped shelves in the middle that housed an assortment of stuffed animals. We took our time searching the collection – it was quite impressive, there’s everything from the more common cats and dogs, to the classic Maine moose and lobsters, to the less expected sloth and dragons. Dylan loved looking at the cool and unique toys. While we didn’t find a blue kitty, there was a nice selection of adorable toy kittens to choose from and Dylan ultimately chose a small kitten with soft, white fur that came in her own pink carrying bag.
Since there was such a great selection of books, I decided that she could pick out one for her book collection. As I mentioned, they’re organized by age group which I really appreciated and made it easy to find appropriate books to choose from. There were board books, books with animals, and stories I remembered loving when I was a kid. We walked away with a new board book of Corduroy — the classic story about a bear with a lost button, a book that I loved as a kid and remember reading with my Meme.
Shortly after coming home, the kitty officially became “Princess Kitty” (more a name than a title). She has become a permanent fixture for Dylan — she sleeps with her at night, she comes in the car with us each time we leave the house and, when we recently forgot her at Nana and Papa’s, we had to go pick her up before bedtime.
If you live in Ellsworth, or have visited frequently, you already know that Union River Book & Toy Co. is a perfect store for finding a new best friend or book for the kid(s) in your life. I also hear their puzzle selection is fantastic. We’ll have to check it out during our next visit!