What about lukewarm? I know as a little girl I would have LOVED to have had something like that... but at the same time, I see it as being a bit overindulgent and probably somewhere where hornets and wasps would probably think would be a good home as well.... thus making the kid afraid of it.

What ever happened to good ol' imagination?? When I was a little girl my "mansion" was a blanket roof that was supported by the fence and a couple of chairs in the yard.

Why is it pink? Just to ensure that little boys will NEVER want to play in it?

When I was a kid, I played in a BOX! And I LIKED IT! (o:

But seriously, I HATE things like this. Looking at the picture, this marketing folks at this company are trying to say "Look at what a GREAT DAD this guy is. See how much his daugher loves him? YOU can be a great dad too!" So, the rest of us are bad parents because we don't barf gobs of money on our kids?? Or we're bad because we CAN'T?? Puh-lease!! Those are the kids we'll see cussing out their parents on MTV's "My Super Sweet Sixteen" because they got a Lexus instead of a Hummer for their birthday.

I think I'm kind of grouchy today. Sorry!

I'm with Melissa on this one. Ugh! What's up with the McMansions for the toddler set? Besides, I think this playhouse is twice the size of my first apartment in Manhattan. Probably doesn't have cockroaches either.

Whether Melissa's comment was the product of a "grouchy" mood or not, it echos precisely what I think about this fantastic display of overindulgence as well. I think parents have forgotten that it's actually healthy for kids to use their imagination.

I think Melissa summed it up well.

I wouldn't say overindulgence at a "new" level - because I've definitely seen much bigger, flashier examples of the same concept. But, yeah, a toy has definitely gone too far when it requires its own landscaping.

I think it is the idea of one child having so much control over what every child will envy that leaves me wanting to retch. I can see something like that (though maybe less pink) as a place for a neigbhorhood of kids to share. I don't think that children of that age are capable of not misusing that control that says, "That's mine and you can only play if I let you."

Face it. Too many adults fail that level of maturity daily around us. It is too much to expect from a child. It strikes me as emotionally unhealthy from that aspect as well as the lack of imagination required to "see it" as a mansion.

I know the blanket roofs and boxes (mine was a bedspread over a folding table) were decorated numerous times in our minds as a cigar box went from holding "treasure" to being a china cupboard to a dresser for clothes for my child/doll.

One thought came to mind when looking at this photo - do they sell this at Brats-R-Us?

I agree, this is for the future star of My Sweet Sixteen. GAG!

It's going to be very hard for the kind of kid who receives this to be remotely grounded in the real world. These kids want for nothing. Why kind of future adults are they creating?

From the company's website...."Let your child's imagination soar with this enchanting Victorian mansion playhouse. Will she be a princess or a lady? The possibilities are endless with Victorian mansion"

Wow - she could be a lady OR a princess. Those really are endless possibilities.

Ok. Let me say ONE positive thing here. I think we all have to admit, the house is pretty awesome. I know as a kid I would have LOVED to play in something like that. How about this.... Why not have one in a public setting? Perhaps at a park or something? That way, everyone (no boys alowed! just kidding.) can play in it and no one has to be the overspoiled brat. Perhaps a community can pull together the money to put one in at a park? Also, this way, as kids grow out of it, the next generation of little ones can enjoy it. What do you think?

I'm in a better mood today. (o:

I would have loved it as a child. It doesn't have to be pink; it could be painted any color. If you are a honeydew you could make something like this yourself. It is expensive, but when you see all the thousands of dollars of crapulous plastic that most children have, this play house doesn't seem over the top.

As a kid, I always signed up to try to win one of these houses in the mall. I could see if maybe a family with several kids or maybe a grandparent wanted to get a playhouse for the kids to play in. However, my family is more of the DIY breed, my parents made a playhouse from a salvaged shed, my grandpa built one for all of us grandkids to use. And, as architects, when my boyfriend and I have kids, half the fun will be in the designing and builidng of one (assuming we ever live in a place with a yard large enough to do so).

go melissa

Well, thanks Jess!

I think that there's a very good reason that the cardboard box is in the National Toy Hall of Fame......the imaginative possibilities are literally limitless!

www.strongmuseum.org/NTHoF/NTHoF.html