We want to help more families unplug and play together.
Play is both fun and fundamental to living a healthy, rewarding and relationship-rich life. Why? Because we believe that play is perhaps the easiest way for a child to grow, develop, learn and thrive in what can be a complex and challenging world.
So, make way for play!
Our toy store has a rather unique beginning. Owning an independent, locally owned, and operated toy store wasn’t necessarily where we saw ourselves during our “when I grow up years” - but I am so grateful that life has brought us this opportunity and being able to serve our community. We started out small - very, very small. This is how our space received its name: Nature’s Nook Children’s Boutique.
We opened in 2015 in Bottineau, ND inside of a quilt shop with 300sq ft of floor space. A few months later, we wanted to add books to our selections and we acquired another 500 sqft of space in the backroom for this expansion. We entered another season of life, a retirement for Dave, which lead us to consolidate our lives to Minot, ND, and being able to open up our storefront in a brand new building in a space designed for our growing business! Thanks to this move, we were able to add additional display space as well as a space for kids to be creative!
Being creative was a large part of my (Deb’s) childhood and has played a large role in the different offerings available at Nature’s Nook Children’s Toys & Books. On Mother’s Day in 2016 Nature’s Nook Children’s Toys & Books had its Grand Opening in Minot, ND. Initially, the store was run by both of us, Dave & Deb, while setting up in the new location. Today, you’ll mostly see Deb’s face, along with a few of our other wonderful employees. Dave handles more the backend responsibilities - however, you may see him during the big event weeks in Minot when the other employees are running pop-ups or birthday parties.
In 2021, the store celebrated its 5th anniversary in Minot. We were happy to provide access to virtual classes as well as different non-screen & electronic free toys during that uncertain time amid a Global Pandemic. We love being a part of the community as the local, independent, ASTRA toy store. The mission to Unplug & Play has been embraced by our community and we love being able to provide play options that you won’t find in the big box stores. Also offering a safe space for kids and families where messy play is embraced and encouraged has provided such a fulfillment for us as local store owners. We are also so appreciative of our supportive, and understanding community, who help support us and have allowed us to grow over these past few years.
Why create with us! Deb was raised by a professional artist, Magdalena Burger, who used an array of materials for her artwork: pen and ink, watercolors, oils, and even acrylic paint. With an entire art studio at her disposal, Deb was encouraged to create and design! Her mother taught her how to sketch, paint, do hand crafts, and sew. Playing outside, climbing trees, finger painting, swimming and being free to run wild in her environment fostered a love of creating within Deb. Thanks to this exposure, Deb has been able to learn so many fantastic creative techniques that she shares with her students who take classes with her at Nature’s Nook Children’s Toys & Books.
In addition to her art-influenced childhood, Deb was also a teacher in California for 10 years while raising her children, which has allowed her to bring her experience from these years into her classes at the store. In addition to having an undergraduate degree in psychology focusing on child development Deb’s graduate degree was from seminary and has a Masters in Divinity, so she is a fully ordained minister with the Presbyterian Church USA.
Raised by a professional artist, became a teacher, and later a minister Deb is clearly passionate about family and children. Deb is one of the most unique and well-rounded art instructors in the area. Come and get messy with Nature’s Nook Children’s Toys & Books during their next class!
Oh, and we didn't even mention our wonderful balloon art.
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