Life

Build-A-Bear Is About To Let You Build A Narwhal, & It's As Cute As You'd Think

I didn't realize how freaking cute narwhals are until I saw the Will Ferrel movie Elf for the first time. Please tell me you remember the scene where Mr. Narwhal pops out of the water and says, in his sweet little voice, "Bye buddy! Hope you find your dad!" Ugh, my heart. If you weren't hooked on narwhals yet, you may be soon. Build-A-Bear just released a new narwhal stuffed animal, and it's pretty dang adorable. If your kids have filled their teddy bear quota — or if you're looking for a fun family field trip — head to Build-A-Bear to create and customize one of these sweet, cuddly creatures.

But first, brush up on your narwhal knowledge so you can impress your little ones when they inevitably start asking a million questions about them. As you probably guessed by looking at it, narwhals are whales. According to all-knowing Wikipedia, they're classified as "medium-sized," but they're whales so... they're still gigantic. Because of the massive tusks they have protruding from their heads, they've been cleverly nicknamed, "the unicorns of the sea." Fun fact: typically, only the males grow tusks. Of course, your Build-A-Narwhal can be whatever gender your child's heart desires — we won't fact-check you.

The Narwhal Build-A-Bear is already for sale on the website, and you can order it "Stuffed & Ready to Play" or unstuffed, so you can stuff it yourself in store. The new Narwhals will also be available in stores beginning today, August 2. According to the website, "This mystical friend has sparkly fur and a shimmery tusk," so it's got a bit more bling than your average stuffed animal. And I'm into that.

If you've never taken a trip to Build-A-Bear, I highly recommend it. When I say that it's fun for the whole family, I mean it — you may walk out with a cuddly friend for yourself, too. At the Build-A-Bear workshop, your kiddos get to customize an animal from top to bottom — even picking out personality traits, making a wish on the little heart that goes inside the animal, and helping stuff it. Then, they can name it, "wash" and groom it, and pick out a variety of clothing and accessories for their new friend. And yes, narwhals totally get to wear clothes and accessories, too. Your child can even add a sound to their narwhal, if you don't think that'll drive you too insane. Check out this precious YouTube video from Samia's Life to get an idea of what the full Build-A-Bear experience is really like.

The new Narwhal Build-A-Bear is being sold for $22. Pro-tip: check your local store's availability before heading in. You can do that on the Build-A-Bear website (or by giving them a call). There's nothing worse than getting your kids excited from a narwhal play date, only to find out they're completely out. If there isn't a Build-A-Bear workshop near you, pop your kid on your lap and customize a new fuzzy friend from start to finish via the online Bear-Builder.

Before you had kids, did you ever think you'd be getting this excited over a stuffed narwhal? Life is full of surprises.