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Kids Hunt for Leprechauns Hidden in Fairfield Toy Store

Giant Steps' first Leprechaun Hunt draws huge crowd, leads to shouts of "I got one!" "I got one!"

The green balloons outside interactive toy and baby store in Fairfield Saturday morning bounced to and fro in the breeze, signifying the festivities going on inside.

Held just days before St. Patrick's Day, the toy store's first Leprechaun Hunt drew such a large crowd that some parents had to park across the street. Promptly at 10:30 a.m., shop owner Howie Greenspan announced the rules and details of the hunt to eager kids ready to find those elusive little green Irish characters.

“There are two kinds of leprechauns hidden in the store,” said Greenspan, describing the red- and green-faced leprechauns that were hiding. “Some of them are not such good hiders, but the green-faced ones especially like to hide in the nooks and crannies of the store.”

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Just like in the popular feature film "Toy Story," the toys in Greenspan’s shop came alive at night. The leprechauns had to be found, it was understood, otherwise St. Paddy’s Day wouldn’t come.

Once he gave the signal, dozens of kids searched the store right quick, top to bottom. A promise of a prize and candy at the end was motivation enough for these youngsters. Each child was signed up according to age group, given a bag to collect their leprechauns and sent off searching.

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Joyous shouts of “I got one!  I got one!” could be heard all over the store.

“There are over 400 leprechauns hiding in the store,” Greenspan said. They were hidden behind board games and dollhouses and under stuffed animals. They were everywhere.

The kids were quick with their searching skills and found the more obvious ones in mere minutes. Greenspan’s daughter, Madison, was helping out her dad by hiding previously turned-in leprechauns so that latecomers wouldn’t feel left out.

After 30 minutes, the search was called off and the found leprechauns were tallied up. Seventy kids participated in the event and no matter how many were in a child’s bag at the end, each kid received a green fortune cookie, a shiny green beaded necklace, a mini plastic pot (minus the gold) and allowed to keep one of their found leprechauns “for good luck."

Children from each age group who found the most were also given gift cards to the store.

The second half of the event was held outside where kids participated in a candy hunt. The entire event was free.

“It was a little bit of a leap of faith doing this event, but it worked out great,” Greenspan said. “We try to do different things at the store. Next month we will be holding an Easter party and an Easter egg hunt as well as a Daddy and Me craft day.”

Visit the store’s website to view dates on upcoming events.

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