From the Toysit archive
Care Bear Cubs
Meet pastel Care Bear Cubs with blankets and miniature plush companions, and make an original character card for a cub and its small friend.
The play at a glance
Each little bear has a little friend
The four cubs in Toysit’s photograph form a pastel gathering: yellow, blue, lavender and pink. Each has a small plush companion and a pale blanket with a colored edge. That pairing gives the play a charming extra layer—a child cares for a bear, and the bear has a tiny friend to care for too.
Look closely at the little companions
The smallest toys give this group much of its character. In the yellow cub’s arms is a bright clown with a pointed hat; the blue cub holds a tiny brown bear. The lavender and pink cubs bring their own small companions into the gathering. Their contrasting colors make each pair easy to pick out.
A period package identifies the yellow bear as Funshine Cub. Its smiling sun belly emblem, orange details, little clown and orange-edged blanket correspond to the yellow member of Toysit’s group. The package presents the cub as a character with belongings of its own.
A chair built into the presentation
Toysit’s original description says the package is designed as a rocking chair. The surviving Funshine package photograph shows this clearly: the cardboard sides carry a white chair illustration, complete with curved rockers, against a blue starry background.
That chair gives the bear a place in an imagined room. Picture a cub sitting with its little companion while another animal comes to visit. A blanket becomes part of a bedtime scene, a story corner or a pretend journey where both friends have a place to sit.
A gathering with two sizes of guests
Try giving the cubs and their companions different roles. The larger bears might host a picnic while the tiny toys organize the games. A cub could tell the first half of a story, then let its small friend invent the ending. The changes in scale make it easy to create a whole little community.
Choose one shared destination, such as a garden, a moonlit clearing or a make-believe reading room. Each pair can bring something to the scene: a song, a picture, an invitation or a funny tale. Players supply the voices and personalities.
Make a cub-and-companion card
Draw the two friends together and add four details:
- Names: what each friend is called in your story.
- Favorite place: somewhere they enjoy visiting together.
- Something to share: a song, a snack in the story or a secret greeting.
- Today’s adventure: one sentence about where they are going.
This original activity works with the cubs, any two plush animals or a pair of drawings. Swap cards with another player and introduce the pairs to one another.
The historical record
Original Toysit coverage
The original Care Bear Cubs description and the later general Care Bears passage are preserved below.
Care Bear bedtime and love-a-lot cub stuffed animals come with blankies
Baby version of plush Care Bears. Each cub comes with a plush toy and a soft cozy blanket. Package is designed as a rocking chair for extra fun.
Care Bears are a line of plush teddy bears that became a cultural phenomenon since their introduction in the early 1980s. Each Care Bear comes with its own unique personality, symbolized by an insignia on its belly, which represents a positive emotional or social trait like love, friendship, or courage. These bears aim to teach children important values and emotional intelligence. Over the years, the Care Bears have expanded into various forms of media, including TV shows, movies, and books, making them more than just toys but also moral educators and iconic figures in children's entertainment. Their enduring popularity demonstrates the universal appeal of their core message: sharing and caring are important values in creating a better, more empathetic world.
Sources and editorial notes
Toysit’s photograph and original account cover the pictured four-cub group. Readable Play Along packaging photographs identify the yellow Funshine Cub and show its clown, blanket and rocking-chair design; that evidence is specific to the photographed package. Exact assortment numbers and the other cubs’ names remain unassigned here. The character-card activity is an original editorial idea. No physical testing was performed.
- Funshine Cub package front — Seller-hosted photograph of the period printed package, identifying Funshine Cub and showing its small clown and blanket.
- Funshine Cub package side — Seller-hosted photograph showing the printed rocking chair and Play Along mark.
Images and descriptions are retained as historical material. How Toysit covers toys.
Created for Toysit by Tabbloza — the artwork in our header.