Disclosure: This post is brought to you by Sprite Kids.  The opinions shared here are 100% mine.

Most kids I know love playing dress up.  Having an app that allows kids to dress up, play with e-pets, and even dance along to popular songs is a fun way to keep the dress-up mess to a minimum.  Talking Anya Dress Up & Pet Puppies is a free app for preschoolers that will have your little one laughing, singing, and chatting with Anya in no time.  Anya is a little cutie pie who dances to the Macarena and reminds kids that strawberries are good for them!  While the app is marketed to ages 4+ it seems on the young side of that to me.  I think my kids would have enjoyed this app at ages 3 or even 2 years old.

Talking Anya offers in-app purchases that are required in order to access all of the frills of the game.  The prices are pretty reasonable, at $1.99 for the puppy pack or $6.99 to unlock everything.  That seems like a good investment considering that the app is designed for both iPad and iPhone. The free portion of the app is sparsely furnished; it’s enough to take a test drive but your child will likely ask for the extras. My son is almost 5 years old and really enjoyed playing with the microphone feature.  Anya hold out the mike and listens while the child speaks. Then Anya repeats what’s being said.  The game quickly turned silly, though, as my son made Anya repeat potty words and other silly phrases.  Sheesh….boys.  It would be nice to see a male counterpart for Anya, though, so boys could play dress up with little boy clothes!

Anya is a little bit of a sassy pants. She doesn’t want her hair messed up, and she’ll give you the silent treatment (complete with crossed arms) if you get on her nerves.  Be warned if you have your own little miss priss on your hands; I can see this totally feeding into that mindset!  Anya makes faces based on user interaction. For example, if she’s eating the strawberry and you try to touch it, she frowns.  She giggles when tickled.  These are excellent ways to teach young children how to read social cues.  You could take it one more step and discuss it with your child.  Ask, “Why did Anya stop smiling when you tried to take her strawberry?”  or “Why is Anya laughing?”  Talking Anya and her puppies are free for download at the iTunes store.  You can also join Talking Anya’s fans on Facebook.