Angelina Ballerina Dance With Me Game

Some of you may recognize the familiar mouse from television, Angelina Ballerina.  Aside from the Angelina Ballerina television show, there is an adorable Angelina Ballerina game for preschool aged girls, entitled Dance with Me by Wonder Forge.

This board game, recommended for kids, namely girls, ages 3 and up, not only teaches children all about taking turns, but it also includes learning over 20 different ballet moves in the process. There is only 1 moving token, so everyone takes a turn being Angelina Ballerina. I love the idea of only one moving token. Many times when playing games with multiple children, especially in this age group, since kids this age are just learning to count, it can be a full-time job making sure every advances correctly!

The game board itself looks like a stage and stands upright. When a player lands on a “New Move” space, they pick a dance move card and place it on the stage. For attempting the move, the player can earn a star. Kids can collect stars (1-2) along the gameboard for attempting new moves, practicing the moves in order, or landing on a space that offers stars for various reasons.

At the end of the game, the first person to advance Angelina Ballerina to the “It’s Showtime” space is the first to perform all of the dance moves from the game in order, from memory!  For each move completed, the child earns a star. The remaining players then take a turn to see how many stars they earn.  The winner of the game is determined by whoever has the most amount of same colored stars. I think this concept is fantastic, because this allows anyone to win, as long as they put forth effort for trying, in some cases irregardless of athletic or physical ability. It’s a great way for young kids to unite on a common interest, even if it’s just that they enjoy the Angelina Ballerina character.  If you have a CD player nearby, there is also a musical cd included in the game for use when playing and definitely when, “It’s Showtime!”

If you enjoy Angelina Ballerina DVD’s, these are some of the DVD’s we’ve been lucky to preview over the last 6 months.

- Angelina Ballerina The Nutcracker Sweet DVD

- Angelina Ballerina Shining Star Trophy DVD

- Angelina Ballerina Love to Dance DVD

- Angelina Ballerina Ballet Dreams DVD

The Angelina Ballerina Dance With Me Game, as well as the above mentioned DVD’s were provided free to facilitate this review. The opinions are my own.

©Derek Wilmot Photography

It’s definitely that time of year when all of the family holiday events begin! As a parent there is nothing more amazing to me than to watch my son’s excitement when we visit a new place or event together, even if we’ve had to endure 5 tantrums along the way to get there!

If you are looking for a family event this weekend in Boston, to kick off the Christmas season, Macy’s in Downtown Crossing is having a family tree lighting event, called “Light Up The Night.”  At the Summer Street entrance to the store,  Joey McIntyre from New Kids On The Block, Sony Music singer Jasmine V and Tedy Bruschi, former Boston Patriots player, will be special guests at the event.  The tree lighting event starts at 5 p.m. in Boston on Friday, November 25th, 2011.

©Derek Wilmot Photography

At 6 p.m. guests can also enter the Macy’s store for autographs. The first 250 people to make a Lacoste fragrance purchase will score Joey McIntyres autograph along with a copy of his new holiday CD Come Home For Christmas. The first 250 to make any $50 or more purchase will get Jasmine Vs autograph.

Macy’s  has also partnered with a fellow Boston Blogger friend, Niri from MommyNiri.com and MomyNiriCares.com, to donate items to children in need this holiday season to Roomtogrow.org in Boston. This organization provides a lot of unique services to infants children 3 years of age impacted by poverty.

What will you do with your family this holiday season?  Will you be attending any holiday events or donating to any special causes?

The Elf on the Shelf

All of my friends with older children have raved about The Elf on the Shelf.  Seriously, Santa is ingenious. Sending little elves to watch over our little ones throughout the holiday season as spies to report back to him on whether they are being naughty or nice, is just plain awesome. My sister bought Gavin his own elf, as well as The Elf on the Shelf book last Christmas, and recently I decided to open the box and read him the story.

All elves are uniquely different, but they can be purchased with either light skin, dark skin, black hair, brown hair, brown eyes or blue eyes. Our elf came in a large box along with a storybook. As the story goes, each house has their own elf, that the kids name themselves. During the holiday season, the elf returns every night to the North Pole to tell Santa whether the children were behaving or not. Every morning, upon his return, the elf can be found resting in a different place to watch! The children are instructed not to touch their elf, or he will lose his magic, and on Christmas Eve, the elf returns to the North Pole to help Santa until the holiday season arrives the following year.

At just 2, Gavin is a little young for the concept, but I thought I’d give it a try. When we got to the page where I asked him what we should name the elf, he said, “All done!”  So even though we’ll probably wait until next year to officially name our elf, I’m sure he’ll enjoy playing hide and seek with him in the meantime. If your kids could use a little incentive for good behavior this holiday season, The Elf on the Shelf may be a great tradition to add to your holiday preparations. To find your nearest Elf Adoption Center, visit the website, www.elfontheshelf.com.

We received The Elf on the Shelf as a gift. The opinions are my own.

I am constantly on the look out for new and fun educational iPad Apps for kids. I recently tested out two of the Stella & Sam apps,by zinc Roe Productions. Stella and Sam, brother and sister, embark together on magical, imaginative adventures. Apparently these apps stem from a picture book and television series for preschoolers in Canada by Marie-Louise Gay. Don’t worry, you don’t need to be familiar with the books or show in order to fall in love with these adorable apps.

I tested out the “Go-There-Square” app, as well as “Backyard at Twilight.” In the “Go-There-Square” story, you can even see one of my favorite fingertip toys and games called the “Go There Square” (aka Cahootie)! The iPad app includes storybook video content that is embedded with different concepts, great for preschoolers that include counting sequences, number recognition and vocabulary. The apps themselves are mainly animated storybooks that play for a few minutes before stopping three different times within each app to allow kids to participate in different activities. The activities encourage hand-eye coordination and motor planning as kids use their index fingers to match dandelion puffs, pop bubbles, and build a path of flowers across the water to make a bridge.

In the “Backyard at Twilight” app, Stella and Sam are camping out in the backyard, waiting for the Night Giant. The activities include using their finger to search the screen for hidden insects, while exhibiting hand-eye coordination to catch fireflies that form different shapes and connect stars to make constellations that transform into familiar animals. These activities are very interactive, and I found my toddler, though he is younger than the targeted age group for this app, so excited to shout out the animal transforming in the sky with his developing vocabulary.

The Stella and Sam apps are among the best ipad apps, because they are great to encourage kids to attend to pictures and begin to visually discriminate details with their eyes. These are all skills that are great for young preschool children to develop to advance their educational skills for reading and writing in later school years.  These Stella and Sam apps are very sweet and almost soothing, making them a great bedtime story experience for your children.

Zinc Roe Productions provided this app free to facilitate this review. The opinions are my own.

©Morphology Games

My family and I attended an event about a month or so ago at the opening of Marbles: The Brain Store.  This store is new to Massachusetts but originated in Chicago, and lots of new stores are opening now in the North East.  It’s a great family store that includes many  different board games, party games and software, all aimed at challenging a person’s mind to enhance thinking skills, creativity and coordination.

At the event a few of us played a party game together, called Morphology. It’s geared for kids ages 13 and up and is an absolute blast.  It’s a fresh new take on the game of Pictionary, where instead of drawing, players use different materials such as beads, rings, blocks, string, a barrel, and sticks to build the word that is on their playing card while their team tries to guess. However, the game gets even sillier and more challenging when the dice is rolled and players that are building might have to build with their weak hand, their eyes closed, only with a piece of string, directly against the other team at the same time, or only 5 items. The cards also contain both easy and difficult words.

I first played this in a group with some people who were merely acquaintances and it was a blast. So if you are looking for an office ice breaker, don’t play those silly group games where people have to say something special about themselves for team building, purchase this game and get to know your friends, family and co-workers in a more fun and creative way.  Each person’s individual personality shined through and I think it’s a great way to learn about your teams strengths and weaknesses, that is so much more fun.

I even brought this to a friend’s house for a long weekend, where we had a great guys versus girls game, where of course, the ladies prevailed! Though the game is geared for teenagers and adults, I love the concept of also trying to pull out some of the easier cards from the deck and giving your kids the opportunity to create the item, without the pressure of the timer while you take turns guessing. It’s a great way for kids to work on their problem solving and creativity until they are ready to play the entire game with the family.

If you are starting your holiday gift giving lists and you are looking to find something unique and different, Morphology is definitely a game to give where you won’t have to worry about someone else giving the same gift. I’ve seen a lot of toys and games, but there is nothing else like it out there, you won’t be disappointed.

Visit the Morphology website to find out where you can purchase this game.

Morphology games provided this game for my review. The opinions are my own.

Tomorrow, my family and I received complimentary tickets to see the show here in Boston at the Agannis Arena at Boston University. I’ll keep you posted on how much fun we had, but in the meantime, if you are interested in seeing if the Yo Gabba Gabba Live Tour will be in  your neighborhood, please click here to visit their website.

©Gamewright

Knock Your Blocks Off is one of the latest game releases from one of my favorite companies, Gamewright, which is a great family game to add to your game night! I have used this educational game over the last few weeks with several different boys and girls between the ages of 8 and 13 as part of school based occupational therapy services.  Though it can be a little tricky initially learning the directions, once the children have taken a few rounds to understand the game, they LOVE IT and have been requesting it from week to week, not even realizing how many academic skills they are learning in the process!

In this game, each player takes a stack of the same colored patterned blocks. The player is also provided with a structure guide card. The player picks a structure on their card (wall, tower, steps, etc.) to recreate using the blocks. However, the key is to build the structure in the right pattern, because the colors on the blocks need to match each other. If you look in the picture to the left with the blue tower of blocks, notice how the blue spot on the bottom block, must be alligned with the blue space on the next block placed? Looks easy, but harder than you might think, especially when you are trying to be the first to build your structure correctly! Be the first to complete the structure in the correct pattern and win a victory point.

Building the structure is only the first part. The second round involves rolling the “demolition dice.” Roll a boulder, flick the dice at your opponents structure. Roll a dragon, drop the dice over the top of the structure. Roll an ogre, perform an underhand throw.  If you are successful in knocking the crown off the structure with the dice, you win a victory point. If you are not successful in the demolition round, the builder can win extra victory points for defending.  The first player to accumulate 7 victory points wins. The game is a little more complicated with the directions than I am describing here, because there are additional ways to win victory points based on the degree of difficulty in the structure you built, but those are the basic steps.

When we play, I often act as the facilitator to monitor that the block patterns match in the structure, and to assist with keeping track whose turn it is to destruct or defend. The boys have really enjoyed destroying the structures, but what I like is that it’s organized destruction with clear rules!  One thing I have found is that the more you play, the more you remember what patterns will let you build each structure the fastest, which can add to your strategy. This game has been excellent for children who tend to have difficulty noticing small details to improve their approach and organization. Some children can still be impulsive with the building portion, potentially not being the first one to capture the demolition dice, but there are so many other opportunities to win points, it has been fun for a variety of children with academic levels and abilities to play together.  We have even seen kids 4 points behind the leader catch up and win, so the outcome can change quickly with each round.

This is a fast moving game, where we have  inished it entirely with 2-3 players in about 15-20 minutes. So it’s a great family game to play as well even when you don’t have a lot of time.  We’ve also incorporated writing assignments such as, “Why or why not would you recommend this game to a friend?” Some children who are working on their organizational skills have chosen to write down the steps of the game to serve as directions to the next group of players.

Gamewright provided this game free to facilitate a review. The opinions are my own.

My Second Baby - the Bumbleride Indie in Jet

2 1/2 years ago I was “that girl” doing the pregnant waddle up and down the aisles of Babies “R” Us creating my baby registry.  I remember being completely overwhelmed by all of the choices available, but there were was one main reason why I liked being able to walk right into the big box store. I liked the hands-on experience of being able to touch and maneuver various strollers, high chairs and car seats, so I could really see what features I liked and which ones didn’t seem to matter. I wish an all terrain jogging stroller like the Bumbleride Indie had been on my mind from the very beginning.

That being said I totally screwed up purchasing my initial stroller.  I was really focused on not buying a ‘”snap and go stroller,” which can only be used for a few months. Though my choice was lightweight, it had horrible tires that were really difficult to push on our bumpy, uneven sidewalks. A month before my due date we wandered into Isis Parenting in Boston and got a taste of some of the cadillac stroller brands, but I thought $280 was a lot, paying up to $500 on a stroller, was at the time, completely unimaginable.

This spring Gavin turned 18 months, the weather got warmer and I realized we had this big expensive nothing taking up real estate in my car trunk. Last summer, we tried to go to a state park with a gravel path, which was a nightmare because we couldn’t push the stroller on the terrain. This summer I decided we couldn’t be limited to indoor experiences, so I started out on a hunt for a replacement, this time, I wouldn’t limit myself to the price tag.  So I cancelled my gym membership and decided we’d invest in a stroller that would allow our family some affordable, outdoor entertainment.

To make a long story short, as a media representative I ended up attending a high-end baby show for new and expectant parents in Boston.  My husband and I spent some time on the demo floor, with a new stroller becoming our focus and priority.

I believe that some things in life are meant to happen in a certain order. Every brand name, high-end stroller was there, along with a sales rep, for me to test out and get great “hands-on” time. The only product that left a lasting impression on me was the Bumbleride Indie. Not only did I love the product, the company sales rep was friendly, knowledgable, personable and took the time to answer all of our questions.

So we bit the bullet and a few weeks later purchased one for about $500. The Bumbleride Indie is an unbelievable all terrain jogging stroller and on pavement is effortless to push. Let’s face it, if I’m going to exercise on a walk, pushing a 30 lb. kid in a 30 lb. stroller is enough for me  to talk myself out of it in the first place. Additional features this stroller has that I love include a very large spf 45 sun canopy that reflects heat and beads water like I’ve never seen, a pretty easy fold (though it does require two hands), all with the total weight of the stroller being under 20 lbs., which I can easily lift up and out of our SUV. We can fit this stroller in the trunk of our Honda Accord pretty easily, as long as there isn’t a lot of other stuff in the trunk. The tires are air filled, which I like, and it’s easy to maneuver up/down curbs. Though we haven’t needed this feature, it is infant car seat compatible, right out of the box. 

The seat moves forward and backward to a full recline, but I do feel that the clip can sometimes be a real challenge to maneuver, especially with Gavin in the stroller.  The basket underneath fits my purse and small diaper bag easily. The front wheel can rotate or also be in a fixed position to manage different terrain. There is also an Indie double stroller version for those of  you with more than one child different ages or twins.

We take this stroller everywhere. It turns on a dime with one finger maneuvering on pavement and easily fits through the small aisles at the mall. The foam handle bar can be adjusted to several positions, making it comfortable for me to push, and I’m pretty short.  Though I find it comfortable to push, I do wish the handlebar moved in smaller increments, allowing for even more versatility.

Bumbleride sells additional accessories that include a Snack Pack (tray), Carrycot, Footmuff & Liner, Non-PVC Rain Shield, Travel Case, a latch-on Maxi Cosi Car Seat Adapter, and additional cup holders.

Gavin calls our Indie his “bike”  and he requests a “ride” pretty much every day. It maneuvered great on a packed gravel trails in the woods, but after taking a wrong turn we had to carry the stroller with Gavin in it up a rooted hill. Bonus to this stroller being only 20 lbs. with two people having to carry it, it was definitely manageable.

We have used it at the beach on both hard and soft sand. It was easier for me to use two hands and pull it backwards up over the dunes on the soft sand, and this was definitely a workout to say the least. It manuevered fine on the hard packed sand, it just required a little more effort to push than what is typical on the pavement.

We have brought it to an amusement park. The last thing Gavin wanted to do was get in and out of the stroller, but we found out by accident that the handle can be positioned completely in a downward position, easy enough for him to push, and let me tell you, this feature alone, which Bumbleride has told me was not really intentional, has saved our lives many times with our independent and impulsive toddler.

In a few weeks my husband and I hope to start the Couch to 5K program together, and I know that the Bumbleride Indie will be instrumental in our ability to successfully complete this program together with a toddler in tow.

I used to have the problem trying to get Gavin in the stroller, now he cries when we get back home or to the car because he does not want to get out!

So let me leave you with the lesson I learned:

If you don’t like what the big box store has to offer, search for a baby expo or high end baby store in the area you live that might carry some different, high-end brands like Bumbleride. Get in there and push those strollers around. Fold them, lift them and experience them. No-one says you have to be the one to buy it right then and there. Drop a few hints to your friends and family members arranging your shower that this is something that you’d love for people to pool some money in on to offset the cost, and don’t be cheap, it will just cost you more money in the long run.

We purchased the Bumbleride Indie in Jet ourselves. The  opinions shared in this post are truly my own.

Bumbleride has offered to send a Snack Pack, Footmuff & Liner and additional cup holder for free, so stay tuned for a possible additional post in more detail on the accessories.

The game includes a very large, plastic game mat (30″ wide x 100″ long), 1 inflatable shape cube, 1 inflatable color cube, 40 game markers (with 4 categories), and an activity guide. Multiple preschool aged children ages 3 and up can play at the same time. Winner is the first person or team to cross the creek to the grassy area on the other side.

The game board is very long, so you will need a pretty large amount of floor space to unfold the mat. Because it works on multiple educational ideas, this game can be used with both young children and older children at the same time depending on the level they are at.

Game play is simple. For younger kids, use only the color dice. They can place their game marker at start, roll the dice, then put their marker on the closest space that matches. Roll a crocodile and lose a turn. If they end up on a numbered space they can earn an extra roll of the dice if they can name the number. Older kids roll two dice, one for color and the other for shape, placing their game marker on the nearest space that matches. Roll a Crocodile on the color or the shape cubes and it’s a Wild Crocodile for that cube, allowing the child to pick any color they chose. Roll two crocodiles on both cubes and it’s a Wild Wild Crocodile where they can move the marker to any color and shape space.

When unfolding the game to test it out, it is vinyl and does have a bit of an odor. The mat does easily fold again after use and fits back in the same box for storage. My toddler has no awareness of colors, shapes or numbers, but it’s a very bright and inviting game board, so even he loved looking all over the mat for the stars, geese, turtle and fish. The one concept I thought there would be more of was the hopping, because there wasn’t any mention of jumping from log to rock in the directions. When playing, I would add having each child begin at start and hop to their game marker along either a rock or wood path before they move the marker, just to build in a little more physical activity and coordination.

We are giving away a Crocodile Hop game (SRP $17.50) to 1 lucky winner. Contest ends Sunday August 21st, 11: 59 p.m. EST.

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Learning Resources provided this toy free to facilitate the review. The opinions are my own.

A few months ago we received a new tricycle for my 1 1/2 year old son, so I went on the search for a new toddler bike helmet. Some people might wonder why I would be so diligent about getting a helmet for my toddler; considering he’s in a 5 point harness and I’m pushing the tricycle with one of those large extension handles. Not only do I have a job because children suffer from brain injuries that are often the cause of freak accidents, but just like the dentist tells you brushing a child’s teeth at a young age is more about forming a good habit, I thought the same for my toddler. If he’s always known to wear a helmet when he rides his bike, I’m hoping there shouldn’t be any issues around wearing one when he gets older. Not to mention, though he might not be the one falling off yet, if we are pushing him on the road near cars and other bikes, I’d rather be more safe than sorry.

The Giro helmet is pretty stylish for the little guy, he absolutely has no problem wearing it, and it sits squarely on the top of his head, nice and snug. This particular helmet has a pinch-free buckle, visor, bug netting and two blinking red lights that are battery operated to help warn oncoming traffic.

In our family, helmets will be a must-wear, with no if’s, and’s or but’s allowed. The same goes for you parents, if you don’t wear a helmet, I would expect an argument from your children. Practice what you preach and make sure the entire family gets outfitted for a sturdy helmet. Giro has an extensive line of bike helmets for adults and children for both cycling, skating and snowboarding, and on their website they have a nice video that will instruct you how to measure the head appropriately for proper fit. We need to make sure those little noggins are protected in any way we can.

Need to personalize your helmets, also check out an interview I did with my friend Gregg from Helmtops last summer!

Giro provided this helmet free to facilitate the review. All opinions are my own.

Photo courtesy of Derek Wilmot Photography.

Recently we have been using some of the 3D sparkling paints from the Creativity for Kids 3D Paint Activity Kit, which is recommended for children ages 6 and up. There are so many different ideas included in this kit, we’ve had a great time at school redecorating the windows to our room!

Included in this kit are 10 different colors of 3D paint (including 1 silver and 1 black outlining paint), 30 or more patterns to trace, 2 plastic paint sleeves, gemstones, googly eyes, glue, ribbon, cord, a trinket box, craft sticks, green chenille stems, glitter gel and craft glue.  I know many people think arts and crafts kits are more for little girls, but to be honest with you I used this at school with mostly boys.  Granted I didn’t have them making flowers and decorating the trinket box with gemstones, but the tracing patterns were pretty universal, so they had a great time using the paint to make window art.

For the Window Art, place  a plastic sleeve over one of the pages of tracing patterns. Outline the pattern in either silver or black, then let it dry for at least 30 minutes.  Once dry, squeeze the paint into the outline to finish off the design. Let it dry, then remove it from the plastic and it will adhere to a window.

©Creativity for Kids

We worked in a small group of 2, and each child could have their own outlining paint and plastic sheet covering. Only issue was that they had to wait their turn if they wanted to use a pattern that was on the same template. However, if I had planned ahead, the kids could have drawn their own designs, or I could have made extra copies of the templates and this would have not been an issue!

Included in the box are directions to also use this paint to make jewelry, design a trinket box, make suncatchers and create 3D sculptured designs like a horse, ice cream cone, and flower.  The instructions included in these kits are pretty easy to read as an adult, but I would definitely use this kit initially with your child if they are insistent on doing some of the more challenging 3D designs. Initially it was hard for most of the children to coordinate squeezing the paint while tracing along the line at the same time using even pressure. When they are finished you might want to make sure their outlines are even so that after they fill in the colors and let it dry, it can easily be removed from the plastic.

©Creativity for Kids

Parents always ask me for suggestions of kids’ crafts they can complete over the summer so they won’t regress in the areas of hand strength and writing. Before you go into mommy mode, worrying about the mess that it might make, set up a plastic tablecloth outside on a picnic table in the shade, and rest assured knowing that your children will be using many of the skills they have learned in school that require following directions, step by step planning, creativity, and control to have a little fun along the way.

Check out my other Creativity for Kids posts:

Create Your Own Enchanted Storybook

Diva Puppies

2 Winners Will Receive Their Own Creativity for Kids 3D Paint Kits!

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Giveaway ends Tuesday June 28th at 11:59 p.m. EST

Creativity for Kids, a Fabell Castell company, provided this kit free to facilitate a review. The opinions are my own.

“All Aboard!” On July 8th, Thomas the Tank Engine & Friends will pull into North Conway, NH and we will be among the many excited children and families ready to take the ride of a lifetime at the Conway Scenic Railroad.  I’ll be there because I’ve been selected to be a Mommy Reporter for the Day Out with Thomas: Leader of the Track Tour 2011!  If you don’t live near New Hampshire, no worries, Thomas and his friends will visit more than 45 cities here in the United States and Canada. Click here to see if your city is on the list!

Our family will be lucky enough to take a ride on a train with the 15-ton replica of Thomas the Tank Engine pulling usout of the station! Aside from the ride on board the train, there will be all sorts of family activities taking place at the station where children can enjoy hands-on arts and crafts, get temporary tattoo’s, and enjoy Thomas-themed activities at Imagination Station. Years ago I participated in a similar event with my godson at Edaville Railroad in Massachusetts, but this time I’m so psyched to see how excited my own little guy is to see the train pull into the station!

Follow Thomas the Tank Engine on Twitter @trueblueengine to see photos, tweets and reports along the tour!

Check out my most recent giveaway that includes Thomas the Tank Engine 3 DVD Playdate Pack!

So we’ve been through several show phases starting with the Backyardigans, The Wiggles, Sesame Street (Elmo’s World specifically) and now our “go to” guy of the month is Barney. Yes the hopping, leaping, goofy purple dinosaur, whose best friends are Baby Bop and BJ, and the dinosaur who has had all sorts of awful songs created about him. Let the innocence of childhood prevail because Gavin has no biases, he is just as happy to see Barney appear on television sometimes, as he is when my husband or I come home at the end of a work day. So I put on my educational hat and have rationalized why we continue to watch certain shows in our house. No matter what anyone says, these shows mostly involve real people or even animals that talk conversationally and have real personalities. They sing real songs, some which have been around for decades that we learned as a child and there is  some element of promoting real life skills by teaching letters, numbers, how to have manners and how to be a good friend.

I can say, Gavin is honestly learning from this show. He loves trying to imitate the hand gestures to familiar songs like the Itsy Bitsy Spider along with the show. Even more adorable is that he loves the song Barney sings at the end, “I love you, you love me, we’re a great big family, with a great big hug and a kiss from me to you, won’t you say you love me too.” Not only is he singing along, but he is giving these tremendous squeezes and wet sloppy smooches in the right spots, everytime. We sing it now before he goes to bed as part of our bedtime routine, which he emphatically requests multiple times over and again saying, “more YOU!” So Barney, right now I am forever indebted to you for how absolutely stinking adorable my little man is –every time we share this moment together.

In honor of our love for Barney we are giving away two DVD sets, the Barney Playdate Pack (3 DVD’s shown above) AND the Thomas the Train Playdate Pack (3 DVD’s)!

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Giveaway ends June 27th, 11:59 p.m. EST.

These DVD packs were provided free to facilitate a review. The opinions are my own.

I love the versatility of this game, because even young two year olds who don’t know how to play the game will enjoy squishing the bag and labeling the pictures that become uncovered from the beads.

Here are some other ideas of games older children might enjoy:

- Call out a picture from the key on the back of the game and be the one to find it first

- Find a picture by color or category like animals or vehicles

- We all want to keep our kids writing over the summers without causing a battle. Have the children practice their writing and keep track of all the pictures they find in a 5 minute time frame. The first one to write down the most pictures in that time frame wins! (A little helpful hint: there is a key on the back of the bag that includes a picture, paired with the written word of all the contents in the bag– so this is great for children entering first grade who can copy simple words and they won’t have to ask you for the spelling!)

- Encourage the kids to use crayons, colored pencils or markers, to draw a picture that they find hiding inside the bag and use it to inspire a quick game of “Pictionary”

- For older children who can write sentences, let them write silly sentences with the pictures they have found, as a family vote on who wrote the craziest

International Playthings provided this game free to facilitate this review. The opinions are my own.

Shrinky Dinks, geared for chlildren ages 7 and up, now come in a variety of new, 3D designs, with themes such as dinosaurs, space, sea life, fairy princess, military aircraft, zoo safari, pirates, and trains.

So at school this week we’ve been having fun creating sea animals. These are a lot of fun, but do require the use of a toaster oven or conventional oven for the shrinking powers, so parents and teachers, you will definitely need to supervise the kids on this one. Simply kids trace a creature from a template using colored pencils. Color in the shape, cut it out, place it on a foil lined cookie sheet in a preheated oven, within 1-3 minutes it will magically shrink before their eyes! After a few minutes to cool, they are ready for play.

Here were some of my helpful hints:

- We were able to modify the fun for kids of varying ability levels. For one child, I traced the outside with the colored pencil, and he colored the inside. For another child who was a bit impulsive and quick with the scissors, I cut it out to make sure his hard work wasn’t ruined and to minimize any frustration.
- I got to thinking, since I literally can not draw a straight line, I wish I had used Shrinky Dinks when I was younger for my school projects. For children who can’t draw, you can not imagine how real looking and perfect these animals look when they are shrunk to a portion of their original size!
- When using them with 2 kids together, we had one student write a few sentences about his shark, while the other traced, because there is only one template included in the package.
- After you cut them out, you will get some scraps, but keep them, you never know when you might need to just make a small detail.
- The paper could be hard to cut through for some kids, but on the flip side I actually like to work on developing kid’s hands strength, so it was perfect for my goals.
- The toaster oven was amazing if you are short on time. Using the toaster oven took literally 4 minutes from heat up to shrink down. However— the kids couldn’t see the process in action as easily as they could have in a conventional oven.

I think what was even more amazing, was watching the teacher’s looks on their faces when we brought them back to class, EVERYONE, remembered making these as children and you could tell it brought back so many personal memories.

If you would like to win your own package of Shrinky Dinks, we are giving one away!

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Giveaway ends June 20, 2011, 11:59 p.m EST.