Snuggle Up Pals

I’ve always loved books, and have enjoyed passing that on to my children. I don’t think it’s ever too early to foster a love of reading in your child, so my kids have all had cloth books and board books and even bath books! My baby just turned ten-months-old, and she’s going to find a special book in her Easter Basket this year; a Snuggle Up Pal from SoftPlay.

Snuggle Up Pals are books, with a stuffed friend on the cover. Take a look:

That’s The Tortoise and the Hare, which we were sent for this review. The series also includes Chicken Little and The Frog Prince. The outside is absolutely adorable, but the inside is really something too:

The illustrations are beautiful!

For a limited time you can find the Snuggle Up Pals at Costco, Sam’s Club, and BJ’s Wholesale Club. Snuggle Up Pals are for ages six months and up.

Because Who Doesn’t Like Chocolate?

This giveaway is closed. The winning numbers are 13, 9, 54, 50 — congratulations Carrie, Jennifer, melanie and Mary B.

Way back before Christmas (yeah, procrastinate much?) the folks from Ritter Sport offered to send me a box of chocolate.  Clearly there was no decision making involved here.  I promptly said yes please and thank you and agreed to write a review in exchange for the opportunity sample a variety of chocolates.  We enjoyed our chocolates very much, but I am just now getting around to writing a review.

I received an assortment of Ritter Sport chocolates including milk chocolate, dark chocolate. milk chocolate with almonds, and a yogurt.  The milk chocolate with almonds was my favorite.  My husband preferred the dark.  And the kids, well, they weren’t choosy; on the rare occasion we allowed them to get near our chocolate stash, they took what they could wrangle from us.  Their signature thick squares of chocolate are great to take along with you or slip into your bag in case you need a chocolate fix.  They make great Easter basket fillers (or stocking stuffers, depending on the time of year.)

Ritter Sport is an environmentally friendly, family owned and operated, German company that has been producing high quality chocolates since 1912.  Here is a short documentary about Ritter Sport’s history, if you’re interested.  I love supporting small family run companies, and I’m always curious to hear their stories.  This company is particularly intriguing because of their involvement in the cocoa farming industry in Nicaragua.  Read more about that here. In short, Ritter Sport makes quality chocolate that you can feel good about.

WIN IT!

Four lucky winners will receive a box of 84 Ritter Sport mini bars.  To qualify, just leave a comment on this post relating to the Ritter Sport company or chocolate in general.  You may earn extra entries by following Ritter Sport on Twitter and becoming a fan on Facebook.  Leave a comment for each entry.  I will randomly select four winners next Thursday, March 18.

Philips Norelco Kids Clipper

Time and money are two things that everyone is trying to save more and more these days.

As a mom of four who works outside of the home full time, I can always use more time and money. One way that I save is by cutting my two boys’ hair. My boys have very thick hair, so very short hair cuts are the only option. Their hair also grows very fast and they typically are ready for a cut every two weeks. If you do the math, depending on what your local barber charges to cut hair, this is an opportunity for huge savings.

Before the holidays, Jo-Lynne approached me about doing a review of the Philips Norelco Kids Clipper. She doesn’t cut her kids’ hair and doesn’t intend to start now, but she has heard my horror stories of taking the boys to a barber or fighting with the boys in my kitchen to get their hair cut.  I said why not — I hadn’t done a product review before.  How exciting!  A few days later, a box arrived on my door step, and inside were the kids clippers.

Included in the package were the clippers with two attachments, a carrying case, scissors, a comb, a cape, and a instructional DVD. Now I’ll be honest, I didn’t view the DVD. I’ve been cutting my oldest son’s hair for 10 years now, so I’m pretty confident I know what I’m doing.

When I opened the package, I was thrilled to see that this was a cordless clipper and that it only had two attachments. If you’re familiar with most hair clippers, they come with about 8 or 10 attachments that tend to get lost. And of course it’s always the attachment that I need that tends to get lost. And I love the idea that I don’t have a cord limiting where I can cut hair.

Additionally, the box highlighted that the clippers were “ultra quiet”. I was excited to read this because my youngest son has sensory issues, so cutting his hair is normally not a pleasant experience because he doesn’t like the buzz so close to his ears.

I used these clippers on my youngest son twice. I have to say that without the attachments, it did a great job. The cut was close and even, and the clippers were quiet. My son sat so nicely while I cut his hair, and my usual battle with him to get the job done was non-existent. I was even able to clip closely around his ears so that he didn’t have any long hairs left. This is usually the area where he cries the most and tries to get away. But with these clippers, he sat and let me finish the job in record time.

I did try the attachments on my older son, and while the concept of just two attachments that you can move up or down to get the length you need is a fantastic idea, the execution was a little lacking. While using the attachment, my son’s hair would clump up in the attachment, and a few times it actually pulled on his hair and hurt a bit. I tried this a few times to see if it was the operator of the clippers that was causing the issues, but no such luck. No matter what, I did the hair would get stuck, and my son would cry out as it would continue to pull. I eventually just took the attachment off and finished the cut.

To sum it up:

• I like the size of this clipper – light weight and fits easily in my hand.
• I like the the fact that this clipper is quiet. It does not make a loud buzzing sound that other clippers make and tends to scare my 5 year old son.
• I like that these can be used with or without the cord. In nice weather I like to cut the boys hair outside, and I can do that more easily now without a cord.
• I like how it cuts. It gives a clean and even cut and my boys look like they just came out of a barber shop when we are done.
• I didn’t care for the attachments. They are a great idea, and I hope that Phillips Norelco can improve on them, but as long as the hair continues to get stuck in them, I won’t use them.

If you are looking for a pair of quiet clippers, these are a great option as long as the attachments aren’t important to you. And if you have the patience to cut your son’s hair, this is a great way to save some money. I just did the math, and for my two boys to get haircuts every two weeks at $10 per child, I would be spending $520 a year. Wow — I never added that up, and that’s a considerable number. I have lots of ideas for how I can spend that money!

I Don’t Want to Miss…

No one likes getting the flu.  In addition to the sheer misery of being sick, it seems like you’re always missing something.  This post is timely because my 4-year-old is currently at home sick with some sort of fever/cough virus.  My kids absolutely HATE getting sick, mainly because it means they can’t play with their friends.

Danny Gokey and The Clorox Company are trying to get the word out about flu prevention with the I Don’t Want to Miss… campaign designed to get teens and their teachers involved in flu prevention.  This program invites school musical groups to develop a video performance of a song written by Berklee College of Music student Will Wells on what they don’t want to miss out on if they were home sick and why prevention is important. The winning school will win a music class led by former American Idol finalist Danny Gokey.

For each entry submitted, The Clorox Company will donate $100 (up to $10,000) to the Sophia’s Heart Foundation, a charity founded by Gokey in honor of his late wife, Sophia, and dedicated to helping children achieve academic success via musical training and restoring musical dreams in children.  And for the first 100 groups to submit, the teacher will receive a wellness care package from The Clorox Company.

For more information on flu prevention, follow Clorox on facebook.

I wrote this review while participating in a blog tour campaign by Mom Central on behalf of Clorox and received $20 thank-you gift certificate.

Bersica Futurewear

You know how it goes.  You sprung for that snazzy new outfit for your little one.  She looks so pristine, so pretty.  Every hair is in place, and her new outfit is to-die-for.  And then she takes one bite of ice cream and drizzles chocolate down the front of her pretty dress.  You take it home and spray it with your favorite stain remover, but it’s never the same again.

Enter Bersica Futurewear.

Bersica Futurewear is a new line of high-performance children’s clothing that redefines the meaning of “future” by combining the two things that will give us a better tomorrow—conservation and innovation. Bersica Futurewear is revolutionizing children’s clothing as the first brand of its kind to use textile nanotechnology, creating an entire line of virtually stain-proof, water-proof and eco-friendly activewear.

Did you hear that?  Stain-proof clothing, y’all.  Be still my heart.  The owner of Bersica Futurewear was kind enough to send me a piece of clothing for each of my three children to try, and they were kind enough to model them for me.

The clothes do live up to their claims — they repel water and stains.  I poured orange juice on this white shirt to see what it would do.  It just sat in a pool on top and didn’t penetrate the fabric in the least.

I took a napkin and wiped it right off.  My daughter felt it and said, “Weird!  It doesn’t even feel wet!”

The clothes have a rather paper-like texture, which didn’t seem to bother my kids.  I find it a little odd, but it’s a small price to pay for stain-proof clothing.  Hopefully they will be adding more styles to their clothing line in the near future.

Disclosure: I was given 3 Bersica clothing items to facilitate this review.

OxiClean to the Rescue!

I have long been a fan of OxiClean.  In my opinion, NOTHING gets stains out better, with the possible exception of bleach.  But of course, bleach is only safely effective on white articles of clothing.  OxiClean safely removes stains on colors as well as whites, even after the stains have set in.

So I was thrilled to hear that next month, OxiClean is introducing two new OxiClean products to add to my collection of stain-fighting products — OxiClean Max Force Power Paks and OxiClean Max Force Gel Stick Pre-Treater.

The Power Paks give any load of laundry a boost without the mess of spray or powder. You just throw it in with your laundry, and it goes to work fighting stains and brightening colors.  This is great when you have a load of clothes that is pretty dirty, but there aren’t specific stains that need to be treated individually.

The Gel Stick Pre-Treater is intended for the toughest stains, and it even works on ones that have been set-in for days.  You just rub the gel into the fabric and let it sit for a few minutes before throwing it into a normal load of laundry.  I like this because I don’t feel like I’m wasting the product like I do when I use the spray.

Each of these new products contains OxiClean’s “4-in-1 stain fighting power” that works on grease, oil, blood, or dirt.  The products will hit store shelves in February, and I plan to be the first one in line.

I wrote this review while participating in a blog campaign by Mom Central on behalf of OxiClean and received a sample to facilitate my candid review. Mom Central sent me a gift card to thank me for taking the time to participate.

Beija-Flor Jeans

If you’ve followed my blog for any length of time, you know that I have a deep and abiding love for designer denim.  Let me tell you about my newest find — Beija-Flor jeans.  Beija-Flor is a cool company because it’s a mother-daughter team committed to designing jeans that work with a woman’s natural shape.  You really should take a minute and read their story.

Here is some more about them:

The secret behind Beija-Flor, which is Portuguese for hummingbird, is rather simple: the jeans are designed to work with rather than against a woman’s natural curves. Every pair is made with a lightweight 4-season Brazilian stretch denim that does not stretch out- no matter how many times you were them!  Every style features a vertical illusion wash with darker shades on the outsides and lighter towards the mid-thigh for a slimming effect. The jeans are not the traditional low-riding styles of Brazil, but rather come with a contoured waist that dips in the front and sits higher on the backside- also helping to alleviate any gaping in the rear.

When my jeans came in the mail, I was eager to try them on.  I requested the Jennifer Skinny Jean in a dark, even wash because I’ve been wanting to find a skinny jean with a higher rise that I can wear when I want a dressier look for a night on the town.

The denim is incredibly lightweight and comfortable, and even though they are “skinny jeans,” they are not skin-tight, as I had feared.  (These are my first skinny jeans.  The ones I usually wear tucked into boots are a straight leg jean.)  And I love the higher rise (9 inches) and how they shape my rear view.  (I can use all the help I can get back there.)  My only complaint is that they are rather tight in the waist, but as I told my contact at the company, it’s not the jean.  It’s me.  (Or, more accurately, it’s the three pregnancies that wrecked havoc on my midsection.)

Last week I wore my new jeans out to dinner tucked into my favorite boots, and I felt like a million bucks!  I wish I’d snapped a picture.  Oh well, maybe next time.  (I’m sure I’ll be sporting them at Blissdom next month!)

COAST Winyah Polo for Kids

It’s hard to imagine, with sub-freezing temperatures outside, that spring is just around the corner.  But if you’ve been to the mall recently, you will find the stores packed full with their new spring 2010 lines of clothing.  It’s no different online.  Clothing retailers have spring fever, and you will too when you get a glimpse of these gorgeous polo shirts from COAST.

When I was contacted to try out their new line for kids, I clicked over to their site and discovered that COAST Apparel is located in Pawleys Island, SC.  My sister-in-law grew up vacationing in Pawleys Island, and I spent a week there at the time of her wedding to my brother.  I’ve always loved South Carolina, and that trip clinched it.

These shirts capture the essence of the coast of South Carolina with their soft hand-picked Peruvian cotton and serene beachy colors.  They sent me a shirt in clearwater (doesn’t that just say it all?) for my son to try.

My son is a typical 10-year-old, and he’s not one to get excited about clothes, especially another polo shirt.  But when I showed him the shirt, he was actually enthusiastic about the color.  I guess he’s as sick of navy and forest green as I am.  This shirt will be a great staple for his spring and summer wardrobe.  I may have to order one in every color!

Bugsby by VTech

The toy section is full of educational toys, so how do you know which ones are best?  In my opinion, the best toys are those that inspire creativity and those that help children learn their basic skills such as reading and math concepts.

The Bugsby™ Reading System by VTech allows kids (ages 3-7 years) to engage in interactive and entertaining stories while learning important reading and language arts skills.

My girls love their Bugsby.  My older daughter (age 7) who is just learning to read can read along in the book and then when she gets stumped by a word, she just taps it with the Bugsby pen and it tells her the word.

My younger daughter (age 4) isn’t reading yet, so she relies on Bugsby to read her the stories.

Of course, Bugsby shouldn’t replace mom and dad reading to the kids, but when I’m busy and they are looking for something to do, I’d rather them read with Bugsby than watch TV or whine and complain that they’re bored.

The main drawback to the system is that you have to keep purchasing books so it can become a rather expensive set.

Disclaimer: I was sent the Bugsby Reading System- Pen and Starter Book Bundle for review purposes.

Nature’s Peak Frozen Fruit

UPDATE: The winners of the coupons are mannequin and Christine.  Congrats, ladies!  And enjoy!

Of course you know that I’m a huge proponent of eating fresh, whole foods that are grown as close to home as possible.  Unfortunately, there is not a huge variety of fresh, local produce available in Pennsylvania during the winter months, and this is where frozen fruits and veggies can be a life saver, such as the Nature’s Peak frozen fruit that I was given to try.  Nature’s Peak is a line of premium frozen fruit that is just as nutritious as fresh fruit with no sugar added.

The nice thing about frozen fruits and veggies is that they can be picked at the peak of ripeness and frozen immediately so they retain all of their nutrients.  Frozen fruit is great for smoothies and muffins, as a topping for ice cream, or to mix into your yogurt.

If you would like to receive a coupon for a free package of Nature’s Peak frozen fruit to try, leave a comment on this post telling me your favorite use for frozen fruit.  I will randomly select two winners on Friday, January 22nd.

Please be advised, at this time Nature’s Peak is only available in the following areas:

Florida (All Regions)
New England (All Regions)
New Jersey (All Regions)
Maryland (All Regions)
Virginia (All Regions)
Washington (Seattle Area)
Oregon (Portland Area)
California (Los Angeles, San Jose Areas)
Arizona (Phoenix Area)
North Carolina (South West Area)
South Carolina (North West Area)
Georgia (South East and North East Areas)
Missouri (Northern Area)
Louisiana (New Orleans Area)
Arkansas (Little Rock Area)

I wrote this review while participating in a blog tour campaign by Mom Central on behalf of Nature’s Peak and received a sample to facilitate my candid review as well as two coupons to giveaway. In addition, Mom Central sent me a gift card to thank me for taking the time to participate.

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