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VReading Brothers

Posted on November 20, 2010 7:08 pm by TheAngelForever

Dear NHL,

We have had a rough couple of weeks for many reasons. Even with everything that has been going on, you are almost always patient with your brother. Sure, there are times that you fight with JSL, but most days you love to spend time with him. The other day I came into the living room and found the two of you on the couch with the VTech VReader.

You sat there with him snuggling up to you and explained how to use it. He asked you questions and you patiently answered them. These are the moments that I cherish. Thank you for being such a great big brother.

Love,

Mommy

_______________________________________

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Holiday shopping with Aurora Gifts

Posted on November 18, 2010 4:08 pm by TheAngelForever

One of the great parts about blogging is learning about products that may be new to you. Prior to last year, I was not very familiar with Aurora Gifts and their line of kids toys and stuffed friends. Over the summer, we participated in a study about some of their new YooHoo & Friends and the website that goes along with them for children. It was a fun experience and the boys enjoyed playing with their new YooHoo & Friends critters. Of course, now when I am out and about I often see YooHoo & Friends in stores, along with other Aurora products.

Recently, I was contacted by a PR representative from Aurora to see if I was interested in reviewing some of their new items that are available this holdiday season. Each of them are sold for under $20 each. Since my kids enjoyed the previous experience with Aurora items, I said we would love to.

These are the items that arrived at our house:

More about the items we received from Aurora:

8" Large Lemmee Punk Rocker from the "Retro" YooHoo & Friends line.

Aurora’s international toy phenomenon YooHoo & Friends™ aims to please kids and collectors with the release of uber-hip YooHoo & Friends dressed in 60s, 70s and 80s retro styles. The collection is fashioned after some of the most famous pop culture icons of those decades (think Elvis, Madonna, Travolta from Saturday Night Fever etc.). The medium sized, five inch “retro” YooHoo & Friends are available in seven styles including 70s Love, Punk Rocker, Pop Singer, Vegas, Flash Dancer, British Rocker and Disco Dancer. The larger, eight inch versions include Punk Rocker, 70s Love, Flash Dancer and Pop Singer. Both sizes make sounds when squeezed (MSRP: medium-$8.99, large-$14.99).

YooHoo & Friends™ created the corresponding interactive website www.yoohoofriends.com, so kids and their parents can learn more about the animals (many endangered) and their natural habitats. Membership is free. On the site, visitors can play scores of games, download desktop backgrounds and coloring sheets, send e-cards, raise their own YooHoo & Friends character and much more. YooHoo & Friends is on Facebook (http://facebook.com/yoohoofanpage) and Twitter: @yoohoofriends.

10" Lea Lamb from the Dreamy Eyes collection.

Dreamy Eyes™ feature loveable expressions, big eyes and appealing cuddle material that just melts in your hands. 13 brand new styles include tiger, pony, pig, cow, lion, elephant, monkey, giraffe, cat, pug, Chihuahua, frog and lamb (10”, bean filled; MSRP: $12.99). Perfect for ages two and up!

8" Milly Wanna Be Princess and 8" Pink Kitty with Chocolate Carrier from the Milly Collection.

Milly WannaBes (8", MSRP: $10.99) are dressed as princess, ballerina or fairy. For girls three to seven who love playing pretend and dress up and aspire to be princesses, ballerinas and fairies.

Aurora’s plush toy pet carriers have been one of the company’s best sellers for over five years. Now Aurora has introduced a line of chocolate, vanilla and strawberry scented carriers with Milly. Milly Cupcake Carriers (MSRP: $13.99) include a removable eight-inch Milly plush animal (Mini-Flopsie) and for the first time, Aurora’s plush carriers are marked with scents lasting approximately six months (the carriers range in size from six to eight inches).

Aurora also has Paws Puppets, Aurora – Fancy Pals – The Original Toy Pet Carriers, and Cheeky Charlie & Carmen available on their websiteand retail stores this holiday season and beyond.

What we thought:

When the box arrived the other day, TechyDad told me that it said Aurora outside. I knew it was for the kids, but had no idea what would be inside – it was a surprise. The kids quickly surrounded us as we opened the boys. NHL and JSL immediately started to plot which was for each of them and stated that the pink ones were for Cousin SG. What I did not expect was them to argue over the the Retro YooHoo & Friends guy. I kid you not, to this day they both insist that it is theirs and demand me to agree. Why you ask? Well, they both love the guitar on it and laugh at the whistle call that it makes when you squeeze the tummy. For now, custody of Lemee is mine and I allow the boys visitation rights so they can rock out with him.

The kids thought that the Dreamy Eyes was adorable and wanted to see how soft it was. We were all pleasantly surprised with just how soft it and could see this becoming a child’s favorite to cuddle with. Because of the big eyes, it is not for children under 2. It would be a great addition to stuffed friends for the toddler/preschool set.

Both of the pink Milly plushes are absolutely adorable. I am sure my niece is going to adore them when we give them to her at Thanksgiving for an early Chanukah present. SG loves kittens, princesses, and cupcakes – so there is no doubt that my three year old niece will be in love. I know that if I was teaching, the cupcake Milly would be going with me to a desk to make a cute decoration.

Stay tuned, something fun for my readers will be coming soon thanks to Aurora.

Disclosure: This review was made possible by Aurora Gifts and their PR company. They provided me with the items shown above to facilitate this review. The opinions of this review are mine and I received no other compensation.

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gift ideas jsl nhl photos Product review shopping

Tuesday Tales – Ten on the Sled

Posted on November 9, 2010 4:43 pm by TheAngelForever

The other day, I pulled out a book to read to the boys during dinner. Yes, I did a read aloud as we ate our meal together. It was the perfect time. I had my audience sitting with me at the table. NHL (7), JSL (3), and TechyDad were all listening as I cracked open the new book called Ten on the Sled by Kim Norman. Please humor me later and tell me that other people do read aloud stories at dinner as well (or maybe this is just a teacher thing)!

About Ten on the Sled:

Author Kim Norman (Crocodaddy) and illustrator Liza Woodruff have whipped up a rollicking, jolly, snow-filled adventure!

In the land of the midnight sun, all the animals are having fun speeding down the hill on Caribou’s sled. But as they go faster and faster, Seal, Hare, Walrus, and the others all fall off…until just Caribou’s left, only and lonely. Now, a reindeer likes flying-but never alone, so…

one through ten, all leap on again!

An ideal picture book for reading-and singing along with-over and over.

Ten on the Sled – Written by Kim Norman – Illustrated by Liza Woodruff – Sterling Children’s Books – On sale October 2010 – ISBN 978-1-4027-7076-0 – $14.95 – Ages 3 and up

If you are interested in purchasing the book, the widget below is a link to my Amazon Store where I receive a small percentage for the sale.

What we thought:

My boys love animals. Ten on the Sled served as a great artic animal introduction for JSL, and a review for NHL. We were watching the story of the ten which included the caribou, seal, hare, sheep, walrus, fox, squirrel, wolf, moose, and polar bear. The boys all sat there listening to the repeating rhythmic nature of the words on each page. The kids really enjoyed making predictions about what may happen next. As the story kept going, they were able to see the pattern forming and guessing which animal would end up going off the sled in a new manner.

NHL enjoyed the book so much that he asked to take it to the couch to read again after dinner. I sat down with him and he read the story pointing out the animals and telling me what he knew about these creatures.

As I was glancing at the pictures, I was mesmerized with the details on the animals and the fun and colorful accessories that each was wearing. It isn’t every day that you see a moose wearing rainbow leg warmers, or a squirrel with a winter pirate hat on his head. Liza Woodruff captures the essence of the animal group with her illustrations and bring you onto the sled for the ride.

TechyDad noticed another item as we were reading along. He saw something in the corner of a few pages. It looks like a snowball that was slowly getting larger. Sure enough, it was a recurring item that shows what happened to each of the animals as they fell off the sled. Check it out when you read the book. Hint – it has something to do with the snowman that is seen on one of the first pages of the story.

I would definitely recommend this book for families to read together. It would make the perfect book to read when snowed inside this winter and drinking some hot chocolate while keeping warm.

So what have you read recently? Please be sure to link up to your Tuesday Tales and/or leave a comment below. Include something you read on your own, with a child or someone else. Tuesday Tales are all about spreading the love for books.

Disclosure: I received this book complimentary of Sterling Publishing in order to facilitate this review. No other compensation was given. The opinions expressed in the review are my own. One widget within the review is for my Amazon Affiliate where I will receive a percentage of money for the sale of the books should you opt to buy the book mentioned.

Categories:
books my boys nhl photos Product review Tuesday Tales

Thoughts of Florida dance in our heads

Posted on November 6, 2010 10:39 am by TheAngelForever

Dear NHL and JSL,

This week, we told you that Uncle I, Aunt M, Cousin SG, and Cousin BA were going to Disney World. It seems like Florida and Disney World in particular were on our minds.

Wednesday morning we woke up to this scene:

JSL got into the car and we had the following conversation: "Mama what’s that?" You were pointing to the frost on the windshield. My reply: "That’s just another reason for us to move to Florida to be near Mickey Mouse!"

Of course, I think you heard Mickey Mouse and just assumed it meant we were going there. At the end of the afternoon, I picked you up and told you that SG was going to see Mickey Mouse at Disney World. You immediately insisted that we get on an airplane and go right now. You did not understand that it was not something that we could just do. Tears resulted and you insisted we had to go and see Mickey Mouse and go on your Winnie the Pooh ride.

Luckily, a visit to Nana and Papa’s house stopped the crying. A little later in the evening, you asked for your Disney World hat and proceeded to parade around the house with your ears on.

Fast forward to Thursday night. I happened to mention to NHL that they were eating dinner at The Crystal Palace that evening and going to Boma the next night. NHL, you immediately stated that we had to go now and meet them at Boma. I think you really like it there.

So many wonderful memories of Disney World and our time there. Makes me so happy that you enjoyed and remember the time there. With a little Pixie Dust, we hope to be going again soon.

Love,

Mommy

_______________________________________

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