The Angel Forever

Hosting a HEXBUG Party

Posted on October 4, 2010 1:31 pm by TheAngelForever

Hexbug logo

Did you ever look at a toy and wonder how it would keep the attention of a child? That was my initial reaction of Hexbugs. They looked cute and seemed like fun, but how would they keep hold up to my kids and our neighbors? Let me cut to the chase here, my boys and the neighbors were outside playing with the Hexbugs for over four hours! Yes, you read that right. On a nice fall day, the Hexbugs kept them engaged for the entire time.

Thanks to Mom Select, we were selected to host a Hexbug Nano Party. They sent us enough Hexbug Nano for each child to have three to keep. In addition to this, we received the Nano Bridge BattleHabitat Set, Nano Habitat Set, and a myrid of extra Hex Cells, Straight/Curved Bridges, batteries and more. We seriously had everything to create the ultimate Hexbug Nano celebration.

So you may be asking yourself, what is a HEXBUG? Here is a quick explanation:

Basically, HEXBUGS are mini-robotic bugs without the ick factor. Yes, these are MY kind of bug. Ones that will not bite, damange items or cost me money to hire an exterminator. In addition to this, kids (and/or adults) can register their HEXBUG online to track their collection, play games, learn about real science. We have not had a chance to do this yet, but NHL (7) is anxious to see what it is all about.

As we were setting up the pieces for the party, we noticed something immediately. The Hex Cells and bridge pieces were easy to connect. Seriously, our 7 year old had no issue, and even the 3 year old was almost able to do it alone. The other part we liked was that the small moveable pieces on the hex cells were attached. In other words, no little pieces floating around if you were connecting parts.

Then we took the Battle Bridge, extra habitat, hex cells and bridge pieces outside. While we waited for the neighbors to arrive, NHL and JSL set their HEXBUGS up to battle. Here is a video.

Then the neighbors started to arrive. The kids had a blast making up stories about their HEXBUG habitat. The battle zone was above a mall, the Hidden Mickey within, was the house for the girl HEXBUG population. It was hilarious to watch them play for hours. Here are just a few of the photos that captured our outdoor HEXBUG party.

Since I mentioned it before, here is our own version of the Hidden Mickey in our HEXBUG Nano Habitat!

The kids really did have a great time. Just listen to the excitement as the bugs raced around their habitat:

Oh, if you think the HEXBUGS are just for boys. Think again. Check out the littel area of the HEXBUG Nano habitat that our neighbor made – pretty creative if you ask me.

I know the kids look forward to playing outside together again with all of their HEXBUG Nano critters one day soon. A huge thank you to Mom Select and HEXBUG for making this possible. We will definitely be purchasing more HEXBUG products this holiday season to give away to family and friends.

Disclosure: This review and party HEXBUG was made possible by MomSelect and HEXBUG. They provided me with all of the items shown above to throw the ultimate HEXBUG Nano Party. The opinions of this review were mine and I received no other compensation.

Categories:
friends fun jsl laughs nhl photos play time Product review TechyDad video weekend

Smucker’s Uncrustables to the rescue

Posted on October 3, 2010 11:55 am by TheAngelForever

Swim lessons, school clubs/events, and Hebrew School often mean late dinners where we need to have something quick that the kids will eat. The little guy is especially fussy. Last year while shopping, I saw a grilled cheese Uncrustables variety that we bought. These are great for quick meals at home, but not on the go. Thanks to Mom Central, I heard about the new Smucker’s Uncrustables and signed up for their Blog Tour.

We received a coupon and bought a package of the new PB and grape jelly on whole wheat Uncrustables. I think we would have preferred the ones with strawberry jelly, or perhaps the PB and honey. Still, the grape jelly ones were good. I liked that they were easy to prepare and contain trusted ingredients for my family.

I can already see us getting a package and tossing them in the car for our amusement park trips. It will be a nice easy, cost effective lunch on the go. Since they will defrost while going, they are perfect for road trips and even brown bagging field trip lunches for school. I know we will be buying these again in the future.

We were also sent a coupon for a new product from Smucker’s called Snack’n Waffles.

We have not been able to find these locally yet, but I hope to soon. The waffles are ready in 15 seconds in the microwave and come in the four varities above. Once we try them, I promise to update.

Thank you Smucker’s for helping to make family life a little easier with some items that are convenient for families on the run.

Disclosure: I wrote this review while participating in a blog tour campaign by Mom Central on behalf of Smucker’s and received products necessary to facilitate my review. In addition to this, I received a gift certificate to thank me for taking the time to participate. All opinions are 100% mine and in no way influenced.

Categories:
Blog Tour food glorious food Product review

Scholastic Book Fair Time

Posted on October 2, 2010 9:27 pm by TheAngelForever

Dear NHL,

On Tuesday, you came home from school with a list of books that you wanted from the Scholastic Book Fair. Your list was rather long. I think there were at least eight books written down. You explained that two were books that you thought JSL would like. That made me feel so proud. When I went to the Book Fair to help out on Wednesday, I forgot your list with me. Before picking up JSL from nursery school, I went home to get your list. JSL and I went back to school to the Book Fair to check out your list. It was funny to watch your brother run right toward two of the books that were on your list for him. In the end, I bought four books. One was on your list, two you likely missed and would love and the last one something Daddy was interested in. Of course, we went back to the Book Fair the next day with Daddy. JSL cried when we were not going to get anything. We crumbled under pressure and got two additional books for the two of you. Once again, one that was on your list that you thought JSL would like.

I guess it goes to show that we are easy to sell books to since we know how much you and your little brother love to read. I hope this continues and we will continue to add to our library at home.

Love,

Mommy

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If you want to participate in Dear Kid Saturday, head on over to Cutest Kid Ever by clicking on the button below.

Categories:
books Dear Kid Saturday jsl nhl photos school

Think pink October 2010

Posted on October 1, 2010 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

Today is October first and begins National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Last year, I wrote about two people in my life that are survivors of this nasty disease. Unfortunately, not everyone diagnosed with Breast Cancer is that lucky. Many brave women lose their battle with this beast.

Below, in the middle, is my friend Debra. She is a fellow Disney fanatic that I spent time with at BlogHer in August.

Debra (A Frugal Friend) lost her mother to breast cancer almost five years ago. In her memory, Debra is hosting her 2nd Annual Breast Cancer Awareness Event . To find out more about the event please click on the button below.

I hope you will join me in supporting Debra’s event in honor of those that have had their lives forever changed by Breast Cancer.

Please remember to check your breasts every month, or remind the women in your life to do so. Don’t put off having your yearly mammogram and be sure to have a baseline done when your doctor recommends it if you have never had one before. Early detection is key!

My question to you this week:

Do you know someone that has battled Breast Cancer? Please take a moment to leave a shout out in their honor.

Also be sure to enter my CardsDirect $50 gift card giveaway. TechyDad is also hosting a LuLu.com Photo Book and Ziploc product giveaway.

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Thanks to Kailani at An Island Life for starting this fun for Friday. Please be sure to head over to her blog to say hello and sign the linky there if you are participating.

Aloha #119

Categories:
Aloha Friday bloggy friends health awareness looking back photos

CardsDirect – $50 Giveaway

Posted on September 30, 2010 10:44 am by TheAngelForever

For years now, I have collected note cards and other types of stationary. Sure, sending out an e-mail is quick and easy, but I still love to write a good old fashioned note to family and friends. Oh and yes, we send out holiday cards to family members when the stamp often costs more than the card itself.

As a member of Global Influence, I was offered the opportunity to have a CardsDirect giveaway. Of course, I said yes for my readers since their website and products intrigued me. Heads up, I will also be receiving a thank you $50 gift card of my own for hosting this giveaway.

About Cards Direct:

CardsDirect offers the very best in personalized greeting cards for business or personal use. Over 2,000 card designs are available in categories that include holiday cards, Christmas cards, birthday cards, thank you cards, photo cards, baby shower invitations, baby announcements and many more! With free personalization and custom imprinted verse, CardsDirect offers an easy online ordering process and top quality cards with the best selection, customer service and pricing found anywhere.

I can not wait to figure out what to order. I think we will be purchasing Holiday photo cards that will cover Christmas, Chanukah and New Years for our friends and family. So far I have found plenty of great options and just need to sit down and make a final decision (easier said than done with all of the choices).

Giveaway:

Thanks to Global Influence and CardsDirect, one lucky winner will receive a $50 gift card from CardsDirect to select your own items to have made.

Rules for Giveaway:

MAIN RULE – If you win, what will you use your $50 CardsDirect gift card for?

The following Bonus Entries may also be done. Please be sure to leave separate comments for each that you complete below to make sure you get the right number of entries.

1 Bonus Entry – Tweet the following about the giveaway (May be done once a day): Enter for a chance to #win a $50 gift card from @CardsDirect and @TheAngelForever http://bit.ly/8YVdAVCardsDirect #giveaway
1 Bonus Entry – Subscribe to my RSS feed (or let me know if you already are) in a separate comment.
1 Bonus Entry – Leave a comment on any of my non-giveaway posts from the month of September/October. Leave a comment here to let me know which one. This Bonus entry may be done only twice per person.
3 Bonus Entries – Add my blog button to your website and leave a link with the location. Be sure to give yourself 3 comments for credit.
5 Bonus Entries – Write a post on your blog linking to my blog about the giveaway. Be sure to leave 5 comments about this to get credit for all of your extra entries.

To enter, please follow the rules above within the comment section. Contest starts today September 30, 2010 and ends at 10:59 EST on October 21, 2010. You do not have to be a blogger to enter, but must leave a valid e-mail address for me to contact you for mailing address once the giveaway is over. I will select the winner using random.org and contact you via e-mail. You will have 48 hours to claim the prize. If there is no response, another winner will be selected. Open to U.S. residents only.

Disclosure: I wrote this giveaway as part of a Global Influence campaign for CardsDirect. By sparing this infromation with my readers, I will also receive a $50 gift card to thank me for my participation. No other compensation has been given.

Global Influence Network