Discovery Channel Store Rapido

The Parent Blogger’s Network and the Discovery Channel Store sent me a game called Rapido to check out. Rapido is a game made of 100% natural bamboo.  It comes with a bamboo cylinder, a rope, four colored tubes, 8 bamboo strips and 32 wooden balls. Each player gets one colored tube and one bamboo strip. The strips each have colored dots on them in a particular pattern. You take all the balls, put them in the cylinder, and dump them out. (The rope keeps them from rolling everywhere). Then as fast as you can, you pick up the balls with your cylinder in the order that they appear on the bamboo strips.

It is a very simple game, but it is a lot of fun. It is recommended for ages 4 and up, and due to the rope and the small balls, I would say this is correct. For children learning to recognize colors, this would be a great game to play. It also helps build hand eye coordination and to be honest, I had just as much fun playing it as the kids. It is also the kind of game that you can make as long or as short as you want to.

It is made of natural bamboo which once it is cut down, grows back in just three years. The game came with a little book that talked about bamboo games. I found it very interesting. Bamboo symbolizes strength and flexibility and this idea was brought to a conference where participants from 15 nations worked together to design toys for children made out of bamboo.

You can buy Rapido for around $20. Bottom line is that this game is fun for both children and adults, it is eco-friendly, and has educational aspects without feeling like an “educational” game.

The Attack of the Frozen Woodchucks

Frozen Woodchucks is not the kind of subject I read many books about. In fact, I wasn’t at all certain that I knew what a woodchuck was, much less why one would be frozen. So it was with some relucatance that I agreed to do a Mother Talk book Review on Dan Elish’s new book “The Attack of the Frozen Woodchucks.” When it arrived, I handed it to Bug to read and the look on her face read, “Woodchucks? Frozen Woodchucks? You have got to be kidding me.”

But then she disappeared with the book and came back singing its praises. So I read it too, and was pleasantly suprised. Yes, there are woodchucks. Big frozen woodchucks. But if you can get beyond that, this is the kind of book that can draw a kid in. It features smart characters who are truly likeable. I especially liked little two year old Imogene who is an inventor. As absurd as the premise might sound, Elish does an excellent job of making this something that you can get it into, and not the eye rolling experience I thought it might be. (Serves me right to judge a book by its title!)

There are a few scary moments in this book, but nothing too bad. Bug reads above a fifth grade level and it seemed to fit her reading level quite well. I’d say the book would be enjoyed from about fifth to ninth grade (and even higher, as I found it pretty darn good.) Kids who enjoy science fiction or adventure stories will find it particuarly appealing.

As for Bug, she says, “I thought it would be dumb because I didn’t know what a woodchuck was and I don’t know why someone would write about it. But then it turned out to be really good! It was so funny! Really funny! I loved the two year old who could do everything and said all these words that I didn’t even know what they meant! She was cool. And the woodchucks weren’t stupid, it was a cool book. And really funny. I thought there were one or two boring pages, but most of it was really exciting and funny. You should read it. You’d like it because I did.”

So there you have it. You’ll like it because Bug did.

You can check out the author’s website here and see what other bloggers are saying at Mother-Talk.

Special K Bliss Cereal Bars

The folks at Kellogs and Mom Central sent us two boxes of Special K Bliss Cereal bars to try. I really enjoyed them. I like cereal bars that maintain their crisp, and Special K bars definitely do. They are crunchy AND chewy with little bits of fruit in them. There are two flavors, raspberry and orange.  Each has a chocolate bottom. I was afraid I wouldn’t like the orange with the chocolate, but it tasted really good. Both of my older girls thought they were really good and liked to grab them on their way out of the door to school as a quick breakfast.

The best part? Only 90 calories!

They passed our reviewing test..which is that we bought them after we tried to them out to review. They are now something I buy for the girls and also I keep a few in my diaper bag for when I need a little snack while I’m out.

Symantec Norton 360

I was sent the Norton 360 program from Symantec and Mom Central.

It is described as all in one security for your computer and it definitely seems to be just that. It goes way beyond Norton AntiVirus to help protect your computer and your personal information.

It protects you when you are connecting wirelessly, it removes viruses from your email and instant messages, blocks worms, stops spyware, guards against identy theft, helps you determine if a website (like your banking site) is fake, removes threats from downloads, backs up your files, restores damaged or deleted files, tunes up your PC and helps optimize its performance!

It is really simple to install and set up, although on dialup it took awhile to connect and get updates. The program did an amazing job of cleaning up my computer and finding threats that my other virus program didn’t find. The only problem I had with it was that it slowed down the performance of my computer while it was running. My computer is old and I’m running on dialup. Geo put the program on his computer at work, which is newer and has high speed and he had no problems at all. In fact, he was able to get the computer working again..it had been attacked by a virus and was basically non functioning. Once he ran the program, everything worked well again.

This is definitely the type of program that will keep your computer safe, especially if you are using a wireless connection or do a lot of downloading. It is always nice to have the additional protection to help guard against identity theft.

Simply Mobile Moms

Simply Mobile Moms is a very cool application that allows you to send information from your computer to your cell phone. At first, I didn’t see the point for me, since I use an iPhone and could just pull up information by itself, but sending it to my phone through Simply Mobile Moms makes a lot more sense. If you are reading a site and have to head out, there is no need to go to your phone, pull it up and bookmark it. Just right click and  have it sent to the phone. You can also send things from your hard drive.

This program makes a lot of sense if you are away from your computer a lot, but use your computer for shopping lists, schedules, etc. I would much rather type out my shopping list and send it to my phone than to try to use my iPhones little keyboard to type out a list into my notes.

I have a data plan, but if you don’t, you can check on the website to see if you will incur any costs from using the site. Using Simple Mobile Moms is free, but they do state that you might see ads as way to keep the service free.

In addition, you can also win an iPhone and 2 years of service by going to the website. The contest is open until May 19th.

Mamma Mia Contest!!

Mamma Mia! The movie is coming to theaters soon and the folks from Ponds are throwing a contest to celebrate the premiere!

If you are 40 years or older, then gather two of your girlfriends and make a video of you guys singing one of the listed songs from Mamma Mia! (woohoo Abba!!)

If you win, you get a trip to London to attend the world premiere of the movie!

You need to hurry because your videos must be uploaded by April 30th, which is Wednesday. If you are in the New York area, you can also go to a live audition on Monday, April 28th.  There is a number of the website for you to reserve your time slot.

You know I would totally be auditioning if I was a little older, so you guys need to carry the torch for me!

LiceMD

In boot camp, I got lice. So did about 20 other girls. It was so gross. And then we got it a second time.

So gross times two.

I’m not a big fan of lice, and luckily none of my foster kids have had lice, but it is extremely common when you have little kids in school or daycare.

MomCentral teamed up with LiceMD and I got a free sample of the product. Luckily, we haven’t had to use it yet, but if we ever do, I’d be happy I had it. For one, it is pesticide free, which is great. Of course you want to kill the lice, but the less bad chemicals you have to put on your child to do so is great. LiceMD still kills the lice within 10 minutes, like other products, but it is odorless, and it even conditions your child’s hair.

It has been tested by pediatricians and clinically proven to get rid of lice. It is hypoallergic and sensitive to skin. One bottle of LiceMD can be used on up to three people, depending on how long their hair is. Generally, you can treat two of your kids with one bottle if they have medium length hair.  It also works on adults, so if you get stuck with little creepy crawlers, then you can get them out as quick as possible!

Hopefully you won’t have to deal with lice, but if you do, this seems like the way to go. You can get a coupon for $1 off on their website.

Townhouse Flipsides

As part of a Mom Central blog tour, I was sent a box of Townhouse Flipsides. Flipsides are “pretzel crackers.” They are pretzels on one side and a Ritz-like cracker on the other. They are a little unusual, but I really liked them. I like crunchy snacks, but I also like the taste of crackers, and having the pretzel there gave it the bit of crunch that I prefer.

Unfortunately, I only ate about two Flipsides, before my kids got ahold of the box and ate the whole thing. So apparently they are quite popular with the young ones! Flipsides would work great with dip because having the sturdier pretzel side makes dipping so much easier.

Flipsides are an unusual, interesting snack that combines two of the favorites of crunchy snack foods…I’d give it a try.

Dare to Wear White

Mom Central recently sent me some interesting information about NovaSure, a procedure that can eliminate heavy periods.

Here is the info:

Mom Central recently surveyed more than 1,300 “everyday moms” who indicated they have heavy periods and discovered some astounding insights: 
·    75% of women reported that their heavy periods negatively impact their quality of
     life by disrupting their family and social life, regular activities, and moods. 
·    Almost 60% said that their periods negatively affect their sexual relationships.
·    And what’s worse, more than 50% of women with heavy periods said that they dread
     leaving the house on their worst days.

Does this sound familiar to you or someone you know?

 

Many women think their heavy periods are normal or assume that there’s nothing that can be done about them. Other women worry that the only options are hormones or a hysterectomy which is a major surgical procedure that removes the uterus. So, the majority of women learn to cope by planning their lives around their prolonged and often unpredictable cycles.

As a practicing nurse practitioner, I have been recommending a solution that you need to know about!  For women with heavy periods who have completed childbearing,  there is a non-hormonal, one-time minimally invasive procedure that typically takes less than five minutes to complete and can eliminate heavy periods - the NovaSure® Endometrial Ablation System. The NovaSure procedure has helped more than 650,000 women since it was first introduced in 2002. And, the results are outstanding!

Clinical trial results show that more than 9 out of 10 women who have had the NovaSure procedure returned to normal or lower than normal levels of bleeding, and about 40% had no periods at all. In addition, 93% of women treated with the NovaSure procedure were satisfied with their results, and 97% said they would recommend it to a friend. The NovaSure procedure can be done in the comfort of a doctor’s office or an outpatient setting without general anesthesia, and most women return to their busy lives the next day. As with any procedure, there are risks and side effects that should be discussed with your physician.

While the NovaSure procedure is a safe, simple, and effective solution for heavy bleeding, our survey revealed that only 14% of women know about this treatment option. The NovaSure procedure changes women’s lives!

I know many people who have suffered from very heavy periods. Having a heavy period can really effect your quality of life.

There is a great site that can help you learn more information about how to deal with heavy periods, as well as get support from others who understand. The site is Dare to Wear White. And if you suffer from heavy periods AND you are done having biological children, you can take a survey. The first 250 women who take it will get a $10 Amazon gift card!

Periods are bad enough anyway, so why suffer more than you have to??

Mother-Talk blog tour: Naptime is the New Happy Hour

I had heard a lot of good things about Stephanie Wilder-Taylor’s book “Sippy Cups are Not for Chardonnay” so I decided to check it out. It was funny, written much like one of those blogs we all love, but I never really got into it because it was discussing mostly the first year with your baby, and since I’ve never had a baby that little, I couldn’t really relate.

But when I found out Mother-Talk was doing a blog tour for her new book “Naptime is the New Happy Hour,” I was really excited because this book focused on the toddler years. The book doesn’t disappoint. It is funny and makes you feel better about your parenting styles. Granted, it doesn’t dish out a lot of practical advice, so if you are looking for an owner’s manual for your two year old, this isn’t the best choice. But I found myself laughing and nodding with a lot of what was said. It is the type of book that you read when your toddler has been screaming for the past thirty minutes because you dared to give them a piece of carrot.

I liked the book even better once I discovered that Stephanie Wilder-Taylor is a blogger, not the kind of blogger who becomes a blogger because she has book coming out, but an “actual” blogger. Her blog is funny too, and worth checking out.

The only issue I had with the book came at the very end, just two little lines..

“But this is not a book about pregnancy. You’ve all been pregnant…”

Actually, no, we all haven’t. Some of us became mothers through ways other than pregnancy. But besides that one little slip-up, “Naptime is the New Happy Hour” really does hit the mark on what being a parent to a little person is like.

See what other bloggers are saying at Mother-Talk.