Category Archives: New posts

KidzBop 16 & Christmas CD reviews and giveaway

Contests, Entertainment, Music, New posts, ,

My kids love music. whether it’s making music or listening to it. I prefer it when they are listening not making. It gets a little loud and when my 10 and 3 year olds try to form a band in the kitchen.

KidzBop Christmas CD

We’ve been listening to KidzBop 16 a lot lately and I’ll tell you why I’m very happy about that:

  • I recognize some of the songs (I don’t know whether that’s good or bad)
  • The kids love to sing along
  • The music is energizing for the kids and they have a blast dancing to it
  • KidzBop is great car music. It keeps me moving (awake) and the kids happy while in the car

KidzBop 16 songs include Circus and Boom Boom Pow. KidzBop songs and albums can be downloaded via iTunes. Here is the iTunes link for Boom Boom Pow Kidz Bop Kids - Kidz Bop 16 and from there you can listen to and browse other KidzBop songs.

Here’s the ITunes link to ‘Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree’: Kidz Bop Kids - Kidz Bop Christmas - Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree

GIVEAWAY!

We are giving 8 lucky readers a KidzBop 16 and KidzBop Christmas CD’s. Leave a comment below telling me what your favorite song is right now (any song/artist) and get 2 extra entries if you leave a 2nd comment with your Twitter ID AFTER retweeting this post!

Chipoupine Teddy Sweater review + a giveaway

Age 3-5, Baby & Kids Clothing, Contests, New posts, , , ,

Why Madelyn (3 years old) loves it

Similar to Madelyn’s favorite 3 year old blankie warmly regarding as Fuzzy, her new Chipoupine sweater is ultimately plush and comfy. She would wear it 24/7 if she could.
It’s like she’s wearing her blankie. This sweater will keep her warm in the coldest Atlanta weather.

Chipoupine fuzzy sweater

Ultimate Comfort

This sweater fuzzy inside and out. The stylish lining inside the neck area and arm cuffs adds to its whimsical Bjork’ish’ design. Not only do I love the big green dot on the sweater but my 10 year old loves it to and treats it like a great excuse for a Nerf target and chases Madelyn around house shooting at her. Don’t worry, he shoots the super light darts at her and isn’t allowed to get her from shoulders up. The over-sized arms are nice as they cover her arms well and keep them very warm. The 100% microfibre fabric lets Madelyn’s skin breathe.

Design

Madelyn is wearing the Sweater teddy turquoise. The low v-neck design is nice because like me Madelyn isn’t fond of high necks. For me it’s a claustrophobia thing.. not sure about her dislike for high necks though. Maybe it’s a toddler thing like socks with seams.. she doesn’t tolerate them at all.

Visit Chipoupine.com to see all of their kids clothing line.

GIVEAWAY!

Chipoupine is giving a lucky The Mommy Insider reader their choice of “Teddy” sweater (color and size) or “Russia” sweater (color and size).
If you don’t see the entry form here, click here to open the contest entry form, to enter the Chipoupine Sweater Giveaway.

Vote for our Corner Bakery Cafe Holiday Corner Catering Challenge photograph!

Contests, Holiday, New posts, , , , ,

We’d appreciate it if you took a moment to check out and vote for our photograph on Corner Bakery Cafe’s Facebook page. If our photograph gets the most votes then we get to select one lucky The Mommy Insider reader to win a Corner Bakery Café Holiday Catering Package. There are some great photographs!

Corner Bakery Cafe holiday catering

What’s this contest about?

The Mommy Insider Editor, Alicia, was chosen along with 11 other awesome bloggers in the U.S. to be part of Corner Bakery Cafe’s Holiday Corner Catering Challenge. The challenge required that we (the challenged bloggers) arrange food catered to us by Corner Bakery Cafe in a festive way. I went through a few ideas before settling on a Nutcracker theme which my kids LOVED! What they really love is that we have six more Nutcrackers to play with this year than last year. Greedy little kids! Unfortunately, two of the Nutcrackers Sebastian and I picked out were kicked out of the scene due to space issues.

About our party

We had a great party with a couple of families who put a lot of work into my son’s Cub Scout pack, den.. not sure which it’s called. They work hard to keep the Cub Scouts busy and I honestly don’t know how they do it with kids, work, and all. Thanks Kim, Jeff, Holly, and David for joining our Corner Bakery Cafe party and for waiting until I got my 1000th photograph before eating the awesome food!
The food was delightful. Crisp vegetables and delicious dip, sandwiches packed with juicy meat, cheese, & vegetables and deserts filled my dining room table with happiness.. for a little while at least. The food disappeared pretty quickly. The Baby Bundt Cakes were divine.. yum.. and the kids have never enjoyed my chocolate chip cookies (refrigerated dough) nearly as much as Corner Bakery Cafe’s. They could fake it.. or not.

How to vote and what’s in it for you?

Corner Bakery Cafe voteAt the end of the week, if our photograph has the most votes we will receive a Corner Bakery Cafe Holiday Catering Package to giveaway to one of our readers that is located within a Corner Bakery Cafe community. The package will include an assortment of freshly baked treats like the signature Cinnamon Creme Cake, boxes of the Mini Cookies and Baby Bundt Cakes along with a $50 catering certificate. What are you waiting for? Vote for our photograph now and help us win!

To vote go to the Corner Bakery Facebook page, select the “Holiday” tab, and click the “I like this” button below the The Mommy Insider photo.

Continue reading Vote for our Corner Bakery Cafe Holiday Corner Catering Challenge photograph! →

I’m addicted to the Grinchmas iPhone app

iphone, New posts, ,

I’ve been playing Grinchmas a lot the last few days. I play while I’m putting Madelyn down for her nap, while she’s in the bathtub, and at other random times during the day. Granted, those times are short lived but still.. I turn to the Grinchmas app for entertainment.

Grinchmas iphone appI can choose to be a Mean Grinch or a Merry Grinch. I usually chose the Mean Grinch just because there isn’t as much strategy involved being Mean. The Mean Grinch tosses snow balls to Who houses (Whoville) during the night. There is something really satisfying about being a Mean Grinch.
The Merry Grinch gives colorful gifts to matching colored Who houses by way of throwing them (strange, but true) at the houses. The more gifts you toss at matching colored Who houses, the larger Grinch’s heart grows and the better I feel about myself knowing I changed the Whoville in such a short period of time. OK, that’s a little dramatic but Grinchmas is really fun so I know you’ll feel like you’ve saved the world or in the case that you are a Mean Grinch, you will know that you safely let out your aggression for the day.

Features two gameplay modes:

  • “Mean Grinch” – The Whos down in “Who-ville” are making too much Christmas NOISE, NOISE, NOISE! Splat each noisy Who house with snowballs to silence them. How long can you last before the noise overwhelms you?
  • “Merry Grinch” – The Grinch has had a change of heart and must deliver matching colored presents to the Who houses. How many presents can you deliver, to grow the Grinch’s heart bigger, before time runs out?

Grinchmas iphone game

About the app:

Grinchmas is a fun, casual game of skill and accuracy. Assume the role of The Grinch perched on Mt. Crumpit. Swipe the screen to throw either snowballs or presents down to Who-ville, depending on whether you feel “mean” or “merry.” Accuracy and speed determine your score.

Additional features:

  • Beautiful 3D artwork inspired by Dr. Seuss, whimsical music and sound effects
  • Top 10 best scores are saved for each game mode
  • Suitable for all ages

Buy Grinchmas for $1.99 via iTunes here:
Grinchmas

My review of the new Evenflo Symphony 65 car seat and a giveaway

Age 0-1 year, Age 1-3, Age 3-5, Contests, New posts, Travel, , , , ,

I know you’ve heard it a million times… 4 out of 5 car seats are installed incorrectly according to a recent NHTSA study.

On with the good news..
Evenflo Symphony 65 convertible car seat
Evenflo’s new Symphony 65 car seat features the exclusive SureLATCH system, designed to provide a super-fast, tight and safe installation every time with a simple Click, Click, Push.

My experiences with and thoughts about the Symphony 65

Latch System

With SureLATCH, the Symphony 65 car seat is properly installed in 3 steps. The SureLATCH is easier than our pre-Symphony 65 car seat with the latch system. I don’t have to put my knee in the seat and push down like I’m trying to squish an elephant in order to get the latches in and the car seat tight to the seat. If your car doesn’t have the Latch system, you ca install the Symphony 65 with the seatbelt and given that it is installed correct, it will be just as safe.

Infinite Slide™ Harness Shoulder Straps

I love this feature! I don’t have to take the seat cover off to re-lace the straps as Madelyn gets taller. The Symphony 65 car seat straps slide up and down on a rail system (Infinite Slide) and I can easily adjust the shoulder straps while Madelyn’s in the car seat. “The Infinite Slide Harness Adjustment System makes for easier height adjustment with no rethreading.”

Seat Tilt and Headrest Adjustments

Changing the tilt of the car seat is easy as is changing the height of the headrest. Both are one-handed operations.. unless you try to do both at the same time in which case you are a great multi-tasking mommy and I envy you.

Protection and Comfort

The Symphony 65 car seat features energy absorbing foam liner and side impact protection. The pieces in the headrest that round out for side impact protection also keep Madelyn’s head from falling to the side when she falls asleep in the car seat. Madelyn has enough room to sit ‘criss cross apple sauce’ as they say in school, proving that the Symphony 65 is a very spacious yet safe car seat. Great for long road trips. Comfort Touch fabric makes the seat both aesthetically and physically pleasing for the adults driving the car as well as for the child sitting in the seat. Energy absorbing foam liner.

Evenflo Symphony 65 convertible car seat

Cup Holder

A cup holder is something that I believe no car seat or stroller should be without. Madelyn can reach the Symphony 65’s cup holder unlike with our Britax.. which didn’t have a cup holder. Granted, the seat is almost 3 years old. Before using this car seat she had to put her cup in the actual seat’s cup holder but then couldn’t get it back out! You think she would have figured out that she shouldn’t do that, but she kept trying. The Symphony 65’s repositionable cup holder folds up small so it’s not in the way or bulky and best of all, Madelyn can reach it.

Age

The Symphony 65 accommodates children from 5-35 pounds and can be used rear or front facing. This could be the only car seat your child needs.

Design and Style

The Evenflo Symphony 65 is available in two stylish designs, one great for cars with a grey interior and the other for beige.

The Symphony 65 is larger than my old Britax which I think is fine but it doesn’t fit well in my husbands Volvo sedan which has bucket seats. In his car, the car seat comes within about 6 inches of the front seat so the person sitting in front of Madelyn may get an back massage in the form of tiny feet kicking the seat.
Buy the Evenflo Symphony 65 Convertible Car Seat at Amazon.com for $199 or less.

GIVEAWAY!

We are giving a lucky reader an Evenflo Symphony 65! Leave a comment below (jump link) telling me why you want to win a Symphony 65. Winner will be chosen at random. Entries accepted through December 17th. Re-tweet this post then fill out the comment form a second time with your Twitter ID for 2 extra entries!