Category Archives: New posts

Trix Swirls limited edition cereal + a gift basket Giveaway!

Food and Drink, New posts, , ,

Trix Swirls cerealDid you know that there is a limited edition TRIX SWIRLS cereal out now?  When I hear limited edition, I think cars, not cereal but I’m telling you.. this new limited edition Trix Swirls cereal is pretty great, almost as great as a new car.   I have a regular breakfast routine but the silly Trix rabbit talked me into breaking my breakfast routing in order to enjoy Trix Swirls for a few days.. straight.  Yes, the ‘silly rabbit’ talked to me.  Am I crazy?  Nooo!

Trix Swirls is fortified with 12 vitamins and minerals and made from whole grain, so you can rest assured that you and your kids are starting your day off right with a delicious bowl of Trix Swirls.

Two yummy flavors swirled together in each little piece of Trix make this limited edition Trix Swirls so delicious.  Trix Swirls’ flavors include berry  berry blue, think lemony green, and rasporangey orange.

Trix Creative Gift Basket

GIVEAWAY!
Thanks to MyBlogSpark, 2 lucky readers will win a Trix Swirls® Creative Kid gift basket complete with a sample of Trix Swirls along with a colorful apron, a set of watercolor pencils, watercolor paints, brushes, a sketchbook, and an art supply box!

To enter, ask your kids how they think Trix Swirls were created then tell us in the comments below! (i.e. Did they run into one another? Did they clash in outer space? etc.), or what are their favorite things they would swirl together? 
For example, my 3 year old Madelyn, mixes macaroni and ketchup.. it looks so gross but I think it’s great that she enjoys mixing food so I don’t stop her.
Entries accepted until August 31st.

Alicia Hagan, Editor

Young Minds Numbers & Counting DVD for Toddlers + Giveaways!

Age 1-3, Age 3-5, Educational Toys, New posts, , ,

There are times when I feel like I need to let Madelyn watch TV.  I try to occupy her through out the day with toys, creative stuff, etc.. but with most of my work needing to be done between 1 and 6pm, I rely on the TV to keep her occupied for an hour or so. However, I hate Sponge Bob and after 3:00 or so, shows are mostly geared for older kids.  I try to find the best quality, most educational show on during that time but there is such as a thing as re-runs and just plain yucky educational TV.

Young Minds - Numbers and Counting DVD

I was recently introduced to Young Mind Number and Counting DVD and Madelyn, 3 years old, watched it for the first time today.  Her response was adorable and I really enjoyed seeing her reaction and hearing her talk along with and back to the DVD.  Here is a short video of Madelyn watching the DVD.  I apologize for the sound quality and the camera seems to have zoomed in and out the entire time.  Yikes!

MathTutorDVD.com has created the Young Minds series of DVDs to introduce young children to the joys of learning Math at a young age. This DVD in Numbers and Counting teaches young children to count from 1 to 10 by way of engaging classical music, photographs, and video.

Each number is presented with colorful, non-cluttered, large photographs, video, and animation that kept Madelyn’s attention very well.  Numbers are animated to fly-in from off screen and show the child how to count by counting objects that they are naturally interested in. Animals such as frogs, horses, jellyfish, sharks, whales, and more are shown to the viewer along with the animal sounds. Colors are also taught by pointing out the color of objects on screen.

DVDs in this area are designed to stimulate young children to take an interest in Math at an early age.  The DVD is set to classical music selections from the great composers such as J.S. Bach, Beethoven, Mozart, Vivaldi, and others!

The central idea of this video is to teach children numbers and counting while at the same time teaching them the names of animals, machines, and other objects along with their associated sounds and colors. This integrated learning approach keeps children interested and promotes continued learning.

Learn more about Young Minds and their DVD’s at the Young Minds / Math Tutor DVD website here.

GIVEAWAY!
Thanks to Young Minds we are giving 10 lucky readers a Young Minds Numbers and Counting DVD!

To enter leave a comment below telling us why you want to win a copy of Young Minds Numbers and Counting DVD.
For 2 entries, click the green ‘retweet’ button to Twitter this post to your friends and then leave your Twitter ID in the comments below.
Entries accepted until August 31st.[tweetmeme]

Two Classic Toys for Your Creative Toddler

Age 3-5, Age 5-7, New posts, Toys, Wooden Toys, , ,

Madelyn, 3 years old, is at the age when she appreciates toys that require some level of creativity. Because she is a little young, she can’t take complete advantage of the creative aspects of the toys, but she enjoys trying. For example, she enjoys putting pegs in the Lite-Brite but she can’t place the pegs exactly where need to be to make a picture yet.

A few toys classic creative toys that she play with are:

Lite Brite

Lite Bright

Lite-Brite is one of the toys that I actually remember playing with. I have memories of sitting the dark putting the little pegs in the Lite-Brite often making my own designs. Available in pink, blue, and other colors, boys and girls both love this classic toy which can create a few minutes of peaceful time for you, the mom. Lite-Brite is not recommended for children under 3.

Illuminate your imagination with the classic light-up picture maker is now available in a cool flat screen and in the classic box style. The fun, portable design easily fits on your lap or on a table – it’s cordless, so you can take it anywhere! Most, if not all styles comes with 200 pegs. A large storage compartment allows for easy clean-up, and an automatic shut-off conserves battery life.. now that’s more advanced than mine was about 30 years ago.

Alphabet Blocks

Alphabet Blocks

I know you remember playing with Alphabet Blocks. Did your parents leave you to play with alphabet blocks in the hallway or was that just my parents? Alphabet blocks provide hours of fun, creativity, and education. Unlike Lite-Brite (for safety reasons) your 3-4 year old can play with Alphabet Blocks alone, stacking and knocking them down, or you can play with the blocks with her for a more educational experience. Most alphabet blocks have letters, numbers, and pictures on them and are now non-toxic.

These wooden blocks are great for teaching letter and number recognition, and building creativity. The alphabet blocks pictured here are available in English, Spanish, French, other languages and even braille and are made with fair labor in the USA.

My new Frigidaire range.. yes it really helps save me time, especially when my 9 year old does the cooking!

Food and Drink, Frigidaire, New posts, , , , , ,

Frigidaire RangeSo I’ve been using my new Frigidaire appliances for about a month now and am LOVING all of them. Each of them has saved me time in one way or another and I am excited to tell you that my Frigidaire range has saved me more time than I imagined.. partly because of my 9 year old! The Frigidaire Range has passed the More Me-Time Gauranteed test.

Sebastian absolutely loves using our new Frigidaire range.

  • Did he cook before we got our new range? Uh, no.
  • Did he prepare food before we got our new range? Uh, no.
  • What gives?  Let’s see.. maybe it’s the Quick Boil feature?  The shiny stovetop surface? The 5 racks in the oven? The huge capacity? The 5 stovetop burners? I don’t know!?

So far, Sebastian has made pancakes (2 days in a row!), the kids all time favorite.. macaroni and cheese, and roasted potatoes.  Yes, Sebastian has used all of these features of our new Frigidaire Range.. as have I.  He doesn’t do all of the cooking after all.

Frigidaire appliances - Range

As I’m sure you are aware, timing dinner can be difficult. That’s when the Keep Warm setting comes in really handy.  OK, so maybe it’s not dinner timing so much as it is MY TIMING.  I can be pretty unorganized (I blame it on ADD) when it comes to preparing meals and will have one part of a meal done before another, so the Keep Warm setting is one of my favorites.  I can keep the food that I ‘accidentally’ finished first, warm while preparing and cooking the rest of the food.  My husband especially appreciates the Keep Warm setting as he won’t eat food that isn’t HOT!

A couple of other features Frigidaire Range features that moms will appreciate are:

· Fits-More™ Oven: A unique rack configuration creates more cooking space, so I can do more.
· Largest Range Capacity with Second Oven: Cook a large meal effortlessly with the double oven range. Offering the largest cooking capacity available so you can cook two meals, at different temperatures, at once.

I can even put magnets on my new Frigidaire ‘REAL Stainless Steel’ Range! I’m not sure when you’d want to do that, but I think that’s pretty cool.

icon-star Check out the entire line of NEW Frigidaire Gallery Appliances on the Frigidaire website here.

P.S. Follow me on Twitter to be kept up to date on me and my new Frigidaire appliances!  Exciting, huh?

More Frigidaire links to check out and how you can win Frigidaire appliances:

  • Frigidaire More Me-Time Guarantee
  • The Frigidaire DAILYDARE
  • Tell Frigidaire what 5 things you would do with an extra hour and you’re automatically entered for a chance to win a suite of NEW Frigidaire appliances!
  • Frigidaire on Facebook

Alicia Hagan, Editor

Win a Sleep Number® p5 Queen bed set from Select Comfort!

New posts, Relaxation, , , ,

Sleep Number bedSign up for the Must Sleep Fan Page for a chance to win a Sleep Number® p5 Queen bed set!

Entering the “You are what you sleep” contest is easy! All you have to do is become a “Must Sleep” Facebook Fan and enter the contest via the link on Must Sleep’s wall (or go to www.sleepnumber.com/sleep), and tell us why sleep is important to you! Has it been years since you’ve gotten a good night’s sleep? Whether its back pain, having a newborn, or stress, sleep deprivation happens to us all and the impact on your life is huge!  Be funny or be profound, but don’t put us to sleep!

The contest starts Monday, August 3 and entries will be submitted until August 22. Then come back to Facebook to vote on the top five finalists between August 27- September 3.The story with the most “likes” will win a Sleep Number p5 Queen bed set.
Good luck!

Alicia Hagan, Editor