Tickle Fest with Tickle Monster

While I am on the topic of books that bring about laughs I though of how big a hit the book Tickle Monster is in our home.  This book is super cute!  It is basically a guided tickle fest with your kids. My younger kids (23 months, 5, & 6) absolutely love it!  This is their most requested book right now and reading it through once in a sitting is not usually enough.  This book is so creatively written. It is sure to be a big hit for you too.

P.S. For an even funnier time with the book, get the mitts that go with it.  They are cute and add to the experience.

Finger Puppet Books Make for Good Laughs

I saw this cute book one day while I was on vacation and my 10 month old (at the time) who was with me just giggled with delight when I showed it to her.  It is the Little Ladybug: Finger Puppet Book.  The fact that the ladybug moved seemed to thrill her and tickle her funny bone all at once.  Now that she is almost 2 she still laughs every time I read the book to her and wiggle the ladybug. Even my 5 and 6 year olds enjoy this book.  I have found that there are other versions of this book such as Little Duck, Little Puppy, Little Bunny, Little Lion, Little Mouse, and several more.  They are all just as cute as the ladybug version. 

Constructive Eating- Permission To Play With Your Food

Do you know any little boy who wouldn't love to play with his food with a bulldozer, fork lift and front loader?  These utensils from Constructive Eating give them permission to do just that.  They come together as a set of 3 or individually as a bull dozer pusher, a fork lift fork and a front loader spoon.  My son received these as a gift when he was 3 and has used them for just about every meal since (he is now 5).  In fact there have even been some tears shed when they were still getting cleaned in the dishwasher. We just recently discovered that the company has a plate out that goes with the utensils.  We haven't used it yet but it looks as if it would be a lot of fun.  It is a divided plate with a ramp and a place for the utensils to sit. Oh , and all of these products are PVC, phthalate, and BPA free.

For Moms: Amazing Smelling Natural Soaps, Perfumes, Lotions, Candles and More from Pacifica

Oh my! Have you ever tried any of Pacifica's products?  I was in love from the first moment I picked up the Tuscan Blood Orange soap box in a Whole Foods store and smelled it.  It is amazing!  I couldn't stop there. I had to smell them all.  They make so many wonderful scents but Tuscan Blood Orange and Tahitian Gardenia are my favorites. I love that the soap smells wonderful as you use it and the scent actually lingers afterwords.  Their body butters are also fantastic. They are thick and moisturizing and are great for layering the scent.

I haven't been a perfume wearer in a while because it has been hard to find a natural one that actually smells great but Pacifica's are all natural.  I really like carrying their solid perfumes in my purse and use the spray perfume at home.  They just came out with new roll-on perfumes that sounds great for at home or on the go.  Their products are made from natural ingredients and are free from Parabens, Sulfates, Propylene Glycol, Phthalates, GMOs, Triclosan and Petro-chemicals.

Any of Pacifica's items make great gifts. They are sold at Whole Foods stores or you can order online at Pacifica's website.  They have free shipping on orders over $50 and you can sign up for their newsletter for a chance to win a $100 gift certificate.

A New Veggie Tales DVD- It's a Meaningful Life

Veggie Tales have a special spot in our family's heart.  I actually grew up (as a teen) watching them with my younger siblings (on VHS of course) and now, as a mom, they are one of the few things that I am happy to let my kids watch.  I love that each story has a great moral lesson to it.  What better way to teach a valuable lesson than to make it funny and fascinating?

My (almost) 2 year old is in love with Bob and Larry.  Her first viewing of "Gideon: Tuba Warrior" gave her the desire to have Veggie Tales close by her side at all times.  For several nights in a row she wanted to sleep with the DVD case.  I had to quickly find some more comfortable Veggie Tales toys for her to love on.

I am excited because Veggie Tales has a new DVD coming out called It's a Meaningful Life.  It will be released October 2nd, 2010 but you can pre-order it now.  It is coming out bundled in a two-for-one special with the Saint Nicholas DVD for $14.99 on the Veggie Tales website.  We will certainly be adding this one to our collection.  If you haven't gotten into the Veggie Tales craze yet.  Now is the perfect time to do so and see what the fuss is all about.

Crocodile Creek Playground Balls

Crocodile Creek has lots of different designs for each of their products and there is sure to be one that your little person would like.  We love the playground balls that they have.  The girls like the ballerinas and ladybugs and the fire truck and dinosaurs are a big hit with my little boy.  They come in two sizes, 5" and 7".  The 5" balls are great for smaller kids with little hands while the 7" size is good for any age.  These balls are textured so they are easy to grip and they bounce well. They are made of rubber and contain no PVC, latex or vinyl. These make a great gift because most every child likes to play with balls and you can pick a design that appeals to any child.

Manhattan Toy Nursing Nina

Manhattan Toy makes some of our family's favorite toys.  They come up with so many unique toys and stuffed animals.  I cannot get over the cuteness of some of the latest ones I have seen.  The Nursing Nina cat who is nursing 3 adorable kittens is one I love.  The kittens nurse and also detach for playing with them separately.  It is just too cute.  They also have dog and pig versions. These are for ages 3 and up.  Check out their site for other great gift ideas.

Converse Chuck Taylor All Star Adorable baby and Toddler shoes

Converse has these adorable new animal design shoes for babies and toddlers. They come in cow, pig, dog and a lamb designs. These would be great to wear with costumes or just with a cute outfit. Each design is a slip on shoe without ties and ranges in size from 6 months to 3 1/2 years. My daughter has the ladybug style of these shoes and they are so cute! She loves to wear them and we get lots of complements on them all the time.

DEAL ALERT: Plum District $25 for $50 Worth of Premium Denim from Jeans.com

Deal is Over
Plum Districts new deal is $50 worth of premium denim from Jeans.com for $25.  Jeans.com has over 1,000 styles from your favorite brands. Shop by size, style or fit and you are sure to find the right pair for you. Ground shipping is free.

If you are not familiar with Plum District it is a site is like Groupon but they have done more national and online deals. They even had Target and Chick-fil-A gift cards for a discount recently. If they don't have one in your city select "Everywhere" and you will get the deals that work everywhere.

Well Designed & Thorough Homeschool Planner for Mom and Students

If you are a homeschooling mom you know that keeping track of everything can be a major task.  This year I discovered a Homeschool Teacher Planner that I love. It is the Well-Planned Day by Rebecca Scarlata Keliher.  It keeps track of just about everything.  It includes sections for grades, goals, month at a glance, books read, field trips, meal planning, budgeting, student information, daily lesson plans, report cards, etc... The Planner is a full year planner from July 2010 - June 2011 and works for up to 4 kids.  The design of the planner is what originally drew me to it.  It is visually appealing both in color and design. 

The Student Planners are also very thorough and I highly recommend them.  These planners are not necessarily only for homeschoolers and would work well for kids going to a school as well. They help to keep track of all school assignments and have weekly checklists for chores and duties. They come in both a Middle School (grades 4-8) and High School versions.  A great feature in the High School version is that is for the complete 4 years.  These are also very well designed and look "cool" enough to be seen toted around by a middle or high schooler.

DEAL ALERT: For the next week you can get free shipping when you purchase one of these planners. Sale Ends 9/18/2010 at midnight CST. You must use this link to get the free shipping

Jason's Deli- Healthy and Family Friendly

My family loves Jason's Deli!  I really hope that you have one near by that you can try.  My kids beg to go there at least once or twice a week.  I am glad that they like it so much because Jason's Deli is one of the places that is making a real effort to have fresh, delicious and healthy food. They only serve food without trans fat, MSG, or high fructose corn syrup.  There are plenty of organic ingredients in their salad bar and they add more all the time. The only thing that you will find high fructose corn syrup in at Jason's Deli is the sodas and they are even working on eliminating it from them as well.

The salad bar is fabulous enough by itself but there are plenty of other great tasting options as well. Mufflettas, Wraps, Soups, Pastas and Baked Potatoes are just a small example of their large menu.   Their portions are generous and filling.  Kids Meals have some organic side and drink options and are nitrate-free with no artificial colors or dyes.  Jason's Deli really considers yours and your family's health in all of their options.

To top it all off they have free self serve ice cream cups or cones for the end of your meal.  I think that is really why my kids love it so much. For me it is just refreshing to have a place to eat out where I am not worried about all of the unhealthy ingredients. Thanks Jason's Deli, for giving this mom one less thing to worry about!

Balanced Day Lunch Kit

I was searching for lunchboxes for my kids and came across this one that I think is just what I need.  It is the Balanced Day Lunch Kit.  The bags have 2 compartments and many different ways to use them.  One side can be for hot food or beverages and the other for cold stuff.  One side could be a for a snack and one for lunch.  One side can be for school supplies and the other for lunch.  You could even use one side for baby bottles and the other for baby food.  They come in several different neat designs.  A major plus for me is that you can throw them in the washer and hang them to dry. 

I have had several lunch making opportunities where I wanted to pack both hot and cold items for my kids but it would mean that I would need 2 different lunchboxes for each child.  These bags are the perfect solution!

Rent kids books at Book Pig.

What a great idea! Book Pig is sort of like Netflix for kids books.  They have a large selection of children's books that you are able to rent. You can pick how many books you want to be able to receive each month and you pay a monthly fee (starting at $11.95 a month). Then create a queue of the books you would like to read or have Book Pig automatically pick them based on age and interests. The best thing is that you can keep the books as long as you want without late fees.  Shipping is free both ways.  If you are a busy mom who doesn't have much time to visit the library but has kids who love to read then this is a great service.  You can save about 50%-70% on actually purchasing books each month.


Deal Has Ended
Deal Note: Right now you can try out Book Pig for a discount by going to Mamapedia's site and signing up for the Book Pig deal.  You can get $50 worth of book rentals for only $19.  Hurry though because the deal expires 9/14.

giggle's g-List

giggle is a great online store with new, modern, fun items for babies and kids that meet their very strict standards for health and safety. They have everything from clothing to furniture.

Right now you can sign up for their g-list.  You pay $50 and you get a $75 gift card and lots of other perks like sneak peeks and a head start on online offers and promos, plus more.  If you are planning to buy baby or kid items soon join this club and stretch your money even farther with the $75 gift card.  I think you'll really like giggle!

Western Chief Raincoats

I have raincoats and umbrellas on the brain today because it has been raining every day here for the past several days. I am not used to living in a place where raincoats, umbrellas and rain boots are an essential part of your wardrobe. My son has this awesome Batman raincoat from Western Chief Kids. It is part raincoat, part dress up outfit complete with detachable cape. He loves this raincoat almost as much as he loves batman. He is now insisting that he needs the matching umbrella.
Western Chief Kids line makes it fun to go out in the rain with their great rain gear for kids with many different interests. Hello Kitty, Ladybug, Fireman and Thomas the Train are a few of the many designs they have. Their raincoats are very well made and will stand the test of time and should even survive multiple kids. After seeing how much my son loves his raincoat I believe they would make great gifts because they are practical and fun.

Trade kids clothes with thredUp

I have been checking out thredUP lately.  I have signed up and am filling my first box to post.  The concept is to fill a medium flat rate Priority Mail box with clothing that your child has outgrown and then list it for free on thredUp.  You can search their lists of boxes by gender, size and season and pick one that you would like to receive.  You only pay $13 (S&H) for a box.  You can upgrade to a Pro account for $29.99 a year to get first dibs on boxes and get in on their "Golden Threds" boxes.  For Golden Threds they have boxes of new specialty goodies from retailers and they disperse them in their listings for you to find.   

When you sign up for an account thredUp will send you some Priority Mail boxes and you can schedule the post office to pick up the ones you are mailing.  The process seems much simpler than taking clothes to a consignment store.  You may not be able to get cash for your kids clothes but you know you would spend it again on kids clothes anyway! So give thredUp a try and get rid of all of those stacks of outgrown clothing.

Wee Mobile

I love these cards and mobile from Wee Gallery.  They are adorable black and white designs on thick 5x7 cards that are perfect for babies developing vision.  There are many different designs and they can be turned into a mobile by attaching them to a Kikkerland mobile.  I used the mobile and Wee Gallery Jungle cards for my youngest daughter over her bed and she would stare are them for a very long time.  Every so often I would flip the cards over to change the picture.  With older babies you can use the cards as flashcards to teach them the names of the animals. There are 9 different sets you can choose from.

Check out the Wee Gallery site.  In addition to the cards and mobile they also have sweet wall decals, greeting cards, rubber stamps and more.  Their designs have a modern style that is very cute for babies and kids rooms.

Clean Eating

I have been getting Clean Eating Magazine for about a year now and I don't know what I ever did without it.  If you want to learn about your health, find great new recipes, have a meal plan and shopping list all ready for you in every issue, then this magazine is for you.  It comes out 6 times a year and I have devoured every issue from cover to cover. Every recipe I have tried has been delicious and my family loves them.  More than anything I love reading a magazine that encourages a lifestyle of healthy eating.  They are all about eating food that is closest to it's natural state and insist that this shouldn't be a diet but a lifestyle. In every issue there are success stories about people who have lost weight and gained better health simply by eating clean.  Dessert is not left out either.  With Clean Eating you can have your cake and eat it too.

Straw-lution Revolution

The other day my husband and I were sitting in a restaurant discussing how someone needs to invent a straw that will actually stay in a cup.  As we were talking our daughter was pulling her straw out of her cup and eventually dropped the straw on the floor. Every single one of my 6 children have done this as toddlers and it is always frustrating.  So, I came home that night and did a google search for straws that don't come out of cups and I actually found this company that has taken on the toddler straw problem. 

Straw-Lution straws are supposed to stay put in drinks and food containers.  You can toss them or reuse them and they are dishwasher safe. They are BPA free too.  I am going to try these out.  I am so excited for this solution to my straw frustration!

Skip Hop Zoo Little Kid Backpacks

I just recently purchased this adorable backpack for my 23 month old after searching for one for a few weeks. I thought this one was really cute and it had great reviews. My daughter is getting to the age where we don't need to lug around quite so many things for her and I wanted to down-size from her diaper bag. For each one of my kids, at about the age of 2, I have switched from a diaper bag to a small backpack for them. They enjoy being in charge of their own bag and it is one less thing that I have to lug around (unless, of course, they are tired of carrying it). This bag, and all of the Skip Hop Little Kid Backpacks, are the perfect size for a toddler. They are not too big and bulky for them but they still have plenty of room for diapers or pull ups, wipes and a change of clothes (I would consider the weight of all that you pack in the backpack and try to keep it light for the sake of the child's back).

These packs come in several cute designs for boys or girls. I was very close to getting the owl which is adorable too. Another great feature of these bags is that they have an insulated pocket in the front for snacks or other items. The side mesh pocket it big enough for a bottle or sippy cup. They are BPA, Phthalate, and PVC free which is very important to me when choosing products for my children.

When we received this one in the mail, and I showed it to my daughter she was so excited. She actually hugged the thing and then proceeded to wear it around the house the rest of the day. She loves to wear it when we go out. When we get out of the car she always asks for her backpack. Skip Hop makes matching lunch boxes too. They are just as cute and are next on our list.

I've been wanting to do this

I love to discover new products that are helpful and make life a bit easier. I like to think of myself as a somewhat hip and on top of it momma (to six kiddos). I love to try out new things and even more than that I love to share those things with others, especially if I know it will make their lives just a bit easier. It's always exciting to come across things that solve a problem, help make you more productive or that you just love. I really enjoy spending time to seek out cool and creative items.

So here is my plan: I am always thinking "Wouldn't it be great if someone invented... (fill in the blank)?" So I'd like to review and feature the things that I find that I love and that my family uses and enjoys. Some of these things may be new inventions that I think are fabulous or older tried and true products that are great. Since I am always sending emails to friends and family about my finds I thought I would just start a blog about these things. I will start with some of my all time favorite finds and take it from there. This should be fun!