Rainbow Brite is back (and a giveaway!)

I'm clearly older than many bloggers, as I see from posts that they remember Rainbow Brite from their childhood. I remember Rainbow Brite from my sister's childhood (there's 11 years between  us) -- she loved Rainbow Brite and all her friends.

Rainbow Brite is back and has a definitely updated look! I confess I miss the baby doll look of old, but this new look has her looking more like a young teen. Like everything these days, there is a website full of games, downloads and activities so kids can take their play online as well into their bedrooms.
I've seen the dolls in Target locally, (Rainbow Brite and 2 friends) and there are also 3 horses available for purchase.

I have a CD full of Rainbow Brite games and activities to give away to THREE of my readers. Fill in the form below and I'll let random.org help me choose a winner next Monday (March 7, 2010.) 

** This giveaway is now closed! I used random.org to choose the winning comment and have contacted her via email. Thanks for reading! **

Disclosure: I received CDs for review and giveaway via MomSelect for Hallmark.

Disney on Ice Discount Code - Phoenix!

Click Here To Buy Tickets!

Last year, we enjoyed a wonderful evening at Disney on Ice.  A new Disney on Ice show is coming to Phoenix in April, and I'm excited that we'll be there again!

Tickets go on sale tomorrow (February 27) at 10AM for the shows on April 1 - 4, 2010. If you're in Phoenix, you can use the discount code "MOM" to purchase 4 tickets for only $44!  Additional tickets can be purchased for $11 each.

I'll have more details soon, but I wanted to share the code right away!

Wanchai Ferry Giveaway

I first tried Wanchai Ferry meals when I visited General Mills last year. They are a 2 serving bag of Chinese food -- easy to make and tasty as well.  I have to buy 3 bags to feed my entire family, but they are a great option when just Bo & I need a meal.  I really like the fact that the meals include rice, meat and vegetables -- so the only addition necessary is maybe a side salad!

My Blog Spark sent me the very nice package pictured to the left recently, and I am excited that I can send another to one of my readers!  (OK, it's not exactly like that -- you'll receive a coupon to choose your own Wanchai Ferry entree!  But in addition to the coupon, you will receive 2 placemats, 2 sets of chopsticks, 2 small dishes, 4 fortune cookies AND a $25 Target gift card to round out your meal!)

There are 5 meals to choose from -- Orange Chicken, Shrimp Lo Mein, Spicy Garlic Chicken, Sweet & Sour Chicken and Sweet & Sour Shrimp.  Visit Wanchai Ferry to print a $1.50 off coupon of your own.

Fill out the form to enter your chance for the great package noted above. For the required entry, let me know your favorite Chinese food / meal.  Extra entries if you share this post on Twitter, Facebook or your own blog!  Winner will be chosen March 6, 2010!

** This giveaway is now closed! I used random.org to choose the winning comment and have contacted her via email. Thanks for reading! **

Disclosure: The product, prize pack, information, and giveaway have all been provided by WanchaiFerry through MyBlogSpark.

Tell Me Thursday - Monkey

 For Wordless Wednesday, I posted this picture of a spider monkey.  Last week, we visited the zoo with my brother & his friend. At the Phoenix Zoo, you can go inside the large caged enclosure where the spider monkeys live. It's an awesome exhibit, and allows you to see the wild spider monkeys up close!  I did use my zoom lens to get that shot, but there was no cage separating us!

And here's a shot of my own personal monkeys -- thrilled that their Uncle Matt was in town!

Family Rosary

I recently chose to begin saying a daily family rosary again. We had fallen away from the habit during my pregnancy with Lydia, and I missed that consistent family prayer time. Lent seemed a good time to start up again, and I'm happy to say that it is going well.  What amuses me is how we go about it.

We say the rosary in the evening, right before we tuck the kids into bed. I purchased a CD from the Poor Clares of Perpetual Adoration and loaded into iTunes. Then, we connect to my iTunes through our XBox360 (using Connect360 since I have a Mac) and listen to the audio through our TV sound system.  Who would have thought a gaming system would have made our family rosary easier?

Of course, we could just say the rosary, but the CD helps us keep track and I don't lose count of prayers when Lydia needs help or redirection.  As I mentioned before, I really like this CD because the prayers are not muddied with music.

Everyone is happy and willing to spend this time in prayer, and I feel almost foolish that it took so long to come back to the habit.  Lydia is content to putter around us while we pray, but I know that it is sinking in. As another advantage, the boys seem more calm as they head to bed each night.

Wordless Wednesday - Monkey

Speech Therapy Progress

I was excited to see the recent study published in the New England Journal of Medicine that found a genetic link to stuttering. This study validates the opinion of some that bad parenting, environment, or anxiety are NOT primary causes to stuttering! (This article at ABC News explains the study well.) It also gives me scientific ammunition to share with those who would like to assume that Nate stutters because our boys are so close in age, or that I'm a bad mom, or that we cause him stress which results in stuttering.  In reality, nobody is quite sure why kids stutter -- but this recent study provides some solid information that there is often a genetic component.

As far as Nate's progress, he is doing great! I have noticed that he is aware of his own stutters more often and uses the tools he's been taught to either stop, or start again, his speech.  We don't stop him each and every time, but we do stop him much more often than we did in the past. We don't embarrass him, or bring attention to it in front of others -- but we do encourage him to take control of his speech by using the tools.

We have found that one of his biggest barriers is not taking in enough breath before speaking. A simple reminder to "belly breathe" (or fully expand his lungs while taking in a breath) helps his speech come out smoothly, rather than bumpy.  (I also like the reference to smooth and bumpy speech.  It has a much less negative connotation than the word stutter.)

Learning about the speech machine, and how all the parts work together has not only helped him but also me!  When I begin to stumble over words while teaching, I find myself thinking of the speech machine and the tools Nate has learned in order to help me put myself back on track.

In addition to practicing his speech, he has also been working on a presentation about stuttering during his speech therapy sessions.  It's in the rough draft stages now, but when it's completed in a month or so, he'll have a booklet to go along with a spoken presentation to share with others who are interested in learning more about stuttering.

He has moved from practicing single words to practicing phrases. After phrases will come full sentences. He's doing an excellent job so far, but we know that it will take plenty of effort for him to regularly speak smoothly, and he will probably always work against stuttering when he speaks.

I did notice that he suddenly began stuttering quite a bit again, but it corresponded to a growth spurt.  After a couple weeks, the progress he made prior to the setback had been made again.  There are less than 3 months left in this school year, and I am eager to see his continued progress.

Review: Kristi G Go & Grow Chair

 Last week, my Wordless Wednesday photo showed Lydia at a soccer game, in this chair on the sidelines.  It is a Kristi G Go and Grow Chair -- which we have used countless times since receiving it.

This chair folds up compactly and fits into a canvas bag -- making it the perfect on-the-go chair. It is the perfect size for my 2yo, but was designed to be perfect for children 4 months to 10 years (from the time they can hold up their heads to about 75 lbs.)
You can't see it in these pictures, but the chair has a five-point harness which makes it easy to use for infants. As the child grows and begins to stand, there is a basket underneath which allows the child to safely stand (while strapped into the five point harness.)  We use the basket to hold the carrying bag and un-needed jackets, water bottles and snacks while on the field.  I don't have to worry about those things blowing away!

A snack tray easily slides onto the arm rests to provide extra security and a handy place for snacks.  Drink holders are on the arm rests as well.

It's comfortably padded and extremely sturdy! The legs are designed in such a way that the chair will not easily tip over -- even when set up on the un-level soccer field.  And -- one of my favorite features is the removable sun bonnet.  This sun bonnet folds and fits into the canvas bag easily so that it is always available.  In the Arizona sun, this is a welcome addition!

This chair is very well-made and I can see getting years of use from it.   If I had it 2 years ago, I would have used it during every sports season!  I know it will get plenty of use this year, and in future  years.  You can see that Lydia fits perfectly -- and even Colin (9yo) looks comfortable reading his book while sitting in this chair.

The chair was designed by a mom of 5 who believes in simplifying when possible. She designed a neat diaper bag (watch for review soon) and then conceived this wonderful chair to make outings simpler with her children.  She wants to make parenting a little bit easier with her products -- and I think she has definitely succeeded with these products!

You can purchase the Go and Grow Chair through Amazon or at the Kristi G website.  Watch the video below to see the chair being used by different ages.



Disclosure: I purchased this chair for review.

Heifer International Fundraiser

My boys have decided to raise money to donate to Heifer International. Over the next 6 weeks, they will be keeping track of their reading.  They started today (February 21, 2010) and their fundraising ends Easter Sunday.

Nate would like to provide a Flock of Hope for a family, and Colin would like to purchase a share of a Milk Menagerie for a family. If they raise more than their goal, the additional funds will go towards purchasing honeybee hives and shares of a pig.

They have been asking for sponsors for every 50 pages (or one book) that they read and are hoping to raise at least $160.00. Some of their sponsors are paying them based on how much they read, while others have donated a flat donation in exchange for their reading efforts.  They are excited to know that they currently have 7 sponsors helping them reach their goals.

Let me know if you want to help them reach their goals! I'll be posting weekly on their progress. If you want to make a one-time donation, you can use PayPal, or contact me for mailing information.

To close this post, I'd like to share what Alton Brown has to say about Heifer International --

Review: Sing Along with Barbie DVD

I've written about how much Lydia loves to sing and dance. She also loves anything Barbie, princess or pink. When Mom Central asked if I'd like to review the DVD, Sing Along With Barbie, it didn't take me long to say "Yes, Please!"

Sing Along With Barbie features clips from various Barbie movies where the characters sang. It also includes words along the bottom of the screen -- which wasn't of interest to Lydia yet, but her brothers found it mildly interesting.

Lydia (almost 3yo) enjoyed this DVD, but was a bit confused by the fact the stories didn't continue and were just snippets from some of the DVDs she has watched in the past.  I think the confusion was increased by the speaking that was included with some of the songs, since there was no editing of the song snippets that were pulled from existing movies.

She prefers watching Barbie and the Three Musketeers over this DVD, but as she gets older she may enjoy it more.

Disclosure: I wrote this review while participating in a blog tour campaign by Mom Central on behalf of Mattel. In addition, I received a gift certificate to thank me for taking the time to participate.