Product Reviews

We’re celebrating Curiosity Day with Curious George!

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For several years, CURIOSITY DAY has been an annual event held in Boston, Massachusetts, with materials offered to stores, libraries, and schools nationwide so everyone can join the fun.  Through this event, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt and partners have helped thousands of kids, parents, and grandparents celebrate a love of reading and learning. Curiosity Day is always held on or around September 16, the birthdate of Curious George creator H.A. Rey, and the honorary birthday of everyone’s favorite monkey, Curious George!

Curious George has been a curious monkey for 75 years!  I took my kids to the Salina Public Library so they could get curious about reading!  I don’t know about you, but I think a good book is the perfect place to satisfy a curious mind.

Allie was curious about frogs, so we picked up a bundle of frog books.   The wonderful Librarians here at the Salina library create themed book bundles for parents who are in a hurry.  I think this is such a great idea!  🙂

The Libray is also the perfect place to find Curious George books!  Leave a comment, and let us know your favorite!

Celebrate today by playing some GAMES:  We had fun playing “Simon Says,” and changed the name to “The Man with the Yellow Hat Says”.

Here are some FUN facts about Curious George

  • More than 75 million copies of Curious George books have been sold worldwide.
  • Curious George has been translated into many languages, including Yiddish, Afrikaans, Braille, Japanese, French, Portuguese, Swedish, German, Chinese, Danish, and Norwegian.
  • Curious George first appeared in Cecily G. and the Nine Monkeys, which was published in France in 1939. He was called Fifi in those editions.
  • Hans Rey first saw his future wife, Margret, at a party in her father’s home in Germany, where she was sliding down the banister.
  • When Curious George was published in 1941, King George was the king of England. So as not to be disrespectful to the king by associating him with a monkey, Curious George was called Zozo in England.
  • The Reys created Curious George Goes to the Hospital at the request of officials at Boston Children’s Hospital who wanted a book to prepare children for a hospital stay. After it was published, many parents wrote to the Reys to tell them how effective the book was in reducing their child’s fear of hospitals.
  • A newspaper clipping about two mice that were sent into space to study the effects of weightlessness inspired the story of George’s own space flight in Curious George Gets a Medal.
  • Many of the Reys’ own interests and adventures found their way into the Curious George books. Both Hans and Margret were very fond of animals, and their first stop in a new city was always the zoo. Hans smoked a pipe; they lived among palm trees in Brazil; they rode out of Paris on bicycles; and they left Europe on an ocean liner. All of these details were woven into Curious George stories.
  • The Curious George books were a true collaboration. Hans was usually in charge of the ideas and the illustrations, while Margret handled the plot and the writing.

Celebrate George’s Birthday with something YUMMY to eat!  We decided to make a banana cream pie.  Yummy!

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Watch Curious George on Television.  We watched “Curious George:  A Halloween Boo Fest” on Netflix.  Have you seen it?  We loved it! 🍁🍃

We hope you have a FUN day Celebrating Curiosity Day with your family!  What fun ideas do you have planned?

Review of Floogals: Mission Complete! DVD and Giveaway

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DVD Description:  Join the Floogals on a mission of discovery as they explore Earth and the funny hoomans who live there! Each day, Captain Fleeker, First Officer Flo, and Junior Boomer encounter something that sparks their curiosity, setting in motion the day s research project and triggering an exciting adventure! First, the Floogals have an adventure in which they must learn the difficult task of assembling the Girl Hooman s jigsaw puzzle. They learn working in a team wins the day! The projects continue with investigating Boy Hooman s building of a model rocket, learning how to fly a toy helicopter to rescue Boomer, discovering who stole Dad Hooman s veggies in the garden and so much more! Adventure is everywhere they go. They re the Floogals! 3, 2, 1, let s go!

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Our Review:  Demonstrating the power of discovery, team work, and critical thinking; the Floogals is a really cute show that mixes cartoon with real life images.  This show has comedic characters and unique adventures in which the Floogals learn how ordinary objects work in our world.   The girls really enjoyed this show. 🙂

Activity Pages: Join the Floogals on a mission of discovery! Download and print the activity pages to help spark your child’s curiosity!

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Time for a GIVEAWAY!!  

CLICK HERE TO ENTER to win this DVD from Ncircle Entertainment! 

Be sure to check out my other giveaways while you are here and GOOD LUCK!

Visit NCircle On Social Media

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** Disclosure:  I received product (s) for free, in exchange for my honest review.  I only recommend products I’ve used personally, and believe will be a good fit for consumers.  This post contains affiliate links. **

Gumby Movie Review and Giveaway

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The Gumby Movie has been remastered and is now available on DVD and on Blu- Ray for the first time ever!


DVD Description:  Take a magical romp with the world s most popular clay boy in The Gumby Movie. For the first time, you ll enjoy this heartwarming adventure, fully re-mastered from its original film rolls. This is the complete movie, with all its scenes intact. This clay-animated masterpiece was written and directed by Gumby Creator Art Clokey, and showcases Gumby, Pokey, Prickle, Goo, the Blockheads, Professor Kapp, and introduces the Clayboys and singing sensation Tara. Gumby rocks out with the Clayboys for a concert benefiting local farmers. But things go awry when Gumby s arch enemies, the Blockheads, dognap his pet pooch, Lowbelly! Bad turns to worse when the Blockheads also kidnap the band…and replace them with clones! The battle between Clayboys and clones is filled with trains and planes, knights and fights, thrills and spills! True to classic Gumby adventures, The Gumby Movie takes viewers in and out of books, to Toyland, Camelot, outer space and beyond!  The Gumby Movie Bonus Features include: Photo Gallery and Behind the Scenes.

Buy from Amazon.com

Our Review:  Gumby has been around for what seems like forever.  I loved watching it as a kid, and was excited that NCircle Entertainment has brought it back with a fresh new look!  If you are a Gumby fan you will appreciate this movie!  Gumby Rocks!

If you are unfamiliar with Gumby – here is a preview of Gumby: The Complete 1950’s Series Remastered

Time for a GIVEAWAY!!  

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CLICK HERE TO ENTER to win this DVD from Ncircle Entertainment and a Comic Book courtesy of Papercutz! 

Be sure to check out my other giveaways while you are here and GOOD LUCK!

Visit NCircle On Social Media

Facebook | Twitter  | Instagram  |  Pinterest  | YouTube

** Disclosure:  I received product (s) for free, in exchange for my honest review.  I only recommend products I’ve used personally, and believe will be a good fit for consumers.  This post contains affiliate links. **

Review of Little Wolf’s Book of Badness DVD and Giveaway

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DVD Description:  All Little Wolf wants to do is stay at home with Mum, Dad and his brother, Smellybreff.  However, Mum and Dad are worried that their precious son, Little Wolf, is not as bad as a small wolf should be. So they decide to send him off to Cunning College in Frettnin Forest to learn the Nine Rules of Badness from his Uncle Bigbad. Uncle Bigbad is a hopeless teacher, but armed with determination and native wit, Little Wolf thinks things out for himself. Sent out by his Uncle to round up a troop of boy scouts to eat for supper, Little Wolf discovers that the scouts have many useful skills that Little Wolf can learn from them. In the end, Little Wolf decides not to follow outdated rules of proper wolf behavior but to be true to himself. As a result, he inherits his Uncle s fortune and becomes master of Cunning College.   Based on a world famous series of best-selling Little Wolf story books, this one-off is a treat for the whole family!

Buy on Amazon.com

Our Review: I loved the whole idea of this — how Little Wolf is sent away by his parents because he has not been behaving “badly enough”.  In letters home, Little Wolf records his journey to the college in efforts to learn the Nine Rules of Badness.  I enjoyed watching Little Wolf struggle to be bad enough to come home very cute and entertaining.  If your children love fractured fairytales or Captain Underpants, I think they will love this movie!

Watch the Trailer

Time for a GIVEAWAY!!  

CLICK HERE TO ENTER to win this DVD from Ncircle Entertainment! 

Be sure to check out my other giveaways while you are here and GOOD LUCK!

Visit NCircle On Social Media

Facebook | Twitter  | Instagram  |  Pinterest  | YouTube

** Disclosure:  I received product (s) for free, in exchange for my honest review.  I only recommend products I’ve used personally, and believe will be a good fit for consumers.  This post contains affiliate links. **

Connect with Your Child After School with Parragon Books and Giveaway

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This month we’re gearing up for back to school with some new Parragon Books!  Paragon’s educational learnalot series is designed to be a fun interactive way for kids to build upon their skills colon including ABC’s, one two threes, shapes, colors, and more.  The fun activities are designed to build confidence in young children, and are made so parents and children can complete them together.

With my littlest starting Kindergarten this year, and my youngest in preschool – I’m reminded of the amazingly important and life changing role I can play in helping my children adjust and succeed.  These books give me the opportunity to spend some quality time with my children everyday — and help them learn and reinforce materials they are already learning in school.

Get Ready for Preschool Learning Pack Ages 3-5: Includes Over 250 Stickers (Learnalots)

Book Description:  Get Ready for Preschool Learning Pack Ages 3-5 is filled with workbooks carefully created for little learners. This pack includes five workbooks – Alphabet, Counting, Colors, Shapes and Animals – as well as 250 stickers to reward good work. These workbooks meet the national early learning standards, perfect for helping your little ones learn.

Our Review:  Cora, my preschooler loves this learning pack.  She brings it to me every night ready to learn!  The stickers are a nice touch, because she can add them to the top of the pages as she completes them.  It is a wonderful pack to encourage learning and one on one time with your child.

The Learnalots Let’s Learn Preschool: Discover the Fun in Learning!

Book Description: The Learnalots Let’s Learn Preschool is a fun interactive workbook for ages 3-5. This educational workbook has eight subjects, including ABCs, 123s, shapes and much more to build academic skills. The fun activities are designed to build confidence in young children and for parents and children to complete together. This book also includes over 100 reward stickers. The Learnalots will inspire your child to learn something new every day!

Our Review:  Cora, my preschooler had fun with this workbook.  It is packed with super fun activities that keep her interest.  They can enjoy coloring, tracing letters, learning about animals, 123s, shapes, letters and objects in their daily life.  We also loved that it had 100 reward stickers.

Get Ready for Kindergarten Learning Pack Ages 4-6: Includes Over 250 Stickers (Learnalots)

Book Description: Get Ready for Kindergarten Learning Pack Ages 4-6 is filled with workbooks carefully created for little learners. This pack includes five workbooks – Science, Social Skills, Writing, Phonics, Writing, and Math – as well as over 250 stickers to reward good work. These workbooks meet the national early learning standards perfect for helping your little ones learn.

Our Review:  Allie, my kindergartner had fun with this workbook.  It is packed with super fun activities that keep her interest.  They can enjoy coloring, tracing letters, learning about animals, 123s, shapes, letters and objects in their daily life.  We also loved that it had 100 reward stickers.

The Learnalots Let’s Learn Kindergarten: Discover the Fun in Learning!

Book Description: The Learnalots Let’s Learn Kindergarten is a fun interactive workbook for ages 4-6. This educational workbook has eight subjects, including words, counting, tracing and much more to build academic skills. The fun activities are designed to build confidence in young children and for parents and children to complete together. This book also includes over 100 reward stickers. The Learnalots will inspire your child to learn something new every day!

Our Review:  Cora, my preschooler had fun with this workbook.  It is packed with super fun activities that keep her interest.  They can enjoy coloring, tracing letters, learning about animals, 123s, shapes, letters and objects in their daily life.  We also loved that it had 100 reward stickers.

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The Learnalots Let’s Learn Second Grade: Discover the Fun in Learning!

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Book Description:  The Learnalots Let’s Learn Second Grade is a fun interactive workbook for ages 7-8. This educational workbook has eight subjects, including nature, reading, writing and much more to build academic skills. The fun activities are designed to build confidence in young children and for parents and children to complete together. This book also includes over 100 reward stickers. The Learnalots will inspire your child to learn something new every day!

Discovery Kids (Factivity) Coding and Computers

Book Description:  300 stickers to get you coding and creating your own computer world! Have you ever wondered whats inside a computer, or how your app or game is made? How do we put simple instructions together to tell a computer what to do? Get coding and discover the fact-packed world of technology, with activities, puzzles and mazes to keep you plugged in.

Our review:  We were also sent this book to review.  It is the perfect way to get kids excited about coding and creating their own computer world!  Children can complete all kinds of activities, like word scrambles and mazes, as they learn about motherboards and even how radio signals work in order to connect to the internet.   It also has 300 stickers to help complete activities!  How fun!

Bedtime Prayers by Stephen Whitlow

Another great way to bond with your children after school is by reading to them before bed!  We have been reading Bedtime Prayers by Stephen Whitlow to help us wind down and pray for our family.  It is a great book to snuggle up with.  This board book includes precious illustrations with soft colors and sweet poems, prayers, and songs for children to recite and sing along to.

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 Parragon was awesome enough to offer a giveaway to one lucky winner.  You may choose from one of the books mentioned above.

CLICK HERE TO ENTER THE GIVEAWAY

The giveaway ends October 3rd, 2017 at 11:59 p.m. CST.  The giveaway is open to US residents, age 18+, only.  You will contacted by email,  and have 48 hours to respond before a new winner is chosen.  

Be sure to check out my other giveaways while you are here,  and GOOD LUCK!

Visit Parragon On Social Media

Facebook | Twitter  | Instagram  | Twitter  | YouTube

** Disclosure:  I received product (s) for free, in exchange for my honest review.  I only recommend products I’ve used personally, and believe will be a good fit for consumers.  This post contains affiliate links. **

August FitSnack Box Review

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This post contains affiliate links. If you shop from my blog, I may be compensated for clicks or purchases that you make.

One of the best way to get your kids to eat healthy is to keep healthy food at hand. Children will eat what’s available, and this is why I love receiving our FitSnack subscription box every month!  It gives us the opportunity to try new healthy snacks every month.

FitSnack has helped us to become more health conscience and knowledgeable on what we put in our mouths.  I would recommend it to everyone!

Here is a little information about the FitSnack

Sisters Anita and Rose Muniz are the duo behind Fit Snack. They realized that taking the leap to live a healthier life is not always easy.  The grocery store is lined with high sugar, over processed foods, not everyone has access to Sprouts or Whole Foods and it’s really hard to know what new healthy snacks you will like without tasting them. The Fit Snack duo decided that they would curate an assorted box every month and on top of that, include at home workouts and bonuses like free music downloads.

Each Fit Snack Box comes with 7-10 full-size and deluxe sample items, plus free workout and recipe cards.  This is a $32+ in guaranteed value.

When selecting products to include in the box, they use the Fit Snack “Perfect 10″.  Put simply, they look for snacks that fall into one or more of these categories: Nutrient Dense (high in protein, complex carbs, low sugar index), Consciously Made (GMO free, organic production, sustainably farmed), and Diversified Energy (gluten free, clean eating, paleo, raw).

Fit Snack offers several different subscription plans including 1-month, 3-month, 6-month, and annual subscription options. 

This box is a great monthly reminder to eat healthy, and best of all — it’s delivered right to your door.  Try it out yourself and order your own!


Here is what was in the box for August!

Go Everly:  All the flavor, none of the guilt.  Natural, sugar-free drink mixes to help you hydrate and energize.

I’m always looking for sugarless, and dye free drink enhancers for the girls to try – so we were excited to see this in the box this month!  We really enjoyed it!

Kala Beautiful Beans:  Every KALA snack blend is packed with crunchy, wholesome fava beans.  Always beautiful and delicious, KALA is the perfect combination of healthy and flavorful.

I loved this protein & fiber filled snack.  It satisfies the salty chip craving we all have with something healthy.

Purity Coffee:  Finally, coffee you can feel good about drinking!  Purity is organic, rich in antioxidants, and free of mold-always!

Rawbite:  Rawbite is a popular European bar containing just fruit and nuts – that’s it!  It’s raw, organic, vegan, no sugar added, gluten, and dairy-free.

I really loved this fruit and nut bar.  They are very yummy!

Nutiva Chia Seeds:  Enjoy this nutritious seed full of omega 3 fatty acids, essential minerals, proteins, antioxidants, and fiber.  Delicious on yogurt and oatmeal, in smoothies, as an egg replacement, or in baking recipes.

I love the idea of using this in baking – I didn’t have a chance to try this yet, but it is on my list!

Rickaroons –  Coconut energy bar that tastes like a dessert.

Oh my Oh my – they were not lying, this was my favorite in the box.

The Whole Grain Corporation:  Lightly Salted Wheat Snacks are roasted and seasoned to perfection to make an appetite satisfier you can rely on for energy on the go or as a food topping.  Add this all natural snack to salads or a baked potato.

This was my children’s favorite thing in the box — I was quite surprised, but they loved this snack!

Tickle Water:  Dairy Free Gluten Free Vegan Wheat Free Yeast Free Sparkling Water

I’m not a big fan of sparkling water, so I wouldn’t buy this — but it did have a good taste.

Nutty Goodness:  Fruit and Nut bites free from preservatives, wheat, soy or dairy

The banana flavor was in last months box — so I loved being able to try this flavor.  It was good — but banana is still the BOMB!

Click here to order your FitSnack Box

Find FitSnack on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter

How to Develop a Back to School Bedtime Routine

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One of the hardest things for me to do as a single mom is getting my two girls ready for school!  I am not kidding —  fighting to get them out of bed, fighting them to get dressed,  yelling at them to stay focused, and to quit fighting over clothes!  This is why this year I decided to come up with a PLAN to make things easier – a back to school bedtime routine. #kidgoals

It’s a well know fact that children need routine in their daily lives – they thrive in a structured environment.  Giving a child a routine to follow actually teaches them how to be in control of their emotions and their environment.  A good routine helps children feel secure – and a great bedtime routine is a great way to start (at any age).

Establish a set bedtime.   The amount of sleep a child needs depends on several factors,  including age of the child.  Sleep is important for their developing brains and bodies –> so here is a handy reference chart to go by.

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This chart was first posted by Wilson Elementary School of Kenosha, WI.

Give a bedtime warning to start the wind down process.  I know my girls do well when I give them a warning that bedtime is approaching.  I always let them know an hour before hand, so they can start their bedtime routine.

Turn off the technology.  Studies have shown that by turning off electronics an hour before bedtime helps you fall asleep easier and faster.

Use books and music to help relax children before bed.  Using books and music before bed can help your children relax.  This is also a wonderful bonding time for parents and children.  It can also help strengthen their reading and other learning skills as well.  Bonus.  Check out our kid book reviews for some book suggestions.

Create a tasks checklist for children to use.  We created this laminated task list together.  The girls can consult this chart before bedtime, and cross off things as they complete them.   I think it’s a wonderful way to help the girls take initiative and help in the bedtime process.

Take baths at night.  I prefer giving my girls their baths at night.  I have found that it not only saves time in the mornings, but it helps relax them before bed.  It also gives them a last minute “play session”.  I always have lavender bubble bath, lotion, or bath fizzes on hand for the nights they are especially wound up!  Check out our other bath time posts for fun ideas.

Lay out your clothes and bags the night before.  Save yourself some time and effort in the morning by having the kids pick out their outfits for the next day.  I also check the weather at this time.

One of my favorite stores to find the perfect school clothes is Gymboree.  They provide quality, coordinated outfits for every occasion – including the first day of school.  I love how their clothes are super comfy, and mix and match perfectly.  This is a plus on my list because the girls wear the same size, so this keeps them from fighting over clothes.  Everything just mixes and matches perfectly!

Are you ready to get a back to school bedtime routine established? Give these tips a try and see how they can help your child get their best sleep – and start this school year off right!

On Cordelia  – Heather Grey Twofer Dress | Sparkle Navy Cardigan | Navy Sequin Strip Leggings | Rainbow Glitter Sparkle Star Clips | Star Ankle Socks | Silver Sparkle Boots | On Althea – Heather Grey Peplum Tunic | Girls Rocket Pink Eyelash Leggings | Sparkle Navy Cardigan| Slim Bow Headband | Silver Leopard Sparkle Socks | Silver Glitter High Tops


What are some of your goals, or your kids goals for the upcoming school year?  What are some of your favorite outfits on the Gymboree website? 

Gymboree was gracious enough to offer a giveaway of a $50 giftcard to one lucky winner.

Click Here to Enter

The giveaway ends September 1st, 2017 at 11:59 p.m. CST.  The giveaway is open to US residents, age 18+, only.  You will contacted by email,  and have 48 hours to respond before a new winner is chosen.  Good Luck!

… and come check out our OTHER giveaways HERE

This post was Sponsored by Gymboree.  All opinions about the clothing are my own.  It was a pleasure working with such a great company, thank you!  Stay up to date with Janie and Jack’s newest products and sales on Facebook , Instagram, and Twitter!