Archives for February 2013

STM Bags iPad case from the new ‘grip’ Line Review & Giveaway

February 20, 2013 by Danielle 12 Comments

As I’ve shared with you before, we did get an iPad for the family this year for Christmas! Because that is a very big purchase, I think that finding the best cover/case for it is extremely important! I was lucky enough to be able to review the grip for the iPad from STM.

About the grip iPad Case:

A Sleek and slim fitted case
2 kickstand settings (for typing and viewing)
Protective and supportive
Soft-lined interior
Easy access to all buttons and plug ins
Auto on-off front cover
Lightweight, slim and protective
Comfortable and easy to carry
Snap in, hard shell back
Complete protection for the iPad 2, 3rd, and 4th generations

Comes in 4 colors: tangerine, royal blue, berry, and black

Go Green: 5 Simple Tips to Make Your Home Eco-Friendly

February 20, 2013 by Samantha 2 Comments

There is a movement to go green. People are all making an effort to become more eco-friendly. Many say they are going green, but how can you and your family actually reduce your impact on the environment? Here are a 5 easy tips to make your home more eco-friendly and save some money.

Tip #1: Clean Green

Take a look at the cleaners you use for tabletops, counters, bath fixtures and floors. If they’re filled with chemicals, it’s time to toss them. Most cleaning needs can be taken care of with natural ingredients like water, baking soda, white vinegar and lemon. Lemon juice and vinegar, being acidic, can help with stubborn scrubbing needs. Baking soda is a gentle cleanser that can be used in numerous ways. It can be used to deodorize refrigerators and garbage pails, scrub and wipe down counters and to remove odors from carpets. It’s also an effective addition to your laundry detergent and bleach, increasing their effectiveness and reducing how much you need to use.

Tip #2: Change Your Light Bulbs

Another simple energy saving tip involves changing your light bulbs. Conventional incandescent bulbs lose more energy to heat than compact fluorescent bulbs. CFLs, which don’t work on a filament, can save [Read more…]

Filed Under: health, home Tagged With: check in, environmentally friendly, environmentally friendly cleaning, go green go green at home, green cleaners, guest post, how to go green, Tips to Make Your Home Eco-Friendly

Wordless Wednesday and Come Link Up!

February 20, 2013 by Samantha 3 Comments

Filed Under: Uncategorized

5 Ways Parents Can Help When Children Struggle in School

February 20, 2013 by Samantha 2 Comments

It’s hard for any parent to stand idly by and watch kids struggle. While you certainly want your kids to learn to handle social and academic problems on their own, and you definitely don’t want to be so overprotective that they cannot become self-sufficient, it’s also your duty to provide them with the knowledge and skills that will allow them to cope with any difficult situations they encounter. This means that while they’re living under your roof, it’s your duty to instill in them the lessons that will turn them into confident and capable young adults so that they’re ready to face the world when they move out. So when you see them struggling in school, whether because of academic difficulties or problems with their peers, you need to help them in any way you can. And here are a few options you might want to explore.

Listen closely. As a parent, you probably think you know best, and as a result you might be tempted to offer your opinion without really taking the time to listen to the problems your kids are having. You should resist this urge and allow your kids to tell you everything before you start offering advice. This course of action will accomplish two things. For starters, it will show your kids that you respect them and that they can tell you anything without having to worry about being patronized. But it will also give them a chance to sort through their thoughts and feelings without interruption. From there you can ask questions that may help them to come up with a solution on their own.

iLearn ‘N’ Play Adventure Explorer Review and Giveaway

February 18, 2013 by Danielle 12 Comments

The big Christmas present in our house this year was an iPad for the family! I must admit that now that we have one, I can already tell that we need another one 🙂 Everyone wants to use it all the time, which is really testing the patience of my almost 3 year old (which is a good thing).

Being as my almost 3 year old really loves to play with the iPad, I work very hard trying to find “apps” and “games” that are educational for her as well as fun. I was very happy to try out the Adventure Explorer from iLearn ‘N’ Play & appStart Learning.

About AppStart Learning:

AppStart Learning joins 3+ toys and apps to make learning fun by making learning play! iLearn ‘N’ Play works with our young children to help them learn and understand some of the early learning concepts.

The company has offices throughout North America, as well as offices in London, Rome, Sydney, and Hong Kong.

About Adventure Explorer:

For the Adventure Explorer, you can connect your iPad, iPad mini, iPhone, or iPod to the console.

The Adventure Explorer has a working on/off ignition switch, a steering wheel, a shifter, accelerator, forward/reverse control that works with the iLearn ‘N’ Play apps.

There [Read more…]

Filed Under: education, gaming, giveaway, kids, review, technology, toys Tagged With: i learn n play review, Thoughts on ilearn n play

Shopping Cart / HighChair Cover from Balboa Review & Giveaway

February 17, 2013 by Danielle 22 Comments

I am most definitely the crazy lady that you see in the store disinfecting my cart all over, so my kids and myself stay healthy. I could not be more impressed with the Balboa Baby Shopping Cart Cover. Don’t get me wrong, I still disinfect my cart, but it is a lot quicker of a process, as I can just do a quick once over now 🙂

About the Balboa Baby Shopping Cart Cover:

Machine-Washable
Provides a germ free zone completely around your child
4 easy to attach elastic corners
Toy Loops to attach childrens’ toys
Comfortable & Secure Safety Strap for your child
Folds into an attached bag that you can easily take along with you
Fits most Restaurant High Chairs

If you would like to stay up to date on Balboa Baby, please follow them on Facebook and Twitter.

My Thoughts:

I have been very impressed my new shopping cart cover. The self enclosed bag is wonderful [Read more…]

Filed Under: baby, giveaway, review Tagged With: baby gear, balboa, Balboa Baby Shopping Cart Cover Review, high chair cover, highchair cover, Shopping Cart / HighChair Cover from Balboa Review and Giveaway, shopping cart cover, Thoughts on Balboa Baby Shopping Cart Cover

How to Help Kids Improve Their Communication Skills

February 17, 2013 by Samantha 1 Comment

No matter what it is that you set out to accomplish in this world, you can get it a lot faster if you are a good communicator. Signs of someone who has really great communication skills is an individual who is a great listener, who can clearly convey their thoughts, who can interpret body language, who exudes confidence and who can express themselves both in written and verbal form.

As you’re striving to teach your child how to improve on their communication skills, there are a few tips that we recommend; ones that will easily help them to develop a way to connect with those around them and that’s something that they can carry throughout the rest of their lives.

Teach them about body language. A wise man once said that 90 percent of communication lies in things that have not been verbally expressed. It can be fun for you and your child to make different kinds of facial expressions and then have you interpret them to one another. For instance, you can roll your eyes and ask them what they think that means. Then, in return, they may squint their eyes and you can take a guess at what they’re thinking. One of the main benefits of exploring body language is that it teaches children that you have to [Read more…]

Filed Under: kids, Uncategorized Tagged With: help kids communicate in a healthy way, help kids learn to communicate, How to Help Kids Improve Their Communication Skills, kids commuication skills, kids communication skills

Plumleys Togs Children’s British English Shirts Review and Giveaway

February 16, 2013 by Danielle 6 Comments

As you look at the picture above, you might be confused why my daughter is wearing a shirt with a flashlight on it, but called a torch? Well, we were lucky enough to try out 2 different shirts from Plumley’s Togs!

About Plumley’s Togs:

Plumley is British and speaks British English. Apparently, years ago he visited the United States and was surprised & disappointed to find out that we don’t speak British English in the United States. He decided that he was going to try and fix this problem, and so Plumley’s Togs were created to help teach the English Americans some of the words from British English.