March Trends at The Children’s PLACE

March 26, 2015 by 7 Comments

The Children’s PLACE has come to deliver marching orders: Put your best foot forward this spring with the best on-trend outfits and styles. With everything from dressy Easter attire to casual clothes, shoes, and accessories, The Children’s PLACE has everything you need for the stylish kids in your life. Girls can have fun in floral accents and casual dresses they can style up with a pair of sparkly flats or make more casual by pairing with an ankle bootie. Boys are all about preppy and sporty looks with bold pops of color.

easter clothingThe Children’s PLACE is also one of my favorite places to shop for our son, because it’s easy to mix and match clothing and the prices are wallet-friendly. He likes the clothes because they are soft, for him a must.

He can be picky about his clothing- not so much about the style, but about the fit.  He really dislikes jeans for some reason, and anything that feels tight, stiff, or “scratchy” is a no-go.  He likes khakis (in any color or print), track pants, sweat pants, and the like, which they have so many options of at The Children’s PLACE.  He will wear most shirts, as long as they fit the above qualifiers.  He used to love, love, love wearing ties, bow ties, and vests (not sure if you all remember, but there was a time he wouldn’t leave the house without them on!) but now he’s all about the casual.  I’m glad that it’s easy to match clothes at The Children’s PLACE, because you can get more wear and more outfits for your money that way, without having to shop as much or have as much clothing.  With as fast as they grow, who wants to spend that much money for a single season of use?
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Filed Under: clothes and shoes, fashion, review Tagged With: ,

A Unique Combination of Culture and Recreation

March 25, 2015 by Leave a Comment

barcel

Barcelona is an exciting, trendy city on the sunny Mediterranean coast of Spain that attracts beach-lovers, art-lovers and food-lovers from the world over. The city has many budget hotels and hostels that help reduce the amount you spend on accommodation. Sites like Hipmunk will help you compare the prices and locations, so you get a good hotel that is close to the action at an affordable price.

A Variety of Cheap Lodging

Hotels, hostels and rental apartments are available in the city center, and they compete with each other for guests, which is good for you because the prices go down. The Old City and the Gothic Quarter are oldest neighborhoods in the city and attractive to visitors with their cobbled streets and Gothic architecture. The fun continues well into the night, so if you are looking for a quiet resting place, you may not want to be in the middle of the city. However, there are cheap hostels in the area, and the most famous sights including the Barcelona Cathedral and Las Ramblas are within walking distance.

Visitors should also know that star ratings are not the same as in the U.S., so a one-star hotel may be a great deal. The El Raval neighborhood is nearby and undergoing an urban renewal. This is where the university and the MACBA museum are located, and you’ll find some affordable bed and breakfasts in the area.
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Build the Perfect Easter Basket with PEEPS

March 25, 2015 by 6 Comments

Disclosure: “The PEEPS ® product, information and gift have been provided by Just Born Retail Group.”

Did you know…?

  • Yellow is America’s best-selling color of PEEPS® Chicks and Bunnies, followed by pink and then blue.
  • Just Born produces enough PEEPS® Brand Marshmallow Candies in one year to circle the earth three times.
  • Chicks rule! 4 out of every 5 PEEPS® purchased are Chicks – either flavored, dipped in chocolate, covered in chocolate or in the original un-flavored marshmallow form.

cannon 3 23 15 014Just a few fun facts to start your day off sweetly.  You are going to want to get your PEEPS® early this year so you can try all the new flavors for 2015. There is also PEEPS® plush, apparel, and other Just Born candy brands at peepsandcompany.com, the one-stop-“hop” for all things sweet.

My son just loves Peeps.  My grandmother has always loved them as well, so I always buy a ton as soon as they hit shelves and get them both a wide variety of Marshmallow Chicks and Marshmallow Bunnies.  While Peeps are great for Easter baskets, they are also a fun reminder of spring in general, and my son, husband, and grandmother eat them pretty constantly until there are none left.
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Win Entenmann’s Little Bites and Upcycled Tote

March 25, 2015 by 63 Comments

Disclosure- we received product coupons in order to facilitate this review. All opinions are our own and honest.

My son is a huge fan of Little Bites- and OK, so am I- mostly because on mornings that we are running late, they are easy to grab and go on the way to school, and he can eat them while I drive.  Yes, it happens.  Often.  He likes them because they are “cute” and they taste good- also I think he thinks they are dessert for breakfast, since they come in flavors that sound like candy or cupcakes.

pic8Entenmann’s Little Bites ® snacks, the individually portioned lunch snack that’s perfect for lunch boxes and grab-and-go fun, is helping kids and families become recycling pros this year through two cool new eco-initiatives with both TerraCycle® and the Arbor Day Foundation — just in time for Earth Day 2015!

pic9First, they’re working with TerraCycle®, an international leader in the collection and reuse of non-recyclable post-consumer waste, for the 3rd annual “Turn Trash to Cash” campaign that helps kids earn cash for their schools by recycling the pouches from their Little Bites snack time favorites. Flavors include Little Bites Chocolate Chip Muffins, Little Bites Crumb Cakes, Little Bites Crème Filled Chocolate Cupcakes, and new for 2015 Little Bites Party Cakes. As part of the Entenmann’s Little Bites Pouch Brigade, schools, community organizations and individuals throughout the country collect empty Little Bites pouches and send them to TerraCycle to earn points that can be redeemed as cash for the school. TerraCycle turns the used packaging into innovative new products at TerraCycle,  like tote bags, pencil cases and even picnic benches! To learn how to get your children’s school signed up to recycle Little Bites pouches, click here.
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Win a PLAYMOBIL Easter Egg (Toy)

March 25, 2015 by 38 Comments

With Spring just around the corner, you must be getting ready for the Easter bunny to come hopping over. To help celebrate Easter this year, PLAYMOBIL has adorable new 2015 PLAYMOBIL Eggs out just in time for the basket filling.

pic9Fun PLAYMOBIL figures are hiding inside each Egg guaranteeing creative play for both girls and boys. With various exciting themes, the PLAYMOBIL Egg is the perfect addition to this year’s Easter Basket. The Possible Eggs include: Princess with Vanity Station, Fun at the Beach, Pirate with Rowboat and Boy with Children’s Tractor.
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Filed Under: giveaway, review

Healthy Easter Basket Ideas

March 25, 2015 by 3 Comments

fruist crisps

If you are looking to give your kids a healthy Easter basket, or just looking for some fun new ideas for snack time or to put into lunchboxes, you will like what you see (and taste) with Fruttata Crisps and Bauli’s croissants.

This Easter, instead of giving an Easter basket full of sugar, give a basket full of healthier snacks, without jeopardizing the taste.  Give a healthy and tasty trick with Easter with Fruttata Crisps. Fruttata Crisps come from carefully selected fruits from the finest regions in the world. Each 1 oz. bag of Fruttata crisps provides a satisfying nutrition that is equivalent to 285 grams of fresh fruit. Snacking while on the go or in the house, has never been healthier. Fruttata Crisps are all natural, gluten free, with no additional sugar added. (Available at Duane Reade and Amazon.com/ $1.79)
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Take Me To Church- The Hunchback of Notre Dame explores the light and dark sides of it’s characters

March 25, 2015 by 6 Comments

 

Moving. Heartbreaking.  Stunning. All words I would use to describe Paper Mill Playhouse’s production of “The Hunchback of Notre Dame”, and I didn’t expect to react so strongly in the least.

Paper Mill, which produces beautiful shows right here in NJ, never ceases to amaze me.  With talent second to none (and that means Broadway as well- since many of it’s stars also preform on the Great White Way, you don’t need to trek into the city to see a top-notch performance) and not a bad seat in the house, we always enjoy the shows at Paper Mill Playhouse.  This one, however, might be my favorite so far, in no small part because I was not expecting to love it so much.

pic8

The Hunchback of Notre Dame at Paper Mill Playhouse; Photo by Matthew Murphy; Michael Arden (Quasimodo) and the company of The Hunchback of Notre Dame

A fan of Victor Hugo, who wrote the novel, I thought that the Disney movie was cute if (of course) simple, as it was intended for young audiences.  The movie lost what to me were some key characters to understanding the story, modified others deeply, and lost the tone of the novel and story.  The music was nice, and the singing exactly what you would expect from a Disney film.  I was expecting a cute, fun show.  However, I found myself knocked off my feet within moments, at the opening song  “The Bells Of Notre Dame”.  The full orchestra and choir took one right to the period and atmosphere, and was incredibly moving.

With minimalist scenery and props, the cast really took center stage and full focus.  The lack of many scenery changes or much going on in the background only adds to the production- it seems right at home for the time period.  It is raw, sparse, the way one might imagine medieval Catholic services to have been. The characters are  complicated, deep and feel human.  There is no pure evil villain and our heroes have moments of weakness, each with conflicting feelings and acts.  You are able to see the good inside even the most flawed character, and your heart breaks with them all as the story rings on.
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Filed Under: lifestyle, review, theater

Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey® Presents Circus XTREME

March 25, 2015 by 2 Comments

We just saw the new Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey show, Circus XTREME.  My son loves the circus, and this year did not disappoint. With amazing circus acts, incredible performers who are able to twist and turn their bodies in ways that most of us can’t even imagine, and acts that make you wonder if your eyes are deceiving you- Ringling Brothers truly is the “greatest show on earth”.

The circus you have loved since your own childhood is back and ready for you to make memories with your children.  Every child should see the circus, and this is a show not to be missed. If you get there early, there is a pre-show available for one hour before the circus begins, where your family can interact with performers.  Try juggling, take photos with performers, and meet the clowns you will shortly see performing.

pic8The All Access Pre-show is free with your ticket purchase. You and your family can meet the international cast of performers and get up close to the menagerie of animals. Try on custom costumes, learn circus skills — like juggling and walking the low wire — from the famous Ringling Bros.® Clown Alley and even have the opportunity to win a one-of-a-kind masterpiece created by one of our very own Ringling Bros. painting pachyderms.
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