The Super, Incredible Big Sister Book | I See Me! Personalized Children's Books

Back in February I told you about Gracie's new I See Me! personalized children's book called My Very Own Fairy Tale. What I love about our I See Me! book is each and every page is rhyming. I think that is very important. Not only does each and ever page tell a clear story, it is catchy because of the rhyme. I love the story line too... The Fairy's are wanting to chose their new Fairy Princess and each page they spell a letter of Gracie's name and her last name too. So perfect for a pre-school aged child!

I See Me! has been making personalized children's books since 2000! The husband and wife team began making these books after getting the idea back in 1998 when they received a personalized book for their first son. They had ideas that could make the personalized book better and they took off with it!

"Our mission is to increase self esteem in children through personalized books that celebrate the uniqueness of each child. The goal of our books is to show each child how absolutely unique and special he or she is, to teach the child how to spell his or her name, and to build vocabulary skills." --Maia Haag, author and CEO of I See Me! Inc.

I See Me! has a great selection of personalized children's book to chose from, for both girls and boys. They have about 19 different books to chose from. Here are a few titles:  My Very Own Name Storybook, My Very Own Pirate Tale Storybook, God Loves You Personalized Book, My Very Happy Birthday Book for boys/girls, The Super Incredible Big Sister/Brother, and more! These books would make fantastic gifts for any occasion!

 

When I wrote this review, I stated that I had wished I would have known about these books last year. I would have loved to get Gracie a big sister book.

 

Well, the folks at I See Me! sent Gracie The Super, Incredible Big Sister book!

 

This book is super cute and uses both Gracie and Jack's name - it's adorable!

 

The Super, Incredible Big Sister Book Features:

• Gender/Ages: Girls Ages 0-8 (also comes in 'Big Brother')
• Book Size: 8.5" x 8.5"
• 20 Pages made of fiberboard, painted with lead-free paint.
• Award Medal:  Fabric ribbon with an easy detach Velcro closing.

This book is intended to be created for one big sister and one sibling and is the perfect gift for a new big sister! The Super, Incredible Big Sister book comes personalized with a big sister's name and the name of the new baby - so sooo adorable! This book reassures the big sister that she is loved and appreciated and it rewards her for helping out and being a super star with her new sibling with a Big Sister award medal to wear. Have I mentioned... adorable!?!

 

Ricky's Dream Trip | New Children's Book Series, Just In Time for Father's Day

Ricky's Dream Trip

Have you heard of the new children's book series called Ricky's Dream Trip?

I haven't - until now...

Bill Stevenson created this series for his grandson, Ricky.

In the “Ricky’s Dream Trip” book series, Ricky and PopPop go on adventures together in Ricky’s dreams, visiting far away places and long ago times.  While the stories are fanciful and imaginative, they are full of real historical and scientific facts presented in a way that interests children.  The books are a labor of love the real-life PopPop, Bill Stevenson, created for his grandson Ricky. See more at  http://rickysdreamtrip.com/ 

Ricky's Dream Trip Books Include:

• Solar System
• Colonial America
• Ancient Egypt
• Ancient Greece
• Ancient Rome

These books would make a fantastic gift for Father's Day.

Which book would you choose?

Take the fun Facebook quiz to find the perfect book for Dad or Grandad to share with his kids or grandchildren on his special day.

#WIN a $25 Build-A-Bear Workshop® GC #Giveaway | Ends 4/30

Build-A-Bear Workshop® Giveaway!

 

 

We Love Build-A-Bear Workshop®

I'm assuming everyone reading this has heard of Build-A-Bear Workshop® or even been in a shop to make a furry friend since Build-A-Bear Workshop® has been around since 1997. Today there are over 400 stores worldwide and over 100 million furry friends adventuring around the globe. We've been fans of Build-A-Bear Workshop® since 2004 and have made lots of furry friends since then!

 

I told you a couple weeks ago about Gracie's newest obsession being Hello Kitty. We have Hello Kitty everything around here... and now we have the new Sunshine Hello Kitty® from Build-A-Bear Workshop® too. We were invited out to our local Build-A-Bear Workshop® to build a furry friend for Gracie and one for Baby Jack.

 

 

Our Visit to Build-A-Bear Workshop 

 

Gracie had a great time building her Sunshine Hello Kitty®  and was so proud when she was all done dressing her... and Baby Jack loved his new friend too, it went in his mouth immediately! I had such a great time watching Gracie have a great time at Build-A-Bear Workshop®!

 

 

Who's Ready to WIN a $25 Gift Card to Build-A-Bear Workshop®!

 

 

 

 

That's right... the awesome folks at Build-A-Bear Workshop® are offering my awesome readers the chance to win a $25 gift card. It's super easy to enter, just fill out the form below! All you have to do is tell me who you would use the gift card for or what furry friend you would buy. If you'd like to get  more entries for a better chance to win... you can do more entries! It's up to you!

 

Good Luck!

 

Birthday in a Box | Pinkalicious!

 

Get a BIRTHDAY IN A BOX for Your Next Birthday Party!

Birthday in a Box is just that - a whole box of themed birthday party supplies like plates, hats, table cloth, etc. that gets shipped directly to your doorstep. Birthday in a Box carries over 150 different themes ranging from baby's first birthday to an adult party - and everything in between. You can even get your party supplies personalized too! Birthday in a Box can personalize 1000's of items. It's awesome!

We decided to review the Pinkalicious theme Birthday in a Box because Gracie has the Pinkalicious book and we read it a million times a day. Have you heard of Pinkalicious? She's a girl who ate too many pink cupcakes, even when her mom told her not to. She even snuck into the kitchen and stood up on a chair to reach the pink cupcakes on top of the fridge. She went to bed and she woke up PINK. It's a cute book and now... it's going to be a cute party!

Check It Out Our Pinkalicious Party - Birthday in a Box:

It all came nice and neatly in a little box.

Do You Have a Naughty Child? Wash Their Mouth Our with Soap! 'Naughty Mouth Soap' by Munchkin

Do You Have a Naughty Child?

 

Wash His/Her Mouth Out with Soap!

 

 

 

Munchkin’s newest parenting product – the Naughty Mouth Soap Bar, offering parents a non-toxic, foul-tasting deterrent to stop children’s inappropriate language!

I'm so excited, I just got this press release from Munchkin, Inc. about this fantastic new product. Hey, it was good enough in the 'olden days' so it should be good enough now!

 

Naughty Mouth Soap by Munchkin, Inc. comes in five flavors to address behavioral situations in good ole’ traditional parenting fashion during time-outs, grocery store outbursts and more:

• Whining Wasabi
• Lying Liver
• Spoiled Child, Spoiled Milk
• Vulgarity Vomit
• Extra-Strength Sour Pout Face

Here's the press release directly from Munchkin, Inc.: 

Meet the New Sunshine Hello Kitty® from Build-A-Bear Workshop®

Meet the New Sunshine Hello Kitty®
from Build-A-Bear Workshop®

Isn't she adorable!?!

 

 

Hello Kitty at Build-A-Bear Workshop®

 

Gracie's newest obsession is Hello Kitty. We have Hello Kitty everything around here... and now we have the new Sunshine Hello Kitty® from Build-A-Bear Workshop® too. We were invited out to our local Build-A-Bear Workshop® to build a furry friend for Gracie and one for Baby Jack.

 

We Love Build-A-Bear Workshop®

 

I'm assuming everyone reading this has heard of Build-A-Bear Workshop® or even been in a shop to make a furry friend since Build-A-Bear Workshop® has been around since 1997. Today there are over 400 stores worldwide and over 100 million furry friends adventuring around the globe.

 

Our first trip to Build-A-Bear was around 2004, I had only three kids back then who were 7, 6 and 5 years old. My son made a cute husky-looking puppy and my girls made monkey's... and we've all been addicted ever since. We've made monkey's, a kitty, kangaroo (although my daughter swears it's a dog), bears (quite a few). My hubby is the worst. He takes our Gracie (3 years old) in to Build-A-Bear Workshop® every chance he gets. In fact, a few months ago we were all at the mall. We all got separated and I had the two little one's... looking for Daddy. I eventually found him in Build-A-Bear making a bear for  himself. Of course he claimed he was making it for Baby Jack haha.

 

Our Visit to Build-A-Bear Workshop

Wordless Wednesday with Linky | Cute Easter Crafts for the Kids

Happy Wordless Wednesday!

 

Since it's almost Easter, I went onto Pinterest to start looking for some cute Easter crafts to do with the kids. Some are so easy, even the little one's can do it.

 

Check them out...

 

 

I love this one because it's much easier than getting out tons of liquid colors... and it's cute!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Source: bhg.com via Danielle on Pinterest

PishPosh Baby | Review and $50 Giveaway

PishPosh Baby is starting to become a household name around here. Back in February I reviewed the Lay-n-Go® LITE which has really come in handy for Gracie's little toys she likes carrying around. This time I got the Anatex Magnetic Sea Life Handheld Table to review.


Anatex Magnetic Sea Life Handheld Table came almost totally put together. The sand and sea animals came in little baggies and there were 4 screws in a baggie that had to be screwed in once we put the sand and animals in. Nice and easy.

Anatex Magnetic Sea Life Handheld Table Features:

• Contanis starfish, faish, crabs, lobster, dolphin
• Ages 3+
• Weighs 10 lbs.
• Measures 23 1/2" x 13 1/2" x 9 1/2"
• Has 2 magnets on either side of table, makes for good play with more than one child.
• Also comes in "Bug Life"

VeggieTales: Lettuce Love One Another

VeggieTales: Lettuce Love One Another!

I know Valentine's Day is over... but I got this a little bit late and I still want to share. VeggieTales: Lettuce Love One Another! is a great DVD to have around and watch over and over, even if it's not Valentine's Day.

SYNOPSIS

VeggieTales: Lettuce Love One Another!includes three popular VeggieTales episodes—Tomato Sawyer & Huckleberry Larry's Big River Rescue,Abe and the Amazing Promise and King George and the Ducky—in addition to five brand-new “Bible Bits,” story shorts that demonstrate examples of giving and forgiving, helping, praying and sharing. Each episode in this collection helps teach a valuable lesson about love, whether it’s through honoring others when we help them, having patience or the importance of putting others first.

Episodes Include:

• Tomato Sawyer and Huckleberry Larry's Big River Rescue
• Abe & The Amazing Promise
• King George & the Ducky
• 5 Brand New "Bible Bits" (fun story shorts that show examples of forgiving, helping, giving, praying and sharing - all demonstrating that we can love others just as God loves us).

DVD Bonus Features Include:

• "The Biscuit of Zazzamarandabo" Silly Song
• "Sneeze If You Need To" Silly Song
• "Endangered Love" Silly Song
• Madame Blueberry Storybook
• How to Draw Abe
• "Helpers are Heroes" Interactive Storybook
• How to Draw King George

If you get a chance, check out the DVD trailer.

BUY IT!

The DVD is available at all major retailers for SRP $12.99.

I also wanted to share with you 'Lettuce Love One Another' printables on Pinterest. 

 

Lay-n-Go® LITE is Perfect for Carrying Around Those Little Toys

Now that Gracie is older she has tons of little toys that can get lost easily. Barbie accessories like pretty heels, brushes and crowns and tons of princess gear too. Sometimes it's hard to keep it all together as hard as we try to keep it all organized.

When I was offered the  Lay-n-Go® LITE from PishPosh Baby, I immediately thought that would be a perfect little 'satchel' for Gracie to use for some of her smaller toys like her Little People princesses that go in her Disney Castle.

What's awesome about the LayNGo® LITE is that it's an 18 inch mat that lays flat but by pulling the drawstring, can easily turn into a satchel to carry whatever you have laying on it. This is great because Gracie will bring all of her Little People Princesses to the table to play with but then she changes her mind and wants to bring them over to her castle on the other side of the room. Her LayNGo® LITE makes it easy to move these little toys from one area to the next. We can also bring these in the car.

Gracie Loves her I See Me! Personalized Children's Book!

I See Me! has been making personalized children's books since 2000! The husband and wife team began making these books after getting the idea back in 1998 when they received a personalized book for their first son. They had ideas that could make the personalized book better and they took off with it!

"Our mission is to increase self esteem in children through personalized books that celebrate the uniqueness of each child. The goal of our books is to show each child how absolutely unique and special he or she is, to teach the child how to spell his or her name, and to build vocabulary skills." --Maia Haag, author and CEO of I See Me! Inc.

I See Me! has a great selection of personalized children's book to chose from, for both girls and boys. They have about 19 different books to chose from. Here are a few titles:  My Very Own Name Storybook, My Very Own Pirate Tale Storybook, God Loves You Personalized Book, My Very Happy Birthday Book for boys/girls, The Super Incredible Big Sister/Brother, and more! These books would make fantastic gifts for any occasion! I wish I would have known about these books last year. I would have loved to get Gracie a big sister book.

Not only does I See Me! sell books, but they also carry other personalized gifts like place mats, coloring books, puzzles and more.

Homemade Melted Snowman Ornament: Gift from Child

I have mentioned a few times how Gracie, my 3 year old, has been coming home from pre-k with a lot of fun recipes and crafts. And now since it is closer to Christmas, she started coming home with cute little gifts that she has made herself.

Today I wanted to share the Christmas ornament that she made in school this week.

"You Melt My Heart"

She told me that they used salt in this ornament and a candy corn for the nose. She did not know what the eyes and mouth were made of, some kind of tiny black ball - but it's so cute!

The card attached to it says, "You Melt My Heart" on one side and on the other side it says, "Love, Grace". I love this! It's so so adorable because we have been watching Frosty the Snowman a lot lately. And the whole idea in general, 'melt my heart' - too cute!

I think this is such an awesome idea for a child to make as a gift to someone like parents, grandparents or maybe even a teacher?

Sticky Situation - Family Safety

Summer is Here!

Vacations, day tips and fun travels are quickly approaching.

Keep your family safe with important vehicle safety:

Illustration by CustomizedStickers

Insert this graphic into your website:
<img src="http://www.customizedstickers.com/assets/images/images/illustration-sticky-situation.jpg" border="0" alt="Sticky Situation by Customized Stickers" style="border:0px" /><br /><br />Illustration Created by <a href="http://www.customizedstickers.com">customizedstickers.com</a>

Father’s Day Photo Art

I got this idea from Pinterest and I HAD to try it!

It just so happened that Olivia was over for the weekend visiting so I figured I’d take advantage of it and snap a photo of her.

If I had the time, I would have loved to do another photo with all of the kids (my kids, Mike’s step-kids) and do some sort of other word(s). Maybe a big college that said the whole phrase “happy father’s day” in the same style as this one.

I would have also liked to do one for the grandpa’s. They would have liked that. All 3 of them.

Anyway… how do you like it?

It turned out good, huh?



If you get a chance, pin it!

Wordless Wednesday: Mother’s Day Hand Print Craft (#linky)

Happy Wordless Wednesday… even though my Wordless Wednesday posts are never Wordless :)

I wanted to share a Mother’s Day Craft that I plan on trying out.

I love, love, love any kind of crafty-type thing with kids hand prints. They melt my heart! I recently came across this one that I would LOVE to do with Gracie & my daycare kids for Mother’s Day:

Source: thetrendytreehouse.blogspot.com via Danielle on Pinterest

 

Isn’t this adorable?!?

Wouldn’t this be so so cute in a picture frame?

I think so!

Strict Schedules with Children: Yes or No? Debate with the Danielle’s

Welcome to Week 9
of
Friendly Debates With The Danielle’s!

 <a border="0" href="http://wedonthaveitall.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://i763.photobucket.com/albums/xx280/mbishop62604/DebateButton1.jpg"width="150" height="150" /> </a> Wanna Play? 

PlasmaCar Toy Review

The PlasmaCar, by PlaSmart, is a mechanical marvel that makes use of the most exhaustable source of energy; kid-power.
One of the world’s best-selling children’s ride-on-toys, the PlasmaCar’s unique and award-winning design requires no batteries, pedals, gears, or electrical parts to propel the car; you simply turn the steering wheel, and away you go! The PlasmaCar harnesses the natural forces of inertia, centrifugal force and friction.

The PlasmaCar is an awesome toy that the whole family can enjoy because it can support up to 220 lbs. It is designed for ages 3 and up and can go up to 6 miles per hour.

It does need to be assembled by an adult but it is super easy and we had it put together in just about 10 minutes… and Gracie thought she was helping haha.

Woombie Eco ‘Toddler Donut

KB Designs, LLC is owned and operated by Karen Barski and her team of Woombie experts!

“KB Designs is a family owned business which was built with the love and safety of babies in mind - with a sensitivity towards mom's and dad's needs too.  All of our products are geared towards the theme SWADDLE, SNUGGLE, AND SLEEP. We are Environmentally conscious, as all of our products are manufactured in an eco-friendly factory and manner. No harsh chemicals, no flame retardants. We practice strict compliance per CPSIA standards.  Strict safety testing using CPSIA standards and testing in a CPSIA third party accredited  testing facility are top priority.  If we do not pass testing, we do not sell products.”

Just like their theme states, "Swaddle Snuggle Sleep", Woombie sells many different products to help baby (and mom) during those first months which sometimes seem overwhelming. From many different kinds of Swaddle Sleep Sacks to Sleepers, Blankets and Towels and much more like their Eco Cushions (Donuts)!

Wordless Wednesday: Our Sad, Sad Looking Turkeys

Happy Wordless Wednesday everyone!

…but never ‘wordless’ here :)

I wanted to do a few Thanksgiving crafts with Gracie, but as time went on, and Thanksgiving got closer and closer… I kind of lost track of time.

So one day this past week (out of the blue) I grabbed out all of our paints with this craft in mind:

Christmas Shopping Panic Starting to Set In

Well…

It’s that time again.

That time of year when I realize that I have not kept my promise to myself (yet again). I promise myself every single year that I will start putting money aside for Christmas shopping or I promise myself that I will start making purchases for Christmas presents early starting in October.

Of course I did not keep this promise to myself. Again.

So now it is panic time. Christmas is less than a month away and I have 5 kids to buy for. Unfortunately my 4 older kids are old enough to know what they want and they (and need) and this stuff is not cheap!

I need my kids to have their own computer so my thought is to buy them netbooks. My son has had his own laptop (which HE saved for and purchased himself) but it just clonked out. He does most of his school work on the computer and now my 7th grader is starting to do a lot of work on the computer and then next in line will be my 6th grader. The most logical thing (to me) is buying them each their own laptop or netbook.

They do want a computer, but it is their second choice. Their first choice is the new iPod. Go figure. That item is more for entertainment purposes, so of course they want that first.

I also want to try to get the girls some new boots (so they stop borrowing mine!) and my son a video game with headset that has has been wanting. Ugh! This stuff is expensive! So, I am not sure what I am going to do but I do want to get them all this stuff. I might take advantage of the buy now, pay later options like http://www.ellos.co.uk/. Not sure yet. I will also probably do layaway at a store or two.

We’ll see. Either way, I hope to get everything on my list. Most of these things will benefit me also, so I can’t complain, right?

This post is in association with Ellos.