Kids Stuff | Faith and Family Reviews

Archive for Kids Stuff

Matilda Jane Review and Giveaway

Posted by Brande on April 18, 2014
in Children's Clothing, Faith and Family Reviews Friday Giveaway, Fashion, Fun Stuff, Gift Ideas, Girl Stuff, Giveaways, Kids Stuff, Reviews, Shopping, Uncategorized

<Matilda Jane Review

If you are looking for different styles for you and your girls and don’t want to head to the store. Matilda Jane Clothing is for you! They sell their clothing line through hosted “Trunk Shows”.

Each year they release 2 collections in the Spring and Fall. There are currently over 500 “Trunk Keepers” throughout the US & Canada. Once you found a host, you can either attend a showing or have your own in home show! You can also become a “Jane” to host your own shows!

Check out what they sent to us! My daughter received an adorable dress from their called “Roller Coaster Tiered Dress”

Made of 69% cotton, 28% nylon, & 3% spandex, you need to wash this dress in cold water and lay it on a flat surface to dry.

This dress is perfect for an active child in the summertime and very fun. My daughter loves the colorful tiers. There are butterflies, bikes, flowers, shoes and bird on this adorable dress. It is topped off with little yellow ruffled sleeves.

Click here and fill out the form to find your nearest “Jane” for Matilda Jane Clothing!

Matilda Jane Giveaway

Would you like to give Matilda Jane a try? Enter to win a $50 Gift Card to Matilda Jane below! Ends 5/2!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Share and Enjoy

{11 comments}

VTech Alternative Easter Basket Ideas and Giveaway

Posted by html404 on April 15, 2014
in Fun Stuff, Giveaways, Holidays, Kids Stuff, Kids Toys, Reviews, Techie Stuff, Technology/Electronics, Uncategorized

“The VTech product, gift card, information, and additional gift pack have been provided by VTech.”

Easter is only days away, are you ready? VTech has some alternative Easter basket ideas and a giveaway to help you celebrate this spring holiday!

Did you know that VTech consults with a panel of experts on the development of its learning products? VTech supports you as your child continues to grow and reach new developmental milestones by offering a variety of age-appropriate toys. Here are the VTech products we reviewed:

InnoTab®Doc McStuffins Software Cartridge (Ages 4-7 years; MSRP: $24.99)

- Learn reading, vocabulary, observation, logic, memory, math, visual skills, creativity, healthy living and more! The Doc is in!

– Read a story about Lambie and Doc in an e-book, color in Doc’s Big Book of Boo-Boos and play games with Doc and her friends.

Our Review: This was great for all three of our younger children. Considering the fact they all love animals and we just got our own lamb, it was very cute and timely! Our children love their InnoTab 3S so I don’t think we could go wrong in any cartridge at this point!

InnoTab Sofia the First Software Cartridge (Ages 3-6 years; MSRP: $24.99)

- Seven learning games and two creative activities teach counting, colors, patterns, problem solving and more! Join Sofia on this wild and thrilling day!

– Learn how Sofia becomes a princess in Story Mode with the interactive e-book. Take pictures with favorite characters and scenes (camera activity compatible with any InnoTab® system with a camera).

Our Review: Our eight year old daughter loves princesses so Princess Sofia was perfect for her. Even though it is geared towards younger children she enjoyed playing the activities. Our younger boys benefited from the educational activities as well as had fun in the process.

Go! Go! Smart Wheels® Vehicles (Ages 1-5 years; MSRP: $7.99)

- These electronic play vehicles are perfectly sized for little hands and entertain children with a light-up button that activates music and sounds.

– Little ones will also learn about different letters and vehicle names through pretend play.

Our Review: Our three year old loved his VTech bulldozer. Everything about it. If he couldn’t find it, he was asking where it was and the hunt was on! We’ll see how long it lasts. Parents may not like the sounds it makes though!

Switch & Go Dinos®Turbo Assortment (Ages 3-8 years; MSRP: $9.99)

- Kids can rev up the action with flywheels that let the dinos race and roar across the floor. Each dino also emits realistic vehicle and dinosaur sounds and phrases that teach fun facts about each dino.

– The range features six new dinos, including Dart the Triceratops, Zipp the T-Rex, Spur the Stegosaurus, Fray the Ankylosaurus, Cruz the Spinosaurus and Spinner the Stygimoloch.

Our Review: Our six year old really liked this product. I am not sure if he took it apart at all yet but he has been playing with it and taking really good care of it, as is characteristic of him and his belongings. We haven’t had it long enough to see how long it will last long term but so far so good.

You can stay up to date with VTech at the links below:

· VTech website

· VTech Twitter

· VTech Facebook

VTech Easter Basket and Giveaway

Wanna win? Enter to win your own VTech products in the giveaway below! Ends 4/30. Happy Easter!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Share and Enjoy

{9 comments}

My Healthy Home with Ology

Posted by html404 on April 14, 2014
in Children's Health, Cleaning, Eco Friendly Products, Health, Kids Stuff, Personal Care Products, Safety, Uncategorized

I am a member of the Collective Bias® Social Fabric® Community. This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper amplification for #CollectiveBias and its advertiser. #WalgreensOlogy

My healthy home includes using products that are safe for even my children to use. As Earth Day draws near, I thought it fitting to try a new brand called Ology, found exclusively at my local Walgreens store, and do a bit of spring cleaning.

About Ology

Ology products are free of 10 harmful chemicals (you can look these ingredients up at http://www.ewg.org/ and find out exactly why they are harmful):

Ammonia
Chlorine bleach
DEA (diethanolamine)
TEA (triethanolamine)
Parabens
Phthalates
Formaldehyde
Nonylphenol ethoxylates
Triclosan
SLS/SLES

Plus, Ology contains no dyes or artificial fragrances. This is huge for us as our children have had reactions to some ingredients, especially fragrances.

Their paper products are 100% tree free, strong, biodegradable and septic safe. Made from readily renewable sugar husk that would otherwise be disposed and they use Bamboo which is faster growing than trees, making Ology products better for the environment.

Celebrating Earth Day with Ology

My children helped me demonstrate how we used some of Ology products in our home. Starting with the large photo and going clockwise:

JAG is waiting for dinner using Ology bamboo plates. These plates are very sturdy. I really liked them!

JR is cleaning the bathroom with Ology all-purpose cleaner, which is free without harsh solvents or ammonia, and paper towels. The paper towels are surprisingly thick absorbent.

Jr. is helping me put Ology bathroom tissue on the toilet paper roll. This tp is very strong and absorbent.

Blondie is washing her hands with Ology Oatmeal & Honey bar soap. Everyone thought this soap made their hands very soft.

Nook is blowing his nose (yes it’s staged as he didn’t have a runny nose at the time!) with Ology facial tissue.

Ology laundry detergent is gentle on the skin. This is especially important for the delicate skin of my children. I was excited to try this detergent since we have yet to find a chemical free detergent that works for our family.

If you are trying to make your home more healthy, I’d highly recommend giving Ology a try.

Share and Enjoy

{7 comments}

Disney’s Planes: Fire & Rescue

Posted by html404 on April 8, 2014
in Entertainment, Kids Stuff, Movies, News Worthy, Uncategorized

We have enjoyed all of Disney’s Planes and Cars movie. Coming July 18th to theaters near you is Disney’s Planes: Fire & Rescue!

View the trailer below:

PLANES: FIRE & RESCUE (In 3D)

DISNEY

Website: Disney.com/Planes

Like on Facebook: facebook.com/DisneyPlanes

Follow on Twitter: twitter.com/DisneyPictures

Genre: Animation/Adventure

Rating: TBD

Release Date: July 18, 2014

Voice Cast: Dane Cook, Julie Bowen

Director: Bobs Gannaway

Producer: Ferrell Barron

“Planes: Fire & Rescue” is a new comedy-adventure about second chances, featuring a dynamic crew of elite firefighting aircraft devoted to protecting historic Piston Peak National Park from raging wildfire. When world famous air racer Dusty (voice of Dane Cook) learns that his engine is damaged and he may never race again, he must shift gears and is launched into the world of aerial firefighting. Dusty joins forces with veteran fire and rescue helicopter Blade Ranger and his courageous team, including spirited super scooper Dipper (voice of Julie Bowen), heavy-lift helicopter Windlifter, ex-military transport Cabbie and a lively bunch of brave all-terrain vehicles known as The Smokejumpers. Together, the fearless team battles a massive wildfire and Dusty learns what it takes to become a true hero. Directed by Bobs Gannaway (“Secret of the Wings”), “Planes: Fire & Rescue” hits theaters in 3D on July 18, 2014.

“Planes: Fire & Rescue” is a new comedy-adventure in which Dusty joins forces with a dynamic crew of elite firefighting aircraft and learns what it takes to become a true hero.

Share and Enjoy

{16 comments}

Week #16 Saturday Top Five Laughs

Posted by html404 on March 29, 2014
in Animals, Family Stuff, Fun Stuff, Humor, Kids Stuff, Saturday Top Five Laughs, Uncategorized

I knew once I missed on Saturday Top Five Laughs, it would be hard to get back to getting them done, but we are getting back on the bandwagon and joining Mel over at The Mommyhood Chronicles for week #16 (for us) in the Saturday Top Five Laughs of the week. Granted most of them are about the animals!

5. Our goats got out of their stall this morning. They have been working on this for three weeks and finally succeeded! They wreaked havoc in the barn and made more of a mess than our cow or horse has ever done! That was a few weeks ago and they’ve had a lots more escapades! Thankfully due to their trust in B and O the goats are fairly easy to catch….most of the time.

4. We went to see a heifer (young female cow who has not calved) yesterday and while we were visiting with her and her owners she sniffed around a pile of manure then proceeded to do her business on top of that! I looked at her owner and said, “You trained her well.”

3. Jr. took a red marker and put these red lines on his feet and said he was Iron Man. (He’s very into super heros.)

2. Jr. one evening this week had a pen and paper. First he said, “Mommy, me love you sooo much.” Then he said, “Dear Mommy, Dear Daddy, Me love you soo much!” Heart throbs!

1. We were all outside today since it was warmer (in the 40’s) and sunny. So we all gathered around one of the hay racks our hay guy left in the field. We were just sitting there shooting the breeze, petting the cats and dog. I was giving the dog some lovins and B was next to me with one of the kittens. Padfoot wasn’t doing anything but enjoying my petting him and Freckles wigged out and scratched Padfoot on the nose! Padfoot yelped, then offended barked but backed away and came to my other side for love. Previous to this, Badger, our black and white kitten, had royally hissed at Padfoot for simply looking at him! Guess Padfoot probably deserved it for all the times he has tormented them, but still he was being a good dog today.

What has made you laugh this week?

Share and Enjoy

{15 comments}

MommysClub All In Bundle Review

Posted by html404 on March 21, 2014
in Baby Products, Children's Health, Cleaning, Diapers and Accessories, Eco Friendly Products, Health, Health and Nutrition, Health and Wellness, Kids Stuff, Organic, Personal Care Products, Pregnancy and Birth, Reviews, Uncategorized, Women's Health

As I mentioned last week in our MommysClub giveaway post, we have been reviewing the MommysClub All In Bundle.

Products in the MommysClub All In Bundle

None of the products smell chemically. They barely have any scent. I love that they are organic and or all natural, toxic-free and hypoallergenic.

Total Body Health with Multivitamin – To be honest this is weird tasting but I’m not one to shy away from weird tasting health products. Now bad tasting products, I usually won’t buy again. Weird I can get use to. I think only my oldest and I have been taking it.

Total Body Health for Children with Multivitamin – Only our youngest son likes to drink this. The rest not so much. I’d describe it as liquifying crushed up multivitamins. This would be great for those who cannot swallow pill form vitamins.

Children’s Multivitamin – All the children loved these chewable multivitamins!

Pre-Natal Plus – This is the same as the other liquid vitamins above but for expectant or nursing mamas. I did taste it. The flavor kind of reminded me of another health drink we’ve taken.

Daily Cleansing Foam – I’ve barely used this but it is a no-rinse hand washing solution that hypoallergenic with moisturizer for post-diaper clean up, cuts and burns. This would be nice to keep in the car.

Baby Shampoo – I haven’t even had a chance to fully review this product. I kind of forgot about it amidst all the other products. It smells great though!

Rash & Remedy Skin Relief – Haven’t had any use for this yet. Though Jr. does seem to have some spots I could try it on now that I think about it. It is for rashes and common skin problems.

Perfect Touch Sanitizer – Since we’ve been sick, I’ve been using this sanitizer on taps, door knobs etc. Yep, sick for the first time in two years and we’ve been double slammed in the last month.

I cannot honestly say how any of these products work long term because we have only been using them a short time. I can just give you our general thoughts about our initial usage.

About MommysClub

MommysClub is a network marketing company so becoming a member may enable you to earn an income from sharing their products with others. As a part of the giveaway and upcoming review, I became a member so this post includes my unique link.

You can learn more about MommysClub via their social media pages:

https://www.facebook.com/themommysclub

https://twitter.com/themommysclub

http://www.pinterest.com/themommysclub/

https://vimeo.com/user21859339

Share and Enjoy

{14 comments}

RUUM Kids Spring Fashion

Posted by html404 on March 20, 2014
in Clothing, Fashion, Kids Stuff, SALES, Seasonal Stuff, Shopping, Uncategorized

Spring is here and with that means a change of wardrobe…that is if the temperatures start increasing, which is slowly happening here in the Chicago area! I love being able to dress our kids in nice clothes for when we go out to church, to Grandma’s or some place special. RUUM Kids spring fashion is here and our almost eight year old daughter is wearing a sweet little heart dress (would have been great for Valentine’s Day too!) in the collage below:

It needs a little sweater for the cold start to spring we are experiencing. It is very lightweight and sheer, but does not need a slip as it has a built in lining.

I think my daughter would also have liked this jeweled skater dress:

This embroidered flower dress is definitely a spring choice, perhaps for Easter:

For the boys there are also some snazzy looking spring fashion outfits, like this vintage stripe polo shirt coupled with a pair of khakis or chino pants:

One of our son’s loves a dress jacket so I had to include this dressy blazer:

Then there’s always the nice dress shirt, which is my oldest son’s preference:

What does your child’s spring fashion look like?

Right now RUUM Kid’s has a 30% off sale on all their spring fashion items! Check it out!

Share and Enjoy

{18 comments}

Keep the Faith – Berenstain Bears Book Review

Posted by html404 on March 17, 2014
in Books, Family Stuff, Gift Ideas, Kids Stuff, Reviews, Uncategorized

This post contains affiliate links to support our family.

If you spend any amount of time on my site you know we love books! I stopped getting children’s books to review just because we have so many books already but I couldn’t resist The Berenstain Bears Keep the Faith (Berenstain Bears/Living Lights) book.

Our younger children all love this book and have asked to read it over and over again. The message is simple. Brother and Sister Bear come across a friend, Ferdy Factual, who does not believe in God and they are not quite sure what to do or say for that matter. They were kind to their friend, though they asked him questions. I thought Mama and Papa handled the issue quite well, though they could have done a better job of explaining what faith is themselves rather than going to Preacher Brown. However, I understand that may have just been there to help children know when mom and dad do not know the answer a member of the clergy is there to consult with on the tougher questions.

This book was a good reminder to me to help our children understand that not everyone believes the same way or the same things as we do.

I give it two thumbs up for Keep the Faith for any family of faith with young kiddos in the home.

Share and Enjoy

{14 comments}

Cats Riding a Horse – Wordless Wednesday

Posted by html404 on March 12, 2014
in Animals, Farm Stuff, Kids Stuff, Uncategorized, Wordless Wednesday

Om our third oldest daughter caught Freckles (left) on our horse Blaze yesterday. Badger (right) was ready to jump up so she put him and Selene (middle) up there too. Ever see cats riding a horse? Neither have we.

By the way, I was wrong on the kittens sex. Freckles and Badger are males! Aw well, what can I say, I haven’t had cats or kittens since I was a child! Ha! I’ve been told they are hard to sex when they are small so that made me feel less of a fool. So the battle of the cat sexes are even at three and three!

The children tried putting our Tom cat on Blaze too but he was too scared and jumped off! Or so they say.

I thought Om captured this photo very well.

Do you see the straw hanging from Badger’s mouth? He was having fun rolling in the hay!

Share and Enjoy

{21 comments}

Twigtale

Posted by 278Wife on March 11, 2014
in Baby Products, Books, Kids Stuff, Reviews, Uncategorized

Do your kids enjoy looking at photos of themselves? My kids absolutely love looking through photo albums of themselves and talking about what they were doing and who is in the picture with them. What if you could design a book completely centered around photos of your children and written for your child? Twigtale has made this possible, and it’s very easy to do!

Twigtale makes personalized children’s books focused on early transitions such as moving, parents going on a vacation, or gaining a new sibling. They also make “anytime” books that build self-esteem and promote child development. Your first step is to go to www.twigtale.com and choose which book you would like to create. I chose “Who Loves Me?” It’s a book all about the many people who love my daughter. Once you choose the book you want you can begin building the book or see a list of photos you will need to complete the book.

I found that viewing the image list helped me to gather all of the photos needed before I started the book. I saved them all in a folder to my desktop so they were easy to access. You can either upload all of the images you have right away or add images as you go. Since I had already picked out my images I created a new gallery and uploaded them all at once. It was really easy to just drag them from my desktop into the program for uploading. Next you answer a few questions such as who the book is for, who is creating the book, and the gender of the child. The book then populates with all of this information and you’re ready to start writing the book.

You begin with the cover page and go page by page until the end. Simply drag a photo to the desired page, edit it if needed, and insert text. Most of the story is there, you just need to insert people’s names. Honestly it took me about 20 minutes to make the whole book. It was so fast and easy. When you get to the end of the book, you’re able to preview it and check for errors you may have made. That’s it! Input your personal information and billing information and the book will be mailed to you shortly. I received my book in three days, it was very fast!

The finished product was of very high quality. The colors are bright, the quality of the images were great, and the pages were nice and thick. All of the books are only $20 each, and would make great gifts. I plan on giving my daughter hers for her 1st birthday. The site was very easy to navigate, and creating the book was very user friendly. I even made a few mistakes and had to delete photos and upload new ones. I was very pleased with how fast the process was. Overall, I would definitely recommend Twigtale personalized books. A high quality, personalized book, for a very affordable price!