Baby Bargins

A friend's blog reminded me of this great book. Baby Bargins is great. Baby Bargins is a Consumer Reports type book for baby stuff. It was especially helpful when deciding which things I should put on my registry when we had our first baby. Sometimes there are items which are worth the extra money, and sometimes the cheaper item is just as good as its more expensive counterpart.

Nick Jr Magazine

I am never good at saying no to the guys that come to your door selling things. I start off saying no firmly, but then end up saying yes once the guy tells me he is trying to make something of his life by selling his item.

One of these items I recently bought was a magazine subscription to Nick Jr. Magazine for my daughter. Olivia loves to get mail and even loves it more when she sees her favorite shows on the cover of her mail. She "reads" it for quite awhile and goes back to it to "read" again and again. I need to be better about going through it with her as there are lots of educational items and games to play. It is geared for the preschool age group and is good idea for a birthday gift (better then some cheapo toy they don't need). Costvaries.

Breast-feeding moms - LOOK!

Okay, it's an expensive toy. But imagine never again having to prop a book open with two pillows and your toddler's toy blocks (or the TV remote) so you can read while you're nursing.

And no more trying to hold the book one-handed, turn the page and balance your drink without spilling on the 3 loads of laundry you're using to prop the book because you can't find the pillows.

Enter the Kindle. Just imagine. . . 90,000 books at your finger tips, one-touch page turns. And it looks and reads like real paper.

I adore real books, and I will always want to be surrounded by them. But as an avid reader and a breast-feeding mama, I love this product. Check it out on Amazon.

State Cards Memorization

We all know kids are eager to learn new things. Their minds are amazing sponges. It blows my mind every time my 4 year old remembers something obscure I have told her, definitions of words she has asked me about, words to songs she hears, recognizing signs she sees (since the age of 2 she has known what the Starbucks logo is--I say slightly embarrassed) and even memorizing short scriptures. It is humbling (when she picks up words like "crap") and such a huge responsibility.

My friend Betsy insists her brother is smarter then her because her mother, Diane, flashed the United States flash cards to him and not to her when they were children. Last year while visiting Diane, she brought out her flash cards for Olivia (my then 3 year old). Olivia was very excited and eager to learn. She flashed each of the 10 cards, said the name of the state, and then repeated this processes 3 times a day for 5 days. By the end of the time Olivia could correctly identify the states. When I got home I bought some flash cards and we started learning them. She quickly learned about 25 states. We haven't been consistently doing them for a number of months, but picked them up today and she remembered the 25 she had known before plus a handful of states she only saw a couple times. I was impressed (of course I was, I'm her mom). It is fun to learn with her and a nice way to spend time together.

A couple of helpful thoughts if you want to get this started:

1.We only do the flash cards when she is excited and eager to learn, I want this to be a fun time for both of us. Usually she asks me to do them.

2. My friend Diane said she used this flash card technique for anything her kids were interested in. She would flash cards about dinosaurs, construction equipment, really anything they liked.

3. Start with 10 cards at one time, otherwise it will be too overwhelming.

4. I've found this is a huge self esteem builder for Olivia. I am able to tell her how proud I am of her hard work, listening skills, and eagerness to learn. We have also discussed how she feels when she recognizes the states and how important it is for her to feel excited inside for her achievements and hard work.

**The down side to this is that all of my kids are going to expect me to teach them the states, otherwise the will blame me if they are not as smart as Olivia. :)

Baby Bean

I love this line of boutique clothing for girls from Baby Bean. All of the items are hand made from vintage fabrics. Darling, simply darling.

Plantable Cards

This is so cool. You send these great cards to your friends, they plant the card and wildflowers grow. Very cool.

Feed the Hungry

I saw this posted on a couple blogs today and wanted to pass it on. Improve your vocabulary AND fight world hunger. I really like the way it adds rice to the bowl as you get words correct.

Responsibility Chart

We bought this for my 3 year old to supplement his homeschool curriculum. It truly does teach responsibility (with the parents' involvement, of course) and my son loves to see the magnets lining up on a perfect week.

We had already started paying him an allowance to teach him the value of money and how to tithe and save. This helps us keep better track of whether he is earning his allowance each week.

Melissa & Doug products are so great. We love the sturdy construction and colorful graphics. It is made of wood (all the pieces are thick wood and magnetic) and weighs quite a bit. It comes with two blank white responsibility labels for making your own.

Real Bugs Discovery Kit

Another cool product I just saw from Toys to Grown On. The Real Bugs Discovery Kit is a great education toy and would be great for any child. It would also be great for homeschooling. $19.95

Art Easel and Caddy

I love this clear art easel ($79.95)from Toys to Grow On. It is really fun and different. It gives your kids a different perspective while painting and doing artwork. You can use tempera paint, fingerpaints, easel crayons or traditional paper.

I also love the idea of this paint caddy ($24.99)from TTGO. Since I am an organizational freak, it makes me smile.

TTGO has a ton of great educational toys and is worth your time to visit their site.

Pear Jacket

This has to be the cutest product of all time. No more bruised pears for me! All I need is a Pear Jacket and when lunchtime rolls around, my pear will be blemish-free (and cozy too!).

I know, it's pure indulgence. But hey - maybe it will help our kids eat more fruit?? (now they just need to make a broccoli jacket. . .)

They also offer an Apple Jacket that is cute as a. . . well, a button.

Yet another great product found on Etsy.com.

Nursing Bracelet

My friend Wendy gives these great nursing bracelets as shower gifts. She gave me one when I was pregnant with Autumn. Milkbands are really great. When you are suffering from lack of sleep, and when your brain is just mush, milkbands really help you remember what side you left off. They also have holes and pegs with numbers so you can move the pegs to record what time you fed your baby last or to keep track of how long they nursed. No more safety pins on your bra or switching bracelets from wrist to wrist.

Personalized Books

My grandmother had this book created for Olivia. It is personalized for her and includes her birthday and the name of three of her friends. She loved it. Identity Direct has many books, clothes, and stationary you can personalize.