Bright Star Kid Review

Aren't these the cutest graphics? This is just a sampling of the pack of wall graphics I received from Bright Star Kids for my NerdBug. I have wanted to do the kids rooms for a while but my problem has always been that they want wall paper decorations and I don't want to have to take them down. (I am assuming that they will want things changed a little between 7 and even 10, as far as maturity) These are awesome because they go up easy and come down easier. This pack came with 189 different decals in various sizes and 4 colors. You can place these decals on the walls and then take them down and put them up somewhere else! I love this feature because I am a commitment phob when it comes to decorating (what is I put it somewhere and hate it;) but it is also a good solution for someone in an apartment because it doesn't leave any marks or gunk on the wall. Given this set is for a 7 year old boy's room, I was very happy that they are water proof so you can wipe them down but you could also use them in a kid's bathroom.

The website is awesome because it has a gallery of rooms that you can look at (and copy in my case). They also gave me the idea to paint around 1 side in a different color and give the shape a shadow. I thought that was so cool;). I really liked working with this company too! They are in Australia so shipping to the US takes a bit but they have such a quality product it is really worth it. They also don't just have wall shaped decals. They have other decals, labels and the like.

Right now they have quite a few things on sale but just in case you want something that isn't on sale they have given me a coupon code for all of you! Use FAMILYREVIEW for 20% off from March 25-April 25 in the promo code box at checkout. Remember it isn't good on any of the things already on sale.

So go check them out and let me know what you think!

Schleich Action Figures

I recently got some of the cutest action figures for the kids to play with from Schleich. I got a variety of animal figures (including this pig) and they are great. They are made out of a nice rigid plastic. This really means 2 things in this house. They are too hard to let the 20 month old to play with but they are firm and strong so the kids can't break them but can play a lot. My 3 older kids love to sit and play with them all as a big group and what mom doesn't want to see that? You can get these figures in many places including Target and, my favorite, Amazon. So go get some of these great figures!

Exergen Review/Giveaway

I got the great opportunity to review the Exergen Temporal Thermometer. I have 4 kids and it seems I have to take all of their temperatures in a row. That takes forever and they don't really care for it either. So this thermometer was a real blessing. You just sweep it across the the temporal artery in the forehead. It captures the infrared heat that is emitted and then reads out the highest temperatures that it senses (out about 1000 a second). I was pretty impressed with how well it worked. I did some unscientific tests by taking my temp orally and with the Exergen and was pleased with the results.

I love the fact it comes with its first 9-volt battery. I also like that you can switch it from Farenheit to Celsius, for the pure nerdyness if nothing else. Some tips. Take the cover off. I know it seems pretty basic but I forgot and couldn't figure out why it was reading low. Don't do repeated swipes, apparently the temp with then drop. If you aren't sure about the reading, wait a little bit and try again. Also, in the packaging there is a booklet but it is kind of hidden between 2 pieces of cardboard. Make sure you grab it before you toss the package.

My real problem with this is the fact I didn't have it with my first kid almost 8 years! You can get this at a variety of places but Amazon is always one of my favorites and at under $35 it is a great deal. Even better though....

Win it!
How would you like to win your own Exergen Temporal Thermometer?

To enter:

* Just leave me a comment telling me who you would use it on!
* A random winner will be selected and notified on April 21st.
* The winner will then have 3 days to claim their prize.

To earn extra entries, you may do one or all of the following. Each one counts as an extra ticket but you must leave a separate comment for each one.

* Subscribe to my feed.
* Mention this giveaway on your blog with a link back here.
* Subscribe to my Twitter

This giveaway is open to addresses within the US. Please leave a way to contact you in case you win.

If you want to see more giveaways pop over to Making Money Keeping Money to see more giveaways on Contesting Monday!

(This is a FRN review)

DaBib Review and Giveaway!

Look below for the review and giveaway!


Ok, I love this bib! Now I am a mother of 4 kids and the oldest (by a lot of 5 kids) so I would say that I may be a bib expert. Once again I say, I love this bib!. DaBib has many great design features. First, it is dual layer with a micro fiber terry cloth on the front and a water proof cloth back. I love that it is water proof but not plastic so it doesn't crack or wear. I have already washed it quite a few times and there isn't any wear on it. I love the neck. It is a high cloth neck that is like a cuff so it keeps the crumbs and dribbles out. Because we all know. The worst things are the ones that get past the top of the bib. It wraps around with velcro and is adjustable. There is a 2 or 3 inch strip that you can adjust on. It also has a pocket on the front. I love a pocket on bibs but you can't ever clean them out all the way and they just don't stay open to catch enough. Well, the makers of DaBib seemed to find a way around that. The pocket is attached from the back and then you flip it to the front. Then it stands out a bit and to clean it just flip it back so all the crumbs (or oatmeal in my little one's case) don't end up in the washer.

So I love this bib. My biggest problem is that I didn't find it until my 4th and last kid!

Win it!
How would you like to win your own bib from DaBib?

To enter:

* Just pop over to the DaBib site and then come back here and leave me a comment telling me which one of these great bibs you would want to win.
* A random winner will be selected and notified on April 14th.
* The winner will then have 3 days to claim their prize.

To earn extra entries, you may do one or all of the following. Each one counts as an extra ticket but you must leave a separate comment for each one.

* Subscribe to my feed.
* Mention this giveaway on your blog with a link back here.
* Subscribe to my Twitter

This giveaway is open to addresses within the US. Please leave a way to contact you in case you win.

If you want to see more giveaways pop over to Making Money Keeping Money to see more giveaways on Contesting Monday!

(This is a FRN review)

Windex All in one Review and Giveaway!!!

So Windex has come out with a new window to help you clean your outside windows. I am horrible, I barely ever wash my outside windows because it is such a pain. But according to studies I am in the 80% majority who avoids it. So I was really intrigued when I received the new Windex Outdoor All-in-One Starter Kit.

I was really impressed how easy it was to put together. All you do is slip one end onto the other and twist. Then you just lay the pad on the end and it just velcros on. The pad is cool because 1 does about 20 "standard" windows. I am not sure what that means but it did all mine. I also like that you can put it on an extension pole to reach even further.

To use it you wet down your windows, then just wipe them down with the tool, then rinse your window off. There is a severe problem. You then can tell how dirty the inside of your windows are but there are worse problems;). This really works well. There weren't any streaks left or any dirt. That really says something because I don't have grass. So my windows are always dusty and just spraying them down doesn't work. A final benefit is the price. The starter kit is only $15 and the refill kit is $5.

We here at the NerdFamily highly recommend Windex's All in One. They have a great coupon on refill pads or you could win a starter kit here!

Win it!
Want your own Windex All in One Starter Kit?

To enter:

* Just leave me a comment.
* A random winner will be selected and notified on April 8th.
* The winner will then have 3 days to claim their prize.

To earn extra entries, you may do one or all of the following. Each one counts as an extra ticket but you must leave a separate comment for each one.

* Subscribe to my feed.
* Mention this giveaway on your blog with a link back here.
* Subscribe to my Twitter

This giveaway is open to addresses within the US. Please leave a way to contact you in case you win.

If you want to see more giveaways pop over to Making Money Keeping Money to see more giveaways on Contesting Monday!

(This post was written for Family Review Network as part of a program by SC Johnson, who also supplied the product for review and give away.)

The Perfect Baby Handbook: Review & Giveaway

The day I got a pre-release copy of The Perfect Baby Handbook: A Guide for Excessively Motivated Parents I was in serious need of levity. Lucky for me I got it! This book is a refreshing mockery of all the "how to get the perfect kid" talk we here and read. Now I will admit I sometimes try a little to hard to get the perfect kids but sometimes I need to be reminded to take it easy. All to soon these kiddos will be grown so lets find the humor! This book was so funny. I laughed so hard my eyes were watering.

Walk into any bookstore and you’ll encounter a ludicrous number of “expert” baby-rearing manuals. Although The Perfect Baby Handbook provides a solid foundation, it goes without saying that you’ll need to read them all. A sampling:

* Are You My Mother and, If So, Must You Slouch Like That?
* Infants and Their Little Anxiety Attacks
* No Ifs, Ands, or Buts: How to Parent Without Using Certain Grammatical Constructions
* Throat Lozenges of the Baby Whisperer
* 10,001 Great Baby Names Selfish Celebrities Have Already Snapped Up
* The No-Cry-from-4:01-to-4:03-a.m. Solution
* The Obviously Gifted Child: A Guide to Spotting Glaring Brilliance
* Layettes of the Aztec Kings
* What to Expect When the Word “Expect” Becomes Meaningless
* Because You’re a Terrible Daddy Who Just Smoked a Gigantic Joint
* Creating Insecurities in Your Baby—So He Can Triumphantly Overcome Them
* The Tale of Peter Rabbit’s Unfortunate Speech Impediment
* An Angel Fell Out of the Sky and Landed in Our Nursery, Slightly Injuring Our Baby

Win it!
Wants some more humor? Well, you can win your own copy of The Perfect Baby Handbook: A Guide for Excessively Motivated Parents? Well I have 5 copies to giveaway!

To enter:

* Just give me a moment of hilarity from your own parenting experiences.
* A random winner will be selected and notified on April 4th.
* The winner will then have 3 days to claim their prize.

To earn extra entries, you may do one or all of the following. Each one counts as an extra ticket but you must leave a separate comment for each one.

* Subscribe to my feed.
* Mention this giveaway on your blog with a link back here.
* Subscribe to my Twitter

This giveaway is open to addresses within the US. Please leave a way to contact you in case you win.

If you want to see more giveaways pop over to Making Money Keeping Money to see more giveaways on Contesting Monday!

Play and Learn Baby Spoon Review

I got these awesome spoons from Baby Human to try with my NerdPud. Here in the NerdFamily we are slow to transition to spoons because of the horrible mess. So when I read about how great these help kids learn to use a spoon I was excited to give it a go!

First off they are made of an awesome soft plastic. It has a little give and it top shelf dishwasher safe. It is curved and perfect for little hands to hold it. As soon as the NerdPud picked it up she could get it right to her mouth because of the shaping. It also has a neat safety feature. It has a gag guard. That little disc right after the bowl of the spoon prevents the spoon from being able to go to far into the kiddo's mouth. It even doesn't stain. We did spaghetti sauce and it cleaned right up, leaving not a single stain!

Now, the NerdPud has a bit farther to go until she can feed herself everything with a spoon but I do think within a week she will be great! For only $8.99 you can pick up a 2 pack of these awsome spoons at the Baby Human website or Amazon.

(This is a FRN review)

Move Over Rubix Cube

This is too cool! I also think it is a great challenge (probably beyond me) and beautiful. It would be a great decorative piece on a desk.

One2Believe Noah's Ark Set

My kids love it when I get to review a toy so you can imagine their delight when I received One2Belive's Noah's Ark Set. They quickly volunteered to play with it and let me know what they thought (How unselfish of them;). Some of you may remember my enthusiastic review of their Nativity Set last year, well the Noah's Ark Set was just as good. Like the Nativity Set, this was made well and has enough pieces that all the kids can play together with it (always a winner).

Even as I was handing out the animals the fun began. I had to remind them to come back to ma and get the rest of the pieces;). Of course my type A kids did ask about Mrs. Noah but they quickly got over it. They also loved putting the plank on the boat and taking it off and just playing with angles, etc. So that was its own educational toy.

The only disappointment my kids had with the set was that the boat didn't open up. But that disappointment left when they realized that the reason it doesn't open is because its, wait for it, a water toy!!!

We loved this set and highly recommend it for your children or as a gift for a child you love!

Artistic Pursuits Review

I have said it before and I will say it again... Art isn't my thing. I like to look at it is but I am not talented at all when it comes to creating it. This is one area that I have been looking to outsource with an awesome curriculum. ell, I think I have found it.

I recently acquired Artistic Pursuits book 1 (K-3) An Introduction to the Visual Arts. It is really good! There are many winning aspects to this program. First off I love the fact that there is a supply list in the beginning broken out by units. These are fairly easy to acquire supplies but you can buy them in groups from them. I also love the fact that this is comb bound and not hard bound. It just makes it simpler to use.

Educationally, I love that they pair a little art appreciation along with actual art. This is the best of both worlds to me. For example it pairs a portrait of Henry VIII by Hans Holbein the Younger and what to look for in it with creating your own portrait.

I have looked at a few art curriculum and I really think this is my favorite. The kids love it because it is simple and doesn't take a lot of time. I love it because it is giving them some classical art knowledge and some art ability at the same time.

So go look at the various books offered by Artistic Pursuits for all grade levels and let me know what you think!

Five in a Row: Review

I recently received Five in a Row: Volume 3 to review. I have been hearing how great this program is for years but me and my hard earned dollar are hard parted;).

For those of you who don't know, I have kids 7-1 and love trying to find things that we can all learn from together. This is one of those things. It is designed for ages 4-8 and is a step by step guide into a well rounded education based on real books. The theory is that you read 1 simple book a week and go through the accompanying material but you could take longer if you want. It is very flexible and really does a great job of touching on various areas (such as math, geography, etc). It fits well into that reading time every day. Then we just discuss all the subject material through the next couple of days. You can tune it to whatever level your kids are at. For example, each unit is based on a book and has a vocabulary list. This list is well beyond my 3 year old preschooler but is great for my kindergartner and my 2nd grader. So I can just dump those words into a make your own crossword website. It also touches on geography, social studies, math, and science that you can tune to each child in your family. We wouldn't use it for a complete curriculum for our older kids but it is great enrichment for them. I think it is more than enough for any preschooler. So go check out Five on a Row and let me know what you think!

Bowflex Ultimate 2 Home Gym Recall

Apparently there is a voluntary recall on Nautilus produced Bowflex Ultimate 2 Home Gym due to an issue locking the seat up in storage. They have 18 reports of injury because of it.

WFMW: Cookie Scoop

One of the best time saving gadgets I own is the Pampered Chef Medium Scoop. It was the best $15.50 (price with shipping) I ever spent. It give perfectly sized cookies, which are a commodity around here. My hands also stay clean so I can stop and run after the kids. It is dishwasher safe and easy action. Just dip and dish. I also use for potato pancakes.

Even cooler is the little one they sell is the same size as a mini-muffin cup and the big one is a muffin cup size. I spend forever trying to get them just right.