Meghan Says

When Team Mom teased me with an email recently that we were being sent the newest toy from the Parent’s magazine line, I was thrilled. I mean, who doesn’t LOVE any toy that Parent’s Magazine puts out? We’re already big fans of the MP3 player, and I’m sure the other 200 passengers on our upcoming plane trip will love it JUST as much as we do. So I was excited to see what was new.

I was super excited to open the box and find the 57 piece Bristle Box Spinners bucket (which I’d been eyeing recently at Target). Sadly, Dylan was taking a much needed nap, so it was left to Zach and I to tear into it. Which we promptly did. I have NO imagination when it comes to building things (I would have been a TERRIBLE architect) so I was happy to see there was a little instruction booklet with a bunch of different things you could build…like a ship, car, airplane, etc. I can TOTALLY copy pictures (I’m a whiz at Lincoln Logs) so I had no trouble putting together a car, which Zach promptly began pushing across the floor.

When Dylan woke up, he was excited to play with it, but because he sadly inherited by poor imagination, he relied on my help to build anything elaborate. He did, however, quickly become adept at adding 4 wheels to the biggest piece from the bucket, which closely resembled a car and made him happy. The fact that a lot of the pieces move and spin makes it even more fun to play with.

A few nights later, our nephews came over, and being 4 1/2 and 7, they were ALL over this set. They built some amazing spaceshipy things that were pretty impressive. My hope is that having something like this around will inspire Dylan to get a bit more creative and use his imagination more.

The only downside I can find is that some of the pieces are hard to connect at times, which can be frustrating. Also, some of them don’t STAY connected, so a four wheeled car can easily become a three wheeled car. Which, let me tell you, REALLY annoys my 1 year old.

All in all, we thoroughly enjoy our Bristle Block Spinners set and would highly recommend it. It’s the perfect addition to your last minute Holiday list…and at $30 you can’t beat the price.

Rating:

Meghan Says

As I’ve mentioned before, I didn’t eat meat for a long time in the not too distant past.  I’m well over that now, but I DO still enjoy turkey bacon and the occasional veggie burger, which is where BOCA products prove useful.

BOCA recently sent me some coupons so I could try their products and I immediately ran out to the store.  I was seriously disappointed in the selection at my grocery store, where they only had Spicy Chili, so I gave up and headed to Target.  Where I was met with a nice selection of BOCA products. I went with a box of Chik’n patties and a box of Chik’n and Swiss Sandwiches.

As soon as I got home, seeing as it was just about lunch time, I opened the boxes and made lunch.  Which Dylan refused to eat.  Which isn’t a reflection on BOCA products, he’s just super picky and unless it’s a PB&J or Turkey & Cheese sandwich, he’s not going to eat it.

Zach, however, wolfed down his Chik’n patty and I thoroughly enjoyed my Chik’n and Swiss Sandwich.  So much I eventually heated up the other one.  Which I’m pretty sure negates any healthy aspects of it.  But whatever.

I’m bound and determined to make sure that Zach doesn’t end up as picky an eater as my husband his brother so BOCA products will be a common lunch option for us.  I love that they’re low in fat (if you eat just one!) and they’re chock full of iron and protein.   The only downside is that I find the sandwiches a LITTLE dry as is.  Adding mayonnaise or ranch dressing (as would be my first option!), definitely makes them bad for you, but if you dip them in marinara sauce, they’re EXTRA delicious!

BOCA Meatless Products gets a Rating:

Giveaway

I have three coupons for ONE FREE package of any BOCA Meatless Product that I’m going to send to one lucky winner.  Simply head over to the BOCA website, look at what they offer, and come back here and leave a comment telling me what you’d use your coupons to buy.  Please leave a valid email address with your entry, as that’s how I’ll contact the winner.  Only one entry per person, open to US Resident’s Only.  Contest runs until Monday, December 29th at 5pm.  A winner will be chosen using random.org from all eligible entries.  I will notify the winner by email and they will have until Thursday, January 1st to send me their shipping address.  If I don’t hear back from them, I’ll choose another winner!

Good luck and happy eating!

Meghan’s Take:

When I was first offered the opportunity to review Cole Family Christmas, I was intrigued by the back story. As the original email said:

The book began as a small family project when Jennifer Liu Bryan, sat down with her 88-year-old grandmother-in-law Hazel Cole Kendle to write a family Christmas memory that had been passed down for generations and shared at family gatherings.

The book is based on a Christmas story passed on to Hazel by her 8 older siblings about their favorite Christmas when they didn’t receive what they wanted from Santa. Instead they found joy in what their parents crafted for them.

But then I read that it was about a coal miner and his family, and my curiosity was peaked a bit more. My grandfather came from a coal mining family in Eastern Pennsylvania. As a child, we would often visit my Great Uncle and Aunt who lived in the house in which my Grandfather and his siblings grew up. I used to love visiting and being able to peer at all the family heirlooms scattered about. Venturing into the basement was a real treat. Tucked away into the dark, damp corners were bits and pieces of a life gone by. I imagined my Great Grandmother, whom I’d never met, doing the wash or putting away the vegetables she’d canned from her garden. I imagined her, hair pinned up in a bun, wearing a worn apron…

Oh, wait. This is supposed to be about Cole Family Christmas. So, my point is that I was hoping it would give me an extra peek into what life was like for my Grandfather and his family. And you know what? It did. It’s a sweet book with beautiful illustrations. The writing is easy, the characters are real, and the message is clear. It’s a bit long, in that it’s not something I could sit down and read to my kids until they’re older. At 3 1/2 and 1, it certainly wouldn’t hold their attention for long. But it’s something that I will definitely keep in my collection and when they are bigger (if I can get them to sit still long enough!), I’ll share the Cole Family’s story with them. It’s a beautiful tale of America’s past, and it brought a little Christmas spirit to the Central Coast.

Rating:

Giveaway!

We have a copy of Cole Family Christmas for one lucky winner!  Simply leave us a comment telling us what your favorite Holiday Tradition is.  We’ll pick the winner using Random.org on Friday, December 19th at 6pm.  Only one entry per person.  Open only to US Resident’s.  Please leave a valid email address with your comment, as that is how we will notify the winner.  The winner will have until Sunday, December 21st to email us their shipping information, or we will pick another winner.

Good luck and Happy Holidays!

Meghan Says:

JP What?!  JP Monkey is a woman owned Santa Barbara company that makes reusable shopping bags out of remnant upholstery fabric.  And they’re FABULOUS.

I saw an article about them recently in the Santa Barbara paper, and I immediately fell in love.  I mean, how could you not?  They’re GORGEOUS, they’re good for the environment, and they’re made out of upholstery fabric, so they’re heavy duty. No more broken bag handles, or grocery items falling through the bottom of the bag.  You can’t beat that.

So, I emailed the company and they agreed to send me a bag…which I immediately put to use when I ran my errands yesterday.  And let me tell you, I’ve never enjoyed handing a bag over the checker as much as I did yesterday!  I was pleasantly surprised with how much it held.  After my trip to Target, it was packed to the brim with all of my loot.  These bags really do hold more than your typical grocery bag, and the stiff insert at the bottom makes them completely reliable.

The *only* downside I see is the cost.  At $25 bucks a pop, they’re a bit pricey.  Especially given that you’ll most definitely want more than one.  But, they offer a 15% discount if you order 4 or more, which helps.  The design, quality and practicality of them makes them WORTH every penny of the $25, so it’s not as though you’re paying too much.

JP Monkey reusable shopping bags get a Rating: .  You won’t be disappointed, and if you’re in need of a gift for your mom or a girlfriend, this is a GREAT option.  I recommend taking advantage of the 15% discount, buy a few different designs and keep them tucked away for gifts.  You’ll be incredibly popular!

Giveaway

You can win the bag!  I’m giving away a Bronwen JP Monkey bag to one lucky winner. All you have to do to enter the contest is head over to JP Monkey, look around the site and pick your two favorite styles.  I say two, because if you’re like me, you’ll never be able to pick just one!  Come back here and leave a comment with the names of the designs you picked.  If you’re on Twitter, you can earn an extra entry by linking to this contest (http://www.hotmomreviews.com/?p=39)!  Just leave another comment with a direct link to your tweet.

Open to US Resident’s only.  Contest is open until 12 Noon on Thursday, December 18th.  I will notify the winner by email (be sure to leave a valid one with your entry).  They will have 24 hours to send me their shipping information or I’ll pick another winner.

Good luck!

Heather’s Take

So, if you read my personal blog, you know I was laid off a month and a half ago. Yeah, suck, whatever. What you DON’T know is that literally a week before I got laid off, Meghan and I were asked to review the ClickFree computer backup device. I thought, hmmm, this is great, because I have a lot of stuff on my work computer that probably shouldn’t be there, and wouldn’t it be terrible if something happened to it? I took it to work with me on a Monday, and I was laid off three days later. All I could think was THANK GOODNESS I backed up all my stuff!

Yeah, yeah, don’t tell me that all my personal stuff on my work computer was why I got laid off. I THOUGHT OF THAT ALREADY, OK?!

Anyway. Because I didn’t have an “administrator” level on my work computer, the ClickFree didn’t work automatically. But that was okay, as I could still drag and drop things onto the drive. It works just like an external hard drive. So that’s how you get around that whole “personal stuff on your work computer” dilema.

Hmm. This review has taken a strange turn.

The best part about the ClickFree is that it works on more than one computer. I plugged it into my home computer, and a little window popped up that said (to paraphrase) “Do you want the super awesome ClickFree to back up your computer so you don’t have a major hissy-fit meltdown like Meghan did when her computer crashed?” I clicked the “YES” button, and that was it. All my pictures of Madeline, my important addresses, my downloaded songs from iTunes, etc, are all safely protected on my ClickFree! Now I have to back up The Husband’s computer. He’s prone to hissy fits, too.

Oh, my rating? No doubt I give this Rating:

Meghan’s Take

There are few things in our lives today that almost EVERYONE is in need of. Food, water, clothing and wine, are just a few that pop into my head. Another one that you might not immediately think of is a quick, easy way to back up the information stored on your computer.

I know I’d never really thought about it before. Until disaster struck and my computer died. If you read my personal blog you may remember that episode. Anyway, it was poor timing to realize AFTER my computer died that I hadn’t had ANYTHING backed up. No photos of the boys, ITunes music, emails…NADA. Zilch. A few expletives may have been uttered. Again, if you read my personal blog, you may know that it was probably more than a few. But whatever.

The point is that I didn’t have anything backed up and I panicked. Luckily, my trusty computer repair guy was able to back everything up after the fact and return my computer to brand new condition (except for the milk spatters and cheerio crumbs in the keyboard). But, his backup cost me $150.00 and it was only temporary. As in, as soon as he re-loaded all my stuff onto my computer he deleted it from his back up device thingy. Which left me asking for trouble again.

And then ClickFree walked into my life. Suddenly the clouds parted and the sun was shining. I have the 160GB HD801 and I LOVE it. All you do is attach the USB cable, plug it into your computer, prompt it to begin the back up process, and then sit back and relax knowing that your important documents are all being magically transferred over.

There’s probably not really anything magical about it, but it seems that way to a non-techie like me.

If you’re looking for a gift for someone (or yourself) whose computer is their lifeline, this is a GREAT choice. Even if you need something for a set of grandparents or parents who have a million photos stored on their computer but NO IDEA how to go about backing them up, this is the piece of equipment for you. Or them, as the case may be. I really can’t tell you enough how easy to use it is and how much peace of mind it has given me. Now I just have to make sure my boys keep their grubby little hands off of it!

I’d give the ClickFree a 1,000 star rating if I could, but since I’m limited to 5, it gets a FLAMING HOT INFERNO Rating:

***Updated 12/10/08 - SO, we both have PC’s so we didn’t stop to think about whether it’s Mac compatible or not.  And the answer is “not.”  Sorry, Mac users!

The Best Part

The best part is that ClickFree is offering the readers of Hot Mom Reviews $25 off a ClickFree device! So even though it’s TOTALLY (more) than worth the $125 or so bucks (depending on what size you buy) they charge for it, you’re going to get it for less! And?! They offer free shipping on orders over $99! Say WHAT?!

Here’s what you have to do to purchase a ClickFree computer back up of your very own (or for someone else):

Go to www.goclickfree.com

Click on “Shop”

Click on “ClickFree Store”

On the Left Hand Side, under Products, click on “Portable Backup Drive”

Choose which one(s) you want and add it to your cart

Enter the coupon code: cfr3301

And VOILA, you saved $25.00 AND all the important stuff on your computer! It’s a win/win!

Growing up I loved anything Shakespeare. I know, weird, right? My favorite play is Twelfth Night (which explains my odd extreme adoration of Shakespeare in Love), followed by Romeo and Juliet. Which is probably why this movie has piqued my curiosity.

It’s the story of Delgo (voiced by the adorable Freddie Prinze, Jr.) and Princess Kyla (voiced by Jennifer Love Hewitt) who are to inhabitants of differing cultures in the magical land of Jhamora. They form a forbidden friendship (are you seeing the Romeo & Juliet connection here?) which causes the hostility between their cultures to escalate. At which point, some exiled mean lady (voiced by Anne Bancroft) to try to take revenge and reclaim her rule.

Usually, as soon as something starts with “magical land” and contains the keywords “fantasy action adventure” I know it’s NOT something that’s going to interest me. But, when I watched the trailer for this movie at www.delgo.com, I do have to admit that it looked like something I could get into.

And considering it attracted the voice talents of some heavy hitting Hollywood stars, like Val Kilmer, Lou Gossett, Jr., Michael Clarke Duncan, Kelly Ripa, Burt Reynolds and Chris Kattan, it must have something going for it!

I’m not entirely sure it’s something Dylan could sit through, so my plan is to hit up my Lord of the Rings loving friend Sarah and her 8 year old daughter to see it with me.

If you’re a “Fantasy Action Adventure” lover, this movie is most definitely for you. And seeing as it’s family friendly, you could take your kids and have a fun family night on the town!

Delgo opens in theatres nationwide on December 12th.

It’s been a long time since I’ve shopped in a department store. This is mostly because I hate crowds, and department stores are always at malls. But, now that I am gainfully unemployed, I’ve realized that malls aren’t crowded during the day. Who knew? So just as I was thinking I should take advantage of the empty malls, BlogHer and JCPenney gave me a $300 e-gift card. YEAH. THREE HUNDRED SMACKERS! Don’t hate the player, baby.

Armed with my e-cards, my mom, Madeline and I hit the JCPenney in my hometown. I had a list of people I wanted to buy Christmas presents for, but nothing in particular in mind. And, yeah, can you believe that I went Christmas shopping before Thanksgiving?! I totally broke my own rules. We entered by the kids section, so we wandered up and down the aisles. I found two cute Christmas dresses for Madeline, a shirt for my nephew, a onesie for my friend’s newborn, and cool pants and a hoodie for my older nephew. There was a lot of selection and the women who worked in the section were really nice and helpful.

After I had the kids done, we wandered around the store to see what else there was. I never realized that JCPenney sold toys, electronics, and gadgets. My mom and I fiddled around with the idea of getting everyone toys, but practicality won out. Darn practicality.

My husband has been lamenting the destruction of our blender for months now, so I knew I needed to pick him up a new one. On our way to the housewares section, I passed men’s athletic wear and picked him up some track pants and a sweatshirt for him. Now he can make himself a smoothie after working out! (Mike would like all of you to STOP LAUGHING, he does SO work out…sometimes.)

I seriously felt like I was on a game show. I bought pillows, a silverware set, a blender, and there were still lots of other things I would have loved to buy. But I still got TONS of loot for $300:

Why? Because JCPenney has insane deals. I didn’t buy a single one of those items at full price. EVEN THE 80 PIECE SERVING SET! When it was all said and done, my mom and I actually commented on how hard it was to spend $300 at JCPenney since everything was on sale.

My e-cards were printed on regular paper from my printer, so I was a little uncertain how they would be received by the cashiers. The first cashier I came on wasn’t sure how to ring up my purchase with the e-card, but luckily her supervisor was there. The supervisor then took the opportunity to show all the cashiers in the area how to use an e-card. I helped them learn!

Holiday shopping is always a pain, but JCPenney made my experience pleasant and easy! Whoo JCPenney!

Want to win your own $300 shopping spree? You’re in luck! BlogHer and JCPenney are giving away a $300 gift card each week for the next five weeks! Just go here to enter!

Heather Says:

I was given a Wii for my birthday, and even though I was soooo stoked to get it, I’ve really only stayed with my trusted two games (Wii Sports & Wii Fit). I like both of those games and I’m not really a risk taker. Then Parent Bloggers Network asked me if I wanted to play a singing and dancing game called Boogie Superstar, and I thought, “Self, it’s about time to step out of your bubble.”

When the game arrived, it was packaged so that the included microphone is prominent. My husband took one look at it and said, “Oh boy. Let me know when you’ll be playing this game so I can be sure to NOT be here.” Whatever dude, I have an awesome singing voice. I was not pleased, though, when I opened the package and discovered that the microphone is NOT wireless. This is a game for the Wii - the WIRELESS game system.

The game has a fun and detailed opening sequence that rips a bit on American Idol. My daughter sat there and stared wide-eyed at the TV during the entire opening, but I think the funniest part was when the on-screen characters spoke. I think they are speaking in Japanese, with English subtitles. My daughter (who is one) BUSTED UP laughing when she heard the foreign language. I was shocked since, at one, I figured all adult language sounded foreign to her. Aaaaah kids.

After some quick instruction, it was time to play. Luckily, I wasn’t alone - Casey and her daughter the moosh were at my house and they played with me. Well, Casey played. The moosh and Maddie watched us and danced. It was hilarious.

The game has a few different options. You can perform a karaoke solo or duet, a dance solo, or a dance duet. A karaoke duet is pretty hard with only one microphone, so after one go-round, Casey and I nixed that from our competitions. There are basic dance moves that you perform with the controller, and they slowly get harder and harder. The dance moves are hilarious - there is a move like a bicycle pump, another where you spin around and jump, and one where you flap your arms like a chicken.

We did a lot of dancing and singing (and exclusively dancing after the kids went to bed) and we quickly progressed up the rankings of Boogie Superstar. The farther along you go in the game, the more points you can earn to unlock other songs and outfits for your characters. Casey and I might have played like crazy to unlock “Toxic,” by Britney Spears, and NO I do not find any shame in that. All the songs are by known artists like Britney Spears, Kanye West, Natasha Beddingfield, and The Jonas Brothers, just to name a few. That definitely makes it more fun. And don’t worry - all the songs have clean language, so you can play in front of your kids.

Boogie Superstar is crazy addictive. Casey and I played it so long that we could hardly move our arms the next day. What, the lasso and tornado moves require a lot of effort!!! It is WAY more fun when you play with a friend - the competition aspect is what really makes the game unique.

I like this game a lot, and I know I’ll bust it out a lot over the holidays. My biggest complaint is the wired microphone. If it had been wireless, I would have given Boogie Superstar five flames, but instead it gets the still high Rating:

Heather Says:

So listen. My husband and I aren’t exactly the conventional holiday card type. One year we sent out cards with us dressed as Britney Spears & Kevin Federline with the tagline “Have a Very Cheetos Christmas.” Another year we sent out cards starring our dog Rigby wearing 2006 glasses and below her photo we wrote, “Kiss Me At Midnight!” We like to be different.

Not surprisingly, this doesn’t please some members of our families (COUGH his mom COUGH) who’d prefer we be a bit more…dignified. So when Parent Bloggers Network asked me to try Minted holiday cards, I thought maybe this would be the year Mike and I grew up. After all, we have a child now. Right? HELLO?

The Minted website has lots of gorgeous designs to choose from (and, FYI, they have designs for all events, from birth announcements to invitations, you name it) and the goofball in me felt like a total impostor. But the amateur photographer inside my head was screaming, “YES! Now I will be taken seriously!!!” This is because the options for the cards are all so nice that they could make a picture of a foot look festive. Yes. A foot. I went there.

First, I had to figure out what picture to put on the card. I have lots of silly pictures, but this is supposed to be our GROWN UP card. So I picked a classic picture of Madeline.

Then I settled on design. I went with something that I thought complemented the colors of the photo, the “Home For The Holidays” collection. I liked the classic look to it. It looked very…GROWN UP.

All the writing on the card is customizable. I resisted the urge to write something like, “Maddie sees you when you’re sleeping… because she planted a camera in your room,” and instead wrote the very GROWN UP “Happy Holidays and warm wishes for the New Year.”

Once I made all my choices, I submitted my order and was told I’d get a proof to approve. Three days later, the merchandising manager Kate contacted with with two proofs - the one I’d designed, and one that she’d altered slightly so that there wasn’t writing on Maddie’s face. Um, can you say brilliant? I picked her altered proof, and a week later I had my very GROWN UP holiday cards on my doorstep.

Of course, the day the GROWN UP holiday cards arrived, my hubs came up with perhaps the most genius holiday card idea EVER. So we are sending these GORGEOUS Minted holiday cards to the people on our mailing list that might not, uh, get our sense of humor, and we’ll send our genius cards out to those who’d like a good laugh.

If I had to nit-pick about Minted, it would be that they are NOT cheap. This is clearly a case of getting what you pay for, though. The cards are truly beautiful, and the service I received was impeccable. Not to mention, I ordered the most basic card available - the flat note card - and there are other options like timeline, fold-over, and letter-inside.

In the end, I give Minted a Rating: simply because of the price. Not that they aren’t worth the splurge, but they are just a little out of my price range for holiday cards.

Heather Says:

I’ve been begging The Hubs for months for a photo printer. I love photography and I take (literally) thousands of photos a month. I’d love to be able to print my favorites right in the comfort of our home. But NOOOOO said my Grinch husband. We had to get a new REGULAR printer first. He’s so practical sometimes it hurts. Our old all-in-one printer had served us well, but we had literally used it to death thanks to printing scripts, shower invitations, and Southwest Airlines boarding passes.

Then, through the One2One Network and Silicon Valley Moms blog, I got the opportunity to review the new Epson Artison 800, and I almost cried. It’s a printer-fax-copier-PHOTO PRINTER!!! HOLY MOTHER OF EVERYTHING I EVER WANTED!!! When it came in it’s pretty, pretty box, I literally hugged it.

After I gave the printer a name (Cornelius) and took it on a walking tour of its new home, I decided it was time to get to work. It is very easy to set up, but it takes some time, especially if you are using it on a wireless network as then you have to set it up on each computer (and there is probably an easier way to do it but The Hubs and I were too anxious to follow directions).

The first thing I did was pop my camera’s memory card into the special slot on the front, and using the TOUCH SCREEN INTERFACE, I printed my latest three favorite pictures.

Then I just started messing around with it. I scanned a picture and the Artisan changed it into a coloring page! I mean, that is hours of fun right there and Madeline can’t even color yet!

My husband printed out a script and was thrilled by how quickly it finished printing 109 pages. On our old printer, it seriously took almost an hour. The Hubs might have said, “Man, we should have bought a new printer sooner,” but when I shot him a death glare and told him to repeat himself, he remembered that it was HIS idea to NOT get a printer.

There are so many other awesome features on this printer that I am afraid I’ll forget them all. So you’re gonna get it, bullet-style.

• You can design a design and print it directly onto a CD or DVD. I just put together a CD of pictures for my friend and I put my favorite picture directly onto the CD. It’s The Awesome.
• You can color correct or restore photos on the printer’s touch screen
• Multiple memory card slots
• You can fax in black & white OR color!
• It comes with creativity software. Goodbye free time!
• YOU CAN PRINT FROM VIDEO CLIPS! My head just exploded.
• There are two paper trays - one for regular paper, and one for photo paper.

The husband and I are a lazy people, so seriously the BEST thing about this printer is that it’s wireless. We can print from wherever we are in the house (although we’re usually like three feet away from the printer).

I seriously can’t say enough awesome things about this printer. I’d give it a million flames if I could, but instead it gets our highest rating of

Rating:

Guess what?! You can win your own Epson Artisan 800! Visit the Silicon Valley Moms Blog to enter!