I’m excited today to share my thoughts on another great 2012 product from my favorite school supply company Learning Resources. The particular product is called the Letter Construction Activity Set which is recommended for children ages 3-7 years old. I’ve been using this set with both my 4 year old and my 1 1/2 year old and am liking it for many reasons in which I’ll specify below.

The Letter Construction Activity Set is like no other that I’ve seen on the market. This set comes with 88 large child friendly plastic pieces that can be easily snapped together to make every letter of the alphabet both upper and lowercase! The colorful pieces store easily snapping into each other and makes for keeping things tidy in the classroom without any worry of lost parts. The number of pieces makes this set large enough to use with four children at one time and that’s a great bonus in any classroom.

The set also comes with 13 double sided activity cards which instruct children in which way they can create the letters showing what pieces and how the finished letter should look. There is also a great many suggest activities in which you can do in your classroom with your students such as Letter Matching ( matching the uppercase letter with the lower case), Beyond Letters ( an activity that encourages children construct something other than letters with the pieces), and so on.

My daughter sat for one day discovering and learning how she could make letters but she wasn’t just limited and went on to even making a few numbers and then hearts and flowers! At first she had a little trouble taking the pieces apart but within 10-15 minutes of using these she has had no issues at all.

The possibilities are endless with the Letter Construction Activity Set! It is great for brain stimulation, developing fine motor skills, problem solving, letter recognition, and pre-writing skills. Even my 1 1/2 year old son was getting on in the action. He’s learning his alphabet now so he was pretty excited to see us building letters and he called out what they were! Pretty soon he’ll be able to build them on his own too with this set!

There’s nothing we don’t love about the Letter Construction Activity Set from Learning Resources, in fact, we highly recommend it! It’s durable, long lasting, and sure to be loved by any child and by any teacher looking out for the best interest of their students.

You can purchase the Letter Construction Activity Set for $39.99 on the Learning Resource Website.

Get Connected with Learning Resources…

Request a mail catalog | Sign up for Email Updates | Follow them on Twitter (@LearningHandsOn) |Become a Facebook Fan |Follow their Hands On Learning Blog

-Win it-

Learning Resources is giving one of my readers a chance to win their very own Letter Construction Activity Set !
Please Enter Below. USonly please.

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Disclaimer: I was sent the above mentioned product to review. This review is 100% my opinion and has not been edited or reviewed by anyone. I was not compensated in any other way for this product review.

Chicken Soup For The Soul: The Magic Of Mothers & Daughters

Mothers and daughters. They are, at the same time, very similar and completely unique. This relationship — through birth, childhood, teen years, adulthood, grandchildren, aging, and every step in between — can be the best, the hardest, and the sweetest. Moms and daughters will laugh, cry, and find inspiration in this collection of entertaining, poignant, and heartwarming stories that remind them of their shared love, appreciation and special bond. A great gift for Mother’s Day.

Mother’s Day is just this weekend and I’ve been enjoying  Chicken Soup For The Soul: The Magic Of Mothers & Daughters quite a bit. This book is filled with so many wonderfully inspirational stories that are heartfelt and encouraging.

I like how this title has been put together, for instance, there are 10 sections each with a little over ten true life stories from both mother’s and daughters. Some of the sections you’ll find are Rites of Passage, A Daughter’s Love, and Dreams Fulfilled just to name a few. I found myself deeply touched and many of the stories reminded me of my mother as well as being a mom myself and seeing already what an impact my daughter has had on my life.

I guarantee you’ll be touched and encouraged sharing in the stories found in Chicken Soup For The Soul: The Magic Of Mothers & Daughters. I highly recommend it. You can purchase these or any of the Chicken Soup for the Soul books at your local bookstore, online on their website and more!

-Win It!-

Chicken Soup for the Soul has generously offered 3 of my readers their own copy of this fantastic book! 

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We know that sometimes it’s impossible to find great Home Entertainment but I’m here to share that you don’t have to look very far for quality movies and classic TV shows thanks to TV Flashbacks!

I grew up watching the good ole AMC movies with my mom and sisters quite often. We enjoyed movies with stars such as  Shirley Temple ( such cute curls and who could resist those dimples?), Laurel & Hardy, Marilyn Monroe, Edward G Robinson, Gregory Peck, Charlie Chaplin, Sidney Poitier, Frank Sinatra, Jack Benny and many many more!

TV Flashbacks has a lot of great collections put together for movie lovers of all kinds. I’ve currently got my eye on the Sci-Fi sets for Father’s Day coming up quite soon! Here are some other great collections that might just perk your interest too:

TIMELESS FAMILY CLASSICS: More than 62 hours of smiles, songs and superb family entertainment. A galaxy of stars to dazzle your world including Ginger Rogers, Shirley Temple, Jack Benny, Kirk Douglas, Bob Hope, Danny Kaye, James Cagney and many more.

NIFTY FIFTIES: It was the era of drive-in movies and cultural changes. Stars like Sidney Poitier, Frank Sinatra, Elizabeth Taylor, Charlton Heston, Eva Gardner, Kim Novack, Marilyn Monroe and Gregory Peck deliver more than 65 hours of timeless movie magic.

DARK CRIMES: Silent streets. Hidden secrets. Grifters, heroes and criminals. More than 60 hours of classic noir films featuring some of cinema’s greatest stars, including Lee J. Cobb, George Raft, Lloyd Bridges, Ann Sheridan, Boris Karloff, Yul Brynner, and many others.

PROMO CODE: Be sure to visit this page and use discount code 50PACK25 to save an additional 25% off  their incredibly affordable DVD prices! (note: 25% discount good through May 31, 2012 only).

-Win it!-

I’m excited to share that one of my readers will get the chance to win their own Timeless Family Classics DVD Collection! (US ONLY)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Disclaimer: I was sent the Timeless Family Classic DVD Collection from TV Flashbacks to review. This review is 100% my opinion and has not been edited or reviewed by anyone. I was not compensated in any other way for this product review.

We are very happy Costco Club members and are really thrilled with the value we can get for our favorite brands when it comes to stocking our cupboards and feeding my family. I’m pleased to share that the value of buying our favorite breakfast cereal, Cheerios® has become an even better purchase thanks to the new 2 box packages available at all Costcos, Sam’s Club, and BJ’s.

I recently recieved the New 2 box Cheerios through My Blog Spark to share my thoughts on. First most, the 2 box packages contain two individual boxes, making them easier to store in my pantry and easier to pour into our breakfast cereal bowls. 

Other great things to mention is that By reducing the amount of air in each individual bag, these enhanced containers fit 10% more cereal than before and use less packaging. Also while each box contains more cereal, packaging material has been reduced by over 200,000 lbs, saving 1,000 trees and taking 130 Cheerios trucks of the road, decreasing CO2 emissions!

Be sure to check out the Cheerios Website to learn more about all the great features and benefits of their product! And be sure to check out the video below!

Win it!

2 Winners will be chosen to win! The prize is (2) new 2 box Cheerios packaging (four boxes).
As a mom of two young ones, I’ll take all the Cheerios I can get and what better a giveaway
to stock up your pantry for the Spring and Summer season!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

“Disclosure: Cheerios® cereal, information, and giveaway have been provided by General Mills through MyBlogSpark.”

Green Toys is an awesome company that does everything it possibly can to reduce their carbon footprint and offer great products for children of all ages! I love this company and will continue to support them in buying products from their numerous lines for my own children and to share praises with everyone I know!

My nearly 1 1/2 year old son Owen, has lately been spending his days playing with the Mini Vehicle Set from Green Toys. This particular set comes with four vehicles: an white Ambulance, Blue Police Car, Yellow Taxi, and Red Fastback! These cars are mini sized making them ideal for the hands of young children and easier to control!

The unique design of this set of vehicles features no metal axles or external coatings. No BPA, phthalates or PVC. Packaged with recycled and recyclable materials and printed with soy inks. I for one am really loving the durability as my son has thrown, stepped on, gnawed (still teething), and put these cars through the ringer so to speak. We’ve let the kids play with these in tub, sand box,in and outdoors and still the cars look as good as brand new!

Overall I’m very pleased with these made in the USA set of vehicles from Green Toys. Honestly, you have to love a product that’s great for the environment being made from 100% recycled plastic milk jugs and that’s completely safe for your kids!

If you are thinking of purchasing the Mini Vehicle Set, it will cost you anywhere about $18 depending on where you purchase it. I found the Green Toys Mini Vehicle Set (4 Pack)on Amazon.com for $17.50 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on all orders over $25.00. (note that prices change often on Amazon so be sure to check the link to see the latest offered price).

Disclaimer: I was sent this set from Green Toys to review. This review is 100% my opinion and has not been edited or reviewed by anyone. I was not compensated in any other way for this product review.

Am I ever thrilled about spreading the news about Yo Gabba Gabba’s brand new live DVD “There’s a Party in My City”! My daughter age 3 1/2 years old and my son age 1 are huge fans of Yo Gabba Gabba. Even my husband and I are fans of the shows, and that’s something that often doesn’t just happen. You’ve got a total win when it comes to entertainment that both children and adults can enjoy together.

Yo Gabba Gabba! has a great cast of fun loving characters that teach children lessons in friendship, not giving up, healthy eating, facing fears, and solving many more issues that kids could be facing. One of the reasons we love this show is because it’s very musical, unique, and super colorful! And they managed to pull of being just as awesome live as on the TV show itself and honestly, I can’t say that about a few other live shows I’ve seen.

In “Yo Gabba Gabba! Live! There’s a Party in My City!” the full cast is there, D.J. Lance Rock, Brobee, Toodee, Foofa, Plex, Muno, and many other familiar special guest such as beatboxing legend Biz Markie performing Biz’s Beat of the Day, the incomparable Leslie Hall & DO IT teaching a Dancey Dance, and Super Music Friends Show guest The Aquabats performing everyone’s favorite, “Pool Party.”

My children were so excited when I popped this DVD into our player! They watched it from start to end and sang and danced along with their favorite characters really getting into it all and then asking to watch the 110 minute feature again! I don’t know but that sounds like a real win to me! I even enjoyed watching all the added bonus content on the DVD which included guest interviews and much more!

I highly recommend “Yo Gabba Gabba! Live! There’s a Party in My City!” to all Gabba fans and if you haven’t seen the show, I encourage you to check it out because it’s totally awesome!

Along with the DVD, we were also sent the Yo Gabba Gabba book “It’s Okay Try Again” to review. First, I love this book is in board book format because I’ve got two kids that have been giving this title lots of use! The more durable the better! The book itself is 14 pages long and is based off one of Yo Gabba Gabba’s popular songs from their hit show.

I love the message behind the song and like how the book itself is like a mini episode from the tv show. Brobee get’s frustrated while playing a game but is encouraged to try again and not to give up. This a great message for children of all ages, especially those that are beginning to learn how to handle their feelings. A great way to open the door to discuss with your child about their feelings and what he or she could do instead of getting really upset. Great book, it was definitely a hit with my both my son and daughter!

BUY IT

NCircle Entertainment offers this DVD for $9.99 on their website though you can also find it at places like Wal*Mart, Kmart, Target, Toys R Us, and my favorite online market place Amazon.com. Amazon currently has Yo Gabba Gabba: There’s a Party in My City! Live Concert on Amazon for only $8.99 and the book: It’s Okay, Try Again! (Yo Gabba Gabba!) on Amazon for only $5.99!

-Win it!-

I’m excited that one lucky US winner will get the chance to win the
Yo Gabba Gabba: There’s a Party in My City! Live Concert DVD
and the It’s Okay, Try Again! (Yo Gabba Gabba!) Book.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Disclaimer: I was sent the above product mentioned for review. This review is 100% my opinion and has not been edited or reviewed by anyone. I was not compensated in any other way for this product review.not giving

April showers bring May flowers and that couldn’t ring truer here in Oregon! And what fun is all the rain if you can’t deck your children out in adorable, I meanKidorable rain gear! I’ve had both my daughter and son in Kidorable rain gear practically since they were born and will continue to do so until they are too big to wear it anymore! And what fun because there are so many different styles to choose from for both boys and girls that they can always have something different to look cute and stay dry in every year!

This Spring, my nearly four year old daughter has been sporting the Lady Bug Kidorable rain wear collection. This particular collection offers styles perfect for any child year round featuring not just Spring and Summer light rain wear but knit hats, scarves, and gloves for the fall and winter too! And Kidorable doesn’t stop there, they also have matching book ends for your child’s room, as well as towels, hangers sets, and matching back packs for on the go!

To review and spotlight, we were sent the Lady Bug Raincoat, Hanger, Backpack, and matching rain boots. The colors in this particular collection are a very eye catching pattern of black and a very bold red, perfect for any ladybug lover! Children ages 1 through 6 year olds can wear this set in style through out any rainy season! Trust me, oohs and aahs are sure to follow! There’s nowhere we go that my daughter hasn’t been complimented on her Kidorable rainwear ensemble!

The Ladybug Raincoat is made out of PVC which is very easy to wipe clean and lined with polyester. It has two pockets one a giant ladybug and the other a large black spot that feature zipper closures so your little one can keep perhaps a hanky, hair band, or something else safely tucked away from the elements. There are four snap button from top to bottom and an inner loop at the neck of the coat for easy hanging up after use. The coat pattern itself is all red except on the hood, sleeves, and the buttons which feature darling ladybug spots! The coat my daughter received is a size 4t and is giving enough to accommodate my daughter and whatever she is wearing such as a thin top or a bulky sweater until she needs the next size rain coat! Almost forgot to mention that it came with an adorable matching hanger too!

The Ladybug Boots are perfect for a stroll to the park on a over cast day, helping out in a muddy garden, and my daughter’s favorite rainy day activity….puddle jumping! These boots are excellent in resisting water with the natural rubber exterior. There’s a pull tab featured on the top part of the boot making it easy to slip these boots on. These boots are light weight so it won’t weigh down your children’s feet as they are walking or running. Speaking of running, the non-skid soles improve traction on wet surfaces and are great in preventing accidents. You can easily wipe these clean after a day in the mud! This style of boot is available in My First (size 5), children’s sizes 6-13, plus young adult sizes 1 and 2.

The matching Ladybug Backpack is great for kids of all ages. My daughter loves to carry this bag along with her wherever she goes. It features two front zip close pockets and one large compartment. Right now my daughter likes to store her drink cup, a snack, hairbrush, rubber bands, lip balm, and other various random treasures. The bag would make a great take a long for a trip to Grandma’s house, daycare, preschool, or any other outing where your child would be excited about bringing it along. I like the bag has held up well and that the straps are fully adjustable.

Overall there’s nothing we don’t like about the Ladybug Collection from Kidorable. In fact, we are already looking to purchase the matching umbrella soon. If interested, you can purchase Kidorable products at their website ranging from $11.50-$36.00! I highly recommend the  Kidorable  Collections not just because of adorable they are but because how durable they are too!

I’m featuring Picture Collage Maker Pro today though mentioned here before, I’m thrilled with the opportunity to demonstrate and give new and old readers a chance to win their own copy! This wonderful program, I’ve been using for about half a year now and have been very happy with it! It’s my one stop  to easily make photo collages, calendars, digital scrapbooks, and cards to share with family and friends. Just check out the cute photo collages I made of my kids to share with family and friends!

Picture Collage Maker Pro is a powerful and easy-to-use program for creating photo collages and digital scrapbooks from your digital photos to share with friends and family. Spring has sprung and I’m happy to share that the Easter Edition contains 16 brand new stunning Easter templates. It allows people to make delightful Easter cards that they can freely share with families and friends.

Some of the highlighted features include: 

1. With 100+ various templates provided to make digital photo collages, scrapbook, greeting cards, posters, calendar, photo album for any occasion, like Birthday, Easter, Christmas, Thanksgiving, Wedding, etc.

2. Support drag and drop photos onto collage. It comes with a large collection of beautiful picture frames and masks that you can add to any of your photos.

3. Personalize your creation by adding clip-art, text, background. It allows you to resize, rotate and position all the elements to make collage crafting intuitive and fun.

4.  Save collage as an image file, set as desktop wallpaper, share through Email, or print it out instantly to share with friends and family.

There’s a resource page which you can download add on templates to include in the program! Tutorials and design ideas and suggestions also can be found. If you fan the software created Pearl Mountain on Facebook you’ll be able to download some great bonus templates too! If you sign up for their free newsletter you’ll be in the know of when new templates and updates are available.

Overall I am really happy with Picture Collage Maker Pro. It’s user-friendly. It doesn’t slow down my computer like other collage sites and programs I’ve used. It has lots of great pre-made templates to choose from for holidays, seasons, and so much more. I couldn’t be happier!

You can purchase Picture Collage Maker Pro for $ 39.90 off their website or you can try to win 1 of 15  license for free here on my blog! Please enter below through Rafflecopter!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Disclaimer: I was sent the above product mentioned for review. This review is 100% my opinion and has not been edited or reviewed by anyone. I was not compensated in any other way for this product review.

Having family time, whether gathered around a table playing games or if you’re cuddled up on the couch over a bowl of popcorn watching a movies is a great way to bond and make memories that will last a lifetime. We love doing both in our household! And speaking of movies and entertainment for the family, I’m declaring that BLOCKBUSTER Express kiosks are THE family-friendly destination this April!

Many titles from nCirlcle entertainment are newly being offered this month such as Super Mario Bros: Box Office Mario, Dino Dan: Dino Trackers ,  Yo Gabba Gabba: Live!,  The Cat in the Hat: Up and Away, Fairies: Meet the Fairies, Sonic the Hedgehog: Sonic Goes Green, and Gruffalo.

These titles will be available from BLOCKBUSTER Express for $2 for the first night, $1 each additional night and come with the BLOCKBUSTER Express In-Stock Guarantee. In addition, during the month of April, BLOCKBUSTER Express will donate 10% of all first-night Family, Kids and Animated
movie rentals to Make-A-Wish® with a minimum donation of $30,000, up to a maximum of $60,000.  Make-A-Wish grants the wishes of children with life-threatening medical conditions.  For more information, visit wish.org.

I’ve been through so many different brands of cups, plates, utensil, and bowls to use for my children. And time again and again, many of these items just haven’t held up very well. I was really disappointed in the quality and the price of the products alone really hoping and assuming that they would last for several years instead of only a few months time.

Other new mothers would ask my suggestion on which dishes I would recommend they use with their own children and I would be coming up with answers but usually that included me saying this can do this well but be careful because this leaks or isn’t dishwasher safe, and the list goes on because there was really not a dish that could do everything that would be beneficial to the child, parent, and the environment.

I had almost given up on finding the perfect dish ware for my children until I was asked to review a brand new line of durable tableware that’s not only environmentally friendly but affordable! Seriously, I thought it’s claims sounded to good to be true after being disappointed time and time again. I’m pleased to say I was persuaded and won over otherwise thanks to reviewing Re-Play products for myself first hand!

Re-Play products are dish ware specifically geared toward boys and girls that are free of BPA, PVC and Phthalates and manufactured, assembled and tested in the USA. Re-Play uses FDA approved plastics from recycled milk jugs to make their slotted plates, bowls, sippy cups and utensils.

I’ve been using Re-Play products for my nearly four year old daughter and my one year old son for about a month now. I really wanted to make sure the dishes got a lot of use before I spread the word about them. We were sent the entire line and I must say I’m very impressed with every single thing. I love I can use these for both my kids and since my son learned how to feed himself early on, I am very to have dish ware that he can so easily use on his own!

Features  I LIKE:

The Spoon has a deep scoop for children learning to use utensils & the Fork has durable, rounded tips for your child’s safety. They are just the right size for a child to grasp easily.

The No Spill Cup has a one piece, which is very easy to clean. The silicone valve keeps your child’s travels leak-free and you can easily buy replacements if you need some new ones!

The Divided plate has deep walls which is great for children beginning to learn how to feed themselves. The plate has four sections that provides a great way to teach portion control and to present a well balanced meal at every sitting.

Other pros are that not only the bowls, but the plates  stack well into each other freeing my cabinet of un-needed and un-wanted clutter! All Re-Play products are top rack dishwasher safe. And these products are extremely sturdy being dropped, thrown, and stepped on by my children, kids will be kids and products need to be able to stand up to that!

Overall Thoughts… There’s nothing I dislike about these products, in fact I hope they will possibly offer some different options in the future for older kids too like regular cups and maybe even some storage bowls. Re-Play products are great for the wallet, good for your children, and and exceptional choice for the enviroment! Five out of five from our family!

You can purchase Re-Play products from prices ranging from $4.99 to $10.99. Check out the colors, styles, and where you can find these products at Re-Play.com

-Win It-

I’m excited to announce that one of my readers will get the chance to win
their very own plate and utensils set from Re-Play!  (US Only please)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

DISCLAIMER: My thoughts are mine  own opinion and have not been altered by anyone else. I did not receive any compensation for hosting this giveaway or review other than the sample above mentioned.