Bagettes

You've probably seen totes and purses customized with photos of children or pets. Pretty creative. But this company, Bagettes, has taken the idea further. They offer cosmetic bags, kids' art bagettes, golf accessory bags, multi-purpose packs, a little coing purse, a wristlet and more. The Bridesmaid Photo Bag is a gift I've never seen before and what a great way to remember the day! Don't forget about the little girls, I think they would get a kick out of these personalized items.
I know it's a little early to be thinking about Mother's Day gifts, but keep these Bagettes in mind!

A Far Away Land

The Land of Nod. I love this store. The creativity is bursting from the pages of the catalog (and from the screen of the online store). It's all innovative and artistic kid's stuff from bedding to furniture to the playroom to gifts. You are guaranteed to find some Christmas gifts... even for the kid who has everything!

• If you have a little Monet on your hands and need a fun way to display the artwork, try these. These clips look super cute in their bedroom where they are then surrounded by their own art.
• If your little ones like to make forts or hide in small places, they will enjoy the Meet Me in the TeePee.
• I just had to include these Plane Note Cards. You fold the note card which resembles a map into a plane. How cool is that?!!? My son loves to "write letters." I could just see him writing a letter to Dad, hiding in another room and flying the note through the air into dad's lap!
• Girls and jewelry go hand-in-hand. With this kit they can make their own, personalized jewelry. Have at it girls, it's a ton cheaper than the real thing!
• Almost every kid grows up with some kind of toy farm. Most kids seem to have the Little People Farm, but if you have enough toys with noises try the Love That New Smell Farm. And even if you aren't tired of noises, just buy this one for the name!
• For baseball lovers there is the Take Me Out to the Pinball Game, a small wooden pinball game set up as a baseball field. Nice.
• Then there's the all-mighty Free Shipping section. You can't deny free shipping.

If these suggestions don't get your goat, look around the store some more. There is definitely something for everyone!

The Safe Side

Learn safety the fun way! What? Isn't safety supposed to be a serious topic where we drill it into our kids heads never, ever get into a car with a stranger?

Let me assure you The Safe Side - Stranger Safety does not belittle safety what-so-ever. It is a serious topic, but the creators also recognize you don't necessarily need to scare the bejesus out of a child to teach him/her about safety. And we all know children will sit and watch something over and over if they think it's funny. This is a crazy video which is well worth the $20 it costs. If it does what it is supposed to do, which is keep your child safe, it is actually worth millions.

The creators are non-other than Julie Clark and John Walsh. Julie Clark is the inventor of the renowned Baby Einstein videos. Yes, we all used them at one point or another (me, when my husband and I were trying to have a nice Friday night meal with minimal interruptions)! No wonder it grew to be a multi-million-dollar enterprise when she sold it to The Walt Disney Company a few years back. And John Walsh is famous for America's Most Wanted, a T.V. program he founded after his son was abducted from a mall and murdered. (I got the chills just writing that sentence.) He has saved many-a-lives.

Back to the video. Keep in mind the movie is intended for kids. It is wacky and funny and your kids are guaranteed some good laughs while learning. However, that being said, the best way for your child to really soak in the information is for you to sit down and watch the movie with them the first or second time. When you feel it is necessary, pause the movie and talk about some of the situations. Again, you don't need to scare your child, but you do need to be frank. Don't sugar-coat the situation just because you'd rather not think about the things that could happen to your child.

We have owned this video for over a year and my kids enjoy watching it. While writing this post, I visited the Safe Side Shop and couldn't believe my eyes! There is now a ton of things to teach your kids about safety. And recently, they have released a new video about Internet Safety... good thinking. Also note the The Safe Side Child ID Kit. Very important.

This is truly an amazing product!

Zoom, Zoom, Zoom

Simply stated. Cool.

These cars from Automoblox are for the young at heart and the cool kids on the block! The picture above is the rad C9 sportscar. Other models include the S9 Sedan, A9 Compact, X9 Sports Utility, T9 Pickup, M9 Sportsvan, and for the girls who want to play too, the C9p sportscar (in pink). One warning, however, the website claims "Pink. It's the New Black." I'd have to disagree. Or more likely, my husband would disagree! We'll cut them some slack though, they are only trying to appeal to little girls and include them in the fun.

Most importantly, I give these cars a thumbs up for their interchangable parts. You can buy a few cars and kids can use their imaginations to create their own colorful cars. As with all toys, the creators want to explain why you should invest your money in their toys.

1. Creative Problem Solving. Not bad, we can all use more of this skill.

2. Gross and Fine Motor Skills. Good one, we know most boys fall behind the girls with these skills because they'd rather be running around outside or tackling their moms.

3. Visio-spatial Processing. What ever that is! If you don't want to read the link, it's like putting the pieces of a puzzle together - thinking from parts of the puzzle to what the whole picture (car) will look like. OK, I can buy that.

Carve the Pumpkin

This one is for the kiddos. The above images are just examples of what you could do!

Carve the pumpkin by "drawing" with the tool shown.

1. Left click and hold down while dragging your mouse.


2. When finished with shape, let go of left click.


3. Keep going until you are finished.


4. Click the done button to see your very own Jack-o-lantern!

From Shirts into Blankets

Do you wish you could keep all those cute little baby clothes, but don't want to store them for ages? Or do you have baby clothes you would love to keep, but it seems every single piece reveals some nasty stain? If so, here is an amazing idea for you. Willow Creek Baby takes baby clothes and turns them into quilts. You can save the memories in a useful way. Although you'll want to keep a couple of onesies or tees on hand to remember just how dang small your little one actually was at one point (even with that proof it's still hard to believe), this is a smart idea for all the other clothes you can't seem to part from. Maybe you are too practical and give your clothes away, but if you know someone who might love this as a gift, they also offer gift certificates.

The Reading Railroad

Giving a child the gift of literacy is one of the greatest gifts we can give. As I've said before, a child can never have enough books. With television, video games, and the computers taking over our world, it is even more important we read to our children and give to other children who are not as fortunate. I believe a love for books will take you to places you've never been!

Recently, I came across the Reach Out and Read non-profit organization. They promote literacy by giving books to children in need. Plus the program assists parents or guardians by educating them on why it is so important to read out loud to their children.

The website also provides some fantastic literary resources on this topic:

Developmental Milestones in English, Spanish, and Chinese

Reading Tips and Choosing Books

Recommended books for adults regarding reading out loud and early literacy

And a list of links to a whole slew of other organizations whose goal is to bring literacy to families everywhere.

Find a program you believe in and give. It's simple to pass on gently used books. Or if you prefer to give money, a few dollars goes a long way to provide a child a book and an imagination. You never know where that child might go!

Le Chef Tot Extraordinaire

Start them young, is what I say! I'm lucky, my husband is the cook, and a very good cook at that. He would die for an all-out gourmet kitchen. Well, who wouldn't? Even if you don't like to cook, you can still look stylish! The buyers at Pottery Barn Kids are banking on the fact you would like to give your little one the gift of an extremely nice kitchen this holiday season. It's actually painted to look like stainless steel. Which makes me think, I wonder if I can paint my appliances to look like stainless steel?

The oven burners even turn red and the dishwasher makes real sounds. One "reality" problem - if it is supposed to be stainless steel, most stainless steel dishwashers make little sound, if any. Ohhhh... that's right, this is a set for kids, not adults. Yes, you should have life-like sounds for kids. After all, it's a learning experience right? If you feel you need to justify the purchase to your husband, just tell him the kids need to start somewhere and if they grow up to be wonderful cooks, he can take the credit.

Say it isn't so

God help us. Leggings are coming back in this season. Is it possible to make them fashionable? Since I always try to look at things in a positive way, here's my spin on leggings.

With leggings comes longer tops to cover the bum, right? With longer tops, comes a fashion trend turn-around for our young girls! Get what I mean? If you don't agree with me, feel free to move on to the next post. But I think most moms would agree the trend of tight and very short shirts is out-of-hand. We don't care to see little girls' mid-rifs and "muffin tops." And more importantly (for me), we don't care to have boys looking at girls in those clothes. So, I think the time has come when long tops will be "in" again and crop-crop tops will be "out." Am I thankful leggings are back in for that reason? No, I'm just trying to turn lemons into lemonade!

However, whether you're into leggings or not, here are a few cute sweaters from Nordstrom to cover the bum.

Mac & Jac Marled Sweater Coat

City Unlimited Hand Knit Cable Sweater Coat

Jones New York Sport Sweater Coat

Free People 'Kit' Funnel Neck Tunic

The Fly Lady

Is it possible you haven't heard of this website yet? TheFlyLady.net.

If you feel your life and/or house are a little chaotic, check out this website. And really, who doesn't at some point or another feel this way? Marla, the Fly Lady, is a SHE™ (Sidetracked Home Executive) and claims her system has saved her life. There is so much information on this site your head might explode, so let's try to work through it.

1. Go to the home page. On the left side, scroll down a little and you will see your navigation links. Click Why Fly. Here she explains what to expect if you join.

2. Back to the left side. Click Flying Lessons. Here is a section that neatly lays out a lot of information from how to join to the 11 commandments to how to declutter to vacation planning tips.

3. I think you get the point. The left side is really your key to the links and all the information.

Take a little each day. If you try to read the entire website in one day, get all pumped up, and join the group, I guarantee in 4-5 days you'll be bored with it and not have retained much information.

If you join the Yahoo group, you will receive daily emails to assist you in gaining control of your life and home again. And just a little tid-bit of information. This site and group is so incredibly popular the Yahoo group has 348,573 members. Whew! I guess I'm not the only one feeling a little chaos in my life lately!

Hot Moms!

You are a hot mom and don't let anyone tell you different! The Hot Moms Club is an engaging site for all moms. Their tagline reads, "A resource for moms who refuse to check their sense of style and sexuality at the white picket fence!" That's pretty good! Though don't let it mislead you. This site is not just about being sexy. In fact, there's not much talk of that at all. There is, however, a wealth of information from parenting to health and fitness to beauty and style to house and home to safety tips to mompreneurs (that would be an entrepreneur mom, like yours truly) to celebrity moms. As if that wasn't enough, there is also a mom-to-mom message board to discuss issues, a hot moms marketplace for people to sell a ton of goods, and much much more. The owners, Jessica Denay and Joy Tilk Bergin, have more interesting lives than many of us! Jessica is also the author of The Hot Mom's Handbook: Moms Have More Fun! I have to admit, I haven't read the book... yet. I will. So, for now, I'll have to steal a quote from a reader,

Now there is a creed I can live by. This book is not about how to be a sex pot, but about confidence and empowerment. It is about enjoying every moment you spend with your kids and every moment without them.

OK, if that doesn't make you want to read the book, I don't know what will! Check out the book, check out the site, and join the club. You deserve it.

The Snowflakes are Coming

I'm sorry to say but it is true. The snow is coming. I don't mind the snow. It' s the cold that gets me. But there is a bright side to every situation, right? So, the silver lining here is... the Emily Allyn Snowflake "one-of-a-kind" clothes are coming! WOO HOO.

Your kids are truly all "one-of-a-kind" so mark your calendars for November 6th because that is when our little snowflakes will be available to order in all long sleeve styles. If you're simply not good with calendars, feel free to sign up on the Emily Allyn email list to stay ahead of the game. By signing up, you will be notified before all others about promotions, new designs, and any special news.

For the Little Guys

Get a head start on your Christmas shopping with these "Little Guys" made by Keskey Kids. It reminds me of games we (and by "we" I mean those of us older than 30) grew up with where we actually had to use our imagination and create our own play. They make Football Guys, Baseball Guys, and Soccer Guys. And not to leave the girls behind, they even make Soccer Girls. Each game comes with a playing field, the number of guys you need for that sport, a referee, and goals. It's pretty cool. By using their own imaginations, they can play how they want to play.

And for those dads into college football, they have started coming out with specific teams in their respective jerseys. What dad wouldn't love to play these games with their boys? And Moms... while they are busy it frees up a bit of time for you to get out of the house... all by yourself!

Block Party!

Invites for kids parties just got a whole lot more creative. Imagine receiving a box in the mail as the invitation! Every kid loves to get mail and when their mail is in the form of a package it's that much better. Egba Originals has created these solid maple blocks that can be designed any way you want. In fact, they aren't just used for parties. Go ahead challenge the creative minds at Egba Originals and ask them to create invitations for baby and bridal showers, birth announcements, weddings... you name it. Going off the 3-D theme they also make puzzles to use as invitations and announcements. Getting a puzzle in the mail and the suspense of putting it together in order to find out why in the world you were sent this puzzle... sounds fun to me!

Piece by Piece

Puzzles. A great mind exercise for kids. It involves hand-eye coordination, fitting pieces into place, recollection, trial and error, and now an award when you finish... a super cool sound! Melissa and Doug are, in their own right, masters of creativity. They feed imaginations and that's why I love their products. Pictured above are the Train and Fire Engine Sound Puzzles. You guessed it. The puzzles make their respective sound when all the pieces are in place. My boys played with these over and over again. Another great puzzle is their Latches Play Board where tots need to figure out how to latch and unlatch different types of locks. Don't worry, there are no door knobs locks!

Three-Martini Playdate

Can you hear me laughing? I am still laughing at parts of this book, The Three- Martini Playdate - A Practical Guide to Happy Parenting by Christie Mellor. With chapters like these (just to name a few), you know it will be good:

Bedtime: Is Five-Thirty Too Early?

Child Labor: Not Just for the Third World!

Self-Esteem and Other Overrated Concepts.

Read this book and enjoy some of those deep belly laughs while you picture the scenes depicted through Christie's dead-on parenting tales. Then pass it on to a friend who could use some light humor about raising children... or better yet, a friend who may need to realize she is "one of those mothers" described in some of the hair-raising situations. There may be a few chapters you disagree with, but it's humor people! Laugh out loud and enjoy!

Here is an excerpt from the chapter, Children's Birthday Parties: Not Just for Children!

I encourage celebrating the first year. In fact, I heartily endorse the celebration of all birthdays. But things have gone completely haywire. Although a life-sized Barbie impersonator might be a treat for a few of the daddies, it is probable that your three-year old will not cherish the memory of the garishly bewigged ex-showgirl practicing hackneyed "magic" tricks on the back patio, or a bitter, marginally employed actor in a Batman cape making balloon animals.Why not have an afternoon cocktail party. Sure, invite the kids. It's your child's birthday, after all.

Bingo with a Zing!

For those kids who aren't quite old enough to play many games and for those parents who are sick of Candyland and Chutes and Ladders, this is the game for you! Zingo! I would say a good age is 3-5 years. Older than 5 and I think kids get a little bored.

There are two sides to each card. One side is a bit easier and goes a little faster because there are more of those tiles in the deck. Each tile has a picture and the word, so it I'll also give it a thumbs up for association. It's actually a pretty fun game even for adults... as long as you are playing it with your kids, that is! My youngest went through a stage of wanting to play this about 10 times per day. Then it got a little old, but a few times per day isn't bad!

Dirt Be-Gone

Abracadabra. Zippity Doo. Dirt Be-Gone. Poof. Poof. Poo.
There is such a thing as magic! If you don't believe me, you haven't tried the Mr. Clean Magic Eraser. It cleans just about anything... literally. I love to have a clean, spotless-as-can-be-with-two-boys house, but I hate cleaning. So any product that is going to make cleaning a breeze, is top dog with me. I have used it on my refrigerator door handles. You know, those handles that get all grimy and nothing, not even bleach gets them clean. Well these little erasers cleaned those dirty handles with ease. I barely had to scrub. I moved on to my dishwasher and microwave, then the stair railings, and some scuffs on the walls. I will warn you, however, it took off some paint on my walls. So far, that is my only negative discovery.

Wine Plates

How many times have you been at a friend's house having appetizers and realized you needed 3 hands? One to hold the wine. One to hold the appetizer plate. And one to eat with. With these wine plates, you can stick with your two-handed self... whew! In fact, you can have your wine and drink it too.

Pumpkin Shirts - Ideal for Fall!

Our Emily Allyn Pumpkin shirts are now on sale! Now all Pumpkin shirt styles are only $18.00! You save up to $6.00 per shirt/onesie. Our sizes range from 3-6 months up to 6T.

You just can't get enough of your little Pumpkin. These cute shirts are ideal for the entire Fall, not just Halloween. Well, they are cute year-around, but especially adorable this time of year.

And don't forget our SALE! page where many overstock items can be found at unbelievable prices.

It's Spooky Fun

It's time to get serious about Halloween. (I say that now, but I probably won't think about it again until 2 weeks from now when I'm running around like a mad-woman trying to find costumes and candy... all for the kids, of course!) Pottery Barn Kids always has the cutest Halloween collections. Their spooky melamine dish set is perfect for any household as you know kids love to use these throughout the year, not just at Halloween! And their bloodcurdling fabric placemats match the dishes. OK, they aren't bloodcurdling by any means. I just think that word is so dang funny.

Let's Bowl!

Baby Farm Friends Bowling game is a great little gift for kids. My boys had these soft, bright, entertaining little animals and couldn't get enough of them. The ball rattles while it rolls down the "lane" ready to knock down any little farm friend in it's way! It's easy to set up and easy to store in it's carrying case. A good age for this game is about 18 months to 3 years. There are quite a few soft bowling sets out now, but I still think this is one of the cutest.

The Real Story

I believe a child cannot have too many books - as you can probably tell from a few of my other posts on children's books (If I Built a Car and Dinosaur Stomp). Another favorite of mine is The True Story of the 3 Little Pigs by Jon Scieszka and Lane Smith.

A. Wolf believes he was framed and he decides to finally share his side of the Three Little Pigs story. Basically, he was just out trying to find a cup of sugar for his dear old Granny's birthday cake. It is absolutely hilarious. How people think things up like this is beyond me! The author is incredibly imaginative. This is another must have in your child's library. And of course, it is a book you can read over and over again.

Lena's Notebook

No, it's not an Ole and Lena joke! It's Lena's Notebook. She liked our Pumpkin onesies so much she displayed them on her Fun Halloween Stuff page. Check it out!

Wig Out!

What a riot! Everyone wants to have what celebrities have these days - even their baby's hair. Since Suri has shown her full-on head of hair to the world, the Baby Toupee website has become quite popular. Even if you would never, ever even think of buying one of these for your child, you must check out the website for a good chuckle!

This is not one of those products where I think to myself, "Man, I wish I would have thought of that." No, it's more like, "Who thinks this stuff up anyway?"

Kids Play

I'm a big Cranium fan for kids' games. In all honesty, the reason I'm a big Cranium fan is because I actually like playing these games! My favorites are:

Cariboo for ages 2-1/2 to 5 years

Hullabaloo for ages 3 to 7 years

Balloon Lagoon for ages 4 to 7 years

(all ages are my opinion)

Cariboo assists toddlers in learning their colors, numbers, and letters. A key is used to open doors to see if a ball is behind that door. Once all the balls are found and placed in the tunnel, a treasure pops up as a little surprise. The concept is easy to learn and the children always love seeing the treasure appear.

Hullabaloo is a great tool for listening and following directions. There are lots of little colored mats that have objects on them like instruments, food, and animals. The electronic speaker gives directions, "hop to a triangle," or "crawl to a food." After a series of these directions, the speaker ends the round by saying, "if you're on the Ice Cream, you win! Winner do a funky monkey dance." But since everyone is usually a winner in tot games, everyone chimes in and performs their own funky dance!

Balloon Lagoon is possibly the most creative game I've seen. It is set up as a carnival, with 4 main carnival games. "Players take turns fishing for letters to spell words, collecting matching snacks at the Snack Hut, pressing levers to spin wheels to unscramble pictures, or flipping frogs back into their pond. Players keep score by collecting little plastic balloons." Thanks to Amazon for the quote, I couldn't figure out how to concisely describe the game!

Etsy

What did you say? E-T-S-Y

If you like unique, handmade products you won't find on everyone else, you will enjoy this website, Etsy.com. Etsy is an online marketplace featuring Indie (Independent) designers who put their heart and soul into their work. The designers love what they do and it shows in the craftsmanship. You can find everything from paper goods to clothing to jewelry to furniture to pet supplies and more.

The owners developed the site well over a year ago, so there has been plenty of time to work out kinks and things flow smoothly now. They say they have more than 72,000 members and 18,000 sellers. With those numbers, you are sure to find something on your wish list. I bought a purse from a designer and loved it knowing there were only 2 or 3 in the world similar to mine!