Busy Mamas

Is it just me or is there something a little wrong with this? Sure an Elmo key is cute and I would have loved to have a colorful character on my house key when I was young. But Sesame Street? Isn’t the Sesame Street age group target a little young to need a house key? Are there latch-key toddlers and preschoolers out there walking themselves home from school waiting for Mom and Dad to finish work? Yeah we’re busy, but surely we’re not THAT busy!

I can understand Spiderman, there are lots of older kids out there that like Spiderman. And Ariel, I’ll give them that. Hey, I have a credit card with Ariel on it (let me tell you, my daughter was quite thrilled when she saw that card in my wallet but was quite ticked when I wouldn’t let her have it - that’s an issue for Daddy to deal with in a few years). High School Musical, totally understandable. And the Evil Queen Maleficent…I need one of those for myself. Some days I’m sure my kids would consider me to be the evil queen of our castle. Sesame Street though…is it just me?

Tags: ariel, evil queen, high school musical, house keys, keys, maleficent, sesame street, spiderman

Before you all start calling Child Protective Services on me, this is my cousin’s idea of fun. His daughter fell asleep at dinner (a wedding rehearsal dinner of all places) and you never want to fall asleep around my cousin. Especially if you’re his child!

Tags: gag, girl, sleeping, wine, wordless wednesday

Have you tried Tooth Tunes yet? This is the toothbrush by Hasbro and Tiger Electronics that plays music while you brush. I’ve heard about it for a while now and was quite curious to try it but never got around to buying one (mainly because we have an obscene amount of toothbrushes at home and thought it would be silly to actually go out and BUY one). Of course I was quite happy when a sample box of Tooth Tunes was delivered to Dr. DreamyMcSteamy’s office recently. I thought about snagging one for myself but held back and gave it to my daughter. Kids come first right? Unless it’s gummy bears, then all bets are off.

According to the manufacturer, Tooth Tunes uses sound vibrations that stream through the bristles which become louder as pressure is applied to the brush. This means the harder you brush, the louder the music is in your head. The music clip is timed for two minutes, the optimal length of time one should spend brushing, to encourage good brushing habits.

The Tooth Tunes samples that we received play Star Wars music - the main theme to be exact, with laser guns blasting, R2D2 beeping and Chewie gurgling in the background. My daughter thought it was cool to have music playing in her head and noticed that it got louder as she brushed harder. What surprised me was how loud the music was. Once you press the button you can hear the music faintly but when it goes into the mouth the song is audible from another room! It’s not deafening for the user (yes, I stuck her toothbrush in my mouth when she wasn’t looking - but don’t tell my kids that before they start thinking every toothbrush in the house is up for grabs) but the sound does carry quite a bit.

This is a pretty novel concept and I can see how it would encourage users to spend more time brushing. The convenience of the built-in timer is also great. The only drawback is that the toothbrush is not automatic. Dr. DreamyMcSteamy really likes the effectiveness of electric toothbrushes since they tend to do a better job of getting the teeth clean. But hey, nothing wrong with something new to make things interesting!

Since we only used one of the samples, I have two new (I promise they haven’t been opened and my son has not scrubbed the toilets with them) Star Wars Tooth Tunes brushes to give away. All you have to do is post a comment here by September 1st and we will select two random winners. Good luck and may the force be with you!

Tags: dental, giveaway, hasbro, tiger electronics, tooth tunes, toothbrush

Someone e-mailed this link to me the other day and I couldn’t resist passing it on. It never dawned on me to do it but I imagine it would be pretty easy. Something for us busy moms to think about when we have a bunch of hungry kids in the backseat and we forgot to go to the ATM… I’m kidding! Really, I’m kidding. I think.

Tags: free food, gag, mcdonalds, nimportequi, prank, youtube

I was over at From Dawn Till Rusk the other day and was laughing at her post about her daughter’s fear of her brother’s willy. It got me thinking about men and their fascination with their, umm, extremities.

My 2-year-old son is no exception. One day after getting his diaper changed, he stood up and started grabbing his crotch, grunting and making faces. When asked what he was doing he replied, “I fixing my dingle.” Where does he learn this stuff? I’ve never seen his Dad do that! And dingle? Who taught him that?? Obviously there’s a lot that goes on around here when I’m not looking.

Tags: boys, crotch, fixation, men, privates

This recipe comes from Rachel Ray’s Cooking ‘Round the Clock cookbook. I love pasta salad and usually make a more simplified version with rotelli pasta and Italian dressing, but had to try this because it sounded so good! Dr. DreamyMcSteamy and I really enjoyed it and it made a nice light dinner on a hot summer day. And since I used chicken tortellini it was pretty substantial and we could eat it as a meal in itself. Did the kids eat it though? No, not really. I guess it’ll be a few years before I can convince them that salad really is food. Continue Reading »

Tags: Food and Recipes, pasta, Rachael Ray, salad

Tags: gecko, wordless wednesday

The other weekend we joined a couple of other busy mamas and their families for a few relaxing days and nights at the newly-built Westin Princeville Ocean Resort Villas in Kauai (a 20-minute flight from Honolulu). It was the most relaxing and enjoyable vacation we’ve had in years!

We arrived at the resort in the early evening and the kids (Moms and Dads included) were impressed just walking into the beautiful lobby. My daughter was even more thrilled when we walked into our room. She jumped up and down asking if we were going to stay there and shouted “This is the BEST DAY of my LIFE!!! Did you guys bring me here because you LOVE me??” Did I mention she’s a bit dramatic?

Each family stayed in their own beautifully appointed studio villa complete with kitchen, jacuzzi tub and washer/dryer combo. Perfect for a family getaway. The Westin’s resort amenities were also great for families. A kiddie pool complete with giant turtles and a water slide was located just steps from our room. This is pretty much where the Moms and kids spent the entire trip (the Dad’s spent it on the golf course). A larger big “kids” pool was also nearby but unfortunately we never got a chance to use it. We did however manage to take advantage of the poolside bar for some afternoon cocktails around the kiddie pool. What with the water slide, bubbling turtles, and foot-and-a-half deep pool, the childcare pretty much took care of itself! All we had to do was make sure everyone’s head stayed above the water and no one got knocked down by someone coming down the slide. Ahh, if babysitting was like this everyday I’d gladly pop out a few more kids and become a stay-at-home mom! Well, maybe. Ok, probably not.

The next time we take a group vacation we’ll definitely try to stay in a facility with condo amenities again. The convenience of having a fully-equipped kitchen and BBQ grills just outside our lanai gave us the wonderful option of cooking our own meals rather than having to keep the kids sitting nicely during expensive restaurant meals (You should have seen us moms trying to shovel in our breakfast while keeping 6 wiggly little butts planted at the table each morning - not fun. Where were the dads? Oh yeah, golfing.) . We could relax in the room with friends, let the kids run around and chase the chickens (yes, chickens), and kick back with some nice cocktails. If you’re ever in Kauai, check out the Westin Princeville Ocean Resort Villas! It was a perfect vacation from start to finish. Well, except for the men spending so much time golfing and leaving us with the kids…but that’s a whole other issue.

Tags: condo resort, kauai, Traveling with Kids, westin

I have a thing for flashlights and lanterns. Just check out our camping gear and you’ll see what I mean. Big Maglite flashlights, teeny little flashlights for the kids, flashlights with princess and cars on them, battery operated lanterns, fluorescent lanterns, propane lanterns, solar powered lanterns…you name it we got it. But even with all of that, I just wanted one good one to take on those late night potty runs at camp. Most flashlights are too dim to do much good in pitch darkness, and lanterns are too big and cumbersome to carry. Plus what are you gonna do with the lantern once you get to the bathroom? Put it on the floor? Yuck! When I saw the Oval LED Flashlight I knew it would be perfect and I wasn’t disappointed.

The ingenious Oval Flashlight has two lights - one that points straight ahead to show you where you’re going, and another one that points down to illuminate the ground. Press the button once and the main beam turns on. Press the button again and the lower beam goes on as well. The beams are bright and do a great job of preventing you from falling on your face. Unless you’re a klutz, then you’re on your own. What’s even better is that the flashlight is very light and fits comfortably in your hand. So you can easily carry your beer and the flashlight with minimal spillage. I’m just saying.

Even if you don’t go camping, this flashlight is great to have on hand because you never know when you’ll need one. Do you have a dog that needs walking? Take this light with you and attach your dog leash to it for perfect visibility. Trick-or-treating at Halloween? Caroling with the kids at Christmas? The uses for the Oval LED Flashlight are endless and you won’t be disappointed!

Tags: flashlight, oval flashlight

I got these cool water toys for the gang’s camping trip the other week. Primarily for the kids, but well, you know how it goes with men and toys…

Seeing how we all love water balloon fights, I figured they (again, primarily the kids) would love to do battle on the beach. Boy was I right. I don’t know whose faces lit up more when I brought them out - the kids’ or the men’s. They had a blast trying to shoot each other with water (when the Dads gave them a chance) and everyone was racing up and down the beach to refill their launchers. They were very easy to use and as one Dad pointed out, they were great because they “didn’t look like guns” (guns happen to be a huge no-no at our preschool).

All you need to do is dunk the Aqua Blaster into some water and pull back on the handle to fill the chamber. Then just aim and push the handle to release the water. The Aqua Blaster is lightweight and simple for kids (Dads included) to operate. They come in three sizes - 18, 24 & 33 inches - at very reasonable prices. I got ours at Colorado Kayak Supply and they were great to work with. They had the items in stock, suggested some other great toys and even had reasonable shipping! To Hawaii no less! Amazing.

Do you see this? Are there kids anywhere to be seen? Of course not, they had to go find something else to do while the Dad’s hogged the toys. And what’s he squirting? A bird?

Tags: aqua blaster, beach, camping, NRS, water toy