The Next Kid Thing

Nickelodeon is set to air the much-hyped Mega Music Fest tonight at 8pm—and what a mega fest it is!  Back in May, NKT was onhand at the Brooklyn Academy of music for the taping of the powerhouse kiddie music show which brought the likes of The Roots, Colbie Calliat and Wyclef Jean onstage for a variety of musical performances.

Hosted by John Leguizamo, Nickelodeon’s Mega Music Fest merges together the energy of Nick Jr. characters with the vitality of music, which in turn will make the littlest music fans and big ones alike want to get loud!

If you’re an NKT fan on Facebook, hopefully, you didn’t miss a few of our teasers from the taping.  With so many fun characters onstage and animated, everyone was dancing and smiling throughout all the fun numbers. The aisles were packed with wee ones jumping and dancing; I can’t wait to see how that captured that element of the show on tape.

The Roots played my family’s theme song, “Lovely Family” (and probably many of yours, too!), which made the kid and husband light up and sing every single word.  DJ Lance, Muno, Plex, Toodee, Foofa and Brobee danced and sang along to a few of the songs that we know by heart, but it was, perhaps, the Vegetables that almost stole the show.  If you’re a YGG, I’m sure you know which song they were singing!

One of my favorites of the day, however, had to be Colbie Callait’s version of “Walking on Sunshine.”  The little ones might not know who Colbie is, but if they’re Nick Jr. fan, I’m sure they’d be familiar with her singing partner, none other than Kai Lan!

Throughout the show and in between performances, Leguizamo threaded silly bits about finding his dancing shoes for the party.  Sherri Shepherd even made a few onstage appearances, and kept the crowd smiling as she acted as the stage manager.   In addition to the live characters, there were special appearances onscreen from Dr. Phil and Justin Beiber, who added their own fun flair to the Mega Music Fest. Family favorite, The Laurie Berkner Band contributed to the Mega Music Fest with an on-screen version of “My Family.”

But it was the dancing, singing and music school-going quartet that made my kid’s day.  My guy was dancing with all the other toddlers and preschoolers in the aisles for almost the whole show, but when he saw Shout, Twist, Marina and Kiki appeared, he stepped it up.  The Fresh Beat Band, who had a few issues getting to the party, tied it all in, and as usual, they made it a great day.

As huge Nickelodeon fans and true music junkies, my family thought the Mega Music Fest was a great show, from start to finish.  The last number got everyone up and out of their seats, just like a good concert should!

The fun for us didn’t stop after the last number, either!  We were also invited to attend the amazing afterparty.  And when I say party, I mean PARTY!  Nickelodeon’s Mega Music Fest afterparty was a kid party extraordinaire.  From sweet treats to finger sandwiches (with no crust) to ice cream to french fries to chicken strips, the food selection was like a kid’s dream.

The afterparty had a cool seating area/play area where my kid spent almost the entire afternoon diving headfirst into pillows.  Nickelodeon kept the music theme going at the afterparty: there was a musical instrument creation craft area and a toy area with a variety of kid-sized music-inspired toys.  And really, anything that a kid would love, it was probably there at the afterparty.  Our favorite experience of the day was getting to meet some of our beloved Nickelodeon favorites.  We met and got pictures with Joe from Blues Clues, the Fresh Beat Band and we got to see our YGG friends again.

Nickelodeon’s Mega Music Fest is a fun musical showcase that I can’t wait to relive when it airs tonight at 8pm.  They hit it out of the park with their first Mega Music Fest, and it’s my hope that Nickelodeon makes it an annual event, and perhaps, a live festival that even more families can experience!

Be sure to tune into Nickelodeon at 8 for the Mega Music Fest.  And who knows, maybe you’ll see us in the audience!

Encore presentations of the Mega Music Fest will be shown on Tuesday, Sept. 7, at 10:00 a.m. ET/PT and on Thursday, Sept. 9, at 1:00 p.m. ET/PT.

I just spent four unforgettable days taking in the events and sessions surrounding the 2010 BlogHer conference that was held in NYC.  And guys, I had the time of my life.

I connected with so many fabulous people, many of whom do what I “do,” but in a different niche, in a different area… I’ve been truly inspired by so many women, in a myriad of ways.

One of the many takeaways from BlogHer 2010 was a renewed perspective of the relationships I have with brands.  Afterall, without brands and relationships, The Next Kid Thing wouldn’t be the blog that it is.

At the BlogHer sessions, at private events, in the expo or at parties, I met some of the many pr reps I’ve worked with over the years.  And in some cases, I hugged and caught up with other pr reps and company reps that I already know and love. You all know who you are.  And to the people who approached me and introduced yourselves, thank you.  If you’re in the business of connecting with people, it just goes to show you how important an updated profile pic is on Twitter. (more…)

Saturday nights definitely aren’t like they used to be.  This past Saturday, we tuned in to watch Nickelodeon’s 23rd Annual Kids’ Choice Awards.  I love awards shows to begin with, so watching one with the kid made it much more fun.  Even after the kid went to bed, I had to watch to see if any of my favorites took home the top kid honors.

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On the heels of a successful live tour, Yo Gabba Gabba season three premieres today, March 8 at 10:30 on Nickelodeon.  In Yo Gabba Gabba fashion, premiere week will feature a host of familiar faces such as Sarah Silverman, Weird Al Yankovic, Black Kids, Jack McBrayer, Paul Scheer, Weezer, Anthony Bourdain, Of Montreal, Mos Def, Devo, The Aquabats, Mark Mothersbaugh and Biz Markie.  Famous dad, Travis Barker of Blink 182 fame will rock out a special remix for the premiere today.

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Yesterday, our First Lady, Michelle Obama, unveiled the nationwide campaign Let’s Move, which aims to tackle childhood obesity. This campaign is geared to engage every sector that impacts the health of our kids, giving schools, families and communities the tools to help everyone be more active, eat better and get healthy.

Mrs. Obama unofficially initiated this campaign when she broke ground on the White House organic Garden last year. In a NYT article, Mrs. Obama said, the main purpose of the garden will be to educate children about healthful, locally grown fruit and vegetables at a time when obesity and diabetes have become a national concern.

Soon after, Mrs. Obama appeared on an episode of Sesame Street touting the importance of fruits and vegetables, as well as healthy eating habits.

The Let’s Move Campaign will emphasize four major facets, all of which underline the changes needed to combat childhood obesity:

Helping Parents Make Healthy Family Choices

Serving Healthier Food in Schools

Accessing Healthy, Affordable Food

Increasing Physical Activity

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In the video game sector, titles and technology are constantly evolving. With many new handheld titles and fun family titles to choose from, I had a tough time narrowing down NKT picks. I could go on and on with this exhaustive list for great family video games, but I chose many of the ones below because I had the unique chance to experience them first hand. For the ones that I didn’t try out myself, I felt that their family-friendliness and entertainment value coincided with NKT’s scope.  And as far as giveaways go, this is a biggie!  Enter for a chance to win these recently released video games and NKT picks!
So, here they are:

Dora Saves the Crystal Kingdom
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The next installment of the Next Kid Thing Gift Glossary is all about DVDs for toddler and preschoolers.  I’m all about less is more when it comes to tv watching, dvds and video games, especially for the smaller kids.  But a great show on DVD is often what separates me from getting dinner cooked without a meltdown.  So, here are a few dvd picks for preschoolers (and even one for toddlers) that are entertaining for everyone.

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While we all have turkey and stuffing on the brain, I guess it’d be a good time as any to let you know what our friends over at Nickelodeon have planned.  Dubbed Superstuffed Nicksgiving Weekend, Nick has a great lineup of shows this weekend including new episodes, marathons, and movies.

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Over the weekend, the Yo Gabba Gabba Live tour kicked off at LA’s Shrine Auditorium. I loved following the developments on Twitter, which makes me that much more excited to hear about the show in NYC this weekend.

So, you know the Yo Gabba Gabba There’s a Party in My City tour I’ve been buzzing about?  Well, there will be a party in my city!

As I mentioned in a previous post, there are three NYC shows on November 21st at 11 a.m., 2 p.m. (which are both sold out), and because they’re awesome, they added another show at 5 p.m. so more Gabba fans have a chance to hang with the gang. 

DJ Lance, Brobee, Toodee, Muno, Foofa and Plex are expected to rock out to various tunes, including some that are heard regularly on the show.  And I hear that there may even be some special guests at the shows.  Trust me, the Yo Gabba Gabba gang knows how to get down.  (Like there was ever any doubt!)

But, if there was ever a reason to do a Dancey Dance, today’s the day!

Oh yeah, friends.  That’s right!  Our friends at W!ldbrain are giving one lucky NKT reader four tickets to see Yo Gabba Gabba at the SOLD OUT 11 a.m. show on November 21!  Awesome, right?

Concert tickets, in general, can get pricey—nevermind ticket prices in NYC—which is why I’m so excited about this AWESOME GIVEAWAY.  Four tickets to this show, which run as high as $75 last time I checked, is a dealbreaker for many families.  I think it was quite generous for our friends at W!ldbrain to offer this fabulous giveaway—which by the way, is definitely my favorite/most awesome giveaway ever.

So listen up friends, to win the Awesome Giveaway for four tickets to see Yo Gabba Gabba on November 21, at the 11 a.m. show at Beacon Theatre, you must comment below with your favorite character, celebrity guest or Dancey Dance from the show.  Multiple entries are encouraged.

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