Insider Tips for Shopping at The Mills at Jersey Gardens

My family has often joked that I shop like it’s my job. Well, friends, I’m here to tell you that dreams do come true! I’m so excited about my most recent partnership with one of my absolute favorite malls, The Mills at Jersey Gardens.

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Located just a few minutes outside of NYC in Elizabeth, NJ, The Mills at Jersey Gardens is an incredible shopping destination with over 200 stores, with many of them being outlets and factory stores. Just some of the featured stores include: Saks Fifth Avenue OFF 5TH, Marshalls, Neiman Marcus Last Call, Michael Kors, Century 21 Department Store, Abercrombie & Fitch Outlet, Coach Outlet, Tommy Hilfiger, Uniqlo.

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I was tasked with doing some back to school and fall shopping for my family and sharing my experience. So, today, for Takeover Tuesday, I over on the Mills’ Instagram sharing some of my favorite adventures from this massive outlet mall. Head over to the Mills’ Instagram account and double tap for some of my fave stuff.

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And because I’ve been obsessively shopping here for well over 10 years, I know this mall like the back of my hand. Here are just a few of my favorite insider tips.

Savings Passport

Many of the stores at The Mills are outlets or factory stores of the brands that we know and love. If you grab one of the Savings Passport at the Information Desk, you can find a list of the stores who offer additional savings. IMG 7064 2 hese discounts can often be stacked with other sales within the stores. My favorite discounts found in the Savings Passport are from the Gap, Under Armour and H&M. The discounts found in the Passport can only be used once.

Spend the Day

The Mills at Jersey Gardens isn’t one of those Malls that you can just run in and run out. Well, it can be if you are on a mission.

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If you have the time, especially on big shopping trips or sale times, consider spending several hours at the mall. I always bring my preschooler’s stroller, which comes in handy when he gets tired and when I need a place to haul all of my bags. ha!

Prime Parking

On extremely busy shopping times, The Mills will get crowded. Best time for me is during the week without kids or when it first opens on the weekend. I recommend parking at Bed Bath and Beyond and going through the store. BBB is located upstairs and is next to many of my favorite shops. When leaving or if I have to drop bags off and go back to shop (this has happened many times) BBB is a central location. I love to pick up home essentials at this Bed Bath, which is perfect since I can grab it on my way out. Not to mention, Bed Bath and Beyond has a bathroom available for their shoppers which is located by the Registry area, somewhat close to the back door! It’s always quiet, there’s a changing table and rarely has a line. Perfect for families with littles!

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From our latest trip to The Mills, I grabbed a ton of basics and grabbed a few new fun accessories for myself! If you’re looking for a new bag or wallet, don’t forget to check out Michael Kors, the Coach Outlet and the newly opened Kate Spade downstairs. 

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As a sports mama, we go through athletic clothes, sneakers and cleats incessantly. Be sure to check out the massive Marshalls for cleats for kids and adults. I always save at least 50% on cleats at this location. This time around, I bought my big guy some new Nike football cleats for $20. I spotted the same ones at a big box sports store for $45! Score!

Don’t forget to catch me on The Mills at Jersey Gardens’ Instagram page!

Full disclosure: This is a sponsored post. I received compensation to share my experience. 

Q and A: Jordana Beatty and Megan McDonald of Judy Moody and the Not Bummer Summer

It’s a likely scenario: most third graders are probably anticipating on having an exciting, adventure-filled summer.  (I can’t think of anyone who actually plans on having a boring summer…)  With kids counting down the minutes to summer vacation, the Judy Moody movie based on the popular Judy Moody book series by Megan McDonald has an empowering and creative get-out-there and enjoy yourself message that’s relevant for both kids and adults.

In Judy Moody and the Not Bummer Summer, the disheveled red-headed, tomboyish title character is determined to have the best summer ever, and even challenges her besties to a thrill point race.  Amid her own expectations and a little brother named Stink (Parris Mosteller,) Judy’s summer adventures are both epic and outrageous, with a little help from Aunt Opal (Heather Graham) and a pal named Frank (Preston Bailey.)

I had the chance to chat with Jordana Beatty, the 12-year old Australian actress who plays the lead, and Megan McDonald, the author/screenwriter of the Judy Moody books and movie.  I love the premise behind this movie, almost as much as I appreciate seeing a tomboy tween lead.  In my candid Q & A with the effervescent and articulate Jordana, she revealed her most memorable scenes and her own crazy summer adventures.  Likened to the Beverly Cleary and Judy Blume of this generation, Megan McDonald shares her inspiration for her characters and how she enjoys spending her own summer days, which just so happens to be my ideal summer.

Beyond the puke scene and how much fun she had filming, find out what Jordana Beatty wants kids to take away from Judy Moody and the Not Bummer Summer, which is out today.

New year, new horizons

Happy Monday and happy 2010, everyone. I hope you had a lovely holiday break and are recovering/transitioning ok! Our family enjoyed a very nice Christmas and quiet New Year; it was just the right amount of family time. After a hectic fall and holiday season, I took a much needed break from blogging and writing. Apologies for the lack of posts, but things will be back to normal this week.

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photo credit: Selva Ganapathy

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Music Monday: A Family Christmas

Way before tracking trends and kid’s products even became a blip on my radar, I stumbled upon Putumayo Kids music at a local gift store.  A huge advocate for diversity and lover of all things music-related, falling in love with Putumayo Kids was a given.

There are children’s music compilations and then, there is Putumayo Kids.  Putumayo’s various cds, which are geared to entertain, educate and inspire cultural curiosity in children, boast upwards to 3 million cds sold and stands apart from other children’s cds.  The compilations are well-thought out and enjoyable for both kids and adults—a must for our music-loving family.

616FLxA340L._SL500_AA240_This fall, Putumayo released A Family Christmas, which I found to be one of the best recent kid-centric Christmas music collections.  Putumayo’s A Family Christmas is a melodic departure from all the character-based songbooks, shows and cds that seem to monopolize the storeshelves, especially this time of year.  The songs on this cd are ones that we know and love, but the artists featured are none that I can recognize aside from Big VooDoo Daddy, (though you might recognize a few) which makes it even more appealing.  Can you think of a better way to enjoy the songs you hear a billion times over during the holidays than with a new fresh take on the classics for kids?

From Johnny Bregar’s acoustic take on “Santa Claus is Coming to Town” to Big Bad Voodoo Daddy retro-swing version of Louis Armstrong’s song, “Is Zat You Santa Claus?,” to The Christmas Jug Band featuring Angela Strehli and Maria Muldaur’s “Boogie Woogie Santa Claus,” Putumayo’s A Family Christmas covers all the music genre on one fun collection.  This compilation truly appeals to music lovers of all ages and from all walks of life!  My only complaint is that I can’t seem to locate Putumayo on iTunes.  Maybe the next one?

My personal favorite on the cd is definitely Mele Kalikimaka by Debbie Davis & Matt Perrine, which I consider a kind reminder and shout out to one of our family’s highlights of the year—our trip to Hawaii this summer to celebrate the kid’s Godmother’s wedding!
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Be sure to check out the Putumayo Kid’s site to check out their other award-winning cd collections.  Also, head on over to Amazon to give a listen to A Family Christmas, which is where I sampled this cd myself.  Music is a wonderful gift for everyone, especially cd compilations that have garnered awards like, Parents’ Choice Awards, National Parenting Publications Gold Awards, iParenting Media Award and Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Platinum Award.

Without a doubt, after I pick up this cd from Barnes and Noble, Putumayo’s A Family Christmas will be blaring from our speakers on our drive back to Virginia for the holidays.  Putumayo is so cool, they’re offering a free MP3 download!  Just sign up here to receive your free download of the song “Jolly Old St. Nick” by Brave Combo from the new Putumayo CD A Family Christmas.

A Family Christmas can be found at retailers like Barnes and Noble, as well as online.

Gift Glossary: great video games

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:

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NKT Gift Glossary: great games

Finally! I’m just now getting all caught up and posting my much delayed Holiday Gift Glossary! Over the next few days, I will be unveiling my favorite top picks for the NKT Holiday Gift Glossary. And oh yeah, I’ll be giving away a few goodies, too!

Today’s installment of the Holiday Gift Glossary is all about games! Check them out here or under the Gift Glossary tab above!
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Gift idea: Zoobies

As I started my day this morning, I just so happened to turn on the Today Show, right as the Top 10 holiday toys you don’t know about segment came on.

I was so excited to see that Zoobies made that list, because Zoobies are another one of those items that the kid just loves. Our guy was gifted his Zoobie Pet, Tama, last year from Santa, and hasn’t let go of it since.

Zoobies are a plush 3-in-1 concept: Each pet is a stuffed animal, a pillow, and a blanket all in one. The velcro latches on each Zoobie is child friendly and can be easily unfastened to transform the animals into the pillows. The zippers at the bottom unzip to reveal the blanket inside. Each blanket can be detached from the pet for machine washing.

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Aside from the vibrant colors, great selection of animals and that they’re appropriate from babies to big kids, Zoobies make a practical gift/toy/lovey and are ideal for traveling. They’re durable and truly cozy and soft. Our Tama is often involved an various toddler accident and spills and has had his fair share of baths in the washing machine. A year later, he still looks just like Santa brought him to us.

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Zoobies come in small, medium and large; our Tama is the smallest size and he is just right for the little guys. The stuffed animal, itself, is just the right size to cuddle for little grips, yet the blanket is big enough for mom and kid to cuddle under. According to the site, the blanket measures 53 x 34 in.

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Zoobies added several new pets to their brood, and I’m definitely in love with Bubba the Black Bear that was just featured on The Today Show this morning. Soft, cute, cuddly and practical!

The small Zoobies are in the $30 price point and can be found online and in stores such as Buy Buy Baby.

NKT Picks: Cyber Monday Deals

I hope everyone had a fun and festive Thanksgiving! And if you hit the sales on Friday, I hope you found some fantastic deals and made it home unscathed. My girlfriend and I are still reeling from the lack of sleep on Thursday night/Friday morning since we hit Toys R Us at midnight and pretty much kept going until 11am!

But for those of you who have saved your money (and sanity) for Cyber Monday, there are lots of great deals!  Most of these last until midnight, so be sure to check them out!  I’ll be sure to post more as I see them!

Here’s my quick roundup of Cyber Monday deals:

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Amazon video game deals
For the teen and tween set, undoubtedly, a few video games will make it to their gift list!  Need some ideas, or better yet, some great deals?  Be sure to head to Amazon today for some great Cyber Monday deals!

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LeapFrog

LeapFrog has a great lineup of Cyber Monday deals today, with select Tag Books and Leapster games as low as $5! I picked up a Leapster for my kid at the TRU Black Friday sale, so I will more than likely pick up a few more Leapster games for to add to the collection.  We’re huge LeapFrog fans!

·         25% to 75% off sitewide
·         Select Leapster games as low as $5
·         Select Tag Books as low as $5
·         Up to 75% off on our gift packs
·         Spend $50, get free shipping

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One of my personal favorite distributors is having some great Cyber Monday deals that start at noon and end at 9pm EST, including 30% off Anka High Chairs and 40% off Svan Scooters!  Be sure to go here for their complete list of Cyber Monday Deals.

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I cleaned up at Target on Black Friday, but it looks like they have a number of really great deals today, with the $500 off a Philips 47? 1080p 120Hz LCD TV catching my eye. You can check out their Cyber Monday deals here.  Here’s a great coupon for $7 off of $70 plus free shipping.

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Stride Rite

I’m a bit late on sharing this great info., but Stride Rite is having a ton of fan-only Cyber Monday giveaways…including a mystery grand prize worth $600 and more giveaways every hour!  Make sure you become a fan to score some great deals on their shoes, which includes great lines such as Robeez, Saucony, Keds and much more!

Gymboree
Online only & today only! Free shipping on any order & save 20% off. New line online now & in most stores 12/2. http://www.gymboree.com