The latest and greatest in gadgets, gear and goodies
It’s time for our next installment of the Wisk Beta Blogger program. This time around, Wisk sent us a kit to conduct an experiment of our own which involved testing out the Stain Spectrum Technology firsthand.
With a lab coat, goggles and beaker in hand, the kid and I did a quick test to see how Wisk would handle a protein stain. Check after the jump to see how our video to see how our experiment went.
If I made a laundry list of things that I wanted for my birthday, besides the obvious choices, I doubt any of it would carry that much weight. I mean, what do I really need?
Given the influx of bad luck, drama, and not-so-happy times our family has been weathering the past few weeks and months, now is the time to negate all of that bad energy. In fact, the husband and I were talking about how we needed to find ways to give back to our community. So, just in time for my birthday tomorrow, I will be doing some Do Goodery in NYC with some fellow bloggers.
77kids, together with the fabulous TheMotherhood.com have tapped seven bloggers in each of the 11 participating cities (77 peeps altogether!) to do random acts of kindness in our communities on July 14; and I’m so thrilled to be a part of the vibrant NYC team. It sounds like the other teams have a number of truly wonderful acts of kindness lined up. Our team is hammering out the last details, but once we’re all set, I’m sure I will be tweeting as we go!
Who is this 77kids I keep mentioning? In case you aren’t familiar, be sure to remember the name, because you will hear more about them soon! 77kids is American Eagle’s new baby: it’s their baby, toddler and youth division that evokes the same fun, modern, casual and cool style, but for the smaller set. 77kids, which is about to debut a handful of retail locations, seems like they’re all about following through with their do good philosophy.
Do Goodery on my birthday? Happy, indeed!
Soleil Moonfrye and Paige Goldberg Tolmach, the eco-savvy moms behind the LA-based boutique, The Little Seed, have teamed up with Target to distribute their line of organic baby clothes. The Life Saver-hued baby line, a shift from neutral and pastel colors that are usually associated with organic baby items, is comprised of layette necessities such as hooded towels, onesies, pull on pants, baby hats and baby booties.
According to LA Time’s All the Rage blog, it looks like, The 100% organic cotton line is reasonably priced, ranging from $7.99 to $12.99.
The Little Seed items at are available online and in Target stores now.
Well, the day has finally arrived! After years of preparation and months of anticipation, Toy Story 3 officially hits the big screen today.
As Andy heads to college, Buzz, Woody and the gang find themselves in a precarious predicament after mom mixes up the trash and the “keep” pile. The toys find themselves at a daycare where they befriend new pals in an eclectic lineup of other toys from the daycare.
The third film in the wildly popular Toy Story series, TS3, like the earlier installments, is expected to break the bank, and be one of the biggest tickets of the summer. The original Toy Story earned $191 million with its original release and $363 million worldwide. As evidenced by the plethora of licenses for towels, shoes, cereal bowls, Pull Up diapers, bread and more, TS3 is quite the hot commodity in children’s gear. And I’ll be the first to admit that our toy box has been filling up with our own respective gear in anticipation of the film!
Why is this flick so popular? Well, for many reasons. In part, what started 15 years ago as a collaboration between Disney and Pixar, has turned into a fleeting success. Since their initial partnership, the studio has gone on to develop a laundry list of computer animated classics, with the original Toy Story as its springboard. The story, cast of characters, exceptional graphics and more have kept audiences engaged for well over a decade. Now, the original audience’s kids, nieces, nephews and perhaps grandkids, are just as excited for the toys’ shenanigans as we were 15 years ago.
Fifteen years ago, I was still in school. [Let’s just leave it at that ;)] Today, I’m planning to take my 2 year old who has been harping on Buzz and ‘Wooly’ for months now! It’s incredible to think how much has changed for me between now and then; but what’s even more incredible is how these characters are still touching lives, even after all these years!
After all of the movie’s clever marketing, the film’s early reviews are looking quite bright! I can’t wait to share my thoughts, and maybe even a some of our favorite kid gear to boot. For now, take a look at this pretty cool behind the scenes clip with interviews from some of the voices. If you go to see Toy Story, be sure to tell me what you thought!
Speaking of how much things have changed in 15 years, did you know Disney Pixar has a Facebook app where you can buy Toy Story 3 tickets via Facebook? You FB-obsessed people (like me) don’t even have to leave the site to secure your own movie tickets! Just head to Disney Together to get the app and click, click and you’re done!
Some of the fondest memories from my childhood include the years that I was enrolled in dance class. I loved ballet and jazz so much that I took my training and lessons with me beyond high school and even danced for several years in college. And because it’s the end of the school year, it also means that it’s recital season for many little girls (and some boys, too).
With recital season in full swing, coupled with my love for dance, one show that comes to mind for Music Monday is, Angelina Ballerina: The Next Steps, which airs on PBS Kids. The show is based on the award-winning children’s book series by author Katharine Holabird and illustrator Helen Craigre. Angelina Ballerina: The Next Steps debuted this past September in full CG animation, incorporating elements of choreography from top dance organizations from American Ballet Theatre to Alvin Ailey.
While most of you are updating and/or breaking out your summer wardrobes, our family continues to pack for our move. Between us, there’s nothing I’d love more than to chuck all of our clothes and start over so we can be done packing already! But that would be too easy.
With all of these summer clothes posts lately, it couldn’t be more timely to introduce you to a rather sweet shopping site for cool kid gear. Alxscloset.com is a site that features trendy kids clothing from the outdoor, surf, and snowsports markets. The clothes reflect that slightly edgy surfer/skate aesthetic that I mentioned that I adore, especially for boys.
Growing up in Virginia Beach, and even to this day, we’ve always worn skate and surf brands, and this site caters to like-minded shoppers and parents.
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The site features brands like Patagonia, Volcom, Roxy, Billabong, DC, Quicksilver, just to name a few, that I know my tween nieces and nephews would appreciate. Among the cool logo t-shirts, shorts, pants, jackets, dresses and more, there’s also a few vintage-inspired tees I wouldn’t mind for myself! How about that adorable summer dress from Roxy!
A few weeks ago, I had the chance to preview the Children’s Place summer collection, which includes a variety of super cute outfits, accessories and special collections. I spotted a lot of fun, jewel-toned and vibrant prints for girls, but my favorites for the little ladies were the skirts and shoes that evoked the cool bohemian-inspired style. The metallic sandals for girls though, yeah, I wanted a pair for myself.
If you were to inspect my son’s closet, you’d find no less than 80% of his clothes from TCP; I religiously stock up during sales and after seasons and stash for the next size up. Needless to say, I’m a fan of the modern, but slightly edgy aesthetic, which TCP pulls off so well. Their boys’ styles for this summer are full of the utilitarian and surfer/skater looks, with a punch of their own vibrant prints—one that I could’ve sworn was a licensed print, but wasn’t.
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This weekend marks the unofficial start of summer, and I hope everyone is prepared for fun in the sun! I’ve got quite the backlog of posts, so I thought I’d dedicate the next few to fun summer-inspired gear.
Speaking of which, I just eyed some fun whimsical summer prints, from the well-loved Swedish line, Polarn O. Pyret.
Polarn O. Pyret, synonomous with classic, well-made children’s clothing, has a distinctive European flair that stands out among the crowd. Polarn O. Pyret accommodates sizes from babies to big kids and even mamas, too. I love that so many of their prints and designs are gender-neutral, including this fun sailboat-clad Summer Fun T for baby. The line also offers a fabulous variety of eco-friendly clothing that uses organic cotton, with sizes also available for baby, big kid and mama.
In the NYC area? Citibabes is having Polarn O. Pyret trunk shows at its Scarsdale and SoHo locations.
Check out the Scarsdale Citibabes on June 3 for the Polarn O. Pyret trunk show.
RSVP to scarsdale@citibabes.com or 914.725.3334.
Check out the SoHo Citibabes on June 9th and 10th for the Polarn O. Pyret trunk show.
RSVP to soho@citibabes.com or 212.334.5440
I typically review and talk about kid products and services, but I thought I’d start something new. I thought I’d overlap Mama Likey over here on NKT and feature products that might not be geared TO kids, but are still used FOR kids or, in essence, products that make our jobs as parents easier.
So, with that, I’ve got laundry on the brain today. With Spring in full bloom, we’re finding ourselves outside for hours at a time usually playing in dirt, getting sweaty and adding to the laundry piles. And I mean PILES.
Because we’re still city dwellers, at least for another few weeks, doing the laundry at the laundromat continues to be quite the chore. Gather, lug, schlep it a few blocks, unload, wait…and wait… It’s such a tedious process, to say the least.
And so, when a new laundry product designed to streamline this process makes its way onto the market, I’m usually the first in line to try it out. In this case, a few months ago, the husband* brought home a smallish, slender bottle not too long ago. The packaging, itself, was eye-catching because of the sleek modern design.
The cool bottle was none other than Method Laundry in Fresh Air.
It’s finally Spring, and with the warmer weather comes a change in wardrobes. And just because it’s Spring, it doesn’t mean every outfit has to be pastel-hued. I was perusing Crazy 8’s website and found this super cute ensemble for girls, which would be perfect for Easter or Passover celebrations.
