Chuggington – The Next Kid Thing

Celebrating Chuggington Fire Patrol Rescue DVD at the NYFD Museum

April 23, 2015 by Jen Rabulan-Bertram

All aboard chuggers: Anchor Bay DVD has released the latest installment in Chuggington adventures: “Chuggington Fire Patrol Rescue.” In this new dvd, there are more adventures to be had and we even meet a new friend, Asher. Wilson sets out on fire patrol duty with Asher and learns to use a fire hose in a rescue. There is a friendly contest of Chug Patrol versus Speed Fleet; Hodge find himself in a high-rise jam; and all the Chuggers practice emergency drills at the roundhouse.

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As longtime Chuggington fans, we were all excited for the release of this new dvd that helps kids learn about fire safety and community service. Since Littles absolutely loves trains, he perks up every time he hears Chuggington’s theme song! In honor of the launch Chuggington Fire Patrol Rescue, we were invited to the NYFD Museum in downtown NYC.

The boys and I got to enjoy an afternoon celebrating the launch, learning all about fire safety and we even got to chat a little with Sarah Ball, Chuggington head writer and producer.

The boys enjoyed getting up close and personal to the educational historical material at the NYFD Museum, not to mention getting to watch an episode of the new DVD.

Happy National Train Day

May 7, 2011May 7, 2011 by Jen Rabulan-Bertram

Happy National Train Day, everyone. National Train Day is a day that celebrates the service that our rail system provides. As new-ish suburbanites who head into the City several times a week, we rely on NJ Transit to get us around quite a bit.

We can hear the train from our house, walk to the station in a few minutes and get to where we need to go, with almost no effort, thanks to our train system. *Almost* Aside from loving toy trains, like many other families, trains are a way of life for us.

0f97c7f04ffd4071ba18f5d40363ec79_7 — On the train to the City

Chuggington has so many great things coming up, and as a Chuggington Conductor, I’m always thrilled to share the latest and greatest Chuggington news with you guys!

In honor of National Train Day, I wanted to share some cool news from Chuggington. As you guys know, Learning Curve offers some of the most amazing toy trains out on the market. In fact, in celebration of National Train Day, Learning Curve is offering a pretty sweet discount on one of our favorites, the Chuggington Interactive Trains. Have you seen our vlog on YouTube about the Interactive Trains? (It’s not the best video, but you get the gist of how cool these trains are!)

In celebration of National Train Day, get a Free Interactive Engine (a $13.99 value) with any purchase of $30 or more at Chuggingtonstore.com. Offer expires May 17, 2011 or while supplies last.

To take advantage of this offer, please follow these four steps:

1. Add $30 or more of Chuggington items to your cart at Chuggingtonstore.com.

2. Add the interactive engine of your choice to your cart at Chuggingtonstore.com. (Your subtotal should be $43.99 or more)

3. Enter coupon code TRAINDAY and hit apply. You will see a $13.99 discount reflected in your shopping cart.

4. Checkout.

We’ll be celebrating National Train Day this afternoon with a few neighborhood friends, sharing some fun Chuggington goodies. I’ll have more Chuggington news later, but I definitely wanted to share this cool deal with my fellow Chuggington fans!

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This year is Amtrak’s 40th anniversary, and to celebrate they will be touring the country with a special Amtrak exhibit train that will be stopping at 40 cities within the coming year. Chuggington will be sponsoring the Kids Depot, which will be a spot for children to read books, watch episodes, and color a Chuggington mural! For more information on this partnership (and to see when the Chuggington Kids Depot will be coming to a city near you), visit www.amtrak40th.com!

Q and A: Sarah Ball, Chuggington Writer and Director

February 10, 2011February 10, 2011 by Jen Rabulan-Bertram

Over the weekend, the kid and I did all kinds of fun stuff that were NKT-related. Among the fun events on our agenda, we went to a Chuggington screening and storytime at the Scholastic Soho store.

Along with other Chuggington fans, we had the chance to view a fan favorite, “The Chugger Championship” and preview a never-before-seen episode, “Snowstruck Wilson.” The sneak preview of “Snowstruck Wilson” involved a curious trainee straying, after being told to stay close. Having lost my own curious and adventurous kid the other week at a store, “Snowstruck Wilson” hit pretty close to home.

In addition to the screenings, Sarah Ball, Writer/Director of Chuggington, gave a brief introduction before the episodes. After the screening, the kids all enjoyed a little bit of coloring and crafts, which made for a fun afternoon.

As we’ve been reporting, Chuggington has a whole slew of new licensed products coming our way, which includes a series of Scholastic books (reviews are forthcoming.)

It’s always a pleasure to share the latest and greatest about one of our favorite properties, but it’s even cooler to be able to speak to the brains behind such a beloved show. Check out my brief Q&A with Sarah Ball who told us a little bit about the ideas behind the episodes and the new characters, Hoot and Toot.

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Season two of Chuggington debuts on February 14 on the new Disney Jr. If you’re on Twitter, join me and other Chuggington fans tonight at 9 p.m. as we celebrate the upcoming Season Two premiere. Follow @Chuggington, and #Chuggington. And of course, my twitter handle is @jenrab.

Finally, let’s give @Chuggington a shout out for the Shorty Awards. Chuggington is currently in 8th place 7th place and needs to get to 6th to get to the finals. To nominate Chuggington, just tweet why you think the property deserves a Shorty Award. Easy enough!

Chuggington Celebrates One Year in U.S.

January 18, 2011January 18, 2011 by Jen Rabulan-Bertram

Another train-centric show that we’ve been fans of since they chugged their way stateside, Chuggington, is celebrating its one-year anniversary since its U.S. debut! I shared my initial thoughts of the show from the beginning and we’ve been tuning in ever since.

As a Chuggington Conductor, it’s been really fun checking out the latest and greatest products. You think Chuggington had a good first year? Well, this Ludorum property is riding the rails steadily, so much so, they’ve launched a slew of cool toys, books and games. Be on the look out for my upcoming reviews and vlogs of the latest Chuggington goodies. BTW, apparently, you guys are big fans of the Chuggington vlog I did on the roundhouse because it’s received over 6k views.

In the meantime, if you’re around in a few minutes, join us on at 1 p.m. for a Chuggington Twitter Party celebrating their one year milestone! I hear there will be some cool surprises, so be sure to honk your horns!

NKT Fave: Chuggington Die-Cast Toys from Learning Curve

September 24, 2010October 7, 2010 by Jen Rabulan-Bertram

Trains, trains and more trains. Thank goodness for trains and massive train tables! Toddlerhood possibly wouldn’t have been bearable without our trusty trains. I do believe I complained about the size of the giant train table the kid got for his birthday last year, but after endless hours of play, I’ll bite my tongue. Good call, hubs!

During our summer of displacement, the kid constantly asked for his toys, but it was his trains and train table that he begged for on a daily basis. And because of that, our trains and the bazillion pieces and accessories that go along with it will always be an NKT fave.

I love sharing the next big thing in kid products, and of course, toys! A few months ago, we shared the news that one of our favorite train shows, Chuggington, will be releasing toys here in the U.S. Chuggington toys will be on the shelves in early October, in time for the holidays, but better yet, you can pre-order them now at Toysrus.com.

As a Chuggington Conductor, I’ve had the chance to get the latest Chuggington news as it breaks, so that I can share it with all of you. This time around, we were able to get the new toys in our hands BEFORE they hit the shelves to be able to share a sneak peek with all of you. In the spirit of the next kid thing, check out our video and review of the new Chuggington toys from Learning Curve. Apologies for the shaky camera!

And because it’s my boy’s birthday next week, as promised, I want to give YOUR kids toys that my kid loves. Sooooo…

Giveaway

Want to win a Chuggington prize pack? The prize pack will include a Launch & Go Roundhouse, Straight & Curved Track Pack and a few Die-Cast Engines. (Engines may vary from what is shown in my video.)

Comment below and tell me who your kids’ favorite Chuggington character is, and why.

The kid and I mutually love Koko because she’s feisty, strong-willed and fun.

Chuggington Picked up for Another Season

August 4, 2010 by Jen Rabulan-Bertram

Good news, fellow Chuggington fans. The Disney Channel has picked up Chuggington for another season on Playhouse Disney. Following a traintastic first season in the U.S., Brewster, Koko, and Wilson and the gang will be riding the rails once again on The Disney Channel.

Chuggington has also announced that it will be hosting a sweepstakes on Chuggington.com, with prizes including die-cast trains and packs.

Traintastic: Chuggington Toys are Coming Soon

June 1, 2010June 1, 2010 by Jen Rabulan-Bertram

One of our favorite Disney shows, Chuggington, unveiled another new episode this past weekend. I hope you guys were able to catch it.

I’ve got a bunch of Chuggington news planned in the coming weeks…and actually, I was planning a fun viewing party with a few of our fellow Chuggington friends for last week, but had to reschedule. I’ll be sure to share our soiree once our family is moved and we can get together with our Chuggington pals.

In the meantime, I thought I’d share about some other Chuggington news. Did you know as of May 17, you can now pre-order Chuggington Toys? The toys, already available in the U.K. and other locations, are making their way stateside.

Chuggington Marathon Set for Sunday on Disney Channel

March 12, 2010March 12, 2010 by Jen Rabulan-Bertram

Chuggington fans, be sure to hop onboard for Disney Channel’s Chuggington marathon this Sunday, March 14. The marathon begins at 6 a.m. and runs until 10:30. They’re calling for rain all weekend, so I can’t think of a better way to spend a rainy Sunday.

The train-centric, CGI-animated show that premiered in the U.S. in January has been quite a hit. Just from the reactions I’ve seen on Facebook and Twitter, I know many of you are big fans of the show, just like us. I wrote a detailed post a few months ago about my first impression of the show. So, in case you haven’t seen Chuggington, be sure to check out my post for a preview and a quick review. I’m happy to report that the kid can not only pronounce “Chuggington,” but he asks to watch it often.

So, in case you’ve missed an episode or two, you’ll be able to catch up on Koko, Brewster and Wilson’s adventures with the nine back-to-back episodes of Chuggington scheduled to air on the Disney Channel this Sunday.

Chuggington Arrives in the U.S.

January 15, 2010January 16, 2010 by Jen Rabulan-Bertram

Chugga, Chugga, Chugga! Already a global hit, Chuggington, a Ludorum property, is a CGI children’s show that focuses on a trio of trainee Chuggers and is set to debut on Playhouse Disney on Monday, January 18. Playhouse Disney, home to kiddie favorites like Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and one of our faves, the Imagination Movers, is known for introducing fun and playful shows—especially ones with theme songs that are sure to linger. (Hot Dog dance, anyone?)

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Chuggington, which is geared to the preschool crowd, follows three young trainees, Wilson, Brewster and Koko and their colorful adventures. Introduced in the U.K. in 2008, and then in France, Australia, Germany, Japan and Canada, Chuggington is poised to be the new favorite locomotive series stateside.

The show conveys life lessons and social-emotional values relevant to preschoolers, validating its global popularity with kids and their parents. Chuggington was developed by the same brains behind Bob the Builder (Sarah Ball, Director and Writer) and Thomas the Train (Don Toht who led the creation of the toys systems).
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