TimeBuddy Winner

Winner of the TimeBuddy choosen by random.org is Comment #2

Melissa said...

I learned that you can set your own times for different activities.

Winner has been notified and has 48 hours to respond.

Driving Pet Peeves

This has been bothering me a lot lately, ok every since I moved to the city and had to commute to work. I really do not commute for, it typically only takes me about 20 minutes of driving time. I am also very lucky because daycare is less then a mile from our apartment. I find that most days by the time I get to woke I have yelled at more then one car and am angry at how stupidly people drive.

Here are some of my pet peeves while driving. Feel free to chime in!

• Directional use - Man put those lovely blinky lights on the cars for a reason, not just for looks people. USE THEM! It will al least tell me you are planning on cutting me off.
• Speaking of cutting me off.... Just because there is a car length between me and the car in front of me does not mean you belong there! I have left that space their for safety reason, something you do not know or care about!
• If by some miracle you use your direction in order to get in my lane and I am nice enough to let you in, which I usually am, how hard is it to raise you hand up for a split second just to say thanks???????? It is not your given right to cut in front of me.
• You know there is more then one exit on highways? Oh you didn't? Is that why you slammed on the breaks and reversed in the breakdown lane because you were too busy on the cell phone to notice your exit? Or perhaps you simply cut everyone off in order to get from the left hand lane to the right hand lane before you missed the exit? and then because you were just too slow, or of course you will blame it on the other drivers you have to cut over the solid white lines and dart onto the exit. 
• It is simple..... Go to the next exit and turn around!!! Go back and take your exit!!! I know it may take a few more minutes but it is better then being dead!
• If you decide that you need to be in front of me for some unknown reason please do not slow down when you get there. The right lane is for slow traffice and the left lane is for fast moving traffic. Maybe you need to learn your rights and lefts again??
• If it is raining or even worse snowing (because we live in the South and people are afraid of that cold white stuff) just drive carefully. Now this does not mean drive 15 down the highway with a 60 mph speed limit. Just choose a nice speed and stay consistant. DO NOT slam on your breaks. DO NOT cut people off so they have to slam on their breaks. DO NOT speed up and slow down and speed up and slow down. ALL not safe. If you really cannot drive in it, STAY HOME!

Sorry for the crazy rant, I just needed to get that off my chest.

On other notes, Poor Little J has been under the weather for the last few days. Monday she was sent home from school with a fever and she had been throwing up. She stayed home yesterday but had such trouble sleeping last night. Up every few hours and screaming in her sleep. I feel so bad because I just do not know what is wrong. She has not had the fever since late Monday night. I am not sure if she just needs sleep or if there is something else wrong. Looks like a trip to the DR. I have to say we have been lucky because she is 8 months and this is the first sickness, impressive I think for a baby in daycare.

Yum Yum Dishes - Review

A Very Familiar Story

Yum Yum Dishes™ are the creation of Mom and restaurant owner, Tracy Adler. During maternity leave following the birth of her daughter, Rachel, Tracy developed "a strong relationship" with her pantry door. With each visit to the pantry, she found herself saying "I can eat this - I'm breastfeeding," or "I need a few extra calories!" Though she would pop open a jar of peanuts, or a bag of chips for what she intended to be a quick nibble, Tracy inevitably carried the goodies back to the couch and before she knew it, would consume half the bag! What bothered her more than the calories was the fact that she wasn't even consciously aware of how much she was eating. (See anything that is familiar? I sure do)

Tracy's son Elliot was just 3 years old when his baby sister Rachel was born. When Tracy recognized her uncontrolled snacking, she realized that Elliot was also snacking all day long. She regretted having encouraged such negative eating habits in her son, especially in the face of a rising prevalence of childhood obesity in the United States.

Tracy came across some odd-sized little bowls at her restaurant that she took home and used as treat dishes. These little dishes could hold a handful of peanuts or 6 cheese puffs; 7 strawberries or 5 vanilla wafers. No matter what the snack, it was almost impossible to overeat…unless of course she kept refilling the bowl! But, since refills were a conscious act, Tracy found she could better recognize just how much she and her family were snacking.

I know that after the birth of Big J and now Little J (8 months later) I am still struggling to lose weight. I am so ready for it to be gone so I can wear something other then the same couple pairs of pants and few shirts that I am able to fit in to. The Yum Yum Dishes are a wonderful idea and I ask myself why did I not think of them? Ok seriously I received the yellow bowl and it was so cute. So not only is it a great portion size but it is cute enough to keep out. I also love that the Inside of the bowl says Yum Yum Time is Over.

(This is the dish I received, which now resides at work)

Which is sometimes a reminder that I need to stop and breath and see if I am full or still hungry. I am sure many of you understand when you lead a busy life, with kids or not there are many times that you consume food without really tasting it. This dish is a reminder to me that I need to not only eat smaller portions but take the time to enjoy my food, especially my limited snacks!

Like perhaps this!

Yum - Can I have one now?

Did I mention they are microwave and dishwasher safe? A mom's dream!

Want a set of dishes for yourself?

Find them Here
Set of 4 Yum Yum Dishes ($22.00) 4 colors, Red, Green, Blue and Yellow.


I received one Yum Yum dish for review purposes. All opinions are my own and 100% honest.

Preschool is Cool: Counting with Elmo DVD Review

Little J has just discovered Sesame Street and Elmo. Yes I know she is only 8 months, but Mommy needs a shower in the morning! Thankfully Big J is willing to watch it every now and then. So when I was offered the chance to review Preschool is Cool: Counting with Elmo I thought it would be a great addition to our DVD collection and the girls would love it.

Warner Home Video (WHV) and Sesame Workshop released the second DVD from Sesame Street’s new education series Preschool is Cool, Counting with Elmo finds Professor Grover as a preschool teacher and Elmo as his helper for today’s counting lesson. When silly Professor Grover (who better to add to Elmo for fun?) starts to have a little bit of trouble remembering what each number is, he needs Elmo and the class to give him a helping hand. Featuring counting themed stories like “Counting Booth” and “Abby’s Sparkle Speckle Freckles”, kids will have fun learning with Grover and Elmo and all their Sesame Street Fans.

I really loved “Abby’s Sparkle Speckle Freckles” probably because I have freckles but it was cute how they had to count her freckles but first they had to find the ones that were hiding and one almost got eaten by Cookie Monster!

Counting with Elmo supports early math skills such as number recognition, counting, and enumeration – all of which help lay the foundation for math readiness and future math learning. Kids see their favorite Sesame Street friends practice skip counting by 2’s, 5’s and 10’s, which helps children understand the a purpose of counting is to determine the total number of things in an overall set.
I love the fact that it comes from Sesame Street which is the longest-running program in children’s television, so you know that it is good. Plus I grew up with Sesame Street so it is great to share it with Big J & Little J. Of course it also helps that my FAVORITE character is features…..

It also helps that both girls really loved the movie and I think we will be watching it many more times. That is ok with me because it is teaching them in a fun way.

About Sesame Workshop
Sesame Workshop is the nonprofit educational organization that revolutionized children’s television programming with the landmark Sesame Street. The Workshop produces local Sesame Street programs, seen in over 140 countries, and other acclaimed shows to help bridge the literacy gap including The Electric Company and Pinky Dinky Doo. Lean more at http://www.sesameworkshop.org/


Purchase the Video
Counting with Elmo can be purchased at Amazon.com
Also look for the first movie in the series ABCs with Elmo

We received a copy of the Preschool is Cool: Counting with Elmo DVD for review purposes. All opinions our 100% honest and ours

Random Cuteness

Big J being a Cat

Little J rolling around



Yo Gabba Gabba Live Rocked!

Big J and I went to see Yo Gabba Gabba live on Sunday at Oven's Auditorium in Charlotte, NC.

The show was awesome and Mommy even got a work out with all the get up and dance, now sit down, now get up and dance. Of course I had to hold Big J the whole time because when standing she could not see and when sitting, well she had to be on my lap. Of course I did not mind. The only complaint was that it was very loud and the lights were very bright some time, but I guess that is what a live show is all about.

 The hug song

 Brobee flying during the Balloon Song

 Party in My Tummy (Great now I will be singing this all day long!)

 Biz's Beat of the Day. This is him on the screen but he actually did appear live. They made it seem like they were coming out of the TV.

I believe this is the Goodbye Song. The "screen" opens like the radio on the show and the characters go behind and then freeze just like the TV Show.

One very tired Big J on the way back. I am so glad we went to the 2pm show and not the 5pm show.

One of the great memories to add to Big J's life and I am so glad we were given the opportunity to go. Oven's Auditorium in Charlotte, NC!


Poor Daddy was stuck with a very angry Little J who was not happy that Mommy left her and took out Big J. She cried when I left and gave Daddy trouble the whole time. When we got home he was trying to feed her and she was screaming and wiggling. The moment I picked her up she was all smiles and laughs. Poor Daddy.


Big J and I received 2 tickets to Yo Gabba Gabba Live in exchange for a review and giveaway before attending the show. This post was my choice and all opinions are 100% honest and those of mine or Big J's.

Halloween Fun

■About 30 percent of Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup, Kit Kat Wafer Bar and Hershey’s Milk Chocolate lovers will do the monster mash this year as a vampire, witch or monster.


■Fans of Twizzlers Twists may get the chance to show their dance moves as they twist the night away dressed in garb from the 1950s. More than 41 percent stated they plan to dress-up in period piece costumes from different eras of the 20th century.

■Jolly Rancher lovers will most likely sport a cape on Halloween, as 23 percent expressed a desire to channel superhuman powers as their favorite superhero.

Last year we took Big J to the local amusement park for Trick-or-Treating, but this year we will be attending a party with her friends and going out together. She is Belle and I am so excited. Little J will be a pumpkin.

My favorite candy?

All of the above!!

I am trying to win a prize from the Mom Bloggers Club, I want to win teh Hershey's Halloween Pack.

Want to enter? Click here!

Smile

So I came on here to post some rants for things like:

• I want a new job - I mean I do like my job but now that I have my Master's Degree I know that I can do and make so much more then where I am which leads me to point 2.
• My husband needs a job - he had one and then they cancelled the project 2 days in so we are back to square one which means there is more pressure on me to get a better paying job.
• There was a little girl in Little J's class that touched my heart the moment I met her. Baby A, she was bald and blue eyed like my girls were. Then I found out she was a foster child and I wanted to take her home so bad. Well after a few weeks of her greeting me with a smile and crawling over to me (she is about 10 months) she is now gone. :(  It is a happy sad moment because I was told she is in a much better foster home and had new clothes and more love from the younger couple. I also know that she has an older brother about 2 and a sister around 8. I will miss her though!!!

Ok well now that I got that out of my system I think I will share some J love!

Little J and Big J pretending to be cats. (Yes they are on the cat tree, although Daddy is near both of them)

This is Big J being goofy sticking her Starburst out of her mouth!

Biig J's TimeBuddy

So I promised that I would try and take pictures of Big J's TimeBuddy so you can see the funny stickers she choose for her day. If you have not read my review or entered the giveaway Here to do so.

Here is what the symbols mean:

• Castle - Time to get up
• Cake - Time to go to school
• Corn dog and drink - Lunch Time
• Ice Cream - Quiet time
• Frown Face - Quite time over
• Smiley Face - Dinner time
• Moon - Bed time

The only one that make any sense to me is lunch and bedtime, but as long as they make sense to Big J.

TimeBuddy Review & Giveaway

This is TimeBuddy, a fantastic 24 hour clock to help your children with their daily routine, including my favorite, sleep time.  The best part about this clock that makes it stand out is that it is customizable with removable and reusable stickers! Big J's favorite part? The option to record a message for your child that plays when they push the button on the front. (This also illuminates the screen) Of course we have had to rerecord over and over and over again, but thankfully there is an off switch.

This is everything you get with TimeBuddy - Includes and activity book.

Plenty of sticker choices for customization.

Works for boys and girls.

J.C. Cedeno, President of GoLearn Toys, LLC personally struggled as a parent when he came up with the idea for TimeBuddy. His Story:

"I first became aware of the need for a product that would help children and their parents’ layout and manage daily routines while I was attending parenting classes as part of my divorce proceedings. One particular class dealt with structure and daily routines, and for the first time, all participating parents agreed that pre-school children don’t understand time as a concept, thus have great difficulty following daily routines. This caught my attention and the idea of combining a clock and visual icons popped in my head for the first time. However, it wasn’t until a year later that my own son proved to me how difficult it was for him to understand time. He would come from pre-school at 2pm and would often ask to go to the YMCA. The babysitter would explain to him that they would go at 4pm. The two hour wait time would become very conflicting as he would repeatedly ask “Are we leaving now?”. I recalled the class and the idea and decided to create a very rudimentary version of TimeBuddy which had the YMCA logo at the 4pm position which gave my son the cue “It’s time to go to the Y.” This tool proved to be so successful that in mid 2009, I decided to start developing TimeBuddy."

I agree with J.C., since using the TimeBuddy I have been woken up to "Mommy, my clock is on the crown which means it is time to get up." Yes she chose some very weird stickers for her clock, but she now knows when it is bedtime, when she can get up, when it is quiet time and one of the best when quiet time is over. Since the stickers are reusable you can change the clock as often as you like to fit your child's day. I cannot wait until a special event comes up because I usually hear from the minute we get up "are we leaving yet?". Now before Big J goes to sleep the night before we can choose a special sticker to represent our event and I do not have to answer the dreaded question, when.

Want to Learn more? Visit http://www.timebuddy.com/

Want to purchase?  Use the Big J promotion code  tbj121blog  for free shipping at http://www.timebuddy.com/   (TimeBuddy can also be found at amazon.com) Promotion code ends on 10/31/2010.

Want to Win one? Go Learn Toys, LLC is giving a TimeBuddy to one Lucky Big J & Little J winner! ($34.99 value)   Contest ends midnight on October 22nd and is open to US and Canada. Winner will be chosen by random.com and will have 48 hours to respond to the e-mail before another winner is chosen.

Mandatory Entry:  Visit TimeBuddy's website and tell me something you learned about the product. (leave a comment below)

Extra Entries: Must complete Mandatory Entry first. (Leave a separate comment for each)

• Follow Go Learn Toys on Twitter
• Like TimeBuddy on Facebook
• Follow The Trials of Big J & Little J on GFC
• Leave a comment telling me how you have helped your child with time management.

Big J and I received a TimeBuddy to use for the review from Go Learn Toys. All opinions are mine or Big J's and are 100% honest. I am also trying to get pictures of Big J with her clock but she has not been willing to sit still the last few days. (Weeks really)