reviews

February 18, 2013

ringling brothers circus built to amaze is AMAZING!

Last night, we went to opening night of The Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Presents Built to Amaze! show in Philadelphia at the Wells Fargo Center. The circus spectacle will run from February 13-17 with a total of 11 shows at the Wells Fargo Center. This show is fun, fast and full of excitement. When the show started, I watched Colin’s jaw drop as he had his very first experience with the circus – it was precious! How could you not be excited – music is pumping, acrobats are hanging from the ceiling, elephants and horses are parading around, motorcycles, clowns… the list goes on!

During the opening act, Colin leaned over and asked, “Can we come here again?” That’s a good sign!

And it just got better from there!

and even better!!

We had an amazing time at the Built to Amaze show! Highly recommend!

Circus performers from across the globe create the perfect blend of athleticism and bravery, where power meets fearlessness and amazement has no bounds. Magnificent elephants, ferocious tigers, astonishing acrobats and awe-inspiring aerialists are engineered into one spectacular performance.

Celebrate the tradition TODAY and experience it’s modern flare of twists and turns where excitement and suspense are so intense you’ll be tempted to cover your eyes. From the blueprints to the band, the crates to the clowns, the hammer to the high wire, witness the spectacle as we measure out the perfect mix of marvel and majesty in an imagination equation where the impossible comes to life. Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey^® Presents Built To Amaze!

And be sure to get there early – you might even meet a new friend!

I’ve got a great discount coupon code for readers. Here’s the scoop – basically they will do 20% off tickets with the code MOM. You can enter and order tickets for the Ringling Brothers Circus here.

disclosure: We received tickets free of charge to facilitate this promotion. All opinions are my own.

February 13, 2013

box tops for education pantry stockup giveaway

Melissa 83 Comments

*Giveaway is now closed! Thanks to everyone who entered!*

I love the Box Tops for Education program and I’ve seen first hand how effective it is as a school fund-raiser. You may not know this but the General Mills program began as an experiment on boxes of Cheerios in California back in 1996 with first year earnings of only $1 million. Since that experiment Box Tops for Education has grown to include more than 240 participating brands providing needed cash for 90,000 enrolled K-8 schools. At the heart of the program is more than 75,000 volunteer Box Tops for Education coordinators who motivate local school communities to collect the 10-cent coupons which are redeemed for cash schools use for whatever they need most. Over the years, American schools have earned over $525 MILLION from Box Tops for Education.

To celebrate this milestone, this winter, the program is offering a variety of bonus Box Tops on more than 50 million packages at grocery stores and at btfe.com, allowing shoppers to DOUBLE their earnings with select products. With school budget cuts across the nation, Box Tops for Education is now more and more important as it provides unrestricted cash to help schools with their basic operating needs and programs that would not be possible otherwise. Programs and supplies such as field trips, textbooks, musical instruments, playground equipment, classroom technology and arts and cultural programming.

“We are very impressed at how far the Box Tops program has come,” said Mark Addicks, chief marketing officer at General Mills. “To say that we’ve awarded schools more than $525 million through this simple program is amazing to us. However, it’s due largely to our participating brand partners and passionate coordinators that have propelled the program to this level.” On average, schools in the U.S. earn around $900 annually through the program, but many schools earn more than $20,000 by clipping Box Tops, participating in bonus programs and shopping 300 online eBoxTops retailers at the Box Tops Marketplace.

Get Social with this great program through these social media sites: Box Tops for Education Facebook page, Twitter and YouTube.

WIN IT!

One lucky reader will win a Box Tops for Education Pantry Stock Up Prize Pack!

The Pantry Stock Up gift pack includes:

New Peanut Butter Toast Crunch cereal
Nature Valley Chewy Trail Mix Dark Chocolate Cherry and Protein Salted Caramel
Fiber One Protein Bars
Progresso Recipe Starters
Food Should Taste Good Chips
Green Giant Fresh Box Tops for Education pencil pouch
Hamburger Helper Sweet & Sour Chicken and Parmesan Crusted Chicken
Betty Crocker Mac & Cheese and Au Gratin potatoes
Kleenex wallet pack and 184 count box
Scott toilet paper (4 roll) and paper towel roll
Avery dry erase weekly calendar
Ziploc bowls and bags
Yoplait Frozen Yogurt free product coupon

Here’s how to enter:

1. Please leave a comment below by February 22, 2013 telling me whose school you collect Boxtops for!

2. Like Girlymama on Facebook here and leave a comment telling me you liked our page

3. Tweet the following for an additional entry and leave a comment telling me you did so

I want to win Boxtops Pantry Stockup Prize #giveaway from @MelissaAngert. Enter here: http://girlymama.com/?p=5788

disclosure: I was provided with a stockup kit for my family to enjoy. Highly recommend the Fiber One bars. They’re yummy.

About Box Tops for Education

America’s schools have earned more than $525 million through the Box Tops for Education® program since the program started in 1996, including $47 million just since March 2012. More than 90,000 schools use that cash to purchase items such as computers, library books, art supplies and playground equipment. Schools can earn up to $20,000 by clipping Box Tops
coupons from 240 products and can earn eBoxTops by shopping online through the Box Tops Marketplace. To learn more and for a list of participating products, visit www.btfe.com.

January 29, 2013

the circus is coming to philly GIVEAWAY

Melissa 9 Comments

The Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Presents Built to Amaze! show is about to arrive in Philadelphia at the Wells Fargo Center. We are SO SUPER excited to go to the circus with the kids – we went about 4 years ago and they still talk about it!

The circus spectacle will run from February 13-17 with a total of 11 shows at the Wells Fargo Center.

I’ve got a great discount coupon code for readers. Here’s the scoop – basically they will do 20% off tickets or the following with the code MOM. You can enter and order tickets for the Ringling Brothers Circus here.

$15 flat price (valid on all $30, $25 seats)

Code MOM

Valid 2/14 10:30am and 7pm shows and 2/15 10:30am and 7 pm shows

Wanna go?

WIN IT!

I’m giving away 4 ticket vouchers good for any non-weekend show to one lucky reader for the Philadelphia area shows at Wells Fargo Center running from Feb 13th – Feb. 17th.

1. Please leave a comment below by February 5th, 2013.

2. Like Girlymama on Facebook here and leave a comment telling me you liked our page

3. Tweet the following for an additional entry and leave a comment telling me you did so

I want to win Ringling Brothers Circus Tickets in #Philly from @MelissaAngert. Enter here: http://girlymama.com/?p=5766

disclosure: I was provided with tickets for my family and my readers to enjoy the show!

January 28, 2013

Jennifer Garner in Martha Speaks!

Melissa

We love Martha Speaks – and I love Jennifer Garner, so how excited as we that side by side with her real-life dog, Martha, Jennifer Garner will star in Hit PBS KIDS® Series Martha Speaks on February 4th. Check your local listings on PBS to see what time Martha Speaks will air in your area.

Celebrity Mom Jennifer Garner, mother of 3 with actor/director Ben Affleck, will be animated alongside her dog, whose name also happens to be Martha. The episode is called “Too Many Marthas” and some mix-ups with Jennifer’s dog Martha and THE Martha will make up the plot for the story.

How cute is that? I’m sure Jen’s kids will be watching and so will we! Here’s a clip Jennifer Garner in Martha Speaks:

Here’s the official scoop per PBS:

“Her appearance on Martha Speaks adds to her advocacy efforts on behalf of children’s literacy. Garner, whose mom was an English teacher, is an artist ambassador for Save the Children’s early education programs and has worked to promote legislation that ensures quality early education and literacy for children. In “Too Many Marthas,” Martha is asked to sing at an animal rescue fundraiser and she’s thrilled. But on the day of the concert, Martha gets mixed up with another Martha – a dog belonging to a lady named Jennifer (Jennifer Garner). Can Martha help Jennifer locate her missing pup before it’s time to sing? Kids can tune-in and learn new words like number, aria, and a capella.”

Hope you’ll tune in with us!

January 24, 2013

Peppa Pig App Review

Melissa

Colin’s new favorite app? The Happy Mrs. Chicken app from Peppa Pig! Peppa Pig, the loveable star of the hit animated series Peppa Pig, is leaping off the television screen and onto my iPhone! Colin is totally in love – its fun but still challenging and has tons of options for play.

The game is entertaining, with audio instructions it makes it easy for children to keep up and learn quickly. Its a gentle, fun game that isn’t too intense for younger kids – when they try to play their older sister’s games they can just be too much. This is right at his level – he can do everything in the game. (And, although his big sisters might consider this a ‘little kid game,’ they both have been caught playing happily.)

The cost is $2.99. Rating at 4+.

January 22, 2013

VINCI Learning Tablet

Melissa

For the last month, we’ve had the VINCI Tab II 7″ Touch Screen Learning Tablet (WIFI)– a tablet just for kids – in our home. Its become my 4-year-old son’s favorite electronic toy to play with and has been a lifesaver in the waiting room at piano lessons, ballet lessons, chello lessons, gymnastics lessons (Its hard to be the youngest boy!)

VS-3001

The VINCI Tab II is a 7″ touch screen tablet, running Android, that is surrounded by a protective soft handle. The handle is a great idea – should provide better grip for kids and protection against drops. My son had a little trouble at first, since he was used to a different system, but has picked up on the differences quickly and now navigates the system quite easily.

Although child-safe hardware is important, the key to this product is software, namely the VINCI Curriculum, a step-by-step learning structure comprised of 43 learning subjects and 3 levels of assessment, and covers all 6 aspects of a child’s developing mind: Thinking Skills; Emotional & Social Skills; Language and Literacy; Math & Logical Reasoning; General Knowledge; and Science. This software, which only runs on the Vinci Tab, is designed to use engaging games to provide incremental and interactive learning for children age 18 months through 9 years old.

We’ve been really working with my son on his numbers, letters and colors, so the VINCI Curriculum has been wonderful. Its so hard to tell from the App Store exactly how educational a game is going to be. With this system, I know he is going to be learning great stuff every time! He loves “How Many Pins?” “Bugs” and “American Southeast” best. I really can see that he is learning things that are helping him in school. His letters have been vastly improving and I am positive that VINCI is contributing to that!

VINCI-Tab-II-Applications

As a treat, after he is done with his eductaional games, he can play games like Cut the Rope and Where’s My Water? on the VINCI – just purchase them in the Android App store. Basically, the software is first class – as a preschool teacher, I would have loved to have these in my classroom for the kids to play on. Really great teaching tool and dead on developmentally. If you can tolerate a few crashes, the tablet will be used for years after the child outgrows the software. So for the price, its great.

disclosure: i received this tablet to facilitate this post. as always, all opinions are my own.

December 31, 2012

Gluten Free Holidays

Melissa

I’ve discovered that while I am by no means gluten-intolerant, I feel so much better when I eat gluten-free, or at least minimize gluten in my diet. But its really a struggle for me – not eating dairy or nuts, taking out gluten too seems like I am going to run out of things to eat. (Well, not really, but it sure feels that way sometimes!) My other challenge is just being a busy mom. I hate the thought of making separate food just for me. Its enough just to get dinner on the table without having to make two dinners! I have been looking for ways to minimize gluten and make dinners easier around here, so I was thrilled to try out some Udi’s goodies!

I am already a huge fan of Udi’s cookies, brownies (best brownies ever, gluten-free or not!) and granola. I’m lucky enough to live in an area where they are sold in stores, so I’m very spoiled! I eat the granola almost every day and my kids love it too. I’d never tried the muffins – but HELLO! The Double Chocolate Muffins are divine. Paired with a cup of coffee, they taste way too indulgent to be breakfast. But they actually pack a good punch of nutrition – they even have 4 grams of protein. My biggest problem? Protecting them from the kids!

Then Saturday night, we made homemade pizzas using the Udi’s Gluten Free Pizza Crust. I had never tried gluten-free pizza and was, frankly, skeptical! We piled on the toppings (my favorite was the spicy sausage and banana peppers – yum!) and everyone chowed down. My husband said, “Wow! This tastes… good! I thought it would taste like cardboard! It tastes like real pizza crust.” It was super yummy – and makes me think maybe I could do this gluten-free thing after all now that I won’t have to live in a world without pizza. We cooked one on the pizza stone and one directly on the oven rack – the one on the oven rack tasted better. The crust was crispier and everyone preferred that one. This would be excellent grilled – and would make great gluten-free appetizers!

Honestly the thing that has me most hesitating to go completely gluten-free is the bread. Man, I LURV bread. I had never tried the Udi’s White Sandwich Bread and was really surprised. It tasted… normal. I toasted it with our breakfast and served it to my family and they had no idea they were eating gluten-free bread. And – let me tell you – they are picky and would have said something if it tasted weird! I would probably buy the multi-grain variety, as opposed to white bread, for sandwiches, but the white would be great for grilled cheese or french toast. Did you know they even sell Baguettes!!!?!?!? I am so trying those the next time I head to the store! Crusty bread is one of my favorite foods!

I am going to try going totally gluten-free for a few weeks in January and see how I feel. So if you see me staring longingly at you, its not you. I’m just looking at your food 🙂

disclosure: I received several samples from Udi’s Gluten Free to facilitate this post, but I love their stuff and buy it regularly. As always, all opinions are my own.

December 17, 2012

hallmark presents a special way to read to your kids

Melissa 3 Comments

Reading bedtime stories is a huge part of our lives. Bedtime stories are one of my strongest memories as a child. And now its a huge part of our nightly routine. The books are changing a bit, more The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe, less Elmo. It runs in the family – family vacations are hilarious as kids run from room to room trying to figure out who is reading the book they want to read most! My brother in law even recorded himself reading a book for his son while he was deployed. How sweet is that?

So we love Hallmark’s Disney Recordable Storybooks!! Its a way to share a story with the little in your life when you can’t be there. And they all star your kids favorite characters, like princesses:

“The Wish My Heart Makes for You”

All you do is record your voice reading the book (which is very simple – if I can do it, anyone could!) then send it off to your grandchild or tuck it in your child’s bed as a surprise when you are leaving on a business trip and they will be able to listen to you read stories anytime. There are lots of options – not just princesses, superheros too – so there is something for everyone! And to bring the enchantment of Disney Recordable Storybooks to life, Hallmark is sponsoring the Disney on Ice tour hitting cities across the nation, including the Philadelphia area!

To celebrate the launch of Hallmark’s new line of Disney Recordable Storybooks Hallmark has offered to send one lucky family a recordable storybook and 3 tickets to see Disney on Ice in Philadelphia on Dec 29th!

Giveaway Hallmark Disney Experience

This new show, Rockin’ Ever After, is the first Disney on Ice appearance of Merida from Brave and includes some of our favorites like Rapunzel, Belle, and Mickey and Minnie. Here’s a little sneak peek behind the scenes of the show.

WIN IT

To create a unique Disney experience Hallmark is sending one lucky reader a special package! It includes a Disney Recordable Storybook and 3 tickets to Disney on Ice Rockin’ Ever After tickets for 12/29 3pm at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia.

To enter, tell me who your child’s favorite Disney character is in the comments.

Additional entries:
(please leave an additional comment for each entry completed)

2. Follow Melissa on Twitter and tweet:

I entered to win tickets to @DisneyonIce in #Philly on 12/29 from @MelissaAngert and Hallmark #giveaway http://girlymama.com/?p=5667

3. Like Girlymama on Facebook.

One winner will be selected at random using the WordPress plug-in And The Winner Is… and will be notified by email.For other contest rules, see my giveaway policies page. NOTE: Due to the timing of this giveaway and the actual event, I’ll notify a winner on Monday December 24th and will need to receive confirmation they can attend that day. If I do not hear from winner within 24 hours, I will be drawing a new name.

Disclosure: We were provided with these tickets and book to facilitate a giveaway, as well as tickets and a book for us to experience. The opinions expressed herein are those of the author alone.

December 15, 2012

give more than a gift with hickory farms

Melissa

Well, based on our giveaway a few weeks ago, you all love Hickory Farms as much as my family does!

We all know that Hickory Farms offers a variety of specialty foods and holiday food gifts that are perfect for any budget and for everyone on your list this year – they make terrific gifts for anyone from teachers to bus drivers to neighbors to that hard-to-buy-for relative. They always present beautifully and who doesn’t like yummy treats as a gift? I still remember a white elephant exchange where someone included a Hickory Farms set – people were fighting to get it for themselves!!

But Hickory Farms is so much more than just yummy. They are committed to charitable causes and to supporting our military through Operation Gratitude – a national nonprofit that creates care packages for military men and women and their families. Hickory Farms gifts ship wonderfully overseas to that special soldier you want to support. Hickory Farms has eight products that they offer free shipping to military APO and FPO addresses, including the “Home for the Holidays” gift basket (see picture below). What a fantastic way to offer a someone serving overseas a taste of home for the holidays!

But did you know that Hickory Farms also has a partnership with Share Our Strength (SOS) – one of my favorite nonprofits, that works to stamp out childhood hunger. For each Party Planner gift box sold this holiday season, Hickory Farms will donate $5 to Share Our Strength’s No Kid Hungry Campaign (see below for more information). To date, Hickory Farms and its customers have donated $1.9 million which helped provide funding for summer meal programs, emergency food assistance, nutrition education, holiday charitable giving and long-term solutions for families in need. This box is only $45 and would wow anyone who received it!!

So remember – when you buy Hickory Farms this season, remember that you can so so much more than just send a wonderful gift! You can support two great causes!

Disclaimer: Compensation and products for review were provided by Hickory Farms via MomTrends. I received a free sample of the product for the purpose of review. The opinions expressed herein are those of the author and are not indicative of the opinions of Hickory Farms.

December 13, 2012

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey

Melissa

Earlier this week, we saw a sneak peek of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey:

The adventure follows the journey of title character Bilbo Baggins, who is swept into an epic quest to reclaim the lost Dwarf Kingdom of Erebor from the fearsome dragon Smaug. Approached out of the blue by the wizard Gandalf the Grey, Bilbo finds himself joining a company of thirteen dwarves led by the legendary warrior, Thorin Oakenshield. Their journey will take them into the Wild; through treacherous lands swarming with Goblins and Orcs, deadly Wargs and Giant Spiders, Shapeshifters and Sorcerers.-Warner Bros.

Overall – it was incredible. No surprise there. Peter Jackson doing Middle Earth can hardly be wrong! Hobbit purists will find plenty of things to complain about: Obviously, since they are making a 300 page book into three movies, they are blow up those films quite a bit with extra content. (So if you read the book in preparation, you may be confused!) It really is like visiting an old friend or coming back to revisit a childhood favorite. Its changed a bit and isn’t quite what you remember, but it is familiar and comfortable… and very exciting. The best parts of LOTR are all there: music, costumes, scenery – oh, that scenery, but its different too.

Compared to LOTR, The Hobbit is faster paced, has more humor, has more intense special effects and CGI, has more action, and is in 3D. That’s the basic difference between the former trilogy and this new film. The Hobbit, as a story, has a lighter tone. Its not about saving all of Middle Earth and fighting the ultimate evil – its about Bilbo’s great adventure. It has the same themes about true courage: courage is not found in lack of fear, but in doing what’s right in the face of fear. Its why hobbits are such a powerful character in all of Middle Earth. They show courage and bravery where others don’t normally look for it.

Gollum was positively brilliant in the movie. Yes, he was brilliant in LOTR, but you will be in awe of him here. While this movie has tons of CGI characters, Gollum stands out,so realistic that instead of marveling how realistic he looks, you simply forget you’re watching CGI. He’s just Gollum. The expressions, the movement – all of it is taken up a notch in The Hobbit and his character truly stands out in an impressive movie.

The Hobbit is full of very fast paced sequences full of quick edits and (at some points) literally hundreds of characters going in every direction. The Hobbit uses 3D to create a sense of depth and weight to scenes, putting you into the scene rather than just occasionally tossing items out at the audience for a gag. My husband and I compared it to being inside a video game. It’s so crisp and clear and intense its almost too much to take in. With the added depth of the 3D and all the action, you need to be careful if you are sensitive to motion sickness. You are literally spinning at spots and if you have trouble with 3D, this is NOT a movie to test yourself in! Its very intense and fast and you will get dizzy! Stick to 2D.

This is by no means a flawless film, sometimes it was a bit over the top or unnecessarily juvenile, but the result is still miles above what you typically see in the theater. Its fun. Its beautiful. ITS THE HOBBIT! Definitely see it in the theater. This will very soon be a classic of our time and you don’t want to miss it.

disclosure: we saw a sneak preview of this movie free of charge. all opinions are my own.