Infants and Children

Holiday Gift Guide-Life is good Clothing

December 5, 2011 By Kathryn

Holiday Gift for the Whole Family

People may joke about giving clothing as a gift during the holidays, but when it’s really great clothing, it can be the best gift ever. And no company understands great clothing more than Life is good.

life is good enjoy the ride sleep set

Life is good is NOT your typical clothing company. The focus isn’t on trendy fashions or mass-produced designs. The brand very much lives by its name by promoting optimism, humour and humility in all of its designs, and the result is clothing with a comfortable faux-vintage charm that the whole family will love.

From skirts to sweats and products for dad or for the family dog, Life is good is sure to have a gift for every member of the family. My personal favourite is the sleepwear. The designs are cheerfully charming and the jammies are made from 100% cotton so you can be sure they’re incredibly comfortable. My son received the adorable Enjoy the Ride sleep set and it quickly became his favourite sleepwear.

The pyjamas are nice and snug without being too tight like some other brands we have purchased, and the soft cotton is just incredible. I love the message on the pyjamas, and Zackary loves the cool old truck!

Life is good also has great choices for the adults on your list, and they go far beyond pyjamas! What woman wouldn’t love this adorable sleigh hat lined with ultra-soft faux fur? Warm, comfortable and completely cute, it’s my favourite winter headgear and if it doesn’t match my outfit, who cares? There are even Life is good coffee mugs for that first hot beverage on Christmas morning!

life is good sleigh hat

Life is good products can be purchased at select stores throughout North America and are also available to buy online at www.lifeisgood.com. A quirky t-shirt or cozy sleep pants from Life is good would make a great gift for almost anyone on your holiday list and the company’s simple message of optimism is sure to start Christmas morning off with a smile. Check out the selection for yourself and see which item has you proclaiming, ‘Life is good!”

ARV: $12-$46

Disclaimer: The product/s mentioned above were provided free of charge from the company or PR firm in exchange for being featured on Mommy Kat and Kids. Opinions expressed belong to Mommy Kat and Kids and are NOT influenced in any way. Please view full Terms of Use and Policies

Filed Under: Holiday Gift Guide, Infants and Children, Men, Reviews, Tweens and Teens, Women Tagged With: enjoy the ride sleep set, life is good, life is good clothing, life is good reviews, life is good sleepwear, life is good sleigh hat

Holiday Gift Guide-HEXBUG Nano Micro Robotic Creatures and Habitats-Giveaway

December 2, 2011 By Kathryn

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Holiday Gift for Kids

They’re fast. They’re colourful. They’ll have squeamish adults jumping in surprise. They’re HEXBUG Nanos, and they’re the hottest toy of the holiday season! If you have tech-loving kids or bug-loving boys in your household, HEXBUG Nano micro robotic creatures are a gift that is sure to thrill and delight kids of all ages.

hexbug nano elevation habitat set

HEXBUG Nano critters are the bigggest and best craze in nano-technology. The bugs themselves come in clever test-tube containers and are available in assorted designs for kids to collect. Using a clever vibration technology, the bugs scoot, skitter and scurry in a random pattern over the floor, changing directions when they hit an obstacle and flipping over on their own if they accidentally end up on their backs.

But the fun doesn’t stop there! In addition to the HEXBUG Nanos themselves, kids can create an incredible Nano habitat with various multilevel play sets. Seeing the bugs running through the habitat is absolutely fascinating and sure to impress the bugs’ owner.

hexbug nano assortment

I was surprised and impressed with the educational value that HEXBUG Nanos provided. What I initially thought would be more of a “fun” toy actually had a wealth of opportunities for learning! The best educational value was found in the habitats. The pieces are designed to be interchangeable and can be constructed in a variety of different ways. By combining the play sets, children can build huge mazes for their HEXBUG Nanos!

The bugs themselves are also a great chance for a little learning as they help encourage concepts like observation and experimentation. But when it comes right down to it, the true appeal of HEXBUG Nanos is that they are lots and lots of fun! My five-year-old tester has a great time racing one bug against another, especially since the outcome is so difficult to predict. And my two-year-old has been endlessly intrigued by just watching the bugs scuttle around. Even Dad loves watching the HEXBUG Nanos in their habitat! And for fun in the dark, there are Glows in the Dark HEXBUG Nanos and habitats too!

hexbug nano glows in the dark habitat set

HEXBUG wants everyone to enjoy the fun of the HEXBUG Nano critters, so they are generously offering one very lucky Mommy Kat and Kids reader a HUGE prize pack of HEXBUG Nano bugs and habitat sets! The complete prize pack is worth $237 and contains:

1 HEXBUG Nano 5-Pack
5 Glows in the Dark HEXBUG Nano bugs
1 Glows in the Dark HEXBUG Nano Habitat Set
1 HEXBUG Nano Spiral Starter Set
1 HEXBUG Nano Bridge Battle Habitat Set
1 HEXBUG Nano Elevation Habitat Set
1 Carton of “Bug Food” (batteries)
1 Mini Screwdriver

HEXBUG Nano bugs and Habitat Sets are available at retailers across North America and are sure to result in non-stop excitement on Christmas morning. For a fun and creative toy that takes robotics to a whole new level, check out HEXBUG Nanos for yourself! Kids young and old will be absolutely fascinated by these ingenious little robotic bugs!

ARV: $6.99-$59.99

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Filed Under: Holiday Gift Guide, Infants and Children, Reviews Tagged With: glows in the dark hexbug, HEXBUG, hexbug habitats, hexbug nano, HEXBUG Nanos, micro robotic creatures, robotic bugs, robotics

Holiday Gift Guide-Lucy’s Gluten Free Allergy Safe Cookies

December 2, 2011 By Kathryn

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Holiday Gift for People with Food Allergies

The holiday can be a tough time of year for somebody with allergies or Celiac Disease. When everyone else is digging into scrumptious holiday cookies and cakes, those with allergies are often left sitting at the sidelines looking longingly at an array of forbidden treats. Enter Lucy’s, a line of gluten free, allergy friendly cookies that let everyone enjoy a tasty treat during the holidays!

lucy's cookies maple bliss

Lucy’s offers seven varieties of delicious gluten free cookies. All of the cookies are also free of peanuts, tree nuts, milk and eggs. Made in a dedicated bakery with all natural ingredients, these scruptious cookies aren’t just for those with allergies! They’re a great choice for any mother that wants to give her child a more natural and healthy cookie treat!

I received the Ginger Snap, Chocolate and Maple Bliss varieties to test out and I absolutely loved the rich flavour of these cookies. Because of their low-allergy recipe, they have a very crisp texture with an addictive crunch. My son loved taking a few of the crisp cookies for a lunchtime treat and I really enjoyed them with a cup of coffee or tea. My personal favourite cookie was definitely the Maple Bliss; like a true Canadian woman, I adore the flavour of maple!

lucy's cookies ginger snap

Lucy’s cookies are available in over 7000 stores across the United States and Canada and can also be purchased online at select retailers. They’re the perfect choice for anyone with food allergies this Christmas; in fact, I have three boxes stashed away for my four-year-old niece, who is allergic to wheat and nuts. With a little planning, the holidays don’t have to be hard for someone with allergies, so check out Lucy’s for yourself and help make sure that even those with food sensitivities can have a very merry Christmas!

ARV: $4.99

Filed Under: Holiday Gift Guide, Infants and Children, Reviews Tagged With: allergy safe, cookies, dr. lucy, gluten free, gluten free cookies, gluten free products, holiday snacks, lucy's, lucy's cookies

Holiday Gift Guide-Children’s DVDs from Paramount Home Entertainment-Giveaway-CLOSED

November 30, 2011 By Kathryn

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Holiday Gift for Kids

It’s time to ring in the holidays with the newest children’s DVDs from Paramount Home Entertainment! Paramount has some great titles available just in time for the holidays for preschoolers and older children too!

Dinosaur Train: T.rex Tales DVD

dinosaur train t.rex tales box art

Follow Buddy and his family on an adventure to Rexville where Buddy learns that he isn’t a Pteranodon after all, but a Tyrannosaurus rex! Later, Buddy’s mom takes him back to Rexville after he loses a tooth, where he finds out that he’ll grown new teeth to replace his old ones. Then, Buddy and Tiny visit their friend Annie and discover what the T.rex Migration is all about. T.rex Tales also includes six extra episodes including a bonus holiday episode!

Dragons: Gift of the Night Fury and Book of Dragons Double DVD and Online Video Game

Dreamworks-Dragons-Double-DVD box art

The Dragons are back in the exciting next chapter to the Academy Award-nominated film How to Train Your Dragon. The epic story of Hiccup and Toothless continues as they take flight in a thrilling, all-new adventure to discover an island of never-before-seen dragons in Dragons: Gift of the Night Fury. Then, prepare yourself for adventure, excitement and training as Hiccup, Astrid, Toothless and Gobber tell the legend behind The Book of Dragons and reveal secrets about new, never-before-seen dragons. And after you’ve enjoyed the DVDs, test your skills in the Dragons Online Video Game where you’ll battle and train new dragons, win badges and become the ultimate dragon trainer.

These are nice family-friendly choices for holiday viewing and are sure to be a hit with younger children. The DVDs are available at major stores across North America, or shop online and give a gift that’s sure to delight your favourite dinosaur or dragon fan!

ARV: $14.99-$19.99

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Filed Under: Holiday Gift Guide, Infants and Children, Reviews Tagged With: dinosaur train, dragons double dvd, dreamworks, dreamworks dragons, paramount home entertainment

Holiday Gift Guide-LeapFrog Peek-a-Shoe Talking Octopus-Giveaway

November 30, 2011 By Kathryn

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Holiday Gift for Toddlers

Educational toys are always a great choice for children when the holidays arrive and while kids are pretty good about turning any playtime into a learning experience, there are some toy companies that seem to instinctively understand how to create toys that can both teach and engage children. LeapFrog is just such a company and if you have young children in your house, you probably have already experienced how much fun LeapFrog’s toys are for kids.

leapfrog peek-a-shoe talking octopus

This year, one of the most popular LeapFrog toys for the holiday season has to be the adorable Peek-a-Shoe Talking Octopus. This clever friend features something almost every toddler loves…lightweight plastic balls! When a child drops a ball into the top of the Peek-a-Shoe Talking Octopus, it rolls down into one of the shoes. Then the child can search for the ball by lifting up the shoes one by one with encouragement from the talking octopus himself.

The shoes are different colours and feature numbers on the front, so by choosing either the numbers or colours mode, the toy helps little ones learn about these two early learning concepts. And there’s even a fun musical mode with songs about sea creatures!

Benjamin’s favourite feature of the Peek-A-Shoe Octopus is definitely searching for the balls. He just loves being able to lift up the shoes and hear the friendly octopus tell him “Peek a boo!” And I love that the cheery comments are followed up by comments about the colours and numbers on the shoes! The only issue we had with the toy was that it got knocked over fairly easily when it was on the floor, so we generally put it up on the table when Benjamin wants to play with it so that it doesn’t accidentally get knocked down and interfere with his fun.

The LeapFrog Peek-a-Shoe Talking Octopus is available at major retailers across North America and can also be purchased online at www.leapfrog.ca. Check it out for yourself and see for yourself why the Peek-a-Shoe Talking Octopus won the Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Platinum Toy Award. It’s a toy that will be sure to give your child hours of entertainment while they learn!

ARV: $39.99

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Filed Under: Holiday Gift Guide, Infants and Children, Reviews Tagged With: leapfrog, LeapFrog canada, leapfrog octopus, leapfrog toys, peek-a-shoe, peek-a-shoe talking octopus

Holiday Gift Guide-Kachooz! Pencil Toppers-Giveaway

November 29, 2011 By Kathryn

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Holiday Gift for School-Aged Kids

If you’re looking for a stocking stuffer that’s fun, quirky and sure to entertain, look no further than Kachooz! These crazy little critters are the hottest new pencil-topping craze among school-aged children and are sure to be a hit this holiday season.

kachooz in package

So what are Kachooz? They’re fun friends in a rainbow of colours and with a quick spin of your pencil, they’ll show off a variety of funky hairdos. Just pop your favourite Kachooz character on the top of your writing utensil, spin it between your hands and the wacky fuzzy hair on your new friend will style itself as you spin!

Kachooz! are fun for both boys and girls, though girls especially are sure to love the adorable pencil toppers with their fun hair. Zackary had plenty of fun with the Kachooz! too, though, and really enjoyed the way he could change the look of his pencil topper with a quick spin! He spent quite a bit of time rolling his pencil in between his hands to see what kind of hair his Kachooz! pencil topper would end up with. And I must confess, I had fun spinning a Kachooz! around as well. Watching the topper’s fuzzy hair spin around was strangely addictive and so entertaining!

kachooz with styled hair

Kachooz! can be purchased at toy stores and other retailers across North America and are sure to be a hit as soon as they’re pulled out of a stocking. With 36 characters to choose from (each sporting its own stylish ‘do) they’re the fun and wacky collectible the whole family will have a blast playing with. Check them out for yourself today and enjoy some hair-raising fun with nothing more than a pencil and Kachooz!

ARV: $9-$16

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Filed Under: Holiday Gift Guide, Infants and Children, Reviews Tagged With: kachooz, kachooz pencil toppers, little tikes, mga entertainment, pencil toppers

Holiday Gift Guide-Hasbro Playskool Let’s Rock! Elmo

November 23, 2011 By Kathryn

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Holiday Gift for Toddlers and Preschoolers

Everyone remembers the frenzy that the latest Elmo toy caused among shoppers in the Christmas of 1996 and now the loveable little monster is once the hottest gift of the holiday season! If you have a child between one and four years old, they’re probably already eagerly checking out the Playskool Let’s Rock! Elmo from Hasbro’s latest line of toys featuring the friendly characters from Sesame Street!

hasbro playskool let's rock elmo in box

Let’s Rock! Elmo is the ultimate interactive holiday toy for a toddler or preschool. He comes with his very own instruments: an Elmo-sized microphone, a tambourine and a set of drums. While the microphone is exclusively Elmo’s, your child can play either the drums or the tambourine while Elmo is playing the other instrument. Best of all, Elmo interacts with other Let’s Rock! Elmo instruments; when your child plays the guitar, keyboard or child-sized microphone that is available separately, Elmo recognizes what your child is playing and plays along!

My two-year-old tester’s favourite feature of the Let’s Rock! Elmo was the fact that he could play music with Elmo. Benjamin loves the drums, so Elmo spent most of his time playing the tambourine and singing with his own special microphone while Benjamin happily drummed along. I loved the way that Elmo recognized what instrument he had been given and some of the little jokes were just adorable. “Is this thing on?” Elmo comments with a laugh when he’s first given his microphone.

Let’s Rock Elmo! is lots of fun on his own, but what really makes the toy so amazing is the fact that when a child picks up and turns on one of the special Let’s Rock! Elmo instruments that is available separately, Elmo instantly knows what instrument your child is holding and plays along with your child! Benjamin has a toy guitar that he loves and I think we’ll be investing in the Let’s Rock! Elmo guitar this Christmas so that he and Elmo can really have some fun!

Let’s Rock Elmo! is available at toy retailers across North America, so check the website for a retailer near you. The toy is sure to provide your child with hours of musical entertainment and fun with everyone’s favourite friendly red monster, Elmo!

ARV: $69.99

Filed Under: Holiday Gift Guide, Infants and Children, Reviews Tagged With: elmo toys, hasbro elmo, hasbro lets rock elmo, hasbro sesame street, lets rock elmo

Holiday Gift Guide-Its-Me.tv PICME Personalized DVD-Giveaway

November 23, 2011 By Kathryn

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Holiday Gift for Young Children

Everyone loves personalized gifts at Christmas, but this year why not take that concept to a whole new level with a DVD featuring your very own little star? Its-Me.tv makes it easy with their fun and creative PICME DVDs that feature your child in every single episode!

its-me.tv picme personalized dvd cover

The process is very simple. Just upload a clear image of your child’s face, choose their gender and then enter their name for the DVD case. A few weeks later, your child will receive their very own personalized DVD!

I was able to review a DVD for myself and after noticing that many of the episodes dealt with basic education concepts like shapes, numbers and seasons, I decided that my two-year-old Benjamin would be the one that would benefit most from the DVD. I filled in the necessary information and waited eagerly for the PICME DVD to arrive.

When it did, Benjamin noticed his face on the case right away. He was eager to watch the DVD and I had no objections; we popped in the disc and sat down to watch the twelve episodes on the DVD as a family. My husband and oldest son were just as excited to see what the video was like!

The episodes feature Benjamin and six animal friends participating in various adventures. I really enjoyed all the educational content in the episodes and Benjamin was absolutely fascinated as he watched himself. He occasionally piped up excitedly with comments when his character did something special. “Me waf!” he told me happily when his character giggled at the other animals. He quickly followed that with “Me go cap cap cap!” when his character started applauding. It was so much fun and we both loved the DVD.

I loved seeing how involved Benjamin was with watching his character and I really enjoyed the way the episodes were put together. There is no spoken name in the video; Benjamin is referred to as “little boy.” But he didn’t mind at all that his name didn’t come up; he was far too involved with seeing his face on the television!

A PICME DVD would make a great gift for any toddler or young preschooler, and while older preschool children and school-aged kids may not get as much value from the educational aspects of the episodes, they would most likely still enjoy seeing themselves on a DVD too! PICME DVDs or personalized movie downloads are available online at Its-Me.tv so check out the site today and give your child a DVD in which they are the star of every show!

ARV: $39.00

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