Energizer Battery Packaging Now Safer for Babies and Toddlers!

October 4, 2013 · by Tiffany Merritt · 97 Comments

Thanks to Energizer for providing complimentary coin lithium products for review. All thoughts and opinions expressed here are strictly mine.

Do you have any coin lithium batteries in your house? These are the little round disc batteries that are often needed for things like remote controls, children’s books with sound, or flameless candles. They are just the right size to be tempting to a young child to put in their mouths and potentially swallow. These batteries can cause serious chemical burns in as little as two hours. So you can add this to your list of things to totally freak out about. You’re welcome.

But I don’t want to leave you with the bad news and then just walk away. Energizer has teamed up with the National Safety Council to share some tips on keeping kids safe from injuries like those associated with the ingestion of coin lithium batteries.

As parents, we have to do our part to keep batteries out of the reach of little hands. Energizer, for its part, has been the first battery company to voluntarily develop packaging for its 20 millimeter coin lithium batteries that meets the Consumer Product Safety Commission’s strict guidelines* for child-resistant packaging.

The Packaging Difference

We put Energizer’s packaging to the test recently by comparing just how easy (or difficult) it might be to open without a pair of scissors. We also had a different brand on hand to see if another brand had similar packaging or not. Here are our results!

Other packaging: paper backing. I was into it in about 15 seconds. I could see a baby or toddler drooling on this for just a little bit before the battery would just fall into their little mouths. Yikes!

Energizer package: plastic through and through. It is bendable, but that stuff just won’t break. I messed with it for a few minutes before snapping this shot.

And once I did cut into the package with scissors, I noticed that the batteries still weren’t “easy” to get to. Definitely doable without having to yell expletives, but these aren’t just going to accidentally fall out, I promise.

While we tested our product with adults, I do not believe that my 4-year-old would be able to open this package without a pair of scissors (and the rule in our house is that scissors are only used with adult supervision).

Win it!: In celebration of Engergizer’s safe packaging for coin lithium batteries, one lucky Stuff Parents Need reader will win the following:

Two (2) packages of Energizer Coin Lithium batteries
One (1) Energizer LED Nightlight (winner’s choice between Sleeping Beauty or Cars)
One (1) Energizer Weatheready 2-in-1 LED Light

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*Background on CPSC Child-Resistant Packaging

The CPSC imposes strict guidelines to determine if a packaging qualifies as effectively child-resistant. The packaging is tested with groups of children ages 42-51 months and also with senior adults ages 50-70. For a package to be child-resistant, a total of 80% of the children tested must not open the package in a full 10 minutes of testing. To make sure that adults are able to use a child-resistant package properly, 90% of adults tested have up to five minutes, and then another minute in a second test, to open and close the package (if applicable) so that it is child-resistant again.

Magic Milk Straws: Halloween Candy Alternative

September 29, 2013 · by Tiffany Merritt · 177 Comments

We’ve all been there: the candy aisle at the nearest convenience store, either the day before or the day of Halloween. We’ve paid ridiculous prices for candy, maybe not even the “good” candy since we waited so long to buy any.

This year, I’ve already got my “candy” tucked away at the top of my pantry, ready to go. And my “candy” isn’t actually candy at all. But it sure is sweet! Here’s what I’m handing out this year:

Magic Milk Straws

Have you seen these in the stores, yet? My mother actually introduced them to us, and since that time, I got connected with the folks over at Magic Straws (which I just call milk straws) to learn more about their products. They sent me several flavors to test out (tough job, but someone’s got to do it!), and that’s when it hit me that these would be a VERY cool alternative to Halloween candy this year.

Magic Straws was already thinking about that very same idea, and that’s why they are offering a 48 count Halloween Value Tube this year! The straws in the value tube will be individually wrapped, which makes them perfect!

Ok, Tiffany, but what the heck are Magic Straws? Well, my friend, they are straws that when used, will turn milk (any kind!) into a flavor party! The milk becomes flavored with the cool little beads inside the straw while you sip it. When the beads run out, the flavor is gone. I’ve found the straws to last through a decent sized glass of milk. Darah often still has some beads left over in her straw by the time her milk is gone, which usually prompts the request for, “more milk, please!”

Magic Straws contain NONE of the following:

high fructose corn syrup
artificial colors
lactose
fat
cholesterol
gluten
preservatives
allergens
mess(!)

They come in an awesome variety of flavors, too. They have a Dippin’ Dots line that has birthday cake and s’mores flavors (we handed some of those out at Darah’s birthday party as favors!). Their Got Milk line includes chocolate, strawberry, vanilla milkshake and cookies & cream. And they have a limited edition flavor line that will really blow you away! It includes strawberry/banana, orange cream, wild berry, banana cream, cinnamon roll, neapolitan, cotton candy and chocolate candy cane!

If you aren’t ready to go big, you certainly can purchase Magic Straws in packages of 5, 6 or 24. And they are sold all over the place! Find your nearest retailer online with just a few simple clicks.

What will you be handing out at your front door this Halloween?

Win it!: One lucky Stuff Parents Need reader will win a Halloween 48 pack of Magic Straws, just in time for trick-or-treating!

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Cora the Smart Cub Review and Giveaway!

September 27, 2013 · by Tiffany Merritt · 120 Comments

Thanks to VTech for sending us Cora the Smart Cub for review. All thoughts and opinions expressed here are strictly my own.

We have been playing with Cora the Smart Cub, by VTech for about 3 weeks now. And she has already traveled with my family on a road trip, which is a high honor (only the most favorite toys travel!). Cora is intended for children ages 6-36 months, but I can tell you that my 4-year-old also likes to play with it, almost as much as her 16 month old sister!

Cora is an interactive plush toy that can be hooked up to the VTech Learning Lodge online by an adult (a USB cord is included with the toy) so that it can get access to over 20 different stories and 130 different melodies(!). You can also customize the bear to be able to say your child’s name, know your child’s birthday, and know what time of day it is so that the bear knows whether to say good morning or good afternoon.

I have to say, this is a pretty darn cool toy. I’m not typically a big fan of toys that are electronic, but I don’t think this toy is just a “noise maker.” Rather, it is introducing Layah to a wide variety of songs, helping her understand daily routine, working on identifying parts of the body, and encouraging engaged play time.

Our Favorite Car Toy

Cora is a source of much entertainment in the car, which is a sweet relief to me, as Layah is going through a phase now where she hates being in the car seat so much that she tries to get herself out of the straps. She needs something to take her mind off of it, and Cora is the perfect solution.

The Price is Right!

Perhaps what impresses me the most about this toy, though, is the price point. When you think about just how many different things the bear can say and do, and how long it can keep your child engaged, wouldn’t you expect this toy to be in the $50-$75 price range? I would. But no…it is just $19.99! How many cheap, plastic toys have you purchased at that price point that didn’t do anything cool and that broke in a month? I think the value is absolutely outstanding, and I would highly recommend Cora (or Cody, a similar dog but in blue) for a toddler this holiday season.

Win it!: One lucky Stuff Parents Need reader will win your own Cora the Smart Cub!

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Primary Science Plant & Grow Set Review (and Giveaway!)

September 25, 2013 · by Tiffany Merritt · 91 Comments

Learning Resources, one of our very favorite online shops for educational toys, recently sent us the Primary Science Plant & Grow Set to review, and I’ve really been looking forward to telling you all about it!

It comes with lots of great (and sturdy!) tools to use for various experiments, all related to plants and watching things grow. This is a topic of much interest for my 4-year-old, which has made this set a real hit with her.

I especially love the cards that contain several different experiment ideas. Last week, on the way home from preschool, we stopped by our local grocery store to buy some carrots so we could do a really fun and easy experiment together.

We filled up our observation jar about halfway with water, then added 10 drops of food coloring. We cut all but an inch off the carrot top and cut the bottom tip of the carrot, as well. The we put the carrot into the water and waited. The waiting part was tough for Darah, since we needed to wait 2 whole days!

This experiment teaches about how root vegetables get their nutrients, and how water travels throughout the vegetable. After two days we could see blue food coloring at the top of the carrot, as well as on the inside. It was very cool!

If you know of a child who is interested in plants, or who just loves a good experiment, the Primary Science Plant & Grow Set, available through Learning Resources, is a terrific find! After all, the best learning happens when kids are having a lot of fun!

Win it!: One lucky Stuff Parents Need reader will win a Primary Science Plant & Grow Set!

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Things I Never Thought I’d Say: “This Cat Litter Smells Great!”

September 23, 2013 · by Tiffany Merritt · 1 Comment

This post brought to you by Sam’s Club. All opinions are 100% mine.

“This cat litter smells great!” said no one, ever.

The litter box just is what it is: a box that sits in our house, and has cat pee and poo in it. Super “on their game” cat owners clean out the litter box every single day to help keep it from smelling terrible, and to keep their feline friends super happy.

As for us, we are a bit more, shall we say, “relaxed” about how often the litter gets changed. We try to keep a regular schedule, but cleaning it out daily just isn’t happening for us in the midst of all the other chaos of life. Hattie, our 11 year old cat, is also really great about letting us know when we have waited too long. She’ll do really helpful things to clue us in, like poop on our bed. Thanks, Hattie!

Everyone in the house, therefore, is pretty darn excited about the dynamic duo that has just come together to make a litter that does, in fact, smell great! Introducing Tidy Cats with Glade Tough Odor Solutions. You can find this product in twin packs (for a great price!) at Sam’s Club. We are members there, so I’ve just added this to my shopping list for our next trip! Check out the video below to learn more about just how Glade and Tidy Cats are taking care of business and keeping litter box odors at bay!

What do you think about this combination? Have you tried Tidy Cats® with Glade™ Tough 
Odor Solutions, yet?

Greek Yogurt Meets Nutrition Bar: ZonePerfect (Giveaway!)

September 23, 2013 · by Tiffany Merritt · 114 Comments

Greek yogurt is all the rage, and it is no wonder why: it is thick, rich and nutritionally dense. I remember the first time I ever tried it…I was pretty blown away by the difference between greek yogurt and the watery yogurt I was used to!

Greek Yogurt Nutrition Bars

(Special thanks to ZonePerfect for providing product for review. Affiliate links may be included).

ZonePerfect has recently launched a line of nutrition bars that combine the delicious creaminess of Greek Yogurt with other protein-rich ingredients to provide a nutrition bar that can really give you a boost when you need one. I’ve been eating a ZonePerfect Greek Yogurt bar every morning when I get up (between 3 and 4am). I used to try to not eat breakfast until the family was up around 5:30, but then I read that my body needs some fuel within 30 minutes of waking up, whether I get up at midnight, 3 am, or 9 am (I honestly can’t even imagine sleeping in until 9am….I think the last time I did that was college).

ZonePerfect bars have been EXACTLY what my body has needed to get going. They are delicious and leave me satisfied until breakfast time rolls around, and even then I find that I’m not craving a huge breakfast.

ZonePerfect bars also make a great snack to combat that mid-afternoon slump so many of us experience. They come in 3 fantastic flavors: vanilla berry, raspberry and chocolate (my personal favorite!). You can find them at your nearest local grocery store or you can order them on Amazon.

Win it!: One lucky Stuff Parents Need reader will win 15 ZonePerfect Greek Yogurt bars (5 in each flavor)!

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Online Books for Kids: We Love Bookboard (Try it FREE!)

September 14, 2013 · by Tiffany Merritt · 3 Comments

I am a member of Bookboard’s Blog Ambassador program. I am compensated, from time to time, with free products and monetary payments. Any views expressed in this post are completely my own.

We have a new nightly ritual in our home that involves reading several online books for kids. After we put Layah down for the night, Darah and I find the iPad and plop down to read anywhere from 1 to 4 books we have never read before. We don’t have a huge stack of library books to keep track of, and we aren’t spending a small fortune at a bookstore, either. Everything we need is on Bookboard.

Bookboard is a children’s digital subscription library for the tablet. If you own a tablet, and if you have a child in your life, then this is something I want to VERY STRONGLY encourage you to try out. In fact, Bookboard offers free trial subscriptions (you don’t give them your credit card, so there’s no way they can charge you, I promise!).We actually did the free trial first, and I was really impressed that it didn’t end until we had read 14 books. That’s a ton of books that we got to read for free!

I have SO many things that I want to share with you about Bookboard. When you find something that is this effective (Darah BEGS to read more and more and more when we use Bookboard!) and that is this affordable (start with the free trial, and if you get hooked like we did, go for the 6 month subscription, which is only $4.99/month for all-you-can-read books! Bookboard has a HUGE assortment of books designed for children ages infant up to 12. The library of options you see is based on your child’s age and when appropriate, reading level.

Bookboard also encourages children to keep reading by unlocking new books for their library after the children read 2-3 other books. This is exactly why Darah wants to read more…unlocking a new book is pretty serious motivation for that kid!

In the coming months, I’m going to share with you some of our favorite reads through a curated collection of titles, and I’m also going to share with you more details on how the program works. But for now, I want to encourage anyone reading this with a tablet to check out the free trial. And then PLEASE come back and share your thoughts with me on the service and how your child or grandchild is liking it, or any questions you might have for the creators of this amazing service.

Diamond Candles Review and Ring Reveal (Giveaway!)

September 10, 2013 · by Tiffany Merritt · 5 Comments

I started longing for Diamond Candles candle pretty much as soon as I heard about them. It is pretty much the perfect gift for me: it smells great, it looks pretty, and it has a treasure inside!

Diamond Candles

I’ve purchased a few Diamond Candles over the past year (one for myself and a few as gifts) and have enjoyed the experience. The fun folks over at Diamond Candles recently asked if they could send a candle for me to review and show to you all. I thought a ring reveal would be really fun so I said yes!

I selected Peach Paradise as my scent. I thought it was the perfect choice for the last of the hot days here in Tennessee. And the smell is quite lovely. Not too overpowering. Just right, I would say! I’ve been burning it at my desk while I work for the past week or so, and at a minimum I’d say I let it burn for an hour a day. It provided a really nice smell and calming ambiance while I worked on the blog!

Finally, I reached the point where I could see some gold foil sticking out of the candle. Hooray! It was time to see what my ring looked like. Every Diamond Candles candle contains a ring that could be worth anywhere from $10-$5,000. So seeing your ring is a huge part of the fun. I videotaped my ring reveal so you could see exactly what I did to safely retrieve my ring.

Now wasn’t that fun? It was such a great way to start my day, and I’m pretty sure it made Darah’s whole week! While I didn’t score a $5,000 ring this time, I’d say that the purchase price of $24.95 for the candles is totally worth it. Definitely treat yourself or someone you love to a Diamond Candles candle in the near future! And videotape your ring reveal, because people LOVE watching them!

Win it!: One lucky Stuff Parents Need reader is going to win a Diamond Candle!!
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PinkBlush Maternity Review and Giveaway!

September 7, 2013 · by Tiffany Merritt · 59 Comments

A lot of things about this pregnancy are very similar to my first. Things like continually feeling nauseous, feeling completely exhausted all the time, and craving strange foods that I don’t normally eat. (Hello, bacon-wrapped pickles!) One thing is a little bit different this time though, and that is my rate of belly growth! Pretty much the day I found out I was pregnant, I was already feeling bigger around the middle. By week 10, I felt like a whale. At 14 weeks, people already started asking me if I was pregnant. (Which I think is a little bold!) I definitely don’t remember my belly popping out so fast the first time around! I realized pretty quickly that it was going to be time for maternity clothes a bit sooner than I had planned. My wonderful husband pulled the boxes of my old maternity clothes out of the attic for me but I was sadly disappointed by what I found. Everything is so outdated and frumpy looking! Oh no, this would not do.

Then I discovered PinkBlush Maternity, who sent me a super cute top to add to my wardrobe and review. They really have some super cute maternity clothes! I spent lots of time browsing their website, making a list of all the cute things I just had to have. My first choice, a striped top with lace on the sleeves, was unfortunately sold out in my size (I have a slight obsession with stripes!) but my second choice was available. And I have to say, I really do love the top I received. It is super cute, unique, and made of good quality material. I like that the fabric is thick and doesn’t look like it will fall apart before my baby arrives. I also love that it comes with a belt! With my first pregnancy I had NO CLUE how to wear a belt with a pregnant belly, and this shirt figures it out for me. I’ll be pairing this top with black or tan leggings.

I love how unique many of the tops are, and more interesting than the boring items you find in most of the chain maternity stores. Their clothes are also very affordable, which I think is a must for maternity clothes! I was a little disappointed to find that they don’t have a larger selection of jeans and leggings since that’s what I’m currently in need of, but their huge selection of tops and dresses more than makes up for it. (Looking for maxi skirts? They’ve got plenty!) I noticed that they have a lot of really cute things out for fall now, including pants and leggings. If you are pregnant and looking for trendy maternity clothes, I highly recommend browsing their site. I’m pretty sure you’ll find something that suits your style!

Win It!: PinkBlush Maternity Clothing is offering one lucky Stuff Parents Need reader a $25 gift certificate to PinkBlush Maternity!!!

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