Stuff Parents Need

Easing the chaos in the nest, one find at a time.

KinderCare Themed Summer Camp Programs: Take a Look!

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Darah has been out of “school” (which is a 10 hour/week Parent’s Day Out program) for 12 days now. I actually checked the calendar to make sure, because it feels like it has been at least 3 weeks! With every passing day, she seems to be waking up with even more energy, less patience and more needs. She is my love, but she is WEARING. ME. OUT.

Seriously.

If you are finding yourself in a similar situation and you have children who are pre-K through elementary school age, listen closely to what I’m about to tell you.

There is a very cool option this summer that you should consider. The national daycare company KinderCare is offering 12 weeks of themed summer camps, and you can sign up for as many as you like (until all the spaces fill up, at least). The themes sound so fun!

  • Wilderness 101
  • Dig Ancient Egypt
  • Wild, Wild West
  • Scienterrific
  • Spectacular Sports
  • Animal Antics
  • Gross and Gooey Science
  • Kids’ Kitchen
  • Sports Smarts
  • Art Expo
  • Splish Splash!
  • Feats of Science ™ K’NEX® Motion Machines

Darah isn’t quite old enough to participate in the theme weeks, but I’ll definitely be looking into them when she is. She’d be all about Dig Ancient Egypt…that kid logs some serious time in the sand box!

This is such an excellent opportunity for kids to meet other children, learn lots of cool new information, explore something really cool, and also burn a bit of their energy off in a safe and fun environment. Because let’s be real, even on my “awesome mom” days (which do happen on occasion) I can’t put together a whole day of themed activities. And a week’s worth? You must be joking! Summer camps provide a very meaningful experience for the kids and help them create really fun summer memories. No wonder such a large percentage of parents plan to send their kids to at least one every summer!

If you work outside the home and are in need of childcare, this is such a fun option. I REALLY like that you don’t have to sign up for all 12 weeks. This makes it easy to plan for vacations or other events without having to pay for daycare you aren’t using. So nice!

And for you moms and dads out there who are staying at home with the kiddos, I want to encourage you to think about at least trying out one week of KinderCare summer camp, not only because your kids are going to have a blast, but also because you could use the break! Since we can’t afford a traditional family vacation this year, Tim and I are planning on sending Darah to a week of KinderCare while we have a “staycation.” We’ll go to the movies (haven’t done that since she was born two years ago!), go out to lunch, read (!!), take naps (!!!) and still have our little girl home with us every evening. I actually get teary-eyed every time I think of it because we are so very VERY overdue for some quality time with each other. Using KinderCare for a week is a perfect way to make that happen. I didn’t realize that they offered such a flexible system, and I’m so thrilled to know it now.

Want to find your nearest KinderCare center? Just click on the link to find one! With over 1,600 locations across the nations, the odds are good that there’s a KinderCare close by, ready to serve your family.

Disclosure: KinderCare is providing a week of complimentary childcare in exchange for my honest opinion about their services, which I have provided.

Moisturizer, Powerful Suncreen and Makeup Coverage in One Product (GIVEAWAY!!!)

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I don’t have to personally know you to say with confidence that you are a busy lady (unless of course you are a man, in which case I’d say that this post might not be of interest to you, personally).

We all have the same 24 hours in a day, and we pretty much all burn through them and are left at then end of the day wondering where the hours went, and why we weren’t able to do even more. We forget just how much we cram into our days (so much more than generations before us, thanks to “time saving” technologies that actually just keep us even busier!).

I can’t fix the problem of being ultra-busy for you today, but I can help you make one area of your life a bit more streamlined: your makeup routine.

Would you be interested in a single product that would do all of the following at one time:
moisturize your face
give you SPF 45 protection
provide a tinted matte coverage, which can serve as your foundation or as a base if you seek additional coverage

Well, friends. That product exists! It is called Revision Skincare’s Intellishade SPF 45 Matte, and it comes in only one color.

Does that bum you out?

It shouldn’t. Note part of the name….Intellishade. This stuff is guaranteed to work on every single skin tone. And the fact that it works on my skin tone (super pale) is very promising, because products that promise to work on everyone rarely work on the really pale folks! 🙂

Here’s a picture of me with NOTHING on (left), and then with Revision Intellishade SPF 45 applied (right):

I think the shade works great on my skin! And even at 30 years old (which I know, isn’t THAT old….but I’m not exactly bathing in the fountain of youth, anymore!) I find the coverage to be sufficient and I don’t add any additional foundation. Just powder, eyeshadow, blush, etc. I didn’t add all that stuff to the after shot because I always think when makeup companies do that, they are trying to pull a fast one on you! In fact, these aren’t even very flattering shots, but the point here is to focus on the color and coverage of the product, which impressed me, so I wanted you to see!

After using this product for a few weeks, I have to say that I really love it. It saves me time in the morning and I really love knowing that I have such a high SPF on my face. I can’t ever find makeup with such a high SPF! This makes Revision Intellishade a very smart choice for those of us who are pressed for time, need some coverage, and also need to protect our skin from those pesky UVA and UVB rays. Darah and I will be spending lots of time on playgrounds this summer, and I’m glad to know that my face will have just as much protection as my arms and legs!

Buy it!: Intellishade SPF 45 is only available through specialty offices, such as dermatologists, plastic surgeons or medical spas. This is because Revision Skincare wants to make sure its customers are properly educated about the best products in their line for their needs. Click here to find your nearest retailer! The ARV of the product is $48.

Win it!: One lucky Stuff Parents Need reader will win Revision Skincare’s Intellishade SPF 45 Matte! The contest will run until June 17th at 11:59pm EST when a winner will be selected via Random.org. The winner will have 48 hours to respond to winning notification before the prize is forfeited and a new winner is selected. Open to residents of the United States. Limit one entrant per household, please.

Mandatory entry: Tell me about another Revision Skincare product that interests you and why!

My answer: I could use the Gentle Buffing Cream to exfoliate once a week, or so.

Additional entries:
1. Sponsor love: Like Revision Skincare on Facebook
2. Blogger love: Like Stuff Parents Need on Facebook

Be sure to enter my other current giveaways, found on the sidebar of my homepage.

Disclosure: I received a complimentary product for review purposes. The opinions expressed here are strictly my own.

High Quality Skincare, Naturally: Kiss My Face

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I’ve got two awesome products to tell you about today, both from the company Kiss My Face, a natural skin care company. I was introduced to Kiss My Face in my early twenties, and have been very impressed with every purchase I’ve ever made with them! Alright, now for the scoop on two of their products that I think you should consider for yourself:

News flash: the heat is on….outside, that is. It may not technically be summer yet, but it sure does feel like it around here! And that means it is time to be thinking about sunscreen. Actually, you should be thinking about (and using!) sunscreen all year long, but the fact is, many of us just forget to do it consistently. Let this be your summer to form a new habit that is really good for your skin! Kiss My Face is the perfect company to turn to in your quest for better skincare. They have an entire line of products to keep you safe while you work or play in the sun. My personal choice is their Face Factor SPF 50, specifically designed for your face and neck. It is paraben free and fragrance free, water resistant, and while it is fighting off those pesky UVA and UVB rays, it is also fighting the signs of aging in your skin with its natural peptides and other terrific ingredients that not only protect your skin, but also nourish it. Oh how I love a product that does more than one thing at a time! A 4 oz tube retails for $12.95.

The other products I want to highlight today are the natural deodorants that Kiss My Face offers. Tell the truth….does the thought of a “natural” deodorant make you a bit leery? Afraid it won’t work? I hear you, and when it comes to deodorant, performance is rather critical! But oh my gosh, I get so freaked out when I read about the potential dangers of aluminum, which is commonly found in anti-perspirants. While clear links haven’t yet been found, I feel as though we have enough evidence to suggest that we should seek alternatives to using it. That’s just my personal take, though.

Beyond this worry, in my house, we deal with a particular problem with deodorants…the vast majority of them cause Tim to break out in a crazy rash. We haven’t isolated the ingredient that he has a reaction to, but one thing is for sure: his skin is VERY sensitive, so we have to be very careful with the deodorant that he wears. Sometimes one will even work for a while and then out of nowhere, begin to give him a rash.

We are both very pleased to report that the Kiss My Face deodorants are NOT causing any breakout, itching or other discomforts. AND….they do their job! No stinky Tim! 🙂 My only complaint is that most of their deodorants are offered in roll-on form. This is no problem for me, personally, but if you have hairy armpits, as most men do, this is definitely not ideal, as your hair can get caught while applying it. Ouch! It should tell you something about how well this stuff works, though, that Tim just suffers through that part every single day! I’ll definitely be purchasing the natural stick deodorant to put in his stocking later this year, though! If you’ve been debating giving a more natural deodorant a try, I highly recommend Kiss My Face. I think you’ll be pleased with your purchase!

Disclosure: I received complimentary products for review purposes. The opinions expressed here are strictly my own.

Chili’s Gift Card GIVEAWAY!!!

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Last week, we went out to Chili’s for lunch. We had a great time! The last time we went to Chili’s, they had introduced the 2 of $20 deal, which we thought was an excellent promotion (and we found that it is running again, by the way!).

But they also have a new menu item that you might really like. It’s called the Chili’s Triple Dipper, and it celebrates the fact that good things come in 3’s! They have a nice selection of appetizers from which to choose, and you can pick any 3 for $10.49. The appetizer plate also comes with 3 different types of dipping sauce. Yum!!!

We carefully examined our options and decided to go for the Big Mouth Bites, the Southwestern Eggrolls and the Chicken Crispers. Here’s what it looked like:
I thought the food was very good, but definitely heavy. While Tim and I shared the plate, I honestly think it is a better fit for larger groups (3 or 4) because of how heavy the appetizers are. We also split the Santa Fe Chicken Wrap, which was a healthier choice. It was delicious! Here it is, straight from the kitchen:
That’s only half the food, by the way. The folks in the kitchen knew we were splitting the sandwich and served it on two plates. I thought that was really nice of them. We left Chili’s very full and with leftovers, and our total was $23…and that included the tip! Pretty good, I think!

Right now you can participate in Chili’s Shout Out to Eat Out promotion. Just put yourself in a fabulous trio online and be entered to win a daily $20 Chili’s gift card, or the grand prize of a $333 gift card to Chili’s (told you good things come in 3’s!).

Win it!: In addition to the promotion on Chili’s site, Stuff Parents Need readers are getting their own giveaway! Woo hoo! One of you will win a $20 gift card to Chili’s! The contest will run until June 12th at 11:59pm EST when a winner will be selected using Random.org. The winner will have 48 hours to respond to winning notification before the prize is forfeited and a new winner is selected. Open to residents of the United States. Limit one entrant per household, please.

Mandatory entry: It’s super simple! All you have to do is and enter Stuff Parents Need as the blog hosting the giveaway. Then come back here and leave me a comment that you did so! Done!

Additional entries:
1. Sponsor love: “Like” Chili’s on Facebook
2. Blogger love: Subscribe to Stuff Parents Need by RSS or email

Be sure to enter my other current giveaways, found on the sidebar of my homepage.

Want more chances to win? You can see a list of other bloggers participating by clicking on the image below!


Disclosure: I received a gift card to Chili’s for review purposes. Additionally, the blogger who refers the most entrants to the giveaway will win a $50 gift card. All thoughts and opinions expressed here are strictly my own.

A Placemat with Raised Edges! Luv That Tray (GIVEAWAY!!!)

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Recently I was reading a parenting book that talked a lot about brain development in babies and toddlers, and simple things that we can do to help boost this development. I find it a little bit ironic that I can’t remember the name of the book, but there you have it. Clearly, mama needs a boost in the brain development category, as well!

Anyway, one piece advice that really stuck with me was to get a brightly colored placement (but not with any design on it…just plain) to use when you are about to teach your child something new (anything that can be demonstrated in front of them). The idea is that the bright color draws in their focus while you are teaching them something. Then, you have a surface to use while the child practices whatever it is you just demonstrated.

So I went searching for a bright placement that was easy to wipe down (no sense in getting something made of fabric when it will have crayons and play doh all over it!). Turns out, this was quite difficult to find!

What I found was Luv That Tray, which is actually cooler than what I was originally looking for. Luv That Tray has raised edges to help contain messes. You can see why it has its name! It can also bend in the middle, and that is a nice feature for when you have scraps of paper or glitter or anything like that to throw away. Dumping it into the trash can is quite easy!

Luv That Tray comes in sets of 4, with nice bright colors (yellow, green, red and blue). The set is just $12.99! I think you get what you pay for in terms of the overall quality, so I wouldn’t expect these to last through multiple children, necessarily, but they are still a terrific choice for toddlers and preschoolers to use any time they are at the table (they are great as place mats for dinner, too!).

Buy it!: Luv That Tray is available for $12.99 right here!

Win it!: One lucky Stuff Parents Need reader will win a Luv That Tray set! The contest will run until June 15th at 11:59pm EST when a winner will be selected via Random.org. The winner will have 48 hours to respond before the prize is forfeited and a new winner is selected. Open to residents of the United States. Limit one entrant per household, please.

Mandatory entry: Tell me one activity your child loves to do that is messy!

My answer: Eating is still a messy event around here, but Darah really loves to feed herself. These trays are so nice to have during meals!

Additional entries:
1. Sponsor love: Like Argee Corporation on Facebook
2. Blogger love: Follow Stuff Parents Need on Twitter

Be sure to enter my other current giveaways, found on the sidebar of my homepage.
Disclosure: I received complimentary products for review purposes. The opinions expressed here are strictly my own.

U is for Urchin: A Modern Eden Get Creative with Toddlers!

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Most any parent of a toddler can attest to the fact that your kid will be bonkers about animals for at least a few years. Darah is no exception. She loves to learn about new animals and practice their names and the sounds they make. We have been having a blast lately with a collection of products from A Modern Eden. This company offers the cutest animal flashcards you have ever seen. They have all the classic animals you would expect (dog, cow, pig, etc.) but they go beyond that, especially with their arctic collection, and introduce your child to the narwhal and the urchin, just to name a few!

The products in A Modern Eden were actually created out of necessity by a creative group of parents and aunts and uncles, who also work together at a creative design firm, when they noticed a lack of design-minded goods and apps for toddlers. So they got to work and A Modern Eden was born!

They have a few 18″ X 24″ posters available of three of their animals (frog, lion and peacock). I wish they had more! The posters are truly works of art, and are very much worthy to be framed. We haven’t don’t so, yet, but we’ve definitely talked about it. Darah loves to look at her posters every day, and they make a very fun addition to her nursery walls. She likes to touch them, too (hence the desire to get them framed so that they aren’t toast in a few months!).

What’s even MORE exciting about A Modern Eden is that they have launched 3 apps, and they all rock! For the iPhone, check out C is for Cow, which shows an animal for each letter. Also be sure to check out Speak, Piggy. Oink! This breaks groups of animals into different habitats, and tells you the name and the sound the animal makes (the sounds are REALLY good, too!). Each of these apps are just 99 cents!

For the iPad, you are definitely going to want to check out Two by Two, which is the classic game of memory using A Modern Eden’s beautiful illustrations. I love playing this game! I mean….Darah loves playing this game! So fun!

Buy it!: The apps are all available in iTunes. The flashcards can be purchased on A Modern Eden’s website for $25, and the posters are also available for $25 each. While the prices may seem on the high end, I assure you that the quality of the work will really impress you.

Win it!: One lucky Stuff Parents Need reader is going to win all 3 posters, as well as all 3 apps from A Modern Eden. This has a retail value of $79! Wow! The contest will run until June 13th at 11:59pm EST when a winner will be selected via Random.org. The winner will have 48 hours to respond before the prize is forfeited and a new inner is selected. Open to residents of the United States. Limit one entrant per household, please.

Mandatory entry: Tell me about your child’s favorite animal (of all time, or just of the moment…totally up to you!).

My answer: Tim taught Darah about Macaws, and she LOVES to say the word and also find them. They are in a surprising number of places (at least in books!).

Additional entries:
1. Sponsor love: Like A Modern Eden on Facebook
2. Blogger love: Subscribe to Stuff Parents Need via email or RSS

Be sure to enter my other current giveaways, found on the sidebar of my homepage.

Disclosure: I received complimentary products for review purposes. The opinions expressed here are strictly my own. Link

The Perfect Toddler Snack You Probably Aren’t Serving: Olives (GIVEAWAY!!!)

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I don’t know anyone who is neutral about olives. It seems everyone has a decided opinion about them. They either rock hard or completely disgust you. My stance is that they are awesome, and Tim thinks they are too gross to even look at. I think it is a texture issue for most people, although for some, they are just too brine-y (not really a word, but just go with it).

Whether you personally enjoy olives or not, I bet you haven’t ever considered offering them as a snack option to a small child. They don’t seem to make the traditional lists that include things like bananas, apple slices, graham crackers and raisins. Olives just don’t fit into that crowd, maybe because they seem more like a garnish to a cocktail? But they really should be included, so today I’m making a case for the olive.

Watch what happens when I present Darah with some olives, alongside other snacks she loves to eat:

You saw it happen, people. Olives beat chocolate, and she didn’t even consider her yogurt melts (also known as “crack” around here) before eating every last olive. They are delicious to her! And it’s all in the presentation. I introduced olives to her by putting them on my fingers. It was pretty much love at first sight! Also, they are chock full of the good fats that we need for healthy nutrition and that little ones especially need in their diets!

Lindsay Olives is a brand we enjoy around here, and today I especially want to highlight the super functional packaging that they have come out with for their black olives. Check out Re-closeables! These are absolutely PERFECT, because they provide a very easy way for you to open your can of olives, get a few (or a handful…just sayin’) and then put them away in the fridge until your next craving strikes. It removes the extra step of having to find a separate container for them, and the lid stays nice and tight, so you don’t have to deal with spills. Very smart!

toddler snack: olives Additionally, Lindsay Olives has a Naturals line that I’m very interested in. These products are preservative and color-free. I really love this. No unnecessary chemicals are going into my body (or Darah’s). We don’t need those preservatives…we eat our olives fast!

Buy it!: Lindsay Olives can be found nationwide. If you don’t remember seeing them in your store, click here to learn where you can buy them!

Win it!: One lucky Stuff Parents Need reader will win the latest Re-Closeables and Naturals products from Lindsay Olives! The contest will run until June 12th at 11:59pm EST when a winner will be selected via Random.org. The winner will have 48 hours to respond to winning notification before the prize is forfeited and a new winner is selected. Open to residents of the United States. Limit one entrant per household, please.

Mandatory entry: Tell me an unconventional snack that your kids like!

Additional entries:
1. Sponsor love: Like Lindsay Olives on Facebook (they have a giveaway happening right now for fans!)
2. Blogger love: Subscribe to Stuff Parents Need via RSS or email.

Be sure to enter my other current giveaways, found on the sidebar of my homepage.

Disclosure: I received complimentary products for review purposes. The opinions expressed here are strictly my own.

The Great GFC Experiment: The Results Are In!

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You may recall that at the end of April I made the announcement that I would be trying an experiment on my blog. I decided to test out an increasingly popular requirement that many review/giveaway blogs are setting: following the blog via google friend connect in order to be eligible for a giveaway.

Here was my hypothesis: Blogs that made this requirement were experiencing tremendous (and rapid) growth to their follower numbers by setting this requirement. I thought that there would be an attrition rate of a handful of people who didn’t want to use GFC, but that it would be offset by the very large number of people who would be willing to sign up or were already signed up, and would be willing to add my blog to their list in order to be eligible for the giveaways.

So for one month, I did set this requirement

My results were completely surprising to me. I found that my growth while requiring GFC was very similar to the growth I had the month prior, when I did not require it! During the month of April, my GFC follower number grew by 70 people. During May, it grew by 80. Though I find the difference to not be negligible (every person counts!), it is still so much smaller than I thought. I was honestly expecting my GFC follower numbers to be twice what they were in April with this requirement.

It seems that I incorrectly assumed that requiring GFC was the very best way to grow blog numbers. In fact, it had very little impact!

I’m SO glad I did this experiment, because I’ve been wondering if I should do it for almost a year now. I did it. I saw the impact, and I don’t need to do it again.

While I would love for you to still sign up for my blog on GFC, it is no longer a mandatory requirement (you will see it show up as a bonus entry, though!). In a month or so, I might try a month long experiment with requiring subscribing to the blog. I’ll give you advance notice if I do, and I’ll also report my results back to you. For any current giveaways where GFC is listed as mandatory, that is still the case, so just be aware of that.

This was so interesting, especially since it disproved my hypothesis! Thanks for sticking it out with me!

If you have a blog and you had a very different experience (or even a very similar one), I’d love to hear it!

New Releases from Scholastic Storybook Treasures (GIVEAWAY! 2 Winners!)

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Are you familiar with the fantastic children’s book called “The North Star“? It’s all about the realization that life is a journey, and that there are many different paths to take, and we have to find our own North Star to help guide us on the path that is just right for us. Raise your hand if you are a grown up who could benefit from reading this story. Me, too! Scholastic has just put it out on DVD, so now’s the perfect time to enjoy this fantastic story with your little one. You’ll both learn valuable lessons from it, guaranteed! The DVD contains other stories that all relate to the theme of following your dreams. It’s very inspirational, and I’m delighted to have it in our collection. It runs 57 minutes, and is available now for $14.95.

The second new release from Scholastic is so very perfect for the school age tots in your house. It’s called “The Scrambled States of America” and it makes learning the 50 states in the union a whole lot of fun! From the press release, “One day, Kansas wakes up grumpy and announces to his kindly neighbor Nebraska that life is dull and changes must be madeNebraska, sick of hearing North Dakota and South Dakota bicker all the time, agrees to help organize a party for all the states. When, at the party, they all decide to switch places to see a new part of the country, what will happen to “The Scrambled States of America?” While it isn’t yet holding Darah’s attention, I watched it and thought it was so fun! It also has several other really fun and award winning stories on the DVD. It’s a terrific choice for any child who might need to learn all the states in the near future. This dvd runs 66 minutes and includes extra features like discussion questions! It can be purchased for $14.95

Does your home not yet have a Scholastic DVD? What are you waiting for?! These are THE BEST out there, and you will not be disappointed. 90% of Darah’s videos are from Scholastic, and the other 10% rarely, if ever, make it to the DVD player. That’s the truth!

Win it!: Two lucky Stuff Parents Need readers are about to win! One will win “The North Star,” and the other will win “The Scrambled States of America.” The contest will run until June 10th at 11:59pm EST when a winner will be selected via Random.org. The winner will have 48 hours to respond to winning notification before the prize is forfeited and a new winner is selected. Open to residents of the United States. Limit one entrant per household, please.

REMEMBER, YOU MUST BE A PUBLIC FOLLOWER VIA GOOGLE FRIEND CONNECT TO BE ELIGIBLE FOR A GIVEAWAY. YOU CAN SIGN UP THROUGH THE SIDEBAR OF MY HOMEPAGE IF YOU HAVEN’T DONE SO ALREADY.

Mandatory entry: Tell me which dvd you’d like to win, and why you want it.

Additional entries:
1. Sponsor love: Subscribe to the Scholastic newsletter (found on the bottom right side of the linked page)
2. Blogger love: Follow Stuff Parents Need on Twitter

Be sure to enter my other current giveaways, found on the sidebar of my homepage.

Disclosure: I received complimentary products for review purposes. The opinions expressed here are strictly my own.