LilSugar

You Know You're a Mother When: Birthday

LilSugar — Sat, 28 Feb 2009 04:00:20 -0800

You know you're a mother when you stare at your newborn and wonder what she will be like at five....

To see what happens, read more.
And, then it happens!

Kids are the most incredible measure of time. Happy Birthday to my Leap Year Baby!

Photos Copyright Laurie O'Brien

Leap Year Babies Unite Online!

LilSugar — Fri, 29 Feb 2008 11:01:11 -0800

My Leap Year baby isn't the only lil (or big) being on the planet with the distinction of being born on February 29. In fact, your chance of being born on Leap Year Day is about one in 1,461 - meaning only 0.0684 percent of the world's population are "Leapers."

Some serious February 29 advocates have created a special Honor Roll to celebrate people born today. You can add your child, or yourself, to the site's exclusive list and learn more about the special birth date.

My Leap Year Baby

LilSugar — Fri, 29 Feb 2008 09:00:39 -0800

My due date was January 26 before the doctors changed it to February 13. So while we entertained the idea of a Valentine's baby, I never considered that my child would be born at the end of the month. But, life is full of surprises and my daughter made her much anticipated debut on February 29.

We decided that we would celebrate her birthday both days - February 28 and March 1. And, commemorate the occasion with a special trip on Leap Years. So today we are in Disneyland, a preschooler's paradise. And, entertaining options for her eight birthday. But one thing is certain, we will throw her a Sweet Sixteen when she turns 64.

LeapFrog's Zippity Brings Full-Body Gaming to Preschoolers

LilSugar — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 07:00:11 -0700

Dance Dance Revolution sparked a worldwide rhythm and dance craze when it launched in Japan a decade ago. Since then, game console manufacturers like Nintendo and Sony have created dozens of videos merging exercise and gaming for adults and teens alike. With the Zippity Learning System ($80), LeapFrog delivers the concept to the preschool set.

The TV-based gaming system brings some of The Disney Channel's most popular characters – like Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Little Einsteins, Winnie the Pooh and Handy Manny – to combine upper- and lower-body movements with educational concepts.

To see what we liked about the Zippity system and what left us wondering, read more.

The Zippity system allows kids to choose from eight games that either use an interactive mat for lower-body movement or a waist-high joystick for upper-body activity. The games, such as a Mickey Mouse version of Simon Says and a Handy Manny version of song creation, encourage number, shape, directional and color recognition. While some of the games are more movement-oriented than others, they all do encourage the participant to be active. The great graphics and variety of games are perhaps the best features of the system, as lil ones can work on several different skills throughout their play. Each game has two levels of play, meaning the system is designed to grow with them – but we found that a 3-year-old was already well-advanced for the first level of most of the included games, leaving us wondering just how long he would be able to play with a set geared toward 3-6-year-olds.

Interview with Imagination Movers: Disney's Amazing Dad Band

LilSugar — Thu, 12 Feb 2009 08:00:27 -0800

Disney's hottest dad act, the Imagination Movers encourage friendship, creativity, and thinking while they get kids up off the couch. You may assume this is just another example of the Mouse's Midas touch, but it's more. The four friends (three of which are fathers to a combined nine children) have a back story beginning in New Orleans that will have parents pushing their tots in front of the television as the band's message is genuine. Rich Collins (Mover Rich) explained, "We weren't four guys that went and auditioned and got put on a show. There's history that makes us what we are." I had the opportunity to sit down with the foursome (Collins, Scott Durbin, Dave Poche, and Scott "Smitty" Smith) recently in San Francisco. To see how Hurricane Katrina altered their lives and led them to become male role models on the Disney channel, read more.

lilsugar: How did you guys go from being an architect, a firefighter, a teacher and a journalist to having a kid's band?
Dave: We wanted to make quality music for kids because we had children who were steeped in the whole world of entertainment and a lot of what we saw was cartoons and puppets. We brought it back to what we had grown up with - Mr. Rogers and Captain Kangaroo. Mr. Rogers had just passed away and we thought there was a void and decided to take a shot at doing something about it. So we got together - four goofy dads who had an idea and here we are years later and it's turned into something that is of value.
Scott: Actually, the initial idea was local in New Orleans and then low and behold what we created resonated with people and we were tenacious about its development and were fortunate that Disney came and saw us at Jazz Fest. We played our set and started talking about doing a show together and had this concept and that's how it was born.

lilsugar: Did you guys quit your day jobs as touring and doing a show must take up the majority of your time?
Dave: When we started it was a hobby. We'd put the kids to bed and meet. At first, it was in my built out attic room and we'd be there from like nine at night until 12 or one in the morning a few days a week and brainstorm and work. Then, the music took on a life of its own. We made three independent CDs and a DVD and started playing shows. The business needed attention so Rich was the first one to quit and make the full time leap. Then, three years ago Katrina came. Once that happened we lost three of our four homes and Smitty was a firefighter.
Smitty: I still am a New Orleans firefighter, I'm just on leave of absence.

lilsugar: When you lost your homes, did you go stay with family and then reconnect later?
Rich: So the flood came and the three of us lived in one neighborhood (Smitty lived in a drier part of town) so our houses got completely flooded and were under eight feet of water for weeks and our office, Mover stuff and instruments - it was all gone. So we were all in our cars with the kids and the cat and the computer and a few pieces of clothing and a couple of pictures you saved and we were literally refugees, but it's funny. It's not funny really, but there was a day or two after when we were all holed up in different cities and hotels and things and we started communicating via text because we had a show booked that next Saturday in Dallas. And, so I was like - can you get there? Can we do this show?
Dave: I was sitting on the steps of a hotel in Houston, my kids were in bed and I'm exhausted outside with my wife and we're texting because that's the only way you can communicate. I looked at my phone and it was Tuesday or Wednesday and he's like so are we still playing Dallas Saturday? Saturday, I was in Dallas. We realized what else are we gonna do? We will have a hotel room there. I don't know if I have a job, I don't know where anybody is, and there's a small fee out there and I've got an obligation. Not knowing where anything was or where money was gonna come from, we went. People loaned us instruments.
Rich: Scott bought some replacement suits - I was wearing my old glasses. We were like refugee performers - so a bad thing happened and that's kind of a symbol for what happened in the bigger picture. We were totally thrown off of our routines, but quickly realized that there was this huge community of Movers fans in New Orleans and around the south who reached out to us to ask if we were okay. And to let us know, "your music was in the car and kept our kids feeling safe and please keep doing what you're doing". It was this outpouring of support. Doing the Movers gave us this safe harbor and in a bigger sense, it is what allowed us to pull ourselves up out of the storm. This is maybe getting a little too grand, but we managed to get the deal with Disney and bring the production of the show to the city. It was the lifeline for us and for our families to get the show going, but we're now employing more than one hundred people for seven months at a time when we do the show. It's a huge boost for the local film community.

lilsugar: No matter what happens, you're staying in New Orleans?
Smitty: New Orleans is a small town, we grew this thing from nothing. People would tell us that this was their sense of normalcy and for us this became the thing we rallied around to lift ourselves up.
Scott: The one guy who didn't lose his home, Smitty, penned the lyrics to the song, We Got Each Other which was probably the first recorded song in New Orleans after Katrina and was on our Eight Feet album.
Dave: You might lose your tangible things, but you've still got your family and friends and support.
Smitty: I didn't lose my house and none of my family died or anything, but as a fireman, for two weeks straight we banded together and relied on one another for our lives. That was part of that song too. It was pretty tough, but I think out of all that, here comes this good thing.
Scott: Our lives turn on a dime. We were professionals working jobs and then we were standing in line for welfare or to get food stamps. It was just a real experience.

Courtesy of Disney

Ecomomics: LeapFrog Learning Table Half Off!

LilSugar — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 13:00:46 -0800

While shuffling down the toy aisles at Target yesterday, I came across a seasonal steal! The LeapFrog Learn and Groove Musical Table, which is a staple in many nurseries and offers tots 15 musical activities and 40 songs and melodies is on sale for $19! This is more than half off its original price so I stocked up for gift giving. The musical table also introduces the alphabet, numbers, shapes and more to children aged 6 months to 3-years-old.

The Gifted Baby: One-Year-Old

LilSugar — Tue, 25 Nov 2008 10:00:29 -0800

One-year-olds are on the move! Whether they are already walking or on the verge, their increased confidence makes them inquisitive of the world around them. When shopping for gifts for tots seek out toys that help them explore their surroundings. Here our some of our favorite picks!

A wooden pull along toy like the Quack Pack Pull Along Toy from Apple Pie that wiggles as the toddler pulls it on its way.
A five-in-one activity cube like the Busy Body Cube from BabyStyle, which features mazes, beads, magnets, clocks and puzzles to keep lil ones entertained for at least a few minutes!
The LeapFrog Fridge DJ introduces numbers, letters and popular children's songs while displaying the characters on its screen. Best of all, it attaches to any magnetic surface, so it can entertain babes while their parents complete kitchen tasks.
Melissa and Doug's line of large knobbed puzzles are a great introduction to puzzles and can help lil ones stay put for a few minutes at a time.
Bring out the athlete in your toddler with the Little Tikes Little Champs Sports Center. The perfectly sized basketball hoop is a great way to introduce a variety of sports.
Push toys encourage tikes of all walking abilities to get up and go, which is why I love this BabyStyle Wooden Jeep. Made of natural rubber wood and featuring rugged tires, the car can be used inside and out.

Source

Lucky Baby Born on 8-08-08

LilSugar — Sun, 10 Aug 2008 05:00:07 -0700

People can be superstitious about numbers, especially birth dates. One Arizona couple got a treat Friday when their daughter, Katharine Rowley was delivered at 8:08a.m. on August 8, 2008. Parents Jason and Laura are thrilled to have another healthy child. Their first baby was born on New Year's Day in 2007 and the mama joked that they will shoot for October 10, 2010 for their third child. Though I don't subscribe much to the number theory, people have told me my kids have special birthdays as they are Leap Year and November 11th.

Were your kids born on a lucky date?

Tell Mommy: Do You Think Carseat Labels Lie?

LilSugar — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 12:00:13 -0700

My son surprised me on the ride home yesterday when he leaped from his seat while I was driving. I hadn't forgotten to buckle him in or secure the harness. For the past few months he's been slowly, but surely, learning to wiggle his way out of the carseat. He used to suck in his breath before slipping one arm out, followed by the other. Then, he'd use both hands and all the pressure the lil rascal could muster to pinch the red button until it released. That was all before he realized that he could lift the Velcro flap and latch to loosen the straps himself. But, now my guy has become impatient and honestly, I can't blame him. To see why I feel bad for the guy, read more.

I paid a bundle for the carseat, which was supposed to accommodate him until he weighed 60 pounds, barely fits. He's tall for 21-months and average weight so it's a bit ridiculous that we are cramming him into contraption that had a label saying it would suffice until he was six years old. His limbs hang and he looks pretty uncomfortable, but it's the law so there's nothing much I can do aside from explore other options and cross my fingers he tips the scales at 33 pounds sooner than later so we can move him to the built-in tot seat in our vehicle. Have you run into this dilemma?

Lil Big Screen: Fly Me To The Moon

babysugar — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 10:00:29 -0700

I remember my parents telling me where they were when Apollo 11 landed on the moon and Neil Armstrong uttered his famous, “That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.” Generations of children won't have the advantage of a first hand account. Luckily, Fly Me To The Moon is a 3D animated film that will educate kids for years to come as it tells the story of the lunar landing from a fly’s perspective. To see why you should take your child to see this flick, read more.

Centered around a fly named Nat who dreams of being the first fly to land on the moon, the movie allows viewers to see the bug make it a reality after he and his best friends sneak into the astronauts' spacesuits and hitch a ride. Back on earth, Nat’s mother, voiced by Kelly Ripa, must overcome her fear of letting her son go in order to celebrate his achievement. Along the way, the flies are faced with a number of obstacles, including fly swatters and bug spray.

Though the movie’s story is familiar, and the subplots are all predictable to the adults in the audience, the animation is hard to beat. The film’s producers are billing it as the first of its kind and it is a sight to see. Unlike the movies of our youth, the images actually leave the screen – you can almost taste drops of orange juice poured from a container and an American flag literally waves in your face. If you're looking for an educational and entertaining family field trip, this flick fits the bill.

Photos courtesy of Nwave Pictures