product review

It’s that time of year – sports are starting up, which means dinnertime is even more hectic than usual. With 5 kids playing on 4 different sports teams, I’ll be the first to admit that, yes, we do turn to fast food for dinner maybe a little more often than I’d like to right now.

If you ask my kids where they want to eat, 9 times out of 10 they’re going to yell McDonald’s, but after working at McDonald’s throughout high school and college, just the thought of a Big Mac turns my stomach. So I was intrigued to hear that Wendy’s had a new menu offering, Boneless Chicken Wings.

The wings come in three flavors: Bold Buffalo, Honey BBQ, and Sweet & Spicy Asian. I decided to give the Sweet & Spicy Asian a whirl, and I was pleasantly surprised at how tasty they were. And after a little research, I was even more delighted to find out that they are made from 100% whole chicken breasts.

I’m so excited to have a delicious alternative to the same old boring fast food monotony. Plus, as an added bonus, my hubby loves the Bold Buffalo and the kids like the Honey BBQ. Score!

I wrote this review while participating in a blog campaign by Mom Central on behalf of Wendy’s and received a sample to facilitate my candid review. In addition, Mom Central sent me a gift card to thank me for taking the time to participate.

If you’re looking for a fun, unique, and most importantly easy birthday party theme, look no further. Birthday Party Bash for the Nintendo Wii has all the tools you need to throw a fantastic birthday party – well, minus the Nintendo Wii and Wii-motes.

Inside the game package you’ll find the following:

• party-planning guide and detailed game instructions
• 12 ready-to-mail invitations
• party supply coupons, including a BOGO Duncan Hines Cake Mix coupon
• game disc with 20 fun party games

We game the game a test run with our oldest three children plus mom and dad, and it was a big hit! You can choose your party theme from princesses to pirates, as well as your own character from a variety of ages and ethnicities or even create your own character. Up to 12 children can play at a time using 4 Wii-motes.

The game system takes you through a variety of traditional and non-traditional birthday party games adapted for the gaming system. As each game is successfully completed, another decoration is earned for the birthday party. The gaming culminates with with the birthday cake and a rendition of “Happy Birthday.”

My kids thoroughly enjoyed the game, even though we weren’t celebrating a birthday at the time. Some of the games seemed a tad above their skill level, but that didn’t stop them from playing it several times after our first attempt. Our family gave it two thumbs up!

For additional information visit www.birthdaypartybashblog.com.

This is a blog tour compliments of Mom Central.

My boys were totally excited to have the opportunity to try out Guitar Hero on Tour: Modern Hits and Guitar Hero on Tour: Decades courtesy of Mom Central. Unfortunately, we had to send their Nintendo DS handhelds in for repairs shortly before we received the package.

The good news is they got their systems back in excellent time and have been jamming with these two games ever since. While the old standbys of Mario and the Lego sagas are still number one in their books, the Guitar Hero games provide a nice change of pace.

Some thoughts on the games:

• It was really interesting to see how they adapted this game to a handheld format after playing the Xbox 360 version for awhile. The “keyboard” seems a little awkward for adult fingers (or maybe it’s just that I have long fingers) but seemed well-suited for their much smaller hands.

• While I wouldn’t deem the music inappropriate, my boys weren’t all that familiar with it. I think they would have enjoyed it more if there were songs that were more in their age group, i.e. possibly the Disney stars.

• The wireless play options for the Decades game is really cool and gives moms and dads a nice break because the kids can play together in any room.

Overall I’d consider these games a worthwhile investment because of the family appeal. While my boys enjoy them and play them occasionally, my husband loves them and will play for hours at a time. Admittedly my boys are slightly under the recommended age range, so it’s very possible that this is a game that will hold more appeal in a year or two.

For additional information visit www.guitarheroontour.com.

This is a blog tour compliments of Mom Central.

I’ll admit I wasn’t familiar with Leslie Patricelli’s work before I received these two books, but I’m very happy to have been introduced to it. The two books that we received are beautifully illustrated and engaging for my kids.

Baby Happy Baby Sad was a big hit with my baby. The board book format is perfect for his chubby little hands, and he enjoys flipping through and watching the baby alternate between happy and sad moments.

Higher! Higher! was preferred by my almost-three-year-old and four year old. They love to sit together and flip through the colorful pages, and it’s the perfect way to pique their interest in reading because they’re not overwhelmed with too many words per page.

If you’re searching for books that you can sit down and actually read with your children, then these are probably not the books for you. However, if you’re looking for a way to occupy and captivate your children and perhaps spark an interest in books during quiet time, these are perfect for that.