You guys probably can guess that I LOVE The Backyardigans – how could I not, when one of the characters is named Pablo? I’ve been snooping around for a couple of years now, hoping to find a t-shirt that says “Pablo!” on it for my boy Pablo to wear. Years ago, there was a movie called The Quest for Camelot and the female character was named Kayley. I actually FOUND Kayley a shirt from the movie with her name on it and it was pretty cool! So far, I’ve found Pablo underpants, but nobody ever gets to see those. Hehe!

Besides the whole Pablo thing, The Backyardigans is just the cutest show ever. The characters are confident, resourceful, independent, and witty without being annoying, like most of the characters on kids’ shows. And the music is awesome! Each episode has four original songs, ranging in style from jazz to rap to country to…completely obscure! We LOVE this show. Yes, I said we. The Backyardigans is yet another show that’s created to appeal to parents as well as children, and I LOVE this trend. It’s just fun, you know? It’s like I’m a grownup so I’m privy to these inside jokes that go right over the kids’ heads.

That’s why I was SO excited to preview the brand new Backyardigans movie, Super Secret Super Spy. The entire opening credits are done in the style of James Bond and even Austin Powers. I was giggling before the movie even started! I wasn’t sure how the kids would do with an hour long movie, with their short little attention spans, but they were glued to the TV the entire time – I was really surprised! In the movie, Agent Secret Pablo tries to outwit and outsmart Uniqua, the villainous Lady in Pink. The whole movie follows the typical James Bond-esque storyline, complete with hot cars, crazy gadgets, bumbling henchmen, and shaken martinis (actually cocoa.) I laughed so hard at the tickle torture scene when Agent Pablo said, “Do you expect me to talk?” and The Lady in Pink said, “No, I expect you to giggle!” Straight up James Bond, there! And The Lady in Pink theme song is done by none other than Cyndi Lauper! Super entertaining.

The movie premiers Monday, September 17th from 7 to 8 p.m. on Nickelodeon, and you can buy it on DVD the following day, Tuesday the 18th. Until then, you can check out clips and music videos from the movie on NickJr.com, and cable users can see music videos OnDemand starting Monday, September 3rd. And starting this Friday, the 31st, you can check out The Backyardigans International Super Spy 3D adventure game on NickJr.com. This is a REALLY cute, really entertaining movie – I encourage you to check it out. All five of the kids watched it with me and we all liked it.

You know, I’ve always preferred Luvs diapers. I used them with Kayley, way back in the day when they still were plastic on the outside, before all diapers were “cloth-like.” I kind of miss the crinkly-sounding diapers sometimes! I used them with all four of the littlest ones, too. I did find, though, that when we got into the BIG sizes, they tended to leak a little bit. I wrote about that here, when I was trying to find something to put on Pablo at night that wouldn’t leak all over his bed, or worse, explode little pee-scented gel beads all over his bed.

Currently, we’re using Huggies for Pablo and Mallory. The two of them are potty trained, but still pee during the night, so we actually don’t go through all that many. A big package lasts us awhile! They’re quite a bit more expensive than Luvs, not to mention, they don’t have BLUE from Blues Clues printed on them, which is a big bummer, but hey – I go with what works, y’know?

Well! I’m happy to report that Luvs has redesigned their diapers to include Bear Hug Stretch – the tapes on the sides are like elastic. And moreso than other diapers that also claim to have stretchy sides – trust me, I’ve tried them all! I had a chance to try out Luvs new Bear Hug Stretch diapers on all the kids last night, and guess what? Everyone had dry beds. Yay! I like how they stretch SO much that it feels like I’m getting them on the girls really snug and well-fitting, so they don’t have that weird rectangle-butt thing going on under their pants.

I’m really pleased! I always love it when companies LISTEN to the feedback they’re getting and actually make changes when necessary. I especially love it when it’s a company I like anyway. Just makes me like them that much more. So – if you stopped buying Luvs because they were leaky, maybe give them another try. I’m not sure if all the stores are carrying them yet – it’s kind of a brand new thing. Keep an eye open for them, though. I’m embarrassed by how excited I am to be buying Blues Clues diapers again. The kids just love them so much! It’s the little things, I guess.

Okay, so you know I’m passionate about children and stimulating their little growing minds, whether through books or music or dancing or watching certain things on TV. Not just my kids, but all kids! I get SO annoyed when I see preschool-age kids mindlessly zoning out in front of some of the stupid, poorly animated cartoons they have on TV – I’m like, haven’t you ever heard of Sesame Street? Only the best kids’ show ever made, people! It actually cracks me up how fiercely I’ll protect “the good shows” like that – if you only KNEW how many times I stood up for Barney from about 1996-1999! Yeah, he might have been purple and goofy, but he taught Kayley about cleaning up, brushing her teeth, understanding her feelings, etc. And don’t even get me started about Mister Roger’s Neighborhood! I cried when he died – he was such a huge part of my own childhood! I think it just really touches me when people put true effort and dedication into making something for our kids that’s really special, that’s really going to teach them something and entertain them at the same time.

So, naturally, when I found out about a new live-action music show for kids called Yo Gabba Gabba! on Nick Jr., I was excited to check it out. It turns out, the creators of the show put the trailer on the net and used viral marketing to get the word out about their project, which was eventually picked up by Nick Jr. Their company, The Magic Store, was formed by a couple of skater guys who are my age! I love thinking about a couple of “Gen X” dads who direct skateboarding and music videos turning to the children’s television industry. And the show is *awesome* – it has such a fun, comfortable, completely retro feel, I have found. It really reminds me of some of the stuff we watched when we were kids. And the music is by The Shins! How could you not love it?

We received a DVD from Nick Jr. of the premier episode, “Eat”, and my kids have watched it literally a dozen times now. They are obsessed with the music and as soon as any of the songs begin, they’re off the couch, jumping around and dancing. Mallory loves the little girls on the show who wear cute little dresses and make funny faces and dance around – she wants to BE one of them. Nick Jr. has printable iron-ons from the show available on their site, so I might make her a little matching jumper dress like theirs so she CAN be one of them! Our younger twins love it too; they keep coming up to me, saying, “Wan’ watch Dabba Dabba Dabba!” And I think it’s GREAT for autistic kids like Pablo – he loves the big, bright characters, and there’s just enough repetition throughout the show that it keeps his attention and keeps him engaged in the dancing and music. There’s a segment in the premier with Elijah Wood in it, showing the kids how to do this simple little fun dance called The Puppet Master, and all four of my kids have mastered it and do it right along with the TV. I was going to get a picture of them doing it last night, but I left my camera in the van – d’oh!

I can’t wait to see more episodes now. They have lots of cool guest stars, too – I already mentioned Elijah Wood – the episode guide lists Mya, The Shins, Sugarland, Rahzel, Tony Hawk, Laila Ali, Sean Kingston, Nikki Flores, Hector Jimenez, Smoosh, The Aquabats, The Aggrolites, and Cornelius. And Biz Markie is going to be in a recurring role, teaching preschoolers how to Beat Box!

The show revolves around the host, DJ Lance Rock, and his set of toy monsters (and one robot), who he brings to life in each episode by saying, “Yo Gabba Gabba!” The characters include Muno the red cyclops, Foofa the pink flower bubble, Brobee the “little green one”, Toodee the blue cat-dragon, and Plex the robot. They sing and dance and go through little life lessons, and it’s never lame or boring. I find myself singing the songs later on, especially the “Party in my Tummy” song!

Mark your calendars, people! The show is premiering on Monday, August 20th, in a simulcast on Nick Jr. and Noggin at 10:30 a.m. Eastern time. In the meantime, you can see a brand new music video from the show every Friday until then during the “Nick Jr.’s Dance Party” lineup, and yesterday, they started showing episodes and videos on OnDemand! Check it out – I’ll bet you will LOVE it, and your kids will too. Like I said, my kids are completely obsessed already, and we’ve only watched the first episode!

I know people are passionate about these things! I’ve seen a surprising amount of online debates about the worthiness of Magic Erasers, as well as all the warnings about children burning their skin on them, etc. I just wanted to give my personal stamp of approval to them. Yesterday, me and my Mr. Clean Magic Eraser cleaned crayon off of our kitchen table, chairs, floor, the side of the freezer, and part of the sliding glass door. Then, I took it outside and scrubbed the hell out of the toy kitchen I just got from my best friend, which had been living in her backyard for the past year. It looks practically new now, and you know how hard it is to get those plastic Little Tikes toys clean! They really seem to absorb the dirt. One word of advice: don’t cheap out and buy an off-brand. I bought the Target brand one day, and they didn’t work for shit! Splurge on the real deal, and marvel at how it removes crayon as if erasing a marker board!