team mom

Moon Dough Review!

Guess what we did today? Broke out the MOON DOUGH! It’s been sitting here on my desk for WEEKS now, and my review is way late. My apologies to Team Mom, who was kind enough to provide my family with this awesome Moon Dough Barn set for review – I have had the damndest time finding a chance to sit down with my kids to try it out. How hard is it to sit down and play? I mean, come on? But, yeah. School started, and everything just went to hell for me. Now that my littlest twins are in school, I have FIVE KIDS doing homework every night. The days just FLY by. But somehow, everything came together today, and here is my review!

First of all, you should check out the Moon Dough website. They have a commercial that loads right on the main page, showcasing this amazing, magical molding dough that never dries out. Don’t those kids look like they’re having a blast? I took a video of my own, so you can see what it’s like for the reals. This stuff is awesome – and actually, kind of weird – but it’s soooooo messy. I was trying to figure out something to compare it to, so I could describe to you what it’s like. It’s sort of food-like, in a way. It’s super duper light, like styrofoam. And have you ever pulled out the leftover mashed potatoes the day after Thanksgiving, and they’re all cold from the fridge? And you get a big spoonful and it sort of makes a sound as it separates from the spoon and plops onto your plate? That’s the consistency. And it’s crumbly, like the instant scrambled eggs you get ~~in jail~~ at a cheap buffet. It’s bizarre stuff, but it’s fun to play with. All my kids loved feeling it in their hands. Here you can see my husband explaining to all the kids (plus the neighbor kids) how to use the farm set. Essentially, you feed it some of this weird Moon Dough stuff, turn a crank, and out pops a farm animal. How weird is that?

My kids had a lot of fun with this stuff. It’s one of those things, though, that is designed (in my opinion) for families with just one or two kids. It’s super hard for a group of kids to share a toy like this as you could probably figure out from my video! I suspect that even 2 kids would struggle with it, because while one kid gets to do the AWESOME FUN THING, which is extruding little animals with a crank, and the other kid has to sit there and do the somewhat boring thing, which is molding Moon Dough into fences and hay bales. Turning funky molding compound into farm animals seems to be a one man job, y’know? But still – my kids liked it. Here are a few pictures to show just how much fun they had!

Lexi, the spokesmodel, showing off our product: MOON DOUGH.

Daddy reads the instructions:

Looks like scrambled eggs, huh? Not for long, though – my kids had all those colors mixed up together in no time.

Look at those fabulous fences!

Pablo really enjoyed the feel of Moon Dough – I can see it being a fabulous sensory tool for kids on the spectrum.

Lexi the spokesmodel again, showing off our collection of farm animals and hay bales!

Yeah, it’s hard to get them all to smile for a picture.

Our whole group, having fun with the Moon Dough:

Moon Dough comes in a very sturdy box. I’m hoping I can shove everything back into it, but so far, I can’t get the plastic grass to snap back off of the barn. If I can make that happen tomorrow and store this away on a shelf in its original box, I’ll be extra impressed with Moon Dough. If I end up throwing the whole thing in a Target bag and having to throw away that nice sturdy box, I’m going to be extra annoyed with Moon Dough. I’ll let you know how that part turns out.

So. To summarize? I would not have bought this for my kids in a million years, only because I’m one of those, “Oh, HELL no!” moms who doesn’t embrace crumbly, messy toys. I was a little disappointed that it was soooo crumbly and messy – this stuff got EVERYWHERE. I wonder what my neighbor thought when I sent her children home with blue hands. I don’t know that I’d recommend this, although the whole set is pretty cheap – under $20, for sure. You can buy individual containers of the Moon Dough – perhaps invest in one of those, if you want to see what it’s like, before buying a whole playset.

Disclaimer: Team Mom provided this Moon Dough playset to my family for review. I was not compensated in any way for this review, beyond receiving this product.

David Garrett – Rock Symphonies Review

Sep 11th, 2010

by lauralee.

6 comments

I just had a chance to check out the new CD from David Garrett, who was named best-selling new classical artist of 2009. Rock Symphonies is full of classic rock covers by artists like Led Zeppelin and Nirvana, and it’s a definite twist on the classical music I generally listen to! (Which is: not much. We bump a lot of hip hop and indie rock in this house, but we like to turn on the classical music channel when the kids are doing homework; it seems to calm them right down. This CD would NOT have the same results!)

When I opened up this CD, I threw it in the player and my husband and I took a quick listen of each song. I asked him what he thought of it, because, as you may or may not know, he’s a DJ, and usually has thoughtful perspective to offer. At first, he mentioned that these types of compilations are hard to categorize when he’s looking for music. Do you file it under classical? Under classic rock? And where would you play it? What sort of gig calls for classical versions of classic rock songs? Eventually, though, we both started to dig it. We started thinking it would be good background music for a funky dinner party. Also, I think my kids will like it a lot. We listen to a lot of eclectic music in the car, and this will be a good addition to our vehicle’s musical library. My 2nd grader, in particular, is obsessed with the violin at the moment, because her good friend Grace is a child prodigy who knocked the socks off of everyone in music class during last week’s Talent Day. Maybe one day Grace will release a CD of classical music covers of Taylor Swift songs? Only time will tell.

If you like classical music or classic rock, this might be a CD you’ll like. Here’s the track list:

Smells Like Teen Spirit
November Rain
The 5th
Walk This Way
Toccata
Vivaldi vs Vertigo
Master of Puppets
80s Anthem
Live and Let Die
Asturias
Kashmir

Here, check out this video – he’s cute, too:

You can pick up Rock Symphonies at Best Buy, on iTunes, or at Amazon. I’m not going to put up a link, because Amazon canceled my affiliate account because I live in Colorado and Amazon killed its affiliate program here, thanks to a change in our sales tax law. Booo, Amazon, and booooo, Colorado. But hey, everyone just buys stuff on iTunes now anyway, right? Hey, maybe you want this CD, but you don’t want to pay for it. I can help you with that! I have an autographed copy to give away. Just leave a comment here, and I’ll pick one at random. No hoops to jump through, just leave a comment.

Disclaimer: Music Moms provided me with this CD for review. Other than receiving the CD, I was not compensated for this review.

Pop On Pals – fun!

Jul 26th, 2010

by lauralee.

No comments yet

You know what I love? Getting to try out new and exciting toys. Actually, my KIDS like it even more than I do! Having two sets of twins in the house means we go through a lot of toys, and I’m always eager to check out new and exciting stuff. Recently, we were asked to review the Amusement Park Playset from Pop On Pals.

Pop On Pals is a whole new world of “Popabilities” from Spin Master. With endless mix n’ match fun, little ones can be anything they want to be. A fireman can become a musician, a princess becomes a baker, a puppy becomes a ballerina – Pop On Pals encourage imaginative play and help develop fine motor skills. Pop On Pals (ages 2-4) is a world of fun pals, pets, vehicles and playsets. Pals are perfectly sized for small hands to play with and the signature “pop” sound adds to the fun!

Other Pop On Pals packs and playsets include:

Pop On Pals Pet Pack

Pop On Pals Pal Pack

Pop On Pals Ring Deluxe Ring Pack

Pop On Pals 2 n’ 1 Vehicle Set

Pop On Pals is available at Toys “R” Us, Target, Kmart, Sears, and more!

Okay, here’s where I get to tell you what a MEAN MOM I am. My kids saw me take this toy out of the packing box and they went NUTS over it. We just returned from a family vacation which included LOTS of roller coaster riding, and they were pretty stoked to see the wee little roller coaster. They were completely ready to rip it out of the package, until I told them that, alas, they were TOO OLD for this toy. Tomorrow, my kids start school – I’ll have a pair of 2nd graders and a pair of Kindergarteners. They’re pretty much BEYOND the 2 – 4 age group for this toy. They were NOT PLEASED by this news.

However, we do have a darling little baby cousin who was the perfect age for Pop On Pals! Meet my newest little toy reviewer!

Her birthday was last weekend, so the timing could not have been more perfect. She got a cool new toy, and I got to see firsthand what happens when you hand it over to a rambunctious toddler. (She’s checking out her new Barbie purse in this picture, but only because I didn’t manage to pull out my camera during the twenty minutes she spent spinning that ferris wheel!)

Here are my thoughts about Pop On Pals. It’s a very cute toy. It makes a lot of noise that will grow weary after awhile for tired mamas, but that’s the way it goes when you have little ones. This particular playset comes with ONE figure, even though there are lots and lots of spots to place a Pop On Pal. You can purchase additional “pals” separately, but I really feel like it should come with AT LEAST a couple in each set! You should check out the Pop On Pals website – with your kids, probably – it’s fun and interactive, and you can see exactly how each playset works. It’s pretty neat.

The Pop On Pals Amusement Park Playset retails for $34.99. I received it via Team Mom for review purposes, and was not compensated for this review.

We love K’Nex!

Jan 4th, 2010

by lauralee.

2 comments

I’m a full month late in posting this review, darn it. I don’t know what it is about the 4th quarter of the year always slipping by in the blink of an eye, but I suspect it has something to do with all those little kid cold germs and all the preparation for the holidays. Anyway. I’ve been remiss in sharing this, and I apologize for that.

My son and husband were lucky enough to sample a 400-piece K’Nex building set, courtesy of K’Nex and Team Mom We aren’t new to K’Nex. When Pablo was paired up with his full-time aide, Barb, she introduced him to the magic of K’Nex. Kids with autism often like to sit and work on something obsessively and with meticulous concentration, and K’Nex is perfect for this. They’re designed to work with the typical building sets you probably already have (the ones that rhyme with Eggo) but they are a thousand times better than those other building sets – you can make the most amazing things, and the design that allows the the itty bitty pieces to fit together is just…genius.

Here’s my boy checking out the big tub of K’Nex.

Um…just so you know, 400 pieces of K’Nex is not a lot. Many of the pieces are miniscule – smaller than a raisin – so don’t expect to buy this tub and have it appear anywhere near FULL when you open it. Have you ever opened a bag of potato chips and realized the bag was only about a third full? Well, the K’Nex tub is about one tenth full when you buy it. But if you’re anything like me, you’ll realize that you need a whole bunch more of these, and you’ll run right out to your nearest retailer to stock up. I think the K’Nex people are counting on that – fill up that tub, consumer! Or, use the extra room as a garage for your spiffy K’Nex truck.

Really, nothing makes my engineer husband happier than sitting down with the boy and building stuff. They sat like this for HOURS. Hours, I tell you. They made a few things shown in the big instruction booklet, but had even more fun making their own creations.