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Little One Books: Review and Giveaway

CONGRATULATIONS JULIE!!!! 

Entry #47, you have won!

Do you ever feel bombarded by book choices when you step into the children's section at your local bookstore?  Do you wonder how you can find the best books that are fun (and maybe even educational)?  How do you know which books will be appropriate for your children at this moment?

Little One Books has helped take the guess work out of finding great books for your children.  I'm not just saying that.  This company was founded by a set of grandparents who felt just that way.  They have put together a team of fantastic reviewers and built an online bookstore with a selection of fabulous books.  The selection is even categorized by which age group they are most appropriate for.  Selection is fun, with commentary from the reviewers about why this book made it into the store's selection.  Each book has also been personally reviewed by Joan McCoy and Barney Cohen, the stores' founders!

Little One Books also offers videos and DVDs!   Even these are organized by age appropriateness!  What a great service they offer.

Our family had the honor to order from Little One Books.  They have so many good books to choose from.  They all sounded so good and I had a great time searching them to pick out what my boys would like the best.  We chose "Stinky".  It's a book about a garbage truck in New York City, who has his own special "Alphabet Soup".  My boys have really enjoyed reading it again and again!

Shop Little One Books today.  They're offering a special deal to my readers - buy any two Little One Books projects, and get a free "Good Morning" CD.  Use the code "goodmorning" at checkout to get your free CD!

WIN:
One reader will win a $15 gift certificate to Little One Books.  

Here's How to Enter:
Remember to leave 1 comment per entry (there are up to 4 entries possible).  Leave your correct email address in EACH entry.  If I am unable to contact the winner, I will have to choose a new winner.  Contest ends on 3/23 at noon EST.

Mandatory Entry: Subscribe to the Little One Books newsletter AND like them on Facebook.

Additional Entries:  
Subscribe to my email feed (upper right column).
Follow this blog via Google Friend Connect or Networked blogs.
"Like" Crum's This N That on Facebook.

Beginning Bible: Joseph

This week's exciting Bible fun has been from Joseph.  As noted below, we had a day off because of a doctor's appointment.  Monkey had fun learning and playing at his Aunt Elizabeth's house instead.  I'm working on transferring pictures from one computer to another, so haven't taken a ton for this week.

Monday
Story - Read Joseph Story from Adventure Bible Story book
Writing Skills - Practice Writing Letter "J", say "J" words
Reading - Watch MonkiSee, use Flashcards "circle, star, oval, square, heart"

Tuesday
Fun day at Aunt Elizabeth's House
Big mess with flour and cars, bath with cousin Bugsy
(Visit to the doctor for Crackers)

Wednesday
Story - Veggie Tales "Little Joe"
Math - Counting Brothers
Reading - Watch MonkiSee, use Flashcards "circle, star, oval, square, heart"

Thursday
Story - Read Joseph from a level 1 reader
Art - Design special coat with stickers
Reading - Watch MonkiSee, use Flashcards, "circle, star, oval, square, heart"

Friday
Story - Read Joseph story from one of our other toddler Bibles
Free play - Acting out the story
Reading - MonkiSee, use Flashcards, "circle, star, oval, square, heart"

Seeds of Compassion

Maybe you remember, maybe you don't.  One of the key words I want Monkey to know about himself as he grows is "compassion".  I watch with joy as this little man notices people who are sad and wants to do something about it.  He tries so hard to comfort his brother, and has recently adopted the phrase "poor guy" - I'm not really sure what he means when he uses it, but he's starting to identify with people who are hurting.

Today our neighbor girl fell off of her scooter and hurt her leg.  Someone thought she might have broken it and called to have an ambulance come so she could be examined (her mom was not home and they had no other way to get her to the hospital).  We watched the ambulance and talked about what was happening.  Monkey and I said a prayer for Marissa as they wheeled her into the ambulance.  He told her bye, see you later, and feel better.

He didn't just feel pity for her in the moment.  See, this happened more than 6 hours ago.  It has been on his mind all afternoon and evening.  Monkey keeps telling us, "Marissa sad, Marissa hurt leg, Marissa go hospital."  Even at 2 1/2 my sweet man is learning to care about others.  I think tomorrow morning we will make a card for her and deliver it.

The truth is...

I'm intimidated by chicken.

There.  I said it.  I am all for conserving money on food, and living more green, and eating a bit more healthy... but I just can't figure out what to do with a chicken that has skin and bones.  Maybe I am just spoiled.  It just makes me want to gag when I think about it.  Ugh.

Any advice on getting over my fear of chicken with skin and bones (but no head or feathers).

Intellectual Baby: Review & Giveaway

The complete MonkiSee kit!


Congratulations Lesli, Comment #77, you are the winner!

Both of my boys love books.  They love to "read" and to be read to.  When we had the opportunity to review Intellectual Baby's "MonkiSee" program, we jumped at it.  What a fantastic addition to our home preschool curriculum!

Enjoying shape flashcards

MonkiSee is a learn to read program for children 3 months - 4 years old.  This great program helps parents tap into their children's learning potential, by implementing videos, books, and flashcards.  The products can be used individually or as a set that reinforces itself.  They are great quality products that babies and toddlers love using.

I could hardly believe how quickly my boys fell in love with MonkiSee products.  My Monkey wants to watch the videos every day.  His favorite is the shapes video.  You know what?  He's actually learning his shapes.  This morning he was able to identify several shapes that we had not worked on with flashcards yet (hexagon, diamond, pentagon...)  

The videos are simple and cute with a VERY catchy theme song.  We find ourselves singing it all day long.  I was surprised by the simplicity of the videos, but the boys absolutely love watching them.  I hear Monkey repeating a lot of what they're saying as he absorbs it as well.  It took Crackers a little longer to get interested, but he really does not enjoy television very often.

The books are simple with wonderful pictures.  The pages with the "story" are blank other than the words.  I love this about them because it helps us focus on the words before we connect them to the pictures (which also have a couple of words on them).  Monkey brings the books to me again and again.  He especially loves the one about colors.

The flashcards are great quality with big words and pictures to match.  Monkey actually wanted to do the flashcards this morning instead of watching a television show.  He's a television lover, so it's rare for him to give up an opportunity to watch it.

Testing Monkey to see what words he recognizes.

Do I think that MonkiSee makes my children smarter?  Nope.  I think it helps me find new ways to tap into their brains and help them store information.  It gives us a great way to spend some 1 on 1 time.  It gives them words for things they see every day. 

Overall, I think that Intellectual Baby has made an incredible product and I would recommend it to anyone with small children.  I think any family, that cares about educating their children early, would benefit from MonkiSee products.

BUY IT:
You can buy MonkiSee products HERE.  Take some time to look through all of their great products.

WIN IT:
One reader will win a set of all 3 MonkiSee videos to share with their family!  This giveaway opens immediately and will end at noon on March 22.  Remember to leave entries in the comment form below and add your email address to each comment.  Open to residents of the US.

Here's How to Enter:
Mandatory:
Follow my blog, leave a comment below telling me why you want to win.

Additional Entries: 
Leave 1 comment for each additional entry.
1) Visit Intellectual Baby and tell me something you like about their products.
2) Subscribe to my email newsletter (upper right hand column of my blog).
3) "Like" Intellectual Baby on Facebook.
4) "Like Crum's This N That on Facebook, OR "Follow" me on Twitter.

That's it, up to 5 entries in this giveaway!  Good luck.

Sweetest Wool Booties

First off, you should know that I LOVE Etsy.  I could spend hours looking at all kinds of amazing hand-made products in great shops.  I love it that shopping on Etsy allows me to support artists, stay at home parents, grandparents, second incomes, hobbyists, and incredible talent.

The other night, as I was browsing Etsy, I came across these:

Knit Lush Mouse Booties

OH MY GOODNESS!  I love them.  How sweet would these be for any baby!  (Have I mentioned I have 2 pregnant cousins and several pregnant friends?)   Everyone NEEDS a pair of these!  They're felted wool, so they'll be durable, and come in 3 sizes - tiny newborn up to 12 months.  Crackers has big feet, so I don't think they would fit him but OH how I wish they would! 

Update: I just talked with Knit Lush and she said she CAN make them in bigger sizes if requested to do so!

I wrote to Knit Lush and asked her about where she found the pattern.  She told me that she developed the pattern herself.  The first pair she created were the "lucy" booties for her best friend's baby girl.  Isn't that sweet?  They loved them so much that she created these sweet animals.  Right now her shop features cute bunnies, sweet mice, and an adorable raccoon!  (For the record, I think Crackers would need raccoons in his big foot size because he's a rascal).  

"Knit Lush specializes in highly unique and chic knit and felted wearables for all ages. Our "Inspired by nature, Made by hand" mission inspires all things Knit Lush; from patterns to final product we passionately uphold a promise of a quality handmade product. From felted bunny baby booties to knit fingerless gloves, there is something for everyone at Knit Lush and can now be shipped worldwide!"


Knit Lush makes other products too.  I also like their"spats".   I didn't know what those were, so I checked them out and I think they would be amazing for winter in Indiana.  Look at these:

Check out the Knit Lush shop today.  Order a pair of wool booties for someone you love.  Order some Spats for me! (=