Jump Start Review and Giveaway

I confess...my son is a computer game and video game addict. Yes, at 3 years old. He loves playing Mario Kart Wii, he has a V-smile, a mini laptop of his own, a digital camera that also plays games, an old game boy from the sitter, and he also plays games on my laptop on a few websites that are for his age.

So, when I was contacted by the JumpStart company to test out and review their website and computer games....I wondered how the heck they knew!! I feel much better about my son playing all of these games when he is actually getting something out of it. JumpStart is an award-winning adventure-based 3D virtual world that is super-personalized, wildly imaginative and really fun, but don't let that fool you - it also teaches math, reading, and critical thinking skills so kids get a real jump start in life.

We started by logging onto JumpStart's web page. After you log in for the first time, you will need to install JumpStart's active X control. After this was downloaded, my son took over.

First he got to design his person on the game. He absolutely loved this. He got to pick the clothes, the hair...everything. Caiden got the biggest kick out of seeing what happened when he picked something new. After he finally decided what he wanted to look like on JumpStart, he was ready to play some educational games.

Along with our membership to JumpStart, we also received the JumpStart 3-D Virtual World - The Legend of Grizzley McGuffin game to try, which is a computer game you install on your computer. You can play it as a stand alone game, or you can use your membership at JumpStart to expand the game online. This has all of the great benefits that the online version does. They work together hand in hand.

Since Caiden is only 3 years old, some of the learning games are a little too advanced for him, but some of them are just great. Right now he loves playing a game that teaches rhyming. I have been trying to explain to him how to know if two words rhyme for I don't know how long and he just wasn't getting it. After playing this game for the last week or so, I think he is finally getting it!

JumpStart also has a section on their website just for us parents. There is a discussion board as well as a blog that is full of wonderful information for Parents. Also, there an added bonus to this site for parents. JumpStart sends out periodic progress reports by email, with information on what Caiden has been working on. It will tell me what type of games he has played, like math, reading, etc. and how well he did with the games he played. Proof that he is learning while playing :)

About the only drawback to JumpStart's online game is that is can be a little slow at times, so you may have to wait for some things to load.

WIN IT!!! - this contest has ended

Now that you've heard about this wonderful product, I bet you want to find out what you can win and how!

All I need you to do is head over to JumpStart, and then come back here and leave me a comment with a fact from the website that I did not post here. The winner will receive a free 3 month membership to JumpStart.com. It's that simple!

For additional entries you can:

1-Add my button to your side bar and leave me a link to your blog in your comment;

2-follow me on blogger or twitter;

3-subscribe to my blog;

4-send an email to all of your friends (at least 5) and copy me;

5- Tweat about this giveaway; and

6-blog about this giveaway and leave a comment with the link to your post.

*Please leave me a separate comment for each item you do on this list*

This giveaway is open to bloggers and non-bloggers. If your blog profile is private, or you’re a non-blogger, please leave an email address in your comment or your entry will be disqualified.The winner will be chosen randomly on May 19th at 10:00 pm CST.

Sorry, this contest is open to US residents only.

Good luck!

This contest has ended

Family Activity - Tumblebugs

I love going to Family Fun's website to find new craft ideas. I'm not a very crafty person, but many of the ideas on this website and in their magazine are easy enough for even me!

This week we are going to make some Tumblebugs.

Set these little critters on an incline and watch them cartwheel a beeline to the bottom. The secret to their antics is a marble rolling around inside.

CRAFT MATERIALS:
Scissors
Card stock
2 nickels
Tacky glue
Toothpick
Marble (1 for each bug)
Black marker
Colored tissue paper
Glue stick
Time needed: Under 1 Hour

1. For each bug, cut a 5-1/2- by 3/4-inch strip of card stock and two 1 3/4- by 7/8-inch card stock ovals.
2. To make an oval, lay 2 nickels side by side on the card stock and trace around them, connecting the top and bottom.
3. Glue the strip into a loop, overlapping the ends by an inch. Pinch it or use a paper clip to hold it together while the glue dries. Next, use a toothpick to line one edge of the loop with glue, then set the loop on top of an oval.
4. When the glue dries, place a marble inside. Line the edge of the loop with glue and press the other oval on top.
5. Once all the glue is dry, use a marker to add a face and other features. Cut out a couple of 2-inch-long wings from tissue paper and use the glue stick to attach them to the top of your bug.

Instructions can also be found on the Family Fun website here.

Have fun and feel free to leave a comment with a picture of your tumblebugs. If you have any thoughts on what you would like to see posted for a family craft or idea, feel free to drop me an email!

Best Friends

credit: Stardom by Misty Cato Designs

WINNER - Rechargable Batteries

Sorry it has been so long since my last post. I'm sure everyone is dying to find out who won those wonderful batteries. Well, wait no longer :)

The winner is:

Random Integer Generator
Here are your random numbers:46
Timestamp: 2009-04-24 19:31:46 UTC



Rajee said...

It saves costs, high performance, low self discharge, easy to use one for all applications like tv remote control, camera, video camera, hearing imparied etc. Love to have mailto:itrajikarthik@hotmail.com



Congrats :) I'll be in contact with you soon!



Mickala

Family Activity 4/4/09

As a contributor with Sited and Blogged, I am going to start a twice monthly posting (every other Saturday) about a family activity or craft. To start this off, I'm going to post a great idea from the Family Fun website.

A Herd of Eggimals

CRAFT MATERIALS:
Plastic Easter eggs
Tiny pom-poms
Felt
Crafter's Pick The Ultimate glue or hot glue
Black permanent marker
Time needed: Under 1 Hour

1. To make the felt features for your critters, you can download our template. We used Crafter's Pick The Ultimate glue (hot glue also works well) to attach the pieces to the eggs and a black permanent marker to draw the face details.

2. Pig: Curl a 4-inch piece of pipe cleaner around a pen to make the tail, then glue it in place.

3. Mouse: For its tail, glue on a 3-inch length of yarn, knotted at the end.

4. Skunk: First glue the rear half of the stripe to the tail, then glue the tail and front of the stripe to the body.

Thanks to the Family Fun Magazine for this wonderful idea!

Sanyo Eneloop Rechargable Batteries Review & Giveaway

If you are like me, you have a bazillion things that require batteries, and you never seem to have enough, or the right size. It seems like everything my son has now days requires batteries to work. Between the rough and tough children's digital camera, the V-Smile and the Wii controllers, we needed new batteries for something every week. So, I began my mission of finding the best rechargeable batteries out there. That is when I found Sanyo's eneloop rechargeable batteries. When I received them in the mail, they were already charged and ready to be used. So, I put two AAs in my Wii remote and we were ready for the next round of Mario Kart. I would love to report back and tell you how long they lasted, but I can't....because they haven't died yet!


What's more is that you can get the neatest little case that a AA battery, to make bigger batteries. It only takes 1 AA eneloop battery, I can put it in the C cell adapter (or Spacer) in and now I have a C cell battery! How awesome is that? I also have an adapter for a D cell battery, which still only requires 1 A sized eneloop battery.

Are you striving to be more green in your everyday life? Then the eneloop batteries are right up your alley. Eneloop is not only rechargeable, but it is also recyclable.

Cost savings a goal for you in 2009? Since these batteries are rechargeable up to 1,000 times, you will save tons of money by the time you need to purchase new ones.

Win it!!!

What to try it out for yourself? Here's your chance.


All I need you to do is head over to Sanyo's eneloop website, and then come back here and leave me a comment with a fact from the website that I did not post here. The winner will receive a 4 pack of AA batteries and a rapid charger. It's that simple!

For additional entries you can:

1-Add my button to your side bar and leave me a link to your blog in your comment;

2-follow me;

3-subscribe to my blog;

4-send an email to all of your friends (at least 5) and copy me; and

5-blog about this giveaway and leave a comment with the link to your post.


*Please leave me a separate comment for each item you do on this list*



This giveaway is open to bloggers and non-bloggers. If your blog profile is private, or you’re a non-blogger, please leave an email address in your comment or your entry will be disqualified.



The winner will be chosen randomly on April 22nd at 10:00 pm CST.


Sorry, this contest is open to US residents only.

Good luck!

New Scrap Page

Just a quick post to show my newest scrap page.

Credit: Dreaming In Color Page KitCreated by Nicole Young©2009 Nicole Young