Spring is in the Air - New York Botanical Garden Orchid Show

During the kiddos spring break, I decided to take advantage of one of the wonders of living in the NY Metro area and take them to see The Orchid Show at the New York Botanical Garden. Having been a resident of the five boroughs of NY for most of my entire life, I believe I take for granted the numerous wonders of the city. Like most NY'ers, my thought process is usually I know it's there and I know it's probably pretty but I'll get there when I get a chance or It will be too crowded." But the problem with that thinking is that I usually don't get a chance. So off we went.....

Let me say that The Orchid Show is absolutely amazing. I can't even imagine the amount of work that goes into arranging the flowers, plus upkeep of the display throughout the duration of show. I was worried that my youngest would get easily bored but we used it as an opportunity to work on colors and it was fun for both of them. 

 

The amount of colors and various flowers held in this one space was unbelievable. I  tried to answer the science questions from my daughter the best I could with my high school biology. But in case your memory is foggy, the garden has some handy signs where you can call and enter a code and get some wonderful information to satisfy those inquisitive minds. 

Now the price to see the show includes the ability to see other attractions at the Garden. And for those with families, you may want to consider getting the family membership instead as that enables you to get to the garden numerous times instead of the one time payment to see the show. It also includes some passes for parking. 

While we were there, we went over to the Children's garden. It has a lot to offer the kids with microscopes for them to view slides of various things, a small greenhouse where they can water plants and also some hands on activities (we were able to plant some peppermint plants). 

The Orchid Show runs until April 17, 2016 and more information about ticket pricing, upcoming exhibits and directions can be found at their website: New York Botanical Garden Home Page

Hope you get a chance to see the show and enjoy the beautiful colors!

So yummy and so fun! Num Noms by MGA Entertainment

In the hustle and bustle of the holiday shopping, you may have seen these adorable toys called Num Noms. They were located in my local Toys R Us next to the Shopkins and seemed to fly off the shelves. Hopefully you were lucky to grab a pack or two. They are sold only at Toys R Us at the moment (according to their website).

We received these to review and my DD couldn't contain her excitement! First let me say, these are adorable and they smell delightful! We received the mystery packs as well as the Cupcake Starter set and the Ice Cream Starter set and I will go into a little more detail for both. 

The mystery packs are not your typical blind bag toys that you find and are almost little snack containers (like you would find for those Nutella sticks). I think it goes in line with what the idea of the toy line is which are delicious little treats to play with. Each mystery pack comes with a squishy piece, called a Num and a little pot of flavored lip gloss called the Nom that fits underneath the top. It also comes with a sheet (referred to as a collector's menu) that you can see all the pieces in the collection. My DD couldn't put them down and kept smelling them and telling me how delicious they smelled. The lip gloss was very light and not crazy at all for those concerned and each little pot was a different scent from Pina Colada to Cherry.

The real excitement came when we opened the multi-packs. The Nom's in these two sets (the Cupcake Starter Pack and the Ice Cream Starter Pack) were small motorized Noms that you could stack the squishy pieces on and they moved around. On the menu included in each package, there are "recipes" that you can make by pairing certain pieces together to make different flavor combinations. My DD was playing for quite a while mixing this piece with that piece and what flavor does this make? She had a blast putting them together, switching them around and making tons of combinations and pretending to enjoy the small sundaes that she made. Even my little guy tried to get into the action but got the boot when he wouldn't comply with DD's wishes to keep them in orderly rows. All in all, these were a hit. I think these go very well with the Shopkins collector kind of kid. We will definitely be picking up a few more of the mystery packs to add to the collection!!

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received one or more of the products or serviced mentioned above in hopes that I would mention it on my blog. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe would be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

Glow in the Dark Fun with GloWubble

In continuing with the Wubble Bubble brand fun, the next product we tried was the GloWubble. We tried playing with the GloWubble indoors at first but realized that it is better suited for outdoors. It's size is much larger than the Wubble X and seems like it can take much more of a beating than the Wubble X (my kids actually tried sitting on it and it held up).

 

What I liked is that the package comes with the reusable pump (you will need D batteries, which I had to scrounge around for in my house). Inserting the pump nozzle into the ball was a little tricky because I was afraid that I would pop the GloWubble but a few tries and success. It takes much longer to fill the GloWubble (the recommended size is 3 feet) and with anxious children, it can seem a little tedious but it is worth the wait. 

In order for the glow in the dark feature to really work, you really need to leave in a brightly lit room for a while. I saw mentioned somewhere that someone left in the sun which sounds like a very good idea especially since you can play during the day and once it gets dusk, then the glow in the dark feature probably works much better. I tried to get a good photo of the glow in the dark features of the GloWubble but my camera wasn't cooperating with me.

The kids loved this and it stood up to their abuse. I will say that they are on the younger side so I don't know how it will hold up if older kids try to sit on it. They enjoyed throwing it around and the novelty of throwing something almost their size didn't seem to grow old to them. When it was time to go inside, I was able to deflate the GloWubble and store back in the box to use again. The outside seems to have a sticky texture to it and some dirt stuck to it but I cleaned it off once it was deflated. Now that it is getting a little colder I am not sure how many more times we will get to use this but that doesn't stop them from asking me. 

Diclosure of Material Connection: This is a "sponsored post." The company who sponsored it compensated me via a gift, cash payment or something else of value to write it. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: " Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

1...2....3.....Lift Off to Fun - Wubble X Review

In our technology driven world of today, I am always looking for toys that spark imagination and play. It is certainly easier to get kids moving and active when it is nice weather but as we are coming into the colder months, finding such a thing can be a little more difficult. While on a cold and rainy day (or a day where I am cleaning), I have handed over the tablets and turned on Nickelodeon many a time, it is nice to find something fun and new for the kids to play with indoors. I was given the Wubble X to review and I think this is a great indoor fun activity for the kids for that rainy/snowy day.

First let me say that when you purchase the Wubble X, you will have to purchase a can of helium separately from the Wubble X box but the cans are located with the display and aren't that expensive. The only drawback for me is that the helium can is basically a one time use can only good for one inflation of the Wubble X not like the GloWubble that includes a battery operated pump good for inflating and deflating the GloWubble (I will post a separate review of that in a little bit). 

When you open the box, everything that you need besides the helium is included - the Wubble X, a small tube of petroleum jelly, a patch for the closure of the Wubble X, stickers to decorate your Wubble X and a handy little set of directions. The directions were pretty easy and I also went to Youtube to get a brief tutorial. At my first inflation, I was a little too helium happy and went one spray too much. Thank goodness I have low ceilings because it went straight to the top. Thus why this is an indoor toy only! I was able to grab it down and put the patch on to prevent air from slipping out and the fun began. My kids loved it! They played catch, they let the balloon (as my son called it) rest on their fingers and it was all fun and games.........until my youngest decided to squeeze the Wubble X and it popped. Totally not the Wubble's fault. They were just so excited to play ball in the house and mommy not freak out about them breaking something. The sadness was too much, so the next time I was out running errands, I headed over to Toys R Us and purchased a new Wubble X and a new can of helium.

Second inflation, I was a pro and didn't overdo it on the helium. Again, the kids loved it and enjoyed playing with it. It also gave me a chance to explain a little science to my oldest. Until...........the serial balloon popper struck again. This time I think he was trying to sit on it. But they still got a nice amount of time playing with the Wubble X and I might just include one in their stockings this holiday season.

Enjoying the customizing of the Wubble X with the stickers that were included.

 

Diclosure of Material Connection: This is a "sponsored post." The company who sponsored it compensated me via a gift, cash payment or something else of value to write it. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: " Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

Silhou...what? Silhouette Time

Recently I purchased a Silhouette Portrait machine from Silhouette America and I am in love! For those of you who may be unaware of this machine, it enables you to cut paper, card stock, vinyl, fabric, heat transfer vinyl to make the most wonderful projects. It is similar to the Cricut machines but you do not have to purchase cartridges for your machine. You simply have to download the software to your computer (which is free unless you decide to upgrade to their Designer Edition). I was super intimidated by the machine but with the help and power of YouTube, I have watched some awesome video tutorials. Granted there are some hiccups along the way (very far from a pro here) but I am excited to post some cool projects that I have been working on and will be working on......an awesome time for some homemade goodness with Mother's Day, Father's Day, Graduations and end of school teacher appreciation gifts all coming up. Stay tuned!

It's my Shark Boomius!!! (GoldieBlox Blox + Bits Expansion Pack)

So all the promos for Sharknado, Discovery Channel's Shark Week and Disney Junior Octonaut's Shark Episode have filtered into my daughter's creative brain. I decided to open the Blox and Bits from GoldieBlox. I received this from the NYC Blogger Bash Sweet Suite event in my swag box. The expansion pack is for use on it's own to make projects but also can be used with other Goldie Blox items.

She decided to make something for the sharks, she calls it her Shark Boomius! Not really sure what the Boomius does even though she mentioned it spits out cheese sticks to the sharks in the water. Who knew they liked mozzarella and colby jack??

The kids really enjoyed the kit and it kept them entertained for quite a while. Even the little one wanted to partake in the fun (the recommended ages for these toys seem to be 4-9) so I kept a close watch on him. 

It's a great little kit and although I never had one as a kid, reminiscent of what Tinker Toys seem to me. I would definitely think of adding onto the kit to make bigger objects and getting one of the story book sets. The expansion kit comes with 32 pieces (3 wheels, 8 blocks, one crank, 4 washers and 16 axels) and it gives you some ideas for things to start making.  It retails for 9.99.

The product was given to me as part of the swag but the opinions are 100 percent mine.

Thanks all!

NYC Blogger Bash Sweet Suite 2014 #SweetSuite14 #BBNYC

So excited to share the amazing box of swag from this year's Sweet Suite! Lots of amazing things and tons of great items coming to shelves this year. The event was amazing and a great opportunity to speak with various brands. I am really glad I went this year and hope to go next year as well!

So upon opening the great box, there were tons of great treats so I tried to group by categories. 

The first group was a variety of arts and crafts materials and since I have shown a few crafts on here, I thought this would be a good starting point. 

Crayola Ultra Clean Markers are first on the list for trial! The kids love markers and coloring and drawing and anything that is easy to clean gets a grade A in my book. Also excited for the Sands Alive and Blok and Bits and will give a follow up on those two items. 

The second batch of art and craft items were from Faber-Castel. I had a fun time at their booth at #SweetSuite14 and they had tons of amazing crafts and art materials. 

Those gel sticks and crayons look pretty cool and always looking for new art materials for the kids. 

There were a great bunch of games included.

I am excited to open the Bananagrams!!! It seems like a great way to build skills while playing! I also can't wait to play some of the other games as well. 

There were some items for the younger set. Who doesn't love TMNT?? And Paw Patrol is becoming a new favorite in the house too. 

For the little girls, some cute items as well

I think we might have to open that manicure kit pretty soon! 

There were lots of other great items included in the box:

Can't wait to try the Tiggly product! The people at the booth were super informative and it seems like a great product too.

And this seems like a great rainy day quick craft project. Perfect!

Thanks to all the staff at The Big Toy Book! I am looking forward to seeing some of the great products from the event like the adorable Lum Lum dolls, a cute new product that I saw at the event which should be hitting stores soon. Plus lots of cute items from Lalaloopsy, Disney, Leapfrog and Vtech for the holiday season!! 

And check out recaps from other Blogger Bash attendees:
Here's the link - /