eeBoo’s website promises to offer only “ beautiful, useful and well-made gifts for children”, and uses only the original art work of well- known, well- loved children’s book illustrators to create vibrant and original toys and gifts.”  I’m very excited about the wonderful products they have to offer, and I would like to share with you a few of my favorites.

eeBoo Spanish Bingo: A fun way to expose children as young as three to another language!

eeBoo Good Manner Flash Cards: Well, we could probably all use some of these.

eeBoo Fairies Of The Field Lacing Cards: Oppenheim Gold Award Winner, this is an old fashioned toy that has been updated with gorgeous illustrations and is a simple way to teach hand eye coordination to youngsters.

eeBoo Castle Sketchbook: For the princess in your life.

eeBoo Santa’s Flight Advent Calendar: It’s never too early to start shopping for Christmas.

eeBoo Poet and Astronomer Paper Doll Set: You can be anything you want to be.

I could go on and on, but you’ll just have to check out PriceGrabber for their extensive collection of fabulous eeBoo products.  Wrap one of these lovely items up in some pretty tissue or even some recycled newspaper and you will be giving the gift of creativity, knowledge and fun, all in one beautiful package.

I am just getting around to developing my pictures and assembling some sort of album for my son to remember this year’s family vacation. It seems like months ago we played and strolled on the boardwalk, yet it was only a few short weeks ago.

Memories that were so fresh in our minds are starting to fade as the summer months fly by. I found this Travel Notebook by eeBoo and thought this was a neat thing to take along on our next vacation. This 128-page book is designed to let kids create their own special account of their travels.   After your day’s activities, ask your child to write or sketch what they saw that was interesting or fun for them in the daily log. Or encourage them to send a note to their favorite friend or relative on the stationary that is included.

Be sure and check the itinerary for the next day’s plans.  Even a packing list comes with, so they can make sure they have everything they brought with them (we hope) before they depart.  Attach some of your favorite vacation photos to the journal pages once you’re home, and they have a scrapbook to show off to their friends!

This is an excellent way to teach organizational skills to children, and it offers a really great reward at the end.

Also from eeBoo, Scientific Notebook for the outdoor adventurer!

Going on a family vacation is a much-anticipated event for everyone .The car is packed the kids are buckled in and off they go.

Since I personally experienced this situation a few weeks ago, I thought I would share with you a game we played to entertain our own kids on our way to the beach. The version we played was a little less sophisticated than the one I am presenting since all we did was call out the capitals of each state and then dispute over who answered first, which one of us was right and who had the most points (My son the scorekeeper gave them all to his beloved cousin!)

Fast Track Learning U.S. State And Capitals by Learning Resources has a lot more to offer and I think I’ll pick this up for next year’s trip. This terrific game offers a map to let you know if you have answered the question correctly, (Important!) and self-checking activity cards as well as fun facts about the people, places and geography of each state.

The set contains over 100 laminated cards (I love this as you can take them to the beach with no fear of them getting ruined!) designed to test a kid’s state knowledge and   presented in a way that’s and fun and easy to play. Since my child has not yet been taught this in school, I was pleased he was introduced to something he will most likely be learning in the near future.

An educational toy that’s enjoyable for all ages and can be played just about anywhere.

That sounds good to me. (Tuck these in to your Beach Towel In A Bag )

There are some things in my house that are not negotiable.  One of these includes my son wearing a helmet while riding a bicycle – it’s non-negotiable!

Too bad my son can’t ride a bike yet. But he is perfectly willing to put on a helmet as he attempts to maneuver his two-wheeler (still with training wheels) around the driveway.

This request gets a bit trickier as they grow up.  According to the The Consumer Product Safety Commission, cyclist’s ages five through fourteen have the highest injury rate of all riders and approximately one third of injuries are head related.  In a survey conducted by this commission, most kids reported they did not like to wear a helmet because of the way they looked in it.  (“Nerdy” was one of the objections))

Today, there are so many styles to choose from you are sure to find one your child or teen will wear. My 16-year-old nephew is a serious cyclist and the one he currently wears is the Giro Saros Livestrong Bike Helmet. It boasts a 4-fit system so even little kids can wear it, and twenty-three air vents to keep heads cool and dry. This helmet offers the ultimate protection for their head with its added roll cage protection.  Best of all, the cool black and yellow design reminds everyone they’re sporting the same one the champion wears.

It’s excellent for scooter riding, too. (Razor Pro Model Scooter)

To use or not to use?  That answer is a tricky one.

When I was a child, it wasn’t even a question.  Every well-equipped parent bought a playpen (as they were called in those days) and that was where you went with a cup full of cereal while mommy talked on the phone.  And it was not a bad thing, and we survived.

Many parents choose not to utilize the playpen anymore for various reasons. I used one when my son was an infant. Some of my friends used one longer.  If you do plan to use a play yard  for a short or a long time, The Combi Play Yard Jazz Deluxe looks like a winner.

My favorite thing about this playpen is that it is on wheels! (They lock into place for safety.) How great to be able to take your napping baby in to the kitchen with you if need be, or even outside without disturbing him. An idea that is long overdue in playpen design.

Soft padding and portable mattress are standard, but this deluxe model also includes a diaper changer, (not an actual person) removable bassinet, soft music and a vibration unit. It folds for easy storage too. Ahhhhh, our mothers’ dream!

Though finally seeing a little break in the cold and snowy weather makes us all want to cheer, Spring has it’s own issues.

Yes, of course, I love Spring. I love the daffodils sprouting out, I love the fact that we can finally go outside without wearing layers and layers of clothes. I like the promise of summer.

The rain, however, I can do without. I’ve never been a rain lover, but since becoming a mother I am even less fond of it. You see, while bundling up kids in winter wear is a chore, at least you know they are being kept warm and dry…or at least you can bundle them up enough to ensure that happening.

On the other hand, rain just seems to creep into every nook and cranny that you inadvertently leave open. That’s why I like this stroller rain cover….for a double stroller.

It’s hard enough to get two kids out the door, this makes it easier to keep them dry! If you’ve ever used a stroller rain cover, you know how great they really are – like wrapping your child in a plastic bubble. With an unwieldy double stroller, no matter how proficient you are, having a way to keep out the rain and the inevitable splashes from puddles is a lifesaver on rainy days.

Every kid should have a map. Actually, I believe that every kid should have several maps and a globe, perhaps a map puzzle and a place mat. As you can see, I think the world (ha!) of maps!

Since I’ve found that just having things around me helps me to remember them, I find maps a great way to introduce a child to the greater world. Our house is filled with them. And every time we mention grandma in another country or our old friend in another state, my son walks over to the wall and looks for the place about which we are talking.

Maps help a child understand from where penguins come and from where his or her family emoigrated. It helps him understand where exactly that war we are fighting is taking place and where Santa is supposed to live. It helps her to follow the trail to the Little House in The Big Woods and helps her figure out where the space shuttle lands.

Maps are easy to hang – a bit of tape will do to display this US Map and the compact size means an empty wall in a child’s room or in the hallway will do just fine.

“Now this is cool.” I said when I saw this item on our PriceGrabber site. We travel by plane quite a bit to see far flung relatives and friends. And each time me travel the question comes up, “What should we do about the stroller?”

Rather than drag our big, full featured stroller with us we’ve tended toward taking a cheap travel stroller, of the under $20 dollars variety, which we won’t feel too bad about ditching along the way if it becomes too cumbersome. Or we call ahead to our hosts and ask them about borrowing a stroller for our visit. Of course loving grandparents and close relatives take that as a call to rush out and buy a stroller for us. As a result we have strollers dribbled across several states and two continents.

This handy stroller bag, though just might solve our problem! This convertible carrying case lets you pack your stroller with wheels exposed and roll it through the miles of airport corridors that seem to extend forever on the way to your plane. You can then pop off the wheels for check in or, since I’m not mechanically inclined, repack the stroller in its entirety in the case.

Padded and made from durable travel ready fabric, this is sure to make many a parent’s life easier!