Years ago, my oldest children were young and very much in love with a series called Auto-B-Good. I had kind of forgotten about that until I was recently contacted and asked if I would like to review an Auto-B-Good video.

This series has won 5 Emmy awards and personally I love not only the stories but the characters and graphics as well. Teaching character development to children ages 5-9 your children will love these videos.

Be sure to visit their website for more information about the show, episodes and to purchase dvd’s. I love having these on hand to entertain the kids because they are in shorter segments but I can play them anytime.

Giveaway

One lucky reader will win their very own copy of Auto-B-Good: Shifting to High Gear! To enter, please visit their website and look around. When you’re done come back here and leave a comment telling me what you like most about the series.

Want extra entries (of course I do that!)? Here’s what you do, just make sure you leave a NEW comment for each new entry!

• Become a Facebook Fan of A Frog In My Soup!!!
• Tweet It: Just tweet this giveaway with a link to this post and make sure your comment has your twitter handle in it.
• Blog It: Write a post about this giveaway (with a link to this post of course) on your own blog, make sure your comment has a link to your post.
• Stumble It, Kirtsy It, Digg It, Submit to Mommy Blips: Submit this giveaway to any of these sites and earn an extra entry for each one…and make sure your comment has your Username.

It is void where prohibited, be sure to read my giveaway policies here.  Be sure to enter by July 6th, 2010.  This giveaway is open to US addresses only.

Disclosure: I always give honest and forthright reviews and will not present something that poses a conflict of interest &/or that I do not like.  A copy of Auto-B-Good was sent to me in order for me to offer you with an honest review of their product. You can read my full disclosure policy here.

Earlier this week I wrote about the different summer activities I have in mind. Of course, as any mom knows, going on any day-long expedition with kids means that food must be part of the plan or you will have very grumpy kids.

Buying food while out and about may be an option for some, but not only do I find it terribly expensive (two tweens and a teen who eat a ton aren’t cheap to feed), but I also find it to be quite inconvenient. So packing up the troops with great food for lunch and snacks is a must.

Costco and I are great friends through the summer in particular! So when I was sent a summer snack pack with Fruit Rollups and Nature Valley granola bars I was very excited (though they didn’t last long at all around here).

Nature Valley Chewy Trail Mix Bars are filling and nutritious and in my boys’ opinion (well ok and mine) very yummy. Packed with almonds, peanuts, raisins and cranberries these will stick with kids and their activities.

Simply Fruit Roll-Ups come in a variety pack of strawberry and wildberry flavors. Made with 90% real fruit and fruit juice, your kids are getting a full serving of fruit with each roll-up. They are also gluten-free.

Personally though I wouldn’t stop there! Because those two options are a little higher in the sugar content department, I’d definitely stock up on drinks (horizon organic chocolate milk, yum), crackers, fresh fruits and veggies, homemade trail mix and much more to make sure that I’m not caught empty handed when the hungries strike one of the boys and we’re at the zoo.

Giveaway

I am so very excited to offer one lucky reader the same snack pack I received which includes 1 box of Simply Fruit Roll-Ups (42 ct), 1 box of Nature Valley Chewy Trail Mix Bars (48 ct) and a $25 Costco gift card.

To enter, simply leave a comment below telling me all about your favorite snack foods to pack when your family goes on a day-long adventure.

Want extra entries (of course I do that!)? Here’s what you do, just make sure you leave a NEW comment for each new entry!

• Become a Facebook Fan of A Frog In My Soup!!!
• Tweet It: Just tweet this giveaway with a link to this post and make sure your comment has your twitter handle in it.
• Blog It: Write a post about this giveaway (with a link to this post of course) on your own blog, make sure your comment has a link to your post.
• Stumble It, Kirtsy It, Digg It, Submit to Mommy Blips: Submit this giveaway to any of these sites and earn an extra entry for each one…and make sure your comment has your Username.

It is void where prohibited, be sure to read my giveaway policies here.  Be sure to enter by July 6th, 2010.  This giveaway is open to US addresses only.

Disclosure: I always give honest and forthright reviews and will not present something that poses a conflict of interest &/or that I do not like.  MyBlogSpark contacted me on behalf of General Mills and asked me to review the items listed in the review…these were provided to me in order for me to offer you with an honest review of their product. You can read my full disclosure policy here.

Celebrity chef Tyler Florence created Sprout Baby Food, the leading organic gourmet baby food now available on the market.  Reminding us that healthy eating needs to continue as babies begin to try solid foods, delicious combinations of healthy food is what you will find in Sprout.

Available in three stages to grow with your baby, you’ll find yummy combinations such as Roasted Bananas, Sweet Peas & Garden Green Beans, Roasted Pears & Apricots, Sweet Baby Carrots and Sweet Potato and many more.

My niece got to try out a few samples of Sprout Organic Baby food and my sister was very impressed not only with the fact that it’s organic, but with the packaging itself, “I love that I can seal it and throw it in the bag not worrying about it spilling all over.”

The packaging is very unique, definitely not your average baby food….

Complementing Sprout’s high quality organic recipes is the Company’s dedication to serving its gourmet baby food in the Company’s proprietary ecologically packaged, re-sealable pouches. Not only are the pouches eco-friendly and convenient to use, they also deliver Sprout’s organic baby food in a revolutionary manner that maintains superior taste and nutrition when compared to traditional glass jar baby food packaging techniques.

Sprout Baby Food also provides added assurance with your baby’s nutrition and development by providing a recipe growth chart, guiding parents on what meals to feed their child until they are toddlers. In addition to being available online, Sprout Organic Baby Food’s 18 highly nutritious “farm-to-pouch” recipes are also available at retail locations across the country.

You can purchase Sprout Baby Food at Whole Foods, Publix, Kroger, United Supermarkets, Raley’s and many other locations. If you are looking for a discount, you can shop at Amazon.com or Diapers.com.

Disclosure: I always give honest and forthright reviews and will not present something that poses a conflict of interest &/or that I do not like.  I received sample pouches of Sprout Baby Food that my niece tried out…these were provided to me in order for me to offer you with an honest review of their product. You can read my full disclosure policy here.

For the first time in 7 years Sarah McLauchlan has just released a brand new album called Laws of Illusion. It’s available today and I can tell you it is beautiful. She is one of my favorite artists and I even have a Sarah McLauchlan “station” on my Pandora app and account.

Her music is soothing, meaningful and simply beautiful… as is her voice. So I was so excited to participate in this project and get my hands on a CD right before the release. Click on the continue reading link to see a video of one of the songs, if you love it make sure you grab a copy of the CD at a local retailer. (more…)

Crystal Light has recently come out with a great new product that we love!  When I was told that Crystal Light Pure Fitness was sweetened with Stevia which is a natural sweetener I was very excited to give it a try.

Crystal Light has been around for a long time, but usually products like it use Splenda or other artificial sweeteners in them to keep the calories down.  Artificial sweeteners and I don’t get along, there are several reasons I say this but suffice it to say that I simply avoid them now.

Crystal Light is the first nationally-available, low-calorie fitness beverage mix with no artificial flavors, preservatives or sweeteners and it is colored with natural ingredients. I love that it only has 15 calories per serving, and that it’s sweetened with evaporated cane juice and TruviaTM (an all-natural, calorie-free sweetener derived from the stevia plant), and it’s colored and flavored with natural ingredients.

Pure Fitness also contains electrolytes to aid hydration during light physical activity, making it a great fitness partner. Each packet will transform a 16.9-ounce bottle or cup of water into a light, refreshing beverage in any one of three flavors – Lemon Lime, Strawberry Kiwi or Grape.

The very best part in my opinion is not only that it tastes good, but that it mixes perfectly in water. No more clumpy powder in your drink!!! yay!

So next time you’re in the grocery store, stop by and give it a try. Strawberry Kiwi was my favorite, but the others were very good as well. Enjoy!

Disclosure: I always give honest and forthright reviews and will not present something that poses a conflict of interest &/or that I do not like.  Kraft Foods sent me a sample of Crystal Light Pure Fitness and asked me to review the items listed in the review…these were provided to me in order for me to offer you with an honest review of their product. You can read my full disclosure policy here.

When going certain places with our children I have certainly found myself wondering what we would do if they got separated from us.  Sure we teach our children what to do if they don’t know where we are but that can still be very scary for them and for us.

With our twins we have especially found this to be a problem. They are adventurous and curious wanderers that aren’t afraid of …well pretty much anything. So, when I was asked to try out SafetyTat and their temporary kids’ safety tattoos I was definitely interested.

At first, I understand the idea may seem potentially unsafe, but I highly recommend that you visit their site, particularly the Safety Tips page and read up about them, their products and how they keep your kids safe.  The two most important things I’d like to say about the safety of these tattoos are…

1. You do not put the child’s name on the tattoo…only your cell number (using a permanent pen that is safe for your child).
2. They offer tips on teaching your children about safety in a way they will understand.

In a nutshell that should help relieve the initial hesitation about this product! It did for me. They were even mentioned in Parents magazine.

So now, when we go to the Science center, the zoo, the water park and the fair we have just a tiny bit more reassurance that if we become separated it will not be for long.

SafetyTat has offered all of you a 10% discount on any order $15 or more to try out their products! Just be sure to use the code AFrogInMySoup (case sensitive) and it’s good through May 17th so be sure to take advantage of this offer!

They have also offered 2 of you the opportunity to win a sample pack of their Quick Stick Write-On! You choose: Boy, Girl, or Multi design pack.

To enter:

Make sure you visit SafetyTat and look around. When you’re done, come back here and leave a comment telling me what you love about this product and/or which product you want if you win.

Want extra entries (of course I do that!)? Here’s what you do, just make sure you leave a NEW comment for each new entry!

• Become a Facebook Fan of A Frog In My Soup!!!
• Tweet It: Just tweet this giveaway with a link to this post and make sure your comment has your twitter handle in it.
• Blog It: Write a post about this giveaway (with a link to this post of course) on your own blog, make sure your comment has a link to your post.
• Stumble It, Kirtsy It, Digg It, Submit to Mommy Blips: Submit this giveaway to any of these sites and earn an extra entry for each one…and make sure your comment has your Username.

It is void where prohibited, be sure to read my giveaway policies here.  Be sure to enter by May 19th, 2010.  This giveaway is open to US addresses only.

Disclosure: I always give honest and forthright reviews and will not present something that poses a conflict of interest &/or that I do not like.  SafetyTat contacted me and asked me to review a complimentary sample pack in order to provide you with an honest review of their product. You can read my full disclosure policy here.

When I was contacted about Tea, I have to admit I thought they were offering me tea to review. I was pleasantly surprised when I learned that Tea offers very fun collections of children’s clothes and baby clothes.

I love that they offer complete matching clothing sets for boys and girls! I ordered the very fun Chin-Hae set for the twins and they LOVE it!

Finding very cute and affordable clothes for boys has been a challenge ever since I had my first son.  So I was delighted that the sets (especially when on sale) are particularly fun and affordable.

These clothes are cute, trendy, affordable and durable. They are also super comfy!!! I think that’s what the twins love most about them. Soft tagless fabric with fun prints was so appealing to us all.

Oh and never fear their girls’ line is adorable as well! You aren’t going to find ordinary clothes here, they are unique botique style clothing for what Tea calls “little citizens of the world”. So cute.

Tea is offering one of you a $100 credit to go shopping through them (credit code must be redeemed by phone, but don’t worry the process is extremely simple – I know first hand because I did it myself!). I know…how fun is that?!?

So, to enter, visit their site and tell me what you would purchase if you won this $100! Want extra entries (of course we do that!)? Here’s what you do, just make sure you leave a NEW comment for each new entry!

• Become a Facebook Fan of A Frog In My Soup!!!
• Tweet It: Just tweet this giveaway with a link to this post and make sure your comment has your twitter handle in it.
• Blog It: Write a post about this giveaway (with a link to this post of course) on your own blog, make sure your comment has a link to your post.
• Stumble It, Kirtsy It, Digg It, Submit to Mommy Blips: Submit this giveaway to any of these sites and earn an extra entry for each one…and make sure your comment has your Username.

It is void where prohibited, be sure to read my giveaway policies here.  Be sure to enter by May 13th, 2010.  This giveaway is open to US addresses only.

Disclosure: I always give honest and forthright reviews and will not present something that poses a conflict of interest &/or that I do not like.  Tea Collection provided me with a $100 code to shop at their store.  You can read my full disclosure policy here.

Finding toys that aren’t going to end up in next week’s trip to Goodwill, because the children are tired of them can be a bit of a challenge sometimes.  So when I found out about Growing Tree Toys and their educational toys that inspire creativity, imagination, learning and fun I definitely wanted to give them a try.

We received the Transparent Marble Run and the twins couldn’t wait to get it out of the box and set it up.  It was a little difficult to keep them occupied elsewhere, or for them to be patient while I assembled it and in order for the marbles to go the right way you do have to spend a bit of time making sure that each part is setup in the right direction.

That aside though, once it was assembled the twins loved it and spent quite a bit of time playing with it. I have to  admit I enjoyed playing it with them.  The time spent to assemble the toy also was fine with me because it offers many different ways to assemble the run for even more fun.

I also love that they have toys for a wide variety of age groups and even some that my children from 4 to 11 and maybe even the 14 year old could have dun playing together. This is quite a feat since their interests and age groups vary so much.

Oh and one last thing before I send you off to visit them…I really appreciate their prices. They are actually affordable and make amazing gifts!  Ok, now you can go…have fun!

Disclosure: I always provide my honest opinion on the products I present to you at A Frog In My Soup.  Growing Tree Toys sent me a complimentary Transparent Marble Run for my family to try out. You can see my full policy here.

In an effort to make my home as chemical free as possible, I’ve continued to be a little frustrated as I look for just the right products to help me do this.  Often, even if I find a product that’s less harmful for my family and the environment I still worry about the chemicals that it contains.

Then there’s the deep down yuck that accumulates, especially places like the kitchen and bathroom and finding a product that works quickly and effectively poses yet another problem if I don’t want chemicals involved.

So, when I attended the EuroPro event in Sept. and was introduced to the Shark Steam Pocket Mop I was thrilled. Not only is it small and portable, but it uses steam from water only to completely clean and sanitize your home.  Comes with a variety of tools, extensions and cleaning pads (that are reusable, just pop them in the washer) to cover any cleaning project.

It’s such a simple concept but offers us so many more options without the potential for harming any of your family.  What a great product!  Check out www.SharkClean.com for all the details about this product.  It makes a perfect gift for almost any occasion (birthday, Christmas, wedding) or if you’re tired of wasting money on all those products and just want to purchase something that will last, this is the product for that.

If you need a full size vacuum with all the features of the super expensive ones but at a more reasonable price, make sure you check out the Shark Navigator.  Yes, yet another vacuum from Shark’s amazing line of vacuums, we couldn’t be happier with ours.  Sure that cordless and ultra-lite are nice too but sometimes large rooms and big messes require more out of a vacuum.

Here’s some of the great features….

• Provides high level of agility without sacrificing power. Less than 15 pound weight allows for easy lifting and swift maneuverability.
• Infinity Technology with 21 cyclones traps dust and dirt so the Navigator never loses suction.
• Two power settings offer deep carpet and superior bare floor cleaning.
• Lifetime filter traps dirt in the large bagless no-touch dust cup.
• Accessories include: Pet Hair Power Brush, crevice tool, extra 24” crevice tool, dusting brush and cleaning wand.
• Pet Hair Power Brush easily picks up pet hair from upholstery.
• Navigator features ergonomic grip for comfortable hand position.
• Features 30-foot-long power cord and the Super Stretch Hose with 12-foot cleaning reach.
• Purchase includes 5-year warranty.

This vacuum really does the job and it’s easy to maneuver which is a user friendly feature I love!  Suggested retail price is only $199.  Available at Bed Bath & Beyond and online at www.sharkclean.com. Find us on Twitter at @SharkCleaning or check out our Shark Cleaning Facebook page.

Disclosure: I received a Shark Navigator in order to present my honest opinion of the product, you can find my full disclosure policy here.