We recently were introduced to a new cartoon that is on CBS called Busytown Mysteries. It’s based on the characters from the works of Richard Scarry (who has sold over 150 million copies of his books over the last 40 years!).  The program is about 20 minutes long and shows 2 eleven minute stories.  The stories revolve around Huckle Cat and Lowly Worm as they solve mysteries all over town (like who knocked all the cherries out of the farmer’s tree).  These stories engage our kids and makes them question who, what, when, where, and why.  I love it when they are learning and not even realizing it!  Will (my 2 year old) wasn’t all that interested in this cartoon.  However, my 5 year old did enjoy watching it, and she enjoyed the interactive games and activities that Busytown offers online!  Online, they can interact with the characters and explore the different neighborhoods.  They can even set up an email address (we aren’t ready for that in our house quite yet!).

You can check out the tv schedule for Busytown Mysteries and see where it is playing in your area, so your kids can check it out!  Check it out and tell me what you think!

DISCLOSURE OF MATERIAL CONNECTION: http://cmp.ly/2

Didi & Ditto Preschool Mother Natural Visit was designed for the 2-4 age group.  Madison just turned 5 in January, and I have been having her play this game.  She loves it!

This is one of the few games on the market for the younger age set.  However, it is seriously geared for them.   This is one of the few games we have that Madison does not need any help playing at all.  The graphics of this are awesome.  It is like watching a cartoon while you are playing this game.  The game keeps your children completely immersed in the story.  There is  story component to this game, and they also play games.  Each last a perfect amount of time, so your child isn’t getting lost and bored with it.  Madison has one of the shortest attention spans ever, and she likes this game.  If the player guesses wrong on a question, it gives them hints and lets them keep picking until they get it right.  I found that Madison wasn’t getting frustrated at all even if she was getting the answer wrong.  She plays this game over and over, so she truly like it.

This is a great game for the younger age set.  It will hold their attention span, and they will enjoy playing it.  I highly recommend it.

Ever watch WordWorld on PBS? If so, this word magnet set makes perfect sense. If you have never seen the show, the best way I can describe it is that is a cartoon.  The characters in the this cartoon look like what they are like a bee.  However, their body spells what they are.  You can see what I mean by looking at the image on the right.  This is for kids three and up.  However, I found that my 18 month old loves it too (I just need to keep an eye on him, so he doesn’t try to eat the pieces)!  You get 7 3D word magnets, 5 flat magnets, and a 2 sided fold and go play mat.  The kids love the magnet aspect of it.  I love that this doesn’t require batteries.  It requires my kids to use their imaginations and make up stories.  I also love that it has its own carrying case, and that the magnets have their own spot in the play map.  This has been a hit in my house, and I can definitely see it being a hit in yours.

One of the movies that Madison loves is 3-2-1 Penguins! Save The Planets! This movie follows the galactic adventures of two young kids and four space-traveling penguins. They respond to distress calls from across the galaxy. While helping others, they learn life lessons and values along the way. There are 3 stories on this DVD. However, my favorite has to be the first story about the green-eyed monster. As an adult, I knew exactly what they were talking about. However, Madison (my 4 year old) didn’t. It was great story and lesson about jealousy. My one year loved the music and danced the whole time.  He often laughed too, but I am not sure if he understood what was happening or if he just laughed because we were.  The green eyed monster is a topic that I encounter daily at my house.  I love that there was humor for both adults and kids in it too.  It makes it much more enjoyable for us adults who have to watch the movie over and over and over again.  I often found myself giggling when my kids did.  I didn’t realize this was a cartoon on TV (till my husband informed me).  However, I am so impressed with the lessons that it will be a cartoon that we will continue to watch.  Here is a sneak preview of what the movie is like and about (and you will laugh at the preview I promise).  3-2-1 Penguins! Save The Planets! is a movie that should be under your tree this Christmas.

This is one of Madison’s new favorite shows. It is on Toon Disney, and I swear it is one of the weirdest cartoons I have ever seen. However, Madison absolutely adores it.  She actually goes around singing the theme song all the time for this show.

Pucca is the main character. I think she is in love with Garu, and she spends the entire cartoon chasing him around trying to kiss him. Garu is trying to become the ultimate ninja and like any boy does not want anything to do with Pucca. He spends a lot of time hiding from Pucca. Abya is Pucca’s friend. Bill calls him the Bruce Lee wannabee. He is always trying to do ninja moves, but something funny happens like his pants fall down. Ching is Pucca’s other best friend, and she walks around with a chicken on her head.  The show is basically about these friends and their adventures together (and Pucca trying to give Garu a kiss on the check).

If you want a fairly cute cartoon for your kids to watch, this is a good one.  It is cute even though mommy doesn’t really get the point of it.