In my house, the question of when is my birthday is asked often — usually weekly.  Madison is dying to turn 5 years old.  I am not sure what she thinks happens when  you turn five, but she can’t wait.  The book When Is My Birthday? comes in handy after being asked that question a hundred times in one day.  The book starts off with Elmo helping his mom get ready for Daisy’s, Elmo’s sister’s, birthday party.  Elmo gets jealous and wants it to be his birthday too.  He finds himself jealous that daisy got a toy truck (now, as a grown up I’d be jealous of some new modern furniture).  However, we find out at the end of the book that Elmo’s birthday is close by, so he doesn’t have to wait for long for his turn.  Daisy also shares it with him too while he waits.  I find that this book helps Madison, somewhat, with patience and sharing.  Plus, kids always enjoy reading about parties, presents, and cake.  When Is My Birthday? is a great book for impatient little ones waiting for their birthdays.

Don’t let the really long title of Pooh’s Early-To-Bed and Early-to-Rise Hum scare you away.  This short little book is a cute poem about Winnie the Pooh.  It is made of cardboard, so your little ones really can’t wreck it.  You get to see how Pooh spends his day (though I hope he doesn’t get Plantar Fasciitis from all the walking he does!). It is short, so even little attention span children will enjoy it (and easily memorize it). Each page has a picture and part of the rhyming poem. This is definitely a cute little book for the little ones in your life.

This Sony DSLR camera is my first “real” camera. This is definitely not a point and shoot camera. However, this another camera that you don’t need to read the book to figure out how to use it.  You also don’t have to contact a few mortgage lenders to be able to afford it either!  You will find that the majority of my pictures on Lisa Cooking are done with this camera.  My inlaws also took it to Hawaii with them on their vacation.

Some of the highlights of this camera include 10.2-megapixel Super HAD CCD which gives you clear, sharp photos, Live Preview of your subject, Tiltable 2.7-inch Clear Photo LCD Plus screen, Continuous shooting while viewing, Smart teleconverter 2x zoom, Expanded ISO sensitivity, Super SteadyShot in-camera image stabilization, Bionz image processor, 1200-zone evaluative metering, Dynamic Range Optimizer, Anti-Dust technology, Auto Pop-up flash, Eye-Start autofocus system, 9-point center cross AF sensor, Scene Selection modes: Portrait, Landscape, Macro, Sports, Sunset and Night Portrait/Night View situations, Creative Style Settings including Standard, Vivid, Portrait, Landscape, Night View, Sunset, B&W and Adobe RGB modes, Index and Slide Show Display, High-resolution thumbnails for PhotoTV HD viewing, Function Guide Display On-screen menus are intuitive and easy to use, Stamina Battery Power, and High-capacity media options.

In plain English, you’ll take some of the best pictures of your life with this DSLR camera.  The picture to the left here was taken the same day I got the camera.  If I could figure out how to use the DSLR in one day, anybody can use this camera!

If you haven’t seen Wall-E yet, what are you waiting for?  Yes, this movie is that good.  I highly recommend running out and seeing it as soon as you get a chance.

Wall E is about the earth in the future.  It has been abandoned due to us not taking care of it.  There are mounds of garbage (everything from refrigerators to wine racks) the size of skyscrapers.  Wall-E is a garbage collecting robot that is there to clean up the mess.  One day, Eve (another robot but one looking for life) shows up.  Wall-E is in love.  Without giving too much away, they go back to the ship where the humans are now living to let them know it is time to come home.

Now, half of the movie has no dialogue, and it is still that good.  They are definitely able to still get their point across, and we get to watch Wall-E and Eve fall in love.  It really makes you think about becoming more enviromentally friendly and making sure that there is even an Earth to hand down to our kids and grandkids.  Madison has been talking like Wall-E for a week now, so it is hit with the 4 year old year too!