We allow my four year old daughter on the internet.  Yes, we are right there and monitor what she is doing.  She is only playing games on Noggin or Disney Playhouse.  However, I do worry about when she gets a bit older  Did you know that:

• 41% of unwanted sexual solicitations, 29% of unwanted exposure to sexual materials, and 31% of harassment occurred when children were online with their friends. (I can believe this due to the IMs I get.  I have it listed in my profile that I married, and I still get IMs from men wants who knows what).
• Law enforcement officials estimate that more than 50,000 sexual predators are online at any given moment.
• 1 in 5 youth ages 10 to 17 received a sexual solicitation or were approached online.

These are just a few of the scary statistics out there.  I like to think that I am always going to know what my kids are doing online.  However, I know that isn’t always going to possible.  That is where GuardChild comes in.  It does exactly what you think it does.  Its all about protection, education, and community.  You are able to protect your family by blocking pornography, stopping online predators, and monitoring instant messages, blogs, chat rooms (AOL, MSN, and Yahoo) email, and even what your child is doing on MySpace.   You also are able to join the members community which will give you hundreds of articles, parent resources, educational sites, and family-friendly entertainment sites.  Lastly, there is community. Guard Child has a blog that allows you to share concerns and successes, learn from online safety experts, and contribute articles, advice, and questions.

The saying that it takes a village to raise a child is still true. Things have changed so much since I was little. I can only imagine what it will be like in a few years when Madison will be trying to hide what she is doing online from me. However, I do believe in being proactive and software like this is exactly what you need.

One of Madison’s favorite toys is the LeapFrog Leapster TV Learning System. Now, if you read the reviews on this either you love it or hate it. The biggest complaint is that the graphics stink. Well, I agree. The graphics aren’t the greatest. However, I have a 4 year old who really doesn’t care about that. She loves the playing the games, and I love that the games are educational. She is learning and doesn’t even realize it. The other part that I love is that all the Leapster games work in here. Right now, this is the only Leapster system we have. However, we have been eyeing up the handhelds ones for the long car rides to Green Bay. The fact that those same games will work in here is a huge plus for us. The system is extremely durable. Madison plays hard with all her toys and we’ve had this over a year, and she hasn’t broken it yet! Each game has multiple levels, so when you child gets better at they can still play the game.

Mia Reading is a computer game that Madison has been trying out for me. The age on it is 5-9, so she is tad young for it. That being said, we played it on the easiest setting. The first thing I was impressed with is the animation. It is highly detailed. My adult games aren’t done this well. You can control Mia by using either the keyboard or the mouse. This is good since Madison likes to use both. The goal of the level we were playing was that she had to direct Mia to find various items. Sometimes she would have to play various games to get the item. I had to help her a little. However, I did expect to have to help her a lot more than I did. She was able to locate most of the items without my help. Madison loved this game. We actually had to pry my laptop out of hands to get her to quit playing it. It completely held her attention, and I loved that it was educational. I would highly recommend this game to your little ones.

I know, I know — This isn’t a review. However, it is a very awesome contest though. Who couldn’t use a Nintendo® Wii and Charter High-Speed® for Life?

Here is the deal. If you preregister, you get your name put in a drawing for a Nintendo® Wii. You also get a Wii Stand, 5 Sports games ( Boxing, Baseball, Tennis, Golf and bowling), 1 Remote Controller, 1 Nunchuk Controller, 1 Sensor Bar, 1 Wii AC Adapter, 1 Wii AV Cable. Everything you need for a great gaming experience! Now onto the fun part of this all. Charter is auctioning off a High Speed Internet connection for life. All you have to do is being in their servicing area. They give you the connection, a cable modem, a wireless router, and professional installation. The bidding starts March 12th with the very low bid of $10. I look at it this way. Figure out what you spend a year on your internet service. Times that by ten or twenty years. As long as you are bidding less than that number, you will end up ahead and have a darn fast internet connection.

I guess to make this a review — I give Charter a two thumbs up for coming up with not only one but two great ways to win some awesome prices. Off to go preregister, what are you waiting for - Click Here for a Chance to Win a Nintendo® Wii™!?

If I would let Madison write my blog, this would top her list of favorite things for all time. If you liked Lego Star Wars, then you will love Lego Star WarsII:  The Original Trilogy. How does the Lego version differ from the regular Star Wars games? Well, they are rated E (for Everyone). They are also easier for kids to play. Also, you have unlimited lives. If your character dies, it just starts back up again. There is some humorous scenes like when you walk in on the Storm Troopers taking a bath (they have swim trucks on!) and you get to see the innerworkings of the Death Star with all its bulk cable and metal and stuff (you have to blow it up too). Bill even loves this new games. There are so many new levels and tricks you have to learn to get through it! Madison is only 4, and she can beat most adults at this game (she’ll also tell you exactly how to play it). Granted, it isn’t the most educational thing for kids. However, it makes a great reward. It keeps their attention (both kids and adults). It isn’t too hard for either age group either. It is pretty easy to figure out and is very entertaining. This is a must have for any Star Wars fan!

This is another classic children’s book to have in your library. My Little Word Book is great for both babies and toddlers. Each page is about a subject such as your body parts, toys and games, food and drink, etc. On the page, they have colorful pictures of the different items that fall under the pages title. For example, on the page titled Things That Go, there is a car, train, bus, and a truck (which doesn’t have a truck bed liner) just to name a few items on there. All the items are brightly colored. The pages are the thick cardboard type, so they are almost indestructible. Madison (my 4 year old) loves to go through the book and read it to me!

Mickey Saves Santa is one of Madison’s favorite movies. If your kids are Mickey Mouse Clubhouse fans, they will definitely love this movie. This is also a great holiday movie. Santa’s sleigh breaks down at the the top of the mountain and Mickey and friends have to go and find him. He’s not wearing horse riding apparel or reindeer riding apparel. He’s wearing his Santa apparel when they look for him. They even have Mrs. Claus help! The other great thing about this movie is that there are 2 bones features on here. The first one is the “Hot Dog” Dance along (anybody who watches Mickey Mouse Clubhouse will know what this is) and there are games on here too.

This is a great gift for kids especially if they are Mickey Mouse fans.