Since I have a toddler, I thought the Toddler Tools book line would be perfect for my house.

Listening Time is a great book for teaching your kids about how to be good listeners.  Both my eighteen month old and four year old like to read it.  It is a board book, so it can’t be destroyed either.  I love that it also helps to work on body parts too.  The illustrations in this book are great, and really get across what we want our children to do.  There is also humor intertwined into the story.  It is short enough that it definitely keeps even the shortest attention spans entertained.

Bye Bye Time is another board book that is good for those really hard times when we have to say bye to our kids.  It teaches our children how to comfort themselves when they are sad that we are leaving.  There is also advice at the end of the book parents and caregivers to make this transition easier like prepping your child and to be ready for tears.  The illustrations in this book are great too.  Madison can tell me the story without being able to read it (which is a huge plus).

Naptime is another great book in this series. Like the other books, this is board book. It also has the tips in the back of the book to help parents and caregivers with naptime.  I personally learned that Will should be getting one nap daily lasting 1 – 2 hours, and he should be getting 10 – 12 hours of sleep a night.  This book is all about a naptime routine and getting your little one down for some much needed rest.  Now, if this would only work on a 4 year old.    She likes the book; it just has not motivated her to take a nap (she quit naps at 18 months).

The last book in this series is Clean Up Time. That is something we all need at our houses.  This book rhymes, so it makes it all the more fun to clean up.  This too is a board book and also has the tips at the end to help parents and caregivers.  I personally agree with the “break it down” tip.  Will doesn’t often get overwhelmed at cleaning up; he just thinks it is a game.  However, Madison gets extremely overwhelmed if someone does not help her.  By breaking down what you are going to do (pick up the blocks first), it takes away from how huge of project it is going to be.

This Toddler Tools series is a great bunch of books.  They are books that are hard to destroy and have great lessons in them.  I highly recommend them in anyone who has a toddler in their house.

Ever hear of Olive Sandwiches? If not, you are missing some of the funniest things out there. They offer a broad line of retro-humor products for women of all ages. Seriously, there is something for everyone, and you don’t have to have a weird sense of humor like me to enjoy it (or even to find it funny).  I recently tried out two of their products (actually, at the same time too!).  First, I tried out the bath salts.  They smell good.  I also locked myself in the bathroom, so I could truly enjoy them and give an unbiased review (now, the hubby didn’t believe that, but I still locked myself in there).  You know you have a great bath salt when it makes you laugh at the packaging.  I included the image that I thought extremely funny.  For my bath, I tried out the brown sugar fig and truly enjoyed it.  While I was enjoying my bath without interruption, I also tried out some of Olive Sandwiches Chocolates.  These too have funny sayings on them like I taught Santa Everything He Knows and Visions of Sugar Daddies Danced In Her Head.  These organic chocolate bars taste awesome.  Now, you don’t have to eat them while you are in the tub like I did, but I got to enjoy some alone time with chocolate, relaxation, and humor.  Thank you Olive Sandwiches!

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.

Monty Python and The Holy Grail is a classic movie that everyone needs to see.  I still giggle uncontrollably every time I see this movie.  It is about King Arthur’s quest for the Holy Grail and all the interesting stops along that way.  He runs into obsticles like the Black Knight and the 3 headed knights who say “Ni”.  Now, you do have to understand British humor a little, but even if you don’t, it is still pretty funny.  This is one of those movies that you can quote from and watch 200 times and still enjoy it.

Bill and I had went a saw Hellboy II:  The Golden Army on Friday night.  My goal is not to give out any spoilers with this review.  If you saw Hellboy and like it, you will love Hellboy II.  However, if you thought the first one was cheesy, you’ll think this one is too.  The story is that the the mythical world starts a rebellion against humanity in order to rule the Earth.  Hellboy and his team must stop them to save us. Obviously, some of these characters are going to have wanted to buy some term insurance on their lives, since they don’t make it out alive (don’t worry, I won’t tell you who!)  The plot was good.  However, it was pretty predictible.  I had guessed the ending half way through the movie (and yes, I had guessed it right).  There were a few twists and turns that I didn’t see coming.  The special effects were awesome.  The humor was great too.  After seeing this movie though, you’ll never think of the tooth fairy the same again (okay, one little sort of spoiler).  Personally, I would have waited to see this on video. However, my husband was glad we saw it in the theater.