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.

Are your kids a fan of the movie Cars? If so, World Of Cars is a must have book in your house. This book tells you the back story of all the cars in the movie Cars. The illustrations are awesome and just like the movie, so they pull your kids right in. The stories are very engaging.  If you were ever wondering how Mater lost his hood, this book will tell you!  There is even a map showing  Guido and Luigi’s crazy road trip across the United States!  The stories are broken down into five chapters, so you can easily read one a night for a bedtime story.  This book makes a great accompaniment to the movie, and I highly recommend it.

With the new Tinkerbell movie that has come out, fairies are now very popular again. Madison’s room is actually Tinkerbell themed, so we are all about fairies here. This is one of the most unique books out there. It is written along the lines of it being a journal rather than a book. This isn’t Tinkerbell’s journal either — this is Wendy’s.  This is about Wendy’s journey to Pixie Hollow (which is where the fairies live).   On one page of the journal, there is a popout that is the map of Pixie Hollow.  Throughout the journal, we get to learn about all different kinds of fairies, and we also learn that each fairy has a different kind of magic.  Almost every page has something for the reader to do.  The Hidden World Of Fairies is a book that is great for any little (or even older) girl who likes fairies.

Over the past week or so, I have been reading an awesome book called The Secret of Wellington’s Map.  Granted, this isn’t my normal reading genre (usually if I can get a few minutes away I pick up Stephen King or Dean R Koontz book), but you know what?  I enjoyed this book just as much as I do books by those authors (though I think this book would be considered in either the sci-fi or mystery genre).  I would say that The Secret of Wellington’s Map is probably geared towards the ten and up crowd.  However, as an adult, I truly enjoyed the book too.  I found the author’s style a joy to read, and she really caught the essence of teenage girls in this book.  I also enjoyed finding a book that girls are the heroines.  The other thing I liked is that even though the main characters are teenage girls, they weren’t boy crazy.  Granted, there were a few boy mentions, but their lives didn’t revolve around boys.  The author had the girls talking, acting, and dressing like teenage girls, so I found them very believable.  There is also a bit of real life history intertwined into the story.

The story centers around two girls, Jaime and Nicole, that had expected a carefree summer.  However, after they come across a magic map, they go on an adventure of a lifetime.  I hate to go into more of a synopsis of the book, because I don’t want to spoil any part of it for you.  I will tell you that the map is somewhat of a time space portal, and they do go through it and end up in 1885.  However, if you want to find out why and if they make it back, you have to go read the book!

Madison wanted these, so we got them. To be honest, they taste exactly the same as the regular Spaghetti O’s (the price was the same so I was willing to try them). However, I have to admit was I was impressed with the shapes. I figured they would have Dora and that was it. Instead, they have Dora, Boots, Backpack, Map, Star, and Swiper. The shapes even look like the characters. Madison loves them, so I give them 2 thumbs too.