If you have little ones in your house, check out Baby Rodenburg. This DVD teaches you child sign language, A-B-C’s, numbers, colors, and animals.  The DVD was a huge hit here.  Madison (my 4 year old) is learning sign language in preschool, so she loved the reinforcement.  My son who is 15 months loved it due to the music and seeing other babies.  I am not sure if he really “understood” any of the sign language.  Mom like it, because I got to actually learn some sign language (like how to sign eat) that is actually quite useful at my house.

My only complaint about the DVD is that it seems a bit disorganized at times.  I wish they correlated the signing to whichever letter they were on.  Meaning, when they did the sign for eat, I think they should have been talking about the letter E.  That being said, they really reinforced each sign and what it means using several different ways.  As each thing was signed, Madison often repeated the sign several times and repeated the word that went with the sign.  Will danced with the music and pointed to the screen and said “seeeeeee” every time an animal, baby, or toddler was on.

This DVD was created by a set of parents who couldn’t find any DVDs out there that fit their needs for their child.  Instead of complaining, they made their own DVD to use with their own child and to share with the rest of us!

The CareBears Dance ‘n Play Piano has been a huge hit in my house with both my kids. Madison (my four year old) doesn’t play with it too much anymore, but my 15 month old still enjoys it. The piano plays three different songs, and has different settings. It also lights up when you press the keys, and the Care Bears dance which makes my son laugh. It is a tad on the loud side, so you may want to check your health insurance and have your hearing checked if you think its quiet. :)  If you want a great introduction to music for your little one, this is a great toy for that.

As you all know, I love reviewing kids books and kids toys on here.  With having a 4 year old and a 1 year old, I have great product testers, and I really get to see how products hold up.  That being said, at my house, we have been playing with the Nana Star books and plushies, and we have a winner at my house.

Before I go to far into the books, I need to give you a little background on how Nana Star came about (and I got a little teary-eyed myself when I found this all out).  The authors of this series of books are Elizabeth Sills and Elena Patrice.  The illustrator is Linda Saker.  The original creator of Nana Star is Elizabeth Owens (Elizabeth and Elena’s grandmother and Linda’s mother).  She had a grandson named Vance  that she made up Moonman and Nana Star for.  When he moved away, she often sent him hand made cards with her characters, so he always knew she was with him.  Unfortunately, Vance now “dances with the stars“, but she has allowed us into her fantasy world, so our children can have that sense of belonging too.

The first thing I have to do is warn you. You need to read the Nana Star book first. Trust me, it all makes more sense if you do (**blush** won’t tell you how I figured that out). This is a truly entertaining book. Not only can I read it to my kids, there is a CD that comes with it.  When you listen to the CD, make sure you get comfortable.  They have really awesome background music behind the narrator.  There is also an additional song on there.  Madison was singing along after the first time listening to the songs.

The other really cool thing that they do with these books is that they have a Nana Star’s Little Twinkles Club.  On purpose, they have a spellling mistake in the book.  You are able to write them and tell them what the mistake was, and you can then join the Twinkles Club!  This is such a cute idea to engage their little readers.

The second book we read and listened to was Nana Star and the Moonman. Now, in the first book, we learned that a little star fell out of the sky was looking for her Nana. Now, the second book is the start of the journey the little girl (Nana Star) takes to help the little star get home. I truly can see this being an awesome series of books. As an adult, I’m wondering what happens next.  The other nice thing is that the CDs that come with the books are held by a pocket that is attached to the book.  You don’t have to worry about losing the CDs.

Now, I highly recommend these books.  Madison was engaged with them.  The thing I noticed and loved about the books themselves (besides the CD pocket) was that the paper is a thicker paper.  It does not rip easily which is a huge problem normally in my house.  You also get a bookmark with each book.  Amazingly, we don’t actually own any bookmarks, so it is a welcome addition in our house.  I also like that I am not the only one who thinks these products are great.  They have gotten numerous awards including Mr. Dad Seal of Approval and Great Dad Recommends Awards, Nominated by Mom’s Choice Award® for Most Inspirational Story, and iParenting Media Award for Excellent Products of 2007.

Not only did we try out the books, we even had some fun with the plushies that they offer.  Now, I’ll be honest, I didn’t quite know what to expect.  I really am not good with measurements and figuring out how big things really are.  However, this Moonman was quite a bit larger than I expected!

Now, if you push on Moonman’s belly, his head lights up and it plays a lullaby (which you can kinda tell with my picture of Will and Moonman).  Will likes walking around with him (and let me add that is kissing him not biting him in the second picture!).

Now, this Nana Star plushy is a huge hit with both kids.  Its cute, easy to carry, and even has bloomers on under the skirt (yes, I checked).  Madison immediately made the connection between the doll and the books.  She talks about Nana Star quite often now.  You can also tell that this is not a small doll either.

If you need a great children’s gift, this is the way to go.  The books are for 3-7 years olds and they have such a postivie message.  In some of the books to come, they will learn about good manners and courtesy, friendship and fun, and giving and sharing just to name a few.  Now, if you’d like to win a copy of these books and plushies for yourself, they are running an awesome contest.  All you need to do is comment on their Got Lemons post and tell a story about how you turned lemons into lemonade.  The best story they get by July 7th will win you a copy of the books and they will also donate a copy of the books to your favorite school, childcare center, library, children’s hospital, or doctor’s office.  How awesome is that?

If you need a keyboard for you kids to play with, this is definitely right up your alley. Last Christmas, my mom was trying to find a keyboard that wasn’t too old for her (which most on the market are). She found this one at Target. As you can tell from the picture, it is super cute. It is also age appropriate. Madison isn’t ready for things like gold chains or dress up clothes (well, she doesn’t have much interest in the later).  The cool thing is that Will likes to play with this and I have even caught my husband messing with it.

There are 20 songs that you can play along to, 4 instrumental sounds, and even Meow! sounds!  It also has a record feature, so they can record their own compositions.  They are able to control the beat, volume, and tempo of the music quite easily too.  It has an auto-off function.  The keyboard starts purring when it is about to shut itself off.   There are sing alongs and 7 cat songs.

All in all, this keyboard is a cute and a great buy.  Your kids will get a ton of playing time with it.  (It is also extremely hardy since Will pulls it off the couch all the time and I have caught Madison standing on it, and it still works!)

Another toy that you must get if you have kids is the Laugh & Learn: Learning Home. This came out several years ago, but is a huge hit at my house. There is just so much to play on with this! The door open and shuts and allows your children to crawl through it. The light turns on and off. There is a mail box slot and the flower spins. The window opens and closes. Up on top, you can turn the thing with the moon on it, so it shows the sun. Of course, there is a corresponding noise with all these actions. On the other side (which this picture doesn’t show), there is a little mini radio for the kids to play with. It has 4 stations and the kids can hit that and hear just music or it singing the ABCs to them. I don’t know how this all works (maybe HDMI switches?) However, the kids love it, so it doesn’t matter. At this point at ten months, Will is really not sure what to do with this. He does play with it a little. Madison, however, is in seventh heaven. I don’t think she remembers playing with it, and she played with it a lot. At 4, she is enjoying this.

This is one of the more pricier toys to get your kids. However, it is another toy that is worth every cent, because they will play with it for years!

If you like having music in your house, Caillou Songs I Love (A Magical Book That Features 12 Great Melodies) is a book you should have. Not only is it a book , but it has a piano at the bottom of the pages that actually works. Each page has a story and and song on it. The song part of the page shows you the notes to play on the piano. Each note and key is numbered and color coded so children of any ages can figure it out. It has popular songs like London Bridge, Brother John, and Old MacDonald on there. The only song that it is missing is the one that goes “mamas gonna buy you and mocking bird, and if that mocking bird don’t sing, mammas gonna buy you a diamond ring (or is it wedding rings?)” I don’t remember the title of that song or the words for that matter but I think it should still have made the list. However, this book is still very enjoyable. My husband won’t admit it, but I think he likes playing on the piano just as much as the kids!

How many of us remember that song from when we were kids? I know I do. That is why when I saw the Fisher-Price Musical Tea Set. I had to buy it for Madison. I can say I am happy to report that it is awesome. Granted, hearing the I’m a Little Teapot song gets a tad annoying after about hundred times in one day, it was still a great buy. First, I love it because it isn’t dainty. It can take a beating. There are no small parts that I have to worry about Will getting into. The set includes four cups, saucers and spoons, creamer, sugar bowl with lid, and everything fits on the tray for serving. The only part of this set that sings is the teapot. It makes a cute noise when you pretend to pour. If you press the top of the teapot, that is when the song starts. This is great addition to anyone’s toys.