Archives for December 2010

Review of Large Building Blocks from Smart Monkey Toys

December 10, 2010 | 2 Comments

Review of Smark Monkey Toys large blocks The other day we received a 16pc large red building block set, in the mail for a product review. These are by Smart Monkey Toys and I have got to tell you; even before I started assembling the blocks, I could tell they were going to be a hit with my boys.

16 pc Large Red Blocks by Smart Monkey Toys
Price: $25 – $36

When the kids saw the picture of the blocks on the packaging, they got super excited and immediately asked if they could play with them. I wasn’t crazy about trying to put the blocks together with two very impatient 3 year old boys, buzzing around me like a swarm of bees.

Assembling the blocks

Anyhow, they were really keyed up and kept saying “please Mommy” in a cute non-whiney kind of way, so of course I had to finally concede. I’ve got to say, the first block took me a little bit to figure out — but once I decided to pull out the helpful and easy to follow instructions that were enclosed, it was a piece of cake. I was able to put all 16 large building blocks together in about 15-20 minutes. That is record time for getting anything done while my children are awake.

Kid tested, mother approved

As soon I was finished, the boys immediately began playing. They worked together to build a large firehouse. Then they decided to see how tall they could stack the building blocks. I was very impressed with how flush, the blocks fit together. We have an older, cheaper set, by a different company and those blocks always tip over before the stack gets too high. The blocks from Smart Monkey Toys are also much sturdier than the others we have. I know this, because the boys later decided to use them as ice skates.

They are made of lightweight corrugated cardboard so if they fall over, or if – and this would probably never happen – one brother accidentally flung a block in the direction of the other brother, no one would really get hurt. Nice! Despite the fact that they are light, they are very well engineered and will hold a lot more weight than you might expect.

Another thing you can absolutely love about these blocks, is that they are made of recycled materials.

So, in case you haven’t figured it out already — YES; I would definitely recommend these blocks. They are wonderful!

These blocks are available from these fine retailers. The prices listed below are what they were being sold at when we wrote this review

Amazon – $26.42
Kazoo Toys – $25.52

Have you seen these blocks? What do you think of them? Would you buy them for your children?

Brian

Brian is the founder of Kids Ain’t Cheap and is now sharing his journey through parenthood.

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Tips on Buying Gifts for Twins

December 8, 2010 | 3 Comments

When buying gifts for twins – often times – people are confused about what to get. Do you buy a gift for each child or one gift for both? Do you give them both a card, or is one card just fine? If your child is invited to a birthday party by one twin, do you need to get a gift for the other one? These are questions – that I honestly never thought about – until I had twins. Buying gifts for twins can be a daunting task for some but it really doesn’t have to be. You just need to keep a few things in mind as you plan your shopping trip.

Twins Are Not Clones

Just because two people share a birthday and may look exactly alike; doesn’t necessarily mean they enjoy the same things. A good rule of thumb is, unless they have requested the exact same item; try to get them something different. If they have the same interests, you can always get them something similar but maybe a different version. Keep in mind that it’s not about spending a lot of money. You know the saying, “It’s the thought that counts,” well — that really is true. When you take the time to personalize the gift – by learning what each child’s individual interests are – you make them each feel special and important.

Now, let’s talk about cards. Do you really need to get a card for each child or can you get one card and address it to both? If the card contains a gift, doing a card for each child is the best idea; then you can write a special message to each one. Also, think about it this way – if the children were not born on the same day – would you be sending separate cards for each? If the answer is “yes,” then you’ll want to give two cards.

You Don’t Have to Spend a Lot

Twins spend a lot of time with each other; so give them the gift of some one-on-one time with you. Scheduling a special outing of some kind with each twin, is a great way to honor each one’s unique personality. Maybe one twin loves animals and one loves airplanes — one weekend you can have an outing to the zoo with the animal lover and the next weekend you can go to the air museum with the other child.

Another fun thing you can do is to take a day for each twin — make their favorite lunch and do an activity of their choice. It might be playing a board game or video game, looking at old pictures, a trip to the park or the library, or whatever else they want to do that day. It’s nice for each one to have a little time, when they don’t have to share or compromise. Of course, those are good lessons and just a part of life but for twins — they have been doing that from the beginning. It’s really is nice for them to have things their way, even if it’s just for a few hours.

Twin Birthday Parties

Do you need to buy a gift for each twin, if your child only knows one of them? This is something I honestly never thought about. Since our boys are in the same preschool class, they share all of the same friends, but often times – as twins get older – they are placed in different classes in school and may develop friendships with kids, who their sibling doesn’t even know. If your child is only being invited by one twin, it will usually be noted on the invitation. Many times the parents of the twins will also write on the invite that you shouldn’t feel obligated to bring a gift for the twin, who your child doesn’t know.

It is definitely a nice gesture to bring a little something for the other twin even if your child doesn’t know them very well, but certainly not necessary.

I hope I was able to clear up any questions you might have about giving gifts to twins. If you have any questions comments or ideas to share, I would love to hear them!

Have you ever bought gifts for twins? Any advice I missed?

Brian

Brian is the founder of Kids Ain’t Cheap and is now sharing his journey through parenthood.

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Well, It’s Official, Christmas is Finally Coming

December 5, 2010 | Leave a Comment

As far as my kids are concerned, it’s not Christmas until the tree is setup and decorated. I feel the same way but for a different reason. I love the smell of it, the way it looks and the spirit of the holiday that it creates. My kids on the other hand, can’t wait for the tree to go up because they know once we are done decorating it, I will finally setup the train that we put under it. My oldest son, Harrison, starts asking in March whether Christmas is coming soon and if we will be able to setup the train again. He is only 4 but doesn’t miss a thing and is quite persistent. He waits all year for it!

As his father, it’s a pretty fun and special day for me when I finally get to setup the train, grab some drinks and snacks, sit on the floor with my two boys and play with the train. The process will be repeated just about every night from now until we take the tree down. It takes real effort for me to keep up my enthusiasm for it, especially after a long day of work. There are days where I just want to go home, eat dinner and relax but then I walk through the door to see two very excited boys, yelling hello over their shoulder as they run in the opposite direction to get the trains ready for me that makes me feel like a kid again and re-energizes me for the task at hand.

Has the Christmas season started in your house yet? What traditions do you use to start the season?

Brian

Brian is the founder of Kids Ain’t Cheap and is now sharing his journey through parenthood.

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Money Saving Tips for Christmas Shopping

December 5, 2010 | 1 Comment

save money when buying Christmas presents — Image from Christmasstockimages.com

Christmas is a time for giving and sharing and expressing love and gratitude and being with family. Yes, it is. But all this love and sharing can also lead to a lot of over-spending. According to CBS moneywatch.com:

According to this year’s National Retail Federation holiday survey, the average American will spend close to $700 this season on gifts, cards, decorations, and the like.

If I convert this to my currency (Philippine Peso), that equates to around 30k PHP. WOW! That is a big, big, big amount to spend to feel the Christmas spirit. Now, I love Christmas and I am all for the gift-giving and the shopping. I love all the Christmas decor that comes up for the season. I love the window displays and the twinkling lights and all the multi-colored trees. But I make a conscious effort not to spend too much on Christmas, regardless of whether I have 30k or not. Here are some money saving tips that work. I know this because I’ve tried them.

1. Planning is the root of all saving.

Yes, I am a firm believer in planning. Ask anyone who knows me relatively well and they will tell you that I have a list for everything, I worship MS Excel, and my organizer is a perenial brick in my bag. I’ve found though that listing down the poeple you want to give gifts to, the gift you want to give (if you know this already), and your budget, all work to set your expectations and to keep to workable numbers.

2. Stick to the Plan.

Ok, you didn’t just go through all that effort of listing people and thnking about who would be on the list this year given your budget and who would just get some warm wishes on a pretty card, only to not follow it. As hard as it may appear, and as tough it may be to fight off the urge to get that perfect thing for your friend whom you haven’t seen or talked to in almost a year, RESIST!

3. Start Early.

In Manila, folks start Christmas shopping as early as September and October. I can see the collective eyebrows rising. There is a practical reason behind this over-exuberance. Items almost always become more expensive from November to the end of the year. This is true for most stores. We do have sales but these sales are often for items that aren’t as nice or as good or as up-to-date as others. You have to start shopping early on the first day of a sale in a shop to get the good stuff with slashed prices. Otherwise, you will be competing with a crush of people for so-so items. Usually, things that are non-perishable and aren’t dependent on size (like books, appliances, etc.) are still priced low or normal compared to Christmas prizes. You can also find a lot of variety in the months before the Holiday season. We aren’t limited by season so a lot of items are applicable all year round. You can also find a lot of bargain items in the bazaars that start springing up end of September onwards. These bazaars are different from stores in that they have often homemade items, rare items, unbranded but really good stuff and they compete with brand stores in price and try to beat them by offering good stuff at even lower prices, earlier. Shopping early can mean you are done with this way before the Christmas crush, still have a lot to choose from and not just the left-overs after the buying posse, and get items at normal or low prices.

4. Use discounts and gift cheques.

Discounts from stores you frequent or vendors you regulary go to, and using gift checques you’ve been given is one way to cut expenses. You aren’t actually spending at least the full amount here.

5. Do NOT use your Credit Card.

It may seem odd. It may be throwing a major kink in your Christmas budget plans. But using your Credit Card for shopping might just be the way to put you in debt for the next 12 months. I did this for one gift last year. I bought my son a big boy bike. I got in on installment, 6 months to pay. My goodness. I was still paying it off even after I had to get its flat wheel and busted breaks fixed. Never again.

6. Go for the Envelope Approach instead.

What is this? Well, it is simply putting your budget, in cash, in an envelope, ready for the days of shopping. You can allocate certain amounts for certain people as well. I like separating amount by indicating the person in colorful post-its and then separating by using paper clips. This way, you prepare your budget for the people you want to give gifts to this year; you aren’t in danger of over-spending on one person and not having enough for the rest; you do not go into credit debt.

7. Go Wholesale and/or Homemade.

If you have people in your list you feel have to be there, like groups of officemates, or your boss, doctor, dentist, etc. try going for wholesale products. What I do is I get 1 item for all my female officemates, like a pretty notebook, and 1 item for all my male officemates, like a nice money clip. This way you aren’t stressed out about having to think of forty unique, small gifts; you won’t be stressed over offending someone by maybe giving something “nicer” to someone else; you can get small stuff cheaper if you buy by bulk. Ok, maybe you can make an exception for your boss here.

On that note, what person wouldn’t like receiving something unique and from the heart? Seriously. So, instead of giving your boss a uniform gift, why not bake him a cake or your speciality pastry? Or you can give him something he can use like a hommade desk organizer. These are things that will cost you less than store-bought gifts because the individual ingredients or parts required cost a lot less put together. Plus, if it’s simple enough, not dangerous at all, and relatively fun to do, you can get your kids in on the action!

8. Finally, Be Prudent. If you really can’t afford a Santa sack this year, forego it. They will understand. Trust me.

Hey, times are hard for everyone. Sometimes, there are pressing matters that just require more attention and more of your resources. I’ve had a Christmas where I gave all my family and friends a nice photo calendar of myself and the kids with some warm holiday greetings instead of gifts becuase I just needed to allocate a Christmas budget for something else. I try to make sure my kids and god kids always have gifts, even small ones but I know the adults will understand.

So, I hope you all have fun and reasonable shopping trips over the next few days!

Cheers,

Vicki

Brian

Brian is the founder of Kids Ain’t Cheap and is now sharing his journey through parenthood.

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Disney Princesses — Dethroned?

December 2, 2010 | 3 Comments

The other day I was on Facebook – which truth be told – is a common occurrence for me. While there, I was reading through all of the things my friends and family — felt compelled to share with their friends and family on that particular day. Suddenly, I stumbled upon a link to an article that my super cool cousin posted. The first thing I noticed, was a picture of a beautiful Disney princess smiling at me; I immediately recognized that it was Cinderella. The title of the article was “Disney Will Stop Making Princess Movies Because Boys Think They’re Icky.” (If you want to read the article, just click on the title I’m referring to.)

Say what?!?

My first thought was, “That is just silly talk! Disney wouldn’t stop making princess movies. Obviously, someone is just trying to use a shocking title to draw people into their story.” That’s when I noticed my cousin’s comments to the article; “This article is disturbing on a few levels…” Well — now I had to read it!

Disney thinks that nobody wants princesses anymore

So, it seems as though Disney executives think that no one is really interested in princess movies anymore — not boys and not even girls. Apparently, they are under the impression that 5 and 6 year old girls no longer wish to be princesses; instead they just want to look “hot.” If that is true – and I pray that it is not – then that is very alarming and clearly something needs to change. Please don’t misunderstand me. I don’t think every little girl needs to spend her time watching princess movies or pretending to be a princess; but I really don’t think they need to concern themselves with being hot or cool at that age either.

Disney’s princess movies are just good, wholesome entertainment. Of course, some critics will argue that they send a message to girls, that they have to wait around for a prince to come and rescue them. First of all, I honestly don’t think that’s the case for most girls who watch them. As a former princess wanna be – and daughter of a strong and independent single mother – I never thought I needed to wait around for anyone to save me because that’s not what I was raised to believe. Secondly, I think the princess movies showcase good morals and values; something that is sadly lacking in our society — and perhaps one of the reasons girls want to be “hot” rather than proper young ladies.

Gender stereotypes

The other thing that I found disturbing in that blog post, is how some of the blame is placed on boys. Disney executives think that they can no longer make the movies – which they have been making for decades – because apparently boys all of a sudden just decided that they are “icky?”

You know what I think? I would bet that boys found princess movies just as icky – if not more – when Disney released the first princess movies. Also, boys are sent a message that if they like princess movies – and honestly referring to them as princess movies doesn’t help, but what can you do – then there is something wrong with them. I have let my boys watch Cinderella, and they like it. When I mentioned it to another mom in casual conversation – a mom of two girls – she looked at me like I was insane for letting them watch it; then she preceded followed her look with, “Really? That’s weird.” I was shocked and speechless (anyone who knows me, knows this is a rarity). Of course, once I got in the car I thought of plenty of things to say but it was too late — and I haven’t run into her since.

Yes, I know the princess stories need an update. I think that’s what Disney is doing with the new movie “Tangled,” which is a revamped version of the Rapunzel story. This movie looks like it may just capture some of the magic that Dreamworks and the Disney Pixar movies have been able to tap into in recent years. Both have released movies that have become wildly popular because; the animation is amazing, many of them appeal to both genders, and they include something for people of all ages.

I don’t think Disney needs to put out a princess movie every year, but at least every 5-10 years would be nice. Maybe I’m just old fashioned — or maybe in this fast-paced world we live in, being a little old fashion isn’t such a bad thing. I think it can keep us grounded and remind us about what is really important in life.

What do you think? Should Disney bid the princesses a fond farewell? Do you think they can amp up the action – like they have done in “Tangled” – to appeal to wider audiences?

I, for one, am looking forward to seeing “Tangled” with my boys — and when I do, I’ll let you know what we thought about it!

What do you think? Should Disney move away from princess movies or are we sending the wrong messages to our kids?

Brian

Brian is the founder of Kids Ain’t Cheap and is now sharing his journey through parenthood.

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Watching Movies on the Cheap

December 1, 2010 | 2 Comments

Here are a few strategies for watching movies more cheaply at home. Since I have two children, I have developed these strategies out of necessity rather than choice, including one called “how to avoid late fees.” This one hatched out of an incident when my then three-year-old daughter cried hysterically every time I tried to return Dora’s Halloween, resulting in $21.00 in fees. And it wasn’t even Halloween! Goodbye local movie store…hello Netflix!

Netflix

The beauty of Netflix is that you can keep movies at home for as long as you want. This is especially helpful if your kids get particularly attached to a particular movie and want to watch it daily until they achieve total burn-out. If you or your child simply cannot part with a movie title, you can also decide to buy the movie for $14.00 ($20.00 for Blu-ray). Depending on if it was a new release or not, this can actually be cheaper than buying the DVD new at the store. Netflix also allows for the occasional “lost in the mail” excuse, so if your DVD never arrives back to their receiving address, you will not be charged.

Plans range from $8.99 (one title out-at-a-time) to 4 out-at-a-time ($23.99). We currently have the cheapest option, but this works out great, because it also comes with the option of watching unlimited numbers of movies and television shows instantly on our PC’s. My husband picks out his choice (usually a new release) to come by mail, while the kids get to watch what they want on the laptop. Not bad for $8.99 (and no more late fees). A new option with Netflix is instant streaming to your Wii console, which we happen to have. If you have your Wii set up to wireless internet, you can watch Netflix selections on your television screen. Of course, you will need to make sure you have a strong internet connection through spectrum internet plans or a similar provider in your area, to ensure you can stream all your favorite movies. Gotta love technology!

Blockbuster

Most Blockbuster locations offer a membership plan that comes with one free rental per month and it is free to sign up. If you can be diligent about returning your items, this movie rental chain can be a great choice. I was also able to purchase an Indiana Jones game for Wii from Blockbuster for $14.99, after my son refused to relinquish it (do you see a pattern emerging here?). Blockbuster also sends us coupons periodically for more free movie and game rentals. Thanks, guys! Blockbuster now offers a movie delivery option as well, but it is a little more expensive than Netflix and wait times are longer, in my area, anyway, for sending and receiving movies.

Redbox Rentals

Redbox rentals are available at many grocery store chains and discount stores and are only a buck (plus tax) per night. Even if it takes you a few days to actually watch the movie, it is still cheaper than most movie rental stores. It can be tricky to find certain new releases if they are in high demand, but there is a “reserve online” option where you can put a movie title on-hold until you can get there to pick it up. If you sign up for their email newsletter, you also get a code delivered to your inbox each month for a free movie.

Movie/TV Websites

If you like watching television episodes and some older movies, there are a few great websites out there where you can watch for free:

Hulu
Fancast
You Tube (I am not sure of the legal issues involved here, but this can be a valuable resource for hard-to-find movies and television shows).

If it is a recently-aired television show that you seek (and you do not want to pay for DVR or TiVo), then remember to check the network’s website, as you can usually find episodes of popular shows that you might have missed. I am also hearing a lot about Roku lately, but do not know much about it. If you have an opinion one way or the other, I’d love to hear from you!

What is your favorite way of getting movies for low cost?

Brian

Brian is the founder of Kids Ain’t Cheap and is now sharing his journey through parenthood.

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