Source: savuryandsweet.com via Gianna on Pinterest
Sunday, July 1, 2012
Saturday, June 30, 2012
Water Fun + Review
At Sayita's 1st birthday, my cousin kindly brought her daughter's water activity table for the kids. It was such a great idea and an absolutely wonderful toy! It ignited an interest in some parents/grandparents that were at the party, including us. They wanted to get a similar table for their babies/grandbabies. In particular, our neighbors, The Castillos, got one the next day for their grandchildren. They ended up getting the very last Little Tikes Spiralin' Seas Waterpark.
We first got to see Saya interact with this table at last year's 4th of July picnic at the Castillo's house, but since she was so young she was more interested in the water hose instead. A few weeks ago, as we hung out at the Castillo's, Saya got to play with the table again. This time she loved it! She kept playing with it and when she would leave to play with another toy, she would return right back to it. So of course Mommy and Papi thought she should have one. Saya had one a few days later.
It is one of the best toys for Saya. First of all, she was trying to play with it while I was putting it together, which by the way was really easy. The parts either snapped in place and the only things that needed screws were the spiral tower and the knob for the ferris wheel. Took less than a half-hour! Much faster than some other water tables out there on the market. Ever since we put it together, she plays with it throughout the day. It's the perfect toy to just let her play with and I nor my husband feels the need to be on top of her protecting her. The only thing we occasionally have to do is get her to not drink the water. Yes, I have THAT child, lol.
So as you can tell, I am highly recommending this product for those with youngins. We even just bought one for my friend's twin boys who also will be turning two soon!
Here's some of my pros and cons...
PROS:
* The price. Amazon had it for $43 at the time (read my Amazon Tip below).
* Easy use for children who can stand unassisted.
* Children love it!
* Easy to put together - snap ins and only 8 screws. Took less than a half-hour and Mommy put it together ;)
CONS:
* It leaks under the table where the Spiral tower is attached to the table but only when water is put in the tower. Since it is a water table so I couldn't care less.
* Some of the snap in pieces (green spinner and the ferris wheel) can easily be pulled out by a child but they can easily put back.
Note: that this is a very popular toy. I have been wanting this exact version for some time but it was sold out at many places. At one point, even Amazon didn't have it and when we got Saya's, they only had 11 left to purchase.
If you were questioning which water table to get, this might just be the one for you (er...your kids!)
Amazon Tip: If you are looking to buy an item through Amazon.com now or months from now, I would suggest going to CamelCamelCamel.com. It's a wonderful website that will essentially watch an item and report back to you changes in the pricing of the item of interest. It even shows you trending. This was shown to me by my boss (Thanks JL!) who helped me save some money on my Father's Day gift for the hubs. All you do is copy + paste the URL for the Amazon page for the product and click the "Find Products" button. That's it! You'll be on your way to saving some dough!
Disclaimer: I did not receive any free product or compensation from Little Tikes or Amazon for this review. It was purchased for our daughter and since we loved it, we thought you would too!
Friday, June 29, 2012
Fun Fact Friday
I had a Glow-in-the-dark Scooby Doo comforter and bed sheets in addition to a large Scooby Doo doll when I was in college ;)
What is funny about this is that I was never really and am still not a huge Scooby Doo fan. I thought the glow-in-the-dark thing was pretty cool, so I ran with it.
What is funny about this is that I was never really and am still not a huge Scooby Doo fan. I thought the glow-in-the-dark thing was pretty cool, so I ran with it.
Wednesday, June 27, 2012
Randomness: Favs of the Moment
Some of my favorite things at this time...
FAV Shows:
Pretty Little Liars
Once Upon a Time
FAV Kid Show:
Shaun The Sheep
FAV Song:
"You and I" - Lady Gaga
FAV Books:
FAV Color(s):
Teal-ish
Deep Purples
Grays (not related to 50 shades, lol)
FAV Pinterest Recipe:
Chicken Gyros with Tzatziki Sauce
What are some of your favorite things right now?
Monday, June 25, 2012
Friday, June 22, 2012
Saya + Colored Rice
Colored Rice.
Yet again, I found another fabulous activity for my toddler via Pinterest! It's easy and cheap too! I've mentioned in this previous post that I have been trying to come up with simple activities to do with my daughter to keep her busy and prevent boredom. Maybe it has something to do with keeping Mommy sane too! ;)
Well I found the idea of colored rice or colored macaroni from the blog, The Baker Bee. Once I saw it, I just knew I had to try it. This project really made a very happy little girl and Mommy. It was a great sensory activity. Saya seemed to have been mesmorized by the colors and the feel of the rice. No kidding, she plays with the rice anywhere from 20 mins to an hour! Do you even know how hard that is for a toddler? That is totally a #win!
Want to make your own? All it takes is a few things you probably already have in your pantry or medicine cabinet. Let me warn you though, you may get dirty so don't you go wearing your Sunday's best when you make them. ;)
MATERIALS:
1 - 2 cups of rice for each color, uncooked
Gel food coloring in different colors (I used Wilton)
1 tbsp Rubbing Alcohol
Cups or bowls for mixing
Sheets of Parchment Paper/Aluminum Foil/Paper Plates (# is determined by the # of colors used)
INSTRUCTIONS:
In each cup/bowl, add a few drops of the Gel food coloring and then the rubbing alcohol. Mix until combined. (Note: the rubbing alcohol is strong smelling... Leave this part to Mommy. I think at some point I want to try this with Vinegar or something edible)
Add a cup to two cups of rice into each cup/bowl. Mix until all the rice has been coated.
Dump each cup of colored rice and spread out onto their own sheet of parchment paper. Let the rice dry for a few hours. I let ours dry overnight.
Once the rice has dried, dump them into a container of your choice that the child can play with. You can use any type of plastic container.
Don't have rice? You can use dry macaroni too!
See... That's it! Now you try ;)
"Recipe" by BakerBee
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