Reviews Archives - Page 19 of 24

Be your own WiFi hotspot with an AT&T Unite for GoPhone mobile hotspot by NETGEAR

Before, when I would travel, the most important thing to me was a comfortable bed and a shower, with a breakfast being a really nice bonus. Now, I would never book a room without WiFi because I've seen what happens when we try to vacation without it. Let me tell you, there's an awful lot of time spent searching for cafes with WiFi and parking ourselves at a back table while the rest of the family waits for whomever was unlucky enough to get the S.O.S. call from back home.

Yes, I know… we shouldn't be on the internet while we're supposed to be on vacation and surfing the internets doesn't count as real surfing, blah blah blah. But, the reality of owning a business, especially one that is web-based, is that having internet access during trips is often non-negotiable.

Thank goodness the internet can now fit in my purse or coat pocket thanks to the AT&T Unite for GoPhone mobile hotspot by NETGEAR. Never again will I pay crazy hotel internet rates or deal with {gasp} broken internets now that I can literally access AT&T's 4G LTE/4G service where available and get secure WiFi on the go.

Expand your play with The Queen’s Treasures accessories and furniture for your 18″ dolls

Around here we take our doll play very seriously. My kids learn with their dolls, we host special doll play dates, and we look for any opportunity to include them in our mother/daughter bonding time. This also means I’m picky about what doll treasures end up in our collection and would gladly pay more for high-quality, detailed accessories and miniatures that will really expand our doll play. All of this and more is why I adore The Queen's Treasures. Sick of all the pink plastic junk I was finding in retail stores, I ended up doing an exhaustive search online to see if I could find 18" doll items that would last through all the kids and make playtime even more fun. I found The Queen’s Treasures in one of those searches and ever since we received our first piece of their doll furniture, I’ve been a huge fan. If you haven’t already fell in love with The Queen's Treasurers, I would highly recommend taking some time to check out their site to see their amazing collection of furniture, clothing, gear, and accessories all miniaturized for 18in dolls. While I love their doll clothing and miniature accessories, it’s their high quality doll furniture that I first fell for. With tiny cupboards, table and chair sets, kitchen, tea sets, bedroom furniture and a huge selection of 18in doll storage trunks, wardrobes and armoires and more that can take doll play to the next level.

VOLOOM your hair for lasting volume

I have what my sisters refer to as "baby hair". I believe the official word for my type of hair is “fine”, but on top of that it’s also really thin – like baby hair. As for actual styling, it's just about as frustrating as trying to style a baby's hair and requires a ton of product in order to somewhat hold even the easiest hairstyle. Even backcombing my hair doesn’t work very well because my soft baby hair just won’t hold and soon after it’s styled it ends up limp and lifeless.

But, while there are hundreds of products on the market for thinning or receding hair, my baby hair has always left me wishing I had any other type of hair. The best advice I've gotten from hair professionals so far in terms of managing my fine, thin hair has been to damage it as best I could.

Sounds crazy, right? Really, it's not as nuts as it sounds, but it makes my hair very high maintenance because unless it's basically fried through chemicals, dyes, heat and product, it just lays there limp. Or, at least it used to.While at BlogHer this year I met a company called VOLOOM and it sounded just like what I needed to try to help give my baby hair some real volume – without having to spend hundreds of dollars in a salon damaging my hair. However, it was so popular that every time I passed the VOLOOM booth there was a line of girls waiting to try it and I never got a chance to see it work in person.

When I heard that VOLOOM was working with iFabbo to get the word out about a whole new way to add volume to your hair, I gladly volunteered my locks. You see, I’ve tried volumizing powders, mousse, hair spray, creams, and just about every other gimmick on the market without success, so I’m willing to try anything at this point.

So, what is the VOLOOM? It's not a curling iron or a flat iron; it’s the first hair volumizing iron that was created specifically to add huge volume to hair. Basically, VOLOOM creates hidden layers of texture underneath your style that adds volume to any hairstyle.

First Ascent Girls’ Downlight Hoodie from Eddie Bauer

Every parent knows the dilemma of the cheap kid’s coat. At first it seems like a great idea as it costs very little and you reason with yourself that they will only wear it for a short time, so why not? Then you find yourself needing to replace it halfway through the season due to normal wear and tear or you end up going somewhere truly frigid and you realize quickly that the cheapy coat isn’t really cut out for freezing temperatures.

Parents, put your money away at the discount store and instead go for a good quality coat. You won’t regret buying a coat that truly lasts, never goes out of style, and keeps your kiddo comfortable in mild to extreme temperatures. Trust me, your kid will thank you for it. It may not have the newest Disney character on it or have glitter and hearts, but once your kid gets used to the comfort of a good coat, none of that will matter.

Continue the tradition with the new BeForever line from American Girl

Have you checked out American Girl recently? They just debuted their BeForever line this fall in stores nationwide as well as online and it has girls everywhere excited. We were at the Seattle store the day BeForever was announced to check the line out in person and do one of their many in-store crafts thanks to a recommendation from our personal shopper. I honestly had no idea what to expect and was just going for the craft and event aspect, but I was thrilled when I realized what exactly the new line included.

It’s no secret that we love American Girl and I always talk about how we end up at the Seattle store whenever my daughter gets to choose what we do for the day. But what you don’t know is that we spend most of our time checking out the historical collection and looking at anything and everything that’s new for each of their historical girls.

This time we were met at the store by one of our favorite American Girl employees and told that the line was replaced, and I’m sure I didn’t hide my disappointment very well. She quickly went on to explain that the BeForever line still had many of the dolls we adore as well as a new addition she knew we would be thrilled about.

Friends, welcome back Samantha Parkington.

Kindle Fire HD Kids Edition with FreeTime offers entertainment at home or on the road

As someone who is on the go a lot with kiddos, one of the main things I get asked about from friends, family, and readers is about essential gear for family travel. And while my “essentials” list has changed based on the ages of my children, there are a few things that never change. One of those things is the prevalence of tech gadgets. It’s true that tech gadgets can change your life dramatically and make life easier, especially when traveling, but there are also some huge downfalls.

One major concern is being weighed down with technology instead of making life easier. When we’re talking DSLRs, laptops, smartphones, tablets, action cams, and more as well as all the accessories and gear that go along with all those tech accessories, you can easily fill up a suitcase – and that’s before you pack any toiletries, clothing, or footwear.

So, I always say that when traveling, less truly is more. If you can go without a full laptop simply by packing a small add-on keyboard to your tablet, you are going to be a whole lot happier when packing, lugging your tech bag through airports and onto airplanes, and going through airport security – especially when you’re also corralling kids. By pairing your tablet with lightweight accessories and gadgets as well as apps to make your tablet function like a laptop, you can truly ditch the extra weight and end up with a versatile go-to device for everything from reading by the pool to editing work documents.

For this reason I love the Kindle Fire HD Kids Edition that is an ideal tablet for kids but also packed with features to make it perfect for adults, too. A few weeks ago my son got to play with one of these awesome tablets at the TravelingMom-Techlicious Holiday Tech and Travel Show in Seattle #TNTSeattle and he was so sad to say goodbye to it when the time came. Amazon saved the day {and month, and year} by sending us home with one of our own to play with and both kids were quickly smitten.

Travel must-have for kids: The LeapPad3 learning tablet

My kids are pretty awesome travelers for the most part. They can handle short flights like pros and are the best road trip buddies on long car rides. But, as it turns out, they are pretty awful redeye international travelers. Go figure.

When I look back now, I can’t help but ask myself what I was thinking taking two small kids on packed overnight flights that included 4 airports, long layovers, no meals, and a trip through customs. Oh, and did I mention I am very pregnant and have a hard time getting comfortable in even the plushest digs?

Seriously. What on earth was I thinking?! Having taken dozens of flights with them before, some of them international and some of them redeye in which they handled themselves perfectly, I was clearly going into things far too cocky considering the itinerary and their ages.

Thank goodness our friends over at LeapFrog realized that even good travelers could use something to pass 14+ hours of travel and they sent us their newest tablets, the LeapPad3 to use on our way to #BeachesMoms Social Media on the Sand conference. I spent the night before our big trip loading up on learning software, TV shows, and music to put on the tablets in addition to our collection of software cartridges from our original LeapPad, and I’m so glad I did. This awesome show? This was my view during one of our shorter flights. Would you believe that she is rocking out to the old classic "Do you Know the Muffin Man"? Someone download this girl the Frozen sing-a-long, stat.

Hello, phablet! Nokia Lumia 1520 16GB from AT&T

Remember my beloved Nokia Lumia 920 Windows phone? It met its untimely demise after the screen was crushed at Disneyland last April, which is after it was revived after it took a swim in the kids’ bath, and after it had been dropped a bazillion times while juggling kids. I was so distraught about ruining my phone that I simply couldn’t retire it and kept on using it even with the cracked screen and the odd thumping noise it made when it would get shaken. But, then the Nokia Lumia 1520 with Windows Phone 8.1 arrived and I happily ditched the 920 in a pile of paperwork until it could be recycled properly.

Friends, meet my upgrade, the Nokia Lumia 1520. Part phone, part tablet, the Nokia Lumia 1520 is best described as a phablet. With a huge 6” HD 1080p display, this is quite possibly the biggest phone I have ever seen, which I honestly wasn’t sure was for me before now.

Power your devices anywhere with the Rayovac Mobile Battery Power Pack

My electronics are constantly dying just when I need them the most. Whether it’s my phone while I’m at blogging events or traveling, my tablet as I’m finishing a post for a deadline, or my camera at a big life event, I find myself often wishing I had a way to charge things on the go. Take a look at any airport lounge or all day event and you will see people crowded around any outlet they can find – some going as far as camping out in bathrooms or hallways just to get a little more battery life.

That used to be me.

But, now I know I’m covered no matter what with the new Rayovac Mobile Battery Power Pack that I can keep right in my purse and don’t require any outlets of electricity.

Create your perfect pillow with the Naturepedic Trio organic pillow system

Before I was a parent, I didn’t know how much difference a good night’s sleep really makes. Even though my kids {for the most part} sleep through the night and even allow me to sleep later than them some days, I have a horrible habit of staying up too late and then waking up too early. To add to the problem, I’ve also found that I seriously dislike all of the pillows I’ve bought in the past few years and seem to go through pillows like most people do groceries trying to find one that won’t keep me up at night tossing and turning.

Call me Goldilocks, but I have a stash of pillows that have been deemed too soft, too hard, too thick, or just plain too uncomfortable, and I’ve been searching for the elusive “just right” for years and years now.

Thank goodness for a chance encounter with Naturepedic at Gearapalooza Seattle because I finally got to talk to a pillow expert who was able to identify my problem and help me find something he thought might work for me. While I’ve been a fan of Naturepedic for years now and have their mattresses on my wishlist after reading more about what goes into traditional mattresses and the care that Naturepedic takes to ensure their products are the highest quality, I honestly had no idea that they carried pillows at all.