My wife works at the Mall of America and learned from another associate that Nickelodeon Universe was having a birthday promotion for teens and small children 18 and under. We didn't believe it at first, however Hansel's birthday was coming up soon so we decided to check it out. Sure enough, it is true!
I went online to the Nickelodeon Universe website listed below to check out some of the requirements and finer details. You click on the registration link and fill out the details for the child. An email is sent you with a printable coupon that you print out and give to one of the clerks at the customer service desk for Nickelodeon Universe on the child's birthday along with a drivers license and proof of child's age (Ex. Birth Certificate). You will also need a parent or legal guardian to accompany the child if they are under 13 years of age.
If all goes well, you child will receive an all-day wristband worth $29.95 plus a coupon book full of discounts and in some cases free goodies. A couple of free things to note are a free DipnDots and a free nestle toll house cookie. Keep in mind that the special is only good on the child's birthday and not before or after it. I have enclosed a direct link to the site for your convenience.
Say hello to Sponge Bob for me if you see him and have fun!
http://www.nickelodeonuniverse.com/birthday-details.html
Monday, November 16, 2009
Sunday, November 15, 2009
About a million Maclaren strollers recalled for finger amputation
I don't know if any of you @home dads are aware of this, so I thought I'd post the link to the article I found while scanning the Pioneer Press website. I will be posting again soon with the review I promised a while ago and free things for you @home dads to do with your kids.
http://www.twincities.com/watchdog/ci_1374772
http://www.twincities.com/watchdog/ci_1374772
Monday, November 9, 2009
Where in the world is my paycheck?
I'm curious as to how many stay@home dad's there are in Minnesota due to being laid off. I have been unemployed since around March of 2009 and still have not had any luck landing a job which is rather depressing. Do not get me wrong, I love spending all this time with my son and I believe its good for parent/child relationships. I did however grow up with the mindset that a "Man" should be the bread winner and its frustrating to say the least being unemployed. Sometimes I feel like I have failed my family and failed my associates by not having a job to support my family with.
My wife enjoys working but I do think she would rather be at home with Hansel. Come to think of it, my dream job would be to stay at home with my family and write blogs, reviews, technical documentation for a living. I am currently seeking a journalism or creative writing degree to supplement my current experience and education. I do work part time for my church as an IT contractor but paychecks are few and far between.
One of our local papers the Pioneer Press, has been currently working on a new segment called "Watchdog: Your Next Job" and I was recently selected as one of the five panel members who will be periodically commenting on our job searches, experiences, let downs and overall anything we can think of relating to getting a job in the current market. I am really excited about this for several reasons.
The first and more obvious reason being, exposure. To have a news paper following my every job search experience for thousands of readers to see, is what I consider nothing less but an honor. Another reason why I'm excited to be a part of this is, I have been wanting to change career fields for a long time. The IT field has really boomed over the years and there is allot of competition in the job markets pertaining to IT.
I have been officially working in the IT field since I was 17 and to be honest I'm getting burned out. I have always wanted to write about various topics but mostly IT since that is what I'm most knowledgeable about. I used to write short stories in grade school when I was a kid and was very good at it. Over the years however I have lost that ability due to focusing so much on strictly IT related fields.
The ultimate goal of the Watchdog is to get the panel of five employed but also to share with readers common ground to which they can relate with and hopefully educate themselves on what to do and not do in the hairy art of job searching. The goals I wish to obtain from this blog and the Watchdog are: Experience and Employment in a somewhat different career field.
If there are any stay at home dads who share the same experiences, please feel free to comment, as I would love to hear from you on the topics of being a stay@home dad and job searching.
The link below will give you more information about Watchdog and it's resources to help you on your way to becoming employed again. Thanks.
http://www.twincities.com/watchdog - Pioneer Press
My wife enjoys working but I do think she would rather be at home with Hansel. Come to think of it, my dream job would be to stay at home with my family and write blogs, reviews, technical documentation for a living. I am currently seeking a journalism or creative writing degree to supplement my current experience and education. I do work part time for my church as an IT contractor but paychecks are few and far between.
One of our local papers the Pioneer Press, has been currently working on a new segment called "Watchdog: Your Next Job" and I was recently selected as one of the five panel members who will be periodically commenting on our job searches, experiences, let downs and overall anything we can think of relating to getting a job in the current market. I am really excited about this for several reasons.
The first and more obvious reason being, exposure. To have a news paper following my every job search experience for thousands of readers to see, is what I consider nothing less but an honor. Another reason why I'm excited to be a part of this is, I have been wanting to change career fields for a long time. The IT field has really boomed over the years and there is allot of competition in the job markets pertaining to IT.
I have been officially working in the IT field since I was 17 and to be honest I'm getting burned out. I have always wanted to write about various topics but mostly IT since that is what I'm most knowledgeable about. I used to write short stories in grade school when I was a kid and was very good at it. Over the years however I have lost that ability due to focusing so much on strictly IT related fields.
The ultimate goal of the Watchdog is to get the panel of five employed but also to share with readers common ground to which they can relate with and hopefully educate themselves on what to do and not do in the hairy art of job searching. The goals I wish to obtain from this blog and the Watchdog are: Experience and Employment in a somewhat different career field.
If there are any stay at home dads who share the same experiences, please feel free to comment, as I would love to hear from you on the topics of being a stay@home dad and job searching.
The link below will give you more information about Watchdog and it's resources to help you on your way to becoming employed again. Thanks.
http://www.twincities.com/watchdog - Pioneer Press
Disney offers Baby Einstein video refunds
It has come to my attention that Disney is offering refunds for Baby Einstein videos. I personally have a few of these videos for our son and I'm a glad that I did not spend more money on these products. I have posted the article below for all to view and learn more about the recall.
I think it's really sad to see what was once touted as a good product for baby development, falling short of its promise to educate. In the article it makes the statement that the videos could even hamper your child's learning ability. Please check out the link to the article below and educate yourself on another example of a good product gone wrong.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/children_shealth/6425271/Disney-offers-millions-of-parents-Baby-Einstein-video-refunds.html
I think it's really sad to see what was once touted as a good product for baby development, falling short of its promise to educate. In the article it makes the statement that the videos could even hamper your child's learning ability. Please check out the link to the article below and educate yourself on another example of a good product gone wrong.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/children_shealth/6425271/Disney-offers-millions-of-parents-Baby-Einstein-video-refunds.html
New Review!!
I will be posting a new review today about an excellent product called "Your Baby Can Read". I will also be posting info about the Baby Einstein recall and various places you can go to entertain your child.
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
No rest for dad
Well, I would like to apologize for not posting lately. It has been very hectic at home lately and I've been sick so I have not been on much. I have a bunch of new things to write about within the next few days, so please check back often!
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Product Review - The Podee Bottle
My wife first discovered the bottle while surfing her favorite pregnancy board and told me to take a look at it. When I first saw a picture of a baby with this thing, my first thought was of an IV drip. The bottle looks like an ordinary bottle but with a long tube running out of it with a nipple on the end. We immediately searched the web for this marvel of baby science and found what we were looking for. I have decided to write about the pro's and con's of this bottle and what it has done for our family.
The picture below will show you what I mean when I say, it's a marvel of baby science.
The bottle over all was great at first for a few weeks, I was able to do more in less time and had a happier baby. There has been some issues though that I will now explain with the bottle. The first issue is cleaning the bottle.
The bottle itself is just as easy to clean as any other bottle. The other components however require a tool that resembles a pipe cleaner. You can usually get the bottle cleaning kit at the store you bought the bottle from or online. The hardest parts to clean are the tubes and can be a pain sometimes. I have found warm soapy water and the tube brush works best.
The next issue is leaks. After doing a little experimenting I have found that the tubes wear out quickly where they connect to the other components. The connecting rings also have no seals in them, which if tightened to much or to little, causes a rather leaky situation. The Podee company must have changed the rings and the thickness of the tubing because the tubes are stiffer and last longer, so does the nipples and the rings do not seem to leak as much anymore.
The only problem with the improved components is now my son can suck away and alot of the time, he cannot get enough suction to cause the fluid to flow up through the tube correctly. I wound up just using the old components which seem to work better but leak more.
The next issue I have found with the bottles is flying milk or juice! My son likes to hold the bottle just by the nipple when drinking from it while standing up. When he does this, the long tube usually pops off and flings milk or juice everywhere which depending on whats in the bottle, can stain fabrics or damage electronics.
The last more serious issue is with possible component breaks. Yesterday, I was putting the nipple and tube back on the bottle when I noticed it would not go back on. Upon further investigation I found that the post the tube connected to the bottle with was broken off inside the tube. Now if it had not been stuck inside the tube securely I might have been taking my son to the E.R!
Other than the serious issue I had with the bottle, it has generally worked quite well for our needs. I would give this bottle a 3 out of 5 rating just because some of the parts could break causing a safety hazard. I have provided a link below to the manufacturers website for your further review. For you Minnesota dad's I would recommend checking the bottle out more thoroughly at Baby's-R-Us or Toys-R-Us.
For more information on the Podee bottle, check out their website at http://www.podee.com/
I will be reviewing one of their competitors soon called "Pacifeeder". This device looks much more promising.
Happy Feeding!
Note: Please comment on my first attempt at a review :o)
The picture below will show you what I mean when I say, it's a marvel of baby science.
Before continuing the review of this bottle, let me make this clear. This bottle is by no means an excuse to get in that extra hour of PS3 time! This bottle does make life easier to manage when washing dishes, doing the laundry, driving and posting a comment. ;)
When we first got the bottle, I immediately ripped open the package and took out all the parts to see what I was up against. Boy oh boy! was there a lot of parts! There was a total of 8 parts to this contraption. After throwing away the instructions, which I would not recommend. I preceded to put it together and test it out on my son. (poor little guy)
When I plugged the nipple in his mouth, he started sucking right away and satisfied with a triumphant smile
I took two sighs of relief, one for being able to get more done now and the second for being able to put it together on the first go without instructions.The bottle over all was great at first for a few weeks, I was able to do more in less time and had a happier baby. There has been some issues though that I will now explain with the bottle. The first issue is cleaning the bottle.
The bottle itself is just as easy to clean as any other bottle. The other components however require a tool that resembles a pipe cleaner. You can usually get the bottle cleaning kit at the store you bought the bottle from or online. The hardest parts to clean are the tubes and can be a pain sometimes. I have found warm soapy water and the tube brush works best.
The next issue is leaks. After doing a little experimenting I have found that the tubes wear out quickly where they connect to the other components. The connecting rings also have no seals in them, which if tightened to much or to little, causes a rather leaky situation. The Podee company must have changed the rings and the thickness of the tubing because the tubes are stiffer and last longer, so does the nipples and the rings do not seem to leak as much anymore.
The only problem with the improved components is now my son can suck away and alot of the time, he cannot get enough suction to cause the fluid to flow up through the tube correctly. I wound up just using the old components which seem to work better but leak more.
The next issue I have found with the bottles is flying milk or juice! My son likes to hold the bottle just by the nipple when drinking from it while standing up. When he does this, the long tube usually pops off and flings milk or juice everywhere which depending on whats in the bottle, can stain fabrics or damage electronics.
The last more serious issue is with possible component breaks. Yesterday, I was putting the nipple and tube back on the bottle when I noticed it would not go back on. Upon further investigation I found that the post the tube connected to the bottle with was broken off inside the tube. Now if it had not been stuck inside the tube securely I might have been taking my son to the E.R!
Other than the serious issue I had with the bottle, it has generally worked quite well for our needs. I would give this bottle a 3 out of 5 rating just because some of the parts could break causing a safety hazard. I have provided a link below to the manufacturers website for your further review. For you Minnesota dad's I would recommend checking the bottle out more thoroughly at Baby's-R-Us or Toys-R-Us.
For more information on the Podee bottle, check out their website at http://www.podee.com/
I will be reviewing one of their competitors soon called "Pacifeeder". This device looks much more promising.
Happy Feeding!
Note: Please comment on my first attempt at a review :o)
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