Welcome to Day 7 of my 12 Days of Christmas giveaway series! Yesterday was 3Po and Jammy's 7th birthday, so I'm sticking with the Boys Toys theme and giving away a Beyblade Super Vortex Battle Set! Litzy PR sent us this great toy from Hasbro to review last week, and since we spent Christmas in Lake Tahoe I let the boys open it up the day before we left. It was like Christmas had arrived a day early! They loved playing with the set and we could barely get them into the car because they couldn't stop.
If you've ever spun a top, you'll know how to play with the Beyblade Super Vortex Battle Set -- except this is like tops updated for the 21st century. The set comes with two tops, two launchers and a circular battle arena you launch the tops into. You and your opponent launch your tops into the arena, and the last top spinning wins. The battle arena is concave, so at some point the tops will make contact, and knock each other off their perfect spins. You can buy other Beyblade tops, and choose the top you think will have the best chance of beating your opponent's top. Each top is different (some spin clockwise, others counterclockwise, they are shaped a bit differently, etc..) and you can launch it in different ways (i.e. directly at your opponent, to the side, directly onto the arena surface, drop it from a height, etc...) so it's up to you to figure out your winning combination. It's a lot of fun!Welcome to Day 6 of my 12 Days of Christmas giveaway series! Today is my sons' 7th birthday, so in their honor I'm giving away something that's right up their alley -- a Nerf N-Strike Deploy CS-6 blaster!
See 3Po gazing longingly at the Nerf display at our local Target. He'd ask for the whole lot for his birthday if he thought he could get away with it.
It's still a pretty macho-looking toy, though, so we've given the boys strict instructions never to point at people's faces. Instead, we've set up a makeshift shooting gallery in our hallway, where they try to knock down little toy figures and a plastic ball tied to a string. It's so much fun!
And guess which little boy is having the most fun?Welcome to Day 5 of my 12 Days of Christmas giveaway series! Today I'm giving away a super-cool dinosaur robot: Blazor, the raging raptor from iloveRobot. iLoveRobots is the toy brand of Bossa Nova Robotics, a consumer robotics company known for their incredibly dynamic and interactive robots like the Penbo Penguin and the Prime-8 Gorilla. This is no ordinary remote-control toy -- Blazor has sensors that help him avoid obstacles, go into attack mode when someone gets too near, fight with other robots, or freak out when you hold him too long!
Nothing says Christmas Cheer like a big, green, stinky old grouch. And no, I'm not talking about Oscar, or even the Grinch. The honor goes to everyone's favorite ogre, Shrek -- or to be more precise, Shrek the Musical, the stage adaptation of the movie that's already getting rave reviews. We were invited to watch a show of Shrek the Musical in San Francisco's Orpheum Theatre, and everyone who saw it agreed that it was the perfect show to take your family to over the holidays.
Shrek the Musical is based on the first movie, where Shrek meets Donkey, frees Princess Fiona from her tower, saves her from marriage to Lord Farquaad and finds his One True Love. If you've seen any of the 4 Shrek movies, you'll know that this is a film that can be enjoyed on so many levels. Kids love the funny storybook characters, while grownups appreciate the witty references to contemporary culture (I loved the not-so-subtle homages to the "Defying Gravity" number from Wicked and the Lion King's "Circle of Life") and sly digs at traditional fairytale characters and storylines.
I thought they did a great job migrating the characters from the movie onto the stage. It's not easy to make real live people look like cartoons, but with the help of some colorful costumes and ingenious props (my kids loved how Pinocchio's nose actually grew longer when he told lies!), they came pretty darn close. For some characters, they didn't even try -- Gingie the gingerbread man was basically a puppet on a tray, carried around by one of the 3 Bears, who also did Gingie's voice like a ventriloquist. 
But the best cartoon-to-real-life transformation award would have to go to tiny little Lord Farquaad’s legs -- the actor plays Lord Farquaad is on his knees the whole time to make him look short, and a pair of fake puppet legs is attached to his waist. The things he does with his fake legs -- crossing them, doing flying leaps, tippytoeing across the stage -- are absolutely hilarious. Those legs stole the show!
My kids are notoriously difficult to please when it comes to movies and shows -- they are either bored or so emotionally invested (i.e. scared, happy, moved, etc..) that they end up in tears or in fear of nightmares. But Shrek the Musical hit just the right mix of humor, adventure and entertainment; they absolutely loved it! I highly recommend this show -- as Shrek sings in his final number, "I'm a Believer"!Welcome to Day 4 of my 12 Days of Christmas giveaway series! No doubt you're already thinking about what to wear for New Year's Eve, and it's likely to be something bright and shiny to party in! But what to wear underneath that fab party dress that gives you coverage and support? That's where Kymaro comes in, with products like the Backless Bra and the Bust Up Cup!
Welcome to Day 3 of my 12 Days of Christmas giveaway series! Today I'm giving away a free #24 box of surprise hair accessories from CoverYourHair.com. CoverYourHair.com sells pretty Hair Clips, Hair Accessories, Baby Hats, Baby Headbands, Snoods, Headband Bandanas (like the beautiful green pre-tied bandana we reviewed last May), and other head coverings. There's something for everybody -- and you can get 20% off your purchase at CoverYourHair.com with the promo code blog1231 (expires 12/31/10).
Their Three-Button Stylish Hat looks so amazing on The Pea, and it's nice and warm so it's perfect for the cold weather! It's a one-size-fits-all hat, which means it's way too tight for my ginormous head, but I think it would fit most women's heads comfortably. It's very well made, and the three buttons running down one side give it such a nice, jaunty air. We love this hat!Welcome to Day 2 of my 12 Days of Christmas giveaway series! It's a big, exciting day for me, because this is my very first Playmobil giveaway -- today I'm giving away a Playmobil Mini Take Along Pirates Dungeon!
Have fun on the go with the Knights Take Along Tower. Includes two figures, working cannon, and many accessories that can be placed in the tower’s storage compartment. This toy is recommended for kids ages four and up. The suggested retail price is $12.99. Warning. Choking Hazard. Small parts. Not for children under 3 years.
Have fun on the go with the Pirates Take Along Dungeon. Includes two figures, monkey, working cannon, and many other accessories that can be placed in the dungeon’s storage compartment. Recommended for ages four and up. Suggested Retail Price: $12.99 Warning. Choking Hazard. Small parts. Not for children under 3 years. Merry Christmas, and welcome to Day 1 of my 12 Days of Christmas giveaway series! Today I'm giving away the best Christmas present ever to one lucky Bonggamom Finds reader: a Leapster Explorer Camera and Video Recorder from Leapfrog! We were sent one to review and we've been playing with it for about a week. Here's what we think of it:
I entered to win the new Leapster Explorer Camera & Video Recorder on Bonggamom Finds! You can enter too at http://tinyurl.com/279natk
2) Write this on the Bonggamom Finds Facebook wall (1 entry):
Several days ago I wrote about how science experiments are a great way to beat boredom and keep kids' minds active over the winter break. We recently received a Mythbusters Science Kit to review which proves once again that science can be fun, and puts end to the myth that science is for dweebs. 
I love that the kids had to build it themselves with interlocking pipes, and that it works like a blowgun, so it doesn't really look like some automatic weapon that happens to shoot marshmallows (actually, we didn't have any mini marshmallows, so we used the little pompoms that came in the kit, so it's a pompom shooter right now). I love that Myth Busters capitalized on my bloodthirsty sons' love of hitting targets in order to teach them a thing or two about air pressure!
Only four days till Christmas -- have you bought your stocking stuffers yet? As if I don't have enough to do, I devote a fair amount of time thinking about the "perfect" stocking stuffer. It should be small enough to fit in a stocking, inexpensive enough not to overshadow the "main" presents, sturdy and fun enough for the kids to enjoy for longer than a day (so I don't feel like I've thrown my money away on cheap junk). And the less calories, the better (it's not like there isn't enough candy and cookies already!).
One lucky Bonggamom Finds reader will win a Cahootie Party Pack, which includes the following Cahooties:
I love swag. I'm one of those bloggers you'll see at blogging conferences, feverishly stuffing swag into suitcases, spending $25 in extra airline baggage fees and $25 to ship home boxes of free stuff that would cost me $20 to buy at home. Yes, I'm what some people might call a swag wh*r3, um, lady of the night.
Mornings are crazy for me, so I like to pull on a pair of yoga pants or leggings that look and feel good without too much effort. A couple of months ago I was given a pair of Tummy Control Boot Cut pants from The Girls, and it has joined my set of go-to wardrobe staples for school mornings, workouts and casual wear!
These pants felt great -- throughout the entire 13.1 miles, I didn't have to tug them up once. But they're not just for workouts; I wear them anytime and everywhere!  | Day 1: Leapster Explorer Camera and Video Recorder begins Dec. 25 |
| Day 2: Playmobil Mini Take Along Pirate Dungeon begins Dec. 26 |
| Day 3: Surprise Hair Accessory box (worth $25) from CoverYourHair.com begins Dec. 27 |
 | Day 4: Backless Bra + Bust Up Cups from Kymaro begins Dec. 28 |
 | Day 5: iloveRobots Blazor begins Dec. 29 |
 | Day 6: N-Strike Deploy CS-6 blaster begins Dec. 30 |
 | Day 7: Beyblade Super Vortex Battle Set begins Dec. 31 |
 | Day 8: Play-Doh Mega Fun Factory begins Jan. 1 |
 | Day 9: Cami Body Shaper + Bottom Body Shapers from Kymaro begins Jan. 2 |
 | Day 10: Kymaro Curve Control Jeans begins Jan. 3 |
 | Day 11: Playskool Explore n’ Grow Musical Gear Center begins Jan. 4 |
 | Day 12: My Little Pony Friendship is Magic Singly Pony AND Blythe Loves Littlest Pet Shop Doll begins Jan. 5 |