Rosie Flo’s Coloring Fashion Show (Giveaway!)

Winner selected with random.org 4/29: Congratulations, Jen from Big Binder!

I was never a big fan of coloring books. Too much constriction, you have to stay in the lines! Roo loves The Rosie Flo series of coloring books precisely because they don't have that ho-hum quality. Sure, you're supposed to color in the pages but you're also supposed to finish the drawings and add your own special you-ness. 

I think I was as excited as she was when we received Rosie Flo's Coloring Fashion Show, a pop-up fashion show that little ones can assemble themselves since everything is perforated to punch out of sturdy cardstock. Even the catwalk is easy to set up, with just a little folding and inserting of tabs. No adhesives are necessary– you can even dissemble the whole shebang, including the stage, models and audience seating, fold 'em flat and tuck them back inside the sturdy box it came in to show the collection in a different locale. Smart! 

So far, Roo has just been adding faces and appendages to the models in black and white. I suspect color and glitter will follow soon. Right now, it's looking pretty monochromatic and mod, which is kind of cool in its fashionable austerity…

If you'd like to win a Rosie Flo's Coloring Fashion Show of your own, visit Chroniclebooks.com and let me know what your favorite items are in the comments below. 

Entries will be accepted through April 25th and I'll pick the winner using Random.org. US/Canada readers are eligible. Only one entry/comment per person, please. 

***Have you entered all of my Giveaways?*** 

In accordance to the FTC Guidelines and the WOMMA Code of Ethics, I am disclosing that I received the set shown above to facilitate this review and I will be entered into a prize drawing for posting this giveaway. No compensation was provided and all opinions are, as usual, my own.

Great Wolf Lodge on Sale!

It's been about a year since we took the kids to Great Wolf Lodge in Kansas City and nary a day goes by that Roo does not ask about when we're going to go back. Today, they started a 48 hour sale on reservations from now through December, which includes their Snowland winter wonderland event. (The 48 hour sale applies to the Williamsburg, VA Great Wolf Lodge location also.)



So tempting!

Ahoy!

Do you ever feel like a negligent parent? I am pretty sure Roo and Jasper's childhood memories will be incomplete without this Pirate Hideaway Treehouse from Posh Tots. Only $18K and it could be ours… it's a relative steal compared to the even more luxurious Red Beard's Revenge Pirate Ship Playhouse, which clocks in at $52K– or a fancy new car for mommy…

If you grow up with one of these in your backyard, what do you wish for? The barre is set pretty high. Media empire? World domination? The sky's the limit.

Family Game Night

As part of TV Turn Off Week, which encourages families to resort to non-electronic forms of entertainment, Hasbro is challenging American families to spend some quality time together on Wednesday, September 23rd- tomorrow night! It's Family Game Night and everyone is invited to participate. Just gather your friends and family together for some unplugged activity… you might be surprised at how much fun you can have without staring at the boob tube. Or the internet, for that matter…

We received some Hasbro games to jumpstart our Family Game Night fun. A couple were old favorites: Guesstures, Boggle, Scattergories as well as one that's new to me: The Game of Things, which comes in a cool wooden box and is sure to get your friends giggling in no time.



The one I am most excited to play, though, is Connect 4x4, which is a 3-D update of the old Connect 4 game. My neighbors had the original when I was little and I coveted it! Now I can't wait to teach my kids how to play.



For more information and suggestions for age-appropriate games and snacks, check out www.familygamenight.com. For a limited time, you can earn bonus Box Tops for your favorite school with the purchase of certain Hasbro games.

If you're feeling adrift without some kind of electronic device plugged in, you can always pick up Family Game Night for Wii or PS2… just remember to play them with someone you love!

Sterling Children's Books

The folks at Sterling Children's Books are apparently totally insane. In a good way, though. Rarely do you see offices full of publishing types donning chicken hats and dancing around in support of a new book but witness this spectacle:



I was dying to check out Chicken Dance before I even saw its gloriously illustrated cover, with its preening star, Elvis Poultry. (I had a roommate in college - hi, Kels! - who was such an Elvis devotee that he would actually watch the entire movie marathon that played over his birthday every year. Later, when I lived in Memphis, I developed a deeper understanding of the cult of Elvis and now whenever I see a bedazzled jumpsuit I smile. Even if that jumpsuit is on a rooster.)



The adulation is infectious throughout Chicken Dance, which melds fandom with the farmyard. It's funny and engaging for kids and adults. Plus the dynamic duo behind the book have some stylin' moves. Check out author Tammi Sauer shake a tailfeather:



And illustrator Dan Santat might not be quite as light on his feet but he wins bonus points for the headband…



If Chicken Dance inspires you to "reach for the stars," you should definitely enter the Chicken Dance Video Contest. All you have to do is create your own music video inspired by the book and you could win some original artwork by Dan Santat or gift certificates to Barnes and Noble. Oh, and fame and adoration, of course!



If your kids are a little too young and grabby for Chicken Dance, you might want to check out two new books in Sterling's Touch the Art series of interactive board books that introduce art history to young'uns.

Catch Picasso's Rooster features artwork showing animals with the added bonus of tactile manipulatives: the reader can feel feathers on Picasso's rooster or the whiskers of Rousseau's tabby cat.



Tickle Tut's Toes showcases the wonders of ancient Egypt with touchable textures representing sand and smooth stone and mummy wrappings.



Sterling Children's Books definitely have a sense of whimsy to match their employees'… and did I mention their selection of Richard Scarry titles? Bestill my heart.

Keeping Busy

Roo's been needing constant activity this summer, so I've been keeping an eye out for fun things to do with her. I bought this Sassafras Kid's Pretzel Making Kit at a local craft store a while ago and whipped it out last week.



Both kids love getting pretzels at the zoo so I knew this would be a hit. Roo especially loved rolling the pretzel dough into rods and then choosing shapes to make. Dipping them into the baking soda/water mixture was also thrilling.



She was pretty skeptical about the packets of squishy chocolate dip and nacho cheese, so we didn't use them. Roo overcompensated a little by going overboard on the salt:



Hearts, snakes, triangles and more… yum!

Check out Sassafras for all sorts of cool activities for kids and grown-ups.

Thomas the Train Live!

When I was little, I used to love going to the big traveling roadshows. The excitement of the massive crowds, the bright lights and , of course, the omnipresent souvenir stands were always worth the wait. I was especially enamored of the Ice Capades (oh, wow… I just realized that's a pun. I can't believe I never noticed that. I feel really silly now.) because ice skating was awfully exotic to me– our temperatures rarely dropped below 60º even in the dead of winter. The shows that had tie-ins with my favorite TV and movie characters were always brilliant, too. I remember seeing Big Bird at the Waikiki Shell and being totally starstruck!



When we received an offer from MomSelect to see Thomas & Friends Live! On Stage: A Circus Comes To Town here in Wichita, I accepted without hesitation. Jasper and Roo haven't been to see this kind of show before and they love playing with Thomas toys, so I am sure they will go completely nuts! Thomas & Friends Live! On Stage will be at Hartman Arena on Sunday May 24th. To find out if the show will be playing near you, check the Thomas & Friends Tour Schedule.



Thanks to MomSelect for giving us this opportunity to enjoy some family entertainment!