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The first book is, Dotty, by Erica S. Perl.  It is about a gal who brings “Dotty” her invisible horned friend with her to school.  My daughter has imaginary friends (and actually an imaginary house where she claims to live part-time) so she can really relate with Ida, the girl in the story.  I love how this book talks about reality and imagination, encourages children to apologize for wrong actions, and celebrates creativity and active imaginations.  This book is great for those pre-school jitters, I love how warm Ida’s teacher, Ms. Raymond, is in this story!

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My son loves the second book we got to review today!  He loves facts and vivid pictures (and could do without story plot most of the time).   The book, The Exceptionally, Extraordinarily Ordinary First Day of School, by Albert Lorenz, is hilarious – it definitely speaks to little boys.  It features wild creatures that welcome, John (the main character), to the school bus where they drive to the “castle” (aka school), he carries a lizard and steps on frogs in science class, gets to meet several historical characters, eats insects for lunch in the cafeteria, and more.  Quirky Kiddo Z loved all the detail (and trying to find the kid hiding on each page picking his nose).  I loved the facts in the sidebar.  This book was one of the more educational and yet incredibly silly stories we have read in some time!

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The final book we got to review was about Sam, a mouse who lives in a library.  The book, Library Mouse: A World to Explore, by Daniel Kirk, is really cute.  My hubby used to be a librarian (sexy, I know!) and we love our local library and the trove of information you can find browsing books.  Sam and his friend Sarah share their love of books with the readers, and explain how they research with books to learn new things, like how to fly airplanes or to pretend they were Egyptian pharaohs.  They get to “see the world” through the books they are reading.

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Want one of these books?  Leave a comment telling me what items are on your school shopping list and become a follower of QM!  Winner will be chosen randomly next Monday.

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Are you a Facebook Fan of Quirky Momma? If so, we have a special giveaway just for you! We are currently a mere 48 fans away from 500!!! Want a chance to win a Wikki Stix Activity Set? Become a Quirky Momma on Facebook, receive semi-regular updates… AND… One of my lucky fans will be chosen (the day we reach 500 fans) to receive over 80 stix, along with a reusable playboard and an activity guide. This would be great for traveling! We love how Wikki Stix are a no-mess craft and learning resource and have used them in multiple projects including our learning to read. Thanks Wikki Stix for being sponsors of Quirky Momma!

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We thought it would be fun to change up the other giveaway too!  Suzanne of Pixie Place has created some adorable I Spy Travel bags.  I first “met” Suzanne online over a year ago when she inspired our own I Spy Jars and Shakey bottles.  She was kind enough to create a custom order for us of a big lot of charms that we used to create several of our learning activities.  I love how approachable she was!  Today she’s offering one of her I Spy Bags, A Monkey in a barrel, to whichever one of you has the closest guess of the date and time that the next Quirky Kiddo will arrive.  Please visit her site and let me know which of her bags is your favorite!

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To Win Wikki Stix – become a Facebook Fan!  Visit Wikki Store & tell us what you’ll make with their crafting sticks!

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To Win an I Spy Monkey Bag: Guess the date/time our fourth kiddo will arrive & check out Pixie Place – what bags are your favorites?

Hint: My due date is July 15th, but 2 of my 3 kids came early.

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Steps to Sock Mop with Your Preschoolers:

1. Remove the table from the room – not an easy feat for an 8 month pregnant Quirky Momma, but we managed.
2. Sweep the floors… then sweep them again.
3. Fill a shallow pan with soapy water
4. Put on some of Daddy’s socks
5. …and have fun stomping and sliding!

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My oldest daughter was great at spot scrubbing the floor with her feet.  My son preferred traditional mopping, he’s such a “tool” and gadget boy!  While my youngest liked splashing and making a mess.

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Want to get your own cleaning supplies?  Head over to Mom Loop and join in the cleaning fun!  Thanks Scrubbing Bubbles for providing samples for the Quirky Home to try and giving some to one of our readers to enjoy.

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Thanks to Brandie from Rudy Rukus for joining in our cleaning fun and to Jackie, from Pocketful of Posies for sharing her Sock Mopping Post!  Love them!

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Want some free toys?  We are giving away over a dozen toys!  Tell us which one is your favorite and check out our giveaway page to see what you might win!

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Wikki-Stix are a great mess-free crafting activity. Our kids have used them as window art in the car, to mold into creatures, make rainbows, even have mock mini-swordfights. Being mess-freee they are great to take out and about.

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The B.H2-Whoa is an awesome mess-free doodle board, it comes with refillable water pens and is reversible with two coloring surfaces. Hours of doodling fun!  Look for it at Target.

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The game Loaded Questions: Junior is a fun way to engage your kids and learn something about them in the process.  Keeping score might not be possible in a car-ride, but the questions are sure to get some laughs out of your kids!

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Grab and Go Games by BriarPatch help your kids work on memory skills or pattern recognition during a car-trip or when stuck in a hotel.  They are packaged for traveling!  Want other game ideas?  Check out The Big Toy Book!

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Do you want a new book to read?  Even my youngest will sit and read while sitting in the Dr. office or driving and doing errands.  Basie & Paisley is a great series with themes, like bellybuttons or monsters who play polka music, that preschoolers just love full of bright pictures, sure to entertain your youngster!

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Why not make up your own story?  Pack these Rory Story Cubes by Gamewright and waiting for a table at the restaurant will no longer be a dull moment! The cubes have different images which you can incorporate into your story.  Brilliant!   The Big Toy Book referred these to us! 

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For a great selection of iphone apps developed for especially for kids, check out Pic Pocket Books. They have educational games, stories and lots of silly fun ideas to entertain your kiddos. Available at Pic Pocket Books & Amazon.

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Getting the kids their own Kidz Gear Wireless Car Headphones means you don’t go crazy with kids music or DVDs during your trip! Check out KidzGear!  They also have a wired version.

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Eddie Bauer has a Travel Tray
that attaches to car-seat straps. It is perfect for containing toys and snacks during road trips!  I am looking forward to using them on our road trip – hopefully, they will cut down on the amount of dropped toys!  Note: Not a great drawing surface.  Available at Target.

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Going out to eat? Second to waiting for a table, being patient waiting for food to arrive can be difficult for any kiddo.  These buildable straws will keep any kiddo happily hydrated and engaged. Note: Not suitable for young kiddos.  Available at Museum Tours.

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Quiet play is always a good thing when cooped up, either in a highchair at the restaurant or on the confines of a car!  Cahootie Catcher has a wide variety of cootie catchers for your kiddos to decorate with stickers, manipulate, pick the outfit of their person, ask eachother questions or create a story.  These are especially loved by kinetic kids.

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Finger puppets are our activity bag.  Your kids can use them to create a pretend world.  My son loves the animal finger puppets at Ikea, he likes having the animals chase each other.  My daughter loves the little people series.  I love how they are small!  I can easily stuff several in my pocket for a last min errand-trip.

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Museum Tour has some terrific Magna-Tiles that are great to build with.  As they stick together they are easy to use in the car with a travel tray or while waiting at the Dr. office.

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B. Toy’s Stackadoos
are easy to grab and stick together making them another great item to pack in your diaper bag to entertain that bored preschooler.  They can also be used to help your child develop pattern recognition.

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We are having a giveaway of over a dozen of these toy guide items, with several other items from other sponsors added to the giveaway bonanza.  Be sure to join in the fun!

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Quirky Momma was not paid for any of these reviews.  All products included in the giveaway/guide are toys we love or have on our wish list.  Some review toys were given to us as compensation.

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You can win one or more of the following Travel Toys/Games:

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1. Madeline Grab and Go Games – from The Big Toy Book. Great travel bag with a matching and memory game
2. One of the Basie & Paisley Books – Some of the most imaginative children books out there!
3. B.H2-Whoa Aqua Doodling Board – Perfect for coloring on the go
4. Wireless headphones designed for kids by Kidz Gear – So you don’t have to listen to the umpteenth replay of their favorite episode.
5. Cahootie Catchers (4 of these will be given away) – Great for the purse, fold and go entertainment.
6. Loaded Questions – the Junior version of a great conversation starting game (2 items to be given away)
7. A Bee Hand Puppet from Headsprout, a great online reading program and resource!
8. The Everything Toddler Activities Book, by Joni Levine.  This is a great resource for those “what-shall-we-do-today” moments.
9. Finger puppets from Ikea (2 sets will be given away).  I love quiet play
10. 3 iphone apps for kids by Pic Pocket Books.  There are tons of great options sure to make any kids day!
11. Travel Crayon Wallet – made by a Quirky Momma!

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How you can enter to win?  (You must do #1 or#2 to qualify initially).

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1. Grab the Toy Guide Button and put it on your blog (or share the toy guide via facebook or email).
2. Like Quirky Momma on Facebook
3. Comment on any post in Quirky Momma, on our Facebook page, or in our Mom Loop Community.
4. Visit our Tips and Toy Guide and tell us which item is your favorite (so I know which one to send you if you are the first name drawn).

*** You can comment daily, however you must tell me you did #1 or #2 in order to be counted.  Winners will be randomly selected, prizes given away by choice and then randomly.  Contest ends May 8th at midnight.

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Here is the code for our toy guide button:

<a href="http://quirkymomma.com/2010/entertaining-kids-traveling/"><img border="0" src="http://quirkymomma.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/Toy-Guide-logo.jpg" alt="" width="150" height="75" alt="Preschool tips and toy guide"/></a>

<a href=”http://quirkymomma.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/Toy-Guide-logo.jpg”><img title=”Toy Guide logo” src=”http://quirkymomma.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/Toy-Guide-logo.jpg” alt=”Tips and Toy Travel Guide” width=”150″ height=”75″ /></a>

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Quirky Momma was not paid for any of these reviews.  All products included in the giveaway/guide are toys we love or have on our wish list.  Some review toys were given to us as compensation.

Congrats to Susan of Giving Up on a Clean House, she is the winner of these preschooler books!  Thanks to all for participating! 

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We love to read at the Quirky Home, our favorite books that are whimsical and encourage our kiddos imagination! Today we have a giveaway of two hardcover books, perfect for Mothers and Father’s Day! The first book we have is Just Like Mama, by Leslie Newman.  In Just like Mama kids read about some of the fun moments we share with our kids, slurping our spaghetti, playing dress-up, having tea parties, etc.  This book would be great to remind your daughter of those special moments you shared as well as inspire you.  Bored?  Maybe you can think of a fun activity to do together .   The other book is, Because I am Your Daddy, by Sherry North.  In Because I’m Your Daddy they discuss a number of different whimsical "jobs" that Daddys have and how he is your kids hero.  My son’s favorite line in the books is, "If I were an explorer, I would guide you through dark caves."  My little fella loves building caves and playing with flashlights!

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Today we are giving away both books to one lucky winner.  Thanks Abrams Books for sponsoring today’s giveaway.  Check them out for more great books for your children to enjoy!  Contest ends Thursday night, April 22nd.  Winner will be chosen randomly.

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What you can do to win these preschooler books:

• Become a Facebook fan of Quirky Momma and/or Abrams Books.
• Leave a comment mentioning your kids obsessed over favorite book
• Share this contest somewhere, anywhere, just tell me you did

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We just discovered Erudition! It is a game designed to help early readers memorize common site words. We were given a copy to play and one to giveaway to you, our readers!
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Brief description:

Erudution has over 280 word cards. They say that 50% of all written text uses the words on those cards. The game also comes with a set of alphabet cards, which I loved, it allowed my not-quite reading little fella join in the learning fun. The words are broken up into different reading levels so beginners can play with kids who are more advanced. The game board has a town theme which my son enjoyed (he’s really into firetrucks and trains right now, both of which are on the board).
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How did we like the game?

I love how Erudition has a wide range of kids that can use and learn from it. I had to separate the “beginner words” though, my daughter refuses to try five letter words. She won’t even attempt to guess them. So I had to weed out a few colors and words like, “there” which were included in the beginner level. I liked how the cards were initially in alphabetical order! This meant that we could work on phonics at the same time that we learned site words. The game board was okay, but the real investment comes from the words. Each word has the definition written below it – I used that to help my daughter guess what the word was. The alphabet letter cards have examples of the letter being used in a word, both at the beginning of a word and in the middle of a word. So often curriculum programs focus on the first letter, I appreciated that! We’ll need a bit of practice playing games as the kids got confused with the rolling, choosing a card, who was going, etc. I didn’t realize I haven’t taught them “game skills” – yikes. I can see this game being enjoyed by preschoolers through second graders!

Here are some ways you can win your own copy of this sight word game:

• Leave a comment telling me another game that your kids enjoy playing
• Find another post and leave a comment including the word “Erudition”
• Follow Quirky Momma on Facebook or Twitter (or RSS, email, etc.)  Let me know!
• Tell someone about this – be creative it can be a blog post, tweet, facebook posting, forum comment, etc.

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P.S.  As my little fella was super sick these last few days, I was late in posting this.  The Erudition contest will end next Saturday (instead of the typical Thrusday) – thanks to all for your patience and understanding!

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You know how much I love mom-made products. Moms just really know what what other moms need. Kelley is no exception. Do you constantly loose pacifiers? How about shopping cart covers? I know I detest carrying a cumbersome cover, when the handle is the place their hands and mouths most likely are! Kelley gets these things. She has an adorable Etsy shop, Ellye-K Designs, with numerous mom-friendly products. Today she has graciously offered a bag to one of you.

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What may you win:

One roomy handsewn bag in Green and Brown Hues.  It is the perfect size for a sippy cup, a diaper and a snack!  Great for going out and about.  The bag also comes with an interior compartment for keys or whatever.  This bag is lined making it super durable!

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How you can win this bag:

• Visit Ellye-K Designs on Etsy and come back and tell us your tip on keeping kids entertained when out doing errands.
• Fan Ellye-K or Quirky Momma on facebook
• Tell someone about this giveaway (be sure to leave a link)

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Contest ends Thursday night, March 4th.  The winner will be chosen randomly.

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Fun activities you can do to “play to learn” with the Evgie Product line:

• Practice telling time
• Learn about the four seasons
• Learn letter recognition and practice spelling words
• Use the numbers to create math problems
• Put on a theater production with their super silly puppets

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What you can win:

30$ Gift Certificate with free shipping of the product (to US and Canada) to pick your choice of any of the items Evgie has to offer!

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How you can enter?  Leave a comment for any or all of the following:

• Visit Evgie and tell us what you’d spend your giftcertificate on!
• Follow Quirky Momma (facebook or twitter) and/or Evgie (facebook or twitter)
• Share this giveaway via blog post, twitter, a note in facebook, email to your friends, whatever!  Be sure to let us know!