Product Reviews | Mommy to Three Monkeys!

Apr

Horizon Organic Lowfat Chocolate Milk – Feed Your Choco-milk-aholic! (CLOSED)

Do you have a “chocomilkaholic” in your house? I do! Gabriel can not start the day without his chocolate milk. It’s his coffee. If I would let him, he would drink 3 cups of it in the morning before breakfast. He would drink it all afternoon. He would rather drink chocolate milk than eat actual food. He’s got an addiction problem.

Nathan and Anthony also like their milk, but are not quite as intense about it as Gabe. Thank goodness! I think we go through 4 gallons of milk in about 5 days. If the boys had their way, it would be quicker.

So when I was asked to try out Horizon Organic Lowfat Chocolate Milk with DHA Omega-3, I accepted.

If you read here at all, you know I am working on cutting out preservatives, food dyes, sugar and everything else that is artificially added to my boys’ food. Horizon Organic Chocolate Milk fits perfectly with this quest!

A little about Horizon:

Founded in 1991, Horizon is a pioneer in the organic industry, and we were the first company to supply organic milk nationally. We are proud to work with more than 500 organic family farms across the country.

A little about DHA Omega-3:

Docosahexaenoic Acid (DHA) is a type of Omega-3 fatty acid, a nutrient that has been studied extensively in connection with heart, brain and eye health. Although it is found in most tissues throughout the body, the highest concentrations of DHA are in the brain, nervous system and the retina of the eye, and it helps support normal development in these areas. DHA has also been shown to help promote heart health. Learn more here.

There are lots of studies right now linking a lack of Omega-3’s to ADHD, and this is something very close too my heart and mind right now.

As I mentioned, the boys LOVE their chocolate milk, and they drank the Horizon Organic and liked it just as much as the less healthy powdered brand I had been using. My only complaint really is that it’s not cheap. Nearly $4.50 for a half gallon at my local grocer. But I am quickly learning that if we want to live a preservative free and organic lifestyle, then it’s going to cost a bit more. This is the price I will pay for the continued good health of my children!

Not sure if your local store carries Horizon products? Check their product locator to see where you can find it, then your own children can enjoy delicious and good for you chocolate milk, too.

Would you like the chance to try Horizon Organic Lowfat Chocolate Milk with DHA Omega-3? I have prizes for THREE WINNERS!

First Prize: 2 coupons each for a FREE half gallon of Horizon Organic Lowfat Chocolate Milk, 2 coupons each for an additional $1.00 off, a red Horizon branded Chico bag and a Horizon branded Rubik’s cube!

Second & Third Prize: Each winner to receive 2 coupons each for a FREE half gallon of Horizon Organic Lowfat Chocolate Milk and 2 coupons each for an additional $1.00 off.

First Mandatory Entry

Take a visit to the Horizon Dairy website. Come leave me a comment with either a different Horizon product you have/would like to try or tell me something you learned. (Hint: They have lots of great information about organic dairy and DHA products).

Bonus Entry for this Contest Only

Become a Fan (or I guess now it’s “Like”) of Horizon on Facebook! = one extra entry

Click Here for Additional Entries and Contest Rules

This giveaway will end on Saturday May 1st, 2010 at 10pm PST. Open to US residents only. Winner will be chosen at Random.org and notified by email. Winner will have 72 hours to reply and claim their prize.

FTC Disclosure: I was contacted by Horizon Organic to review their product. I was given coupons for 2 free half gallons of their product as well as 2 $1.00 off coupons. The opinions expressed are always my own.

Categories : Giveaways, Product Reviews

Apr

Meet The Fresh Beat Band!

By mommy23monkeys · Comments (6)

I had a very eventful week last week! On Thursday, we were invited up to meet Nickelodeon’s The Fresh Beat Band..and we had a blast!

Categories : Family Life, Product Reviews

Comments (6)

Apr

Company’s You Should do Business With (part 1)

By mommy23monkeys · Comments (17)

For the last several weeks, I’ve not done much but work on Penny’s auction. It was a lot of hard work. I had NO idea what I was getting myself into when I thought, “wouldn’t a little auction be fun?” But I would do it again in a heartbeat because 1) it helped my family and 2) I learned that there is still amazing kindness in people.

I only actually “pitched” a few companies at first. When I emailed them explaining our situation, I offered some ad spots here on mommy23monkeys.com if they would donate for me. I quickly came to realize that I would not be able to give ad spots to over 50 sponsored prizes! My sidebars just are not that big! So I decided I would do some “thank you” posts instead. I’ll break it up so that this one post doesn’t take 20 years to read. But here are some of our amazing sponsors that donated, without question, without expecting anything in return. They donated because the company heads are generous and caring people. People that care about the fight of a little girl they had never even met. These are the kinds of business’s I want to do business with…and so should you!

The Surf Diva Surf School in La Jolla, CA. They were actually introduced to me by the La Jolla Mom. They offer surf clinics and camps to the women of San Diego. They have been the #1 surf school for women for over 12 years! I really would love to learn to surf. Too bad you won’t be catching me in a bathing suit anytime soon.

The Pretty Peacock. OMGosh! The Pretty Peacock offers stunning handmade artisan jewelry. I could not have worked with a more generous and amazing woman than, Ana, the owner. In addition to donating a beautiful pendant to the auction, she has activated a FREE SHIPPING CODE on orders placed through The Pretty Peacock website. Order something online and enter the code PENNY. Any time someone uses this free shipping code, The Pretty Peacock will donate $5.00 more dollars to Pennies4Penny! Just in time for Mother’s Day Shopping!

aden + anais specializes in beautiful newborn swaddling blankets made of muslin. Their store offers blankets, bibs, towels, washcloths and more. All made of muslin and ready for your newborn to snuggle into.

Collagist is an online store for all your collage, photo and canvas print needs. Collagist creates a unique product just for you. They also have a Facebook Fan page that you can join here http://www.facebook.com/collagist

Build a Bear Workshop specializes in bringing your Teddy Bear to life. They offer parties in store or you can custom order your furry friend online. The people at Build a Bear created a unique Lamb just for Penny’s auction.

Legoland California donated EIGHT passes to Penny’s auction! That’s nearly $800 in value. I am not generally mentioning the value of the prize, because I don’t really think it matters, but in this case it was exceptional. Legoland is a FUN place to visit here in Southern California. Unlike any other amusement park. This summer they are opening up a brand new water park, too that I can’t wait to visit. If you are in the area looking for something to do…this is it!

Alright, so there is my first 6 companies you should do business with. Please be on the lookout for more recommendations this week!

Categories : Misc. Nonsense, Product Reviews

Comments (17)

Feb

Date Night at Cirque du Soleil – KOOZA!

By mommy23monkeys · Comments (11)

Last night, I had the best time ever with my son, Anthony. We went to see Cirque du Soleil – KOOZA. It was the first time seeing a Cirque du Soleil show for both of us, and it was amazing!

It wasn’t just amazing though. It was terrifying, exciting, electrifying, heart-stopping, vertigo inducing, wild and FANTASTIC! Oh, and Funny, too.

Is that enough adjectives for you?

KOOZA is a return to the origins of Cirque du Soleil: It combines two circus traditions – acrobatic performance and the art of clowning. The show highlights the physical demands of human performance in all its splendor and fragility, presented in a colorful mélange that emphasizes bold slapstick humor.

Anthony and I arrived at the Grand Chapiteau (Big Top) at 7pm for the 7:30 show. I was worried about being “too” early, but we could have gotten their sooner since there was plenty to see and do once inside. This is the only picture I managed to get. I was told no camera’s inside so I didn’t even bring one. A decision I regret since we could have taken photos outside of the stilt performers and scenery. I probably could have gotten someone to take our picture, too.

We were greeted by performers on stilts and other clowns passing out Gerber daisies and doing street performance acts. There were lots of children present which surprised me being it was late on a school night. I guess I don’t corner the market on “cool mommy-ness.” Inside the tent we were treated to complimentary popcorn and soda’s. I don’t know if this was free because it was a “press preview” showing or if that’s the norm, but I certainly appreciated it.

We made our way to our seats. I was shocked to discover that we were in the FRONT ROW! How exciting is that? We were to the far right of the stage, in the front row. These were very exciting seats because we were right underneath all the crazy acrobatics. It was a nausea inducing perspective for sure.

If you want a very tiny taste of what we got to see at KOOZA, watch this video trailer. It’s cool!

KOOZA Trailer

It would be really hard to narrow down a favorite act for me since they were all spectacular. But the “Wheel of Death” (how’s that for a name?) was particularly exciting. These certifiable crazy people were running and flipping and jumping rope on the outside of these “wheels” while it spun through the air and breakneck speed.

Anthony could tell I was scared to death and he kept reassuring me, “mommy, these people train for a really long time.” Yeah, I hope he remembers that this morning when he starts trying to do the stunts himself…which I have no doubt he will try!

Anthony seemed the most impressed with the “Chinese Chairs.” It was truly amazing to see the strength of this man as he did head and hand stands atop the chairs.

I’m sure Anthony will be stacking chairs this morning, too.

KOOZA is an adrenaline rush. I’m so glad that I was able to take Anthony to see it, and I’m really glad I got to see it myself. I would not hesitate to buy tickets for any future Cirque du Soleil productions since they are colorful and entertaining to the max. KOOZA will be in San Diego through March 21st with future stops already planned for Portland, Seattle, Vancouver, Calgary and Miami.

Tickets are still available online or by calling 1-800-450-1480.

FTC Disclosure: I was provided 2 tickets to see KOOZA so I could tell you about the show. The opinions are always my own.

Categories : Family Life, Local San Diego, Product Reviews

Comments (11)

Feb

GIVEAWAY/REVIEW ~ Webkinz Jr. (CLOSED)

By mommy23monkeys · Comments (86)

My boys are a little bit younger, so I have avoided the whole “Webkinz Craze” that seems to be around. I laugh when I visit Hallmark stores and see all the cute Webkinz behind locked glass. I guess they are a big deal and when I was approached to check out the new Webkinz JUNIOR’s, I was intrigued.

The Webkinz Jr.’s are designed especially for children ages 3 to 6. There is no reading and the characters talk you through the instructions and games. There is an entire interactive World much like the original Webkinz, but for the little ones. Webkinz Jr. has parental areas so you can set your child’s level of play, manage their account and also upgrade to the Deluxe membership which opens up more play areas and fun Webkinz merchandise.

“Santa Claus” brought each monkey boy a Webkinz Jr. of their very own: The Giraffe, Blue Puppy and Brown Bear. These stuffed animals are ADORABLE! So soft and bigger than regular Webkinz, so they are perfect little friends for the young kids. I think “my” favorite is Giraffe (who Anthony named “Bob.”). They are so soft, I found myself petting them on more than one occasion *blush* Each animal friend comes with a code that allows your child 1 year of online access to the fun virtual world of Webkinz Jr.

All of my boys are avid “gamers” (ha) and LOVED playing the online games with their pets.

All three boys would spend a long time navigating through the town and playing the games. I think Anthony’s favorite game was making cakes in the bakery.

Suggestions/Improvements

While I understand the design of having it be an individual game rather than a community, I think it would be cool if children could visit their sibling’s “houses.” All kids under one parent having access to each other. My boys kept trying to go visit and couldn’t. But like I said, I am sure it’s a safety feature to keep the littlest ones safe and I appreciate that. Also, I wish the website was cookie enabled so I didn’t have to come in and log them in each time they want to play. Again…probably a great safety feature so they can’t get online without parental consent and I should appreciate it and get over it. lol!

All in all, I think Webkinz Jr. is a super cute site and great for the age range. My boys have been bugging me to play it every day and like I mentioned, would sit here for hours on it if I let them.

Webkinz Jr. is widely available in Hallmark stores and other gift store retailers. It’s easy to visit Webkinz Jr. and check out their store locator.

The really nice people at Ganz are offering one lucky ready their choice of either the Pink Dog Webkinz Jr. or the Purple Monkey Webkinz Jr. YAY! Aren’t they so cute? I am wondering why I didn’t get a monkey….But lucky for you, if you win, you can have him.

First Mandatory Entry

Visit Webkinz Jr. and tell me who you think your child’s favorite pet friend would be.

Bonus Entry for This Giveaway Only

Become a Facebook Fan of Webkinz Jr.

Additional Entry Points and Contest Rules

This giveaway will end on February 15th at 10pm Pacific Time. Winner will be notified by email and have 72 hours to reply and claim their prize before it’s forfeit and a new winner chosen. This contest is open to residents of the US only. Good luck!

FTC Disclosure: I was provided 3 Webkinz Jr.’s to try out the website with my children so I could tell you what I thought about it. The opinions are my own.

Categories : Giveaways, Product Reviews

Comments (86)

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