I belong to an online forum for parents of triplets.  I spent a lot more time on that forum searching for help when my triplets were first born than I do now, but one of the things I read on that forum a long time ago was a thread about teaching your children the alphabet.  A parent was struggling with the process and looking for tips and advice.  Repeatedly, other parents suggested that she try LeapFrog’s “Letter Factory” DVD claiming their own kids watched the DVD and knew the alphabet within a week or two. 
I have to admit, I was intrigued …read more

The bulk of our family has been down with a nasty stomach virus for the last few days, and the three kids who are normally bouncing off the walls were starting to get a bit bored with the whole “resting” bit.
For my oldest, at least, the The American Girl Movie Collection that she received from her grandma for her birthday was just about the perfect distraction. Just at the point where the, “I hate this. I’m sooo bored!!!” mantra was starting to get more than just annoying, Baldman hooked the laptop up in her room and she …read more

The DVD release of Disney’s The Little Mermaid is next Tuesday, October 3rd.
I’m really looking forward to it. We have the VHS at grandma’s house, but the tape has been watched so many times that we’re afraid it’s going to break! As a result, my kids have only seen this movie once or twice. I can’t wait for The Little Mermaid to be a part of their world.
Did you know that it won two Oscars and was nominated for another? Not bad for a cartoon.

It seems that, with every new kids’ movie we see, my husband and I spend the first few minutes saying, “I know that voice! Who is that?”
Although it was released in 2004, we just saw Clifford’s Really Big Movie for the first time this summer (and about a hundred times since, because my oldest son’s pick for a movie is always, “Clifford with the cow!”).
The movie features the voices of many famous actors, such as John Ritter, Wayne Brady, Jenna Elfman, John Goodman, and Judge Reinhold. I don’t think we would have guessed all of the voices …read more

I love VeggieTales. And, I have to admit, I was not introduced to them after my children were born. No, I’ve known Bob the Tomato and Larry the Cucumber longer than I’ve known my own children.
Big Idea Productions started releasing these videos of computer animated vegetables when my husband and I were in college. We were hooked on them, and started collecting them then. The creators utilize inspiration from the Bible (Dave and the Giant Pickle/Rack, Shack and Benny), classic TV (God Wants Me to Forgive Them? parodies Gilligan’s Island) and literature (Madame Blueberry as …read more