Review - LeapPad LeapReader "Ready Set Write" Party!

We love LeapPad products.  Bean got a LeapPad 2 last Christmas and uses it all the time.  I was recently asked if we would like to join in their "Ready, Set, Write" parties to review the product and we jumped at the chance.

When the box arrived, we knew we needed to celebrate with some of our froggy friends while we tried out the products.

We had some Frog Juice, english muffin pizzas, ham and cheese roll ups and fruit salad.

Doesn't that look like a great way to begin learning?

The LeapReader is a learn-to-read-and-write system that helps your child learn to read and write by sounding out words and guiding letter strokes interactively. It helps children to read, write and learn through listening.  That is one of the principles Bean's Kindergarten teacher emphasizes to her class.  The LeapReader sounds out words, reads sentences, reads books, plays trivia games and puzzles to build comprehension skills and vocabulary.  There is a library of more than 105 books, workbooks, audio books and more.  It holds audio for up to 40 books or 175 songs.  We received 2 LeapReaders complete with a sampler book, Read Write and Listen, Getting Ready for Kindergarten, Monsters University, Learn to Write Letters with Mr. Pencil, Write It! Talking Words Factory Workbook, Talking Words Factory flash cards and special letter writing pages.

Look at everything that came for us to try out.

Bean was very excited and couldn't wait to get started.

We used the Getting Ready for Kindergarten workbook to do a reading activity.  When she placed the pen on the letters, it would say the letter and the picture above would say an item name that began with that letter.  This brought a lot of smiles.  It was so easy for her to use.  She figured out the icons at the bottom of each page and what they would do very quickly.  

Next it was onto a writing activity.  She wrote out words that rhymed and then the device played a song with those words.  She thought that was very cool.

Bean loved all the things the LeapReader would do and I loved how easy it was for her to learn the system.  The pen is a little large for her hand but it didn't seem to slow her down.  We give the LeapReader two waves of our glitter wands and say it's great to help to learn to read and write.

If you would like more information about the LeapReader or any other LeapPad products, you can visit their website, follow them on Twitter or check them out on Facebook.

*This opportunity was made possible by LeapPad and Mom Select.  We were sent two pre-programmed LeapReaders and accompanying workbooks for this review.  I was not compensated in any other way and all thoughts and opinions are my own.

Kidfresh Kid's Meals Review and Giveaway

Now that school is back in session, there are many nights each week where once we are home, I feel behind the eightball if I haven't already got something cooking in the crockpot for dinner.  Some nights as soon as I pick Bean up, "I'm hungry" is one of the first things she tells me.  It's hard to get her to understand that Mommy needs a while to get home and get dinner going.  Her little tummy isn't as patient as I'd like it to be.

That's why when I was given the opportunity to participate in the Kidfresh Blog Tour sponsored by MomCentral.com, I jumped at it.  I was excited to try some quick and easy meals that are made just for kids and have lots of hidden veggies mixed in.  I knew if Bean liked these, they would be a good standby for those nights when she just doesn't have the patience to wait around for me to cook dinner.  Most of the time, the quick and easy options aren't always the healthiest ones.  It's hard to find fast meals for your children that you don't feel guilty about giving them.

We were offered coupons to try some Kidfresh meals found at our local Publix stores.  To be honest, I could not find any at my local stores so I had to purchase them at Whole Foods.  I was told by a Publix manager that they are slowly rolling out Kidfresh to all of the metro area stores and that I should be able to find them there in a few weeks.

The meals we have tried so far are the Spaghetti Loops Bolognese and the Wagon Wheels Mac & Cheese.  Bean really liked both of these.  I'm not sure which she preferred because she ate quite a bit of both.  I took some pictures of the Wagon Wheels Mac & Cheese to show you just how much cheese there is.

Kidfresh meals contain nothing artificial.  Even the packaging is "green" and BPA-free.  The mac and cheese dinner has hidden carrots in it so Bean gets veggies even when she doesn't think she is.

If you would like to try Kidfresh meals yourself, check out the Kidfresh store locator to find local sellers.  You can also go to Kidfresh to find out more about these meals and even get a $1 off coupon.

Kidfresh is giving 2 free coupons to three of my readers.  All you have to do is go to their Facebook page and "like" them.  Then come back here and let me know you did.

You can also earn extra entries:

·     For 1 entry, like Pinkie and the Bean on Facebook.  If you already have, you can let me know and earn and entry.

·         For 1 entry, follow me on Twitter and come back to leave a comment  about it.

·         For 1 entry, follow @Kidfreshfoods on Twitter and come back to leave a comment  about it

·         For 1 entry, visit www.kidfresh.com and leave a comment with the meals you would like to try

·         For 1 entry, tweet about this giveaway: “No time to cook a nutritious meal for your kids? Enter to win FREE @KidfreshFoods meals at @pinkiefae #eatyourveggies”

For 3 extra entries, share the giveaway on your Facebook wall with a link to it.  Deadline for the drawing will be on Friday, September 30^th at 11:59PM EST and winners will be drawn at random. Winners will be notified via email and must respond within 24 hours to claim prize. Good luck!  


To make it very easy for everyone to enter, I am now using Rafflecopter to run my giveaways.  Please let me know if you have any trouble adding your entries.





DISCLAIMERS:

*Kidfresh Products are available at Publix and at other supermarkets across the Northeast region of the United States. Before entering the Giveaway please check the Kidfresh store locator to see if Kidfresh Products are available in your area.

I wrote this review while participating in a blog tour by Mom Central Consulting on behalf of Kidfresh and received Kidfresh coupons and products to facilitate my review, coupons to giveaway, and a promotional item to thank me for taking the time to participate.

Midnight Lullaby - Jane Roman Pitt

A few weeks ago I was contacted and asked to review a lullaby CD by classically trained singer Jane Roman Pitt. Her CD is called Midnight Lullaby. While Bean doesn't let me rock her to sleep any more, I really loved the times when I would sit in her room with her in my arms rocking her to sleep. I would turn down the lights and turn on soft music for her. These were very special days to me. These memories made me want to listen to Jane's music and yearn for those sweet times again.

First, my own thoughts on the songs. Jane Roman Pitt's voice really does soothe you. The best way I can describe it is a sound that feels like you're being wrapped up in it. Midnight Lullaby is soothing collection of songs written by some of well known singer songwriters including Bob Dylan, Wilco, Tom Waits, The Dixie Chicks, Sade and more. She has turned these songs into beautiful lullabies.

I was also given the chance to interview Jane and here's what she had to say about her music.

Pinkie:  I really enjoyed your CD. I love the “re-telling” of these contemporary songs into lullabies. But this really isn’t the first time you've done this, is it? Didn’t you do something similar on your Peace of the River CD with “Here Comes the Sun”?

Jane:  I’m so happy to have the chance to talk to you and your readers about music and lullabies. Yes, you are exactly right---it was “Here Comes the Sun” that inspired me to use other contemporary songs as lullabies. I thought and thought about putting that one on “Midnight Lullaby” but because it talked about the sun coming up, I figured it wasn’t actually a perfect image for the midnight theme!

Pinkie:  Other than the birth of your grandchildren, was that the first spark of the idea of doing a compilation of lullabies? I read on your blog that you really didn’t have a huge appreciation for lullabies until a friend of yours asked you to sing some on her CD series. What made you take notice of the effect music has on children?

Jane:  Although I loved doing the Beatles song that way, the idea of collecting lullabies came only when Gari Stein asked me to sing lullabies for her children’s project. I’d sung some of those songs to my own children, but while recording them all together I remembered just how sweet lullabies are and started to think more about them.

I also had ventured into singing jazz and country music, and the feedback was that my voice was just too sweet for those genres---I wasn’t tough enough! But when I sang lullabies, it felt like a perfect fit and I didn’t have to try to sound like anybody else.

I also realized during that recording that quiet music has a powerful effect---the recording engineer started to fall asleep! And when Gari told me that the kids in her music classes settled down as the lullabies were being played, it made me feel like it was something important--we all know how great it is to get kids to settle down!

Pinkie:  Your songs from Midnight Lullabies make the listener feel, or at least they made me feel, wrapped up in the tones of your voice. Other people have said your voice sounds like warm honey. I couldn’t think of a better explanation of your sound. I know you are an accomplished and award-winning musician but this CD must have made you realize again and again how important music is to the soul.

Jane:  What a beautiful way to describe music, and thank you for feeling that my songs convey that comforting “wrapped up” feeling---how perfect for lullabies! I do think that music is very important to the soul, and the heart, and the body. Musical vibrations resonate very deeply in us. Physics tells us that vibrations, or sound waves, are at the basis of all physical creation---including people! When we hear music that seems to resonate it can be not only pleasurable but healing.

Pinkie:  Do you have any plans for another lullaby compilation or what’s next for you other than enjoying your beautiful grandchildren?

Jane:  I would love to record more lullabies. I have several lists of songs planned out already! I have to admit, though, that this past month I’ve had my hands full (literally) with my brand new grandson and toddler granddaughter and it’s been an experience that I’m very grateful for. Nothing like practical experience to be able to relate to all of you who have little ones to settle down on a daily (and nightly) basis!

I told Jane that I honestly didn't have much musical background myself but since Bean has come along, I wished I had more knowledge that I could share with her. This was her advice to me and I really cherished it coming from someone so well trained in music:

With Bean, and all children, don’t feel like you have to know a lot about music to have them appreciate it---just sing whatever you know, hum, play recordings for them, take them to children’s concerts, etc---and they’ll grow up to love music and love you for giving it to them!

I highly recommend Midnight Lullaby to any parent.  Even now, Bean likes to listen to it before bed.  It does seem to set the mood for her to fall asleep.


***I'd like to thank Jane Roman Pitt and Beautiful Day Media for contacting me and giving me the chance to review this CD.  I was provided a free copy of the CD for purposes of this review.***

My review of Bnter.com

I was invited to be part of the Bnter Blog Tour hosted by Mom Central and share my thoughts on the site.

Here is what Bnter.com says about it's platform:

Bnter.com (pronounced "banter"), a social network designed for capturing conversations, proves a modern way to save those precious moments and share them with family members, friends, and followers. Web- and app-based, Bnter.com can be accessed from your laptop, ipad, or smart phone. Simple to use, free and fun, Bnter.com offers an organized means of sharing those funny moments in a more visually appealing way than simply sharing them in your Facebook or Twitter stream. - From Mom Central

I've used and watched Bnter.com for two weeks now. I originally shared a conversation I had with Bean just to see how it would look on the site. Here is a link to see my entry. You can see it is easy to follow a conversation. This beats trying to follow a Twitter chat any day. But it is no different than a conversation stream on Facebook. Now, you can share any Bnter conversation on Facebook or Twitter. That leads me to wonder why I don't just use those platforms instead. I don't really have a good answer for that.

Also, after watching conversations on Bnter.com for a couple of weeks now, I don't think the site has yet arrived at the parenting-sharing platform it is trying to get to. The majority of conversations seem to be from young singles. I haven't seen any other parent/child conversations shared on Bnter yet.

I think Bnter has a long way to go to becoming a useful tool in helping me document and share the wonderful things my child comes up with on a daily basis but I can see its potential. As with all social commenting sites, there will be growing pains along the way. I hope Bnter can work their way through them because I have met some really kind people there so far.



Disclosure: I wrote this review while participating in a blog tour by Mom Central Consulting on behalf of the Bnter Campaign and received a promotional item to thank me for taking the time to participate.

BlogHer.com Book Review - A Discovery of Witches

Today I want to share a link to my first ever BlogHer.com Book Club review. I was offered a chance to review A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness.

Please follow this link to head on over to BlogHer.com to check out my review. Thanks!

Book Review - Sue Ellen's Girl Ain't Fat, She Just Weighs Heavy!

I'm participating in my very first book blog tour with Lit Fuse. I hope you all enjoy it.

Sue Ellen's Girl Ain't Fat, She Just Weighs Heavy

by Shellie Rushing Tomlinson

About Shellie's book:

The bestselling author of Suck Your Stomach In & Put Some Color On! returns with more helpful how-to's and keen observations from Dixie.  Guided by principles from the ancient Belle Doctrine, the host of radio and television's All Things Southern offers down-home advice on everything from health and fitness-managing thy caloric calculations without going Straight Running Crazy and surviving the Raging Inferno Syndrome (aka hot flashes)-to the Southern art of handling your man (Bubba Whispering). Whether giving business tips or debunking the Big Boned Theory, making political observations or celebrating the inevitable resurgence of big hair, Shellie is an adviser women can relate to and laugh with regardless of their age or which side of the Mason-Dixon they call home. 

About Shellie:

Shellie Rushing Tomlinson and her husband Phil live and farm in the Louisiana Delta. Shellie is the author of Lessons Learned on Bull Run Road, Twas the Night Before the Very First Christmas, Southern Comfort with Shellie Rushing Tomlinson, and the Penguin Group USA release, Suck Your Stomach In and Put Some Color On, voted Nonfiction Finalist of 2009 by SIBA Independent Booksellers Alliance.

Tomlinson is owner and publisher of All Things Southern and the host of the weekly radio show All Things Southern as well as a weekly video segment by the same name. Listeners also hear Shellie in her All Things Southern radio segments aired across the South. Shellie writes a weekly inspirational feature in Newsstar and a monthly print and online column for Lousiana Road Trips.

When Shellie isn't writing, speaking, taping her show, answering email or writing content for the next deadline, you can find her playing tennis with Dixie Belle, (the chocolate lab who thinks she is in charge of running Shellie's life). 

To celebrate the Sue Ellen’s release, Shellie is having a Facebook Party!  

Join Shellie and the gang on June 2^nd at 5:00 PM PST (6 MST, 7 CST, 8 EST) for a Southern style shin-dig! She'll be dishing on Bubba Whispering, debunking the Big Boned Theory, and how to manage going Straight Running Crazy. If you don't know what any of that is, then be sure to pick up a copy of the book (Not necessary to join the fun! Who knows - you might win a copy!) and join us at 5:00 pm on June 2nd at Shellie's Facebook page. And tell your friends - she's giving away copies of her books and some great gift certificates.

My review:

Reading this book was like sitting down and talking with my Mom and my aunts.  Everything in this book that Shellie writes reminds me of home.  Shellie is truly Southern and truly hilarious!  I laughed out loud at some passages and said "Amen, Sista!" to others.  Shellie shares her thoughts on the "change of life", weight issues, men, family, and a gaggle of other thoughts and topics.  I definitely picked up some tips in the chapter entitled "Bubba Whispering" that I'll be secretly implementing at home.  Shellie has also added some very delicious recipes in the mix.  One that I really want to try out is Cuzin Peggy's Jambalaya Grits.

To find out what other bloggers are saying about Sue Ellen's Girl Ain't Fat, She Just Weighs Heavy, check out the blog tour sponsored by Lit Fuse.  

Blog Tour Schedule:

May 18th:

Julie at The Surrendered Scribe http://juliearduini.com

Wendy at Wall-to-Wall books http://wall-to-wall-books.blogspot.com/

Tarena at Laughing Family http://laughingfamily.blogspot.com

May 19th:

Susie at Scraps of Life http://cafescrapper-scrapsoflife.blogspot.com

Glenda at Authors Book Corner http://www.AuthorsBookCorner.blogspot.com

Sharon's Garden of Book Reviews http://sharonsgardenofbookreviews.blogspot.com

May 20th:

Heidi at Starts At Eight http://www.startsateight.com

Karla at Ramblin' Roads http://ramblinroadstoeverywhere.blogspot.com

Hope at A Little Hope...Amidst the Chaos http://a-little-hope.com

May 21st

Lena at A Christian Writer's World http://lenanelsondooley.blogspot.com

Tracye at A Heart Poured Out http://tracyedukes.com

Laura at The Book Tree http://thebooktree.blogspot.com

May 23rd:

Kim at Window To My World http://berlysue.blogspot.com

Books, Etc...by Bina http://www.booksbybina.blogspot.com

Mollie at The Gandy's Home Base http://thegandyshomebase.blogspot.com

May 24th:

Danielle at The Happy Wife http://juanshappywife.blogspot.com

Deanna at Domestic Chicky http://domestic-chicky.com

Vic's Media Room http://vicsmediaroom.wordpress.com

May 25th:

Deanna's Corner http://ldgermany.blogspot.com

Julie at Book Hooked Blog http://www.bookhookedblog.com

 

May 26th:

Caroline at Happy Four http://happyfour.blogspot.com

Splashes Of Joy http://splashesofjoy.wordpress.com/

Wendy at Minding Spot http://mindingspot.blogspot.com

May 27th:

Megan at Homeschoolin’ Mama http://meg-homeschoolinmama.blogspot.com/

Rhiana at A Frugal Life http://www.afrugallife.org

Theresa at Frugal Experiments http://www.frugalexperiments.com

May 28th:

Tina at Mad Hatter Mom http://www.madhattermom.com

Deb’s Here http://debshere.blogspot.com/

Hayley at Hanging Off The Wire http://hangingoffthewire.blogspot.com/

May 30th:

Jenn's RAQ http://www.jennsraq.com

Whitney at Rambles of a SAHM http://ramblesahm.blogspot.com

Jamie at Little Blurbs http://Littleblurbs.wordpress.com

May 31st:

Prerna at The Mom Writes http://www.themomwrites.com

Mel's World with Melissa Mashburn http://www.MelissaMashburn.com

Margaret at Kitchen Chat http://kitchenchat.info

Kim at 2 Kids and a Coupon http://www.twokidsandacoupon.com

June 1st:

Angela at All Grown Up? http://pantylesspreacherswife.wordpress.com

Alexia at The Mommy Rambles http://themommyrambles.blogspot.com

Lauren at 5 Minutes for Books http://5minutesforbooks.com

Robin at Scribbles of the Heart http://www.scribblesoftheheart.com/

June 2nd:

Jennifer at Adventures in Unsell Land  http://www.theunsells.blogspot.com/

Lisa at Make Your Own Escape http://makeyourownescape.blogspot.com

Barb at Rural Mom http://www.ruralmom.com

Anna at The Cross Is All http://annawood.wordpress.com/

If you'd like to read Shellie's hilarious book, visit Amazon to purchase.  

I'd like to thank Shellie Rushing Tomlinson and Lit Fuse for the chance to review this book.  I was provided a free copy of the book to use for this review.  My opinions are my own and have not been influenced by anyone.

Pinkie and The Bean Reviews: GoalForIt.com

I've been asked to do a review of GoalForIt.com. This site helps you create online chore or behavior charts, to-do lists, and goal setting tracking. Please click here to read my full review.

TinyPrints.com review and giveaway!

 Part of the party planning process that I think is so much fun is deciding on an invitation. In the past, I've always had a hard time deciding if I should make my own or order them. Recently, I was contacted by TinyPrints.com to do a review of their announcements and invitations.  Go to my brand new review blog to read more.

The Caregiver's Organizer review.

When Bean was a newborn, I was really hesitant to let others look after her. And by hesitant I mean she didn’t stay with anyone else for the first three months of her life. And it was well past her 6 month birthday before she stayed the night at my in-laws. Bean had horrible reflux as a baby. Horrible actually doesn’t even cover it. She would just be laying in your arms or in her bouncy seat and you would see her face turn red and she would start to choke. It just scared the life out of me every time it happened. And it would happen all day and all night. I just knew that no one would watch her the way I did. She was my baby, my responsibility. I knew that if something happened to her while someone else was watching her that I would never be able to forgive that person so I told myself the best thing was for me to watch her always.

That worked well for me for the first three months. Then real life set in and I had to go back to work. So when my maternity leave was over, I would take Bean to a lovely woman every day to watch her for me. Giggles, a/k/a Nano, a/k/a the MIL, would pick Bean up in the afternoon and watch her until I could run every one off the road get home from work to get her.

The sitter would give me a report every day of Bean’s daily activities. You never realize how much you want to know about someone else’s potty habits until you become a mom. I wanted all the info I could get. And I tried to give as much information to the sitter as I could. But I would always remember something I had forgotten to tell her and panic would set in.

I wished I would have found The Caregiver Organizer back then. I would have felt like I had all my ducks in a row and felt more at ease with leaving Bean.  The sitter probably would have felt less hounded and more at ease herself.

The Caregiver Organizer is an eBook that helps you compile all of the helpful and necessary information for anyone taking care of your children whether it be a sitter for the evening or a full-time nanny. You can customize the information by picking and choosing which sections you need. You can fill out the information on your computer and print it out. They recommend you use the eBook to create a binder notebook that you leave with the sitter. The best part of the Organizer is that it can “grow” with you. You can add or subtract sections when you need to, add children, change the information, whatever you need to and it is ready at the click of your mouse to be printed out and put in the binder.

One of the most valuable sections is the one on allergies. Thankfully, Bean hasn’t shown any signs of any new allergies and the ones she did have she seems to have outgrown. But I when I was a kid, this was very pertinent information my mom had to make sure everyone knew. I had allergies to most insect stings and some medications. Information like this is very important and needs to be shared often so that everyone can know what to watch for and what to do in case of an emergency.

There is a section called “What They Love/What They Hate”. This is a helpful section in our lives. Bean loves, loves, loves chocolate milk. She would drink it all day if we let her. But drinking chocolate milk all day isn’t good for her or her tummy - no matter what Bean says.  I can use this section to let the caregiver know that even if Bean begs, pleads, and whines, she can only have a certain amount of "the good stuff" per day. 

The Caregiver Organizer even covers household information such as areas that are off limits, pet info and even information on all your remotes. How many times have you ever been to someone’s house and spied their various remote controls on a coffee table? My boss’ house is like this. Occasionally, I get suckered into sitting at his house waiting for a repair guy while my boss is in court. He must have 5 remotes on his coffee table. I’d watch tv while I waited if I could figure out which one of the many options I needed to use.

I think using The Caregiver Organizer to share valuable information with your sitters will make you feel better about leaving your children with someone else and it will make your sitter feel more confident in taking care of your children. If you’re interested in trying out The Caregiver Organizer eBook for yourself, use "caregiver25" at checkout for 25% off your download.  There is also a hardbound edition available right now for 50% off.  Use "caregiver50" at checkout.  This is the same edition, same content, just a different name and printed in a hardbound cover with tabs.

*I was provided a free copy of this eBook for purposes of reviewing it for this post.

Book Review: The Well-Behaved Child

Since the Hubz and I are "first-timers", we are finding ourselves a little shell-shocked sometimes with Bean's behavior.  She'll act out and we catch ourselves standing there staring at her thinking “who is this kid?”.  And we are also finding out that our disciplining styles are different.  I like to use the countdown and the corner.  If Bean is doing something that I don’t approve of, then I usually start out by telling her "no", and then if we have to, we go onto “One”, “Two..."  Ninety percent of the time, by one and a half, the behavior has stopped.

I really didn’t think I’d be one of those moms.  When I was in high school I worked at a department store and I would see these horrible, evil heathens running around causing chaos, i.e., normal every day kids.  I would see parents do a countdown, plead, threaten, bribe, all that jazz and it hardly ever worked.  Usually I would think...just do what my mom did...give them a smack on the rear end and be done with it.  Hey, if it’s good enough for Mom...

But I decided to take the softer approach and try the countdown and it does work most of the time.  If it fails, Bean has to spend time in the awful, dreaded CORNER.  Bean does not like this one bit.  But it works.  There have been those special days where there have been several trips to the corner for the same behavior but those times are rare.  Now Hubz,...he’s not so patient.  Hubz likes to raise his voice.  It’s definitely not his inside voice he’s using.  And there have also been times where a spanked hand or bottom has occurred but that usually makes both Bean and me cry so I hate to do it. 

And of course, when you’re first-timers, you get a lot of advice.  Let me say that again...you get a lot of advice.  And it’s never the same advice.  So I have started looking around for ways to improve my means of discipline.  I am a book reviewer for Book Sneeze (formerly Thomas Nelson), and while searching their available titles, I found The Well-Behaved Child by John Rosemond.

In this book, Rosemond brings back a straightforward, almost hard-nosed approach to parenting.  It was like reading a book on the way my mother disciplined.  This is a no-nonsense, bare basics approach.  Granted, most of the book dealt with issues that are further on down the road for us since Bean is only two.  I will definitely incorporate some of these techniques as Bean gets older but more because this is the way I was raised myself and it’s what I know.  The Well-Behaved Child is a good reminder for those of us that grew up with parents that were stricter than most.  If your parenting style is less structured and you are not seeing the results that you’d like, then I would recommend reading this book so that you can understand and know that it is okay to set those boundaries and follow through with those consequences.  I have friends that think if they are too strict, their children won’t like them.  I think it’s not a popularity contest.  It’s parenting.  You’re not always going to be the good guy.  And if you are afraid to do the work, or don’t know how, maybe you should spend time with Mr. Rosemond and his book.

*I am a reviewer for Book Sneeze.  A copy of this book was provided to me free of charge in return for this review. 

Pinkie's Book Review - The Read and Share Toddler Bible

I recently got the chance to do my very first book review for The Read and Share Toddler Bible by Gwen Ellis and Illustrated by Steve Smallman.  I bought Bean another baby Bible that we read from now and then but I believe The Read and Share Toddler Bible will replace that one.  This book first has beautiful, colorful illustrations throughout.  It is hardback with 192 pages of stories.  The Read and Share Toddler Bible covers both the Old and New Testaments.  This book is recommended for ages one to four.

The Toddler Bible contains over 40 stories and each story is broken down and written to make it easy for a toddler to understand.  The illustrations bring the stories to life on the page.  Some of these “retellings” even helped me to understand some of the stories a little better and I’ve heard them all my life.

After each story, there is a note to parents that offers ideas on craft projects, reading tips to act out stories and other activities that will help your toddler grasp the meaning of each story better.  Each story has a different color at the bottom corner of each page so you’ll know how many pages are left in each story and helps you to keep your place better.

The Read and Share Toddler Bible even comes with a 1 hour DVD that brings 14 of the Bible stories to life on screen.

Check out this flip book for a preview.