Customizable Cooling Capes to keep kids cool in the summer

Designed by a mom and daughter duo for their family, Cooling Capes provide sun and heat protection, keeping their family cool and blocking the sun’s harmful rays, without chemicals and without impeding on summer fun.  Simply soak the cape, wring out, snap a few times and throw on for cool relief.  When on-the-go, you can soak the cape, place in reusable pouch provided, toss in backpack and use when needed.  The Cooling Cape stays chilled on your body for up to 3-4 hours and helps reduce body temperature. See www.coolingcapes.com. 

Staying Cool in the SunOur innovative line of Cooling Capes are designed to keep you comfortable, cool, andprotected from the sun on a hot day. Made from a soft cooling towel material, they can be customized with assorted color combinations, sayings and sizes for a unique way to keep you and your whole family cool and protected from the sun. Just soak the cape in water and feel the cooling effects wherever – while running around outdoors, building beach sand castles, kickin’ it on the sidelines, or relaxing in the sun!​With UV 50 Sun Protection, a hood for head and neck sun protection, and soft cooling mesh material—Cooling Capes are Nerlyn’s kids favorite thing to keep them cool outside! Every Cooling Cape comes with a soaking/storing pouch for cooling and protection on the go! 

My Thoughts

 If you have used those neck towels that you wet and put around your neck when it is hot, this is the same idea. I live in Virginia, and it can get HOT here. These capes are perfect for when you are going to a zoo or amusement park. All you have to do is wet it in the sink before you leave. Put it in the pouch, and go. If it gets hot you take it out, ring it out a little and let your child wear it. If it gets dry or not cooling enough anymore, you rewet it. It can be machine washed, and reused over and over. We went to Disney World for a particularly hot week. This may have saved us. My kid likes it too because he feels like a superhero.
There are plenty of ways to customize them. In my son's size they had six colors to choose from, and six thread colors to choose from, 20 different sayings that can be embroidered on it. You can also have it plain, and you have to decide if you want a hood or not. You do not have to wet them before you leave the house, any bathroom sink or water fountain can get the trick done as well. These are a NECESSITY when you are going anywhere outdoors in the heat. A fair, concert, amusement park, zoo, festival, beach, etc. They are almost a safety precaution as well. The heat when we were in Disney was dangerous. We had to make sure we stayed hydrated and had our cooling towels. It can get scary.

 Connect with Cooling Capes

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Holiday Gift Guide: STRIDER 12" Sport No-Pedal Balance Bike

STRIDER 12" Sport No-Pedal Balance Bike

STRIDER™ balance bikes are industry-leading training bikes that help children as young as 18 months learn to ride on two wheels. STRIDER balance bikes focus on the fundamentals of balancing, leaning, and steering without the distractions and complications of pedals or training wheels.

The STRIDER’s simple, no-pedal design builds confidence and eliminates fear by allowing kids to have their feet on the ground and progress at their own pace. This unique design teaches young children balance on two wheels right from the start, avoiding developmental delays typical with tricycles and training-wheel bikes.

Advantages of Riding a STRIDER

Research shows that learning balance and coordination with exercise jump-starts a child’s growth and development during the important formative years of early childhood.

• STRIDER bikes are ultra light weight and easy to control.
• STRIDER bikes increase balance, coordination, and confidence.
• STRIDER bikes allow children to focus on learning balance first.
• STRIDER bikes are free of chains, pedals, and protrusions that can harm a child.
• STRIDER bikes provides a safe, smooth, and natural transition to a pedal bike.

Features on the STRIDER 12" Sport Balance Bike

Ryan McFarland, Founder… "The 12 Sport model offers every feature a child (or parent) could want. It is the perfect balance of performance, options, and value, featuring more than 8 years of design evolution and manufacturing improvements."

Handlebar

Unique 12.7mm steel handlebar is 43% smaller than standard to allow better control with tiny hands. Custom logo mini-grips are soft urethane with protective ends. Machined-aluminum quick release allows “No Tools” height adjustment from 46-56cm (18-22”).

Wheel

Strider-exclusive, ultralight one-piece wheels sport a raised-letter, five-spoke design with 10 bearing support gussets for maximum strength at the lightest weight possible.

Top-quality sealed cartridge bearings roll smooth and never need adjustment.

  

Tires

EVA polymer (industrial foam) tires are super light and durable yet offer a smooth ride. Best of all, they never need air and will never go flat.

Seats

The durable, all-weather mini-saddle is designed specifically for beginning riders and their tiny hips. Smaller, narrower, and lighter than a typical saddle, this seat allows for proper riding position and posture. ** The Sport model also includes a padded XL saddle and long seatpost to fit kids over 3 years and allows seat height adjustments up to 48cm (19”).

  

Bar and seat clamps

Machined aluminum quick release allows “No Tools” saddle height adjustment from 28-41cm (11-16”) for the perfect fit for your child.

 

Footrest

Unique, frame-integrated footrests are properly positioned directly below the saddle for natural bike balance.

This position also fosters the advanced ability to stand while

gliding as well as pumping and jumping the bike.

Brake mount
Strider-exclusive rear brake mount allows the addition of a foot-operated brake once the kids are proficiently gliding with feet on the footrests. Brake sold separately.

The STRIDER 12" Sport Balance Bike is Available in 7 dynamic colors!

Purchase a STRIDER Bike online and visit them on Facebook, Youtube, Twitter, Instagram, and their Blog!

OUR THOUGHTS

I can't even begin to tell you how excited I was to have the chance to review the Strider 12" Sport Balance Bike!  Our son has special needs including motor apraxia, which means he has great difficulty imitating learned purposeful movements.  His balance is a struggle, too. Even at age 5 1/2, I still need to physically support his body in some respects as if he were an infant. 

We have a tricycle for him and while he can balance sitting on it and do seated walking, he is so far unable to coordinate the movements to pedal it.  At school they say he can do up to 5 revolutions on his own, but there, his feet are strapped to the pedals and at home they are not.  We've known about the Strider Camps, and have kept it in our minds as an option.  Read here to learn how kids with Special Needs CAN learn to ride!

Size-wise, this 12" Sport bike is perfect since our son is about the size of an average 3 yr old.  He has Down Syndrome; it's normal for him to have  shorter legs, so he will fit this size bike for a long time to come! 

Features I like:

• Smaller handle bars!  His fingers are shorter than average, too, and he can actually grip the Strider handle bars.
• Narrow seat - with his low muscle tone, he has a very small rear end and narrow hips.  The narrow seat helps him to focus on balancing.
• Padded handle bar.  Kids are accident prone, and having motor apraxia makes it even moreso.  My son also used to have Infantile Spasms (benign myoclonic seizures) which would throw his head/upper body forward violently, which caused him to slam his little head into anything in his way.  While he hasn't had a seizure in over 4 years, that parental fear never goes away.
• Easy size adjustments!  The quick-release clamps are super easy to work with, making size adjustments a snap!
• Wheels - the Strider balance bike's wheels will NEVER go flat.  One less worry!

It took him a few tries over the course of two days to learn to hold the bike upright by himself for Standing Walking.  


learning Standing Walking

and now . . . Standing Running!

Once he had that mastered, he had fun intentionally crashing into EVERYTHING in the house with the biggest smile on his face!  Boys.  Gotta love 'em!!



I LOVE my new balance bike!  Thanks STRIDER!!

So far he's having too much fun with Standing Walking to move onto Seated Walking, but I'm glad it's getting to be winter so he can master the balance bike inside the house (where I can keep a close eye on him!).  Then it will be so much fun for him to ride it outside next spring!  My husband loves bike riding and I know he hopes to be able to have our son ride along with him someday. 

Something else I want to mention - Strider offers 3 age-range sizes of bikes:
18 mo - 5 years (12")
6 - 12 years (16")
13+ years (20")
So if you or someone you know wants to learn to ride a bike - Strider has the bike for you, no matter your age or size!

Charmazing Charm Bracelet Activity Set - Holiday Gift Guide

Charmazing is the perfect Design-It-Yourself jewelry craft line, for young designers with a passion for fashion and crafts! Style Me Up!’s Charmazing keeps tweens 8 + designing expandable and stackable bangle bracelets that can be charmed-up with style! Girls can make their very own custom charm bracelets with colorful threads, beads, gem, chains, pearls and much more! Charmazing offers more than 100 different charms in 11 unique themed collections. Girls can also scan their charms to enter a virtual Charmazing world where they can trade charms with friends and connect with other fashionistas via the Charmazing FREE APP. So activate your Charma!

Our Thoughts

This is so cute! I got this for my eight year old, as age recommended on the box. We received the Lucky Set which features the Buddah, Ladybug, Elephant, Lucky Cat, Fatima Hand, and Lucky Frog charms. The box set includes three  bracelets that she got to make with the six charms included. She was really able to use her creativity and hand dexterity (her hand muscles are not as strong as they should be) while making the bracelets. The colors are vibrant and she feels like a pro when wearing them because she made it herself. She has to be careful with them because it's not super strong material so I can see them breaking easily if she is too rough on them.

My favorite thing of this Charmazing set is the six energy cards that come with it! I read Tarot and now my daughter has these cards that make her feel like she has special cards like I do. Each card has a powerful message on that she reads to herself and keeps inside her purse. I think it's a cute idea for little girls to have these with them at all times for inspiration. The messages are good for adults too, not just children and I really love that.

There is this amazing tree you can get for your little one to put their bracelets and charms on that you can buy here. These are both great items to get for the upcoming Holiday season!! Your little one can have her own jewelry set with inspiring messages and feel just like a little lady.

Check them out on Facebook, Twitter & Pinterest!




Reviewed by Jackie

Critter Cushions Review - Holiday Gift Guide

Critter Cushion is an awesome plush toy chair. It is comfortable to sit on and cute to look at. This is one of the coolest gifts for kids and one of the nicest things to décor children’s room. It is functional yet fun! A Variety of designs are available for both boys and girls.








Children can be messy creatures, so having their own personal (and special!) seat is a must-have for many homes. Children will love their seats with Critter Cushion creations!

Our Thoughts

I live in a very small cabin with three children. So having "a spot" is pretty important, and essential to my way of life. Not wanting to step on kids I'm always telling them to move to the floor, or to the couch, or over there and now it's a fun game with Critter Cushions.

My youngest daughter was beyond excited to sit in this. One of her nicknames is Strawbaby because she is beyond obsessed with strawberries, she will eat 1lb in one setting. This is adorable and she will forever  have the cutest memories of her Strawberry Critter Cushion.

As for the quality and size, it's great. The fabric is soft, it doesn't scratch her skin. The seams are nice and tight so it won't bust with the wear and tear a child will put on this thing. It's a thick cushion so very comfortable for her to sit on while on the floor. Nice vibrant color, she just loves this all around. She is a bit small for her size, but at five years of age this is a good fit for her body!

The different Critter Cushions are pretty clever designs. I'd have to say my next favorites are the two different Frog designs.

Buy your Strawberry Critter Cushion on Amazon or Overstock.com  and don't forget to check them out on Facebook and Pinterest!

Reviewed by Jackie

EZ Tails Review

Brand new to the market, EZ Tails^TM are unique ponytail holders that create ponytails in two easy steps. Simply place your daughter’s hair through the loop, then pull on the elastic ends to fasten.  To release, press the quick release button and slide EZ Tails away from the ponytail. This fun hair accessory for girls also features cute, interchangeable decorative tops so she can express her own unique style! www.eztails.com

This is must-have for busy parents – eliminate knotting, snagging, and fussing and get ready for school and out the door faster!

Our Thoughts

Both of my daughters hate anything being done with their hair and my oldest was cursed with my thick hair, so getting hair tyes in and out of her hair is a painstaking task. With EZ Tails she can do her own hair without me having to wrap one of mine a gazillion times to get her hair to stay up! She loves these, they are cute, they work great, she can do it, my five year old can do it, and most importantly, their father can do it!

We have gotten in a habit of keeping their hair short so that we don't have to deal with tangles so much, but now we can put their hair up all the time with EZ Tails. With so many cute designs to choose from your girls can have one for each outfit during the week.

As I've said, my oldest's daughters hair is very thick, but EZ Tails holds up to the task and does stay in her hair quite nicely. These are the perfect and functional fashion accessory for the school year, or any time!

Buy yours here and don't forget to check them out on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest!

Reviewed by Jackie