THE HUNT HAS OFFICIALLY BEGUN!

Starting today until Saturday September 11th, Cover FX will be placing treasure boxes throughout selected cities across the US.

Fan Cover FX on Facebook to learn specific clues and locations on where you can find the hidden treasures in a city near you.  All packages include the new Eye Prep FX, and some lucky winners may receive gift cards up to $100 for Sephora!  Let the games begin!.

Here is a direct link to the ‘game’ instructions on CoverFX Facebook page.

Have fun!

Treasure Hunts aren’t just for kids! Join in on the Cover FX treasure hunt. is a post from: The Mommy Insider. It looks like you are reading this post in your favorite RSS reader. Don't be shy..hop on over to check out our current giveaways, coupon codes, and to share your comments!

My 4 year old daughter loves Fancy Nancy books.  Her favorite Fancy Nancy book is Fancy Nancy and the Late, Late, LATE Night.  She likes it when Nancy says “that’s a  fancy word for..”.   She’s learned a lot of fancy words from Fancy Nancy books, that’s for sure.

Summer is slowly slipping away from us but while your kids are still out of school and looking for fun things to do, below are some fantastic (and easy!) tips on how to throw together a kid-friendly tea party…Fancy Nancy style!

HOST YOUR OWN FABULOUS FANCY NANCY SOIREE

Summer is here and what better time to celebrate and invite friends over for an elaborate tea party Fancy Nancy style!   Fancy Nancy has the most fabulous (that’s a fancy word for great) ideas on how to throw the most magnificent and fanciest tea party in the neighborhood.

Here are a few tips supplied by THQ to help you put on a great tea party!

1)      Select a spectacular theme.  Be as ornamental as you can be!

2)    Pick a charming location, and pique guests’ senses by taking them to different locales without leaving your own backyard. For example, Nancy loves speaking in French.  Host a French-style tea party, complete with French foods and desserts. Fancy up the menu and invites with French words.

3)    Prepare edible arrangements and delectable treats.  Surprise guests with petite hors d’oeuvres or squared cucumber sandwiches.

4)    Set the table with your most colorful and fanciest tea sets.

5)    Pin The Tiara on Fancy Nancy!  Purchase a poster of Nancy.  Blindfold your guests and have them tape a paper tiara on the poster. Whoever is the closest to Nancy’s head, wins a splendid prize!

6)    Have your guests create a fancy party hat and beautiful jewelry complete with all the glitter, jewels and ribbons one can find.  Ask guests to bring their favorite fancy dress-up item, such as a boa or a tutu.

7)    Don’t let anyone leave without a spectacular goodie bag filled with costume jewelry, delicious candy and a variety of tea samples!

THQ also invites you and your friends to an interactive tea party with Fancy Nancy Tea Party Time for Nintendo DSi™ and DS™! The popular children’s property Fancy Nancy™, published by HarperCollins Children’s Books, makes its video game debut on Nintendo DSi™ and DS™ systems this fall.   I don’t know how excited my son will be about the game but you can bet I’ll enjoy it!  In Fancy Nancy Tea Party Time!, girls of every age can play as Nancy and become the fanciest girl around.

* If you host a Fancy Nancy Tea Party, send us photographs.. we might feature them on The Mommy Insider!

Find and buy dozens of Fancy Nancy books at Amazon.com here.

Visit the Fancy Nancy website to view all of the Fancy Nancy books, play Fancy Nancy games, send eCards and more.

How to host your own Fancy Nancy tea party is a post from: The Mommy Insider. It looks like you are reading this post in your favorite RSS reader. Don't be shy..hop on over to check out our current giveaways, coupon codes, and to share your comments!

I’ve been playing Grinchmas a lot the last few days. I play while I’m putting Madelyn down for her nap, while she’s in the bathtub, and at other random times during the day. Granted, those times are short lived but still.. I turn to the Grinchmas app for entertainment.

I can choose to be a Mean Grinch or a Merry Grinch. I usually chose the Mean Grinch just because there isn’t as much strategy involved being Mean. The Mean Grinch tosses snow balls to Who houses (Whoville) during the night. There is something really satisfying about being a Mean Grinch.
The Merry Grinch gives colorful gifts to matching colored Who houses by way of throwing them (strange, but true) at the houses. The more gifts you toss at matching colored Who houses, the larger Grinch’s heart grows and the better I feel about myself knowing I changed the Whoville in such a short period of time. OK, that’s a little dramatic but Grinchmas is really fun so I know you’ll feel like you’ve saved the world or in the case that you are a Mean Grinch, you will know that you safely let out your aggression for the day.

Features two gameplay modes:

• “Mean Grinch” – The Whos down in “Who-ville” are making too much Christmas NOISE, NOISE, NOISE! Splat each noisy Who house with snowballs to silence them. How long can you last before the noise overwhelms you?
• “Merry Grinch” – The Grinch has had a change of heart and must deliver matching colored presents to the Who houses. How many presents can you deliver, to grow the Grinch’s heart bigger, before time runs out?

About the app:

Grinchmas is a fun, casual game of skill and accuracy. Assume the role of The Grinch perched on Mt. Crumpit. Swipe the screen to throw either snowballs or presents down to Who-ville, depending on whether you feel “mean” or “merry.” Accuracy and speed determine your score.

Additional features:

• Beautiful 3D artwork inspired by Dr. Seuss, whimsical music and sound effects
• Top 10 best scores are saved for each game mode
• Suitable for all ages

Buy Grinchmas for $1.99 via iTunes here:

I’m addicted to the Grinchmas iPhone app is a post from: The Mommy Insider. It looks like you are reading this post in your favorite RSS reader. Don't be shy..hop on over to check out our current giveaways, coupon codes, and to share your comments!

Why do boys get to have all the trading card fun?  They don’t.. silly me.  Now with Bella Sara collectible trading cards and miniature velvety horses, girls ages 8-12 will spend hours trading and playing with the magical world of Bella Sara.  

Bella Sara trading cards were introduced a while ago and the addition of these adorable miniature horses make for amazing fun for girls.  The Miniatures
collection is the first time Bella Sara collectors get the chance to collect actual figurines of
the Bella Sara horses.

When I received my Bella Sara package from Team Mom I didn’t realize that two of the packages held beautiful miniature horses.  Madelyn was there when I opened the first package and her face lit and she immediately took the horse to her doll house and welcomed her into her dollhouse family.  The horses fit in the palm of your hand and there are 20 velvety horses and bonus codes to collect in all.  Imagine the fun girls will have with these along with the Bella Sara trading cards. Bonus codes are used on the Bella Sara website which is a place where girls can play games and collect and care for horses.  Girls get their own cottage upon signing up for a free Bella Sara account.

More about Bella Sara

• Girls can have even more fun on the interactive Bella Sara game website

• 20 collectible horses

• 20 bonus codes to use on the website

• 8 series of trading cards

• Trading card game

• Bella Sara books

  
  

Bella Sara Treasures & Miniatures collections is a post from: The Mommy Insider. It looks like you are reading this post in your favorite RSS reader. Don't be shy..hop on over to check out our current giveaways, coupon codes, and to share your comments!

This is one of the most entertaining games I’ve played in a long time.  Yes, I admit I played ItzaBitza.  My kids weren’t even around.  The concept of ItzaBitza is awesome..I’ve never seen anything like it.

ItzaBitza promotes reading comprehension, artisitic and imaginative creativity and provides an exciting gaming experience for kids ages four and older.  I was amazed time and time again by how the game responded to my drawings and made them come to life.

Here are just a few things you can do in the first ItzaBitza scene:

• Draw a tree, apples grow on it.
• Draw a moon and stars light up the sky and your Sketchie goes inside the house you drew, goes upstairs and goes to sleep.
• Draw an envelope and your Sketchie takes it to the mailbox.
• Draw a cup and watch your Sketchie drink out of it.

The Sketchie your child chooses at the beginning of the game (a boy or a girl) asks your child to draw things, including a house and a tree, then the drawings become part of the animation and story.  An example would be when I drew a tree with leaves, the game added apples to the tree.  You can see my award winning drawing (ha!) below.  Click on the image to view the larger version.  I didn’t draw the flowers.  When I drew the sun, the flowers grew! How cool is that?

Through out the game, the Sketchie gives you ideas and little games to play via a little word bubble that pops up when you click on him or her.  If your child has trouble reading a word in the bubble, all she has to do is move the mouse over the word and it is sounded out for her.  Great reading practice!

There are several scenes that can be unlocked as your child progresses in the game including a camping scene and a naunted house.  You’ll have to buy the game to find out what happens in each of the scenes!

Buy a copy of ItzaBitza at Amazon.com for $17.99 (current price) OR buy and download the game here.

Giveaway details are coming soon but until then you can subscribe to our updates and you will be notified with giveaway details as soon as we get them up!

ItzaBitza Educational Reading Game for kids + giveaway – this game is so much fun! is a post from: The Mommy Insider. It looks like you are reading this post in your favorite RSS reader. Don't be shy..hop on over to check out our current giveaways, coupon codes, and to share your comments!

Are you crazy like a cat.. a Cat in the Hat?  My kids are and maybe I am too, just a little bit.  I am guessing that almost everyone reading this review owns a copy of The Cat in the Hat by Dr. Suess.  By the way, did you know that his birthday is Monday, March 2nd.  What the perfect reason to bake a yummy cake..  I'm sure even at 107 years old Dr. Suess will appreciate your thoughtfulness and so will your kids.

The Cat in the Hat I Can Do That! game brings The Cat in the Hat book to life via the game, giving kids a new and incredibly fun way to experience this
classic Dr. Suss story we loved as children and our kids love now.  The Cat in the Hat I Can Do That! game will entertain your entire family, maybe not your 15 year old, including your husband! You'll all laugh and connect your family in a way that TV or video games can't.

I Can Do That! comes with imaginative props inspired by the classic
child
ren's book The Cat In the Hat by Dr. Seuss, as well as a deck of
color-coded cards that provide funny, challenging activities thus the name I Can Do That!.

"I Can do That" is a fun game that engages kids in fast paces activities. 

• First, your child flips over one red card, one blue card, and one yellow card. 
• After flipping the cards your child fits them together like puzzle pieces which when read together as a sentence, form an activity for your child to do. 
• For example, one card might read "Take Four Giant Steps," the next card might read "With
  the Cake," and the third card might read "On your head!" How funny is that!?
• Each card also has one, two, or
  three stars on it for score keeping purposes. 
• This is a great confidence boosting game as kids will complete challenges they may not have thought possible.

Cat in the Hat I Can Do That! is available at Amazon.com
and you can learn more about the game at the "I Can Do That!" website, which I highly recommend visiting.  There are lots of other fun games like Horton Hears a Who – You to the Rescue and Curious George games.

Enjoy!

Cat in the Hat – I Can Do That! game is a post from: The Mommy Insider. It looks like you are reading this post in your favorite RSS reader. Don't be shy..hop on over to check out our current giveaways, coupon codes, and to share your comments!