Discovery Kids Digital Camera: Great Gift Idea

My 8-year old daughter looks like she's got a pink-accented cell phone hanging from a satiny ribbon around her neck, but it's actually the next best thing.



It's her very own Discovery Slide & Shoot Digital Camera.

With the flick of a thumb, my daughter can capture really bad photos of her mother - bending over, mouth agape, mid-nag - or take group portraits of her menagerie of Webkinz.

She can snap photos out the car window, on the school bus, or while lying on the floor next to the cat.

Best of all, she can annoy her brother by stalking him with her camera, paparazzi-like, while he screams, "STOP IT!" at the top of his lungs.

Good times. (Special thanks to the Discovery Store and my friends at Parent Bloggers.)

But really, this is the perfect little gadgety cool gift for older kids and tweens.

It's incredibly easy to use and comes with its own photo-editing software. Kids can create calendars, cards, scrapbook pages, stickers, and artwork with little or no assistance from adults. It's also quite hardy (remember: I drop things and so do my kids) and it's cheap ($39.95).

Now that's my kind of toy.

I recommend the Discovery Slide & Shoot Digital Camera for kids between the ages of six and twelve - and particularly girls because of the pink accents.

Read more great blogger reviews of this and other products over here.

HP Photo Printer: It's Ruth Proof

Rejoice, my friends! Finally...a photo printer for the technologically un-inclined!

When the lovely and generous folks over at Parent Bloggers presented me with the opportunity to try out a photo printer provided by the lovely and generous folks over at Hewlett Packard, of course I jumped at the chance.

I have about three trillion photos stored on my computer, and it sure would be nice if I could share them with the world sometime before, oh, the end of time.

But could I do it? Myself? Alone?

And would the HP Photosmart A626 Compact Photo Printer throw itself off a desk at the sight of me?

All I'll say is...Yes, Yes, Sort Of, and Once.

[cough]

After I plugged in this clock/radio-sized handy and resilient [cough] little photo printer and inserted the memory card from my camera, my six-year old son grabbed the reins. "Let me do this, mom."

So I let him. And why not? Why bother summoning my inner Geek when I had a real live tech-minded mini super wiz to show me the way?

My son was fascinated by the pop-up LCD touch screen on which our photos were immediately displayed. Using either his fingertip or the plastic stylus that accompanied the printer, he personalized the photo of his choice with a border, a caption, and his very own illustrated additions.

Together we inserted the photo paper into the printer and...voila!

It was so easy I decided to try it myself. After all, the holidays are upon us and those lovely and generous folks over at HP also sent me these very cool Photo Books.


It was a breeze. A snap. Easy as pie.

The photos snap right into these attractive, fabric-covered books and - hallelujah! - will make an excellent gift for the grandparents this year.

I recommend the HP Photosmart A626 Compact Photo Printer for anyone needing encouragement to print out copies of their digital photos, and especially non-techy types who are afraid to give it a try. (Seriously, folks. Even I could do it!)

That said, I did experience a minor snafu when attempting to install the software CD, but this I attribute to the fact that my computer is OLD and lacking in RAM. I was therefore unable to fully experience the many additional photo editing features and designs available through HP.

Santa, if you're listening, I NEED A NEW COMPUTER! I've been good. Very, very good. (Except for dropping the photo printer, which was bad. Very, Very bad.) Fondest of regards to you, Mrs. Claus and all my pals at the N.P.

The photo books are very nice and you can buy them with a 20% discount using this handy dandy COUPON until December 31st.

You can read some very thorough, honest reviews of these products on the Parent Bloggers BLOG.

Happy holidays!

Autolite - Just In Case

Nowadays, it's almost inconceivable to leave home without a cell phone.

Without that familiar bulge in our bags or pockets, we somehow feel vulnerable. Less safe.

When I forget my phone, the "what ifs" roll through my head like movie credits: What if the school is trying to reach me? What if there's been an accident? What if I left a hot iron on a stack of newspapers and my house is burning to the ground?

I don't think I'm the only paranoid lunatic who does this. (But what if I am? Where's my cell phone?)

Ever since that initial purchase made "for safety reasons," we rely on our cell phones for just that: safety.

When the Parent Bloggers Network asked me if I wanted to review a car safety product, I thought, why not?

Now, after receiving a set of two Autolite Flareglo Safety Lites, I can't imagine leaving home without them.


These reusable, super bright LED (Light Emitting Diode) flare lights give me peace of mind.

What if my car breaks down on a deserted road at night, or on a busy highway with fast-moving cars and trucks? What if I need help?

Unlike conventional roadside flares which last for 15 minutes, Autolite Flareglo Safety Lites will blink rapidly for a minimum of 12 hours and can be seen from 500 feet away. They're easy to use and safe, powered by two AAA Alkaline batteries.

Oh - and at just $11.99 per 2-pack, you really can't afford not to buy them.

Because, well...what if you drive into a ditch at night during a blizzard? What if your car battery dies and you're stranded without a cell phone in the mall parking lot after closing time? What if...

Read more about Autolite and other books and products reviewed by bloggers over at the Parent Blogger Network.