Who's The Boss? Reviews

Giveaway: HP Laptop "Skin"

 I had a boring corporate laptop until I got an awesome "skin" for my computer.  Not only is it pretty, but the skin also fights scratches.  Now my laptop doesn't show all the abuse I force it to endure. 

One reader will get their own laptop skin in Electric Lily (the same one I have on my laptop) for free.  We can be laptop BFFs!

Size: 15" laptop or larger

Estimated Value: $24.99

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How to Enter "I want new Skin" Giveaway:

• Comment on this post before 11:59pm on Friday, December 5, 2008
• Tell me how you set yourself apart from the crowd whether at work or in general

Don't forget to leave your valid email address so that I can contact you if you win.  The winner will be announced on Monday, December 8th.

Martian Matter Alien Maker

    How do you keep four kids occupied during a Mom's Playdate?  Go out and get the Martian Matter Alien Maker. 

When two girlfriends came over with their kids, I knew that we'd be able to get some good conversations going once I pulled out this toy.  After a tutorial with the kids, they were able to make "aliens" on their own.  For the record, I did stay close by to assist in the "pouring" of the alien matter into the form. 

The playdoh-like "martian mud" is set into an indented circle and the alien molds are connected to the lid. Shut the lid and the alien is molded into the mud. Fill with "alien lava" and cover with a martian mud circle.  After 5 minutes the lava hardens to a gummy texture and you have an alien. Wait less time and the alien can be disected with gooey guts!

It would be nice if the aliens were larger than quarter size, but the smaller they are the less lava you use I guess! The space ship does not stay together well, but this does not affect play. The storage the ship offers is a neat idea; however as the ship doesn't stay together well, any storage it is a waste and better stored in a ziplock baggie.

If you want your kid to be able to play with this one his/her own straight from opening the box, I'd recommend buying it only if you have a good reader (7 and up).  There are directions involved in making the aliens.  If you don't mind sitting with your kids to help them, then younger kids (3-5) will do just fine. After the fifth or sixth time helping my 4.5 year old, he was able to do it all on his own.

With no batteries and no annoying lights/music, this toy is perfect for my working from home days.  My son can sit, totally engrossed and occupied, in making aliens for 45-60 minutes -- more than enough time for me to take a conference call. 

With the price under $20, this makes a great birthday gift.  (Right now, it is on sale at ToysRUs for under $15).

Darren Romeo, the "Voice of Magic"

I am a fan of old school anything.  Old skool birthday parties, old skool fountain sodas, old skool lunch boxes.  I wasn't so sure about old school magic.   

I headed up to The Post Street Theatre to see the upcoming magician Darren Romeo - a new Siegfried & Roy production - with my dad and son.  Tip: If you are going to the show with children under 5, be sure to call ahead to get permission to bring them.  The theatre does not allow babies on laps or small children. The traffic was a beast - but I'll save my review of Silicon Valley freeways for another day.

When the show started and Darren Romeo started to sing, I thought that sitting in traffic for two hours was going to be the highlight of the evening.  I thought this was going to be some bad lounge act with magic tricks.  Yet Darius was captivated from the start.  He was thrilled with the old school magic tricks - the floating table, getting sawed in half, pulting a straw up your nose and have it come out of your mouth (yes, Darren Romeo really did that).  As the show grew on, Darren and the show grew on me. 

I even got called onto the stage to assist in one of his telepathy tricks.  I never got if I was on the wrong end of a bad joke or if it there was something magical in the trick.  Needless to say, he picked right.  Darius was thrilled that his mother got to be on the stage.  I was a little mortified.  But Darren's frequent interactions with the audience - he came out to talk between nearly every act - made the show have an intimate, informal feel that was perfect for families.

Bottom line: A great show for families.  But I would pick something else for a date night.

FritoLay Pinch of Salt Chips

There are four things that are must-haves for any summer time BBQ:  hamburgers and hotdogs, corn on the cob, fresh watermelon.... and FritoLay Classic Potato Chips.  I know, they aren't the healthiest snack around.  But oh my those chips are perfect.  Crunchy.  Salty.  Yum. 

But the salt is too much for me.  After a handful of Classic Chips, I'm already reaching for a big glass of water. 

So I was quick to try out FritoLay's new line of Pinch of Salt chips.  Pinch of Salt contains 30 to 50 percent less sodium than their originals.  FritoLay isn't lying when they say it is just a pinch of salt.  The four varieties all are Low Sodium choice chips.   They have less sodium than preztels, microwave popcorn, and those little fish shaped cheese crackers my son is addicted to.

The recipe and flavors taste identical.  In fact, I actually prefered the Pinch of Salt Classic Chips and Crispy Rounds to their originals.  The amount of salt was just enough to satisfy that salty craving but not enough to make me feel like I was retaining water with every chip.  With the ingredients all natural - no artificial preservatives or flavors in these bags - it makes it an easy choice for summer time BBQs.

Movie Review: Journey to the Center of the Earth

Trevor Anderson (Brendan Fraser) is a Geology Professor and scientist who has undertaken the research started by his brother Max who just happened to go missing long ago.  Max’s son Sean is preparing to visit his Uncle Trevor while his mom packs up for a big move to Canada. When he is dropped off, Trevor is given a box of Max’s belongings. Inside is a copy of the Jules Verne novel, Journey to the Center of the Earth. It turns out Max was obsessed with the idea that the center of our planet could exist as it does in the fictional story.   When Trevor realizes that some of Max’s notes in the book are identical to climate conditions today, Trevor and Sean set out to Iceland with to find out for himself what lurks beneath the surface.

Along the way, they hire a super-hot Icelandic mountain guide named Hannah to help them navigate the caves. Haphazardly, they locate this underground world filled with strange creatures and vast landscapes. Once the trio is deep below they find out that Max had lived in the underground world and use his journal when they have trouble escaping.  The movie has a touching and brief scene when Hannah discovers Max’s remains and Trevor and Sean have to come to grips with the death.

The movie has some great action sequences.  Our family favorites were the mine shaft ride – felt  just like being on a roller coaster – and the batting practice with the scariest looking fish you’ll ever see.   The movie is rated PG for intense action sequences and they are not lying.  There was more than one moment where my very adventurous four year-old was on my lap quicker than you could say T-Rex.   But he kept his eyes glued to the screen even if he was shaking in his boots.

Bottom line:  Don’t take kids that get scared easily.  Avoid the 3D version unless you have tweens/teens that can handle the intensity. 

Orville Redenbacher Microwave Popcorn

We are a popcorn family.  I love it as an anytime snack.  I can not watch a movie in a theatre without a big bag of buttery popcorn.  So I was thrilled to try out some microwaved popcorn by Orville Redenbacher.

For full disclosure, I'm usually not a fan of the microwave-able popcorn.  I grew up with an air popper in the house and now pop my kernels in a dutch oven over the stove (so tasty).  But making popcorn over the stove or using an air popper requires attention.  It's not like I can just press a button and forget about it.  You must to stand over it and pay attention.  Because, really no smell is worse than burnt popcorn.

Last night before dinner, I popped a bag of the Smart Pop 94% Fat Free Popcorn.  I figured one bag to feed three adults and one hungry four year wouldn't spoil anyone's dinner.  We were all so hungry, we scarfed the whole thing down in no time.  And there was still plenty of appetite for a home-made meal less than a hour later.

The popcorn was tastier than I expected microwave popcorn to be.  I expected a more manufactured taste.  The popcorn was tasty.  Knowing that it had 0g trans fat and 0 cholesterol. Since I am reading labels as a part of my Food Dye Rebellion, I was dissappointed to see that the popcorn was not 100% natural. Orville does carry a line of Natural and Organic microwaveable popcorn.

Bottom Line: The SmartPop bag was tasty but has articifical ingredients. I'll be sticking with the stovetop popped method where I get to control the fat, salt, and amount. 

Brother's All Natural Crisps

When I was contacted to try and review some flavors of the Brother's All Natural Fruit Crisps and try their new Potato Crisps, I jumped at the chance.  We've been big fans of the Pear Crisps for a while now.

The crisps come in self contained snack bags making it easy for this working mom on the go to dole out a healthy snack.  With zero fat and barely any calories, I never have to worry about spoiling dinner when I had these out to my family.  My son loves them - but so do the rest of us.

We were sent four bags of snacks - Apple Crisps, Peach Crisps, and two flavors of Potato Crisps.  My son did not like the potato crisps and I was thrilled.  It meant more for me.  The potato crisps have a similar texture to baked Lays - but with a ton more flavor and zero fat.  I loved them to satisfy my "salty" craving.

Apple Crisps were a hit with the whole fam - we polished off the bag in about zero point two three seconds.  Unfortunately, the Peach Crisps didn't pack enough flavor for us.  The crisps were very bland tasting, unlike other crisps we have tried.  It is a new flavor for Brother's All Natural and I hope they go back to the drawing board to get more peachy-ness in those peaches. 

Overall, the snacks are wonderful.  The are no fat, low calories, freeze dried, real fruit (or potato) snacks.  The only thing better would be eating the real deal - a piece of fresh fruit.  But for any working mother driving to and fro all over town, these snack bags have a lot less mess.  And I don't have to worry about an apple going rotten in the heat of a summer day.

I hope they start coming out with Organic options too!

Movie Review: Nim's Island

  Nim's Island is children's movie slash adventure movie slash attempt at romantic comedy all rolled into one.  The premise of the movie is a tad bit difficult for a child to wrap their head around as it often feels like two separate story lines that attempt to come together in the last 10 minutes of the movie.

It starts with meeting Nim, an 11 year old girl, who lives on a secret island with her widowed father.  Her father spends most of his time away studying plankton while Nim "learns" about life through her animal friends and her love of reading Indiana Jones-esque adventure novels.  When her father decides to take a 2-day trip to study plankton, Nim insists on staying behind at the island to help her sea turtle friend hatch eggs.  The first night away, there is a terrible storm and her father is lost to sea.  Leaving Nim all alone on her private island. 

Cut to meeting Alexandra Rover, the agoraphobic author of the book's Nim loves, who is having writer's block on her latest "Alex Rover" novel.  She comes across an article written by Nim's father and decides to email him about the volcano on her island in order to develop her plot line.  Nim responds to the email and the two strike up a email conversation. 

After another night of her father not returning and a cruise ship finding the island to use as a tourist destination, Nim desperately emails Alex Rover to come save her and her island.  Alexandra then has to conquer her fears to get half way across the world to save Nim. 

There is a lot of slapstick comedy that keep my son entertained.  The storm scene did mildly frighten him but it was over quickly.  The shots from the island often felt like they were stolen from a moder-day Swiss Family Robinson set.  I doubt that my son realized the message of conquering your fears. 

At times, it does try to tell too many stories (the relationship between a tween girl and her father, the recluse writer's struggle to come out, Nim’s quest to save her island from exploitation), but I found all of this forgivable.   Afterall, it's the farting sea lion and flying lizards that will leave a lasting impact on my son.

Nim’s Island isn’t the perfect movie by far, and there are some moments that might annoy anyone over the age of ten.  All in all, I say it is a great family film.   

Maria Shriver's "Just Who Will You Be?"

Inspired by a speech she gave to graduating High School seniors, Maria Shriver penned her latest book around the idea of measuring your success not in what do you but rather in who you are as a person.

The mini-book is an easy read.  Perfect for my busy lifestyle where I was able to start and finish the book in one session while standing up in my kitchen.  She may have written the original speech to a group of eighteen year olds who probably have no clue the journey they are about to embark on to get to know themselves and group up; however, the message can resound with us all, young and old.

In Shirver's heartfelt introduction, she candidly writes about how she was ask to resign from her job at NBC when her husband, The Terminator, decided to run (and was later elected) for Governor of California.  Even when spinning in humor to her tale of when her son referred to her as "just a housewife", it was clear that she was hurt and confused to how she went from an award winning reporter to just a mom and wife -- even if being the wife meant being the First Lady of California.  There were moments in the book where I felt her "soul searching" was a little over the top.  Afterall, if someone like Maria Shriver can't figure out a way to change the world, then what hope do the rest of us have to make a difference? 

Shriver reprints the speech she made for the graduating class - bad rhyming and all.  And while I did cringe a little at the atrocity of the poem, I could see through that to the real message.  We are all a work in progress.  We are not defined by our work or our children or what we are in relation to others.  We are defined by who we are.  What we bring to this world.  Our legacy is not in how many things we can afford but in what we give of ourselves to the world.

Personally, I found it to be a lovely little book, a fast read, and an important message.  You won't find any answers to the meaning of life in reading Just Who Will You Be?, but you may find inspiration to change yourself for the better.

Audio Book: Billy Brown and The Frog Tunnel

Billy Brown and the Frog Tunnel is the latest installment in the Billy Brown audio book series by Giddio.  As a throw-back to old radio days, the company markets the CD as an “audio adventure” with full cast voice acting, music, and sound effects designed only for children. 

I decided to try out the audio book with my son.  His preschool class has a rest-time every afternoon where the kids lay on mats and listen to children’s books on tape.  So I knew that he would have the attention span to go the 30 minutes in this story.  So I put the CD in the stereo, turned it up, and let him listen one morning instead of getting to watch his usual Sesame Street. 

At first, I though the story was decent, but not totally relatable to a three year old boy.  The story centers on a boy, Ted, who is protesting the building of a road that cuts through the Johnstown pond and swamp thus putting the lives of the frog inhabitants there at risk of getting squished by oncoming traffic.  Billy Brown (the bear hero) and Emma help Ted in his mission to save the frogs by getting community support to build a tunnel underneath the road so that the frogs can hop safely from the pond to the swamp. 

But there was something about the story that I didn’t like.  And it took another pass through the story for me to nail it on the head.  It was the character of the mayor.  The Johnstown Mayor is portrayed as an incompetent woman who would rather shop than help the children (or the frogs).  In fact, a small child has to explain what a frog is – her character mistakes a frog for a musical band.  She goes on later to help the children in their construction of the tunnel, but arrogantly wears high heels to the swamp. 

It disturbed me that a public official would be characterized in this manner.  Even more, it offends me that the character is a woman.  Are all mayors competent and able to solve every problem that comes their way?  Probably not, but that doesn’t mean that we should type-cast a public official as incompetent and egotistical.  Furthermore, by having a female play the role of the narcissistic mayor, I found it rather misogynistic – not a trait that I really want to teach my son. I found it to be a fatal flaw in the story.

Overall, I loved the concept of the audio book being developed just for children.  And I know that my son enjoyed the story.  But as a woman, I cannot recommend this audio book based on its characterization of women in power.  I only hope that the Billy Brown series takes a more positive anlge of women in future stories.  I'll be listening.