Idea Queen Tips & News

Since we are remodeling the house right now, I thought I would share a source I found for lighting, both indoor and outdoor.

Willow Glen has a very organized website, and a huge selection on just about any kind of lighting you can think of. They really stress the fact their items are high quality, so it’s worth checking out the site if are like me and tired of the junk at Walmart. I want something that’s going to last more than a year, so it’s time to look at more high quality products like these.

The indoor lighting on the site includes floor lamps (like for bedrooms - there are some REALLY nice styles there) as well as wall figures (which there are a few places are needing some of those as well).

The outdoor lighting includes not just exterior wall fixtures (which both our front and back lights need replacing), but garden and landscaping lights as well. This will probably be the last item we look for while remodeling since there’s so much that needs to be done inside, but I’m still bookmarking the site.

Anyway, there’s some really beautiful items on the site to see. Go take a look!

When we think of candles, we tend to think of that warm glow on a cold winter’s day. Just burning a candle near by can make us feel warmer, especially if the scent is something “warm” like a bakery scent or something with cinnamon.

In the summer though, the last thing we want to do is think warm. It’s hot enough outside! Which is exactly why you find me with soy melts instead of burning actual candles. The scents I chose are usually “cool” scents like florals and clean air, summer scents like strawberry, and others that don’t give off the “warm” feeling.

What about you? Do you burn candles or do you use melts instead?

Every month Webkinz features a new “Pet of the Month”, and those who own them get special extra features such as exclusive items, extra daily activities, and more opportunities for KinzCash.

June’s Pet of the Month is the Elephant. Do note this is the large pet only, not the little ones. Most of the time the featured pet of the month is the big, but we’ve seen the little Webkinz featured as well.

July’s Pet of the Month is the Cheeky Monkey (NOT the regular one!). Unfortunately we have the regular monkey, but that’s alright. We may get the other one too to keep Wild Monkey (that’s what my son named him) company.

The best part of the Webkinz is you can adopt multiple pets on one account. The pets all live in the same “house”, but each have their own rooms. You share money, items, and other things. Having the pet of the month just unlocks other items to play with, making the site more fun!

*NOTE - These were from 2008, NOT 2009.

The following low cost ideas may help you decide what to get your girls this year for Christmas or their birthday. Each of them can be very cheap if you look in the right places or make them yourself.

1. Handmade Items
This may work better for little ones, but if you can sew you can create all kinds of handmade items. Doll clothes, clothes for the kids, bedding, and quilts are just a few. My daughter absolutely loves getting clothes for her dolls. Granted it’s usually mom dressing them, but she likes it anyway.

Last year for Christmas I found tiny iron-on ballet shoes to put on a doll shirt. Since she is very much into dance right now, she absolutely LOVED this.

2. Toy Collections
This may not always be low cost, but asking all family members to buy certain types of toys can help your kids keep their toys organized better. Plus it’s always exciting to have entire sets of certain toys.

Things like My Little Ponies, Webkinz, and My Littlest Pet Shop are great toys (and often inexpensive as well). Check with mom to see what the little girl likes. There’s always accessories and different items to buy for each of the sets listed.

3. Dollar Stores
While they may not always be the best quality of products, with some children this may be your best bet. As much as we try to teach our children to be good with their toys, sometimes it doesn’t matter and they get broken anyway. Buying cheaper items may cut down on your costs.

Coloring books work well, as do stickers and other “general” toys like jump ropes, bubbles, and chalk. At a buck a piece, you won’t break the bank and they’ll be entertained for hours.

4. Personalized Items
A special gift for kids can be as simple as an item with their name on it. There is no shortage of personalized products out there - they can be CDs, books, pencils, clothes, and other items.

Lots of personalized gift ideas can be found at Idea Queen.

5. School Supplies & Clothes
While they may not always be appreciative of “boring” gifts, you can sometimes get away with buying something useful. School supplies featuring their favorite characters they would love, as would special outfits in colors or characters which interest them. If they are starting kindergarten soon, this could be an exciting gift.

Be careful on the items you buy though, as they may not be able to use them. Most schools have very specific lists of items that parents can vary from. Also if the child is being homeschooled, be careful not to get them something the parents won’t be using. “Safe” items usually include pencils or writing tablets (the kind you use to print letters) for little ones.

These are just a few gift ideas for girls. More kids gift ideas can be found on Idea Queen for both boys and girls.

I’m a big online shopper. I love especially comparison shopping for big ticket items or things I don’t need immediately. Just about everything you’ll ever need you could buy online. Yet still there’s a good chunk of the population that absolutely refuses to shop online for various reason.

So I got to thinking, if you are one of those who doesn’t like shopping online, why is that? I’m sure there’s a variety of reasons such as not wanting your personal information online or not trusting various sites. Which you all have very good reasons, I don’t doubt that one bit. Even though I’m a big online shopper there are sites that make me uncomfortable and warnings to heed.

Actually I just wrote an article about this very topic the other day for Associated Content. It focuses on the pros and cons of shopping from small businesses. You can take a look at it if you’d like and leave your feedback.

So what about you? Do you shop online? What are your reasons for shopping online or not shopping online?

My kids have tons of toys which are never played with. As far as activities go, they tend to stick with certain toys and activities. Sure they play with other stuff sometimes, but for the most part they have set things they do several times a week.

If you are looking for a list of “hot toys”, this isn’t it. This is a list of activities and toys that will ALWAYS keep their interest to a certain extent, and isn’t just a fading fad.

1. Computer Games & Sites
I don’t know what it is about the computer, but my kids love it. They each have several downloaded games they play on a regular basis (maybe once or twice a month per game), as well as a list of sites they visit weekly. See our list of game sites for kids and free toddler games.

2. Game Systems
As much as I hate to admit it, game systems will always be popular and a source of entertainment for kids. I broke down and bought my son a GameCube for Christmas, which I’m glad I did. He loves it and plays it often for no more than we have invested in it.

Amazon.com has a lot of options for game systems and games you might want to check out. If you are concerned about the educational value or concerned your kid might turn into a couch potato, you can check into getting a Wii with games designed to get them moving.

3. Books & Magazines
Classics that never die. While typing this, my preschooler is looking at her Highlights magazine, and asked me to read to her. Of course I had to before finishing this post! Just proof how much entertainment a simple book or magazine can be.

Books are everywhere, and best of all they are FREE at your local library. In the summer you can make it a weekly family event to take a trip to the library. We are lucky enough to live just a block away from our local library, and my oldest son is old enough to go up there by himself now to check out books.

Magazines and books both can make great gifts as well. Take a trip to the local bookstore or see what children’s books are currently at Amazon.com.

4. Board Games & Card Games
Not only can you get involved with your kids and have a little family time, but it keeps them pretty entertained. My kids love to pull out certain games to play. Many of the classic games you can find featuring their favorite characters (Spongebob Monopoly for example). We’ve got a whole list of places to buy board games listed at Idea Queen.

5. Webkinz, ePets, and other online pets
While this may seem like a “hot toy” right now, I really think with the combination of online and offline play, they will be around for quite some time. I have never seen my kids play more with any one thing as I have with the Webkinz. They log in every day to play with their pet, and do various activities. Sometimes the real stuffed animal comes with us when we leave the house too.

Epets are also pretty popular, and the site has quite a bit to do. There’s several other version of the two most popular types as well - Littlest Pet Shop now has a stuffed animal you can play with online, and there are a few other smaller companies that sell them as well. Our experience so far has only been with the Webkinz though, and they absolutely love them. Since we can adopt as many pets as we want, this is going to be a big deal for quite awhile.

There’s my list for the top 5 toys they’ll never get tired of. If you have anything to add, please leave a comment!

Since there are a limited time deal and Easter is almost here, we just had to mention these adorable Easter egg candles for sale at Prairie Soy Candles.

There are  6 different colors available with your choice of scent (and there are a LOT of scents available - well over 60!). With only two of each color, you’ll want to grab these FAST before they’re out of stock!

While you’re there, you might also want to check out the discount shelf for some great deals on in stock items. Fast shipping and discounted product - it doesn’t get much better than that.

One of the best ways to really take advantage of all there is to do with a Webkinz pet is to have the pet of the month. Featured pets get a loot bag (if adopted in the month they are the “pet of the month), and get to do all kinds of extra stuff under the hourly and daily activities.

This month’s pet of the month is theWebkinz Lil’Kinz Pig. For the whole month of March 2008, all owners of the pig are getting lots of fun extras. If you don’t have a Webkinz yet or would like another, do think about getting a pig so you can have even more fun playing!

April 2008 will feature the Pink Poodle as the Webkinz Pet of the Month. So if you are thinking about a gift for a lucky kid but won’t give it to them until April, you might want to think about getting them this one in particular.

While the Pet of the Month does have it’s benefits, there is a lot to do with any Webkinz. For more information about what Webkinz are and how much you can do with them, you can see more details on Idea Queen.

Have fun playing with your Webkinz!

I’m usually the last to jump on the latest trend and I usually attempt to curb my children’s demand for the hottest toys. Although when my daughter started to beg for an E-pet, I thought I’d better take a closer look. I absolutely love it, and my Webkinz World review is as follows…..

Epets vs Webkinz

I did a little search for reviews on the epets, and found them less than great. The animals were expensive, the site wasn’t that fantastic, and some were claiming they were just a copy of Webkinz. Hmmm, what’s a Webkinz?

A few more reviews later, I found that the Webkinz animals are plush toys that contain a secrete code to go online to “Webkinz World”. Your pet comes to life on this site, and you do all kinds of fun things with them. I took a tour of their site, and thought this was something really fun (and even educational) for the kids. Plus to buy Webkinz animals was not THAT expensive either. Why not try them out?

Webkinz Animals

We ended up getting two different Webkinz animals - the pink and white cat, and the cheeky monkey. Both are absolutely ADORABLE! We went online to Webkinz World, named them (WildMonkey and PinkyPie), and got their rooms all set up. There is just SO much to do on the site, I really am impressed.

Webkinz World - The Site

Now one thing you should know about this site is you WILL need to help the kids out a bit. If they can’t read it’s just a tad bit hard to navigate. There’s quite a bit that requires reading, although there are some games they can play while you are away from the computer. Younger ones especially I recommend keeping a close eye on so they don’t get stuck.

I really love the educational aspect as well. While there a lot of non-educational games to play, there’s also quiz questions to do. That’s the fastest way to earn the “KinzCash” and I like really like that. It’s like an extra incentive to do something educational instead of just playing games, which does take longer to rack up the cash.

The money in the game is used to buy them food, toys, clothes, and all kinds of stuff for their room. Since you are given quite a bit to start with, you can buy some general items like a sink so you can wash them, a bed so they can sleep, and some food so they aren’t hungry. We’ve only had our first pet for a day and he’s not hungry yet, so I really don’t know how long it takes for them to even start needing food. But I do know they don’t have to be logged on every moment of the day to take care of them (a big plus!).

Another interesting option on the site for the older kids is the “Club House” where they can chat with other members. Although what makes this a VERY safe environment is the fact they have to use already written comments. Yes they can “talk” to each other, but only by selecting pre-approved lines. There really is no “open” chatting.

Yet another plus about this site is their “membership” lasts for an entire year and is included with the adoption of a pet. Each child gets their own account, and they can adopt as many pets as they’d like. For every new pet put on their account, the year “starts over”. For example, if in May we get another pet, our new expiration date would be May 2009. There is LOT to do on this site, so I’m surprised it’s free for a whole YEAR instead of a monthly fee like some sites.

For more details, be sure to also see their parent’s area on the site if you have any questions.

Where to Buy Webkinz Animals

Ours came from Amazon.com, and actually two different stores. To avoid paying separate shipping fees, I do recommend seeing what other animals that particular store has to offer. Since these were our first, I wanted the kids to be able to pick out exactly what they wanted. And yes, they are VERY happy with their choices. Although I can see already several of the others are going to be on our wish list!

There are a LOT of choices for buying Webkinz animals, so do take your time and look at all of them. Each have special items just for them like special furniture, food, and the like. But since they are so inexpensive (about the price you’d pay for a regular plush toy without all the online extras even), it’s very easy to have more than one.

Have fun with your Webkinz!

A brand new page was just added to Idea Queen! We’ve been working hard on this page over the last few days to bring you some suggestions and ideas for personalized gifts for kids.

This new page features several different suggestions, and a few links to go along with it. Instead of just showing off a few different items, we’ve linked to several different sites who specialize in specific items. On this page you’ll find links for personalized books, jewelry, clothes, and more.

If you have your own suggestion, please feel free to send it in! We’re always looking for new ideas to feature.

Enjoy!