Folks, there is another recall, and this regards a previously reviewed Mom Appeal item—The Bumbo Seat.  Before you get too worried, it sounds as though the Bumbo Seat manufacturer just wants to ensure that everybody knows about the instructions to NOT put your baby in the seat when it is on a countertop, chair, or any other place where, if tipped over, your baby would have a serious fall. 

There have been 28 reports of children falling out of the seat,  including three that had skull fractures from having fallen from the chair when it has been placed upon a tabletop.  Consumers who have the Bumbo Seat should contact the company and they will be provided with safety instructions and a warning label that will read–“WARNING – Prevent Falls; Never use on any elevated surface.” Consumers should use the Bumbo seat at ground level, but should never leave a child unattended. 

More information can be found here http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/prerel/prhtml08/08046.html and at Bumbo International.  Mama Jen

I’m soooo excited to post our very first giveaway at MomAppeal! The awesome gals at Planet Mom Tshirts will send one lucky MomAppeal reader the shirt of their choice! Here is what you need to do to enter:

Go to the Planet Mom site and look over all of the hilarious sayings on their long and short sleeve tshirts. Examples are: “Because I Said So.” and “Whine? No. Wine? Yes.” Celebs that love these shirts include Sarah Jessica Parker, Brooke Shields and Cindy Crawford!

Then simply post a comment to this post letting us know which shirt is YOUR fav…you can email us at momappeal@gmail.com if you prefer…just put “Planet Mom Tshirt Entry” in the subject. A winner will be chosen at random and Planet Mom Tshirts will handle sending your choice shirt to you with their compliments.

We’ll post a winning name this Friday, so hurry and get your entry in! Since I can’t enter, I’ll post my favs now: “Because I Said So.” and “Nanny Deprived”!

Thanks Planet Mom Tshirts!!!

When I was out visiting family, my sister-in law had a rather unusual looking device on her beautiful twin babys’ dresser(I am a proud first-time aunt can you tell??).  I had to ask about it and found out it was a Tykelight! 

TykeLights are these amazing little light-up creatures that contain a rechargeable battery which keeps them going for 10 hours.  Set the TykeLight on it’s base (which plugs into the wall) to get some juice, take it off and it lights up!  Perfect for providing light for your child in the middle of the night, AND, it’s portable for those walks down the hallway in the middle of the night to mom and dad’s bed or the bathroom… genius! 

Ours is coming via Amazon and I can’t wait for it!   It is also available at Target online , and possibly in their stores.   Take a look at the differences–one model does have a sleep timer which will turn the TykeLight off after 15 minutes.  That feature is great for not wanting so much light all night, or as an agreed upon signal to your child that it’s time to stop playing with toys and books in bed and get to sleep.  Since it doesn’t plug into the wall, you also don’t have to worry about little hands fidgeting with it while it is in the outlet—a nightlight problem in our house!   TykeLights absolutely have MomAppeal!  Mama Jen

This is a short but sweet entry. If you already know this, feel free to chuckle that I just found this out today…

Is your nose ever bothered by the overwhelming scents hiding in various pages of your favorite magazines? I am not allergic to anything, but reading any magazine with perfume samples makes my nose itch. So here is the exciting news…you can call any and all of the mags you subscribe to and request scent free copies be sent to you! I did it just this morning with my subscription to O Magazine…it was a simple toll free call (found the number in my mag on page 350) and starting next month, no more itchy nose, thank you very much!

I knew I would love Deceptively Delicious - the brand new cookbook from Jessica Seinfeld - as soon as I saw it on Oprah a week ago. I now am holding a copy of it in my hot little hands, and it’s better than I even thought it would be!

Yes, it’s a cookbook, and you may wonder…why do I need another cookbook? Here’s why…every single recipe contains pureed veggies! As far as I know (and I surf the net A LOT), it’s a completely new twist on any recipe I have ever encountered before. You can get a free peek at some of the contents of the book on Oprah’s web site. You can also learn about the book and the concepts contained in the recipes at Jessica Seinfeld’s web site.

But, after you do all of your internet homework, go out and buy this book. There are tons and tons of meal ideas and everything is healthy and everything is fun. Jessica’s test market was her three kids…all under the age of 5. We can all agree kids are the harshest of all critics…so if a recipe made it into this book, you can be fairly confident it will be a hit with your own family!

So far I have made: quesadillas, meatloaf, scrambled eggs, peanut butter and banana muffins, tacos and grilled cheese using this book. All delicious, and all packed with good vitamins…you won’t believe it…these recipes are genius!

I just received my Gretta Poncho from Skipping Hippos last week for my daughter, and I am wowwwwwed!!!

It is amazingly soft and adorned with the most fun and whimsical pom poms and decoration.  Even the hood has a fun tassle on it’s top!

Each poncho from the San Francisco based company has it’s own personality, so you can find exactly the perfect one for your little girl.  I can’t wait to gift these to people and get more as my daughter grows.  They are soooo snuggly soft and truly unique.  I have never seen anything like this for kids.  Skipping Hippos got it right with this amazing little number!  Be sure to check keep an eye out for their newest mlle everyday jacket, which is a feminine, 100% fleece pea coat styled coat!!

There has been a lot discussed in the media recently regarding Jenny McCarthy’s recent book about her son Evan who has autism,  called Louder Than Words: A mother’s Journey in Healing Autism.  This book has been extremely helpful to a lot of parents who are trying to find out if their child has autism and what do do after their child has been diagnosed.

Now there is also a visual tool at autismspeaks.org calld the ASD Video Glossary where parents can watch video of a child without autism and a child with autism interacting with the same environment.  This will be helpful to a parent, since it can be hard to tell if your child does have autism.  By watching the videos, and the  childrens’ different reactions to their environment,  you can be better prepared to ask questions of your doctor and be better equipped to explain what worries you about your child’s behavior.

“… an innovative web-based tool designed to help parents and professionals learn more about the early red flags and diagnostic features of autism spectrum disorders (ASD). “

Pass this on to anyone you know who would find this helpful.  Mama Jen

Last week, Starbucks recalled about 250,000 plastic cups that were sold at Starbucks locations from 2006 - August, 2007. They are the cups pictured in this post, and the problem with them is that if dropped, they have been reported to break in such a way that very sharp pieces result. There was also one report of possible choking.

If you have one of these cups, review the US Consumer Protection Safety Commission web site for the steps to take to return your product.

Stay safe!

I ran into a friend at the grocery store several months ago, and she told me about a new web site she’d started. I rushed home to check it out, and it’s one of my every day favorites…

Miss Pronouncer is a handy web site where you can hear the correct pronunciation of just about anything related to Wisconsin. Not sure how to pronounce Kabeer Gbaja-Biamila? Or Bret Bielema? Or Waukesha? Check this site and you’ll find out, once and for all, how to pronounce these words and many, many, many more!

This site is also plain fun if you want to find out some obscure Wisconsin facts…I knew Oprah and Marlena from Days of Our Lives were from Milwaukee, but Mrs. Garrett from The Facts of Life? Now that’s news to me!

I feel very honored to have permission to write about this site…it has been recognized by the Governor and the LA Times…now that’s a pretty big deal!

My daughter absolutely loves her “own” space.  She has a little tent that she adores going into and hiding things and playing for a little bit, which is great for her.  I love seeing independance sprout here and there from my very rooted-in-everything-mommy little girl!

I assume, as she gets older, the whole mess of hand made, close-pinned sheet tents will bring her much joy…They will make me nostalgic for some of my hand spun fort wonders—until I am the one that has to fold all the sheets up neatly in the linen closet!  I absolutely dislike folding!!!  

When a friend mentioned a Play Tent from Lucy and Michael, I drooled over the adorable little abodes for kids on their website…take a gander, you’ll see what I mean!!! Great for your home or a wonderful gift… Mama Jen