Ah-choo at the Zoo

I love where we live. We live in a suburb of Philadelphia that is far enough away from the city for us to have a nice back yard and yet close enough to be near all the opportunities for fun and education in the city.

We love the museums in Philadelphia, but one of the girls' favorite spots to visit is the Philadelphia Zoo. I have to admit, I love seeing all the animals, too. And since I grew up in this area, too, visiting the zoo is one of those nostalgic things to do. My mother-in-law even still has her elephant key that she got at the zoo as a little girl. She can still use it to make the different animal displays tell more about the animals!

This weekend, through August 2, Kleenex Anti-Viral Tissues is sponsoring a special event at the Philadelphia Zoo called "Battle the Bug" which aims to teach kids the importance of reducing germs to prevent cold and flu outbreaks. There will be games and other fun things for kids. All in addition to the fascinating animals who always delight children. My favorite animals to visit are the sea otters. I just love how they swim around and play; they always look like they're having so much fun!

Disclosure: Kleenex and Mom Central provided my family with tickets to visit the zoo and the information for this post.

Crayola CreativityCast: GIVEAWAY!

Have you participated in a Twitter Girls' Night Out yet? I haven't, but I am looking forward to my first tonight. This Tuesday and all the Tuesdays in August, GNO will be sponsored by Crayola. Join in the "party" to talk about Affordable Fun. With three active little girls in the house, I am always looking for affordable, fun ideas!

And in honor of Crayola's Girls' Night Out sponsorship, Crayola and My Blog Spark will be sending me a pack of Crayola products to try. But even better, I will be giving away a Crayola prize pack every week for the next four weeks!!!

To win this week, just give me an idea of some affordable fun you enjoy with your kids. I will pick a winner on Monday, 8/3. I hope to see your Twitter IDs tonight at the GNO!

Peek Handheld Device--WINNER!

Congratulations to commenter #5, Katie! Please send me your mailing address and I will get your Peek to you!

Winners need to get their contact info to me within 48 hours or I will need to pick another winner. Stay tuned for more great giveaways to come!

Enfant Pediatric Vision Testing

*Disclaimer: This is a compensated post, sponsored by Enfant Pediatric Vision Testing.

I first got glasses in second grade and wore them until I finally was allowed to get contacts in seventh grade. My vision is horrible; without my glasses or contacts, I can't even see the big "E" on the vision chart. So I have always wondered about my girls and how their eyes will turn out to be.

Somehow, my husband has better than perfect vision (I don't know how that's possible, but there you go). Although I will say that my night vision is far better than his. So far, it seems that our girls have inherited his eyesight. And I hope that continues!

I was recently made aware of a new technology in vision testing for children. The Enfant Pediatric VEP Vision Testing System is, according to their information, a "non-invasive, child-friendly medical device that tests for visual deficits...in preverbal children, ages six months and older." When testing young children, the system is able to assess vision without requiring a response from the child.

The Enfant is also able to test for amblyopia, or "lazy eye," in addition to several other vision disorders. The company has also developed an online assessment tool to help parents understand some of the red flags that may indicate a vision problem in their child.

Being able to see clearly is so important for children, and often they are unable to articulate their difficulty in seeing. I remember the first time I got my glasses in second grade and put them on. On the way home, I kept saying, "I can see the leaves on the trees!" I just couldn't believe that it was possible to see so well. Hopefully the Enfant can help many more children be able to see clearly.

*Disclaimer: This is a compensated post, sponsored by Enfant Pediatric Vision Testing.

Peek Handheld Device--GIVEAWAY!

Raise your hand if you are pretty much addicted to constantly keeping tabs on your online "life." Yeah, my hand is raised, too. Well, I have a fun product this week that promises to help us stay up-to-date, while being budget friendly as well.

Let me introduce you to the Peek handheld device. This baby is sleek, cute, and "ridiculously affordable" (their description). It enables you to check and send email from wherever you are, as well as send and receive text messages. And all of this with no contract and a flat monthly fee of $19.95. So you can imagine that I was more than happy to try out this gadget and give you my take on it.

I have been using my Peek for a month and here are the pluses and minuses as I see them.

Pluses:

• Compact, light, sleek, overall great looking device. It comes in three colors, mine is dark grey, but you could also get red or blue.


• Easy to type text messages or short emails. The keyboard is very easy to use, and has a dedicated row for numbers. My hubby's smartphone requires you to push "Alt" before typing a number, so the Peek's keyboard is easier. Plus, when you send an email, it adds a tag saying you sent the email from your Peek. Very cute.


• Great for checking emails on the go. The only time I had any difficulty getting a signal was on a bench inside a movie theatre. But in a different spot in the theatre, the signal was again fine.


• Also great for texts. My husband has a text message plan on his cell, but I don't (I don't send many texts. Actually I almost never text). So it was kind of fun to be able to bother text him all day with my Peek.


• When emails are received by the Peek, the device vibrates silently. This is nice so as not to bother others, but I kind of wish that you could change the setting in case your Peek is in your bag where the vibrating cannot be felt.


• The Peek can receive emails from several different addresses. Great for bloggers who also have a personal email account!


• Service is cheaper than Blackberry service and there is no annual contract.

Minuses:

• My only complaint with the keyboard was that the shift key seemed a bit "sticky." This might just be my unit, or it might loosen up with more use. Not a huge deal.


• I use Yahoo! mail, and the Peek was unable to receive emails that were filtered into folders other than "Inbox." This became a problem because my blog email address is linked to my personal account. Emails from my Occupation: Mommy account automatically go into a folder in my personal account, so I never was able to read them on the Peek. I think the only way to fix this would be to have all my emails go directly to my Inbox, which I am not willing to do.


• The protective pouch that comes with the Peek has no clip on the back, so I was not able to clip it onto my waistband or pocket like many cell phones. Thus, I could not feel the vibrating signal to let me know I had just received an email.

Bottom line: The Peek is a lot of fun to use. If you are used to a smart phone, the Peek may not have enough features (can't browse the Internet, etc.). But as an alternative to a more expensive smart phone, I think it is a great gadget!

And I have one to give away! If you would like to enter, please leave me a comment below. Your comment must include your email address if it is not linked to your Blogger profile (so I can get in touch with the winner). This contest will run through July 17. US addresses only.

*Disclosure: Peek and Six Apart sent me a Peek device to review and another to give away. My opinions are my own and are not influenced by either company.