I have found the most wonderful toy company!  I’ll never step foot in a Toys R Us again, happily.  I get so frustrated spending money on toys that aren’t truly creative, educational or challenging.   Often times a toy has all these features that appear to be teaching your child something but the toy is nonsense, it’s is more of an entertaining product than a learning tool.

Nicholas received Geo Safari Dino Dig set from Educational Insights, I knew he would love it because Nicholas LOVES dinosaurs.  He and his cousin plan to be Paleontologist partners one day   So this Paleontology set provides a realistic archaeological challenge on a student-size scale. Both boys sat at our table and completely were silent while they uncovered their discoveries.  It invited them to excavate and assemble a complete skeleton from “fossilized” rock like real archaeologists—the perfect hands-on activity for dinosaur lovers!  How unique is that idea. They had a blast using all the excavation tool, dust brush, wax adhesive and 32-page Activity Guide with complete instructions and learning more about the amazing T-Rex.  Alex is 10 and Nicholas is almost 4, both boys thoroughly enjoyed themselves.  They learned to work together and realized even more how much they want to be paleontologist!   The boys were very impressed with their accomplishment.  Educational Insights understands how to challenge your kids, spark their imaginations and let them shine!

Based in Southern California, Educational Insights, is the manufacturer of playful products with serious educational value, including subject-specific classroom products, teacher resources, educational toys, and games. Their products are designed by seasoned educators and parents who know that, first and foremost, learning must be fun.  With subjects like math, science, history, time and money or categories like discovery and exploration I know you will find unique exceptional toys that your kids absolutely love using again and again.

Happy Toy Shopping!   Lots of Free Shipping opportunities so be on the look out for that!

GIVEAWAY!!  One Dino Dig set to a lucky winner!    Contest ends in one week.  Open to US residents only. Good luck to all!!

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NEW GIVEAWAY RULES – Please note that we will only accept a maximum of 3 entries per person, as outlined below.

To be eligible to win, you must:
1) Comment from above

Extra Entries {please leave a comment for each one}:

2) Like Educational Insights on Facebook

3) Sign up for E-newsletters

Although the following are not part of the entry rules, we would love it if you did the following {but PLEASE do not leave a comment for these and see top of page for links}:
A) Subscribe to BabyElan {daily}
B) Become our Fan on Facebook {check out the new BabyElan {SHOP}Facebook page}
C) Follow us on Twitter

Ah, the crispness of the fall preview has finally set in. School has started and the familiar rumblings of the big yellow buses have rolled down our neighborhood streets. Kids skip out to school in their new fall clothes. Can you tell I LOVE this time of year? While my kids are too young for school, they still look the part going to daycare and my oldest (at 3) gathers up her backpack every morning so she can be like the ‘big kids’ waiting for the bus outside. It’s times like these when you just want to stop time and take a look. Look at the wind blowing their little corn silk strands up. Look at the smiles and scrunchy-faced giggles for one moment and just breathe. These little people that you have created see the world through such innocent and excited eyes!

In my house, it’s a constant bustle of getting ready, brushing teeth, arguing about going to bed, and begging my little one to eat at least one carrot at dinner. Bribing and time outs become a toddlers’ life and as a parent, I always question myself. Am I nagging? Am I really too uptight? Is it worth it? Yes and No. So, in the fine print of my itinerary of hustling and bustling and bribing and begging, I decided that yes, I needed to get pictures done of the girls because “that’s what you do,” right? In fact, I had no professional shots of my now 10 month old Layla. I wanted to check this “to do” off my list. That’s when I met Ashley Gillett (http://ashleygillett.com). Thank goodness I did. Ashley’s unique process really threw that ‘list’ away and gave me a perspective that I needed. Let me explain:

After scheduling an appointment and agreeing to meet at a nearby park for a photo shoot (YES! No stuffy studios here!), I received a neat, beautiful package with everything I needed. Ashley’s materials she sent clearly explained what I could expect at our appointment.

Ashley states that “while at a photo shoot, I try to talk and get my clients comfortable with taking pictures. I know how uncomfortable it can be to have someone following you around taking pictures of you. Adults are usually more self-conscious than children, so I try to keep things light and keep things moving. With children, I do my best to get down on their level and make them smile. Most sessions involve walking around our location, scoping out a nice place to shoot, taking some photos, and moving on to the next spot. It’s really important to me to stay calm and low pressure.”

Ashley is very low pressure. She is so confident and so knowledgeable about lighting and texture and can keep things moving which helps with the very short attention spans of young children. While I was preoccupied with the skipping and running of my toddler everywhere, little did I know what Ashley was capturing! Ashley is an expert at keenly capturing “children just doing their thing.” She loves “to follow them around and get shots of them thinking to themselves. We’re so accustomed to studio photos that we often think that if the child is not smiling and looking at the camera, it’s not a keeper photo. I try to find a happy medium between the two.” Let me say that as someone used to growing up having studio shots, and having my first born get those studio shots, I was very concerned that the kids weren’t looking right or smiling or staying put!

I came home after the photo shoot (which was about an hour) exhausted. I was so stressed thinking that my kids were moving everywhere and my 3 year old wasn’t paying attention. I was convinced I wasted Ashley’s time and mine! I was not used to the style and the process and not having closed walls and those awful backgrounds (that do not look real by the way) from studios. How in the world could Ashley have even gotten one decent shot?

A week passed. Then the pictures came.

Wrapped up in a box with a neat bow were my pictures. As I unwrapped the bow and sat myself down, I prepared for the worst. As I looked at them, time stood still. My time. My little babies were laughing and playing and blowing bubbles. Their eyes glistened with happiness and playfulness. My little one looked at her older sister with awe and admiration. My older three year old- the one that was all over the place- was smiling coyly as if she could take over the world. The light jumped off their little faces and their smiles lit up the entire shot. I literally was almost brought to tears because at that moment I realized something. This is what was important in life. It wasn’t a posed picture or false beach background. It was my baby playing with an old necklace I found in my diaper bag. It was my toddler blowing bubbles, not caring that she was practically spilling the bottle out. They were having fun!

I’ll tell you that at that moment, I was so proud that I had Ashley capture their lives and not their “cheese!” smiles. They smiled in some shots, they were looking away in others. They were beautiful and surreal. I encourage everyone to visit Ashley’s site at http://ashleygillet.com and see what she can do. Some of her shots are just amazing. I sat down with Ashley and asked her just what makes her tick. This is what she told me:

“One of my favorite shoots I did before I started my company. It was of a good friend of mine and her three month old son. I didn’t really know what I was doing and I kind of made it up as I went along. She had had profession photos done lots of times before, so I didn’t want to seem that clueless. If I did, she didn’t let on. She was gracious and let me move her and her baby around all over the place for me to achieve the shots. A few of the images I made are still some of my favorite. They are perfect representations of the love of a mother for her child. I was very happy to be able to share such a special time in their lives.

I’ve always loved photography and art, in general. I’m very attracted to beautiful things and could stare at a pretty cloudy sky all day if I had the time. A few years ago, I started messing around with the photos I’d take of myself – editing them with crazy effects, turning them to black and white, and so on. However, it wasn’t until late last year that I started to think more seriously about photography. After our nice Canon dslr broke, my fiancé decided that rather than sending it off for repairs, we’d get a Nikon. And that was the turning point. I started photographing random things in my house, flowers in my yard, anything. Before Christmas of 2009, I decided that I was going to start my own company. I took tons of photos of friends and family and researched what it really took to start a photography business. Half a year later, here I am. Ashley Gillett Photography, at your service.”

Ashley puts kids at ease and captures their LIFE- how they see it. “We’re always waiting for that special moment for photos. So much so, that time ends up passing us by and we’re left with nothing but a memory and maybe a few snapshots.”

Don’t let any more time pass by. I encourage you to visit Ashley’s blog at ashleygillett.com or email her at Ashley@ashleygillett.com. She literally changed the way I look at my kids. My stressors of time, money, and brushing teeth right now are not on their itineraries. While those are important things, they are more concerned about how sand feels between their toes, how delicious a Popsicle is or how amazing it is to stand up without holding on to anything. I can’t thank Ashley enough for capturing these special moments. One day my kids will be grown but I’ll remember how my baby watched her big sister blow bubbles and it was magic.

Shocking…it’s September already!  Even more shocking, the latest and greatest costumes of the year are already out of stock or on back order and Halloween is still 8 weeks away!  Basically, just like with Christmas, SHOP EARLY!  Make it your plan this week to find out what your children want to be this year so you can start the hunt!  I’m done I’m pleased to say!  Aidan is going to be a a superhero monkey {we’re improvising on this one using things we have since he’s at the age to not want to wear anything on his head or face so he’s quite limited in the costume department, no need to spend the money when he probably won’t wear it!}, Connor will be Mario from Super Mario Brothers {downright hysterical}, and Timmy is a Ninja Warrior!  And after 9 years of Halloween Costume Shopping, I’m still 100% pleased with my purchases {and samples this time} from Halloween Express.

For you mommies out there that still make your own Halloween Costumes year after year for your kids, I tip my hat to you!  I’ll say it again, I’m not that clever or crafty, store bought is the only way to go for us!  Thank goodness Halloween Express has hundreds upon hundreds of ideas, costumes, and accessories to fulfill our imaginations!  It’s not just Superheros and pretty fairies, the most adorable Octopus above proves that!  Dress your newborn on up to your Grandpa, all right at Halloween Express!

A BIG THANKS to Halloween Express this year for supplying our team with 4 amazing costumes!  Like I said before, C got Mario and T got a Ninja, Sarah’s oldest is going to be a Pilot, and Erin’s daughter is going to be a beloved Disney Princess {see our costume picks below}.  Whether you want to be unique, simple, creative, gruesome, or precious, you’ll find it ALL here!

Did you see the Bike Costume on our Weekly Picks Montage this week??  Straight from Halloween Express, super cute right?  Take some time today and browse, you’ll find decorations for your home, office, or spooky party, every Halloween accessory known to man, from Tom Arma originals to your fav movie characters…Halloween Express makes me long for cooler weather, falling leaves, kids high on sugar, scary movies on TV for weeks, apple cider, pumpkin pie, and the smell of cinnamon and nutmeg lingering in the home.  It’s my favorite time of year, my kids favorite time too!  To pretend to be something different, a hero, a villain, a make-believe adventurer…one time of the year their imaginations truly run wild and when they are finally allowed to embrace the make believe!  I can’t wait!!

Toy Story is still as popular as ever!!

IF Aidan would have allowed us to dress him up this year, a toddler version of Cat in the Hat is what I was dying to put him in!

Happy Costume Shopping!  Take 10% off your orders of $35 or more with the code BABYLUXE10 {subject to their coupon policy which can be viewed here}.  Lots of Free Shipping opportunities so be on the look out for that!

GIVEAWAY!!  Let’s start this season out right with $75 to spend at Halloween Express for one lucky winner!  What would you get??  Let us know for your chance to win!  Contest ends on September 12th.  Open to US residents only. Good luck to all!!

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NEW GIVEAWAY RULES – Please note that we will only accept a maximum of 3 entries per person, as outlined below.

To be eligible to win, you must:
1) Comment from above

Extra Entries {please leave a comment for each one}:

2) Like Halloween Express on Facebook

3) Follow Halloween Express on Twitter

Although the following are not part of the entry rules, we would love it if you did the following {but PLEASE do not leave a comment for these and see top of page for links}:
A) Subscribe to BabyElan {daily}
B) Become our Fan on Facebook {check out the new BabyElan {SHOP}Facebook page}
C) Follow us on Twitter

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I don’t know anyone who doesn’t like receiving a post card in the mail.  They’re fun, they usually always tell a story about someone’s adventure and of course post cards include a descriptive picture on the front.  A simple pleasure. Today in an email world our kids don’t experience simple pleasures like postcards anymore.   Abe’s Peanut however can help all of our children to know what it is like look forward to the mailman’s daily visit!

Abe’s Peanut is a narrative that unfolds over four different postcards each month (one a week).  Each postcard includes part of the story as well as a corresponding picture all addressed to your child.  My son Dylan has been receiving Abe’s Peanut for several weeks now and really gets excited about the mailman coming!  Each postcard is promptly read in his room (safely away from the hands of his 15 month old brother) and then placed into the top drawer in his nightstand.  All four postcards then come out a second time the day the fourth arrives.  Then his puzzle is complete!  He not only enjoys getting mail addressed to him but he also enjoys the challenge of reading the postcards himself.  Once he has a set he reads them over and over.

Each month a different artist and writer team collaborates together.  Expect a whole new look and concept and story each month.  It keeps Abe’s Peanut fresh for the young reader and they will be interested in each new adventure.  This is a great gift for your child or a friend or relative.  This gift renews itself every week giving it’s recipient something to look forward to constantly!

Abe’s Peanut would like one of our lucky readers to win one free subscription to Abe’s Peanut!  To enter please post what you like best about Abe’s Peanut or why you would like to win the free subscription to enter.  This contest will run for one week!  Good luck everyone!

Looking for bold colors, organic cotton & wild designs for your hip little one?  Whether it be for back to “pre-school”, your fall play groups or just hanging around the house, Zoolu Organics has you covered for getting your tot dressed in style!  We love their use of simple, yet eclectic & fresh designs, on comfortable, high quality basics.

As I look around at my friends’ photos on Facebook, I have been seeing all the adorable “first day” outfits that kids are wearing, and my favorites have been the fun & quirky t-shirts that many have on.  This only makes me want to get my kids dressed in their stylish tee’s as well, which will certainly include several from Zoolu Organics!

Patty Abbott, owner & designer of the Zoolu Organics brand, created her company out of a desire to find the perfect combination of organic materials, unisex design & animals to dress her newborn son in.   She has done a fabulous job at creating just that, and we’re proud to show off the pieces that she generously sent us for a review!

For a fabulous 30% off, enter “babyelan” at checkout!!!