Don't Waste Your Money Alert: Crayola Washable Colored Bubbles

I know that these just came out this Spring and I know it's a brand new product and I know it says "washable", but these bubbles need to be avoided...trust me.

I thought they were a neat idea. I mean, all kids love bubbles and colored ones must be really cool. They've got regular bubbles, scented bubbles, so why not colored bubbles. Well, let me tell you why not colored bubbles.

I bought the blue ones for my kids. Just a little bottle with the "spill proof" cap. These bubbles are messy as hell. The spill proof cap is just a rubber like covering over the opening of the bottle that you have to pull the bubble wand out of. Well, it may not spill but it sure splatters all over the place. And, the bubble stuff itself is more like liquified food coloring and it gets all over the place. Wherever the bubbles pop, there is a colored splotch left behind. And, YES I did this outside. There were blue splatters all over the driveway, my pants, my kids pants and blue bubble popped splotches all over the grass and driveway. I got the watering can out to wash it off but it took a downpour the other day to wash it off the driveway. Yes it does wash out of clothes but unless you want your kids walking around with colored splotches all day, you'll need to change them after playing with these things.

Crayola also has this set of these colored bubbles that comes with a bubble blowing gun which looks like it may be less messy but I'm not buying it.

Now, don't get me wrong, I love Crayola products and the Color Wonder products are great. It's just these colored bubbles that I don't like. Oh, and the price I don't like either. A small bottle of these bubbles will run you around $3.99...um I can get a bigger bottle of regular or scented bubbles for $1. Either way my kid is happy.

Soft, Sweet and OH SO Freakin' Good

I say let the gourmet marshmallow wars begin! I've posted before on gourmet marshmallows that I bought from Have It Sweet Confections. Having tried and loved them (and am now sickened if I eat those white store bought things), I decided to give another Etsian purveyor or soft things a try.

I ordered from Softly Sweetly and was very very happy with what I got. I ordered a trio of flavors (which you can order yourself and try 3 different flavors or even the dozen variety where you get 12 different flavors) and got Triple Chocolate, Vanilla and Toasted Coconut drizzled with chocolate. There's like 20 or so flavors to choose from so you won't be bored. I'm on my second trio of flavors right now: Toasted Coconut with chocolate (again cause they were that good), Amaretto and Mexican Chocolate (think chocolate marshmallow coated in a mix of sugar, cocoa and cinnamon). These are huge squares of marshmallows and the flavor is just that good. They are so soft, the texture is great that they practically melt in your mouth! The trio of flavors will run you $10.99 for one dozen plus about $5 shipping.

A dozen marshmallows range in price (depending on the flavor I think) between $9.99 and $10.99. You can also get a half dozen for less than $6.

I must say the Triple Chocolate and the coconut ones are my favorite but I've only tried 5 flavors as of yet. There's also these Caramallows that are marshmallows coated in caramel..must try those soon.

All in all, these are huge, great tasting marshmallows for the price. And, turn around time is really quick so you won't be left waiting. I highly recommend, if you even like marshmallows, to give any of the gourmet marshmallows a try, you won't be disappointed.

Post Christmas Clean Up

It's that time...at least in my family. New Year's Day is the BIG cleanup day. The tree comes down and all the rest of the holiday decorations. It's also the time we say holy crap to all the toys that have been left around the house. Well, I nipped that in the bud yesterday

My youngest son has like a collection of Thomas wooden train tracks and buildings. And,he just got some Thomas trackmaster sets for Christmas, notably the Zig Zag Zoom set which is huge. So we needed some decent storage for our little sucker. Granted, we went thru his toys and he (yes he himself) got rid of a bunch, there was still the need for some real decent organization in there.

I saw these cool canvas bins at Target earlier in the week and decided to go back yesterday and pick some up. They are deep, huge and have wheels...plus pullin straps too. I got the 18"x18"x18" for $19.99 and the 15"x15"x15" for $14.99. The bigger one holds all of his wooden train tracks and building including his round house which is big. There's still room. The smaller one holds the entire new Thomas Trackmaster set. Plus, with the wheels, they are super easy for him to move around on his own. You can even hook the handles together and pull both at the same time. Great size and good boy colors (solid blue and red).

I also picked up one of those hanging closet things with the canvas shelves..matching of course for $12.99. And, I plan on going back and getting 3 of the standard canvas bins for his bookcase (replacing some ivory colored ones just so everything matches in his room).

I know the price seems a little whacko, I mean $20 for a storage bin right? But, it's big and deep and what needs to fit in it, fits in it no problem. So, for us, money well spent. Our son's room looks so much better for the money spent. All of these can be found at Target in their "Home" section between the bedding and the furniture aisles.