Fisher-Price Toy Reviews List

Welcome to our resource or index page for new, retired and vintage Fisher-Price toy reviews. Here you will find information and links to a number of pages that review in greater depth and provide technical details about some of the company's toys designed for children of all ages. 

EIGHT GREAT FISHER-PRICE TOYS

When my children were young Fisher-Price offered some great, quality children's toys. However, they cannot hold a candle to today's Fisher-Price toys, which include a much larger selection of toys that are all made with improved safety measures with your children in mind. These newer toys make ideal gifts for birthday and Christmas because they can be chosen with a child's age in mind and because they are made by a reputable company. 

If you are looking for an out-of-production toy that evokes feelings of nostalgia, you will find some of them included on this page, too. Be sure to note that vintage toys do not meet todays safety recommendations and are likely not safe for young children.

Included on this list are:

Discovery Cottage
Brilliant Basics Hug 'n Giggle Baby doll.
Christmas Sing-a-Ma-Jigs
Zoo Talkers Little People Animal Sounds Zoo
Laugh & Learn Fun with Friends Musical Table
Laugh & Learn Love to Play Puppy
Corn Popper
Octonauts Vegimals
Go Baby Go! Poppity Pop Muscial Dino

The toys you find here are arranged in no particular order. Each of the title links will lead you to a page that provides an in-depth review of that particular toy. I know there is an inspirational choice here for you.

Find Fisher-Price's Discovery Cottage, as shown above, on eBay.

FISHER-PRICE TOY REVIEWS

Discovery Cottage

This is an old one! My children thoroughly enjoyed playing with the Discovery Cottage in the 1990s. I have fond memories of this toy because of that fact.

Brilliant Basics Hug 'n Giggle Baby

The Hug 'n Giggle Baby doll is a delightful toy that was produced in 2010 and intended for the youngest baby girl and once adopted by your daughter becomes a treasured doll.

Christmas Sing-a-Ma-Jigs Reviewed

The Sing-a-Ma-Jigs were designed for older children but even adults collected them. They were produced in and around 2010.

Zoo Talkers Little People Animal Sounds Zoo Reviewed

This Little People-themed toy from 2011 introduced young children to wild animals. My young grandson was here recently. Learning animal sounds was definitely something we did during his visit. This toy would have been a brilliant addition to our play.

Laugh & Learn Fun with Friends Musical Table Reviewed

Released in 2008 and reissued in 2011, the Musical Table is great fun for children aged six to 36 months. With or without the legs, allowing it to be versatile for babies and toddlers.

Laugh & Learn Love to Play Puppy Reviewed

Recommended for children aged 6 months and up, this puppy is very popular and has been released in various versions since about 2003. 

Fisher-Price Corn Popper Toy

An annoying but much beloved toy, the corn popper will have your new walker doing laps! It was first produced in 1957 and it is still being produced today. You can buy the one today here on Amazon.

Octonauts Vegimals

This toy series was inspired by a 2010 television program and consists of little people who are half animal and half vegetable. Great for imaginary play based on the series.

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That's it for my list for today. Stay tuned for additional reviews.

Are you and your children fans of Fisher-Price toys? Do you have a favorite toy by the company or maybe multiple favorites?

See you

at the toy store!

Brenda

Quick Link:

Click here to find new, used and vintage Fisher-Price toys in my eBay store.  

eBay is also a great place for replacement pieces for toys that you already own. I have a selection of them in my eBay store, too.

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN), Esty (Awin), and/or Zazzle Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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Fisher-Price Poppity Pop Musical Dinosaur Review

With Fisher-Price's Go Baby Go! Poppity Pop Musical Dinosaur, your baby will be learning about the cause and effect of his actions and he will be having fun while doing so. Read on to find this toy reviewed in a bit more detail.

The Poppity Pop Dino is a brightly colored dinosaur-themed toy that comes with six balls in various colors. To use it, your baby hits a roller or drops a ball into the dinosaur's tail or onto his back and the action, in the form of popping and music, starts up.  The balls hop inside and outside of the toy and, as a result, your baby chases after them again and again. If a ball does pop out, your baby is on the move retrieving it. Balls don't go far on a carpeted floor, which is perfect for the less mobile baby and, as baby gets a bit older, moving the toy onto a hard floor allows the balls to travel farther. While all of this action is happening, one of eight songs and additional sound effects will play. 

TECHNICAL DETAILS

Tagline: Prehistoric Poppin' Pal.

Age Recommendation: Children 6 months and up
Size: 17 x 7 inches
Batteries: Requires three C batteries.
Model Number: W1392
UPC: 7445047323379
Release Date: 2011
Current Status: Available
Instruction Manual: Available on Mattel's website here.

ORIGINAL VIDEO ADVERTISEMENT

   

SUMMARY

This is another entertaining Fisher-Price toy that is functional and durable for very young children. Older children, however, often wind up sitting on the toy and ultimately breaking it since it was not constructed to hold their weight. It is therefore recommended you buy it to encourage your baby to move and know that it will not be a great toy for an older child.

WHERE TO BUY YOUR POPPITY POP DINOSAUR

This toy is still available at retail and yes, you can still find a Poppity Pop Dinosaur here, on Amazon.

See you
at the toy store!

MORE FISHER-PRICE TOYS:

Retired Fisher-Price Toys in my eBay Store.

Fisher-Price Zoo Talkers Review.

Fisher-Price Discovery Cottage Reviewed.

Fisher-Price Laugh and Learn Puppy Reviewed.

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN), Esty (Awin), and/or Zazzle Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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Fisher-Price Brilliant Basics Hug 'n Giggle Baby

With the Brilliant Basics Hug 'n Giggle Baby, Fisher-Price created an ideally sized doll for your baby or toddler’s enjoyment. This soft plush doll is a bit different than most dolls because she is electronic and will giggle and coo when you squeeze her tummy but she can still be machine washed. I think that makes her a particularly great choice for your little girl.  

She is perfect for toddlers because she is huggable, because of her giggling and cooing and because of her interesting facial details. Her sounds are quiet, which definitely is appropriate for a younger child at play and at nap time.  She is, as one parent said, not too big nor too small and she holds her shape. Initially, your daughter will enjoy the sounds, then she will learn to hug and kiss the doll and then she will learn the parts of the body. By then Hug 'n Giggle Baby will be a treasured toy.

TECHNICAL DETAILS

Age Recommendation: Children 6 months to 3 years old

Length: 10 inches 

Batteries: Requires two AAA batteries. 

Model Number: V6939

UPC: 027084994070

Release Date: 2010

Current Status: Retired

Instruction Manual: Available on Mattel's website here.

WHERE TO BUY BABY HUG 'N GIGGLE 

Since Hug 'n Giggle Baby is not made anymore, you will have to turn to secondary resellers to find her. As I check today, I see both new and used dolls available. Find your Hug 'n Giggle Baby Doll by clicking here, to eBay.  Since the doll is no longer being made, you will have to pay a bit more if you want and can find a new one but there are some perfectly good used ones available, too. Just make sure that the seller says the doll has been tested and is working!

See you

at the toy store!

MORE FISHER-PRICE TOYS:

Fisher-Price Laugh and Learn with Friends Musical Table Review.

Fisher-Price Discovery Cottage Reviewed.

Retired Fisher-Price Toys in my eBay Store.

Fisher-Price Christmas Sing-a-Ma-Jigs Reviewed

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN), Esty (Awin), and/or Zazzle Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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Fisher-Price Zoo Talkers Little People Animal Sounds Zoo Reviewed

DISCOVER THE ZOO TALKERS ANIMAL SOUNDS ZOO 

Your young child would love going to this zoo! It was yet another quality children's toy playset made by Mattel and Fisher-Price, designed to encourage lots of imaginative play and learning. With this set, your little one learned to recognize animals through sight and sound. He or she also learned to recognize the animal habitats, which included grasslands, north and south poles, jungle and water.

HOW DID IT WORK?

The set is electronic and recognized wild animals when your child placed a toy animal figure on a peg and pressed it down. It then named the animal and, with a second press, provided the associated animal noise. The set came with a lion, gorilla, polar bear and a zookeeper named Jack. Of course, the set would not have been complete without Fisher-Price's usual assortment of fun music and phrases. 

ADDITIONAL PIECES

Additional pieces that could be collected for this set included animals that were sold individually, like an alligator, hippopotamus, camel, leopard, elephant, ostrich, seal, dolphin or gorilla. Additionally, three of the animals came with a book and finally, there were two vehicles. The first, a safari truck or jeep, which came with a zookeeper named Eddy (who had a frog on his shoulder) as well as a lion cub, a giraffe and a food or animal feed bin. The second, a train with a Ferris-wheel car, came with a a zookeeper named Michael, a white tiger and a koala bear.  These additional animals greatly enriched the set and the vehicular toys added an entirely new level of play value.

TECHNICAL DETAILS OF THE ZOO: 

• Recommended for Children Aged 1 1/2 to 5 years old
• Bilingual English and French
• Requires 3 AA Batteries
• Original Box Measured 25" (W) x 16" (H) x 5" (D)
• Release Date 2011
• Retired 2014
• Model W1710
• UPC Code 746775033514

BUY YOUR ZOO TALKERS PLAYSET & REPLACEMENT PIECES:

As mentioned above, this set was released in 2011 and discontinued in 2014. This means that it is difficult to find a complete set. However, you can still find it on eBay where resellers do the work to find the discontinued items that you are looking for. Sometimes you might find a new and therefore complete set;  other times, you can find a gently used and nearly complete set. You will also find some of the additional animals and the vehicles. Once again, you will find them in new and in used condition. Click here to see which of the Fisher-Price Zoo Talkers items are available on eBay today.

See you at 

the toy store! 

Brenda

Treasures By Brenda

MORE FISHER-PRICE TOYS:

Fisher-Price Laugh and Learn with Friends Musical Table Review.

Fisher-Price Discovery Cottage Reviewed.

Retired Fisher-Price Toys in my eBay Store.

Find the instruction booklet for your zoo from Mattel by clicking right here.

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN), Esty (Awin), and/or Zazzle Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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Fisher-Price Laugh & Learn Fun with Friends Musical Table Reviewed

Your young child will love playing with Fisher-Price’s Laugh & Learn Fun with Friends Musical Table. This toy features four modes with more than 50 songs and activities and four corners for learning fun. Each of those corners has a character that lights up and encourages your child to explore. The legs are removable so the youngest child can sit and play. Put the legs on and enable your slightly older child to walk around the table.

TECHNICAL DETAILS: 

Recommended for children aged 6 to 36 months.

Bilingual English and Spanish.
Requires 3 AA batteries.
Measures 22 by 5 by 16 inches.

UPC Code 027084631357

FIND YOUR MUSICAL TABLE

This toy was first released in 2008 and re-released in 2011. At some point since then, it was retired. You can still buy it but you will have to turn to eBay. When I checked today, there were a couple available but more of the more recent DJ Tables. See for yourself what Laugh & Learn Fun with Friends Musical Tables are available today by clicking here to eBay.

If you are interested in a Fisher-Price musical table but don’t need it to be this exact one, click here to see the newer Fisher-Price musical tables available on Amazon.

See you

at the toy store!

Brenda 

Treasures ByBrenda

MORE FISHER-PRICE TOYS:

Fisher-Price's Cottage Reviewed.

Discover the Fisher-Price Corn Popper.

Meet Fisher-Price's Batman.

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN), Esty (Awin), and/or Zazzle Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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Fisher-Price Laugh & Learn Love to Play Puppy Reviewed

Follow along on our review of Fisher-Price’s Laugh and Learn Love to Play Puppy, a wonderful and affordable gift idea for the little one in your life. Puppy is a soft, cuddly toy who responds when your child touches with various silly sayings and sing-along songs including familiar ones like the Itsy-Bitsy Spider.

Puppy is designed to be played with while also helping your young child learn the alphabet, numbers, colors and parts of the body. You chose one of two modes: learning or musical. As a fun bonus, his dog collar lights up or twinkles to the beat of the music.

A version of this dog, with slight changes and a even a new name, has been released pretty much consistently by Fisher-Price since 2003 and buyers continue to praise the quality and educational aspects of this toy.

The Puppy I have featured at the top of this page has a purple shirt and paws that are red with a musical note, green with the word hand, yellow with the word foot and orange with the on and off button and controls for the learning or musical mode. He was made in 2008.

TECHNICAL DETAILS

• Recommended for children aged 6 months to 36 years of age.
• The Puppy shown here is model number C6325 and had the UPC code 027084131413.
• Requires 3 AA batteries.

FIND YOUR LAUGH & LEARN PUPPY

If you are not looking for an older version of Puppy, you can find a new version of the Laugh and Learn Puppy by clicking here to Amazon. He has a slightly different name, which is Fisher-Price Baby Toy Laugh & Learn Smart Stages Puppy, but he still represents good value for a well-made, educational toy.

If, however, you are looking for an older version that you remember from the past, you will want to try eBay.  You will find all of the versions of the Laugh & Learn Puppy available on eBay by clicking here where you will also find many different versions of this toy including pianos, walkers, rattles and more. 

See you

at the toy store!

Brenda

Treasures By Brenda

MORE FISHER-PRICE TOYS:

Fisher-Price's Cottage Reviewed.

Fisher-Price's Little People Nativity Set.

Discover the Fisher-Price Corn Popper.

Meet Fisher-Price's Batman.

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN), Esty (Awin), and/or Zazzle Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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2022 In the Garden ~ A Review

2022 In the Garden will be a time of renewal, rebirth and refreshment of the earth and you! If you ask any gardener they will certainly tell you that time spent in the garden is Time Well Spent.

Whether you choose to garden for beauty or for bounty, one thing is sure, you should start with the best seeds that are available.  I like ordering my seeds from West Coast Seeds.  They supply seeds that are NOT TREATED!  This means that there are no chemicals added to your seed supply,  making it a much healthier choice. They have a wonderful website (https://www.westcoastseeds.com) that is full of fantastic articles to help you become a great ambassador of your part of the earth.  

I have been gardening with my family since the early 1960's and that is a long time ago now.  What I learned from my parents was that the earth needs us to be responsible for what happens in the ground around us.  We were composting and tilling the earth with organic matter long before it became chic to do so.  

In the years since then, much has changed in the gardening industry.  Many companies are selling you products that have been Genetically Modified (GMO). These plants are just now coming under scrutiny and producers are being forced to let you know if what you are purchasing is chemically modified.  With West Cost Seeds you don't have this problem at all.  Everything they sell is grown right and seeds are organic and Non-GMO!  This makes me very happy!  I don't want to grow anything that isn't natural or has been modified genetically.

West Coast Seeds is not only dedicated to helping people become better gardeners, they also want to educate them on what are best practices for sustainability and renewal of the ground.  Their website offers so many learning opportunities.  Articles on sunflowers, growing a garden that is bee and butterfly friendly, to squash pollination and more is all available to you.  You will even find recipes to use for all the produce you get from your gardening efforts.  This website and the company are tops in my books! 

I do hope that if you have some questions about gardening that you will take the time to check out West Coast Seeds website.  You will be amazed at the amount of information available to you!  West Coast Seeds will ship all across Canada and the USA!  

The season for gardening and growing has just begun, now is the time to order your seeds and get them started so that your bounty will be overflowing when it comes to harvest time.  

Happy Gardening to all of you!

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN), Esty (Awin), and/or Zazzle Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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Spring Into the Garden, Give Nature a Helping Hand! A Garden Review

Spring has sprung!  Gardeners and Conservationists are all jumping for joy! 

But wait a minute, before you get all excited about getting your hands dirty and your gardens in shape, let's take a few minutes to think and see what Mother Nature would have us do instead!

Many gardeners are just itching to get their gardens cleaned up and looking tidy and I can't say that I blame them.  After a long cold winter, making things (garden beds) look nice is a job that many gardeners love to do.  Why wait?  Well, would it help for you to know that many bees are still hibernating within the leaves and debris that is in your garden?  We have a serious problem with declining bee populations, so anything you can do to help them would be a welcome thing to do.

I'm not advocating that you leave your gardens in a messy state, but rather wait just a few weeks before getting to the "mess".  That will be time enough for the bees to wake up from their winter slumbers and start looking for those first dandelions for food.

That brings up to the second thing that gardeners should really stop doing in the springtime.  Did you know that dandelions are one of the first spring flowers to come up in your gardens?  Well they are and they are full of good nutrition for the bees who wake up hungry.  Leave those flowers alone, let them bloom and welcome the sight of those bees that are doing the hard work!  If you don't want a proliferation of dandelions in your lawn, just watch the flowers and when they have all been pollinated, and start to produce their seeds heads, go out then and cut them off and dispose of them so no seeds are flying around the garden!  The parent plant will produce another flower for the bees and then you can do the same thing again.  Pluck the spent flower head before it sends it's seeds everywhere.  This way you will be providing food for the bees without dandelions taking over your gardens.  Easy peasy!

Spring comes on quickly, so you need to be ready for all kinds of wonderful things that will happen during this time.  Number three on my list of things to do (or not do) is check for migrating birds in your area.  Hummingbirds are the Number One bird everyone is looking forward to seeing.  They too will come to your gardens hungry from their travels north!  You can check out this Hummingbird Migration Map to see when they will arrive in your area!  

So what can you do to help those Hungry Hummers?

Have your hummingbird feeders out a week or so before they are due in your area.  Keep them clean and available with fresh nectar that is changed weekly!  Why do you need to change the nectar?  Well as with anything left out to the elements, nectars can go "bad".  That means they will get moldy and rancid.  The idea is to feed those hungry hummers, not to harm them!  So clean fresh nectar is a MUST!  (p.s. nectar is simply four parts water to one part sugar, NO DYES)  In the early days of their migration you can make up nectar and keep it in the fridge.  Just put a small amount in the feeders until you know they have found you!  Once you know they are around, then you can fill up those feeders to a cup of nectar and again keep the nectar fresh!

 

                                                                                  Ruby Throated Hummingbird

           

Migrating Birds, what you need to know!

 

Along with the bees, migrating birds are also having "human" problems!  What are those, you might ask?  Well in large urban areas where skyscrapers and really large windows are the norm, many migrating birds fly into those windows and drop like stones onto the pavement below! They suffer broken necks, wings and sometimes are just so stunned that they don't recover.  This is truly a sad situation for birds that fly so far to get to their northern nesting areas.  Large windows are almost invisible to the birds, so their tracking is off!  How can we help them?  It's easy, first is awareness and then there is something as easy as placing "cling decals" on the windows so that they will see them and avoid crashing into them.  You can easily purchase these decals in many styles, some are transparent to the human eyes or others are decorative and produce an ambience in your homes as you look out those windows.  It's a small price to pay for the benefit of the birds and possibly for you to enjoy them as they make their homes in your yards. 

Did you know that there are several species of migratory birds in North American?  Quote taken from All About Birds.org:

• "Long-distance migrants typically move from breeding ranges in the United States and Canada to wintering grounds in Central and South America. Despite the arduous journeys involved, long-distance migration is a feature of some 350 species of North American birds."

 

Learn More About Bird Migration

 

If you want to know more about Bird Migration, there is a wonderful website by Cornell University that follows and updates information on all kinds of migratory birds!  You can find it RIGHT HERE!  This is excellent reading material for any bird enthusiast!  Don't stop with dedicated Birders, get your young ones involved in becoming Bird Ambassadors, they will learn and do so many things in a fun and really rewarding way.  

 

There are great books available for children and adults too!  Easy to read and understand, they will teach you everything you need to know and look for when searching the skies and yards for those feathered friends.

 

Yellow Rumped Warbler

This Easter, instead of just filling our children with chocolate and candy, let's feed their minds with some easy and interesting ways to keep their future in balance. Add some of those window decals or a bird feeder to their Easter basket for an Eco-Friendly alternative to chocolate or candy! 

First Nature 993091-546 16 oz. Hummingbird Flower Feeder , RedCheck PriceNational Geographic Field Guide to Birds: MichiganCheck PriceAnti-Collision Window Bird Stickers Decals Glass Door Protect and Save Bird Strikes (Clear)Check Price

 

Happy Easter to Everyone!

 

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN), Esty (Awin), and/or Zazzle Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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December 26th, Time to Write a Thank You Day

Boxing Day Blues can sometimes strike when all the awaited  festivities are over.  

And they do seem to be over so quickly.  All the hustle and bustle of preparing for the BIG day gives way to feelings of let down and down right depression.  Knowing this before hand might just help you to get through those feelings and come out the other side with a new sense of wellbeing and a new purpose too.

Christmas time and all the build up to this holiday can make some people really "crazy".  There are all the lists for food, drink, presents, guests and so much more to attend to.  Then there is the cleaning and other preparations for the BIG day.  

By the time it arrives you are physically, mentally and emotionally exhausted.  And just when you think it's perfect, it's  over in a heartbeat.  

The let down can be so significant, that many mental health agencies start to prepare for the fall out early as well.  But it doesn't have to be this way if you do just a little more preparation for this amazing holiday gathering.

Having a plan in mind to help you cope with the let down will significantly make the holidays much happier.  To that end, I am going to make some suggestions that just might help you, or someone you love, get through that post holiday let down.

Today, on the Calendar of Days, is Write a Thank You Note day.  Now, you may not think this is a good idea, but I'm here to suggest it's a great way to relive the excitement, joy, and happiness of the Christmas gathering.  It will help you to capture what was really important and let go of the myriad of small disappointments that may have happened to make the day less than perfect.

After all, getting the family together and enjoying each other's company is the real beauty of Christmas.  The gifts and the food and everything else is secondary to just being together.  

Sitting down and writing a thank you, will let you put into words how much you enjoyed and appreciated all the efforts everyone made to make this Christmas special.  It really acts as a way to relive the excitement and the funny things that happened during the previous day.  

If that doesn't work for you there are many other ways to get through that post holiday letdown.  Here is my list of ways to do that and maybe you can add some of your own ideas.

1. Write that Thank You note to someone who went out of their way to make the holiday special.
2. Plan a trip to the zoo. Christmas antics aren't just for people.
3. Arrange some time to go for a walk in the neighborhood to enjoy the lights, decorations and all the sights.
4. Let yourself relax with a good movie or go out to a show.
5. Invite someone you haven't seen in a while for coffee and a good chat.
6. Go out and play in the snow (if you have any).  Bundle up with those new scarves, hats and mitts.
7. Start a new hobby.  Scrapbooking, knitting, crocheting, drawing or woodworking.  Coloring pages are still a great way to relax too.  
8. add your own ideas here.......

 

All the expectations, disappointments and let downs seem to disappear when you have a plan in mind.  Just writing a note can help you get through that emotional build up of the past month.  Going out to park, zoo, or being with a good friend,  can give you a release for all the frustrations you may have felt or are still feeling.  It's hard to stay disappointed when you are at the zoo checking out all the Christmas treats the zookeepers have in store for the animals in their care.  Just watching the Polar Bears, penguins, monkeys and more,  get their treats can be a delight for your overworked body and spirit.  The walking and exercise are good for you too.  Too much food and drink can be the trigger to make some people feel cranky and "out of sorts".  Drinking water and walking can help undo all the overeating and indulgences that took place the day before.  If you can't do the exercise, then just sitting back and watching a favorite movie, with full permission to just enjoy it, can also revive the drooping spirits.  A new hobby will keep your mind and hands occupied while you try to figure out just what you are supposed to do. An active mind doesn't have time to dwell on things that didn't go as planned and that's a good thing.   

If this all fails, then you can always go to the internet and start planning something different, a vacation in the new year, places you want to see or books you want to read.  On Review This Reviews, you can find lots of book reviews, Do It Yourself projects, movie reviews and more.  I dare say you could spend the better part of a day just checking out all the articles and I'm sure you will find a few that will trigger some ideas of your own.  

The most important thing on December 26th is to relish and relive, enjoy and form the memories of the day before.  Writing that note may be the first step in some well deserved "self-care" that will keep you from drowning in some very powerful negatives that could be plaguing your spirits.  Don't let Christmas let-down, get you down.......there are plenty more good times coming your way. 

**Olivia is not a health care specialist, if you are feeling down or depressed, please check out your local  health professionals.

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN), Esty (Awin), and/or Zazzle Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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Summertime Learning Fun

Summertime Learning Fun happens when you spend some time together, exploring our world and answering all those questions that come up.  Like what's that Noise?  

If your children are anything like mine, and I'm sure they are, summertime means adventures.  It means spending a lot of time outdoors.  It means looking for things to do and exploring.  It means turning off the TV or computer games and getting back to nature in the great outdoors.  It could mean swimming every day, or going to the park, or camping.  Where ever you go, there is something to learn about!  

What else can you do?

Summertime opens up a whole new world for our children to learn.  While the kids are looking to 

relax and have fun, they are also looking for something that catches their imaginations or their need to know about their world.  To that end, most families will be spending some very special together time while on holidays. No baseball games, soccer practices, dance classes or other interruptions, just good old family time.     

Learning takes on a whole new meaning when summertime rolls around.  No "textbooks" and no real "agenda" means that learning is done on a whatever crosses my path and intrigues me basis. That can even happen at home too!  As I am writing, I can hear the toads singing in my pond. I need to learn more about them, so when my grandchildren come to visit, I can tell them some things that I'm sure they don't know.

Be Prepared!  

As parents who prepare to take our children on hikes and overnight camping trips, we need to be ready to answer questions that are sure to pop up.  Like "What's that noise?"  Even a trip to the zoo can be filled with questions that need answers.  Be prepared to either answer the questions or make note of the questions and when you are home again, look up the answers  together, so that both you and your child will  have learnt something new and you will have done it together.  This is what makes family memories.  We still laugh at some of the things that happened when we went places with our children. Now they are doing the same thing with their children and telling stories about when they were younger.  It's time to pass on family history as well as having time to enjoy nature.

Playing games with the kids can be so much fun too. We would take ours camping and find that the welcome station had many printouts for educational purposes. We would make the most out of these "handouts". One camping trip, they had a print out of all the birds that nested in the area, with hints for the kids. We would go on hikes and try to spot nesting areas and then spotting the birds too. There were print outs of the different trees and their leaves. We made a collection and even did bark rubbings. Have you ever stopped and looked at all the different types of bark on trees? It is fascinating! When the kids found what they were looking for, they would take a picture to go along with their leaves and bark rubbings, carefully noting the type of tree and all the nuances of it's growth. So much to learn, just from a tree! Birds and reptiles, amphibians and mammals of the area were all duly recorded. If we needed to learn more, a note was made in our notebook to look it up when we got back home. The kids loved their nature hikes, because it wasn't just walking through the woods, it was stopping and seeing what made up those woods. The trees, birds, bugs, flowers and everything that was in our path, was food for our "Discovery Book".


Guide to Free Campgrounds: Includes Campgrounds $12 and Under in the United States (Don Wright's Guide to Free Campgrounds)

So What Can you Do to Prepare for a great Outdoor Adventure?

Well first and foremost, check out the link above, to find some low cost campgrounds. It's a great way to pinpoint where your family will spend some quality time together, without breaking the bank.

This guide will help you look for a place that has some great outdoor adventures, be it hiking in the mountains, camping by a lake, or visiting a beach somewhere new. Go with the eye of an adventurer. Take along a "Discovery Book" a journal where you can make notes, tuck in leaves or flowers, keep a daily diary of what you saw, whether it was birds, bugs, beetles or trees. Answer the questions that you know the answers to and make a note to find the answers to those questions that you don't know the answers to. When you are finished your holiday, you will have a great little diary on what everyone saw and learnt about during your time in the great outdoors.



My Travel Journal

Above all, be ready to have some fun, make some memories and enjoy each others company in the great, beautiful and special outdoors.  Happy Summer Everyone!

Pictures courtesy of Pixaby, free stock photos. 

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN), Esty (Awin), and/or Zazzle Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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New Year's Countdown!

It's Official!  We are now on the Countdown to New Year's Eve!

By Viscious-Speed [CC0], via Wikimedia Commons

Christmas is officially over and all the wrappings, running around, visiting and partying with family and friends has come to a trickle, we can now gear it up again for the New Year.

Traditionally it's a time to reflect on the year that has passed and look to the future and what 2016 will bring our way.

Now without a crystal ball, it will be difficult to figure out exactly what will happen in the year ahead, but with some foresight, we can make sure that certain possibilities do happen.

What do I mean?  Well, let's just say that instead of trying to project what we hope will happen, how about we make sure by our actions, that changes we want see,  actually do happen.

I'm talking about making changes in our lives that will actually result in some of our expectations coming to fruition.

For a good many writers, that will mean something like:  making sure that you have your blogs in place for publishing when they are expected, especially if you belong to a group of writers!  If you are running your own website, it means learning the skills to make that website successful.  It will mean taking the time to learn and then put into practice those lessons that have been imparted to you.

It will also mean that you need to focus! Focus on what you wish to accomplish with your blog and/or your website.  There are people out there who are doing what you wish to be doing and to that end, they are sharing their expertise, so that you can do this as well.


From personal experience I can also tell you that there are two ladies out there who have had years of experience and are sharing their knowledge with many bloggers and website builders.  They have even shared how they earn make money, blogging and building their websites,  from home.  They offer courses in how to blog for money, build a website in a day, and how to learn to place affiliate links that will earn you an income, and all for reasonable investment.  They are the real thing, and I can tell you from personal experience, there are many more out there who just want to hook you in and then let you sink!  Not so with Pajama Affiliates!

Just as Review This is a site to find out all kinds of information, your website can be the place that people go to, when they are on the look out for the information, that you are sharing.

Learning how to rank your website and then properly doing the work to make sure that your website is optimized properly, will draw those people that are out there "searching" through the different search engines, like "google" or "yahoo", "ask" or "search".

Are you confused yet?  If so, the best place to start is with someone who can help you make your site the best and be totally committed to helping you learn the "right" way to make this possible.

I joined and I have not regretted this for one moment.  Lesley and Robin are there for you.  Once you join, if you need help, they are there to help you along.  Do you need more coaxing?

When you join the Pajama Affiliates group, not only do Lesley and Robin help you with any problems you might have, but the whole community of bloggers will help you with their knowledge as well.  That is just one of the many perks of belonging to this group.

Your New Year's hopes and aspirations are waiting for you to make the first move.  Get blogging and learn how to turn that into some extra income for you and your family.

Now I would like to wish you and your family a very Happy, Health and Prosperous New Year!

Let's meet back here and see how 2016 turned out!

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN), Esty (Awin), and/or Zazzle Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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