Parenting Tips at NeenMachine.com » Hobbies http://neenmachine.com Parenting Tips for Busy Moms and Families Wed, 21 May 2008 10:04:27 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.5 en DISNEY DVD http://neenmachine.com/2008/05/06/disney-dvd/ http://neenmachine.com/2008/05/06/disney-dvd/#comments Tue, 06 May 2008 15:28:24 +0000 Neena http://neenmachine.com/2008/05/06/disney-dvd/ Copyright © 2008 Parenting Tips. Visit the original article at http://neenmachine.com/2008/05/06/disney-dvd/.
disneydvd.jpgDisney DVD - The Classic Caballeros Collection - A Review

Last week I announced a new giveaway on this site - the Classic Caballeros Collection featuring two movies: Saludos Amigos and The Three Caballeros. (By the way - one of my parenting tips is to enter all family related giveaways! ;) And time is running out on this one - the deadline to enter is midnight tonight!) This Disney DVD was newly released on April 29, 2008.

Over the weekend I had the opportunity to watch this Disney DVD myself. It has been a long time since I have watched “classic” Disney featuring old time favorites like Goofy and Donald Duck, so I found this DVD to be very nostalgic and eye opening at the same time.

The first movie included on this Disney DVD is Saludos Amigos. This film was originally released in 1942 - back when the world was a big place. There is a short clip showing Walt Disney and a team of eighteen cartoonists boarding a plane and heading south to the Latin American countries of Argentina, Brazil, and Chile. I, as a parent, honestly enjoyed this brief history lesson the most. To see the world as it was back then, and to imagine the enormity of such a trip when world travel was still novel and foreign countries were still shrouded in mystery was very interesting. In fact, one of the bonus features on this Disney DVD was an excerpt from a CBC interview with Walt Disney and it turns out that the U.S. Government wanted to send Disney to South America as goodwill ambassadors. Disney refused under that pretense but agreed to go to gather material for cartoons - which is what he did. And the result is - Saludos Amigos.

But I digress. The movie Saludos Amigos is actually a compilation of four short films. Each film explores a different region of South America and presents the geography and culture of each place in an enjoyable cartoon that is not only entertaining but also educational.

The first short film features Donald Duck at Lake Titicaca located on the border of Bolivia and Peru. Here dwell the descendants of ancient Inca civilization.

The second film explores the Andes in Chile. Pedro, a little plane, has the responsibility of picking up a mail delivery. He must brave the elements that are typical to this region in order to collect his cargo and arrive home safely.

The third short film features cowboy Goofy who is transformed into his Argentine counterpart - the gaucho. As Goofy explores the Argentine Pampas he entertains the audience with the funny antics that he is famous for. Here is a short clip from this part of Saludos Amigos:

And the fourth segment of Saludos Amigos stars José Carioca, an animated parrot created by Disney for this particular film. Putting rhythm into the audience with a little Latin Samba, José Carioca takes us on a trip to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

The second feature on this Disney DVD is The Three Caballeros. I was less impressed with this movie than the first one. The beginning of The Three Caballeros is similar to Saludos Amigos where Disney characters go out and explore foreign lands. South America is featured as well as Mexico. And yes, this film combines both education and entertainment as well. However, towards the end on The Three Caballeros, Donald becomes a little “girl” crazy and a good portion of the movie is devoted to Donald’s infatuation with pretty women. What keeps it interesting to me is, again, the historical perspective. Donald’s exploits may not be politically correct in this day and age, but this film was made sixty odd years ago and what is pictured is a sign of the times.

These classic animated films make you appreciate the forward thinking of Walt Disney and all that he has done to make the entertainment industry what it is today.

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]]> http://neenmachine.com/2008/05/06/disney-dvd/feed/ More on LITTLEST PET SHOP http://neenmachine.com/2008/04/03/more-on-littlest-pet-shop/ http://neenmachine.com/2008/04/03/more-on-littlest-pet-shop/#comments Thu, 03 Apr 2008 14:03:01 +0000 Neena http://neenmachine.com/2008/04/03/more-on-littlest-pet-shop/ Copyright © 2008 Parenting Tips. Visit the original article at http://neenmachine.com/2008/04/03/more-on-littlest-pet-shop/.
littlest-pet-shop.jpg

My daughter loves Littlest Pet Shop toys - and I have to say that I am becoming a huge fan as well. The little figures are fun to collect and play with. Each toy is unique and comes with teeny, tiny accessories that are almost as adorable as the pets themselves.

Recently the Littlest Pet Shop line went through a bit of a redesign. If you look at the “eyes” you will see a difference. Several new pets were introduced so now there are even more to choose from. Each Littlest Pet Shop figure is numbered so you can easily keep track of your collection. And Hasbro even has a place on their website where you can manage your pet collection. You just need to create an account and check off the pets that you already have. If there are pets on your wish list, you can track these too.

Meet several of the new pets at Hasbro.com’s Toy Shop.

If you like Littlest Pet Shop, you will enjoy some of my other posts about these toys. I have done an in-depth review of LittlestPetShop.com and the Littlest Pet Shop VIP’s. My review was done shortly after the Littlest Pet Shop.com VIP release in New York City. Now that these virtual toys are available nationally I will be taking a second look at the VIP World in the next few days and let you know how it has evolved - so stay tuned! And if you haven’t already, you may want to check out MonkeyBarTV.com where you can play free online games featuring some of Hasbro’s most popular characters including Littlest Pet Shop and others.

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]]> http://neenmachine.com/2008/04/03/more-on-littlest-pet-shop/feed/ NINTENDO DS BUNDLE of Fun! http://neenmachine.com/2008/02/26/nintendo-ds-bundle-of-fun/ http://neenmachine.com/2008/02/26/nintendo-ds-bundle-of-fun/#comments Wed, 27 Feb 2008 03:13:03 +0000 Neena http://neenmachine.com/2008/02/26/nintendo-ds-bundle-of-fun/ Copyright © 2008 Parenting Tips. Visit the original article at http://neenmachine.com/2008/02/26/nintendo-ds-bundle-of-fun/.
You know I can’t resist Nintendo, so when I hear about a chance to win a free Nintendo DS Bundle - my ears perk up and my homing device turns on!Goodyblog is holding another one of their fabulous giveaways (you know I’ve you all you parents in before). This time not one, but three prizes, are up for grabs! Each Nintendo DS Bundle includes the Nintendo DS Lite gaming system in the cobalt/black color combo, along with a Professor Layton and the Curious Village DS game.

You know I’ve already left a comment at GoodyBlog to enter - so, you better hurry and leave yours! The contest closes at midnight Eastern Time on Friday February 29, 2008.

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]]> http://neenmachine.com/2008/02/26/nintendo-ds-bundle-of-fun/feed/ PopCap Games http://neenmachine.com/2008/02/16/popcap-games/ http://neenmachine.com/2008/02/16/popcap-games/#comments Sat, 16 Feb 2008 19:39:37 +0000 Neena http://neenmachine.com/2008/02/16/popcap-games/ Copyright © 2008 Parenting Tips. Visit the original article at http://neenmachine.com/2008/02/16/popcap-games/.
I was recently introduced to PopCap Games by one of my readers, Aimee.

It seems that PopCap Games can be found at popcap.com. Ok - online games, nothing too new and exciting about that. But yet what Aimee said intrigued me. Apparently 5,000,000 users play PopCap games each month. And of these PopCap games players 78% are women and the average player is married with at least one child.

Why are women attracted to PopCap games? What is the draw? Of course I had to check it out. In her email, Aimee briefly outlined some of the PopCap games at popcap.com - Bejewelled, Peggle, Chuzzle to name a few. These games are mind challenging - brain games, if you will. I have heard of these, but never actually played them. Aimee even went so far as to say that in addition to being entertaining, playing these games are good for your health. Huh? Apparently, studies have shown that playing a casual game (which is some type of technical term for what PopCap games really are) can lower stress levels. Basically, the games give you the opportunity to take a “mental break”.

At popcap.com you can play PopCap games online free or download the Deluxe versions to your computer for free. If you love the game you can then then purchase the complete version of the game for unlimited play. I only played the games online so can’t provide much insight into the downloadable versions. I also notice that you can purchase these games for download to your iPod (check for compatiblity) - a perfect time passer for when you have to wait.

The bottom line - PopCap Games are addicting. I enjoyed the Mummy Maze, Bejewelled, and Book Worm. And then I had to tear myself away. If you set your own timer while you play you may reduce stress. But if you play the day away, all of your other responsibilities will still be waiting!

Definitely worth bookmarking.

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]]> http://neenmachine.com/2008/02/16/popcap-games/feed/ Weekly Family Newsletter http://neenmachine.com/2008/01/05/weekly-family-newsletter/ http://neenmachine.com/2008/01/05/weekly-family-newsletter/#comments Sun, 06 Jan 2008 03:32:12 +0000 Neena http://neenmachine.com/2008/01/05/weekly-family-newsletter/ Copyright © 2008 Parenting Tips. Visit the original article at http://neenmachine.com/2008/01/05/weekly-family-newsletter/.
One of my 2008 resolutions is to become a better family historian.

You see, I still take pictures like I’m using an old 35mm. You know, film.

Here in the digital age, I should be taking thousands of pictures. Yet, I just snap one or two….per week. Ummm……what’s up with that?

So, to fix the situation. I resolved to print a weekly family newsletter. I keep my digital camera at the ready, and snap pictures of the most mundane things.

I think I have enough material for the 2008 week 1 issue!

Hopefully I will keep up the pace.

Do you keep a family newsletter? What program do you use to document all of it? Or perhaps you keep detailed scrapbooks done by hand? I would love to get some ideas on how to turn my newsletter into a treasured keepsake.

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]]> http://neenmachine.com/2008/01/05/weekly-family-newsletter/feed/ Taking more Photographs http://neenmachine.com/2007/11/24/taking-more-photographs/ http://neenmachine.com/2007/11/24/taking-more-photographs/#comments Sun, 25 Nov 2007 04:34:54 +0000 Neena http://neenmachine.com/2007/11/24/taking-more-photographs/ Copyright © 2008 Parenting Tips. Visit the original article at http://neenmachine.com/2007/11/24/taking-more-photographs/.
My December resolution is to take more pictures. Parents have the subjects to photograph but not the time (or the third hand to hold the camera! ;) )

Once upon a time, I took tons of pictures. As the kids grew, I snapped less and less.

Usually my hands were full. Try as I might, I couldn’t juggle the babies and the camera. As they moved into toddlerhood, I couldn’t keep them away from the camera long enough to snap the pictures.

Now, I just plain forget to take the camera.

With the holidays upon us, I am making an early resolution to take tons of pictures during the month of December.

And while we are on the subject, does anyone have any good tips for keeping their digital photo libraries organized?

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]]> http://neenmachine.com/2007/11/24/taking-more-photographs/feed/ Scanning Old Photographs http://neenmachine.com/2007/07/09/scanning-old-photographs/ http://neenmachine.com/2007/07/09/scanning-old-photographs/#comments Mon, 09 Jul 2007 13:28:00 +0000 Neena http://neenmachine.com/2007/07/09/scanning-old-photographs/ Copyright © 2008 Parenting Tips. Visit the original article at http://neenmachine.com/2007/07/09/scanning-old-photographs/.
I spent the better part of yesterday scanning old photographs into my computer. My intention was noble - future generations will appreciate my efforts at documenting my family’s history. And my daughter looks just like grandma at that age.

But what good are photos that are trapped in a computer? Why not create some photo books and have them printed? That’s when I ran into trouble. You see, the resolution that I used for scanning the photos was not high enough.

I don’t really understand the whole resolution thing as I haven’t spent much time learning about it. I know that higher resolution makes for better print outs, uses more memory, and takes longer to scan.

So here I am back at the drawing board. But this time, I did a little rudimentary research and found a very helpful article at MacWorld called New Life for Old Photos. This article not only explains resolution but has some great tips on organizing and archiving scanned pictures. You will find useful information here, even if you don’t use a Mac.

Now, I wish I had more time!

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]]> http://neenmachine.com/2007/07/09/scanning-old-photographs/feed/ Tabblo’s Online Photo Cube Tool http://neenmachine.com/2007/06/14/tabblos-online-photo-cube-tool/ http://neenmachine.com/2007/06/14/tabblos-online-photo-cube-tool/#comments Thu, 14 Jun 2007 13:00:00 +0000 Neena http://neenmachine.com/2007/06/14/tabblos-online-photo-cube-tool/ Copyright © 2008 Parenting Tips. Visit the original article at http://neenmachine.com/2007/06/14/tabblos-online-photo-cube-tool/.

Are you looking for a way to showcase all of those wonderful digital photos that are trapped in your computer?

Tabblo’s Online Photo Cube tool is a website where you upload the photos that you want to showcase. They are converted into a PDF file that you print out on your own printer. Cut and fold, and voila - a little paper picture box.

Judy at GoodyBlog has a list of creative uses for this homemade photo cube and Jen at so you wannabe a Domestik Goddess? has some excellent ideas as well.

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]]> http://neenmachine.com/2007/06/14/tabblos-online-photo-cube-tool/feed/ Digital Scrapbooking http://neenmachine.com/2007/04/12/digital-scrapbooking/ http://neenmachine.com/2007/04/12/digital-scrapbooking/#comments Thu, 12 Apr 2007 11:41:00 +0000 Neena http://neenmachine.com/2007/04/12/digital-scrapbooking/ Copyright © 2008 Parenting Tips. Visit the original article at http://neenmachine.com/2007/04/12/digital-scrapbooking/.
I don’t get much time to scrapbook.

Many of my friends have created beautiful albums. One for each kid, for grandma, for each year…. Yes, these ladies should teach courses on how they manage it all.

I have abandoned several approaches. I started by year, then tried by kid. And now I have a lot of half done albums. I don’t know if I will ever truly catch up.

A few years ago I came across a site called Digital Scrapbook Place. Every time I visit this site I get a shot of inspiration. Not only do they showcase people’s work, but they offer tutorials, articles and classes on creating scrapbook pages on the computer.

Once you complete the free registration, you can download what they call “freebies”. These are backgrounds (the digital version of fancy paper), frames, embellishments, word art and more. This is a great resource for the starting out. There is also a store with lots of good graphics for purchase.

The best part about a digital album is that, once created, it can be given to or shared with as many people as you like.

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]]> http://neenmachine.com/2007/04/12/digital-scrapbooking/feed/ Photos - Organized. http://neenmachine.com/2007/03/02/photos-organized/ http://neenmachine.com/2007/03/02/photos-organized/#comments Fri, 02 Mar 2007 17:04:00 +0000 Neena http://neenmachine.com/2007/03/02/photos-organized/ Copyright © 2008 Parenting Tips. Visit the original article at http://neenmachine.com/2007/03/02/photos-organized/.
Before the age of digital photography we all used - film, remember that? Once the kids came along and I became a parent, the stacks of pictures floating around my house turned into mountains.Over the years I have tried so many methods of organizing these mountains of photographs. No matter what I try I still come across an occasional pack of pictures in the original envelope along with negatives (whatever should I do with those?) My filing system was as prehistoric as the film: cardboard photo boxes overflowing with memorabilia.

Recently I came across this wonderful photo box that I just wanted to share. Use the following link to get one of your own:
Cropper Hopper Photo Supply Case 4”x6” Prints.

It is made of plastic and includes 12 individual plastic 4×6 photo protectors (Think paper photo envelopes in plastic form) These protectors each hold about 70 pictures which means that the box holds about 800 photos. Also, there is space to slide negatives into the front of each protector. There are labels included for the top of each protector - I have labeled each packet by year (i.e. 2000 vol.1, 2000 vol. 2 etc.) This makes it easy to add “found” pictures somewhere in the middle by just adding another protector that year’s set.

Anyway, I have tackled my photo mountains! And, hopefully, I have given you some ideas on tackling yours.

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