Those of you who’ve seen the new Tina Fey/Amy Poehler movie, “Baby Mama,” may remember this scene … heck, maybe it reminded you of your own new parent confusion. But we can’t stop thinking, this is a photo in need of a caption! Click “comments” and add yours by Monday night, and we’ll send the cleverest caption writer a cool prize: a couple of hot-off-the-press books.

And now for last week’s winner…
Read the rest of this entry »

Hope you all had a fantastic Mother’s Day yesterday! In honor of that big day, we’re giving away a stack of mommy lit - so you can read something other than Dr. Seuss in your, er, copious spare time. In the stack: Jill Kargman’s “Momzillas,” a comic tale of uber-competitive mothering on New York’s Upper East Side, Polly Williams’ “Yummy Mummy,” and Holly Peterson’s “The Manny” - a beach read about a Park Avenue mom and her hot male nanny. Hmmm, do you detect a trend here? Take one exhausted New York mom, add several pairs Manolo Blahniks and plenty of pop references. Publish. Ah well, here’s a little fun and froth to lighten the hours. And all you have to do to win them is click “comments” and tell us about your Mother’s Day. (Congrats, by the way, to Kelly Ann, who won last week’s dog-themed treasure trove!)

That’s gifted Bay Area bassoonist Karla Ekholm and French horn player Nicky Roosevelt from the Oakland Symphony’s Five Chair Wind Quintet performing for kids at Richmond’s Martin Luther King Community Center last month - and man, we wish we’d been there because this looks like way too much fun. It also looks like a primo candidate for a new caption, no? Click “comments” to add yours, and we’ll send the cleverest caption-writer a couple of hot-off-the-press children’s books.

And now for last week’s winner…
Read the rest of this entry »

Too adorable to resist, that’s all we can say about this new picture book, “A Home for Dixie,” written by a New Jersey high schooler. And for this week’s book giveaway, we’re pairing it with an equally heartwarming DVD, “Mist, The Tale of a Sheepdog Puppy.” All puppies, all the time. And all you have to do to win the pair is share a tail, er, tale, about your favorite childhood pet, or at least share fuzzy wuzzy’s name. (Or fishy wishy. We’re not dog-centric here.)

So here’s how to play (although we know Emily N, whose saga of a torturous flight with the kids won last week’s  giveaway, already knows this!). Click “comments” and tell us about your favorite pet, and we’ll draw a winner this weekend.

Hmmm, golf buddies? This photo needs a caption. Click “comments” to add yours, and we’ll send the cleverest caption-writer a copy of “The Rookie Mom’s Handbook“!

And now for last week’s winner…
Read the rest of this entry »

Summer vacation’s not far off … and with it, the challenge of keeping youngsters occupied and entertained on planes, trains and in the backseat. Or (shudder) in an airline terminal when your flight’s just been cancelled. So this week, we’re giving away a travel fun pack - Laura Krauss Melmed’s charming “New York, New York! The Big Apple From A to Z,” whose colorful pictures provide little glimpses of all the things to see at the Metropolitan Art Museum or aboard the Intrepid aircraft carrier (nuclear missile submarine tour, anyone?) … plus an American Girl craft book that includes kid-friendly activities perfect for either a kids’ craft sale or a little backseat entertainment. Big fun!

Here’s how to win ‘em. Simply click “comments” (we’ll draw a winner Sunday night — and congrats, by the way, to 1StopMom who won last week’s books!) and share your most memorable family travel tale. Spectacular settings, epic disasters, the great road trip diaper shortage, it’s all good.

Time for another photo caption contest! Click “comments” to add yours, and we’ll send the cleverest caption-writer a couple of hot-off-the-press children’s books.

And now for last week’s winner…
Read the rest of this entry »

It’s TV turn-off week, so we’re giving away a pair of perfectly adorable books, perfect for tots. They’re “Fish” and “Bee” clackers and we’ve been driving our co-workers nuts with them! They’re wonderful little board books, but when you hold them by the tail (fish) or wing (bee) and wave them, they also go “clack-clack-clack.” Some toddler’s going to go nuts with these. Heck, we loved playing with them and we’re wayyyy past the terrible twos.

So, here’s how to win the pair. Click “comments” and tell us, what’s your kid’s favorite way to make noise/torture you? We’ll draw a winner’s name this weekend. (Congrats, by the way, to Lesha who won last week’s cool sand toys!)

Hmmm, that’s a lot of Hillaries and this photo definitely needs a caption. Click “comments” to add yours, and we’ll send the cleverest caption-writer a couple of hot-off-the-press children’s books that have absolutely nothing to do with politics.

And now for last week’s winner…
Read the rest of this entry »

That brief blast of sunshine we got this weekend reminds us beach season is not far off. Ahhhh, sunburned noses, sandy swim suits and those happy, happy hours spent digging to China. (Do you suppose Chinese kids dig to California?) And we’ve got just the tools: a Green Toys sand bucket, crenellated tower mold and sand tools, all made from recycled milk jugs so you can feel greenly virtuous as you build your beach Camelot. Here’s how to play. Click “comments,” tell us your favorite beach memory and we’ll draw a name Sunday night!

(Congrats, by the way, to HomemakerBarbi, who won last week’s DVD!)