MommyQ is Loving The Land of Nod

reading-tentI’ve gotta blog about my holiday shopping experience with The Land of Nod because it has been a pleasure. In my recent post, “Moms, what’s under your tree?” I mentioned that I bought the Home Sweet Play Home reading tent for one of my kids. I saw it at a friend’s house many months ago and loved it. My oldest kiddo loved it too and played in it throughout the afternoon. I made a mental note – “Get this for Christmas!” Believe it or not, my brain remembered.

I ordered the Blue Home Sweet Play Home and the cushion online. The website said both items would arrive by the 24th. I was a little bit worried, but the items arrived in plenty of time. When I took the cushion cover out of the box, I noticed the directions said to wash it before use. When I unzipped the cover to find the washing instructions, I was pleasantly surprised. The directions ended, “Do not dry clean. Do not pass go. Sleep tight!” Well, that was such a clever little treat. Making laundry fun – what a novel idea!

Last night, I put the clean cushion cover on the cushion and was so impressed with the fluffiness of it all. This is one luxuriously fluffy cushion! The play tent is beautifully made and it is quite stunning in person. I am so thrilled with this purchase and only hope it is as pleasing to my child on Christmas morning.

Find the tent online at The Land of Nod for $99 and the matching cushion for $49. It also comes in lavender, pink and green.

Mom, What’s Under Your Tree?

tree1I’m always interested in knowing what items other moms deem as super-duper gifts. Whether it’s stuff for the baby, the toddler or the preschooler, let me know what kind of goodies are sitting under your Christmas tree this year. I’m also curious to know what you are buying for the hubby. If he’s not on the naughty list, of course. Mine is always on that list, but he get lots of presents anyway. Lucky guy. 😉

Here are a few things that made it under our tree this year. Obviously my kiddos don’t read my blog, otherwise I’d be ruining some good surprises.

1. – Reading Tent AKA Home Sweet Play Home from The Land of Nod – Our friends have this for their kiddos and my little guys loved it. Since my oldest is an avid reader, I think he’ll really enjoy some quiet time away from all of us! I also got him the matching cushion.

2. –  Twilight Turtle – Our little guy is getting his very own turtle. I opted for the regular as opposed to the Sea Turtle because there aren’t as many lights. There’s just something special about falling asleep under the stars, even if they are battery-operated. We’ve had Twilight Sea Turtle for over a year and he’s still a family fave.

3. – “Jerry” the Peterbilt from Cars – I have no idea where you can find this toy. I bought it on eBay because I couldn’t find it anywhere. I’m sure it’s back in stock at Target now!

4. – NASCAR Slot Car Racers – This is going to be the biggest hit by far. Dale Jr. & Jeff Gordon can race each other all day long. I sure hope it can take some abuse. And lots of screaming.

5. – A Drum Set – Oh, yes! Are we gluttons for punishment or what? It’s a pretend set, so it’s not all that elaborate. We love encouraging our kids to be musical because none of us are. I sure hope they can sing too. (I gotta admit, I’m still undecided about this one…)

Feel free to leave a comment and tell me what made your list!

Pretend Food: Better Than The Real Thing

If you’ve read my blog for a while, you know I’m nutty for pretend food. Maybe it’s from my childhood or maybe it’s just because fake food is so freakin’ cute. Either way, no matter the reason, pretend food rocks.

Wanna hear something funny? When I was little, my sister and I played with Barbies constantly. I never cared for the bad fake Barbie food, so my sister and I would create Barbie-sized portions out of Play-Doh. We made pizzas, hamburgers, sunny-side-up eggs, donuts, popsicles, etc. We would spend an evening planning Barbies’ meals. We would let the Play-Doh food dry out and harden. It was great!

So here’s my new favorite pretend food. Ice cream and sweets.

md-ice-cream

This is from Melissa & Doug and you can find it at The Land of Nod. They also have a Cookie Set that’s pretty cute.

dainty-treats

These are just divine! Find Fabric Dainty Treats at The Land of Nod too.

cupcakekitA cupcake kit complete with a hat and chicken timer. Is this fun or what? Yes, TLON. So much fake food, so little time!