Photo Credit: Raisels

For the past week or so, we’ve all been snacking on Raisels, sour, fruit-flavored raisins available in four mouth-puckering flavors.  I always like to try any foods geared towards my children.  I adore all-things sour and quickly became somewhat addicted to these.

Raisels are comprised of 100% real fruit, are free from sodium, high fructose corn syrup, and artificial sweeteners, and contain 100% of the recommended daily intake of Vitamin C.  Since they’re simply dried fruit, you won’t find fat or cholesterol in the snack and one box packs 110 calories.  I was concerned that 23 grams of sugar might be a lot for one box, however, after doing some research, I found that a snack-sized box of conventional raisins from a renowned brand contains 20 grams of sugar, just 3 grams less than Raisels.

As far as taste, they don’t really taste like a raisin.  They’re sour but sweet and taste more like candy than dried fruit.  My son enjoys them and the only small problem I see is limiting him to one box.  Fortunately, they come in individual serving sizes for portion control.  Our favorite flavor hands down is the Sour Apple and we’re excited for the new Sour Watermelon flavor coming soon.

Raisels are available online and at select retailers nationwide.

No compensation was received for this post.  Products for review were provided by the company via Team Mom.

Last fall, I wrote about Bella Sara, a very popular trading card product that was created specifically for girls.  While I don’t have a little girl (at least not YET!), I definitely want to share with you the latest.  If you’re not familiar with the company, here’s a little more information from the site:

Bella Sara features horse-themed fantasy cards with lovely works of art and positive, affirming messages. Cards can be collected, traded with friends and used to play fun card games.

Later this month Bella Sara will release the Miniatures Series 1 Collection. This brand new product line “includes 20 velvety horses from the land of North of North for girls to collect, trade, display, and cherish.”  For $1.89, your child can experience Bella Sara in a tangible way and she’ll also receive a full-color checklist and a bonus code that will reveal an animated horse statue for her cottage.  Bella Sara has expanded beyond the trading card and online/video game world and your child will enjoy the ability to see and touch her favorite horse in person.  Be sure to look for the second series in October.  The figurines are highly detailed and soft and little girls will enjoy playing with them.  The only thing I don’t like about this collection is how small they are.

Later this month Bella Sara will also release the eighth series in this line, called Treasures.  Treaures features “rare jewels, amazing natural wonders, historical artifacts and fantastic magical items to explore and cherish.”  Every pack comes with five collectible cards, a card checklist, a mini-game, Bella Sara tattoos and stickers.  Treasures will bring more printable activities to the site including coloring pages, wallpapers, and jigsaw puzzles. The artwork is beautiful and I think Bella Sara is a wonderful hobby for little girls.  It promotes sharing and interaction.  Each card pack retails for $2.99.

Donald Winnicott

You don’t understand how excited I was when Team Mom notified me of the opportunity to review the all-new Sesame Street Building Sets by K’NEX!  First off, my son absolutely adores Sesame Street…particularly Play With Me Sesame.  Secondly, my son loves to take things apart and try to put them back together…yes…even at his young age!  So when I opened the package and pulled out the Ernie Building Set, it was out of my hands before I could give it a second look (toddlers are grabby that way and everything is “mine”).  We have had a lot of fun over the past week playing with the building set…me putting it together…him taking it apart and then trying to put it back together again.  

As my son gets older, I find him getting bored easily with toys and gravitating towards books more and more.  He’ll take a book, place it in my hand, and sit in my lap, expectantly waiting for me to read to him. I have had to be creative about the types of toys I buy for him.  I wholeheartedly believe that toys should be fun and educational and the Sesame Street Building Sets do both very well.  The sets come in characters that children are familiar with and that is what sparks their interest and curiousity.

The Sesame Street Building Sets promote physical, social-emotional, cognitive, and language development. The sets can be played by your child alone or with someone else and it’s actually encouraged that he/she do both.  The sets are designed for preschoolers ages 2 and up.  

Our set came with 15 pieces, a set of stickers, and an activity sheet detailing ways to engage in active play. The Ernie storage canister is handy for keeping the pieces from getting lost behind the couch in one place.  The Sesame Street Building Sets retail from $10.99-$31.99 and can be purchased directly on the site or a local retailer in your area.  

Thank you Team Mom and K’NEX for this review opportunity!

Donald Winnicott

You don’t understand how excited I was when Team Mom notified me of the opportunity to review the all-new Sesame Street Building Sets by K’NEX!  First off, my son absolutely adores Sesame Street…particularly Play With Me Sesame.  Secondly, my son loves to take things apart and try to put them back together…yes…even at his young age!  So when I opened the package and pulled out the Ernie Building Set, it was out of my hands before I could give it a second look (toddlers are grabby that way and everything is “mine”).  We have had a lot of fun over the past week playing with the building set…me putting it together…him taking it apart and then trying to put it back together again.  

As my son gets older, I find him getting bored easily with toys and gravitating towards books more and more.  He’ll take a book, place it in my hand, and sit in my lap, expectantly waiting for me to read to him. I have had to be creative about the types of toys I buy for him.  I wholeheartedly believe that toys should be fun and educational and the Sesame Street Building Sets do both very well.  The sets come in characters that children are familiar with and that is what sparks their interest and curiousity.

The Sesame Street Building Sets promote physical, social-emotional, cognitive, and language development. The sets can be played by your child alone or with someone else and it’s actually encouraged that he/she do both.  The sets are designed for preschoolers ages 2 and up.  

Our set came with 15 pieces, a set of stickers, and an activity sheet detailing ways to engage in active play. The Ernie storage canister is handy for keeping the pieces from getting lost behind the couch in one place.  The Sesame Street Building Sets retail from $10.99-$31.99 and can be purchased directly on the site or a local retailer in your area.  

Thank you Team Mom and K’NEX for this review opportunity!