The Magic of Youth: Luno The Soaring Stallion

luno-the-soaring-stallion

Oh winged horse of marble white, take me on a magic flight! Luno The White Stallion.

First Taste

Food should not be complicated. Experiencing the first taste taste of a new food can be hilarious at times for a kid. Finicky eaters on the other hand can be frustrating for parents. Saatchi & Heckler explore kids’ reactions to new foods.

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Zombie Cookie Cutters

Zombie-Cookie-Cutters

Don’t let zombies eat you.  You eat them with these zombie themed cookies.  Kids and adults will like them alike.

Don’t worry about being eaten by zombies. Eat THEM instead with the Undead Fred Zombie Cookie Cutters. It’s a set of cookie cutters in the shape of flesh-eating zombies. Serve zombies to your kids, your party guests, or to yourself as you watch the latest installment of The Walking Dead.

Free Comic Book Day

 

May 4th is Free Comic Book Day all across North America.  The world awaits for Iron-Man 3 as he ushers in this summer’s crop of comic book related movies.  Comic Book Day is a great way to introduce kids to comics as a learning tool for reading and writing. Take you kids to you local comic store and treat them to some free comic books. Just don’t tell mom that dad wants to buy himself comics too.

free comic book day

Bazooka Joe and His Gang: 60 Years Later

bazooka joe

I grew up chewing Bazooka Joe gum and reading those free cheesy wrapper comics included inside.  They were so corny but I enjoyed them for those brief few seconds.  They finally managed to collect some of these not so great Bazooka Joe moments in book form. Can you believe it has been 60 years since that little piece of gum came out of an assembly line and found a way into kids’ mouths all over North America.  This book will give you time to chew on childhood memories.  Bazooka Joe and His Gang is a keeper for nostalgic reasons. Bazooka Joe was the fortune cookie of the bubblegum industry.

Bazooka Joe and his Gang have been synonymous with bubble gum ever since their debut in 1953, providing an irresistible combination of cheap laughs wrapped around pink, sugary sweetness. This book celebrates the iconic mini-comics that are recognized the world over. The story of Bazooka Bubble Gum is also detailed with extensive essays, including a profile of Wesley Morse, the original illustrator of Bazooka Joe. Included are reproductions of more than 100 classic comics spanning six decades—including the complete first series, reprinted in its entirety for the first time—as well as jokes, fortunes, and tiny ads for mail-order merchandise. Like Bazooka Bubble Gum itself, the book is pure nostalgia and guaranteed to appeal to kids and adults alike.


Includes 4 bonus trading cards and a genuine wax wrapper that evokes the original bubble gum packaging—like holding an actual piece of Bazooka in your hands!

Hey That’s Not An Easter Egg, Snoopy

The new exciting Peanuts paperback from an alternate universe. Snoopy goes back in time to the dinosaur age on Easter. Hey That’s Not an Easter Egg, Snoopy! It’s beagle versus dinosaurs Gwangi style.

Revolution ( Life Cycle of a Drop of Water)

Photographer Chris Turner, paper engineer Helen Friel and animator Jess Deacon explore the life cycle of a single drop of water through an animated stop motion pop-up book sequence.

The Lifecycle of Water

Awful Animals: Ugly Dolls Knockoff

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Talk about a blatant rip off. Awful Animals is copying the success of the Ugly Dolls line. This is what happens when your products are made in China. Manufacturers will knockoff your product at a lower cost. Imitation might be a form of flattery, but this is ridiculous.  I can hear Kevin O’Leary leering in my thoughts about mass producing products such as this in China without proper copyright. At one tenth of the cost of an Ugly Doll, the Awful Animals seem like a bargain. This is awful!

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Sandwich Art

sandwich-art

It’s amazing what you can do with a Sharpie and a clear sandwich bag. David Laferriere draws cute little drawings for his kids’ lunch to take to school. Let’s hope he does not hook up with Octomom Nadya Suleman, David would be extra busy doodling all night before sending the kids on the school bus.

“Since May 2008 I have been drawing on my kids’ sandwich bags with a Sharpie marker. Each drawing is done just after I make the sandwich. I take a picture and post to flickr. My kids don’t see the drawing until it is lunchtime.”

Vader’s Little Princess

vaderslittleprincess

Father knows best, Vader is back with Vader’s Little Princess by Jeffrey Brown. I loved the first book, Darth Vader and Son. This should be as whimsical as the first book. Vader’s Little Princess will be released on April 23, 2013.

In this irresistibly funny follow-up to the breakout bestseller Darth Vader and Son, Vader—Sith Lord and leader of the Galactic Empire—now faces the trials, joys, and mood swings of raising his daughter Leia as she grows from a sweet little girl into a rebellious teenager. Smart and funny illustrations by artist Jeffrey Brown give classic Star Wars moments a twist by bringing these iconic family relations together under one roof. From tea parties to teaching Leia how to fly a TIE fighter, regulating the time she spends talking with friends via R2-D2′s hologram, and making sure Leia doesn’t leave the house wearing only the a skirted metal bikini, Vader’s parenting skills are put hilariously to the test.

Fresh Paint for Windows 8

fresh paint windows 8

I was quite surprised by the robust power of Fresh Paint for Windows 8. This nifty free app is geared to kids, it is a fun tool for artists of all ages. The learning curve is quite easy and will appeal to many.  I highly recommend this app.  Did I mention it is free?

Making Churros

Bring the carnival spirit of churros into your kitchen easily. Many believe that the Portuguese brought the churro from the early explorations of the Orient. Churros are very popular in Spanish speaking countries and are found in fairs and carnivals sold by street vendors all over the world. It is basically a doughnut. My daughter loves churros, the oil soaks right through the bag when we bring it home.

churro

Astronauts are Cool: Astronaut Duvet Cover

astronaut bed sheets

This has to be the coolest bed sheet and pillow set ever. The astronaut duvet cover by Dutch company Snurk should be a hit easily. Astronauts are cooler.

Smurf Hoarding: Biggest Collection

Karen Bell Smurf collection

When you watch hoarding shows, you feel sorry for people who let filth take over their lives. Collectors on the other hand are organized and accumulate vast collections. Many hoarders become this way because of some lacking missing element in their sad plight called live. They become distant and draw away from society. Are collectors any better? Karen Bell has amassed the biggest Smurf collection of merchandise. Sure there is order in this type of hoarding but when do you stop?

The ACME Corporation

The ACME corporation poster

The ACME Corporation poster is catching the attention of many on Kickstarter because of intellectual property legal tiptoeing. Will Warner Brothers allow individuals to profit from their ideas such as ACME? The studio does not hold a copyright on the name. Illustrator Rob Loukotka sold over 2000 posters already and growing. If not for the volume of posters sold, this would be a non-issue. Is this poster really fair use? Time will tell. Either way, it is a great poster. Well done Rob.

Loukotka is walking a legal tightrope. He is mass producing merchandise based on a corporation’s intellectual property. If this was just a collection of random items with the name Acme on them, no one would ever buy the poster. It’s only because of the role these invented Acme items have played within a series of animated shorts that they are recognizable and of interest to the general public. (source)