We were in the toy department and accidentally knocked Gas Out Game to the floor. It made an immediate ‘pfffft’ sound; the kids laughed out loud and proceeded to make their own farting noise while pointing to each other. I double timed it before they wanted to get the farting game. Fast forward a couple of weeks and we were provided with a copy of Gas Out Game. It’s a very simple game to play that ages 4 and up will enjoy playing.
Continue reading Gas Out Game is a laugh good-time for ages 4-7
JapanFest has become one of our annual go-to events for the family. It wasn’t always that way. I’m skeptical of anything that has ‘fest’ or ‘apalooza’ at the end of it, as I channel my inner Heinz Doofenshmirtz and create a JapanCulture-inator. JapanFest is great fun for the entire family on so many levels and it happens at Infinite Energy Center September 17 and 18.
This is a festival designed to celebrate Japanese culture. What is great about JapanFest, and quite surprising from our perspective was how accurate it is as presenting it. I was also surprised at how much fun my wife and children had. It was kind of a given that I would love it, having lived in Fukuoka, Japan for two years. The curve ball was how much fun the kids had, interacting with some cosplay, watching the presentations or looking at the various things for sale.
At JapanFest 2016, for the first time ever they will have a Kabuki exhibition. Anime and voice over legend Kyle Hebert will also be present for questions and autographs. Hebert’s vocal work in Naruto, DragonBall-Z, Pokemon and others is well known by American audiences.
Do you like Samurai or sumo? They’ll be represented at JapanFest too. We’re most excited about a presentation called Shimasen Rock. This instrument is a three stringed wonder that makes the most magical sound. A close second is watching people play the Koto, which is the large ‘harp’, that is lying down. There is also a very large Anime area with product that you’ll only see at conferences or trade shows like this.
JapanFest has the best food court for Japanese food you will ever find. Ever. Walking through the food court is as close to eating at a yataii that you’ll come to in the U.S. We ate okonomiyaki, a dish that’s rarely served at most Japanese restaurants, and this fast version was as good as we’ve eaten.
They’ve got vendors from lots of Japanese companies, tractors (hello Kuboto!), a stage where they’ll introduce festivals or traditions and lots more. If Japan is Greek to you you’ll be OK at JapanFest. It’s fun, accessible to everyone and a real hoot for the entire family.
So, you’ve got a kid who wants to read and you know that comic books are a great way to go, but don’t what to recommend to them? Every week we have a listing of the new all age comic books out that just arrived in stores. Some will be the classics that you remember from your youth-but with new art and stories, while others will be brand new characters that make you shake your head in curiosity.
The old school all age comic books have My Little Pony, Scooby Doo Where Are You?, Uncle Scrooge, Spidey and Batman 66’ Meets Man From U.N.C.L.E. graphic novel. My Little Pony will really appeal to girls ages 6 and up, while the rest of them will be great young reading material for boys or girls.
There is also a classic character with a new spin on this particular title, Mickey Mouse Shorts, Season 1, issue 3 (of 4) is out this week. This is a very fun comic book from IDW that tweaks Mickey and company to an almost avant garde manner. It’s still Mickey, Donald, Goofy and friends, but the art is slightly subversive. It’s not R Crumb, but it’s not traditional Disney either. These stories are taken from the Disney Shorts that you see on television and are refreshing and great to read.
File under: kind of new and classic at the same time. Regular Show is the most popular show on Cartoon Network. Regular Show, the comic book from Boom! Studios is funny, strange and something that kids 8 and up will love. This comic book also doesn’t have some of the attitude that parents don’t like about the television show. It’s just on this side of all age comic books to where our 7 year old reads them and laughs, even though some of the humor is above him.
In new comics that parents and kids will love check out, Giant Days #18, Lumberjanes To The Max Hardcover, The Mighty Zodiac #6 (of 6) or Plants Vs. Zombies Volume 5. Lumbejanes is a massive book that collects eight issues of this comic book that is consistently awesome. There is also a new graphic novel out that is perfect for girls 6 and up. DC Super Hero Girls Super Hero High Yearbook takes the girl heroes and villains from DC and puts them in high school together. This is a fun graphic novel series, with all new stories that has action, lessons and a lot of fun for young readers.
Action/Science-fiction
Superhero
Here’s our second general block of Dragon Con photos. You won’t see any Star Wars cosplay because there was so much that it’ll be in its own post. Yes, there was that much. These Dragon Con photos were taken during the parade, walking around the hotels, photo shoots or catching them on their downtime. The costumes from Netherworld stand out, they’re frightful and really play to the crowds.
Dragon Con happens in Atlanta every Labor Day Weekend. It is a ‘con’ in every fan based sense of the word and then some. After speaking with reporters who cover Cons like this across the country I learned that Dragon Con has the biggest and best reputation for its cosplay. Cosplay is a shortened and combined word for ‘costume’ and ‘play’. There is an example of every costume based level on display at Dragon Con, from the low tech folks who simply cut up a cardboard box to those that created movie caliber makeup, costume and performance to sell the look.
Here are some of our favorite photos that capture the spirit of Dragon Con, the families, attendees and fun to be had. Some of these photos were taken during the Dragon Con Parade while others were taken around the hotels.
Hey-we’re a PJ Masks Ambassador and received payment or product for this post. When is a school backpack not a school backpack? When it turns into a bag. I never liked that Bazooka Joe joke, but, to be clear, that is our reiteration of the joke that reared its head this week. Our kids went absolutely mental when they received the PJ Masks backpack and lunchbox. Per our kids sharing rule mantra, they got to pick one thing that would be theirs.
Continue reading Licensed PJ Masks backpacks and lunchboxes, for school and beyond
This post is brought to you by Unstuck Life Courses and The Motherhood. All opinions are mine. It’s a myth that the ostrich sticks their head in the sand. In reality they’ve just got small heads, dig holes in the dirt to place their eggs and sometimes have to check on them. However, people do not have that excuse. I do not have that excuse. But ignoring things or hoping that they’ll merely pass over is something that I do often. Sure we’ll come back to the task, but that interim has a cost in one way or another. It could be a financial loss because I can’t find something, a reputation decrease or simply an eyesore in the things that I don’t clean up. Knowing that, as well as my personal weaknesses, I agreed to try Unstuck Life Courses.
Unstuck Life Courses are a series of videos, exercises and worksheets designed to help folks improve their lives.
Yeah, that’s about where I tuned out too. I don’t need help, I just this-or-that or that one thing that will assist me with this. Thank you very much.
Here’s the thing though about life and the moments where you get stuck. For me now it’s the clutter, both online and off that jams me up. A genius keeps a messy desk, but mine was more akin to press release graveyard than ‘creative-at-work’. Our stuck moments; those triggers that we can’t seem to get past will change as we get older or work past them.
Continue reading Life Unstuck Courses, Making A Change for the better
We’re a Let’s Play Ambassador and were compensated for this post. This post is brought to you by Let’s Play, an initiative by Dr Pepper Snapple Group that provides kids and families with the tools, places and inspiration to make active play a daily priority by building and improving playgrounds and donating sports equipment to groups in need. All opinions are my own.
It’s the dog days of summer and the kids just got back from school. They still need to play outside. When they get enough play they sleep better and function at school in a manner that’s much more appropriate for learning. Playing is a win/win, even if the kids don’t see it that way.
First off, let’s address the elephant in the room. It’s hot, humid and kids would rather be inside in the air-conditioning. That goes for everybody; parents don’t get a heat voucher that encases us in an air-conditioned bubble, which is quite unfortunate actually. I mention that because the best way we’ve found to encourage our kids to get outside and play in the dog days of summer is to go outside and play with them.
Its radical thinking isn’t it?
Our neighbors have a badminton net in their front yard. More times than not the neighborhood kids will yell at me to see if I can play. Occasionally, I’ll take them up on that suggestion and it’ll be me against a gaggle of kids for the first couple of points. After they win a couple of points (and according to their rules…); one or two of the kids will take pity on me and transfer to my side of the net.
If it’s not badminton, then I’ll jump in for a kick or two in soccer, break out the sidewalk chalk, race the oversized cars down the driveway that the boys outgrew or anything to shake up this kid’s world of play.
We’ve got some other tips on how to get the kids outside to play during the dog days of summer at our post over at LetsPlay.com. As a parent, what are your tips for getting the kids outside when they don’t want to go?
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