Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase

I am thrilled to be able to see such a family friendly movie!  Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase is a wonderful kid and adult friendly movie, starring our favorite teen sleuth! 

I have been a fan of the Nancy Drew book series since I was a child. The iconic mystery solving teenager from the classic Nancy Drew books is back with an all-new feature length film that will keep you guessing until the very end!  Warner Bros. Home Entertainment will release Nancy Drew And The Hidden Staircase on Digital starting March 26, 2019 and Blu-ray™ Combo Pack & DVD on April 2, 2019. Executive Produced by Ellen DeGeneres, the film stars Sophia Lillis (IT and “Sharp Objects”), Sam Trammell (“True Blood” and “This is Us”), and Linda Lavin (“The Good Wife” and “Alice”) and follows Nancy Drew in her new town, making new friends and on a mission to solve the case!  

After the death of his wife, Carson Drew decides to leave Chicago behind and make a fresh start with his daughter in River Heights.  But for 16-year-old Nancy Drew, life in a small town is mighty dull. She longs for excitement, adventure, and the chance to make a difference.  Nancy gets that opportunity when she is asked to help solve the ghostly activity at the Twin Elms mansion.  Can she help explain the creaking footsteps, exploding lightbulbs and the ominous creature?  Is it the handiwork of high-school bully Derek Barnes? Or is it possible that the ghost of original owner Malcolm Colfax is back for revenge? Recruiting her best friends George and Bess, along with local “mean girl” Helen, Nancy Drew is on the case!

Uncover the Mystery When

Nancy Drew And The Hidden Staircase

Arrives from Warner Bros. Home Entertainment on

Digital March 26, 2019 and on

Blu-ray™ Combo Pack & DVD on April 2, 2019

Based on the Bestselling Book!

Cry Babies Magic Tears Coney

IMC Toys has provided me with this Cry Babies Magic Tears Coney Doll in exchange for an honest review.

This adorable little doll is named Coney and she is part of the Cry Babies Magic Tears Series.  Being dressed in a white bunny outfit with pink trim makes her the perfect addition to a little girl's Easter Basket.  She is recommended for ages 3 and up.  Her introduction message on IMC Toys' website says:

"Meet Coney, she is so sweet! She loves baking cakes and treats for all of her friends. She’s so talented her cakes come in all shapes and flavours. She's so cute!"

You can watch the webisodes about Coney and the other Cry Babies on youtube.  Coney is sweet, sensitive and optimistic.  She loves to bake cakes and biscuits.  Her favorite is strawberry and cream cake.  She has a pet rabbit and is allergic to dogs.  Everything in her house is pink.  Her role in the Cry Babies group is that she always sees the positive side of things.  

This little doll comes with a bib, a chair, a bottle, a pacifier and a lollipop.  Give it a drink from the bottle, then put the pacifier in her mouth.  If you squeeze her tummy after you give her a drink, she will cry tears from her eyes.  There are 5 other dolls in this series to collect, so look for them all.   
 

More games for family game night!

Goliath Games has provided me with these games to review.

This game is called Lucky Ducks.  It is a 2-4 player game suitable for children age 3 and up.  You get the pond, 12 ducks, a sticker sheet and instructions.  This game requires 2 AA batteries, which are not included.  When you turn it on, the ducks begin swimming around the pond.  Players take turns picking up a duck and looking at the bottom.  If it matches their color and shape, they get to keep the duck.  If it doesn't, they put it back.  Playing Lucky Ducks will help young children learn the shapes and colors.  You can purchase this game right now for $13.29 HERE .

 

This game is called Giggle Wiggle.  It is such a cute game!  This is a 2-4 player game and is suitable for ages 4 and up.  You get 28 multi-colored balls, 1 Giggle Wiggle Caterpillar, 1 Giggle Wiggle Base, 1 Sticker Sheet and instructions.  It also requires 3 AA Batteries which are not included. Each player choose a color of marbles.  As the Giggle Wiggle Caterpillar sways back and forth, you need to place your marbles on his hands.  The first player who gets all of his marbles on Giggle Wiggle's hands without them falling, wins!  Kids really love this game!  You can purchase Giggle Wiggle right now for $10.68 HERE .

This game is called Jumping Jack.  This is a 2-4 player game and is suitable for ages 4 and up.  It comes with 1 Bunny Hill, 1 Jumping Jack Rabbit, 12 Carrots, 1 Spinner, 4 Baskets and instruction sheet.  Be prepared for lots of laughter and excited screaming if you play this game!  You spin the spinner to see how many carrots you get to pick from the Bunny Hill.  Then pull that many carrots from the hill.  But beware!  One of the carrots will make Jumping jack leap up into the air.  But you have no idea which one until it happens.  To win, you must catch Jack without dropping him.  Alternatively, you can play that any player can catch him.  When my children played this, I was greeted by squeals and laughter every time Jumping Jack leaped into the air.  And cheers or jeers when he was caught or missed.  You can purchase Jumping Jack right now for $18.99 HERE

This game is called Charades For Kids.  It is a 3 or more player game and is suitable for ages 4 and up.  It comes with 150 cards with 450 charades, a sand timer, game die and instructions.  This is a simplified version of the regular Charades game.  What's great about this is that there are 3 levels of clues so all ages can play.  Like in the original Charades game, you act out the clues and the other players try to guess what you are acting out.  It's lots of fun for the whole family.  You can purchase Charades for Kids right now for $5.97 HERE .

Finally we have a game called Color Smash.  This game is for 2 or more players ages 6 and up.  There are 72 cards which are stored in a paint can storage tin.  There are four types of cards:  cards with a splat of color, cards whose word and color match, cards whose word and color do not match and the steal card.  Players take turns flipping up one of their cards onto the middle pile.  When a card is flipped up that has a matching word  and color, be the first one to slap the pile.  The first to slap it gets to take the pile.  If you accidentally slap a card that does not have a matching word and color, you must place 5 cards from your hand under the middle pile.  When a steal card is turned up, the first person to slap it gets to steal 5 collected cards from the player of their choice.  The game ends when all cards have been played or there is only one player left.  To determine the winner, each player counts their collected cards (the ones the got by successfully slapping the pile).  The player with the most collected cards wins.  To me this game is very reminiscent of the classic card game Slap Jack.  It's a lot of fun to play.  You can purchase Color Smash for $5.97 HERE .  

Enjoy a family game night with Clack!, Cake Off, Connect the Thoughts and Fruit Punch

Amigo Games has kindly provided me with these games in exchange for an honest review.

  
This game is called Clack!  It consists of 35 magnetic discs, 1 color die, 1 shape die and illustrated instructions.  The name comes from the sound the discs make when they are stacked.  This is a 2-6 player game and is suitable for ages 5+.  One die has pictures of shapes on it and the other has colors.  To play, you roll the dice to get a color and a shape to search for on the discs.  Then race to grab all of the discs that have that combination of color and shape and stack them up one on top of the other.  In order to win, you must have the highest stack.  Kids love stacking the discs and hearing the Clack!  Clack! retails for $17.99 and you can purchase it HERE

Next we have Fruit Punch.  It has 56 Linen-finish Cards, 1 full sized Banana Squeaker and Illustrated Instructions.  It is a 2-6 player game and is suitable for ages 5+.  The rules of this game are very simple and very easy to learn.  The players flip their card over until someone spots five of the same fruit on the upturned cards.  Then they race to be the first to hit the banana sqeaker so they can collect the cards to win.  My kids really liked this game.  They especially liked racing to hit the banana squeaker.  Fruit Punch retails for $9.99 and you can purchase it HERE

Next we have Cake Off.  It includes 30 linen-finish cards, 4 Washable Stampers, 1 Cake Plate and illustrated instructions.  It is a 3-6 Player game and is suitable for ages 5+. To play, each player chooses a card from their hand and passes it to the next player.  Repeat.  You are trying to get cards that match, giving you 5 of a kind.  When you get 5 of a kind, you get a washable stamp on the back of your hand.  This is a very simple game.  I think children even younger than 5 could easily play it.  Cake Off retails for $12.99 and you can purchase it HERE .

Finally we have Connect The Thoughts.  It includes 80 linen finish cards, 1 bell and illustrated instructions.  There are no "turns" in this game...everyone plays at once.  Players flip over cards searching for matches.  Once they have a line of 5 cards with matches, they ring the bell to win the round.  An alternative way to play is to search for connections instead of matches.  For example, one card has a dog on it and another has a donkey.  These match because they form a connection (they are both animals).  Connect The Thoughts retails for $12.99 and you can purchase it HERE

Amigo Games has given us a copy of Cake Off and Connect The Thoughts to give away to one of our lucky readers.  Stay tuned for the giveaway!  a Rafflecopter giveaway

Go Fun Face Makes The Coolest Masks!

Go Fun Face has provided me with these masks in exchange for an honest review.

These masks are the coolest things ever!  They are very comfortable to wear because they are made of durable, washable foam rubber.  So there are no hard edges to dig into your head or face.  And they are not heavy at all, so you can wear them comfortably for hours.  They are available in a variety of animals and colors.  They would be perfect to wear for Halloween parties, festivals, concerts, sports fans, cosplay, Team Mascots, or just to play around.  My children loved wearing the masks and pretending to be the different animals.  The masks are available in the form of a wolf (available in four color choices), panda, bear (available in two color choices), monkey (available in two color choices), lion (available in five color choices), dog, tiger (available in three color choices), shark (available in two color choices), pig, horse (available in two color choices), falcon and dragon (available in four color choices).  

These masks are so unique.  I have never seen any others like them.  I know it's a little early, but I plan to build Halloween costumes around the ones that I received.  You will definitely stand out at any party or event if you wear one of these.  Everyone will want to know where you got them!  The masks are top quality in both appearance and workmanship.  They retail for $22 each and you can purchase them from the Go Fun Face site HERE .