Browsing Category

GEAR

Everything is coming up Orchid in 2014

GEAR, style By January 16, 2014 Tags: , , , , , , , No Comments

Radiant OrchidSo I have a confession to make, I’m a complete colour geek. In fact, when Pantone announced their colour of the year for 2014 I actually stayed up until 1am to catch the news. It’s sad but true. Thankfully I wasn’t disappointed because the colour they chose is gorgeous – Radiant Orchid.

“Radiant Orchid blooms with confidence and magical warmth that intrigues the eye and sparks the imagination. It is an expressive, creative and embracing purple – one that draws you in with it’s beguiling charm. A captivating harmony of fuchsia, purple, and pink undertones, Radiant Orchid emanates great joy, love and health.” – from the Pantone website.

Historically speaking Pantone’s colour of the year choices have made major impact on fashion, home decor, and even graphic design. (Remember Honeysuckle in 2011, and Emerald Green last year; Pantone called it). At the recent fashion previews for Spring 2014 Radiant Orchid was spotted on the runways at both Max Mara and Missoni, which almost guarantees it will trickle down to mass market fashions as well. 

Personally I’m loving this new hue, it’s about time that we see something fresh and vibrant hit the fashion scene as opposed to the deep jewel tones and heavy makeup that has been popular for the last few seasons. A nice bonus; purple is one of the most universally flattering colours out there, so this really is a trend that everyone can participate in. If you have fair skin, lean towards cooler lilac based colours, and if your skin is darker pick a deep rich shade of orchid.

So what’s the best way to wear this new hue? If you are feeling bold you can wear it all-over, but I will probably lean towards a few statement pieces in Radiant Orchid. I’m already envisioning skinny jeans, with a  light orchid coloured cardigan, and a cluster of vintage broaches (maybe a beehive too?). Or maybe I’ll get a nice cross-body bag in a deeper orchid shade and pair it with my spring/summer dresses. For me the key to participating in a trend is to balance my investment. A good bag will be with me for a long time so I can splurge, if I decide to go for Radiant Orchid pants though, I’ll probably get a budget friendly pair.

Not sure what shades play well with Radiant Orchid? You are safe working with navy, brown, or even a deep violet. If you want to create a real statement with your outfit consider pairing it with teal, turquoise, or last year’s favourite; emerald.

If you still aren’t convinced or ready to go all out with the trend, how about starting with your makeup? This is a great colour to wear on your lips or tips – in fact you might be able to do both for a polished monochrome look. However you style it, do give this trend a try, and then tweet us a pic – we’d love to see what you came up with!

Share:

The Day I Put A Christmas Tree in a Honda Odyssey

auto, GEAR By December 15, 2013 Tags: , , , , , , , , , , No Comments

If you ask what the biggest obstacle is for just about any Mom, keeping the car clean will be near the top of her list. We’ve sent people to the moon, can photograph a cheque to deposit it into a bank account and yet no car company had ever made a vehicle with a built-in vacuum.  Until now.  I have been test driving the Touring version of the 2014 Honda Odyssey and quite possibly may never give it back. I shoved a Christmas Tree in a Honda Odyssey and vacuumed up all the needles.

Roomy and luxurious, the favourite feature of the minivan is a vacuum that extends right from the rear all the way to the front windshield.  With a cord that won’t tangle. To truly test the functionality, I got permission from Honda to use the vehicle to carry not one, but two Christmas trees from the lot to my home. Pulling a cord and flipping the seats down was easy, and the 11-foot tree slid into the car with ease.  The 12-footer was strapped to the roof with twine.  After removing and decorating the stunners, the car was pine scented and fresh, but there were needles everywhere.

The Honda Odyssey Vacuum

I pressed the start button on the vehicle once to put the Odyssey into accessory mode. Pupping the trunk using the smart key, I only had to touch the ‘on’ button and grab the hose from the stowage area.  There are 2 attachments and it will run for 8 minutes before it shuts off on its own.  Not to worry if your car looks like mine – shutting car off and turning cit back on gives you another eight minutes of Cheerio-sucking bliss. 

The Odyssey Cool box

Cool box as in ‘keeps drinks, leftovers or pumped breastmilk nice and chilly. You just press a button to put air conditioning in the box.  The great thisg is that unlike other auto manufacturers, Honda does not simply use the vents to cool the box but has a seperate A/C cooling system.  So you can be warm while the juiceboxes stay cold.

The Odyssey Back Seat

You know when you try to squeeze three carseats across a back seat and the kids can’t access the seatbelt buckles so you have to get out of the car and buckle everyone in yourself? That doesn’t happen here.  You can move the back seats wider apart to make more carseat room.  There are window shutters that slide up and down that proved very durable as my kids played with them. ‘Daytime. Nighttime. Daytime. Nighttime.’ What a fun game.

The Miraculous Odyssey A/V System

Have you ever had a toddler and a teen fight over tv selection? Dora or Twilight and NO compromise.  This vehicle solve the issue. (Yes, you may want to move into it).  The wider drop-down video screen can split into two sides so each can watch their preferred programming. Switch seats after a rest stop? No worries.  The flick of a button on the remote will allow you to swap the screen. Cordless headphones can be assigned to either side, and the third row seating boasts hdmi or rca jacks for your secondary source dvd.  Or maybe an ipod. Or the Xbox or ps3.  Guitar hero anyone?

Odyssey Tech

The touchscreen is new to this Odyssey and when used with the Aha system, makes your life easy. Hondalink is a free app from iTunes or google play. It allows you to stream internet radio. You can pick any station in North America, type of music using hardly any data. You could, for instance, use it two hours per day for a month and use only 1 gig of data on your smartphone. Swipe to play the next song if you don’t like the current one, and set up to 16 stations as favourites..

Voice command functionality allows you to talk to the car.  With 2 presses of the voice command button you can say things like:
‘Find nearest gas station’, ‘Passenger temperature 25’, ‘Fan speed 5’ or ‘Rear defrost on’ and the car will do your bidding. No you cannot marry your car.

The clock is set via satellite so you never have to change the time again (or remember to add an hour).

Curious about the Christmas Tree test? Check out my video.  Spoiler alert: It will make you want a 2014 Honda Odyssey.

 

This article was generously sponsored by Honda Canada. All opinions, images and ideas are my own.  For more information, visit honda.ca/odyssey.

Share:

7 Tips for Getting Toys the Kids Really Want

GEAR, toys By December 11, 2013 Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , No Comments

Tips for Getting Toys the Kids Really WantI’m one of those moms who shops all year long. I buy things on sale and fun items fill the cupboards in the spare bathroom. By the time wrapping week comes around in December, the gifts have trickled into the bathtub, hidden under towels.

While this system has always worked in my house, this year things are different. The boys are 6 and 7 and have very specific HOT toys in mind. I realized yesterday in a panic that I didn’t have what they really wanted. Scouring the internet I finally found the toys in stock at one online retailer and pulled out the old Amex.

This mom has learned a few tricks and I won’t be making the same mistake in the future. Here are 7 tips for getting the toys the kids really want.

1. Write letters to Santa on December 1. If you do it too early the kids may change their mind about what they really want.

2. As soon as the letters are written, hop online and order the special present.

3. Stocking stuffers are great to collect over the course of the year, but larger bulky items are best sourced in December. Having an expensive bathroom as a storage area isn’t very practical.

4. Canada has caught on to Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales in a big way. Making a good list of items and finding the best deals on those days can save a fortune and eliminate the need to shop all year.

5. Pull up a few ‘hot toy’ lists and go through them with your kids to gauge interest. Mattel has a great Hot Toy List and I love Dr. Toy’s annual list as well. This will help you give Aunts and grandparents some ideas. Mattel also have a great online wishlist where you can keep track of the kids’ desires!

6. Check the safety of the toys and whether there have been any recalls. Healthy Canadians and AllAboutVision are great places to check.

7.  Canada’s official Free Shipping Day is happening this Thursday, Dec. 12, and eager online shoppers are gearing up for great deals.  Over 230 stores have signed up to participate, with several more expected to be added to the site before offers go live at 12:01 a.m. EST. In addition to big-name participants like Indigo, Garage, Roots and SportChek, independent retailers are also offering free shipping with delivery by Christmas Eve.

Once you’ve eliminated the stress from your shopping, you’ll have lots of time to bake, decorate, do charity work and make beautiful memories with the kids during the holiday season.

Disclosure: This post was sponsored by Mattel Canada.  All opinions are our own.

Share:

How to Create the Perfect Holiday Wrapping Station

GEAR, tech By December 5, 2013 Tags: , , , , , , , , No Comments

Holiday Wrapping StationWe received some great tips from lifestyle expert Shoana Jensen on creating the perfect holiday wrapping station.  I’m still dreaming of a dedicated wrapping room instead of banishing my kids from entering the downstairs bathroom for the entire month of December.  Baby steps.

The basics:

1)    Select a theme for the gift and pick your favourite wrapping paper.

2)    Have a good selection of accessories nearby, including ribbons, bows, gift tags and a pair of quality scissors.

3)    Tape is key! Scotch GiftWrap Tape features a satin finish that disappears on most shiny gift wrap papers. Using matte paper? Use Scotch Magic Tape which has a matte-finish. For a completely seamless look, Scotch Brand Double-Sided Tape. This will ensure your pretty parcel is as polished looking as possible!

Wrapping paper alternatives:

4)    We’ve all used regular wrapping paper. Look for newspapers, road maps or comics as wrapping paper to cater the gift to the recipient’s personality, hobbies or interests.

5)    For those sometimes awkward gifts, find ways to preserve the element of surprise. For example, put perfume or socks in an empty paper towel roll or use an empty coffee can or cereal box for small to medium sized gifts.

Ribbons and gift tags:

6)    Embellish a package with small, useful items that relate to the gift. For example, attach a whisk to a set of mixing bowls.

7)   Instead of a gift tag, find an old baby picture and tape it to the top of the gift. The image will identify who the gift is for and gives you time to reminisce on the good ole’ days!

 

Share:

Holiday Gifts for the WHOLE Family

GEAR, tech By November 29, 2013 3 Comments

UrbanMommies Holiday Gift Guide 2013Note: For more recent Holiday Gift guides, check out 2020 Holiday Guides. Welcome to our 2013 Holiday Gift Guide!  These are our top holiday gifts for the whole family found in stores and online. As always, these are our top picks sourced from all over and we’re never compensated for inclusion in our guide. Click on any image for a review and description. Happy Shopping!!

Gifts for Mom

1. Car Eyelashes  Who wouldn’t want these babies on their BMW? No extensions needed. Canadian Tire

2. Vinylux by CND For the busy mom who doesn’t quite have the time to get her Shellac applied but wants an extra-long lasting polish that’s removable at home. It comes in great colours and lasts a week on my hands. CND

3. ArtKive A dream come true. Photograph the kids’ artwork using this app and lose the guilt when you toss the original. (Kid Dictionary calls this ‘Garboflage’). Later you can make the art into fancy books and things. Artkive

4. Butter Baked Goods. This cookbook calms me down just by its presence in the room.  Stunningly beautiful, it also includes her famous marshmallow recipe. Not to worry. You have all of January to diet. Chapters Indigo

5. Bling Bags As a hostess gift or way for mom to keep the purse organized, a few of these make for a happy woman. Chapters Indigo

6. Conair Curl Secret I admit – I was a bit scared to try it.  Your hair gets sucked into the body of the curler and beeps after a couple of seconds, letting you know it’s time to release the ABSOLUTELY PERFECT curl. In about 4 minutes I have a perfect head of ringlets. Let’s just say I pack light and it made the cut for a recent Europe jaunt.  Curl Secret

7. Spoonk Apparently Oprah knew about this before I did, but now that I’ve got my hands on these, they are a staple. Mats you lie on that contuct acupressure. While you are watching Breaking Bad. Who knew?!  Spoonk

8. Pliio Folders I am an aficionado of the Big Bang Theory and have always wanted Sheldon’s folding apparatus.  Enter this great invention.  The kids laundry fits better in their drawers, AND they can fold it themselves.  Pliio

9.  Cheese Kitchen Papers They are just too beautiful.  And a really great excuse for cheese.  You could save a dish also and throw them in the compost afterwards.  Hester and Cook

Gifts for Dad

1. Bespoke Post Men are hard to buy for.  But this service delivers a little package every month, filled with XY chromosome-goodness. Bespoke Post

2. Sterling silver Daddy Dogtags.  With the kids names on them.  Or you could even engrave your anniversary and birthdate so there’s never any forgetfulness.. Posh Mommy Jewelry

3. Dyson Car Vac. It can suck up Cheerios like there’s no tomorrow. Canadian Tire

4. Custom Made Personalized Dad Ornament from Etsy will delight the whole family.  And Etsy has also just launche gift cards in Canada! Etsy

5. Urban Xplorer Halfpack makes a cool diaper bag or weekender for dad.

6. Breville Juicer Simply because you can hide kale in his morning juice. Canadian Tire

7. Porsche Macan (Spring 2014) The first Porsche Compact SUV is available in two versions: Macan S and Macan Turbo. In case you’re looking for a rather large gift. Make sure you put the carseats in as well. Porsche

8. Twinkly House Light. If he’s a bit inept with hanging the Holiday lights, this is the ticket.  Plug it in and the whole house or trees outside look like they are covered in tiny lights. Canadian Tire

9. Founding Fathers Whiskey Keg  Dingle has the capacity to distill two casks of new whiskey every day and are setting aside the first fruits, the produce of our first 250 days in action. These 500 casks will be available to those who wish to become The Dingle Founding Fathers.Each cask, with its own distinct character will be unique: one unique cask, one unique owner.

Gifts for Baby and Toddlers

1. Big Hugs Elmo Who wouldn’t love a hug from our favorite little red monster, Elmo? He will wrap his hands around your little one and give them a hug when they need it most. He will also sing lullabies and encourage pretend play. Indigo

2. Fun Onesies. When you get up in the middle of the night to nurse, the ‘After Party’ one will make you grin. Chapters Indigo

3. These stuffies are to die for. Harrods

4. Dior knows how to dress up the little ones for the holidays.

5. Kickboard Mini Micro 3 in 1.  You may have a hard time staying off it yourself.

6. NPW Tube Toy  Uncommon Goods

7. Squeez ‘Ems. Brilliant for the environment, my ‘Litterless Lunch goals’ have been fulfilled.  Refill these great containers with yogurt or applesauce.  The large opening in the top helps for cleaning and they are lighter than heavy plastic.

8. Educational Insights Dino Construction Company T-Top the Triceratops Bulldozer  Mastermind

9. Baby Dior Dress. DOUBLE-SIDED DRESS PINK AND TAUPE CASHMERE. I want a girl.

Gifts for Kids

1. Minecraft Slippers Again on Etsy.

2. Doodle for Google  Doodle 4 Google is an annual program that invites K-12 students in the United States to use their artistic talents to think big and redesign our homepage logo for millions to see.

3. Little Passports  Watch as your children race to the mailbox every month to learn about Sam and Sofia’s latest destinations. Monthly packages arrive filled with lots of goodies and access to online games and activities. Little Passports

4. Sifteo These brilliant, interactive cubes will keep them (and you busy) for hours!

5. Pottery Barn Kids China It matches and can be intermixed with your adult versions. PBK

6. Tutus by Tutumaria are soft and adorned with ribbons and special sundries. The only trouble is that they don’t come in adult sizes.

7. Poppy Drops Temporary Tattoo Earrings are just the thing for little ones who love to dress up! Perfect for loot bags, stocking stuffers and birthday gifts. The set comes with 12 pairs of temporary earrings in different styles. All Poppy Drops earrings are made with all natural, food-grade vegetable dyes and are safe for children. The earrings can last up to a week and can be removed with baby oil.

8. Ninjabread Men  will delight the toughest of little guys.  Bite off the legs first! Perpetual Kid

9. Oldschool Battleship There’s just nothing cooler. Yard Sale or Ebay

Gifts for Pregnant Women

1.  Cake Lingere  Beautifully made with luxurios fbrics, i wear the nursing bra all the time – even though I’m not nursing! Seams aren’t itchy and you feel super sexy. It comes in a beautifully wrapped box with satin ribbon. Cake Maternity 

2. Silver Cross Aston Martin Stroller  I saw it on a recent trip to Harrods and drooled. And drooled.  Perfect if you want to spend two thousand pounds on a stroller.

3. Phil & Teds Travel Cot I used one all the time when the kids were little.  It fits into a tiny bag (that made the Europe packing cut once as well. Canadian Tire

4.  Maternity Wrap. Isabella Oliver

5. Baby Bullet  Make anazing natural and healthy baby food. London Drugs

6. HP Slate 7 It’s a super speedy android tablet with a very reasonable price tag.

7. Pea in Pod Cashmere  Autumn Cashmere Long Sleeve Maternity Sweater.

8. Timi & Leslie Marie Antoinette’ Diaper Bag is something you’ll carry long after the baby is out of diapers. Nordstrom

9. Stratamark is a revolutionary stretch mark cream.  We tested it and it helped reduce stretch marks that are a few years old.. Stratamark 

Gifts for Grandparents

1. Seniors Labels from Mabel’s Labels are the best invention since, well, kids’ labels! Mabel’s Labels

2. A Goat. ONE has partnered with Heifer International to send a lot of goats to Africa.You heard me right. Goats.

Goats are pretty amazing. For most people in the world, the only milk they drink comes from goats. And one goat can produce up to one TON of milk a year. That means lots of cheese, butter and milk to sell at the market, and homemade fertilizer to help make crops grow. Heifer International

3. Boxed Salt and Peppers come in tons of different designs and make a personalized gift based on interests of the recipient.  They are packaged in a gorgeous box ties with ribbon. Pottery Barn

4. Soda Stream is my new favourite home appliance.  Next to the Vitamix. Home Depot

5.  Pillows with Pizzaz make a sparkly gift that will lift the spirits of the oldest sofa! Indigo

6. Twig Plastic Cutlery  Translucent Black Twig 12 Piece Cutlery You don’t have to sacrifice elegance when choosing a one-time use cutlery set. Madhouse

7. Chalkboard Calendar 12 hand drawn months in chalk style typography and large block grids for plenty of space to keep track of important dates. Paper Source

8. Festive Cake Carrier. Hopefully it will inspire them to bake stuff for you. Canadian Tire

9. AVG Internet Security 2014 Don’t let the grandparents get hacked. We swear by the AVG products and this new version now includes new privacy features to protect your private data. AVG 

Share:

How to Take the Stress out of Holiday Shopping with airmilesshops.ca

apps, GEAR By November 29, 2013 Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , No Comments

airmilesshopsAhh.  The bustling crowds at the mall.  Are you getting excited? Think of it: in every city across Canada, hours have been extended and decorations hung in anticipation of the RUSH.  You know the one I mean: the parking lot scramble, forgetting where you put your car and carrying 15 heavy bags and ending up in tears (maybe that’s just me), lining up for the must-have toy of the season because you know it’ll make your little one cry tears of joy.

I have made a vow this year to do a lot of my shopping online.  Do I trust online shopping?  Absolutely.  Even credit card companies protect us these days.  Must I worry about store closing times, a perfectly coiffed friend seeing me in sweats or getting lost in a mall?  No.

As I write I’m distracted by the thought of a roaring fire and glass of eggnog. The dog is snuggled at my feet and I’m watching Casablanca in the background as I browse online for holiday gifts.  For others, of course.  Bliss.

Though I have been an AIR MILES Collector for 20 years, I didn’t discover airmilesshops.ca until this year.  Shocked, all of the stores I was planning to visit both North and South of the border are actually online – and I will earn reward miles for my shopping. As a bonus, many of the stores on airmilesshops.ca have offers to earn 2x, 3x even 10x the reward miles on your purchases. In fact, right now for Black Friday you can earn 10x the reward miles on your purchases with airmilesshops.ca until December 4th.

All stores on airmilesshops.ca ship to or within Canada and many offer a special Canadian checkout section where purchases are priced in Canadian dollars. Wow!  I get so frustrated when I go through the process on a website only to discover that the store ships only to the US.  Nobody should put baby in a corner.

Want to know the stores?  Let’s start with Anthropologie, shall we?  And then the Apple Store Canada.  Followed by a few of my favourites for each family member:

Son: Lego.com
Other Son: TOMS Canada
Mother: Hudson’s Bay Company
Me: Sephora
Husband: Bose Canada
Me from Husband: Victoria’s Secret or FTD
Dog: PetSmart
Father-in-Law: Snapfish
Cool Kid down the block: Roots
Girlfriends like me: Bloomingdales, Ann Taylor and Neiman Marcus.

My ‘work’ is done.

So as packages come in (or are wrapped and shipped directly to the recipient saving me a trip to the post office), you may hear a little squeal from me.  And each order I make is adding to my growing bank of AIR MILES reward miles and reducing my holiday to-do list.  With this lack of stress combined with my extra AIR MILES reward miles, I might just have to hop a plane to Hawaii for New Year’s.

<Only Half Joking>.

In terms of shipping, the individual stores do that. Visit airmilesshops.ca to start your own holiday shopping!

This post was sponsored by airmilesshops.ca.  Our opinions are our own.

Share:
5-holiday-apps-for-moms

Amber MacArthur’s Top 5 Holiday Apps for Moms

apps, GEAR By November 19, 2013 Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , No Comments

Remember those folks who said computers wouldn’t last and cell phones were a passing fad? Snicker. Not only were the naysayers incorrect, but our tech is now so mainstream and we have so many apps for our smartphones that we need experts to tell us about the true gems. In a special interview with Amber MacArthur, co-host of APP CENTRAL, she revealed her top 5 Holiday Apps for Moms as she gears up to celebrate a spectacular milestone: APP CENTRAL’s 100th episode on Wednesday, Nov. 20 at 9:30 p.m. ET on BNN and on CTV, Saturday, Nov. 23 at 5:30 p.m. ET/PT.  100 episodes!  No wonder we need more storage in our phones.  I was ‘appy’ as a clam as we spoke.  (OK I had to say it).

Amber MacArthur’s Top 5 Holiday Apps for Moms

1. Santa’s Magic phonecall iOS – free Call Santa on demand

2. Appy Holidays – allows you to get you xmas lights on your tree to dance to xmas carols. Plug the Appy Holidays Box (Available at Canadian Tire, $59.99) into any tree and turn it into a musical light show! Download the app to your smartphone or use the remote (included) to control your tree’s tunes & make lights dance

3. Martha Stewart Makes Cookies – Holiday Baking app  iOS – $1.99  A mouthwatering assortment of Martha’s favorite cookies is now available at your
fingertips! Learn from the best with this indispensable baking resource, which combines cutting-edge technology with beautiful design and a generous sprinkling of good, old-fashioned fun. With 6 recipe bundles, instructional videos, baking tips, packaging

4. Go Gift – lets you manage your gift list. iOS – $0.99
Thanks to quick reminders and gift status notifications, this is the best holiday app to manage your gift list. You can add photos of people on your list and gift pics to match.

5. Mixologist Drink Recipe App – holiday drinks and low cal drinks.  iOS/Android – $0.99/$1.49
Browse and search through nearly 8,000 drink recipes and over 1,000 ingredients, including holiday and low-cal drinks.

So get downloading to make your life easier, and don’t forget to tune in to the 100th episode of APP CENTRAL as Amber speaks with James Milward, Founder and Executive Producer of Secret Location (CTV.ca’s INTERFERENCE). Milward discusses his new app, Tug of War on Drugs, which reveals the realities of the war on drugs in support of Matthew Cooke’s documentary How to Make Money Selling Drugs. Plus, the APP CENTRAL team tests the latest in waterproof smartphones and phablets.

 

Share:

Beware the Minecraft Mod

apps, GEAR, tech By November 15, 2013 Tags: , , , , , , , , , , 40 Comments

Swimming around in the Westin Calgary pool, we were both happy as clams.  My son loves Minecraft (especially computer version) and asked if he could get a new MOD (translated to ‘modification of the original – I think).  Personally knowing the student who had told him about add-ons to Minecraft, I was skeptical but decided to be open-minded.  Daddy and I would research the MOD to see if it was appropriate.

Pushing me, my son explained that you could get a girlfriend and make ‘it’ do things.  Red flag #2.  He insisted his friend said there was a Youtube video that would explain it.  And he wanted me to watch it NOW.

I looked and there were no age restrictions, so we watched it together.

For ten minutes.

And my heart sank deeper and deeper and I knew that we’d entered tech hell, a place that I may have to go back to school to understand because I can’t be a great parent without a full understanding of that world.

In the video (that was like a gender-biased, sexist train wreck I couldn’t stop watching), I learned that ‘mail-order girlfriends’ emerge from a box shipped to the miner.  They do your bidding and their weapons are shoes tossed at the creepers.  If you like, you can give them a sword but must take it back promptly.  They are tamed with a rose and will do what you tell them once they are in love with you. You can dress them in 16 different outfits and if you draw them to water.. wait for it… they will change into a bikini! (Of which there are many styles as well).  Building a dance floor of 5×5 bricks will compel them to dance for you to ensure your happiness.  And finally, to break up with these creatures you just have to give them a dead bush. Hopefully the symbolism isn’t evident to my son.

I was silent.  I asked my son how he would feel if it was me who got out of the box.  He said he wouldn’t like it, but if you marry them with a diamond you can get a baby from inventory and even eat dinner together.  At a table in a restaurant.

I explained that he had not done anything wrong, but that this particular MOD divided genders and included harmful thoughts about women.  He still begged to get it and promised he’d never treat a girl like that in real life.

So I guess he realizes some of the negatives.  But the weaponry, clothing changes and newness is still too enticing.  And now I’m petrified.

This video has over 6 million views.  Developers such as TheDiamondMinecart make or simply video and explain the workings of these MODS. They are certainly not screened for content.  Parents who may think their child is playing ‘Minecraft’ has no idea about the can of worms introduced by coders who want to extend the range of the game.

So much for work.  I’ll be looking over his shoulder from now on.  And before he can download ANY SIM?  He has to learn how to code and build the damn thing himself if he’s still interested.  (Hopefully it will take a few years).  There was a great article on Babble about teaching kids coding.  Spanish can wait.  Coding and the reinforcement of gender equality are next on the list.  And just because you trust what you read about Minecraft and it’s developers, be careful not to consider all-things-Minecraft as kid-appropriate.

In the meantime? Any advice on how to deal with the family of the 7-year old who hyped the Girlfriend Mod would be much appreciated.

by Jill Amery

Share:

Photo Tips for Family Vacations

GEAR, ROAM, tech By November 5, 2013 Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , No Comments

We’ve all been there.  You know, the one where you drop big bucks on a great camera and when you see your special vacation photos later you cringe.  I thought it was sunny in Cancun.  Wow little Suzy’s face looked splotchy.  That photo would have been so great if I had only….. Vacations are expensive.  Here are a few photo tips for family vacations so that your pictures are as bright as your memories.

Continue Reading
Share: