You know why the original Karate Kid movies were successful? Well yes the the fight scenes were breathtaking but without the mental aspect it would have been a straight action movie. I watched, loyally, all the Karate Kid movies. I still remember the wax on wax off scene which imitated a tactic move that proved the winning formula for Ralph Machhio earlier. This time...

There was a time when I would be paranoid to put both kids to bed, on my own. I remember the first time I did it my best friend (thank you Kamesh) rallied to the rescue with her mom who was visiting from South Africa (yeah, my friends rock). Needless to say I was a panic mess. These days I do it easily, but honestly I think hubby does it way better and truthfully more...

CONTEST CLOSED! Congratulations Andrea! Lego is a firm favorite in our home and millions of others. A really cool event in NYC (why does everything happen there?) and I wanted to share it with you.  I know what you are thinking – “Mommy Niri, I live to far from NYC!” – well you for you, my precious reader, I am going to be giving away a Lego construction...

While I review many products on mommyniri.com they are just simply reviews, not endorsements. Promoting a brand is something entirely different and it is one that I intend to get behind only if I passionately am in love with it. It is also why I have been slow to get sponsorships for conferences. Been able to shout out, and put name on the line for a company is something...

Somehow I had never heard of Moon Dough – I did hear of Moon Sand and figured it would be similar. Bracing myself for some colored sand like material I opened the package to let my 3 year old and 5 year old take a stab at it. I was pleasantly surprised to find it was meant to be a “play-doh” like material. If you have not seen what it is like let me...

I am a fan of all things Dora (except maybe that tween Dora thing) and just learned that there will be a magazine launching with the focus on Dora (and her friends) I just had to share. I have not yet seen the magazine but I plan to soon (I promise to share my views on the Mommy Niri page so stay tuned there). The magazine will be bi-monthly and a whopping 36 pages. Now...

CONTEST CLOSED! Congratulations Deborah! Date Night could have possibly be taken straight out of a page in my life. Almost. I mean the part before all the mayhem happens. Recently I was at a media event to explore the new Honda Odyssey and they finished up the event at a spa (I know, I lead a tough life). As we all sat in the relaxing waiting area – listening out...

Yesterday I had my daughters annual doctor visit. I attend them because I have to, I could say that I needed to since they include shots normally but my skepticism in the medical profession does not allow that sense of reliability.  I had recently paid an amount just to get the  copy list of shots for the school (a rip off if you ask me to actually have doctor offices...

CONTEST CLOSED! Congratulations Gaynelle! Now I know that you wanted to win that Yo Gabba Gabba prize I had out recently but fear not if you lucked out. Fans of Yo Gabba Gabba will be happy to know that Mommy Niri has another treat for you. So you know that the Yo Gabba Gabba is touring (you should visit the Yo Gabba Gabba live site if you want to know dates in your...

I can still remember the day. I am more that is true for almost anyone that was in the USA (and outside) on that day. I was at the gym (yes, those were the days) in the morning in the same building I worked, and was already running late up to work. I was sitting at a meeting and a colleague got a call on the cell-phone and mentioned the State building was on fire. I...

So I had enjoyed my earlier trip, without kids. Drawing from past experiences on planes and hotels I was not altogether looking forward to 8 days on a trip with my kids. Don’t get me wrong, I love my kids – to death – but I don’t always enjoy every little thing they do. Having 2 young and highly adventurous kids means they get into everything, and then some. Yeah,...

The last time, or rather the first time I booked a cruise was in 2003. We had just bought our first house and I knew my fiscally focused husband would be penny watching so I wanted to make one big splurge. Trouble was coming from a poorer background splurging was not in my genes. So I indulged cautiously. I found a 3 day cruise in our BJ’s flyer (to those not in the...

I love food! There I said it, deal with it. I am one of those people who thinks of food first when someone mentions a special occasion. I do. I could watch Food Network all day (but I don’t). Food is certainly my Achilles Heel. So when I decided to become a vegetarian about 12 years ago I had to psyche myself that being a vegetarian could be just fun. It was a tough...

So I have an addiction, it does not happen every day but on some (tougher) days it happens more than once so it kind of evens out to once per day. The fact that the staff at Starbucks know my name and my drink, along with my kid’s drink, should be a warning in itself to my habit, but I ignored those signs. Then although I prided myself on being an avid recycling babe...

For all the magnitude of the ship and the thought that 2,500 passengers that needed to get on you would be forgiven to think that checking in would be a huge zoo-like room. Tag along 2 kids and you would be further adding chaos to the mix. Not so! Yes, we did not print out stuff like we should have (his fault, not that I am pointing fingers or anything) but they were...

CONTEST CLOSED! Congratulations Jenny On The Spot! So you know I am en-route to a cruise (thanks to Carnival Cruise Lines) but as I await the hurricane out in my hotel room I realized I may be offline a bit for 8 days. In fact I will be blogging everyday to keep you along for the ride but I really felt guilty that I am leaving my readers. To make up for my guilt I felt...

So you may have heard, or may not. But Mommy Niri is going to be sailing away on a Carnival Cruise Line. The Papa Post and the kiddos will be joining in too. When I was approached by the wonderful folks at Carnival Cruise Lines (read more an their announcement post of Mom Blogger Ambassadors ) I was suspicious. Well wouldn’t you be? A vacation with my family and...

Sometimes we all need a little extra color in our lives and when it is your favorite color, even better.  My older daughter always loved green. When I say loved I mean really loved green. She would eye every green toy as a toddler and friends and family became aware of it and accommodated her often. Then without warning to anyone she declared a new favorite - yellow! Of...