CONTEST CLOSED!

Congratulations Jen!

What do you get for the person who has everything? Seriously can’t go cheap right? No use wasting money on something expensive since they may have 10 stacked away in the closet. I guess you could try hand-made but with hand-made it is always a toss up whether it will be a success or not. For me I like to be careful who enjoys the toils (or spoils) of my labor. Then you find some really nifty gadgets that you will not need to sell your kidney to buy but will ensure that you never get forgotten.  Both these finds are under $25 and seriously how cool are they?

These memory sticks come in various sizes from 1GB to 4GB and sport various candy themes like Mr Goodbar, Krackel, Twizzlers and Bubble Yum. I had received one (the Hershey’s one) as an attendee of the Time To Play event in NY and remember using it at the Aiming Low HP party to check out the new HP Web Smart printer (yes the same one I won the bag at) and I still remember the ooh’s and ahh’s  when I pulled out my little flash drive. The detailing is so close to being a mini candy bar that it would be easily mistaken. I have several flash drives that I have received, and I mean it when I say many, but this cool number will stay in my bag.

Pros:

• The ultimate in cool and when memory sticks are dropped on you at every turn (is this for everyone or just us bloggers?) it pays to have something a little different.
• Value for money!
• The detailing in the design is pretty neat and great quality.
• The stick is retractable. I wish all memory sticks were.

Cons:

• Since it so closely resembles a candy bar, you REALLY have to keep an eye out for the kids.
• It is a little fat/wide so 2 memory sticks won’t sit so easily side by side. But if you are not a heavy memory stick user this should not matter.

Ok, so I am the only person on the planet without an iPhone, but I do have an iTouch.  The fact that I don’t play music on it is sad since most of the tunes I hear are kiddie ones. Well I decided to give this baby a spin and streamed some of my favorite music and just plugged it onto this cutie pie, and BAM the music came through the speakers on the I-Dog puppy. I am an engineer but my brain is so mush that I hate having to figure things out and here there was non to figure out.  Now you don’t need to have unsightly speakers just so you can listen to music from portable devices.  The size of the puppy is a good size, for some reason I expected a teeny tiny one, and am glad it was not. My verdict is this lil puppy is going to help get me reacquainted with all my tunes from now on.

Pros:

• Loved the packaging, no wires (am I the only one who simply hates all those ridiculous wires on toys and electronics?)
• Plush really means plush and the design is really cool.
• Easy to use.
• Inexpensive (and I am a cheapie so when I say that, I mean that)
• No batteries needed (this is such a winner just on its own)

Cons:

• Since it works off the portable device volume I wished it could be slightly louder (though it was pretty adequate to hear in the next room – when the kids were not screaming)

Now who wants a puppy of their own? Look kids are always asking for puppies now here is one YOU don’t have to clean up after. Want it? Tell me what you think the best electronic gadget for 2009 is. Note the prize is just for the I-Dog puppy.

Contest closes 19 th December 2009. To earn extra entries, after you have left a comment, do one of the following, but make sure you leave a separate comment entry for each extra thing you do. This gives you additional ways to win the contest.

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• Have a Blog? Blog about the contest and leave the url of your post.

Don’t forget to visit out other fabulous giveaways on MommyNiri.com

Disclosure: I received both the memory stick and the puppy to review.

]]> http://www.mommyniri.com/2009/12/snazzy-electronic-gifts-hersheys-memory-sticks-and-the-i-dog-plush-puppy-speaker-win-one-too/feed/ 145 http://www.mommyniri.com/2009/10/the-ninja-master-prep-has-found-a-place-in-my-kitchen/ http://www.mommyniri.com/2009/10/the-ninja-master-prep-has-found-a-place-in-my-kitchen/#comments Sun, 25 Oct 2009 02:55:00 +0000 Mommy Niri http://www.mommyniri.com/?p=4705

I should rather say “counter”, and that is a true honor in itself. The truth is the moment my oldest became a toddler I somehow lost counter space in my home. No matter what I did the counters became cluttered, though I salvaged some space for a laptop, priorities ehh? And you wondered how I always seem online or reply mails in a jiffy. That is precisely the reason why we are fussy about any appliance that survives my kitchen. When I attended the EuroPro launch of The Ninja Master Chef in NY with Food Network’s Robin Miller I did so more for Robin but was very impressed with the Ninja Master Prep.

Returning home, knowing they would be shipping me a complimentary one home, I had to do some convincing to my hubby that it was worth cleaning some space for (all the while hoping I was right). Anyway since it has come home I have made a Tomato puree, Mango Smoothie,  Spooky Raisin Spiders, and a peanut chutney. I have been impressed with every result. Having used the huge blenders in other brands it is true that the Ninja surpasses crushing ice. The even chopping of the tomatoes really surprised me.

What I liked about Ninja Master:

• Crushes ice like a dream.
• Purees evenly
• The corded portion of the appliance does not touch the mixture, thus no cleaning.
• Easy to clean.
• Adequate sizes of containers (it comes with 2 sizes).
• Lightweight
• Can move between the 2 sizes of bowls easily.

What I thought could be better in the next version:

• An added container/bowl that is smaller just when you need to make just a teen quantity of something.
• The lids take a little adjusting to fit right, or maybe that is just me, but then again it should work easily without too much fuss for anyone.
• The motor is pretty heavy, so it feels a bit weighty.

As you can see the improvements are needed but the functionality of the product is unmistakable. I hear people rave about the Magic  Bullet and I hear comments that this is supposed to be better, but in honesty I can’t vouch for anything since I don’t own a Magic Bullet. But I do own the Ninja Master Prep and so far it has been good, so I’ll keep it.

I know you already read my older post “GPS: Finally A Way For Men To Ask For Directions!” , but I have to tell you why I absolutely love my GPS and what better time than my weekly Friday 5 series.

1. I am reducing my carbon footprint. Not only am I saving all those trees by not having to print all those directions, my car is a little less messier too. Ok, I still have loads of other trash in my car, but this at least makes a great start to a tidier car.
2. I save time. Now I don’t have to search for directions online (although I love maps.google.com, flexibility on the go it does not provide) or print them (and several  hundreds of variations too). Also no traffic or detour will stop me getting to my destination. I am now pretty used to hearing “recalculating” after I venture off course.
3. I can find food and fuel, fast! Pretty neat that I can search for these and so much more (and I have one of the most basic GPS’s so I am sure you have oodles on yours you can boast about). When you have a kid who says “Gotta go mama, now!” you will find the true value of a GPS in itself to find a potty.. fast!
4. I have the strength to city drive. City driving always gets my tummy in knots and add to that 2 little kids in the backseat and I am a basket case waiting to snap at the slightest case of “Mama I dropped my toy, can you pick it up?”
5. My marriage does not have to be tested with directions anymore. With enough opportunities as parents to test the limits of marriage (and sanity) driving should not be another reason to bicker. There is something about navigating one while while drives aimlessly lost to make for a pretty stressful (and blame-ful) ride!

Thank you GPS for being my travel buddy! Have you hugged your GPS lately?