Quickflix review and giveaway

Scroll down to find out how to win one of two subscriptions!

I'm not a big TV watcher. There is hardly anything on when I've got free time that doesn't make me want to poke my eyes out with a sharpened pencil. I've got no interest in seeing how a bunch of teenagers are coping with life in Summer Bay High yet strangely, put them in Shermer High School circa 1985 and I'll replay it so frequently that I know it off by heart. Cult movies are my thing.

Enter Quickflix. The champion of cult movie watchers, insomniacs and mums up feeding in the middle of the night. Oh, and parents who just want a few minutes of peace to drink a cup of tea before it goes cold. Yes, this thing is packed with enough kids programs to guarantee mum gets some much needed alone time.

I've been trialing the Post & Play subscription and I am now addicted. Unlimited entertainment! I think I've watched more TV shows and movies in this past month than I ever have... it's a great help to someone like me who likes to speak only in quotes. Oh come on, you didn't expect me to get it and just leave it for Tricks to play with did you? I take this review thing seriously... for *ahem* your benefit of course.

I decided to get a kids movie from the Post section of the catalogue since, ya know, I was meant to be trialling this as easy unlimited entertainment for kids. I clicked on Beauty and the Beast and the disc was at my doorstep two days later (not bad for cross country!). Ahh that Mrs Potts is a good one, isn't she? Love her.

It was a little bit annoying when trying to watch a TV series via the computer where for a while I could only ever get it to play the first episode. But after asking some questions and getting a very quick answer (clicking on the title, rather than the play button shows you the episode list) I got it to work. PHEW! There are over 12 hours of Thomas the Tank Engine episodes on there and I was starting to panic I'd just have make Tricky watch the one episode over and over again! I predict a Thomas Marathon in Tricky's future, the kid is obsessed with his "Thomas toot toot"!

My favourite thing about Quickflix is that you can have one subscription working on up to five devices simultaneously. By rights you could be watching something on the computer, your partner on the SmartTV, one tween on an Android device, the other on the PS3 and a toddler on the iPad. There will be no more fighting over the remote. Ever.

The app has been the most used feature in this house and came in very handy when Tricks had an asthma flare up and I had to try to keep him from going a million miles an hour and making himself sicker. After two days of crafts he was completely over it and I succumbed to bribery by whipping out Bob the Builder along with promises of his dummy, a PJ day and being able to sleep in the big bed.

Bribery 101

I liked that the parental controls were only changeable from the PC and that you could determine which classifications required a pin number to watch. It mean that if I plonked it on Tricky's lap with a Charlie and Lola cartoon showing, I wouldn't find him 5 minutes later with Charlie and Lola Go Wild 5.

My password was 8008 because it looks like BOOB. I'm so mature.

The app also meant I spent a great chunk of time with the iPad in the bath after Tricky had gone to bed. What? Doesn't everyone use their iPad in the bath? DON'T JUDGE ME!

When Map Guy called out one evening to ask where I was I replied "Watching Miranda in the bath... wait... that sounds really wrong!". It was too late though, he'd already come running to take a squiz.

Other than taking a while to figure out how to play the episodes online and a couple small app glitches where a few times it loaded the movie/episode and wouldn't play (which could have just been my connection), I really enjoyed using Quickflix and being able to keep Tricky entertained, watch cult movies, check out awesome series from HBO and watch Gavin and Stacey in bed. Wait. Now that sounds really wrong.

If you'd like to give Quickflix a whirl to watch Miranda in the bath and Gavin and Stacey in bed, you can get a free six week trial here** or you can enter to win a six month subscription valued at $150!

There are TWO $150 Post & Play subscriptions up for grabs. You can enter via the form below and/or the Facebook app here. Enter daily and share the giveaway for more chances to win.
Are you a movie buff? Tell me your favourite movie of all time!!

This is not a sponsored post. I was given a complimentary subscription to Quickflix. As always, all opinions are honest and my own.
**trial does require a credit card for security reasons, though it won't be debited - it's how I got my trial activated too

Kickin' it old school - toddler style

Tricky has been going to Jump 'n' Jive for half an hour most weeks for the last school term. It's the exact same thing as Laugh 'n' Learn, Romp 'n' Stomp, Wiggle 'n' Giggle and Dance 'n' Prance. In fact, in order to hold a successful toddler dance program it appears that all you need is alliteration, rhyming and a disproportionate number of apostrophes. Oh, and a Hi5 CD.

Every week I go along and every week I feel like the biggest dick in the world as I jump and/or jive along to the music pretending to be a rocket ship, a robot, a clown or whatever the hell it is this week.

As I fall over my own feet and almost crash in to people pretending to be pirates I look around the room and notice that all the other mums and grandmothers not only know all the dance moves, but all the bloody words to the songs, too. I mean it took me six whole weeks to realize the monster had six dirty ears not six thirty ears. I don't even know what six thirty ears means and yet I could swear that is what the song said.

If the class was split by skill level then then I'd be put in a group by myself. Maybe they'd put the nanna who has emphysema and can't shake her groove thing without knocking some kid out cold with her oxygen cylinder with me. You know, to bring down their liability insurance.

Now don't get me wrong, I can sing along to and do all the actions of the Flippy Floppy Scarecrow like nobody's business. Ditto for Miss Munchausens Miss Polly and the rest of the old school songs. But as soon as The Wiggles or Hi5 come on I'm lost and find myself muttering 'kids today' under my breath. I can't even have Hi5 on in the house without thinking that someone spiked the channel 9 water cooler with crack.

So Tricky and I prefer to kick it old school with our nursery rhymes. Plus some of our toys. Yes, I know, I know, it looks like I shoved a toaster on my kid's head but I promise you I didn't. He bloody loves his robot hat, and, just quietly, he does the best robot dance you've ever seen... along to a Hi5 song!

Are you old school with your kids? You know, when you put the iPad down?

iProtect my iPhone from my iToddler - Review & Giveaway

We've established previously that whilst I'm a bit of a Crunchy Mama that I'm not adverse to a bit of iParenting when the situation calls for it. Distracting Tricky from his crazy itchy eczema long enough for the creams to work stopped him gouging his skin off for the 3000th time and that alone makes me happy to say I'm OK with iStuff.

A few weeks ago I got myself a new baby... An iPhone 4S (the S stands for SUPER!) - the first top of the range phone I've ever bought. Tricky had his eye on it from the moment I whipped it out of the box. With Tricky (and every other toddler) it's a little bit like When Harry Met Sally because as soon as I start using something he comes along and says/grunts/cries "I'll have what she's having"... and there is Buckley's chance I'm giving him an $800 toy without any sort of protection. And no, a $5 jelly case just ain't gonna hack it, not with Mr Destructo.

Enter the Fisher Price Apptivity Case for iPhones (and iPod touch too!).

Oh my gawd. This little thing is unbelievably good.

Concentrating so hard. Also: cheeeeeeks!

Some of the things I love about it are the clear film that protects from drool and grubby, sticky fingers and the rubberized, shock absorbing inner lining which meant my two day old phone survived without a scratch when Tricky decided to throw it on to the pavement (my heart did miss a beat though).

But the thing that makes this little gadget completely awesome in my eyes is the way you can choose to block the home key to stop your clever munchkin navigating out of their game educational program and in to the app store to buy a $7.99 interactive guide to the best Himalayan eateries.

Because you have to lock the phone in, it does mean you've got almost zero chance of getting it out in time if you get a phone call... and if you have the home key blocked you won't be able to navigate back to the app without getting the whole thing out and starting again - but it's a small price to pay for the safety of your iBaby.

Playing with the apps that come with the case

Aaaand the bit you've been waiting for, I've got one of these to give away!

To get your baby or toddler's sticky hands on it all you have to do is tell me what was on the grubbiest, yuckiest, stickiest hands that were wiped all over you/your stuff by your charming spawn. For an extra entry, Tweet or Facebook about the giveaway then come back and tell me with a separate comment for each.


Entry is open to Australian residents only. Entries close at 10pm AEDST on Monday 12th December 2011 at which time three winners will be chosen using a random number generator. Make sure you sign in to the comment platform with a valid email address/twitter handle or leave your details as part of your comment so you can be contacted. Winners have one week to reply to notification, failing that, the prize will be redrawn. The prize is provided by Fisher Price and Thrive PR and is not transferable.

What's App-ening? - Review & Giveaway

Since joining the Apple bandwagon I've gone App crazy, which is obvious because I've titled this "What's App-ening?" and rather than groaning at my ridiculous pun I'm sitting back smugly thinking I'm pretty clever.

I'm App obsessed. Appsessed. I also thought I was pretty clever coming up with that word but a quick Google search shows me I'm most definitely not the first to think of it. But points for trying, right?

I've been playing with some new apps lately, well to be more specific, Tricky and I have been playing them together.

Peekaboo Barn is the cutest little app around and encourages animal recognition. Tricky loves copying the animal sounds and then opening the barn doors to see what animal is behind. What I like is that you can choose to have the name of the animal said in an adult's voice, a child's voice or you can record it yourself. I've recorded it myself because the adult voice was American and the child's voice, whilst being super cute (especially when he excitedly says chicken) had some pronunciation issues.

The other thing I like is that there are no other buttons to press on the screen once the game has started. Tricky is a button presser and will tap at everything to see what it does which is not the best when he can get through to language settings or to actually upgrade an app and rack up an iTunes bill. There is no risk of that happening in this game so I don't have to worry. Phew!

So cute!

Peekaboo Barn saved us the other day when Tricky's eczema was so severe that he was screaming and clawing at his own skin. I slathered him in soothing creams but the itch was so bad that everything I was doing to distract him was just met with more frustrated cries and such furious scratching that his legs started bleeding. I whipped out the iPad and started Peekaboo Barn... within a few seconds it had caught his attention enough for him to stop scratching and give the cream time to work and soothe the incessant itch. Win.

The other app we've played with has been Counting with the Very Hungry Caterpillar. I adore that colourful caterpillar and have so many gorgeous memories of the book so trying out the app was a bit exciting... and sadly a bit disappointing. I do realize it's not aimed for my age group but I wanted it to be a bit more fun than just "Please eat one apple/plum/orange". You have to tap the correct number of fruit then click done and it just increases by one each time with the same fruit... and that's level three! It just seemed really boring and predictable. I like what they were trying to do and that they've used the original illustrations but maybe if they could have varied it up a little bit more it would have been better.

Level Three

If you'd like to win either of these apps for your kiddies leave a comment below telling me in what situations iParenting has saved your sanity (or your child's skin as the case may be). Tweet/Facebook about it and let me know in another comment for an extra entry. If you can't wait, both are available from the App Store and Peekaboo Barn is also available in the Android Market.

Entry is open to everyone but it helps to have a device that can play the games. Entries close at 10pm AEDST on Monday 7th November 2011 at which time a winner will be chosen using a random number generator. Make sure you sign in to the comment platform with a valid email address/twitter handle or leave your details as part of your comment so you can be contacted. Winner has one week to reply to notification, failing that, the prize will be redrawn. The prize is provided by Night & Day Studios and is not transferable.You will receive a code to redeem in the App Store or Android Market.

*I was not paid for this post but I did receive a free version of each app for review purposes*

iParenting vs Back In My Day

We are living in a Digital World and I am a Digital Girl. Are you singing now? I am.

The other day, as I sat writing a blog post with one hand on the iPad and the other cradling Mr Cranky Pants my darling boy, I marvelled at our Digital Age. Or iAge. Whatever.

It got me thinking just how much we rely on technology to help us parent, or more specifically, to stay sane as we parent. I am an iParent. I was going to say Digital Parent, but it's obvious I'm one of those, I've got the button in my sidebar to prove it.

So let's do a little comparison, shall we? iParenting vs Back In My Day (well actually my mum's day, but it doesn't have the same ring to it)...

iParenting: Vibrating rockers and swings will lull your spawn to sleep so you can do more important things, like play on Twitter
Back In My Day: Rock your own damn child. You're lucky to even have a cot that isn't a death trap

iParenting: Buy some book apps and record yourself reading a story ONCE. Your child can now play it ad nauseum without you having to look away from Neighbours or put down your tequila
Back In My Day: You will read See Spot Run, complete with character voices, until you are ready to give Sally and Sam the big green needle

No drooling on the iPad

iParenting: Let Walt Disney do the hard work on a long trip by whacking in a DVD or two in your air conditioned 4x4 Range Rover Sport
Back In My Day: You play number plate spotto til you reach 100 or Punch Buggy until someone is bruised and/or bleeding on the back seat of the orange and tan Datsun Stanza with no aircon and broken windows that don't roll down

iParenting: Shove an iPhone in to their tiny little hands with some animal noise app and let the little suckers learn about farm life while you Skype with your buddies. When they become bored and irritable (irritating?) threaten them with "I will stop your download if you don't behave!"
Back In My Day: Visit an actual farm and vainly attempt to stop your child stepping in sheep poo. Then scold the child when he runs around chasing his sister with the poo-shoe. When they're both exhausted battle to get them in the car with threats of "We won't go to the video store if you don't behave!"

OK so it's an exaggerated comparison, but you get what I mean.

Do you iParent? What 21st Century tools do you use to make the job easier?