The games are SO cute, and the graphics are terrific. They have games that resemble Farmville and other sim games. I really like Remanum, because it’s a sim game but blends a bit of history with it.

Hey, Susi, maybe you can translate this for me?

Werde zum Kaiser deiner Stadt und mache die gesamte Wirtschaft des Mittelmeers im Spiel Remanum von deinem Handel abhängig.

Am Anfang startest du als unbedeutender Händler mit kleinem Anwesen. Du bist einer von tausend anderen Spielern und niemand kennt deinen Namen.
Als erstes baust du dir Betriebe wie ein Sägewerk, einen Marktplatz zum Handeln und weitere wichtige Werkstätten um überhaupt am Handel teilnehmen zu können. Wenn du deine ersten Waren verkauft hast, bist du quasi schon mitten im Spiel.

I can’t get over the graphics- they are beautiful. I already signed up. It’s not too difficult to understand it. Aktivieren deinen account means “activate your account.” See?! Already I am learning German!

Check it out. Even if you don’t want to brush up on your Deutsch, the graphics of the game may draw you in.

Sheesh, when I was a kid, I had a PLAIN OLD piggy bank. You know the kind:

But like so many things, piggy banks are going really high-tech today! Wanna see a very cool piggy bank? It’s called Ekonomi interactive money box. It’s adorable, I want one!

I think it’s adorable! Basically, you insert 3 AAA batteries into the Ekonomi money box, plug the Ekonomi into your computer through the USB, and set up an account at the Ekonomi website (free to register). There, the child can keep track of the savings– the amount in the box actually displays on the website! As more money is dropped in, the computer reads it. The concept is ingenious. Your child can make plans for financial savings and goals– the cartoon characters at EkominiVille teach the concepts of savings and budgeting in games and interactive lessons. The characters will also help the child donate to charities and save for goals. It’s very impressive. You moms have just got to check it out. I think it’s very affordable– $40 and it comes with free shipping and a free wallet. Plus, Ekomini allows parents to follow along withthe child’s online activities and progress, and customize the experience.

Ekomini was created by a father from Canada, Philippe Racine, who realized that his young daughters knew next to nothing about money. He created Ekomini with them in mind (and of course they gave dad advice on how to improve things, lol). Focus Montreal on TV did an interview. It’s very informational!

Ekomini is totally cool! It’s really geared for kids ages 8 to 12, but I think younger and older kids may like it, too. The cartoon characters are crafted for the younger kids, but older kids may like the concept of managing their piggy bank via the computer. I know I’d like it!

Check out the website- the Ekonomi money box. This would make a perfect gift for birthdays or the holidays, grandparents. This also makes a perfect addition to the homeschool mathematics curriculum. You can purchase Ekomini at the website, watch demo videos, and learn more about the project. It’s made with kids in mind, and I think the Ekomini folks have done an exceptional job. Thumbs up!

Remember, I’m a pro-blogger and I am sometimes compensated with stuff or money to review products! This was one of them. You can read more about my blog policy on my “My Pledge” page.

“Bread: the Staff of Life.”

How many times have we heard that?

It’s true! Did you know that mankind has been harvesting some form of wheat ever since the beginning? Wheat is one of the oldest grains planted by man. However, wheat was not planted in the United States until 1777. Today, the Mid-West is known as the “Breadbasket” of the United States. The climate and flat land is conducive to thriving wheat fields. And did you know that there are 6 classes of wheat grown in the U.S.?

Yes, we’ve been studying. There is a SUPERB educational website called How Wheat Works. It’s sponsored by the Wheat Foods Council. It’s a really neat site! It teaches you about the history of wheat, it’s importance in the world, and it versatility. It’s an educational-type site, but there’s a lot more to the site. Homeschoolers– definitely check it out! You will be greatly “enriched”! :shades:

In a nutshell, How Wheat Works is an interactive multimedia website that educates you about wheat. I have been browsing the site for about a half an hour, and I already know more about wheat than I did in my entire lifetime! The How Wheat Works website gets you involved in the process of “growing” wheat. The very cool thing about it is that the Wheat Council will actually donate wheat! It’s through Operation Homefront, a non-profit organization that gives aid to needy U.S. troops and families. For every participant in the How Wheat Works program, the Council will donate up to 2 pounds of flour (up to 90,000 pounds) to Operation Homefront.

I started out by registering with the site (very quick and easy). Then, I signed in and started learning about the wheat-growing process, and I virtually spread some wheat kernels to grow on the farm. In 24 hours, I will receive an email telling me about the next step. All along the way, there are snippets of history and information about wheat, about growing it, and the impact wheat has had on civilizations. It’s a fascinating tour and the website is very well done. The graphics are like a video game, and the information is in small chunks– enough to make it fun and easy. This is a great resource and reference site for kids– very user-friendly– and it has links to other kid-related, recipe-related, and educational-related sites. Be sure to bookmark it. You can also send the kids to the website www.wheatfoods.org for more stuff to discover and do.

The websites are PERFECT for kids learning about the United States, the food cycle, history of the Mid-West, cooking, and other educational topics. The kids and I liked going through some of the stages of our “wheat growing.” And it’s a blessing to be able to help U.S. troops all at the same time.

Please take a look at the site. I’m always asking people to consider giving to the needy, especially over the holidays. Websites like How Wheat Works has made it SO easy to do it, and you will learn so much in the process, too! And this is a marvelous opportunity to get the kids involved in learning about the foods they eat, and in giving to others.

My wheat brand I’m growing is “durum.” What’s yours? :D

If you found the How Wheat Works website helpful, PLEASE stumble my post with StumbleUpon! I’d really like to get the word out about this activity. Let’s get that wheat to the troops and their families!!

I’ll probably have my son do a review after we check it out for a while. I’ve heard good things about it, so if you have kids interested in LEGOs or in building stuff, there ya go.

Anyway, I tried to take a few screenshots of the Magin Pen Game to show you. Technically, it’s a crayon, not a pen. In the game, you have to get the red circle/ball to the flag. Once you have done this, you can go to the next level. The forces of gravity, inertia, and friction are at work, here, though. It’s HARD!

OK, so I got the call to the first three flags… it only took me, like, half an hour! But how to get the the third flag? Well, I just kept drawing blocks behind the circle, which slowly inched the circle up the ramp. Lame, I know.

I will have you know that I DID get the circle to the flag, though! Very scientific, that’s me…

Anyway, it’s a fun site. MUCH better than having your kids shoot at virtual people in airplanes, I think. They might actually absorb some science while they’re at it!

OK, I’m going to go try the next level now… lol…

The games are so cool! I, uh, even created my own little avatar and tried a few games out. Hee! Dirty dishes can wait.
See, see? That’s me! The red-headed girl with pigtails. My name is CoolCat9. And she is a PLAYER. I think she’s won some Olympic gold medals or something. Oh she may look scrawny against those helmeted refrigerators…

At ActionAllSports.com the avatars are customizable– for example, CoolCat9 could have had blonde hair instead of red hair. But she hates cheerleading, so…. (ha!). I decided to gear up for the coming SuperBowl and try out the football game. This game is ADDICTING! I spent way too long playing it. But it’s fun. Here I am with my stylish and fully customizable football helmet, preparing to demolish the opposing side. Uh huh.

Sports fans or game aficianados will love this site. You can make your little avatar walk to various stadiums and arenas. Choose a sport (compete in just about ANY sport or playoff, like the NBA or MLB, etc) and play away. It’s helpful because it does help teach more about how a sport is played. And the games are safe and harmless and the kids aren’t encouraged– as they are with so many other computer games– to be violent or vicious to win. You just PLAY a sport. Very cool. And now if you’ll excuse me, I have a football championship to win…

So we walked through every. single. aisle. Star Wars and Legos are big, but the best thing I saw was the coolest magnet toy– MagNext, it’s called. Ever hear of it? My youngest son says it’s very hot right now. They are so neat. I got rather carried away myself. (I should have been a little quieter with my WOW! COOL! WHAT A COOL TOY!). No wonder the other parents were glaring at me.

Aw, come ON! Look at this toy! You tell me that YOU wouldn’t freak out over this toy??

I thought it was very, very cool. And they even have MagNext in PINK, for GIRLS! Cool, wow, cool!

Well, MagNext is marketed by Mega Brands, Inc., and is one of the safest toys made (they are designed especially to prevent small children from swallowing the pieces, and the magnets are molded into the plastic pieces). They are also the COOLEST and most popular toys made of