Coast 2 Coast Mom

Disney.com Create Adds Artistic Collaborative Features & Fun

Last week Disney.com added more features to its popular Create site, which offers kids, tweens and teens an online canvas to create and share their own imaginative Disney character artwork.

Now, a new "Group Wall" adds interactivity and collaboration to the site by allowing you to submit your own original Disney artwork in the form of an evolving online mosaic, in addition to its searchable online galleries of original art where people can search by artist, character and make comments. 

We played around with it yesterday, and Li'l Boo liked watching the Group Wall transform as more artwork was added each minute, hour and day, and of course, finding his OWN artwork in the mosaic. You can "fan" a favorite artist, or "favorite" a piece of artwork, which is a fun feature for older kids and teens.

Since launching in August 2009, nearly 1.5 million original pieces of content have been created on Disney.com Create, and you can count one of them as ours. The launch of the new Group Wall features a cute new portrat of Mickey Mouse, although future Group Walls will feature other Disney characters and stars. (I'm sure LI'l Boo is hoping for a Buzz Lightyear and Woody picture, or maybe a Camp Rock 2 portrait as we know the movie's coming out in September ;-) ). While I was playing around with the site with Li'l Boo, I should say that I thought it was really geared to older kids - I'd say perhaps 7+ whom are old enough to read and understand how to manipulate all of the artistic options.

My other favorite new features for creative Disney fans include:

• Comic Creator You can develop your own comic book using your favorite Disney characters -laying out your own page with graphics, text and images to create your own comic story.
• Music Slideshow Users can create your own music videos using photos of Disney stars and songs from Disney artists.
• Scrapbook Fans can build their own online art portfolio to share with friends utilizing elements from all of the Create activities including comic books, digital paintings, slideshows and more.

Relying on Each Other for Happiness

This post is inspired by Laura Munson's This Is Not The Story You Think It Is . . .A Season of Unlikely Happiness, this month's book club choice for the virtual book club From Left to Write. I received a copy of this book as a participant in the group.

We've lived far from family for over a decade now - not just a town or state away - but a necessary flight or full day's drive away. When we relocated from Michigan to California, my mom's words still echo in my mind that I shouldn't be too sad or anxious about the move, that it would be a good thing for my husband and me because it will bring us closer. That's we'd only have each other to rely on - in emergencies, for daily emotional support, as a spouse and also as best friends. We wouldn't have Desperate Housewives-like relationships with life-long friends we could pop-in on at a whim. We wouldn't have resources, and doctors and stores and babysitters we were familiar with or could find other friends to verify for us - we'd be exploring and testing them out ourselves. She was right of course, that we do have a different relationship than our married friends whom have not struck out completely alone. I don't know if that's better or worse, but it's definitely different. We've been each other's only cheerleaders, firestarters and celebratory partners for as long as I can remember. I don't really know "us" without this best friend-parent-lover mishmash that' we've become.

GIVEAWAY: 4 Tickets to Walking with Dinosaurs at MSG

Oh! Oh!! As if US attending Walking with Dinosaurs - The Arena Spectacular at Madison Square Garden wasn't enough excitement for us this week, I'm hosting a one-day giveaway for one lucky family to attend too! A family four-pack of tickets is up for grabs today for the 3 p.m. matinee show on Wednesday, July 21, 2010.

That's right - your entire family can marvel at the heart-pounding roars, and life-like movements of the 17 life-size dinosaurs, based on the award-winning BBC television series. I know that Li'l Boo can't wait to see it himself.

Not that you'll need it, but just in case you're looking for a way to get the family excited about the show, try your hand at the dinosaur name generator, DINO-NAME-OSAURUS, to find out your own dinosaur name.

To ENTER: Just provide a comment below, and be sure to enter your email address into the required box so that I have a way to contact you if you win. The winner will be chosen randomly using Random.org. This contest will end at Midnight tonight, July 20, 2010 so that I have time to email the winner and they can make plans to get themselves to MSG to pick up their tickets at Will Call in time for the show. Winner must provide a valid photo ID to claim the tickets. Good luck!

On My Way to the Yahoo! Mother Board Summit

Today I'm flying to the San Francisco Bay Area to attend the Yahoo! Mother Board Summit. All of us Mother Board members were invited to Sunnyvale to meet with some of the working moms at Yahoo! and to discuss some topics like online safety, Flickr photo and video sharing for our blogs, and advertising among other things. I'm excited to be back in the Bay Area again and I'm stoked to meet some of the other YMB members from around the country! It does feel weird to be going to that neighborhood, though without c2cDad . . . I hope I don't cry as I pass the Holly Street exit off of 101 - our exit home for five years while we were out there.

The YMB is a fun and intelligent organization of mom bloggers, and I feel honored to participate with such other admirable women. There are some groups of friends or contacts that tend to have a more positive impact on you than others, and this group of mom bloggers is just that for me. They raise my game, and I get the opportunity to have thoughtful discussions with the other members - which is something I sometimes find lacking in my everyday life. c2cDad and I barely get the chance to discuss our weekend plans or what to do for dinner, so to have a lengthy insightful chat with other adults is like heaven for me.

I'm actually typing this up while on my flight, in anticipation of arriving at the event and to Yahoo!'s headquarters. I can't wait to land and begin meeting everyone! I can't wait to take some photos with the new camera :-)

Spectacular Macy's July 4th Aboard the Norwegian Epic Cruise Ship

WOW.

It's July 6th and we're still coming down from the high of our super swanky Fourth of July night. We were so excited about the event that we cut short our vacation in Michigan to awake at 3:30 a.m. on July 4th and drive back to NYC to make the party. Oh, and we splurged on a new DSLR camera so we could take better photos of the fireworks (so excuse the abundance of photos here, we had to practice!). You see, Macy's, Inc. invited us to celebrate the Fourth of July right on the Hudson River aboard the brand spanking new Epic cruise ship, the newest and largest ship to set sail from Norwegian Cruise Lines. DOUBLE WOW!

Needless to say, it was a night to remember. The combination of the freedom of a night away from the kiddo, the crystal clear summer sky, the balmy yet breezy air, our front row seats for the fireworks and the eighteen stories of luxurious merriment for us to explore left us feeling like we were kids let loose in a high-end resort.

The Curse and Privilege of Having A Daughter

This post is inspired by this month's From Left to Write book club choice, If You Knew Suzy by Katherine Rosman. I received a copy of this book as a participant in the From Left to Write virtual club.

As with the majority of the books I purchase (or read for this book club), I pass them along to my mom, a sister, or friend - whomever I think would like it most. I have so many people whom I think would LOVE this book that I'm considering ordering a case.

Having JUST returned from the Metro Detroit area to visit my in-laws this weekend, I'm familiar with the locations and social norms that Rosman includes in the book. At least to this WASP-y outsider, the descriptions seemed spot-on and I giggled as I re-read some passages aloud to my husband to jog his memory, strictly from the novelty of having this geographic connection to the book. (I asked after reading about Franklin Village, "Hey - isn't that where we took Li'l Boo for doughnuts and apple cider at the Franklin Cider Mill?") Funny enough, my husband would have been bar mitzvahed the same year as the author and I'm sure that even if my in-laws don't know all of the people mentioned, that they have a friend who does. (I shouldn't be surprised each time I'm reminded how small of a world this is after all of our travels, yet I am.)

Cooking and Baking with Stonyfield Yogurt

Last week I had the pleasure of attending a cooking demonstration at the De Gustibus Cooking School at Macy's Herald Square with green nutritionist Kate Geagan, MD. I learned some of the healthy benefits of substituting organic yogurt or Greek yogurt for other ingredients like sour cream, mayonnaise or oil in recipes. I got to watch Kate cook up some delicious Tangerine-Maple Yogurt glazed chicken and tasted her roasted red pepper cold soup, salmon spread, blueberry muffin, and my favorite, pot de creme - all "healthified." with Stonyfield yogurt. Check out part of her cooking demonstration in the video below and definitely try the Pot de Crème recipe found on the Stonyfield site.
 

Lastly, I appreciated learning more about Stonyfield Organics, as my other interaction with the brand has been with Yo Baby Yogurt and the movie Food Inc. One of the most fascinating things that I took away from the event was less so about the yogurt and more about their organic farming practices and the creation of The Greener Cow Project. By simply changing the diet of the cows, which includes alfalfa, flax and grasses, they've been able to increase the milk's omega-3 content and decrease saturated fats organically. This diet has a side benefit as well, reducing cows' burbs, which as hilarious as that may seem, the burbs contain methane, and in great enough quantities are harmful to the Earth's atmosphere as the emissions are a contributor to greenhouse gases. You'll have to read it to believe it...

Some #SVMomsBitMoms Brand and Blogger Successes

With the imminent dissolution of Silicon Valley Moms Group, I've been reflecting on my experiences and opportunities with the group. Back in May, I attended the SVMoms NYC/NJ/Philly Moms brand and blogger event, sponsored by BitDefender, which brought in 50 local SVMoms bloggers and about 15 brands for a discussion on best practices, and to ask questions and chat about the opportunities for brands and bloggers to work together. I've had a couple of positive experiences as a result of that event that I thought I'd share to better explain ways I've interacted "organically" with brands, and some success stories as a result.

First, I have to give a major shout out to iGo Green for participating in the event as a brand. I received an iGo Charge Anywhere at the event, and was impressed that it serves the purpose of a backup charger for your phone or laptop, but doesn't have to be plugged into an outlet to work. It's a genius li'l device and I've used it nearly everyday since the event. I've even subsequently purchased two more to give away as gifts! Needless to say, my iGo Charge Anywhere has found its home in my purse, and has joined our leaving-the-house checklist of cell phone? Wallet? Keys? iGo? The Charge Anywhere has enabled me to work and be accessible while traveling around Manhattan for hours on end, while getting my hair done, while attending conferences, or on my recent trips to Boston and Los Angeles.

In the Midst of a Mom Blogger Evolution

It's something that's been whispered about at nearly every event or meeting I've attended in the last two weeks...the Silicon Valley Moms Blog network is dissolving as of July 1st. I first received the news while we were in Los Angeles recently. I read the email announcement with a lump in my throat, but as we were traveling, I didn't have the time for a thoughtful, passionate response myself, although I read through the dozens of others each day we were away.

The overall SVMoms network included some fantastic writers . . . witty wordsmiths...creative comediennes, some published authors and real life journalists and some lucky writers whom were chosen to participate - like me. I savored my involvement in the blogging group, considering myself fortunate to be in the same company as the other contributors, and grateful for the opportunities that presented themselves.

Math, Gilbert Gottfried, Big Apple Circus, Little Boy Voices and Me

Add to that mix: Britney Spears, Cyberchase and 45 weeks and you'll get a taste of the panel I was exposed to last weekend at Cyberchase Saturday. It was a quintessential New York experience, all thanks to PBS THIRTEEN WNET, Tribeca Cinemas and math. Yes, you read that right: MATH.

Saturday I had the pleasure of moderating a celebrity talkback panel with the cast of PBS's Cyberchase at the famous Tribeca Cinemas, as part of Tribeca Cinemas' Kids Club program. Cyberchase is one of the only children's programs where the heroes use "brain power" and math in everyday situations to save the day. It was a fantastic opportunity for fans of the series to see a sneak peek at episodes from the new season, meet some of their favorite stars and learn some behind-the-scenes secrets of the show. So much goes into the production of such a high quality show like this one, and as a PBS Kids Club 13 Ambassador, I was delighted to be asked to participate in the event, which featured: