Coast 2 Coast Mom

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. Yeah, 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:

Hands-on Gaming Fun with Kinect for Xbox 360

Last week while we were in L.A. for the launch of Kinect for Xbox 360, we had time to play with some of the games that are in development to launch this fall. We tried our hands at all of the games available to us, and we enjoyed playing ALL of them! You can't help but smile and giggle watching others control the games with their bodies, and then doing it yourself. We had a blast.

I'd have to say our favorite games were Dance Central, Kinectimals, Your Shape, Kinect Adventures and Kinect Sports. These are some of our personal experiences with the games, so if you're looking for a more authoritative and technical look at the technology, check out my piece for Techlicious.

One of the overall crowd favorites was Dance Central, and while a great addition to any party, I can totally see tweens, dance teams and cheer teams and sorrorities having slumber parties playing this game all night long. (Or maybe, that's what I would have done. ;-)) Developed by Harmonix, the same company behind Rock Band, and you can see the similarities when you play it. I can see my sisters and me holding a dance-off next holiday season between us and the kiddos. It was fun watching others get their swag on, and I laughed watching Li'l Boo and c2cDad get funky.

Secrets, Sneak Peeks & Behind the Scenes Family Fun in Tribeca This Saturday

Secrets. Sneak peeks. Exclusive previews. They're the social equivalent of riches. They provide fodder at your next social event, and when you learn new bits of information it many times cements a long-lasting loyal relationship with whomever spilled the beans to you.

Well, get ready to become my new BFF. This Saturday I'll be moderating the talkback portion of the Tribeca Cinema Kids Club Cyberchase Saturday with series stars Gilbert Gottfried ("Digit"), Matt Wilson ("Harry"), Annick Obonsawin ("Inez") and Ellen Doherty (senior series producer). Cyberchase was developed for children 8-12 years old and airs on PBS. It's the only children's program in the U.S. to feature "brain power" and math as the solution to everyday life situations. 

The evil villian ("Hacker") is voiced by Christopher Lloyd - no relation to Christopher Lloyd the creator of ABC's Modern Family. (Just a little something I learned behind the scenes at PBS myself. ;-) )

I can promise giggles, guffaws and gossip (of the Cyberchase kind). Come join me . . . you know you want to.

Back from the World Premiere of Project Natal As Imagined By Cirque Du Soleil

We just returned from the best time in Los Angeles! I got in some blogging and writing time, c2cDad even ran into some business contacts during the launch weekend, we visited with family out there, took Li'l Boo to see some sites for the first time, and oh yeah . . . attended the world premire of "Project Natal" as imagined by Cirque Du Soleil, and the launch of Kinect for Xbox 360!!

I had read in the LA Times piece that they were attempting to plan a once-in-a-lifetime experience and I think they succeeded. Microsoft invited some lucky people to participate in a pre-show drum beat ceremony, counting down the time to the launch, and Li'l Boo represented c2cfamily well in a collaborative drumbeat with four other bloggers and celebs including NYC's own @mominthecity and @MakeupbyMel, as well as gold medal Olympian Steven Holcomb. (That's him hoisting Li'l Boo up to bang the drum. . . the drum platform could only fit four people up at a time and there were about dozen of us in our group. Yes, it takes a gold-medal Olympian to hoist Li'l Boo.)

Why We're in Los Angeles Today

We’ve been looking forward to this trip to L.A. for months now, so we were practically giddy when we boarded the flight yesterday. We were invited to attend the much-anticipated launch of  Xbox 360 “Project Natal” (tonight, in advance of the annual E3 conference - where they first announced development last year). We’ve been reading so much about the show in the media, this LA Times article gives some good background on what we’re doing here.

We’re thrilled to be a part of this, and incredibly excited for the events tonight, which include a world premiere performance from Cirque du Soleil. Li’l Boo is especially looking forward to the drum ceremony this afternoon.

A special thank you to the Microsoft Xbox 360 Project Natal PR team for taking such good care of us. They’ve really thought of everything, down to the pre-stamped touristy LA postcards. It will be fun for Li’l Boo to mail these off to the grandparents come Monday.

UPDATE: "Project Natal" is now Kinect

Win an XBox 360 Family Prize Package from GetGameSmart.com

A week or two ago I was introduced by @theonlinemom to GetGameSmart.com, Microsoft's resource for parents looking for advice, tips and information on how to set up parental controls, video game ratings and online safety. They're currently running an Xbox 360 Family Sweepstakes this weekend starting at Noon today through midnight on Sunday June 13th.

You just submit your answer to the weekly "challenge question" on the site about online or video game safety, and you'll be entered to win their Family Prize Package of an Xbox 360 Elite with Xbox Live Gold Membership and 1600 Xbox LIVE Points ($400 value!). If you're on Twitter, you also have the opportunity to win a $100 spa or Best Buy gift certificate if you RT the weekly Challenge Question from @GetGameSmart (so be sure you're following).

The Challenge will run again next weekend, June 18 - 20th, 2010. Good luck!

Meeting Dr. Scott and Learning Dinosaur Train Secrets

On Sunday we drove into NYC to visit the World Science Festival Street Fair for a screening of the PBS children's series The Dinosaur Train, as well as a booksigning and discussion with Dr. Scott Sampson (aka Dr. Scott to many 2-6 year old kids!). L'il Boo was so excited! On our drive in, he was all "I'm going to meet my first paleontologist!" Which made me giggle hearing that in his little four-year old voice.

Most of the audience was families with kids around Li'l Boo's age, and Dr. Scott was clearly impressed, but not surprised, to be talking with kids using such big words. I think about every preschooler or early elementary kid in the audience could name Triassic, Jurassic and Cretacious when asked, and knew the difference between herbavores, carnivores and omnivores. Li'l Boo answered a warm-up question saying his favorite dinosaur was the Velociraptor. I was shocked that he didn't say the T-Rex. Perhaps he's maturing beyond the T-Rex? I mean, he has a book listing over 100 dinosaurs . . .about time he became interested in one of the others ;-)

Cupcakes for a Cause this Saturday in Ridgewood

Okay, so I don't need a reason to stop into Cupcakes by Carousel this weekend, but now I absolutely cannot NOT stop in. This Saturday, June 5th, Cupcakes by Carousel will host "Cupcakes for a Cause," with proceeds from their S'mores cupcake benefitting Comfort Zone Camp, a bereavement camp for children ages 7-17 who have experienced the loss of a parent, sibling or primary caregiver.

The camps are located in New Jersey, Massachusetts, California, Texas and Virginia and the children attend free of charge. Cupcakes by Carousel's goal for the day is to cover the cost for a child to attend this summer, so there's no reason to feel badly about taking home a dozen . . .even if they are all for yourself. Cupcakes freeze well . . . right? ;-)

"Hours for indulging" at Cupcakes by Carousel on Saturday are from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. and they're located at 192 E Ridgewood Ave in Ridgewood, N.J. next to the Clearview Cinemas Warner Quad Theater.