Adidas Kanadia TR 3 Shoes

It is time for me to give you another one of my own personal tips. Ok, so I have been exercising for most of my life. In one way or another I try to stay in shape. I have done everything from Pilates to Yoga to Tae Kwon Do. I have done DVD's by Jillian Michaels, Body Pump, Body Combat, Body Attack and probably most other workout programs that begin with "Body" and are held at the Y. All of this to tell you that I have worked out in many different types of shoes and in no shoes at all. Well, as you know, I am Indian (from India) and I fit the stereotype to a T. I am short and small. Including my feet. This is why my husband says I like Adidas shoes. He says it is a small Asian thing. To that I say "whatever."

For the last 20 years I have held a fond memory of the Adidas Ozweego in my heart. That was my most favorite athletic shoe. I had a pair in high school, wore them out and could not ever find them (the same model) again. It has taken me that long to find another pair that I like as much. Keep in mind that I have owned athletic shoes that are $100+ so it is not a price thing. My husband even bought me a pair of Brooks a few years back. While I have liked the Brooks and expensive Nikes of the world I just never could find that feeling again. Until now!

I have discovered the Adidas Kanadia TR3 and lemme tell ya they are the bomb! Yeah, seriously. I love them for walking with the dog, playing at the park with the girls, hiking and most of all for working out in all of those "Body" classes in the gym. That is why I bought several pairs. They are cute and oh so very comfortable that you must try them! Hurry and get em' before they stop making them too!

Schik Intuition Razor

Like probably every woman out there I thought the Schick Intuition razor was a total gimmick. In fact, had it not been for the free sample in the mail and the quick to follow vacation for which I needed a razor that would be "carry-on approved" by my friends in the TSA (you know I luv ya :-) ) I never would have even tried it. But I did. And I liked it pretty well. But the trip was short so I used it, came home, stashed it away for my next trip and forgot all about it.

Meanwhile at home I was using my usual razor, which I will not name because I only want to share positive comments, and still longing for a smooth shave. The shave I got with the Intuition but thought it was just the fact that the razor was new. Well, years later I have taken several longer beach vacations and I am here to tell you that I love this razor! It is awesome! Plus when you travel it is the only thing you need to take with you to assure yourself of a smooth shave every time. Until of course the cartridge runs out of the moisturizing border at which time you replace it. I have never liked a razor this much! And, they are not paying me to say this :-) Although some free samples would be much appreciated...

Indian Dance Lessons in The Dash!

I am so excited about this find! Since Andira watched her first Bollywood videos (essentially at birth) she has been mimicking the Bollywood style of dress, dance and style. For whatever reason she and Inara have always loved Bollywood. That said, you can imagine my delight when I learned of a Bollywood style dance class for my girls!

Arya Dance Academy has decided to try and open a dance class designed to teach Bollywood style dancing to boys and girls in Winston-Salem! This is exciting for so many reasons! First of all, I am obviously psyched for my girls but this is significant of so much more. While Winston-Salem is a really wonderful place to raise children some people may consider it a little lacking in the area of culture. I, for one, have been in search of unique cultural experiences for my little ones. Indian dance class is just such a thing. If you are like me and in search of the same thing then help me support Arya in their efforts to open a permanent dance class here.

The classes are on Wednesday nights at the Children's Museum of Winston-Salem and are for children beginning at age 4. The 4 year old class is from 5-6:00pm and other age groups follow. There is a $50 registration fee which you will need to pay up front but you can come and try a class and then if you decide it is not for you they will refund your money without questions. Andira loves the class, dances and the teachers and she is a tough crowd. It is totally worth it! The average cost is $16/class after you decide to continue. Show how appreciative you are for another cultural activity for the children of the Triad to experience and either try the class yourselves or tell someone whom you think would be interested. We would be so sad to see the classes end due to lack of participation!

Saturday Morning Fun!

This morning we tried out the story time at the Chic-fil-a on Hanes Mall Blvd in Winston-Salem, NC. Every Saturday in September this location is having story time for kids and free coffee for adults from 9-10am. For starters we were the only ones there! That is awesome for us since we have two girls who are very close in age who do not like rowdy boys…so why am I telling you about this?...Oh, because I want to be helpful.

Well, I highly recommend taking part in this activity if you have young ones who are up and would be interested in a story as you sip on your morning cup. We got there around 9 so the girls could eat something. As we were finishing up a young boy came around with silly bands for the girls which they loved and coffee coupons for us which we loved. He then invited us to the play area where he allowed the girls to choose stories and he read as much as they wanted. Then they played and pretty much had the entire play area to themselves! It was awesome!

Summer Camp Guide - Winston-Salem Area - 2010

Summer is almost here! Last summer I spent so much time trying to figure out what was what that I missed out on a lot of great camps because by the time I filtered through the information to find what I was looking for everything was full. This year I decided to take matters into my own hands and do the work well in advance so that I don’t miss out! Here I have provided you with the info that I found. I am sure that these are not the only summer options for the little ones around here but they are what I was looking for and from talking to so many of you I think they will help you as well. As of April 1st all of these camps are accepting applications so find what suits your needs best and get signed up!

Most of the camps that I have found that are open to the general public only go down to age 2½. The YMCA is the best option for your young child (ages 3 months to 2 ½ years old) in terms of a camp. If it is pure childcare you need they have that too with hours from 7 am to 6 pm. At the Y they can also provide childcare in the form of a summer camp for your 3-5 year old with a different theme each week. The YMCA has many great camps for kids from ages 4 and up as well. My favorite may be the “All Sports” camp option because it is a week full of half days where your child will experience many different sports. What a great way to see what they like without having to sign up for an entire season! You can get details about the many different camp options at http://westforsyth.ymcanwnc.org/childcare/camp.php


I have not ever been to Clemmons Gymnastics but it has been recommended to me by a couple of people so I thought I would make you aware of this camp. This one is for rising 1st graders and up and is actually from 7am to 6pm daily. The tuition is $140/week and for the hours that is not bad! It starts on June 14th. For details visit http://clemmonsgymnastics.com/summerdaycamp.aspx

The Children’s Theatre has a several different themes for different ages ranging down to age 4. They look like a lot of fun and have both a half day and a full day option. For all details check their web site at http://www.childrenstheatrews.org/summercamp.htm

Another one of my personal favorites is the In Motion Dance camp which is open to kids 3 and up and you can opt for 3 days or a full 5 day week of half day fun. My daughters love to dance so we will be signing up for at least a week of this! They are also offering a dance class for 2 ½ year olds this summer which is a once a week deal but is great as an intro to dance! In Motion Dance camp and class details can be found at http://www.inmotiondancecenternc.com/summer.html?PHPSESSID=6cdc3f0a97e008143edfb2b9363d41e5

For you horse lovers you need to know about a horseback riding camp that is at Riverwood Therapeutic Riding Center in Tobaccoville. The camp starts mid-June and lasts for 7 weeks. Anyone over the age of 3 ½ will pay $190 for 7 weeks of lessons. You can find all the details at http://www.riverwoodtrc.org/

In terms of flexibility it will be hard to beat Salem Gym where you can just even drop your kid off for the day. They have specialty camps, morning camps, lunch stuff as well as afternoon stuff. Salem Gym has it all! They take kids aged 3 and up and for more details you should go to their site at http://www.salemgym.com/

The Children’s Museum of Winston-Salem has a half day or a full day option and takes kids aged 4 and up. They have a different theme each week including “Opera Camp” and one geared toward music lovers. For details on The Children’s Museum of Winston-Salem’s camps visit their web site at http://www.childrensmuseumofws.org/pdf/camp2010.pdf .

SciWorks has summer activities in the half day category for your 4 and 5 year olds or full days for campers who are older. You can find details about SciWorks summer programs at http://www.sciworks.org/SciCamp.pdf

For your future chef’s the Young Chef’s Academy always has summer programs but their schedule is not up yet. Their web site is http://www.youngchefsacademy.com/stores/store_page.php?franchise_id=227 so if you are interested keep checking them out. I think they take kids 4 and up.

The NC Zoo also does have camps. They work by the day for $35 or overnight for the older children for $90. The hours are 9am to 2pm and the Zoo takes rising 1st graders and up. They open for registration on April 1st and I think they fill up fast so check out their web site for the different themes and decide which ones would interest your little one most http://www.nczoo.org/education/ZooCamp/zoocampprograms.html

Have a fun summer!

Spooneez

You are at a restaurant with your little one and of course you have brought with you and arsenal of stuff. You have something for them to play with while the food is being ordered and prepared, some type of food they can feed themselves like maybe fruit slices and you have with you whatever you think they will eat as their meal. Whether you are lucky enough to have a child who will eat food prepared by the restaurant or you have had to bring food from home for them to eat one thing is for sure. What is the little darling going to eat with? Those restaurant utensils are much too big and you don’t want to have to wait for someone to bring you a spoon anyway. So you pull out your sandwich bag with the appropriate eating utensils for your precious little angel. As you pull the child size fork out of the baggie it rips and you think “that is going to be fun when I have to put this food covered fork back into the baggie which goes into my bag! There is another mess I can count on having to clean up.” Ewww! I get so tired of cleaning up food don’t you? This, my friend is exactly why you will want to “roll up the mess.” A Spooneez is a place mat, place to stash those dirty utensils and a cute little accessory all in one. You really need to check out their site to get the full picture. They even have a video to show you how it works!

I met Maythi Calvert several months ago and it was like we were old friends. She is just like you and me. Maythi and her business partner Robin are the developers of Spooneez. In addition to what you see on their site they are adding new patterns and new products like bibs and placemats soon! If you live in the Winston-Salem area you can find Spooneez at O’Baby Organics or Kari's Children's Boutique Resale. Maythi and Robin will be at the CBR sale which is February 26th and 27th - 9am-2pm and the location is where "If It's Paper" used to be off of Reynolda Road. I encourage you to go and see a Spooneez for yourself!

Gift the Bambino

A friend told me about Lauren and once I saw her work I wanted to spread the word! Lauren Dillard-Shoffner is the founder of Gift the Bambino which is basically a cute and creative alternative to the diaper cake. The best way for you to see what I am talking about is to go to her site and check it out for yourself. The best part is that Lauren has offered to give the readers of the Kidding Around in Town web site a very special 10% discount at check out when you mention the site. http://www.giftthebambino.com/main.html

If you know someone who is expecting a little one her Bambinopops are sure not to disappoint! Order yours today! http://www.giftthebambino.com/sweettreats.html

A little about Lauren:

I am 27, married; living in Greensboro and have always had a love for entrepreneurship, kids and design. I am fortunate enough to have these ideas come together in the form of various businesses. A former children's party planner (KiddiEvents) and nanny, I am currently well into my second year of Gift the Bambino and the new owner of a small home day care and I am a web designer. Gift the Bambino came about after I attended a baby shower that used diaper cakes for centerpieces. I'd never seen them before anywhere else but later when I was in need of a new business idea, the thought of revamping and modernizing them was great! Since then, I have done countless cakes, custom and personalized orders, Bambinopops, the 'Lello Submarine (sandwich), cupcakes, muffins, the list goes on. I am always happy to take custom orders (about half our product styles are customer requested) and also provide quick shipping, or delivery on some local orders.