iCarly Wii Review

Ever wonder what it would be like to join the cast of iCarly in their hi jinks? iCarly on Wii allows you to be as creative as you want when it comes to set design, props, characters, design, and more.

On May 13, 2009, Nickelodeon announced they had reached an agreement with Activision to produce an iCarly video game for the Nintendo game systems DS and Wii. On October 27 this video game became available to the public.

This game is based on iCarly, an Emmy Award-nominated television series that premiered on September 8, 2007 on Nickelodeon. The series stars Miranda Cosgrove, Jennette McCurdy, Nathan Kress, and Jerry Trainor. The premise of the show is that Carly (Cosgrove) and her best friends Sam (McCurdy) and Freddie (Kress) create their own web show called iCarly. The three try to stay out of trouble while making their web show funny and successful.

Start creating new webisodes on iCarly with the one player feature or invite up to three of your friends to join in. Fans of the show will appreciate that more than 200 of the game's "webisodes" are taken straight from the series. With each mini-game you complete you earn "Web-cred" allowing you to buy fun items for your iCarly studio. The more you play the more features you can unlock. Emails from fans, opponents, and the game keep your webisodes exciting and fun.

My only qualm with the game is that the webisode instructions are very brief. In a majority of the games I wasn't sure what to do with my controller, but did figure it out after a few tries. I would prefer something more like Mario Party, for example, where the screen shows you the buttons to press and instructions prior to the game starting.

Prior to this review I had never watched iCarly on television, but of course had heard about it. I decided to watch an episode to see if that would change my perception of the game. Honestly, I don't think that you need to be a viewer to get the concept of the game and do well in it. If you or someone you know is already an iCarly fan, however, this is a great game that features well-known characters from the show.

Ni Hao, Kai Lan Doll

Ni Hao, Kai Lan is an animated series that premiered on Nickelodeon in February of 2008 and is blowing up. The show teaches children Mandarin Chinese, about Chinese culture in general, and occasionally a few yoga poses.

The show helps to support social and emotional development for preschoolers through cause-and-effect problem solving. Along those lines Fisher-Price has created four very cute, plush, Kai Lan emotion dolls. We got to try out Sweet, but they also offer Giggly, Happy, and Silly.

Each plush doll comes with a cute plastic necklace for your child with the Chinese symbol and word of your specific doll's emotion. Our necklace was Sweet, and that it was. It was the perfect size, well made, and totally safe. (Please note this product is recommended for children ages 3 and up.) My daughter loved wearing her necklace and felt like a part of Kai Lan's super fab friends with the jewelry on.

We like this doll because she is the perfect size for any child and is not too big or overbearing. Perfect for the family who doesn't want stuffed animals and toys to take up too much room in their home. Because she is so cuddly and soft, my daughter likes to keep her in bed, and I don't worry about her being uncomfortable.

Super Emotions Plush Kai Lan has soft, textured hair with cute fabric flowers, just like her character on the show. Each different emotion doll also comes uniquely dressed so you can collect all four and have that many different dolls for your child. Sweet Kai Lan is dressed in red, Happy Kai Lan is in yellow, Silly Kai Lan wears mostly light blue, and Giggly Kai Lan is adorned in pretty purple.

My favorite aspect of this doll is that it enables you to teach your child about their own feelings and how to express them through words. My daughter and I talk about what her "sweet" face is and it leads to us talking about other emotions and how to react in situations. So Super Emotions Kai Lan is a great learning tool for children of all ages as well as a playmate.

Piggy Paint

Angel Kisses, Twinkle Toes, and Glass Slippers, that's what Piggy Paints are made from. Actually those are a few of the fun names of these wonderfully non-toxic, hypoallergenic nail polishes. Piggy paints are actually made from water, water-miscible acrylic resins and thickeners (well below 100 parts per million), and glycol ethers. 

Piggy Paint has received the Excellence Award from Safbaby.com and their seal of approval as an approved Vendor of Mom approved-child tested products!!

My least favorite part of nail painting are the fumes. Especially now that I'm pregnant I think the smells are ten times worse. When painting my daughter, little Miss A's nails, I was often overwhelmed by the scent of regular nail polishes and cringed when she would stick her fingers in her mouth only to have ingested some paint chips. I searched for a healthier option and like many was lead to try Piggy Paint, kid-friendly polishes.

When I got my bottle of Piggy Paint in Girls Rule! I noticed the pretty pink purple hue and the fun metallic pearl sheen. I knew Miss A would love the color too. Next, being curious, I put the opened bottle up to my super sniffer, (pregnant nose,) and was simply amazed to say the least.


The nail polish has very little smell and what smell it does have is not your typical nail polish smell rather more of a non-toxic children's paint smell. The polish remover was just as impressive if not more impressive with the lack of overwhelming chemical scent. A momma's dream!!

Avery was beyond excited to get her nails painted. The polish comes in a great sized bottle, not too large and bulky and not too small to hold onto. The polish went on very smoothly especially considering a very wiggly 2.5 year old. 

The end result, pretty piggies, excited little girl, and healthfully happy mommy. Oh and a new learned skill....

Want to know how to get yours? Be sure to visit http://www.piggypaint.com and use coupon code: BEST15L for 15% off anything on the Piggy Paint website including sale items. (Code expires December 15, 2009) Spend over $25 and domestic shipping is FREE! Follow PiggyPaint on twitter.com/piggypaint  & Facebook for secret sales and special offers!