This giveaway is now closed. View the winner here! Thank you all so much for entering!

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This is a joint giveaway with Hobo Mama Reviews and Natural Parents Network. You may enter at one site only. Please find the section marked "Win it!" for entry instructions.

My Brest Friend is offering my readers a giveaway of a My Brest Friend breastfeeding support kit! This fabulous prize pack includes:

• My Brest Friend Original Nursing Pillow with new Slipcover attached
• My Brest Friend Travel Nursing Pillow with Slipcover
• My Brest Friend Adjustable Wooden Nursing Stool
• My Brest Friend Nursing Cover
• 3 bottles of My Brest Friend Supplements:
  
  • Breastfeeding Essentials multi vitamin/mineral plus DHA
  • Lemon Fish Oil
  • Fenugreek for increasing milk supply

Can you believe the generosity? This is an amazing pillow, and with all the add-ons, the total value of this prize package comes to over $150!

Awhile ago, I wrote an overview of various nursing pillows that particularly highlighted the two I had personally used, one of which was the My Brest Friend. I contacted My Brest Friend and asked if they'd be interested in doing a giveaway, seeing as I already used and enjoyed their product. They did me one better and sent me this whole kit to review, and promised another duplicate set to give away to one lucky reader!

Original Nursing Pillow

A nursing pillow helps with breastfeeding positioning, particularly in the early weeks and months. To prevent strain on the back or pain in latching, the baby's mouth should be at breast height, and it's usually easiest to get a good latch with a newborn when the baby's turned sideways in a tummy-to-tummy position with the mama. The problem is, our laps are much lower than our breasts (well, depends, I guess! But let's go with that…), so it's hard to position a newborn or other small baby high enough so that the baby's mouth isn't pulling down the breast or the mama isn't hunching her shoulders to bring herself down to the baby's level. Enter: the nursing pillow.

What I really appreciate about My Brest Friend pillows in particular is that they're flat. As someone corrected me in the comments to my previous post on the pillow array, there are two bumps on top of the My Brest Friend that help raise the baby's head a bit further at those two strategic locations to aid in eating and digestion. But what I meant was, this pillow is flat across, not rounded at the edges like the Boppy (to name the other most popular nursing pillow). If you ever had trouble with your baby rolling off the edges of a curved nursing pillow, the My Brest Friend will make you happy. It's more of a shelf-like surface, and the size of the ledge is nice and generous so that even a big baby can hang out there.

The pillow is made of a recyclable foam that is quite firm so your baby won't sink in. It's not uncomfortable by any means, but My Brest Friend posits it might help your baby stay awake longer to eat, which can be a good thing for those groggy newborns.

The pillow wraps around you entirely and buckles with an adjustable strap so it will stay in place instead of shifting as you position your baby. The flat sides allow you to snug the pillow close to your tummy so there's no gap in between you and the pillow for the baby to roll into. The sides allow your arms a place to rest, and the back features a back support to help keep your posture upright as you nurse. Depending on how you sit, this might or might not be comfortable for you. I tried it again, and it felt pretty cozy to me. It didn't let the top of your back rest against the back of the chair, but the foam is firm enough to support you if you want to lean into it.

Once it's strapped on, you can theoretically walk around with it attached, though there is a warning on the tag that says not to use it standing up. I think you could carefully stand, though, while supporting your baby with your arms to transfer her to a safe sleeping environment. Just a safety note: No nursing pillows are intended for babies to sleep on, since there could be a suffocation danger, particularly if the parent isn't alert.

There's a little pocket that hangs down to one side in front and secures with hook-and-loop tape. You could stash a lip balm, the TV remote, a book, your cell phone, a water bottle — not all at once, mind you, but one or two things to keep you happily occupied while your baby feeds, or items you might use for the baby, such as a burp cloth or nursing necklace.

Anyway, I was happy to be reacquainted with the My Brest Friend. I'd liked the hand-me-down I had from Mikko's newborn days, but this new pattern with the polka dots really makes my heart go zing. The slipcover is a sturdy 100% cotton, zips on, and can be removed easily for machine washing.

I was equally impressed by the other items My Brest Friend sent me.

Adjustable Nursing Stool

A nursing stool, I think, is one of the most undersung pieces of nursing furniture. Most families could afford one (or could find a hand-me-down), but most don't because they don't appreciate their full value. Let me just say, then, that I love my nursing stool, and so I'm very glad to see this quality adjustable nursing stool from My Brest Friend. It puts your feet at the appropriate, slightly tilted angle for nursing. In most chairs, your thighs (i.e., lap) tilt slightly forward as your feet reach toward the ground. With a proper nursing stool, your knees are raised so that your thighs are lifted and tilted toward your body, making your lap higher and more stable to hold your nursing infant. Now, instead of having to keep your baby from rolling off your lap, your baby will naturally turn into your breast. Trust me, it makes nursing so much more comfortable!

The My Brest Friend stool is made of a lovely light-colored wood with a nice sheen and grain to it. It has non-skid strips on the top. It comes unassembled, and there was my one downfall — I had the worst time putting it together! It didn't help that one of the supplies was mislabeled on the instructions, but besides that, I put four pieces on the wrong way before I figured that out and had to redo them. (All that allen wrenching for nothing!) That was mostly user error, of course, the same sort of user error that makes Ikea purchases such an adventure, but what was truly perplexing was the four small screws that needed to hold the hinge in place. There were tiny pre-drilled holes, but the wood was really hard to screw them into, and the screws were too small for our power drivers to fit. Sam and I had to take turns turning them in by hand and never did get some of them flush, though good enough to hold. If you're more carpentry-minded, maybe you won't have these issues!

Anyway, once assembled, the stool is a treat. It adjusts with wooden-tipped thumb screws (as in, you don't need a screwdriver), so you can choose the height on a whim. There are two tilted modes and then one flat one. I think this is what really sets the My Brest Friend stool apart from the nursing stool crowd, because it transforms into a child's step-stool! Nursing furniture that will actually get some use past the infant days is always a plus.

Tilted for nursing

Flat for a step stool

Inflatable Travel Pillow

This is an ingenious idea: an inflatable rubber nursing pillow for travel! Deflated, the pillow is a small roll, with the removable (and included) slipcover a small roll beside it. But inflated, it's the same size as the Original Nursing Pillow — perhaps a tad less height, but otherwise just as ample.

Inflating it didn't take overly long. You can inflate it to your desired level of firmness. I recommend underinflating it before wrestling on the slipcover. I tried to put it on when it was full, and I had a fight on my hands. So keep the air pressure a little soft and pull on the slipcover, zipping it most of the way, and then finish any final inflation and zipping.

The travel pillow would be quite cozy for an airplane ride (breastfeeding through flights = very good travel tip) and for using on vacation when your usual pillow won't fit in your suitcase. Even if you weren't traveling, it would also be handy to stash in your diaper bag if you needed a nursing pillow while you were out and about. Now, it might be too much huffing and puffing to use for just a half-hour here and there, but I still think it would be a comfort item for any occasion in which it would be helpful to have a nursing pillow but onerous to lug along a foam version.

I wouldn't, however, use the travel pillow as my at-home pillow. I think the foam is more comfortable and breathable than the rubber of the inflatable one. It's nice that the travel version included the features of the full-size one, though, like the wraparound design, the back support, the buckle, and the pocket.

Nursing Cover

Full disclosure: Testing this one out was my very first time ever using a nursing cover. I tried a blanket draped over my shoulder once when Mikko was a newborn, and when the wind caught it and started waving it around like a flag, I knew I was done with covers after only that first try. That's just my preference, as I know I can breastfeed discreetly and comfortably (as in, to my personal discretion and comfort level) without one.

But I know lots of breastfeeding parents who can't live without them, so I tried this one out to let you know what I think!

First of all, it's really long and wide, so it will cover everything. It can be used in conjunction with the My Brest Friend pillow. The cover I had was an appealing navy print, and I get the impression that all the designs are opaque so there's no peekaboo action happening.

The fabric is a durable 100% cotton. I found it a little stiff, but maybe that's something that softens in the wash, or maybe that's a plus with covers, since it won't drape as closely over your baby.

There's a neck strap that adjusts and buckles, and there's a wired opening at the top that bows out from your neck so you can look down and see your sweet nursling's face but no one else can.

Mikko let me try it out for, oh, round about 30 seconds, but we managed to snap a couple pictures before the inevitable happened (much like Code Name: Mama's hilarious experience). Since this is a very nice nursing cover, I intend to gift it to a friend who plans to use one.

Breastfeeding Supplements

I tried out the multi-vitamin and -mineral capsules and the fish oil softgels. I haven't tried the fenugreek yet, because fenugreek is a galactogogue, intended to increase milk supply. When I first started testing the supplements, I was merely breastfeeding a toddler; now I'm pregnant and breastfeeding a toddler. In the first case I didn't feel fenugreek was necessary for me; in the second, fenugreek isn't recommended during pregnancy. But, I do intend to try them out once this second baby is born, to see if it helps boost my milk supply in those early days. You can do your own research on this, but my impression is that fenugreek is a safe and accepted natural way to boost milk supply when needed. The recommended dose is two capsules three times a day, so six total, which is what Kellymom also recommends, and an increase should be noticed within one to three days. After milk supply is established, you can stop taking fenugreek, so one bottle (100 capsules) should be enough for most.

So, enough on what I didn't use. On to what I did. The Breastfeeding Essentials multi capsules (120 per bottle) were absolutely fine. You're supposed to take four per day, so theoretically two in the morning and two at night. The fish oil capsules (100 softgels per bottle) also went down easily. The recommended dose was a somewhat perplexing one to six capsules daily. I split the difference and went with three or four per day, again taken twice a day to increase absorption.

Even in early pregnancy with morning sickness, I didn't notice any ill effects from either supplement. The smoothness of the capsules and softgels made them easy to swallow, and I always took them after a meal so my stomach wasn't empty. I had no stomach complaints or fishy burps. The multi capsules are vegetarian. The fish oil, obviously, is not.

The multi seems to have more of a lot of items than my other prenatals have, which is interesting. I don't see any warning flags, though I'm not at all an expert on supplements. I've chosen, now that my bottle's empty and I'm pregnant, to try out a couple whole foods versions of a prenatal multi instead (based on the idea that the body might better be able to utilize the nutrients than in a synthetic version). I also know there are conflicting studies on whether supplements are beneficial or not. That said, I feel like these capsules are just as good if not better than the prenatals commonly found in drugstores and have no problem recommending them for anyone who is nursing. The company says they're not intended as prenatals specifically (that is, for pregnant women) but rather for postnatal lactation support. I like that they've been formulated with the specific needs of breastfeeding mamas in mind.

The fish oil is lemon flavored, though I'm not sure why, since you just swallow the softgels. I guess it keeps them from tasting really fishy as they go down, which I do appreciate, since I'm no seafood fan. One thing that really concerns me in fish oil supplements is the purity of the ingredients, particularly the mercury level of the fish, so I appreciated this reassurance printed on the label:

"Molecular distillation processing and specialized refining technologies yield an ultra-pure fish oil concentrate. Each batch is independently tested for mercury, pesticides, and PCBs to assure exceptional oil purity."

Again, I think this sets these supplements above the common fish oil supplements found in drugstores, where the purity of the fish used might not be as aboveboard.

Other products

One of my quibbles with the My Brest Friend Original Pillow is that it might not be a good fit for plus-sized parents. While the strap is adjustable up to a 44-inch waist, the back support won't fit square across the back if the strap is pulled too loose. I was glad to see, then, that My Brest Friend now offers a Twins Plus version of the pillow that says it features "extra comfort and support for twins and plus sizes." I haven't tried it, but it's good to keep in mind for plus sizes and for multiples.

There's also an organic version of 100% cotton and bamboo, and a professional version if you're a lactation consultant or birth assistant who wants an anti-microbial vinyl pillow that wipes down easily after each use. I think this would be a great nursing pillow to have on hand when counseling new or future breastfeeding mamas. You can also buy a deluxe version that apparently has plusher fabric and an easier hook-and-loop strap attachment. If you want to snaz up your pillow, there are slipcovers in various patterns. There's also a reflux pillow to angle your baby with the head much higher than the feet if reflux is an issue or you want a non-wraparound version to be gentle on a C-section scar.

Other considerations

Just a few more things.

A couple potential negatives: The foam in the nursing pillow is treated with fire retardants. The chemical used is anti-blaze V6, which is PBDE-free and one of the safer fire retardants on the market. Using the chemical on the foam is unfortunately required by law. The slipcover offers a level of protection between the baby and the foam, but I just wanted to let you know in case you're opposed to any fire retardants. Also, the products are mostly made in China, but I don't happen to know under what conditions. It might be perfectly fine, but I wanted to be upfront about that.

A couple wholehearted positives. It is refreshing to see a company so committed to breastfeeding support. My Brest Friend is on Best for Babes' list of corporate partners, and I appreciate their commitment to upholding the WHO Code. All the literature presented with the My Brest Friend products was breastfeeding friendly, featuring a lovely model modestly yet openly nursing a young baby. The pillow included illustrated instructions for how to make latching on enjoyable and successful, which must be a huge encouragement and help to any mother who's just given birth and is opening up her pillow and wondering where to start.

As I said, My Brest Friend upholds the WHO Code and doesn't promote bottle feeding through enticing words or images. That said, you absolutely can use these pillows when bottle feeding, and My Brest Friend endorses them for that purpose as well. The support they offer is invaluable to any baby being fed, whether by bottle or at the breast. This means that any caregiver can use them.

Finally, the My Brest Friend pillow is proclaimed the #1 recommendation of lactation consultants. Since I love me some lactation consultants, that means a lot in my book!

All in all, I'm so happy with my new My Brest Friend paraphernalia I get to use (again) with my coming baby, and I'm confident you'll be happy with any of it, too!

BUY IT!

You can buy My Brest Friend products online at Amazon, Babies R Us, Nursing Mother Supplies, Destination Maternity, Target, Walmart, Bed Bath & Beyond, Diapers.com, and others, as well as local retail stores. The My Brest Friend Store Locator will help you look by address in the United States and internationally.

The My Brest Friend Original Pillow retails at $42 but is on sale at Amazon for $39.95 at the time of this writing and eligible for free Super Saver Shipping. Extra slipcovers are $17 (on sale for $14.49). The inflatable travel pillow (with slipcover included) is regularly $28, on sale for $19.99. The deluxe version is $44.99 (on sale for $39.22 to $44.88 – woot! — depending on pattern), and the Twins Plus Nursing Pillow is $76, on sale for $69.53. The Adjustable Nursing Stool is $34, currently at a generous sale price of $24. I haven't been able to find the supplements priced or sold online, because I think they've only recently been released. You could check local or online stores later if you're interested.

WIN IT!

For your own chance to win a My Brest Friend breastfeeding support kit with all the items pictured (patterns and colors may vary), enter in the comments below! Contest is open to the U.S. only. (Sorry, everyone else! I promise there are international contests on the way.)

MAIN ENTRY: Visit MyBrestFriend.com and tell me something you like about one of the products!

Leave an email address in at least one of your comments if it's not clearly visible on your profile or linked web page so I can contact you if you win. (You can write it like this to foil spambots: mail {at} hobomama {dot} com or similar.)

This is a joint giveaway with Hobo Mama Reviews and Natural Parents Network, a new site co-founded by Lauren of Hobo Mama & Dionna of Code Name: Mama and intending to bring together those interested in attachment parenting and a natural lifestyle. You may enter at one site only, and we'll be recording IP addresses to ensure that there are no duplicate entries. That said, please do check out and enjoy both sites!


BONUS ENTRIES, to increase your chance of winning (leave a separate comment for each so I can count them all):

• Like My Brest Friend on Facebook (2 extra entries for this).
• Let me know who would use this breastfeeding kit if you won.
• Subscribe to the My Brest Friend News blog.
• Have another look around MyBrestFriend.com, and tell me something you learned. For instance, there's a helpful FAQ, a fascinating story of how the pillow came to be, and breastfeeding tips and videos.
• Follow www.HoboMamaReviews.com publicly through Google Friend Connect, or subscribe to the Hobo Mama Reviews RSS feed in a reader or by email (1 entry for each).
• Follow www.HoboMama.com through Google Friend Connect, or subscribe to the Hobo Mama RSS feed in a reader or by email (1 entry for each).
• Subscribe to Natural Parents Network in a reader or by email.
• Follow @Hobo_Mama on Twitter and leave your Twitter name in the comment.
• Follow @NatParNet on Twitter and leave your Twitter name in the comment.
• Tweet about this giveaway (up to 5 times total, at least 24 hours apart). You can use the retweet button at the top of the post or tweet this text: Enter to #win a My Brest Friend #breastfeeding pillow, nursing stool, travel pillow & more from @Hobo_Mama! http://bit.ly/9IqD2a {11.23, US}
• Like Hobo Mama on Facebook.
• Like Natural Parents Network on Facebook.
• Follow Hobo Mama on Networked Blogs on Facebook.
• Enter another of my current giveaways or the giveaways on Natural Parents Network (1 extra entry per giveaway — check back for more, because they are coming soon).
• Put my Hobo Mama button on your website or add http://www.HoboMama.com to your text blogroll for 2 extra entries each. The HTML code is in the sidebar. Leave your site URL in the comment.
• Add http://NaturalParentsNetwork.com to your text blogroll for 2 extra entries. Leave your site URL in the comment.

RULES:

• Contest open to United States street mailing addresses only.
• Contestants may enter at either Hobo Mama Reviews or Natural Parents Network but not both. Entries will be combined for the drawing of a single winner.
• Leave each entry as a separate comment so I can count them all.
• For actions like following and subscribing, if you already follow or subscribe, just let me know in your comment.
• For tasks that garner you multiple entries, you can copy and paste the comment with a #1, #2, etc.
• You don't have to do any of the bonus entries, but you do have to complete the first mandatory one.
• I will pick the winner through Random.org after the contest closes and send an email notification. Leave an email address in your comment if it's not clearly visible on your profile or linked web page so I can contact you if you win. If I can't reach a winner or don't hear back within a couple days, I'll draw a new name.
• Any questions, let me know: mail {at} HoboMama.com

Photo Card Creations is offering an early-bird discount for holiday photo cards.

Use the promo code EARLY10 to receive 10% off holiday orders of 50 or more cards. Offer is good through October 31, so order now and get your cards in plenty of time for Christmas, Hanukkah, or New Year's!

Even better, you could win 25 photo cards free and clear if you're entered in my Photo Card Creations giveaway that ends tomorrow night — Tuesday, October 26. Hurry if you want a chance at being the lucky one!

Check out the cuteness that could be your family's holiday greetings:

I loved Robeez soft-soled shoes for when Mikko was a baby and pre-walking toddler and as he was first beginning to walk. They fit like slippers and are billed as the next best thing to being barefoot, since they protect babies' feet while allowing them to feel the ground as they get a sense of how to walk.

Plus, they're so stinking cute!

Purchase 2 or more pairs of Robeez footwear and receive free standard shipping.

I appreciate that they have styles for up to 4-year-olds now, too, with a mix of the suede-soled shoes Robeez is known for and newer flexible but rubber-soled shoes that work well for true toddlers and older walkers in muddier and wetter climes (like, um, Seattle in winter!).

Need help deciding on styles and sizes? Find the right shoe for your baby or toddler with Robeez's detailed shoe type descriptions.

I want to mention that there was a controversy over formula samples that were put into bags at a Robeez/Stride Rite event (Stride Rite bought Robeez, which used to be an independent company). I'm not entirely satisfied with Stride Rite's response to the mistake, but I hope they learned from it and are moving forward with a little more wisdom about the WHO Code and what marketing formula does to affect breastfeeding rates. If anyone knows otherwise about recent issues with Stride Rite, please let me know. I'd like to recommend Robeez shoes because I really enjoyed them and look forward to having my next baby wear them. But I don't want to plug any company that works against infant health.

Get 50% off select Flat Cards when you shop AmyAdele.com! Offer good through the end of this month, October 31, so shop now!

Flat cards are what I used for my son's thank-you cards. If you like, you can pre-print a simple thank-you message, with some easy fill-in-the-blank action, and then after Christmas or a birthday, it's easy to jot in the gift and the giver and send it off. And they're sooo cute!

If you leave them blank, flat cards make really chic stationery. I know I feel a little upscale when I send a flat card in an envelope, since it's a little more unique than the more expected folded card.

Amy Adele has designs for children and adults, so check them all out, and you can even request custom coloring or design work.

You can also receive 25% off select Christmas and holiday invites at AmyAdele.com. Limited time only, so order ahead!

Until October 21, you can also take 15% off any regular-priced order with the code hobomama — hooray!

Besides flat cards, you can buy personalized t-shirts and onesies, notecards, invitations, calling cards, labels, and more! I think getting custom stationery would make a lovely personalized Christmas present for a child, so I plan to buy some for my niece. Remember, too, that all stationery products are printed in high quality on 100% post-consumer recycled paper, so it's a green choice for your family.

Two years ago, Sam and I put together our finest Christmas present yet: a hardcover, full-color photo book showcasing Mikko's first year. Let me tell you, it was a hit among the grandparent set.

Picaboo right now is offering a FREE classic photo book!

This offer is good for only a limited time, so get those holiday presents done quickly. Use code FALLBK from now through October 25, 2010.

Here's the fine print:

• This offer is for new customers only.
• The cost of one 20-page Large Classic, Classic Leather, or Classic Custom photo book (up to $39.99) will be deducted from the order total. If the book contains more than 20 pages, the customer will be charged for the additional pages.
• Taxes and shipping charges are additional.

You can do some serious poetry in 20 pages worth $39.99, and paying for just the shipping and taxes is worth it for a gift that will bring smiles for a lifetime. You can use Picaboo's new BookGenie software to make the selection and layout painless.

Have fun, and enjoy the looks on your family's faces when they open your fabulous present!

This giveaway is now closed. Stay tuned to find out who the lucky winner is! Thank you all so much for entering!

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Prima Princessa is offering my readers a giveaway of the DVD Prima Princessa Presents: Swan Lake!

I was so excited when the two moms behind Prima Princessa contacted me to review their preschool ballet DVD — I was able to tell them my three-year-old son already loved it! We had checked it out from the library, and he had just been asking me to watch "Pima Pincessa" again when they wrote.

I take an adult ballet class, and Mikko has been very interested in what I do every week. I had been looking hard for some decent ballet videos that would work for his age and interest level to prepare him for possibly following in my slippered footsteps.

Watching my review copy of Prima Princessa over again (and again) reminded me of what Mikko and I love about it.

Prima Princessa is a DVD series that introduces ballet to toddlers and young children. It works perfectly for the preschool set. All other children's ballet DVDs I've seen have been in the instructional category and are a straight class format. I think class-like DVDs can be good for older students (elementary age on up) but are usually too advanced for younger kids. (There are a couple out there for pre-ballet age, if you look.) You can also sometimes find DVDs that are a filming of a stage production or that follow ballet students through their days, but all of those can be awfully dry for the littlest viewers.

What Prima Princessa offers is, in my experience, completely unique. It's a combination of simple ballet instruction with a stage production that's narrated and explained by a flying ballerina fairy (P.P. herself). It's engaging for young kids, not least because it features young kids in the cutaway scenes.

Basically, there are four types of scenes you'll see in the DVD:

1. Little kids (around 3-5 years old) dancing (twirling, jumping, running) on the grass in tutus.
2. Slightly older students, but still children, in ballet class (maybe in the 10-12 age range) at the American School of Ballet, demonstrating ballet techniques such as pirouettes and pas de chat.
3. Assorted clips that relate to the movement, such as a spinning toy for pirouette turns and a leaping tiger for demonstrating jumps.
4. An abridged performance of a professional ballet, in this case Swan Lake by the Paris Opera Ballet.

Mikko was fascinated by each segment in turn, and they're interspersed throughout the DVD, so he was interested in each part:

1. What's nice about showing little kids dancing is that your own little kid can relate. The friendly Prima Princessa fairy tells your young ballerina/ballerino to put on a tutu and dance, and the dancing is completely free-form, in typical little-kid style. The girls in the DVD look like they're really having a fun time.
2. I liked that the student demonstrations from the American School of Ballet were so well done. The students demonstrating the moves were obviously very well trained (sooo much better dancers than I am even though I'm, like, three times as old), and I appreciated that there were several boy dancers who were featured, so I could show Mikko what a boy dancer looks like and what Mikko might wear if he takes ballet classes. I also loved that these demonstrations gave a vocabulary term, which, being ballet, is in French, and then explained it in English and showed it in action. It makes for a good introduction to ballet terms
   
   Arabesque!
   kids will hear if they continue on in ballet class.
3. I thought the little clips of toys and animals were the most random part, but Mikko loves them. Clearly the producers knew what they were doing! He loves to point out what each thing is. "Look, Mama, ladybug! … That a frog!"
4. I absolutely appreciate the comprehensive excerpts from each act of a professional ballet production. Since Mikko is too young to take to an actual show yet (you trust me on this, yes?), I love that he can see what ballet is actually for. He gets the idea that dance tells a story, and the voiceover explains the story clearly. In fact, I wish I had a voiceover like that when I went to the ballet! I thought this part might be the least interesting to Mikko, but he really enjoyed it. He asked questions about the characters and pointed out what they were doing.

Here's another huge plus for Prima Princessa. The DVD costs $6.99. That's it! The company was founded by two mothers of young children, Stephanie Troeller and Mary Kate Mellow, and they wanted to make sure it was accessible to a variety of income levels. I'll point out, too, that you might be able to find it at your library, as I was, but it's definitely a fun one to have on hand if you can swing it.

I'm not sure what ballet move this is, but it's fun.

Prima Princessa is a series, which is great, so they've just come out with Prima Princessa Presents: The Nutcracker, and I believe The Sleeping Beauty is in the works.

I also love that it gets Mikko (and me) moving. Witness his joy here:



So that's what I love about Prima Princessa.

Here are a couple small quibbles.

It's geared almost exclusively toward girls. I get that. I do. Girls like ballet and tutus and pink and fairies, yes. But I have a boy, and I was hoping he'd be inspired to try out a ballet class like his mama's. Fortunately, he's too young still to see all these little girls hopping around in tutus and feel like he doesn't relate. I think he knows that there are differences between boys and girls, but he doesn't yet separate himself so much into his own "team" that it's an issue. That said, I'd love to see more little boys leaping and twirling as well, and … I think they heard me in advance. Because the preview of The Nutcracker shows … yup, a whole blush of boys fighting each other with play swords (well, of course). All the promotional language, too, makes it clear this DVD is intended for your little girl. You can check out just the opening lines and images in the video on the main page to see what I mean. Again, fine and expected; it just makes me feel a little left out, for Mikko's sake.

As I mentioned, they actually seem to have alleviated this a little in the second DVD in the series. I also mentioned, and I really did like this, that some of the student dancers are boys, and very skilled at that. In the professional production, of course, there are plenty of men dancers. So there are still people I can point out to Mikko as examples for what he might become. (Um, not really; he is my child after all, so I'm not sensing professional dance career in his future, but still.)

I also appreciated that the children included an apparent mix of ethnicities. That said, the professional production read as pretty uniformly white (not meaning to slight anyone in the company who isn't; you can see what I mean at this list of the dancers). I can't fault the Paris Opera Ballet for being what it is, or the producers for being able to make arrangements with perhaps only certain ballets, but I thought it might be nice to show that professional dancers can be both male and female and also of any color. I just point it out in case it's a concern for you and your kids. Again, I think the Prima Princessa crew heard my plea before I made it, because The Nutcracker features the Royal Birmingham Ballet, which from their company list seems to have a little more diversity.

So those are my two small concerns, which I believe Prima Princessa heard in advance and has been working on. Other than that, I think the DVD is top notch and worth adding to your children's DVD collection if you have any budding ballet stars among your family. The production values are excellent, with no indication that this is an amateur attempt. The sound is good, the editing, the narration, the cute little kids in their costumes, the filming locations — it's all high quality and worth every penny of the $6.99 asking price and beyond.

BUY IT!

Did I mention the DVDs are priced at only $6.99? I know, right?

You can buy Prima Princessa Presents: Swan Lake and Prima Princessa Presents: The Nutcracker at Amazon, where they're eligible for free Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. The running time for the Swan Lake DVD is 40 minutes.

Prima Princessa has also come out with a book for beginning dancers: Prima Princessa's Ballet for Beginners: Featuring the School of American Ballet, on sale for $11.66 on Amazon.

WIN IT!

For your own chance to win a DVD of Prima Princessa Presents: Swan Lake, enter in the comments below! Contest is open to U.S. and Canada.

(As an aside, the DVD is Region 1, which is for U.S. and Canadian DVD players. I am the one shipping it, and I will ship it worldwide. I am saying it's open to U.S. & Canada, since Region 1 DVDs will play only in U.S. and Canadian players, or potentially in region-free players. If you live elsewhere, you assume all risk of having the DVD not play for you. In other words, you're free to enter the contest if you're sure sure sure a Region 1 DVD will play in your machine, but I can't replace it or help you out if you win and it doesn't. Ok?)

MAIN ENTRY: Visit PrimaPrincessa.com and tell me who will dance to this DVD if you win!

Leave an email address in at least one of your comments if it's not clearly visible on your profile or linked web page so I can contact you if you win. (You can write it like this to foil spambots: mail (at) hobomama (dot) com or similar.)


BONUS ENTRIES, to increase your chance of winning (leave a separate comment for each so I can count them all):

• Subscribe to the Prima Princessa TutuZone blog.
• Leave a relevant comment on a TutuZone blog post, and tell me what post you commented on.
• Have a look around PrimaPrincessa.com, and tell me something you learned.
• Follow www.HoboMamaReviews.com
  
  Firefighter ballerino takes a rest.
  publicly through Google Friend Connect, or subscribe to the Hobo Mama Reviews RSS feed in a reader or by email (1 entry for each).
• Follow www.HoboMama.com through Google Friend Connect, or subscribe to the Hobo Mama RSS feed in a reader or by email (1 entry for each).
• Follow @Hobo_Mama on Twitter and leave your Twitter name in the comment.
• Tweet about this giveaway (up to 5 times total, at least 24 hours apart). You can use the retweet button at the top of the post or tweet this text: Enter to #win a delightful children's ballet DVD in a #giveaway from Prima Princessa and @Hobo_Mama! http://bit.ly/cw8Bnp {11.10, US/Can}
• Like Hobo Mama on Facebook.
• Follow Hobo Mama on Networked Blogs on Facebook.
• Enter another of my current giveaways (1 extra entry per giveaway — check back for more).
• Put my Hobo Mama button on your website or add www.HoboMama.com to your text blogroll for 2 extra entries each. The HTML code is in the sidebar. Leave your site URL in the comment.

RULES:

• Contest open to United States and Canadian mailing addresses (but see my comment about Region 1 DVDs above).
• Leave each entry as a separate comment so I can count them all.
• For actions like following and subscribing, if you already follow or subscribe, just let me know in your comment.
• For tasks that garner you multiple entries, you can copy and paste the comment with a #1, #2, etc.
• You don't have to do any of the bonus entries, but you do have to complete the first mandatory one.
• I will pick the winner through Random.org after the contest closes and send an email notification. Leave an email address in your comment if it's not clearly visible on your profile or linked web page so I can contact you if you win. If I can't reach a winner or don't hear back within a couple days, I'll draw a new name.
• Any questions, let me know: mail {at} HoboMama.com