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Mom Inventors

Thursday, November 29, 2007

November 29, 2007 -- Moms across the country are coming up with some innovative inventions.

Jackie Simoni: Puplight
www.puplight.com

PupLight, is an LED flashlight worn on a dog's collar. Endorsed by the American Canine Association, American Kennel Club and Pet Weekly Magazine, PupLight makes your dog visible to traffic, lighting your way so you can see potential hazards ahead. PupLight features rugged, water-resistant construction, with three ultra-bright, white, wide-angle LEDs that illuminate 200 feet forward, 70 feet to each side and last more than 150 hours on AAA batteries. It comes with a two piece adjustable band that fits almost any size dog and easily slips over the dog's head, snaps on or can be attached to an existing collar.

PupLight, used by the U.S. Secret Service on their dogs since 2006, has garnered numerous awards, including 2007 Dog Safety Product by the National Dog Day Foundation and 2006 Best New Product by ABC's New Gadget Guru and HGTV. PupLight is available in red, silver, blue and black and is available at over 750 Petco locations, Cableas and independent pet stores throughout the country. PupLight can also be purchased for $19.95 plus shipping and handling at puplight.com or call 866-787-5444.

Janet Brewer: Rhyme-N-Tyme

www.rhymentyme.com

Janet Brewer developed the board game while helping her grandson with a rhyming homework assignment. Rhyme-N-Tyme is played by teams of at least two players each; it challenges players to describe wacky two-word rhymes such as "Moose Juice" or "Odd Cod" to their teammates. You can use words and/or gestures (like in Charades) but think fast, you only have 60 seconds to get your teammates to guess more rhyme pairs than the other teams. The team with the most points at the end of the game wins!

Rhyme-N-Tyme celebrates teamwork and active communication in a fun way, gets the whole family involved, and builds vocabulary and word skills. The award winning game is featured in the November 2007 issue of Creative Child Magazine as a Seal of Excellence Award winner. Rhyme-N-Tyme also received the National Parenting Center's Seal of Approval in November of 2006. Rhyme-N-Tyme is available online at rhymentyme for $19.95 plus shipping and handling. Or call 888-567-9960. It can also be purchased at various specialty retailers

Emily Sandberg: Tushygear
www.tushygear.com

Tushygear was created to help save parents from lugging their diapers and wipes in a plastic zip-loc bag in their purse or bag and, from having to change their precious babies' tushies on a yucky public changing table. Parents everywhere struggle with where to put the pad, diapers and wipes when they don't want to carry a diaper bag. Tushygear is their answer. Completely washable, Tushygear allows you to combine all three in a cute tote that fits in a small bag or purse. This accessory is hand sewn in the U.S. and is made with printed fabric on one side and a soft, fluffy fabric on the other. Tushygear comes in two versions: the original Tushygear on the Road (with over 30 fabric choices) for $38 or an organic option called Organic Grass for $55 plus shipping and handling at tushygear.com or by calling 773-802-4173.

Kristy Awald-Stafford: ToyWrangler
www.toywrangler.com

Keep toys off the floor and within baby's reach! The simple yet ingenious design allows you to use just one or all three colorful bungees to keep baby happy while you eat or shop. Durable plastic removable rings make it easy to interchange all of baby's favorite toys, big and small. A wraparound soft cotton cover protects baby from dirt and grime during play while the versatile, lightweight design makes it easy to fold and take it with you wherever you go. Also available is the Mini ToyWrangler". This versatile single ToyWrangler keeps everything handy and in babies reach. Plastic rings and elastic cuff make it a snap to interchange baby's favorites. Simply attach to strollers, car seats, carriers, bouncers, walkers and more. For larger bottles or sippy cups, simply reverse the ends.

Three years ago while dining out with her husband and 9-month-old son, Kristy realized they spent the whole time retrieving toys from the floor, under the table & even other patron's tables. "I started to do some research and found that there was no such device to attach toys to. My creative juices began to flow and I quickly designed the ToyWrangler". I was excited to go out to eat and see that the ToyWrangler" actually solved our problem," Kristy says. I could attach and interchange my son's toys, bottles and pacifier without even reaching to the floor. I formed the LLC, LuvLoo" (how my son has always pronounced 'love you)."

The large ToyWrangler can be purchased for $14.99 or the mini ToyWrangler, set of two for $6.99 plus shipping and handling at www.toywrangler.com or by calling 219-384-7397.

Beth Engelman and Jenna Riggs: "Flip Flop Fairy Tales"
www.engelmanriggs.com

Beth Engelman and her business partner (and the book's illustrator), Jenna Riggs are moms on a mission. Their goal is to develop interactive educational books and games that foster self-esteem and independence while encouraging exploration, discovery and imaginative play. Once her son, Jackson, reached the age of 1, they added one more rule: NO BATTERIES REQUIRED!

"The Princess Frog / The Frog Princess," an interactive, no-batteries-required book is the first in a series of flip-flop Fairytales that flips the classic fairytale on its head. "When developing this product we took two things into account; our love of fairytales and our love for low tech dolls," Beth says. "As children, both Jenna and I played with dolls that changed from character to character by changing their outfits which lead us to consider combining a doll with a book doll that could change from character to character as the story is read. As moms, we loved the transformative nature of the dolls and stories and have noticed that our kids love to flip the fabric back and forth to reveal the main character for each story. This bright twist will have kids turning the pages-and the book-over and over again! "

To pre-order "The Princess Frog / The Frog Princess" for shipment by Valentine's Day, go to www.BarnesandNobel.com or www.amazon.com. List Price: $12.95 plus shipping and handling. For more information, visit www.engelmanriggs.com or call 847-730-5073.

About Beth Engelman

Beth began her writing career in second grade when she won her first writing contest with her essay entitled "If I Were President, Bubblegum Would Be Free and Taxes Would Go Up (So Teachers Could Get More Money)." Clearly not destined for a career in politics, Beth has focused her talents on creative writing, education, and curriculum development. Beth's achievements and experiences include eight years as a Kindergarten and First Grade Teacher, being nominated for the Kohl- McCormick Foundation's Excellence in Education Award, and participating in numerous national conferences on fostering number sense and literacy development. Beth has developed books and games for several companies including: Leapfrog Toys, Chronicle Books, and Piggy Toes Press. Beth is a single mom and lives in Glenview with her two-year old son.

Marla Massel and Lynne Hefter: Store-Your-Stuff Mittens and Bleacher Blanket Poncho
www.varsitycouture.com

Keep those fingers warm and your essentials close at hand with Store-Your-Stuff" mittens. Featuring large built in pockets (along the top of each one), these super soft mittens allow you to store such items as a set of keys, a cell phone, money, credit cards or even a school ID. Secured with a fold-over flap, nothing falls out and your most needed items are readily and easily accessible! Made of 100% anti-pill arctic fleece, the double layer, one size fits most. Store-Your-Stuff" mittens are available in 18 fashion color combinations, including the colors of popular favorite college and professional sports teams.

The Original Bleacher Blanket Poncho is made of two layers of anti-pill arctic fleece with a pocket on the inside and on the outside. The reversible poncho style makes it easy to stay warm while you cheer on your team. The extra-long size cushions your seat and covers your knees while you sit in the bleachers and the drawstring hood keeps your head toasty warm! Designed for sports spectators who want to show their team spirit while staying warm on the sidelines. For colors and prices visit www.varsitycouture.com or call 847-291-6637.

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