Orlando Mom Blog, Reviews, Giveaways | Theme Park Mom

Underwriters Laboratories – those folks behind the “UL” label on a lot of household products – work overtime on holiday lights. The holidays are such a fun time of year, but the lights we use to decorate our homes inside and out represent a very real fire risk.

I met with UL this summer in New York City, and while it was hot outside, they were already focused on Christmas. Josh told me exactly what to look for to ensure that I am buying the safest Christmas lights and using them correctly:

Here are UL’s top tips for holiday lights safety:

• A fresh tree is key: If the needles are not fresh, it can lead to a greater risk of fire. Remember to ask your tree lot attendant to make a fresh cut to the base of the tree and place it in water as soon as you get home. Place tree in a tree stand that holds at least one gallon of water and check moisture level frequently.
• Indoor or outdoor? Look for the UL Mark: Indoor-use only light strings are marked with UL’s green holographic label. Indoor or outdoor-use light strings are marked with UL’s red holographic label.
• Read manufacturer instructions: When stringing lights together, the general rule is to not connect more than three midget light string sets together. Light strings with screw-in bulbs should never have more than 50 bulbs connected together.
• How old are your lights? UL listed outdoor lights have been tested for 90 days of use. So if you have your outdoor lights for about a month each year, you need to replace them after three holiday seasons.

Following these tips will help reduce your risk of holiday fires and keep your family safer this holiday.

Our school supply shopping may be done, but the snack shopping continues all year. I remember my mom fixing us Totino’s Pizza Rolls as a snack when I was a kid, and my daughter loves them just like I did.

Now, Totino’s products, including Party Pizzas and Pizza Rolls, have Box Tops for Education on the packages. Don’t forget to cut them out and turn them in at your school. Every Box Top for Education is worth 10 cents to your child’s school.

Now through September 15, Totino’s is offering two Box Tops for Education on every Totino’s product.

Giveaway!

To celebrate the back to school season, I have a prize pack to giveaway to one lucky Theme Park Mom winner. It includes a backpack, school supplies, coupons for Totino’s Party Pizza and Pizza Rolls, and 25 bonus Box Tops for your child’s school.

How to Enter:

Leave a comment on this blog post that answers this question:

What is your child’s favorite thing to do while snacking on Totino’s after school?

Extra Entries:

You can earn two extra entries for this giveaway by doing the following:

• Extra Entry #1: Like Theme Park Mom on Facebook.
• Extra Entry #2: Follow Theme Park Mom on Twitter.

Please note: You must leave a separate comment for each extra entry. (i.e. A comment that says: “I liked Theme Park Mom on Facebook.”

Winners:

This contest will close at 11:59 p.m. Eastern on Friday, Sept. 24. I will choose a winner by using the random number generator at Random.org, and announce the winner with an update to this post.

Disclosure: General Mills provided me with information and this giveaway through My Blog Spark.

So, how many times did YOU watch Camp Rock 2 this weekend? We had been counting down to the premiere all summer, and we watched it three nights in a row here at Chez Theme Park Mom.

A Nintendo DS game based on the movie, Camp Rock The Final Jam, is in stores today. Disney Interactive Studios sent us an advance copy, and the Theme Park Kid has been playing the video game on her Nintendo DSi all weekend.

Here’s her review:

The Theme Park Kid turned 7 over the weekend, and she falls on the younger end of the 6-14 age range that Disney says it is targeting with this DS game. She has really enjoyed playing the game, though it did take her about 20 minutes to get up to speed on how the game worked when she started.

Here’s how Disney Interactive Studios describes Camp Rock: The Final Jam:

Camp Rock: The Final Jam allows players to create their own customized avatar and join Mitchie, Shane and other Camp Rockers as they explore music camp and participate in a variety of activities as they prepare to compete against their rival Camp Star. Fans can jam to songs using the stylus to play guitar, bass and drums and even get down with some hot dance moves inspired by the film.

Camp Rock: The Final Jam is rated E for Everyone and sells for $29.99.

We recommend the game. My daughter says her only caveat is that there is a feature for the game that requires the camera on the DSi, so she thinks the game is better suited to the DSi than to a regular DS. However, I think that you can play the game just fine on either device.

We are in a rockin’ mood this week at the Theme Park Mom household. Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam premieres on Friday, and we can hardly wait.

Rayovac has just announced a new contest that allows teens and families to embrace their inner rock stars.

Grab your video camera and film your “band” doing your best air guitar moves. Then check out Rayovac’s Facebook page to upload your video and enter the contest.

• Aug. 30 – Sept. 19: Upload your best video
• Sept. 20 – Sept. 26: Vote for your favorite video
• Oct. 15: Winners announced

The grand prize winner will receive a full line of Paper Jamz instruments (6 guitars, 6 drums, and 6 amps) plus Rayovac batteries. The second prize winner will receive a Paper Jamz product trio (3 guitars, 3 drums, and 3 amps) plus Rayovac batteries, and the third prize winner will receive a Paper Jamz set (1 guitar, 1 drum, and 1 amp) with Rayovac batteries.

That’s a whole lot of rock!

The fine print: Open only to persons in the 50 United States or D.C. who are 13 years of age or older (18 years of age or older for residents of Maine) as of the date of entry. NO PURCHASE NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED OR RESTRICTED BY LAW. PARENTAL CONSENT MAY BE NECESSARY. SEE OFFICIAL RULES FOR DETAILS.