Wallie Exercises Children's Picture Book ~ Review & Giveaway

Here in the Midwest, winter can last 6 months or longer. Unfortunately that doesn't leave us a lot of time to enjoy the outdoors, which is why we're always very excited once summer arrives. This is the time of year we're able to run outside and be active and I want to make exercise fun for my kids. That's why I was happy when introduced to the new children's book... Wallie Exercises.

Wallie Exercises was released in January 2011, written by author and fitness trainer, Steve Ettinger. In an effort to create a powerful teaching tool for children and resource for parents in the fight against childhood obesity, Steve teamed up with illustrator Pete Proctor to create this children's book.

As I learned more about what Wallie Exercises is all about, I realized it was not only an educational tool for children, but also a valuable resource for parents and teachers. I appreciate the goal of the book which is to encourage kids to creatively explore exercise...and what better time than now while the weather is beautiful!

I couldn't have been happier to learn we were going to have the opportunity to review a copy. When the book arrived, Kaelyn was begging for me to sit down and read it with her. Aimed towards ages 3-8, I had a feeling she would love it...I was right! It's perfect for this preschool age and older.

There were a couple of things that impressed me right off the bat. I love that this book is a hardcover. When Kaelyn loves a book she reads it multiple times a day. Handling a book that often means it needs to be made to last. This one definitely is which I really appreciate. I also love the colorful cover which is what really caught Kaelyn's attention and had her wanting to read it right away.

Of course, after checking it out...both she and I couldn't wait to read the story. It's a perfect length with a great message for children.

About the Story: Wallie Exercises is a colorful story about a wonderful dog whose laziness has become a big problem. With a little help from an exercise elephant, Wallie learns about getting in shape and how to exercise.

After reading this story, Kaelyn was asking me to read it again and again. Throughout the day she'll now point out every time she is being active and exercising. It's neat the message of this book has really helped her see that exercise can be fun. She absolutely loved the story of Wallie and really liked the colorful, full-page pictures as well.

One of my favorite parts is the content in the back of the book. There are original exercises from the story and fitness information for parents to discuss with their young children. Making theses different exercises fun and showing pictures of the characters from the book doing them, has made Kaelyn enjoy them as well. We have fun going through each one and she's enjoyed learning more about why exercise is fun, why it's good for us, etc.

Overall we've been very happy with the book, Wallie Exercises. It's educational and fun...perfect for kids, parents and teachers. I'm really happy to have been introduced to it and would recommend it to any parent with young children.

Buy It: You can purchase Wallie Exercises from Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble and Active Spud Press.

Win It: One lucky reader is going to win a Wallie Exercises book of their own!

Mandatory Entry - Let me know who this book would be for if you won.

Extra Entries: (Only valid after the mandatory entry has been completed. Leave 1 comment for each extra entry)

1. 1 extra entry - Like Wallie Exercises on Facebook

2. 3 extra entries- Blog about this giveaway (linking to this post and Wallie Exercises) and leave THREE comments with the URL to that post.

3. 1 extra entry- Follow me on Twitter and tweet about this giveaway (You can tweet once a day for one extra entry every day)! You can copy and paste:

#Win a copy of the colorful children's book, Wallie Exercises! #momsbalancingact http://bit.ly/qfr938 Ends 8/31 #giveaway

4. 3 extra entries- Post my blog button or blog URL to your blog and leave a comment with the URL to your blog. (If it already is, leave me a comment letting me know)

5. 2 extra entries- subscribe to A Mom's Balancing Act via e-mail (found along the side column) and leave TWO comments letting me know.

6. 2 extra entries- 'Like' A Mom's Balancing Act on Facebook

7. 2 extra entries- Follow my blog publicly on Google Friend Connect

Leave one comment for each entry you complete above including with each, your e-mail address (or make sure it's visible in your profile) so that I can easily contact the winner!!

This giveaway will end August 31st and is open to US Only

**The products for this review & giveaway were provided for free. All opinions found here are my own and were not influenced in any way. The opinions of others may differ from my own.**