**I participated in an Influencer Activation Program on behalf of Influence-Central for Jif To Go Dippers. I received a sample to facilitate my review and a thank you item for participating.

Now that we're back in the swing of things with school and activities that the kids are involved in, I find it's more necessary than ever to have convenient snacks for life on the go! That's why I was so excited to learn that Jif now offers Jif To Go Dippers. 

Jif To Go Dippers are an all in one portable snack of creamy peanut butter with pretzels or Chocolate silk peanut butter spread with pretzels. Um, one word...YUM! From soccer practice to family travels, Jif To Go Dippers provide a simple delicious solution for every snacking occasion! I could see these being great for our busy summers as well. 

We were sent some Jif To Go Dippers to try, and I was super excited! Especially for the kids who are always hungry, whether we're at home or in the car! When they arrived, the kids were eager to try them out. They were a huge hit. In fact, ever since we received them to review, we now have some in our cupboard ready for easy on the go-snacking options. Afterall, coming up with easily portable snacks can be difficult. This has been exactly what our family has needed! 

I appreciate the convenient size of the Jif To Go Dippers. It gives the kids the right portion size of a healthier snack option than many of the other options out there. They're sealed, so it makes them extremely easy to take with us places, and also easy for them to eat on the go because of the hand cup and container that the pretzels and peanut butter come in. 

The kids appreciate that there are options in flavors too! Kaden loves the cream peanut butter, while my daughter adores the chocolate silk peanut butter spread...just like her momma! 

I am thrilled to have been introduced to this family-friendly snacking solution from Jif. They have made snacks on the go so much easier for our family. Even having them at home for easy snacking has been great! My sister in law was visiting last month and she was equally as thrilled to learn about Jif To Go Dippers. She is pregnant and has been looking for a healthy snack that's easy to grab as an already mother of 6. She loves that these are able to give her the fuel she needs to keep her energy up and her tummy happy. 

If you'd like to try out Jif To Go Dippers for yourself, you can find them at grocery stores nationwide!  

You can connect with Jif on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. 

**I wrote this review while participating in a campaign forMom Central Consulting on behalf of Playskool. I received product samples to facilitate my party and review, and a promotional item to thank me for participating.

With the temps beginning to get colder, I am already preparing myself for winter and being cooped up in the house. As a mom of young, active kids, I am always looking for fun options to fill our day...especially this time of year! It's important to me to find things to keep my kids stimulated and learning, while being able to interact with other children as well. That's why I was excited when given the fun opportunity to host a playdate with some friends.

Our playdate's primary purpose was to introduce the new Let's Imagine Elmo toy, as well as give the kids at the party a chance to enjoy complimentary toys from Playskool like the Transformers Mixable, Mashable Heroes Optimus Prime and Grimlock and Stack 'N Spin Monkey Gears toy. 

We were sent these toys, along hats, "when I grow up I imagine I'll be..." stickers, etc. I was so excited to get the playdate planned out, so I went to store to pick up some goodies. Since Elmo was our focus, I wanted to get some red items (the red bag of chip/cracker mix), grapes, and of course....red cups with Elmo faces!! 

When the kids arrived, they were super excited to see all of this displayed on the table...and couldn't wait to get their hands on Elmo! Right away they decided to each take turns with the fun hats too!

I thought I'd keep them on their toes, by eating a little snack/lunch first and then introducing Elmo and the other toys in more detail. Needless to say, I think the Elmo cups were their favorite part of the meal!!

Once everyone was done eating, we were all super excited to check out the Playskool toys. Displayed on the middle of the table, Elmo was especially intriguing and the kids (as well as their parents) absolutely loved him! 

Let's Imagine Elmo comes with three different hats that unlock different imaginary themes and play modes: Prince, Cowboy and Sea Captain. My kids really loved the Sea Captain, but many of our guests liked the Cowboy because if you bounce Elmo, it sounds like he's on a horse. So CUTE!!! Place the crown on Elmo to play a game of Prince Elmo Says, the Cowboy hat to learn numbers in the Countin' Cowboy game, and more!

As we put a different hat on Elmo, the kids enjoyed coming up with their own imaginative stories to tell. And even for those who can't talk yet...Elmo was a HUGE hit!! This little guy was all smiles when Elmo talked to him. I would definitely encourage you to learn more about him on the Playskool website!

Once we had spent a long time checking out Elmo and all of his fun features, the kids were tickled to learn that they were going to get the opportunity to check out the other interactive toys and take them home!!

The boys were especially drawn to the Transformers Mixable, Mashable Heroes Optimus Prime and Grimlock toys. They enjoyed taking them apart and putting them back together again. I think the mini Mr. Potato Head was their favorite part. They all commented on how 'cool' he is! They can even Squeeze the Grimlock figure's eyes and watch as his jaw chomps and launches a projectile! 

What's fun about this toy is that they could put them together really however they wanted. Not to mention, play with them however they wanted too. They created their own stories for what their toy was doing, and were able to play together at the same time. It was really fun to watch!

The girls, and the younger ones LOVED the Stack 'N Spin Monkey Gears toy! This is seriously such a cute, simple toy for little ones. I love that it encourages fine motor skills, colors and of course, cause and effect. Once the gears are in place, a button can be pushed to get them to rotate together and light up. It's a very fun toy, and one I plan to get for both of my nieces who turn one soon. Seeing how much our friends loved this toy, I know my nieces will love it just as much!

We had such a fun time at our playdate, and all of the kids and parents were thrilled to learn of these fun Playskool toys! Let's Imagine Elmo was a HUGE hit and a very welcomed guest at the party. Whether your little one is spinning, tumbling, or giggling, the Playskool core collection has something to make every little one smile! Perfect for little hands and specifically designed to enhance developmental skills through play, parents and children alike will love the 2014 Playskool collection featuring these fun and loveable characters. Having had the opportunity to try out a few, I know these and others will make wonderful gift ideas for other parents with little ones this year!

Buy It: The three toys we had the opportunity to review during our playdate can be purchased at HasbroToyShop.com. 

**The product for this review was provided by Little Tikes. All opinions are my own and were not influenced in any way.

Two weeks ago I welcomed my second child into the world - a 6 lb 14 oz little bundle of sweet perfection; my first daughter, Cora Bethany.  So naturally, the past couple weeks have been full of changes for our whole family.

My two and a half year old son, Cameron, has taken it all slightly less gracefully than I anticipated.  His normal tantrums and whiny-ness have been amplified at the arrival of his first sibling so my husband and I have been doing our best to shower him with attention and love to help him feel as secure as possible.  Therefore, this past week was also the perfect time to try out a fun new toy for Cameron.

When the box containing the Little Tikes Tunnel 'N Dome Climber arrived prior to Cora's birth, we made Cameron wait until she was here to open his special toy.  So he had a good week or so of anticipation leading up to opening it up.

Little Tikes has been manufacturing and marketing durable, safe and imaginative children's products since 1970.  Some of the classic, iconic children's toys, such as the Turtle Sandbox or Cozy Coupe, have come from this familiar brand.  Another plus, many of their toys are made right here in the USA.

The box arrived in good condition and contained nine durable plastic pieces, the tunnel and an instructional booklet.  After examining the contents for about ten seconds I was pleased to discover that assembling the Tunnel 'N Dome Climber was going to be very quick and easy.  Without even consulting the instructional booklet my husband and I were able to understand how the pieces fit together just from looking at the picture printed on the box - and we are no experts at toy assembly.

It took us about five minutes to assemble the Tunnel 'N Dome climber in our backyard and instantly my son was all over it.  After climbing up and down each side he proceeded to go in and out of the house, bringing all his favorite toys into his new "fort."  The nylon tunnel is a separate, detachable piece and can be used with the climber or separately if desired.

After playing with it outside for a while, my husband moved the Tunnel 'N Dome Climber into Cameron's room.  The plastic is sturdy, but lightweight enough that my husband could pick the whole thing up and carry it across the house.  It also fit through all the doorways.

This climber has turned out to be very versatile and a great way for my toddler to burn some of his boundless energy.  As a fort, it's a great way for Cameron to use his imagination to pretend he is sailing on a pirate ship, hiding in a cave or climbing to the top of a mountain.

Features: 
  •  Crawl – through tunnel
  •  Large climbing surface
  •  Varied sized holes for climbing play that all kids love
  •  Plenty of room inside the dome for kids to explore their imaginations 
  •  Maximum number of kids: 3
  •  Weight limit up to 60lbs. per child
  •  Assembly Required

Overall, we have been pleased with the quality of this play structure.  It's a great addition to our backyard.

The Little Tikes Tunnel 'N Dome Climber retails for $149.99 and is recommended for children 3-6 years old.  This, or other Little Tikes favorites, would be a great choice for parents or grandparents to surprise their little ones with this holiday season.

Buy It: You can purchase the Tunnel 'N Dome Climber from a handful of major retailers by viewing this product on the Little Tikes website and clicking on "Where to Buy."