I'm a full-time mummy

What comes to your mind when you think or see a lamp? For me, I think of it lighting up the darkness around us and bringing hope and sense of comfort.

We don't have any Traditional lamps (aka floor lamps) in our house as we have a very active and curious toddler around the house but I like seeing these lamps in other people houses. My brother in law has a couple of floor lamps which I think complements his house nicely and adds a nice artistic touch to the rooms. Look at the picture below, wouldn't it look great to have one in your house?

And talking about lamps, there is also the Bedside table lamp types. Again, sad to say, we don't have one in our room, not sure why. But if we are ever to get one, I think I'll go for something like the picture below. I like the aqua colored base of the table lamp and it looks artsy and unique too!

What about you? What sort of lamps do you like?

** Disclosure: This is a sponsored post. All thoughts, opinions and words are 100 % my own.

Oh the classic line of "Mirror, mirror on the wall / Who in the land is fairest of all?" came to mind when I think of mirror... or when I happened to look into one.

With so many types and designs available on mirrors nowadays, it's by no mean an easy task to choose one that fits your style and purpose of owning one. I personally feel that getting a mirror requires proper planning and decision making - for example: whether it fulfils the purpose and how it is going to complement the look of your room.

I think one of the most commonly owned mirrors is the decorative vanity mirrors. To me, I feel that a great vanity mirror is one that is functional, practical and beautiful all at once. I would personally go for something simpler in style, and yet look classy and unique at the same time. I mean, look at the vanity mirror shown below! I would stop few times not only to check my reflection, but just to admire the design and the mirror's artwork too!

And then how about full length floor mirrors? This type of mirrors not only complements and enhances the outlook of a room, it also does wonder with the interior design of a room as well. Placed appropriately, it might help enhance the lighting in a room and also makes objects in the room appear larger. Wouldn't you want to own a floor mirror like this?

So what about you? What type of mirrors do you like and do you think they are important?

** Disclosure: This is a sponsored post. All thoughts, opinions and words are 100 % my own.

I came across this cute iPad app and requested for a review opportunity and the wonderful people at Oceanhouse Media generously sent me a promo code to download the "Five Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed" app for my review!

After a bit of a tiny weenie hiccup (my mistake really cos it's my first time keying in promo code to redeem an iPad app for FREE!) in downloading the app via iTunes (which I cleverly download and sync together with my iPad at the same time causing the screen not to refresh immediately), I managed to download the app successfully and it's really fast too!

* Price: $2.99
* Category: Books
* Updated: Apr 27, 2011
* Current Version: 1.08.1
* Size: 18.7 MB
* Language: English
* Seller: Oceanhouse Media, Inc.
* Rated: 4+
* Requirements: Compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad. Requires iOS 3.0 or later
* Extra Info: Editor's Choice Award-Children's Technology Review, #1 paid book app on iPad-Feb 2011 & Named one of "The Best Children's Books on the iPad"-New York Times

Description from the product page:

"As soon as they say good night to Mama, the five little monkeys start to jump on their bed. But trouble lies ahead as, one by one, they fall off and hurt themselves. Their Mama called the doctor and the doctor said, "No more monkeys jumping on the bed!" This charming bedtime story is sure to send children giggling off to bed...hopefully without any clever new ideas!

New features in this omBook for your iPad, iPhone or iPod Touch include professional narration, background audio and high resolution artwork for each scene.  To promote reading in young children, individual words are highlighted as the story is read and words zoom up when pictures are touched. By combining the original text and artwork with features that entertain and promote reading, this omBook appeals to readers of all ages."

I immediately got Ben to test out the app the moment he woke up from his sleep (as I downloaded the app around 2am Malaysian time... yeah, yeah, I sleep quite late... I know, I know!) So, if you're wondering what's wrong with Ben's hairdo, hope that explains it!

Ben checking out the app...

Cleverly pressing the "Auto Play" button!

Ben engrossed with the interactive story!

Why I choose this app for my review? Oh well, I feel that Ben should be able to relate to the storyline in this app as he really likes to jump on the bed in his playroom! I'm hoping he'll learn that doing so is dangerous and should not be repeated anymore!

My verdict:  

* Good: I love the app! It is engaging and interactive and I love that we can also touch the objects in each page on the screen and the words pop out to tell you what it is!

* Not so good: I feel that it should be less than 5 monkeys (perhaps 3?) in the story as it is quite long winded (or maybe cos we don't have much patience whooopsss...)

You can take a look at the video clip below which I took when Ben goes through the app for the first time. Noticed he doesn't talk much other than nodding his head when I talked to him? Oh well, Ben's like that when he's observing things. I know deep down he is absorbing what he's seeing and listening to each words. You can also see the words popping out when Ben touched the iPad screen as one of the monkeys fell down and bumped its head.

So if you're planning to purchase an e-story book for your child to be used on your iPhone, iPod touch or iPad, do consider this app! I mean, it is nice to be able to take part in the story (pointing out the objects and learning what it is at the same time) and so on.

You can purchase the "Five Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed" app from the iTunes App Store.

I received no monetary compensation for this review, I was provided with the promo code by the sponsor to redeem the application for free from iTunes Store in order to facilitate my review. All opinions expressed in this post are my own. Please do your own research when purchasing products, as your opinions may differ from mine. And if you'd like to read my previous iPad Apps reviews, you can do so by reading this post of mine called "My iPad App Reviews"