DadJack.com Blog

I was offered the opportunity to review the newest in the Kidz Bop series, Kidz Bop 21…  But I thought what would my opinions matter in respect to a CD for kids, so I enlisted Lucy (my 8 year old daughter) and Bing (my 5 year old son) to listen to it with me and give their perspective on the latest (which will be released on Jan. 17th, 2012) in the series.

I figured the best way to work this was to go through each track:

1. Party Rock Anthem -

Lucy: I like how it sounds with kids singing instead of an adult.

Bing: (Bing started singing along instantly… And shortly after was dancing)  I like it because their are girls singing and the voices change.  Everybody is shuffling.

2. Moves Like Jagger

Lucy:  It sounds like the same people (She means Maroon 5… then I asked “What are moves like Jagger?”)  I don’t know, is it a move?

Bing:  I liked it, I just did.

3. The Edge of Glory

Lucy:  I like how it sounds with kids, I just like the way it sounds.

Bing:  I like that in the back it says “en-en-en-en” (??? – he’s 5)

4. You Make Me Feel

Lucy:  I like the girls robot voice.

Bing: That’s boys and girls… I like that.

5. Good Life

Lucy:  I like how they all sing together on the “Good Life” part.

Bing:  I like that they say “it’s going to be a good night.”

6. Stereo Hearts

Lucy:  At the start their were three people and they all had their own parts, I liked that.  I like this song.

Bing:  I like the “ohh ohh” part.

7. Without You

Lucy:  Don’t know this song, but I like it so far.

Bing:  I like it.  (This is the first song they weren’t already familiar with.)

8. Fly

Lucy:  I don’t know this song… I’d like to fly.  The rapping part is good.

Bing:  I like it… It says “to flyyyyyyyyyyyy.”

9. Hello

Lucy:  I know this song and I like it.

Bing:  I liked it .
OK, at this point they are running around and dancing, so we’ll get an overall review at the end of the remaining tracks.

10. We Found Love

11. It Will Rain

12. The One That Got Away

13. Good Feeling

14. Mr. Saxobeat

15. It Girl

16. Someone Like You.

Lucy: I like how the kids sing better than the adults.  I would tell my friends at school to get this CD.  I know all the songs expect 2 or 3 of them.

Bing: I just liked it all.

Dad’s turn, As I watched the kids I could tell they were really enjoying these versions of the Top 40 songs they already enjoy.  As a parent I like that I know these versions are safe for them to listen too. We’ve all had to quickly turn off a song because of content.  Most importantly, it’s not totally annoying to listen to for adults. It is not the nerve trying, stuck in your head til it hurts Wiggles song or Barney ballad.
Kidz Bop 21 gets three thumbs up from the Heine’s.

Rock on, Jack

Amazon has 50% off select Mellisa and Doug Toys today only which is a really great holiday deal!

Just wanted to share! Rock on, Jack

I’m baking brownies and have a half hour to kill while I wait for them to be done, so I thought I’d bake up a blog too.

I wish I had some good news, but things are about the same here… Still out of  work, still no real prospects.  I know economic indicators suggest things are getting a little better, but I have yet to see it.

Angela, Ethan, the Kids and I had the chance to go to San Diego last weekend which was really nice.   San Diego is such a great city, perfect for the young and single and the old and boring with kids (Like me!) alike.  The kids actually ran around in the shallow tide looking for seashells…. something you couldn’t do in much of the rest of the country in December.

Speaking of Angela and Ethan, Ethan’s one-man band, State Shirt, just released a new album… if you get a chance check it out.

We’ve been kind of busy so we haven’t had a chance to catch many of the family films released recently.  The kids want to see Arthur Christmas and Hugo.  We did see the Muppet Movie…  the kids enjoyed it. I thought some of the musical numbers seemed forced and the story stalled a little in places, but it wasn’t horrible.  The film the kids are really pumped for is the Lorax which comes out next year.

Timer just beeped, gotta check my brownies! Enjoy the Lorax trailer while I check on them:

And they are perfect… and the whole apartment smells like yummy brownies!

The Podcast continues on… we may be small, but we’re persistent.   We’re 5 years in, which means it’s been 5 years since we were all on the radio together.  That reminds me, Happy Belated Birthday Jamie… her B-Day was yesterday!   Those were good times on Star 98.7!

Here’s a couple holiday deals on Amazon today:

Air Swimmer Shark is $27 with free shipping
Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Cabin Fever is $7
V-Tech Kidzoom Lightning McQueen Digital Camera is $25 (OK, it’s 24.99… if you spend a penny more you get free shipping!)

The brownies should be cool enough to sample by now!

Rock On (and Happy Holidays!!!) Jack