Reviews

Products and services that have been reviewed

April 27, 2013

Beyond The Moon With Luna [iPad App Review]

Dominique Parenting and Kids, Reviews IPAD App Review

The different functions of the app

Go Luna Girl Go a confidence and kindness building app for kids three to eight. It was designed to help girls build up their self confidence in the form of an interactive story book app. The story of Luna emphasizes on how a girl should pursue her dreams no matter what they are. Never give up. You can certainly reach your goals!!

In the story portion

Luna is a young three year old purple cow who had been sent to Grannery Farms to live. At the farm she got to learn that the cows there are able to do what was suppose to be impossible- jump over the moon. She was really in awe at the ability of the other cows there who could jump over the moon and wished that she could do the same too.

With the guidance of a wise old frog she manage to pluck up the challenge and made the attempt to fly over the moon. Luna was ecstatic as during her first try she managed to succeed. She flew over the moon with the Chester on her back.

Her achievement made her realize that nothing is impossible and that she just had to get over the mental barrier which she had set for herself. There are many things which girls can achieve if they put their mind to it.

The coloring section

The pictures which you can colour

There are four different pictures which one can color in the “Color with Me ‘ section. They feature Luna in three different roles and one with Chester on her back.

Doggie boy reading the storybook

My thoughts

I tried this app with my 6 year old boy as my girl at 2 year old was a bit too young to understand the content. Even though it is tailored for young girls I find the positive message of striving for your best is also applicable to young boys. I certainly recommend this app to parents of young kids looking for a story with a positive message.

You can purchase this app from iTunes at $1.99

Disclaimer: I receive a promo code to try out this app with the kids. All opinions are 100% my own.

April 22, 2013

Zooming around with Volvo V40 Cross Country

Dominique Parenting and Kids, Reviews Volvo V40

Volvo V40

The Volvo V40 Cross Country 1.6L D2 Turbo Diesel car is one nifty ride. During the weekends we were invited by Volvo to drive their car from their showroom all the way to the S.E.A(Aquarium) at RWS. The kids were really excited to be able to check out the new model and to visit the Aquarium.

My boys are really into cars. They love identifying the specifics of the different types of cars that pass by us as we drive along the roads. It is one of their pet topics. You just have to ask then about a specific model and they will be able to tell you about all the product specifications of that particular model down to a T.

Monkey Boy with the V40

Monkey boy was really excited to check out the car. He secretly hopes that we can change our current car to this model. You just have to check out the features of the car and I’m sure you would fall in love with it as he has.

Monkey boy and Tiger girl in the car.

With plush leather seats and many automatic gadgets to boost. The Volvo V40 has outdone its predecessors in terms of safety and luxury features. Having a top speed of 210km/h with acceleration 0-100km/h at 8.5 sec it is a car which is able to zoom around on the roads of Singapore.

The V40 has a wide array of drive support features like

Adaptive Cruise Control
Collision Warning with Full Auto Brake
Driver Alert Control
Lane Keeping Aid
Lane Change Merge Aid
Blind Spot Information System
Road Sign Information.

All these additions do make city driving a lot more easy and safe. It is certainly a welcomed addition which could help one drive around safely in this fast paced city with kids in tow.

The back row of the Volvo V40

The 5-seater has a rather snug back seat due to the design of the car. Doggie boy and Tiger girl can fit in comfortably with granny however if their car seats were installed in the back row it would have been another story.

Tiger girl in her car seat

As you can see it can get rather tight in the back row if I install both the car seats in for Doggie boy and Tiger girl. There wouldn’t be enough space for Monkey boy to sit next to his siblings.

Inside the Volvo V40

As our whole family couldn’t fit inside the car we took two separate cars to transport the whole family over to RWS. R, Tiger girl and me were in the V40 while the boys and their granny were chauffeured in the S60 by one of the Volvo employees.

Inside the V40

I was given a brief introduction to the various controls that I would be operating during the drive before heading off. I selected Eco mode for the drive and changed the display from a bright red to a soothing green. In this mode I was given information like real time fuel consumption and average consumption from the last few minutes. With the consumption level of 6.1L/100km it is certainly very fuel efficient and certainly would save in the running cost of the vehicle.

It has been a while since I last drove a continental car but it didn’t take me long to adjust to the dynamics of the car. I liked the smooth handling and the fast responsiveness of the engine under the different conditions~ speeding up, changing of lanes, sudden breaking etc. It makes driving a breeze.

At $160K it makes a great city car for small families or executives and is certainly a car I would consider if we do have the spare cash for a 2nd car.

To find out more information on the V40 do check out the Volvo Website.

Disclaimer: We were invited to test out their V40 Cross Country over the weekend. All opinions are 100% my own.