My husband and I didn’t find as much excitement in this new version as our son, so I see this new release from Warner Brothers finding its audience in young children, which is probably who there were targeting with the animation anyways.

The action starts shortly after Episode II: Attack of the Clones and somewhere around Episode III: Revenge of the Sith. We’re thrown smack in the middle of the narrative with no explanation of character or setting, because we should all know by now what is going on! Obi-Wan and Anakin are deep into battle when they are called to action to find and rescue Jabba the Hutt’s little friend.

There are some neat new characters who make appearances and plenty of aliens. It is 98 minutes of nonstop action and it lacks the gaping plot holes that made the live-action prequels such a chore to watch. Plus it has humor!

I am no expert on Star Wars or the storylines, but overall it was interesting enough to hold my attention and hasn’t left the mind of our 6 year old son. So it is now embedded with the rest of the Star Wars knowledge he’s grasped on to over the past year. If your son is a fan like ours, add this to your Christmas shopping list.

Written by Emily, who is a married working mother of a very energetic 6 year old son. They recently moved out in the country and live on a rock road. Emily had to give up high-speed internet and she blames the realtor for not informing her ahead of time that it was not available. She writes at her personal blog, Fenicle and loves to review new things.

As an adoptive mother myself, I found the movie to be trite and predictable. It was a little too focused on the surrounding issues rather than the real issue at hand, which was the introduction of Hunt’s character’s birth mother. This part was played by Bette Midler who just didn’t fit the role. There were many big name actors in “Then She Found Me” including Matthew Broderick and Colin Firth, so I had high hopes of a great movie.

The film is just glum, amateur and doesn’t have the glimmer of hope I wanted to see from a movie about adoption. There were occasional witty scenes and comedic lines, but the changes from the book seemed too calculated and were not welcomed from this viewer. For me it’s a pan, but judge it for yourself!

Written by Marcie, a full-time mom and wife, a part time writer, and a Chicago native. You can find Marcie at My Two Boys, A Child Chosen, Discussing Autism, and Chicago Moms Blog where she writes about adoption, special needs, and about living life in both worlds.

There was also a death to deal with in the hyena segment, but as we learned, these animals are not necessarily the heinous creatures they are always portrayed as. The baby we followed was playful and loving toward her handler and it was very interesting to watch the slow process of integrating the baby hyena back into the pack.

Growing up Zebra was perhaps the most informative. We learned a host of things, such as the fact that zebra’s stripes are totally different on both sides of them. I had no idea. We all watched in fascination at the way the zebra interacted with refuge owner.

Perhaps the Growing up Rhino was the most surprising. I suppose we all thought of rhinos as tough hearted as their tough exterior, however, it seems rhinos are very sensitive to their surroundings. Watching two abandoned rhinos grow up was quite amusing. They made having a mud bath seem like the place to be!

All in all, this entire video held our attention for the entire 169 minutes! It’s a great value for your family and you won’t be sorry that you bought it.

by Perri

After reviewing Growing Up Wildcats, I was fairly sure we’d enjoy Growing Up Safari from Animal Planet. My son is an avid animal lover who watches very minimal television (like, 10-15 minutes a week, and sometimes less) so he’s always excited when a new DVD arrives in the mail. Too often though, it’s some cheesy cartoon for review that holds his attention for a few minutes before he’s running out the back door to play. Growing Up Safari features baby elephants, zebras, giraffes and hyenas growing up with the help of some professional human caregivers.

Not only did it hold his attention but it held mine, and that’s saying something. Each of the animals has their own unique story and we were both eager to follow them to the end to see if they reached their goal of returning to the wild. Any animal lover, young or old, is sure to love this fabulous addition to the Growing Up Wild series.

by Nicole

All 377 minutes. In a row. Straight. In one weekend. I do not recommend or endorse this approach. I watched Stacy and Clinton get 9 moms dressing stylishly and taking care of themselves, and the bonus episode where some of those moms were featured in a “Where are they now?” type show.

I learned all kinds of rules about how to put together a stylish, not frumpy wardrobe. I watched all sorts of emotional struggles as these women rebelled a bit at the rules, and saw them learn the wisdom in what Stacy and Clinton were trying to teach them. In the end I liked the DVD. It gave me a couple of clues about what to look for when I am shopping and it also finally revealed to me the mystery of why they endorse pointy toed shoes so heartily.

However, I did have one thing that gave me pause and that is that all of the mothers featured were more fit, smaller, and thinner than I am. I am not an abnormal size by any means; I regularly trade clothes with my friends who are short and we all wear a size 14/16. Only one mother on the DVD was what I would consider bigger and even she wasn’t obviously a plus size mom, she simply had big boobs. While there certainly is a demand for that population, it would have been nice if they had featured a couple of plus size women who struggle to find clothing to fit at all, much less look stylish and help them feel good about themselves.

Aside from that I thought the DVD provided a good amount of information about dressing well that I can use, at least until someone pops out from behind a wall somewhere with $5,000 for me to get a whole new wardrobe.

Written by Mary, who is a thirty-something SAHM of four under the age of eight. She is a lousy housekeeper, a voracious reader, and dabbles in art and music in various forms. She blogs to maintain her writing skills and her sanity in The Fish Pond.

As a Backyardigans novice, I didn’t know the characters or anything about the show but found myself being instantly drawn in by the four lovable creatures. Their imaginative adventures combined with interspersed song and dance numbers held our attention for the full half hour of each episode. While my 4 year old daughter sat mesmerized on the couch fixated on the screen, whenever her 20 month old little brother heard a song, he stopped whatever he was doing to come watch. During every song he enthusiastically bobbed his head and grooved to the music while mimicking the character’s dance moves.

I can see why my friend loves the Backyardigans as much as her children do. If High Flying Adventures is typical of all of the imaginative musical Backyardigans DVDs, then we have a new favorite in our house!

By Leticia

My children are not allowed to watch TV so we rely solely on DVD’s and the occasional hockey game for their digital entertainment. I know a lot of people who use channels like Nick Jr. and Treehouse as a huge crutch in parenting and I can see myself falling prey to that, so we really make an effort not to allow it at all.

I had heard of the Backyardigans on other blogs but had never seen an episode until we received this screener. It features a cast of animals who encounter a silly problem and solve it over the course of each episode. The animals are constantly singing and dancing a’la Broadway. My husband thought it was absolutely ridiculous and incredibly annoying, what with all the dancing and singing, but our son loved it and I even borrowed a little choreography from the goofy dancing for my upcoming classes! I might even turn on Treehouse once in a while to catch it. You know, when I’m desperate.

by Nicole

It is one year later and he is still drawn to Pooh. He has learned his letters, numbers and colors from Pooh. He has also learned about caves, trick or treating and building snowmen. For a child who had no prior knowledge of these things (he’s from and orphanage in Russia) Pooh was a fabulous friend.

However, the new My Friends Tigger and Pooh falls a little short. Friendly Tails, as much as Disney has tried, is just not the same as the original Winnie the Pooh series I fell in love with. When I first put the DVD in for my son he immediately asked for a different one. I can’t speculate why he did not like it, but I did not like the digital characters and the female Christopher Robin. He did manage the second time to fall into the Hundred Acre Woods and Hiccup right along with the gang.

by Marcie

I have an issue with the new Tigger and Pooh series. Call me a purist, but Pooh and all the friends of the Hundred Acre Wood took place in Christopher Robin’s head. So who is this little girl Darby and why is she there? Did I miss a memo?

Regardless, they’re very cute episodes with the traditional Pooh characters in place. My 5 year old was bored by them and won’t watch them. “Can we please watch something else?” he moans. We like Winnie the Pooh around here, so I’m not sure what the problem is exactly. He says they are boring. It could be that it is too different from the original series.

In a way, I think maybe some of the wonder and magic of the Hundred Acre wood is lost in the bright colors of the more modern setting. I think it’s a mistake to presume that our love of Pooh would translate into this modern setting. The stories are sweet and teach teamwork and problem solving in a gentle, friendship based setting. They are very positive and we watched the show despite my scoffing. It’s a fun little show, if you don’t look too deeply at the greater Hundred Acre Wood traditions. I definitely recommend it for the very little people at your house.

by Gidge

Props & Pans is giving one lucky reader a copy of My Friends Tigger and Pooh. To win you must leave a comment specifying which Winnie the Pooh character you or your child enjoys by Friday, April 4, 2008. You can receive a second entry by blogging about the contest (linking to it) or adding us to your blogroll. Just e-mail us with a live link or let us know you have us on your site.

You do not need a blog to enter, just leave us your e-mail address so that we may contact you. As always, it is Props & Pans policy NOT to distribute any information you give us (including your e-mail). Thanks for entering!

We received the Prima Princessa DVD for our little ballerina to review. I have an 8 year old daughter who currently takes ballet, and her 4 year old little sister is fascinated with all things ballet and tutus. She can’t wait to take ballet for herself, but classes around here classes don’t start until age 5. This DVD is absolutely wonderful for her!

Prima Princessa is a tiny animated fairy ballerina who magically shows a group of little girls the ballet Swan Lake, as performed by the Paris Opera Ballet. She shows the girls one act of the ballet and explains what is happening in the story during the show. After each act the little girls learn a dance step and then spend a few minutes practicing. Then, the next act is shown with more ballet steps and it continues like this throughout the whole story. I have to admit that all I knew of the story of Swan Lake came from the Barbie so I even learned something. My daughter had a great time learning the steps and she loves to watch the grown-up dancers perform. It is now on our list of standard birthday presents for preschool girls.

by Mary

This is my first review for Props and Pans and the let me start by saying I hate ballet. However, what I love are happy kids and from everything I could see, the Prima Princessa DVD makes for some very happy little girls. I had 4 young girls watch the DVD, ranging from 18 months to 9 years old and they were each totally mesmerized for the entire 40 minutes. One little girl borrowed the DVD for a week and I’m told she watched it 9 times!

Intermingled with scenes of Swan Lake performed by the Paris Opera Ballet are scenes featuring young students from the School of American Ballet. These students demonstrate very simple ballet moves and to cut to scenes of toddlers in the yard prancing and practicing their own pirouettes and jetes. Throw in some random scences of toys performing their ballet moves and you have fascinating 40 minutes of entertainment for your young ballerina. Although a bit pricey at $19.99, you have to weigh the price against everything a busy mom can get done during the 40 minutes of peace. Then, the price seems quite reasonable.

by Perri

Props & Pans is giving one lucky reader their own copy of the Prima Princessa DVD. It can be purchased on Amazon and would make a great gift. To win you must visit the Prima Princessa site and watch the video clip. Leave a comment here stating why you think your child (or any child) would be intrigued by this DVD. Enter by Tuesday, April 1, 2008.

You do not need a blog to enter, just leave us your e-mail address so that we may contact you. As always, it is Props & Pans policy NOT to distribute any information you give us (including your e-mail). Thanks for entering!

I assumed the majority of this film would concentrate on the young boy, Angus, finding the egg and keeping the water horse from his family as it out grew their house. But instead the story focuses a majority of the two hours on relationships of the characters. From the previews I would have considered this movie a mixture of comedy and drama, but I’m sure it was more or less a drama.

It centers around Scotland and the 1940′s. I was genuinely impressed with the authentic setting and replication of the era. I never fully understood the mystery of the Loch Ness Monster, so this was an enjoyable explanation.

Angus lost his father, but hasn’t accepted that he isn’t returning. He becomes very attached to the water horse, which he named Crusoe, and struggles to give it freedom. Kids will relate to the story of wanting a pet to call their own.

A new handyman that closely resembles his father was confusing to my son, because of the close resemblance in appearance. For a young child the movie drug out a little too long and at times seemed to lose it’s direction (and his attention). The story line changes to getting the water horse out of the loch (over a net) and into the open sea, which reminded me a lot of Free Willy.

In the end good prevails of course, and it does have some humorous moments. For a five year old it had a few violent scenes and unexpected scares. Overall, it is a family-friendly movie with a good mixture of fantasy included.

Written by Emily, who is a married working mother of a very energetic 5 year old son. They reside in Southern Indiana (a little too close to the Kentucky border). Someday she’d like to visit Intercourse, PA and have her picture taken with the welcome sign. She writes at her personal blog, Fenicle and loves free samples and trying new things!

Mitch Albom is one of my favorite authors. I’m sure many of you have either read or heard about several of his books, including “Tuesdays With Morrie” and “The Five People You Meet in Heaven.” Most of his well-known writings are based on the idea of life and death, which may scare some people off.

Oprah Winfrey has turned his latest book, “One More Day,” into a TV movie which debuts on Sunday, December 9th on ABC. I was fortunate enough to see an advanced copy of this movie and want to share my thoughts with you in hopes that you will feel compelled to tune in on Sunday. It airs on ABC from 9 – 11 p.m. EST.

For those who haven’t read the book, the main character, Chick Benetto (played by Michael Imperioli), is a former baseball player who turned to alcohol. One evening he returns to his hometown and in a moment of desperation decides to end his life. The title of the book comes from a magical moment where he is granted one more day with his mother (played by Ellen Burstyn). She had previously passed away and it was one of the things that led to his emotional state. Most of the movie revolves around the secrets his mother uncovers for him about their lives. As for how it all turns out, you’ll have to tune in.

This may be the first time I’ve ever said this, but I liked the movie better than the book. Albom has a unique way of using sentimentality in his writing and somehow they found a way to bring it across the screen as well.

Written by Emily, who is a married working mother of a very energetic 5 year old son. They reside in Southern Indiana (a little too close to the Kentucky border). Someday she’d like to visit Intercourse, PA and have her picture taken with the welcome sign. She writes at her personal blog, Fenicle and loves free samples and trying new things!

Every Monday we’ll tell you about the things we can’t live without. If you have a “must have” item to pass along please e-mail us. We welcome contributions from our readers.

My must have would make a fabulous family gift this Christmas for yourself or someone else. Hopefully you watched the Planet Earth series on the Discovery Channel. If not then you missed out on learning about our magnificent world as explained by Sigourney Weaver.

The series comes in a 5 disc DVD set for under $60 and although that may seem a little pricey, it is well worth it. There are 11 episodes and lots of behind-the-scenes footage to watch from the ocean floor to the jungle tree-tops. What a great way to teach your children about our planet and spend some time together watching something the entire family can enjoy. It’s also available in HD and Blu-Ray disc.

by Emily

My stepdaughter asked me what my favorite holiday is while we were shopping last week. I quickly responded that it was Thanksgiving. She looked surprised and said that she thought it was Christmas because I love the decorations and traditions so much. I explained that Thanksgiving was my favorite because it was all about the food, family, and friends and nothing else, and that besides, the day after Thanksgiving, I got to start celebrating Christmas.

One of my must have Christmas celebrations is A Christmas Story. I found it on DVD for $6 at Target this year on sale, and now I don’t have to wait until it comes on TV for the 80 millionth time. I highly suggest picking up a copy of this really cheap flick and making it part of your Christmas tradition.

by Canape

I’ve bought a lot of bras over the years. Bras that make promises. Bras that allege to not dig into my shoulders, and that they won’t show seams. they claim that they will be comfortable. They present themselves in lacy designs and PROMISE me that they will support my cup size (I won’t say what it is – think really big and then think OH MAN THAT IS BIG!).

These bras tell you lies. You know who doesn’t lie? Jane Russell. With her teased, dyed black hair and red lipstick. She said that the Playtex 18 Hour Bra would provide support for us “full figured gals.” The 18 Hour Bra is built like a tank. Whether you wear one with an underwire or without, this is one bra that holds its shape and really does lift and separate. I have bought many bras in the last 10 years and at this moment I am wearing a Playtex 18 Hour Bra that is almost 10 years old. It is still is as good of shape as the day I bought it.

by Gidge