If you’ve been on the hunt for a way to get your kids interested in the Winter Olympics, look no further than this phenomenal set of eight images from artist Francesco Francavilla. Francavilla is a veteran comic book artist who has worked on interiors for Detective Comics, Captain America, Hawkeye, and many more.

To honor the Winter Olympics in Sochi, Francavilla has completed the perfect homage on his Tumblr: the Winter Super Olympics.

It’s easy to get lost staring at these for hours. My favorite has to be The Punisher in the biathlon, although I’d pay real money to see The Flash speed skating.

The post The Winter Super Olympics appeared first on GeekMom.

Star Wars Rebels, a Disney XD show that will unveil the mysterious time between Episodes III and IV, is set to premiere in a movie this fall. Disney’s team behind the show has been releasing behind the scenes and character profile videos, and they’ve finally announced their first female character, Sabine.

As excited as I am for the rest of the series, and intrigued by the new cast of characters–Freddie Prinze Jr. did an impressive job in Mass Effect 3 so I’m now a fan of his voice work–I’ve been wondering if my daughter will be able to identify with any of them. Sabine is a Mandalorian, which should instantly earn her fans with the veteran Star Wars crowd, but it’s her personality that caught my (and my daughter’s) attention.

Sabine is a unique character in the Star Wars universe who expresses herself through art, or specifically, graffiti. Her “phoenix” mark bears a striking resemblance to the symbol of the Rebel Alliance, wouldn’t you say? She’s also described as a “spunky” weapons expert with “a little bit of an attitude,” so it sounds like she’s a kindred spirit of Princess Leia.

EW.com just shared a complete list of the series’ new characters, including one more fearless female, the Twi’lek pilot Hera.

In the meantime, if you’re like me and you never watched The Clone Wars, good news! It’s coming to Netflix in March with a final season, giving you plenty of time to get prepared for Star Wars Rebels.

The post Star Wars Rebels Introduces Sabine appeared first on GeekMom.

© Nintendo

The newest installment in Nintendo’s Donkey Kong franchise hits game store shelves today. Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze for the Wii U might look like a simple kid’s game, but don’t be fooled. The side-scrolling platformer harkens back to the days of the SNES when you were likely to throw your controller on the floor in frustration, but you’ll have so much fun that you’ll immediately pick it up to try again.

Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze opens with Donkey Kong and his family enjoying a warm tropical day, when suddenly the Snowmads attack DK Island. The island quickly freezes over, and Donkey Kong has to fight to take his home back from the icy invaders. Along the way DK can join forces with Diddy Kong, Dixie Kong, and Cranky Kong to put their valuable abilities to good use in some tight spots.

The controls are not immediately intuitive. Although there is a helpful pig in the beginning levels to explain some of the buttons (each time we played I had to re-learn what each of them did). I often found myself accidentally rolling off a platform or not remembering how to grab vines without mashing all of the buttons. Once I did, though, my daughter and I were off and running, jumping, and pounding.

The game’s challenges are tempered with multiplayer features that encourage family play-time together. The team-up between Donkey Kong and his cohorts works well, with an ability for DK to carry the other character on his back that is ideal for playing with a younger gamer. My five-year-old was ecstatic to play Dixie. Even when Donkey Kong was the one doing most of the heavy lifting (literally), she was happy to be perched on him without worrying about missing a platform or falling off the edge. And if we did get too far apart, the game transports the faraway character to the other without the loss of a life, which is always a welcome feature.

While Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze isn’t as carefree as games like Super Mario 3D World, it’s a vibrant, gratifying family game. Expect a lot of high-fives from your kids when you work together to finish a level or defeat a boss. Or, in my case, remember how to jump.

Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze is available today for the Wii U at a retail price of $49.99.

GeekMom received a copy for review purposes.

The post Monkey Around in Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze appeared first on GeekMom.

Nebula wraps © Espionage Cosmetics / ThinkGeek

Last year we told you about geeky makeup company and their Kickstarter campaign for nerdy nail wraps. After a highly successful campaign (290% funded), 32 designs were unveiled and shipped to happy backers.

ThinkGeek, a favorite online shopping destination for geeks of all stripes, now carries some nail wrap designs in case you missed the campaign the first time around.

Or, if you’re a GeekMom reader, you’re in luck! Enter our giveaway now for a chance to win two wrap designs: nebula and glittery building blocks, generously given to us for our readers by Espionage Cosmetics.

Not only would you have enough wraps to dress up your own nails, the wraps can be easily cut to fit small nails — perfect for some geeky-mom-and-daughter bonding time.

Entry is open to U.S. residents only. To enter our giveaway, just log in to Rafflecopter with your Facebook account or email address (use a valid email so we can let you know if you win) by March 14, 2014.

Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter for additional entries! If you already like/follow us, it will still enter you in the giveaway.

Winner(s) will be chosen randomly using Rafflecopter and notified by email. If there is no response in two days, then a new winner will be chosen.

Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

The post Giveaway! Out-of-This-World Nerdy Nail Wraps appeared first on GeekMom.

Photo: kalexanderson, licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

It’s obvious that everything changes when a newborn baby is welcomed into your world. But for geek-girls-turned-geek-moms, there are some unique changes and challenges in store. (But don’t worry—that’s what GeekMom is here for!)

• You learn to shriek quietly at The Walking Dead, because you become the walking dead if you wake the baby.
• Your idea of a movie marathon is when you get to finish a two hour movie.
• Midnight screening? More like midnight screaming.
• You keep “marathoning” the same episode of Battlestar Galactica over and over because you forgot you’ve already seen it.
• You think one season of Firefly is binge watching? Just wait until you get through 45 seasons of Sesame Street.
• You stop quoting along with Labyrinth JUST IN CASE the Goblin King might really show up.
• You used to wear your Mass Effect N7 hoodie to show off your Spectre street cred. Now you wear it to hide your unwashed hair because you haven’t showered in three days.
• You become a master at typing while holding a baby in one arm.
• You’ve spent years lovingly collecting and organizing the books on your bookshelves. After your toddler gets her hands on them, your books go from “alphabetical” or “genre” to “floor.”
• Your Benedict Cumberbatch pinning sessions turn into birthday-party-planning pinning sessions. (But with some Benedict pins thrown in, let’s be real.)
• The Star Wars toys you’ve been holding on to for 20 years are actually played with. And you don’t mind one bit.
• You start geeking out about first smiles, first laughs, and first steps.
• You become part of a special fandom that’s unlike any other: You are your child’s biggest fan.

What else changed for you when you went from geek girl to geek mom? Let geek moms-to-be know what’s in store in the comments below!

The post 13 Things That Change When You Go From Geek Girl to Geek Mom appeared first on GeekMom.

© Nintendo

Pastel colors, crayon-drawn backgrounds, and baby Mario Bros. populate Yoshi’s New Island, out today for the Nintendo 3DS. Yoshi’s New Island mixes game play elements that temper the challenge of a 2D platform game with forgiving features and enjoyable mini-games.

Yoshi’s New Island opens with the adorable origin story of Baby Mario and Baby Luigi. In fact, everything about Yoshi’s New Island is so adorable, I’m going to have to hit up the thesaurus for all the different ways to say “cute.”

The graphics are colorful and soft, although surprisingly pixelated, but it adds to the charm. This is one of the few games that I actually leave the volume up on the DS for, as the cheery music and the also-adorable-and-slightly-hilarious sound effects are worth hearing every time I play. (I swear Yoshi says “bum” when he lays an egg.)

As Yoshi travels across Egg Island to rescue Baby Luigi, he encounters familiar Super Mario Bros. foes like piranha plants and snifits. If any enemy happens to get their mitts on Yoshi, there are only a few precious seconds to grab Baby Mario before the bad guys do.

My five-year-old panicked a little each time Baby Mario started wailing, but otherwise enjoyed playing Yoshi’s New Island. She quickly got a handle on the game controls, although as the levels progressed past the first world, she often handed off the 3DS to get her through a jam. Lucky for her (and me), like Super Mario 3D World, Yoshi’s New Island includes the forgiving bonus of a special power-up if you fail a level so many times. It’s not an instant win. Yoshi must still navigate through the level from beginning to end, and he’s not invincible, but those power-ups definitely help.

Some levels also include mini-games where Yoshi transforms into things like a helicopter or jackhammer, mixing up game play to keep things interesting. And all levels include collecting flowers, stars, and red coins to add even more challenge for players who want to complete the game 100%.

Yoshi’s New Island is another fun platformer out from Nintendo this year. While I can’t speak for any nostalgia or throwbacks to the original SNES Yoshi’s Island (I didn’t play it), the 3DS game has all of the enjoyable elements of a Mario game with the added bonus of being irresistibly cute. Delightful. Dainty. Aww-inspiring? You get the idea.

Yoshi’s New Island is now available for the 3DS at a suggested retail price of $39.99.

GeekMom was provided with a promotional copy for review purposes.

The post Yoshi’s New Island? More Like Yoshi’s Cute Island appeared first on GeekMom.

Emerald City Comicon 2014 / Photo: Kelly Knox

Emerald City Comicon, held in Seattle this past weekend, was completely sold out for all three days and packed to the walls with families from across the country.

With a well-organized area for kids to complete superhero missions, a booth raising funds for charity from the 501st Legion, and even a kids’ costume contest where everyone takes home a medal, an argument can be made that ECCC is the most family-friendly comic convention out there.

Here is a photo gallery with some of the best family and kid cosplay from the weekend. Stay tuned to GeekMom for more coverage from the convention!

The post Kids Rule at Emerald City Comicon 2014 [Gallery] appeared first on GeekMom.

Anne Wheaton and Bonnie Burton pose with Anne Wheaton and Bonnie Burton at Emerald City Comicon 2014. Photo: Kelly Knox.

At the Espionage Cosmetics booth at Emerald City Comicon 2014, a very special, geektastic set of nail wraps made its debut. VandalEyes, the googly eye sensation that got its start on Twitter, can now grace your fingertips in style. Haven’t heard of VandalEyes yet? Googly eye connoisseurs Anne Wheaton and Bonnie Burton talked to me at the con about how #VandalEyes got started, why they teamed up with Espionage, and how you can support googly eyes for a good cause.

Bonnie Burton, author of the Star Wars Craft Book and all-around craft maven, has long been sticking jiggly plastic eyes on objects, from puppets to, well, everything. “I used to do this when I was in college, to my roommates, and I would do it later when I was more of an adult couch-surfing at people’s houses,” Bonnie said. “I would wait until everyone went to sleep, and then I’d put googly eyes on everything inside the fridge. It’s just something I’ve always done because I think it’s hilarious.”

Not even the house of Bonnie’s partner-in-VandalEyes-crime, Anne Wheaton, was safe, but it wasn’t long before she joined in the fun. “Bonnie came to visit me a couple of years ago,” Anne told me. “She was putting googly eyes on things around my house, and I said, ‘Oh my God! I used to do things with those all the time when I was a kid.’ So then we both started doing them, and Archie McPhee started making them [self-adhesive].”

Once the quirky retail store Archie McPhee made their Emergency Googly Eyes kit—inspired by Bonnie when she requested a tin to put googly eyes in—sticking the plastic eyes on everything soon became an internet sensation. “We started doing it more and more on Twitter, and Anne is the Queen of Puns, so she came up with the idea [of #VandalEyes],” Bonnie said. The hashtag evolved into a website, VandalEyes.net, where the work of the googly eye army can be seen on everything from food to airplane tray tables.

VandalEyes in action. Photo: © VandalEyes.net.

VandalEyes has even made its way onto television show sets and talk shows, thanks to Anne and Bonnie’s friends. “We’ve gotten all of our friends addicted to it, like Seth Green,” Bonnie said. “When you watch the show Dads, you’ll see VandalEyes pop up in the weirdest places [on the set].”

“Seth does a show called Robot Chicken, and my husband [Wil] worked on it a few weeks ago. He said even at the Robot Chicken studio—googly eyes everywhere,” Anne said. Seth Green even talked about his love of VandalEyes during an appearance on Conan O’Brien’s talk show last year.

So of all the places to stick googly eyes, why fingernails?

VandalEyes fans have long been gluing tiny googly eyes to their nails or painstakingly painting them on themselves. When Anne saw the Kickstarter from Espionage for their nerdy nail wraps line, inspiration struck. She contacted Espionage Cosmetics through Twitter, proposing a VandalEyes collaboration, and heard back from the company quickly with a resounding yes.

Anne and Bonnie worked with Espionage to create the VandalEyes nail wraps design, looking at Pinterest for inspiration, while also thinking about practical, everyday use. “I’m super rough with my hands, so I wouldn’t want eyes above, because I would hit them and they’d go flying,” Anne said. Bonnie agreed. “I worried about the same thing, because I’m such a tomboy—I can barely keep nail polish on… googly eyes would just go everywhere.”

VandalEyes Nail Wraps (and ECCC Exclusive). Photo: Kelly Knox.

Bonnie and Anne were drawn to working with Espionage Cosmetics because of the company’s obvious passion for geeky cosmetics. “It was a fun experience because they love what they do,” Bonnie said. “It was fun to be part of working with people that thoroughly love and enjoy their jobs, and love their products.”

This was no more apparent than during the VandalEyes photo shoot with Anne and Bonnie at the Espionage office, where the duo was greeted with detailed, handcrafted dresses covered in plastic, jiggling eyes. “And the funny thing was [about the dresses], we thought they were gorgeous and when we put them on, they were so loud because of all the pupils were hitting,” Anne laughed. “They were so loud, we couldn’t even hear what we were doing, and we were leaving a trail of googly eyes everywhere.”

VandalEyes Tee photo: © WeLoveFine

Not only did the glow-in-the-dark VandalEyes nail wraps make their debut at Emerald City Comicon, Anne and Bonnie teamed up with WeLoveFine to offer exclusive VandalEyes T-shirts at the con and online—and their commissions go to charity. “Our friend Sean Bonner designed the logo for us so Espionage could use the VandalEyes logo on our wraps, so we just decided that would be the best thing to do for the shirts as well,” said Anne. “The proceeds go to the Pasadena Humane Society, which is a non-profit organization that I’m a board member of.”

“We both have rescue dogs, so that’s a big deal for both of us, to be able to give back to the Humane Society,” Bonnie told me.

With the googly eye army poised to take over the internet, fingernails, and T-shirts, Bonnie and Anne can’t help but be amused by it all. “It was just something we did to crack ourselves up,” said Bonnie. “We had no idea that it would become such a phenomenon.”

The post Bonnie Burton and Anne Wheaton Talk #VandalEyes at Emerald City Comicon appeared first on GeekMom.

© Lifetime

Whether you’re a girly-girl geek really into fashion, or a member of the Carol Corps who only needs to hear me say “clothes inspired by Captain Marvel,” you’ll want to tune into Lifetime tonight for Project Runway: Under the Gunn. Marvel-inspired looks will own the runway as contestants tackle designs based on Black Widow, Captain Marvel, Falcon, Hawkeye, the Guardians of the Galaxy, and many more.

When asked why the Marvel Universe is a perfect inspiration for fashion [Marvel's Cort] Lane said, “Our characters are dramatic, visually exciting and rich with story—and isn’t high fashion all of those things? I got to spend so much time explaining the Marvel characters to the designers—each one of them found something really relatable and inspiring about a Marvel hero.”

Not only will you see what’s sure to be unforgettable fashion (or dare I say, Marvel-ous clothes?), fans of Lady Sif from Thor and Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. can see Jaimie Alexander judge the competition.

Project Runway: Under the Gunn airs tonight on Lifetime at 9:00 PM EST.

The post Marvel-Inspired Fashion on Project Runway Tonight appeared first on GeekMom.

Stephen Amell as Oliver Queen © The CW

If Oliver Queen had half the charisma as the actor who portrays him, I’d never miss an episode of The CW’s Arrow.

Stephen Amell’s spotlight panel at Emerald City Comicon was the first time the Arrow actor made an appearance at the con. Amell is an actor well-versed in social media, often sharing and tweeting photos of himself working out and on set, so it was a bit of a surprise to see that in person he’s often unpretentious, highly complimentary of his co-stars, and prone to geeking out a little bit about the Flash and the Justice League.

Amell’s panel was so easygoing that he didn’t even wait for host Clare Kramer to give him an introduction, sauntering out with a smile while she was mid-sentence. While most actors chose to stand solo in the spotlight answering fan questions, Amell—with a Flash cap perched on his head—sat down with Kramer to chat and respond to fans.

Arrow fans in the audience were treated to a casual, fun Q&A that highlighted how much the cast enjoys playing in the DC universe, even if the dark tone of the show doesn’t make it obvious. When asked if Oliver Queen’s peripheral vision would suffer with the hood up on his head (held in place only by his “grippy hair,” Amell attests), the actor laughed and said that Deathstroke has even more difficulty due to his eyepatch. “When [actor Manu Bennett] is all cool getting into a limousine,” grinned Amell, “just know that he almost knocked himself unconscious.”

The Arrow star also talked about his archery training for the show, which some fans might be surprised to hear never once includes actually firing an arrow. “There is no safe way to shoot an arrow on a set,” said Amell. “I’m grabbing nothing [from the quiver], nocking nothing, releasing nothing. But my form is good.” Amell credits his hard work on his form to his instructor, who started his training when the show began with a 45 minute video showing all the ways TV and movies get archery wrong.

And with the upcoming Superman/Batman/Wonder Woman film hinting that a Justice League movie might be in the future, what about another Oliver Queen donning the hood and firing those arrows? “The thought of someone else playing Oliver Queen makes me want to smash my head on that table,” Amell said without hesitation. It’s obvious he’d love to be a part of such a team-up, but hasn’t yet been approached about a film role.

Stephen Amell as Oliver Queen and Grant Gustin as Barry Allen © The CW

Stephen Amell is excited about what the future holds for Arrow, with more and more nods to the DC universe coming into play. (The spinoff show with Barry Allen as The Flash kicks off in the fall.) “There’s so much space to move toward iconic characters,” Amell replied when asked about seeing a Canary Cry or Oliver’s classic goatee. He even related how excited he was to have Harley Quinn put in an appearance in a recent episode.

With so many references to characters and places in the DC Comics universe, it’s unfortunate that almost none of the easygoing charm that Amell exudes comes out in his Ollie. The tone of Arrow has always been dark and brooding, with an Oliver Queen to match, and like Corrina, I’m having a hard time tuning in every week. Perhaps if they let a little more of Amell come through in his character, fans would see a little bit of the charming Oliver Queen they’ve come to love in the comic books.

The post Arrow’s Stephen Amell is Disarmingly Charming appeared first on GeekMom.

Instagram uploads from Jim Lee, Stanley Lau, Skottie Young, Becky Cloonan, and Stephanie Buscema

Ah, Instagram, a social network for those of us who just don’t get enough photos of meals or our friends’ kids on Facebook. But did you know you can use the app for images that go beyond the embarrassing Throwback Thursday photos your cousin keeps posting?

Turn Instagram into an amazing art gallery by following these 11 masters of comic book art. Not only are the incredibly talented artists generous enough to share their work with the world for free, you can also get glimpses into the drawing process as several of them even provide videos of penciling or inking.

Jim Lee (jimleeart) – Jim Lee needs almost no introduction, but I’ll give you one anyway. One of the founders of Image Comics and current Co-Publisher at DC Comics, his artwork on titles Batman: Hush, X-Men, and Superman: For Tomorrow are among his most well-known. He currently does pencils for Superman Unchained, and often posts his sketches on Instagram.

Stephanie Buscema (stephbuscema) – The stylish and vibrant art of Stephanie Buscema can be seen on covers of Red Sonja, Betty and Veronica, and My Little Pony.

Skottie Young (skottieyoung) – Known for his adorable “baby” variant covers of recent Marvel NOW! titles, Skottie Young has a distinctive look and humor in his work. He’s both writer and artist on Marvel’s upcoming Rocket Raccoon ongoing series.

Becky Cloonan (beckycloonan) – Practically a legend of the comic book industry, Becky Cloonan is not only an artist on mainstream titles like Batman and Conan the Barbarian, she also draws creator-owned and small publisher titles. Instagram barely does justice to the beauty and detail of her work.

Joe Quinones’ Instagram profile images

Joe Quinones (kwinones) – His artwork has graced the covers of Captain Marvel, Young Avengers, Dark Avengers, and more, and his much-anticipated Black Canary and Zatanna: Bloodspell original graphic novel is out in May 2014.

Todd Nauck (toddnauck) – The artist for the new Nightcrawler series, Todd Nauck is a prolific poster on Instagram, sharing illustrations of a wide range of characters from DC, Marvel, and Image.

Annie Wu (anniewuart) – The artist who designed the future of Batgirl in Batman Beyond and the current interior artist on the Kate Bishop stories in Hawkeye, Annie Wu‘s Instagram feed is as fascinating and compelling as her work.

Edwin Huang (ironpinky) – The current artist on Image’s Skullkickers, Edwin Huang’s bold art shared on Instagram often features his work on Super Street Fighter.

Marcio Takara’s Instagram profile images

Marcio Takara (marciotakara) – An artist who has worked for Boom!, Image, Marvel, and DC Comics, Marcio Takara is the penciller and inker for the current “Lantern” arc of Smallville: Season 11. He frequently posts videos of pencilling and inking that show off his detailed work.

Will Sliney (wsliney) – Devoted fans of Marvel’s defunct Fearless Defenders are very familiar with Will Sliney’s work. His images on Instagram include some of his work on Spider-Man, Avengers, and a phenomenal series of images showcasing a Darth Vader piece from pencils to color.

Stanley Lau (artgerm) – Stanley Lau’s gorgeous covers have graced the pages of Birds of Prey and Batgirl. While the subjects of some of his work are voluptuous (which may or may not be your cup of tea), the digital artist’s pieces on Instagram are always breathtaking.

The post 11 Comic Book Artists to Follow on Instagram appeared first on GeekMom.

Disney Magical World © Disney / Nintendo

Have you ever daydreamed about living in Disneyland? (Of course you have!) Thanks to the new Nintendo 3DS game Disney Magical World, you can almost make that dream come true.

In the game, you join your friends Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, and more in Castleton, a city populated with more things to do than you can shake a magic wand at. With quests, clothing and furniture crafting, a café to run, collections, fishing, and more, Disney Magical World is an unending, immersive, and magical 3DS game that fans of Disney (kid or grownup) won’t be able to put down.

An open city to explore, fruit to pick, stores to shop at, visits from real life friends with StreetPass, and adorable citizens, it’s easy to draw a comparison to the Animal Crossing franchise. Disney Magical World shares some of the same happy-go-lucky vibe, but feels even more easygoing without crotchety villagers who make snarky comments if you don’t play after a while. Even running the café, for example, which could have been designed to make players feel rushed to meet customer demands, doesn’t have any negatives. If you run out of food, you simply get a cheer for a job well done, and you can make more whenever you feel like it.

© Disney / Nintendo

Materials for crafting clothes, furniture, café decorations, food, and wands can be collected in quests which take players to other magical worlds. Disney fans will be delighted to explore the worlds of Cinderella, Winnie the Pooh, Aladdin, and Alice in Wonderland to earn stickers (the level system) and crafting materials.

Unfortunately for my preschool-age daughter, the game requires a lot of reading, with very few voiceovers to help her on her way. But we can happily play together, and I play the role of narrator for her Disney Magical World adventures.

My one complaint is the repetitive music, a necessary evil in this type of game, I suppose. After spending just a few minutes in Castleton I had to turn the sound off. My daughter loves it, however, so to each their own.

Disney Magical World includes over 60 classic Disney characters, an incredible amount of customization, and even themed decorations and recipes based on holidays and seasons. The 3DS game is almost a no-brainer for Disney fans.

Disney Magical World is available on the Nintendo 3DS on April 11, 2014, and retails for $29.99.

GeekMom received a promotional copy for review purposes.

The post Disneyland Meets Animal Crossing in Disney Magical World appeared first on GeekMom.

LEGO Build for Good Competitors. All Photos: Kelly Knox

It’s amazing the number of ways our kids inspire us. From the little things like just saying a kind word to someone who needs it, to the incredible creations that are born from curiosity, kids can do marvelous things. Twelve-year-old Shubham Banjeree is one such kid.

After spotting a flyer at his house asking for donations for the visually impaired, Shubham wondered, “How do blind people read?” His search through Google to find the answer led him along a path where he was astonished to learn that Braille printers cost thousands of dollars. Inspired, Shubham turned to his LEGO Mindstorms EV3 kit (along with a few pieces from Home Depot), and in just four weeks created a cost-effective Braille printer he dubbed Braigo.

LEGO, moved by the 7th grader who combined his love of LEGO with the genuine desire to do something good for people, issued the Build for Good Challenge to seven companies in Seattle. Each company was chosen as one of the most innovative Seattle has to offer: Amazon, Egencia, Expedia, HTC, Microsoft, Nordstrom, and Zulily. The teams were sent EV3 kits and asked to create a robot that “solves a human interest problem.” On Thursday, April 10, at the EMP Museum in the heart of Seattle, the teams gathered to show off their inventions.

Contestants responded with robots that picked up small toys, sorted luggage by color, worked on a model urban farm, and turned on the lights and watered plants in a miniature home. Teams from HTC and Microsoft considered the challenges facing mobility impaired young people, and invented a selfie-taking robot and 3-D version of Zoo Tycoon respectively.

The Microsoft/XboxOne team gathered the most onlookers at the event, with a large team and fantastic, colorful setup that included three different robots and a custom Windows Phone app to play the game and control them. Team Xbox was motivated by the desire to help kids who are unable to hold or manipulate a game controller. Their entire project took 150 hours over three weeks of work with the LEGO Mindstorms EV3 kits.

NORD1

It was underdog Team Nordstrom that won the grand prize, however. NORD1, the team’s brainchild, was built with kids in mind to add a little bit of fun when it’s time to take their medication. Parents simply direct the robot to deliver the pill, and it finds their child and dispenses the medicine automatically. Once delivery is complete, the robot enters “party dance mode” set to the tune of El DeBarge’s “It’s Johnny.” This Short Circuit flashback was enough to win over everyone the audience over the age of 30, but when NORD1 belted out a good ol’ “EXTERMINATE,” I suddenly had a clear favorite.

Team Nordstrom was awarded five LEGO Mindstorms EV3 kits to donate to the children’s charity of their choice. Among the judges were Shubham Banjeree, who still stole the show with Braigo, even among so many incredible inventors and their creations.

“We continue to be amazed by inventors of all ages who utilize the Mindstorms platform to express their creativity, building everything from robotic pets to robots that solve real life needs, like Shubham’s inventive Braille printer,” said Michael McNally, senior director of brand relations for LEGO Systems. “In the spirit of these LEGO Mindstorms inventors and inspired by today’s competitors from Seattle’s elite companies, we encourage children around the world to put their ingenuity to work through play to creatively build a better world.”

The post Seattle’s Innovators Assemble for LEGO’s Build for Good appeared first on GeekMom.

Photo © The Not-Its

Got the kids gathered in the backyard ready to play and party, but only the mundane sounds of the neighborhood fill the air? Forget the Frozen soundtrack for the 100th time, and don’t stress about taking your chances on a Pandora station. Just use GeekMom’s picks below for the perfect all-ages, slightly geeky soundtrack for a birthday party, playdate, or fun-filled family time together.

1. Birthday – Caspar Babypants (iTunes/Amazon)
2. Popcorn – Recess Monkey (iTunes/Amazon)
3. Why Is Dad So Mad? – The Board of Education (Bandcamp)
4. Roy G. Biv – They Might Be Giants (iTunes/Amazon)
5. KidQuake! – The Not-Its (iTunes/Amazon)
6. Thingamajig – Lucky Diaz and the Family Jam Band (iTunes/Amazon)
7. Rockin’ Little Neutron Star – Beth Nielsen Chapman (iTunes/Amazon)
8. Jet Pack – Recess Monkey (iTunes/Amazon)
9. I Scream, You Scream – Frances England (iTunes/Amazon)
10. Gotta Be Me – Secret Agent 23 Skidoo (iTunes/Amazon)
11. Googly Eyes – Caspar Babypants (iTunes/Amazon)
12. Recess – Justin Roberts (iTunes/Amazon)
13. Dance Happy – Danny Lion (Bandcamp)
14. Rock, Paper, Scissors – The Not-Its (iTunes/Amazon)
15. Meet the Elements – They Might Be Giants (iTunes/Amazon)
16. The Princess Who Saved Herself – Jonathan Coulton (iTunes/Amazon)

And, all right, maybe toss “Let It Go” in there for good measure.

Do you have any favorite kids’ songs to add? Let your fellow party planners know in the comments below!

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© Lakeshore Learning

As one school year comes to a close, your thoughts might already be turning to next fall—especially if you’re the mom of a kid in Pre-K, as I am. If you’re wondering if your child is ready for the next grade of elementary school, Lakeshore Learning offers a new educational game series that gives your child a good time and you peace of mind.

Are You Ready For Kindergarten? is a school assessment in a game show format that you play together at home. For each question about math and language that your preschooler answers correctly, they win play cash that they can spend on prize coupons at the conclusion of the game.

You can write anything you want on the coupons: a new Skylanders figure, a trip to the swimming pool, or whatever is certain to get your geek kid excited to play. For smaller kids like my preschooler, I recommend making it a special prize worth getting excited for each time you play. It takes a while to answer all of the questions, and most preschoolers will lose interest quickly unless there’s a fantastic prize waiting in the end.

As you progress through each game, mark down the answers that your kid missed, and you can enter the incorrect questions on Lakeshore’s web site. The site then provides an assessment for areas you and your kindergartener-to-be can work on over the summer in between your family adventures.

© Lakeshore Learning

Are You Ready For Kindergarten? is only thinly disguised as a game, and I had a tough time keeping my five-year-old’s interest long enough to make it through an entire card deck. And at a retail price of $29.99, it’s quite an investment for a game that will probably only be played a few times before the next school year starts.

If you are seriously concerned about your preschooler’s readiness for the first year of kindergarten, though, it’s worth the money. (I discovered that she’s more ready to start kindergarten than I am for her to go!) Lakeshore Learning is even offering a special coupon just for GeekMom readers.

To get $10 off any Are You Ready? Game Show, enter code 9141 at checkout or visit the site for a store coupon. The coupon expires 7/31/14.

GeekMom received a promotional copy for review purposes.

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© Disney / Lucasfilm

With the recent casting news for Episode VII unleashed upon the world, and a new trailer for the upcoming animated series Star Wars Rebels, we are back in the heady days of Star Wars hype. A new app from Disney Publishing takes us back to the last time we were excited for a new Star Wars film with Star Wars Journeys: The Phantom Menace, an interactive storybook for the iPhone/iPad. But is $6.99 worth it for an app that retells the film most consider to be the worst of the trilogies?

If this is your child’s first exposure to the galaxy of Star Wars, it’s a good place to start. My five-year-old has yet to make it through a Star Wars film all the way to the end, but when I showed her the app, she was excited to explore the storybook together at her own pace.

The story walks through the plot of the first prequel, with the original cast’s voices and music. There are a lot of words on each page of the app, and no word-by-word highlighting to the narration, so my daughter’s interest would sometimes fade on some of the longer pages. Geek parents who think they know everything about Star Wars might even learn a thing or two from the thorough text, like the kind of fish that attacks Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan (Opee Sea Killer, duh) and Chancellor Valorum’s first name (Finis).

The interactive artwork is well done and highly detailed, down to blinking Gungans and falling confetti, and hidden in each page are secret objects. Tapping these objects gives you “SP,” points for podracing, that can be spent on new podracers and customization. This gives kids an incentive to play through the story more than once to hunt those items down.

© Disney / Lucasfilm

With the amount of podracing content in the app, you are getting two games in one with Star Wars Journeys: The Phantom Menace. There are a variety of podracers, tracks, and racers themselves to choose from, although my daughter was dismayed at the lack of female characters. “Don’t they know girls want to play?” she asked. Good question.

After completing the storybook, my daughter stood up and yelled triumphantly, “I’ve finally seen Star Wars!” Seeing my five-year-old excited about Star Wars absolutely made the high price worth it.

Star Wars Journeys: The Phantom Menace is a pricey app, but with the amount of content you get, it’s not a bad investment. If you strongly dislike The Phantom Menace, it might be worth skipping this one—Disney Publishing has already announced plans upcoming storybooks to cover all six Star Wars films. If this first Star Wars Journeys app is any indication, those apps will be detailed, enjoyable, and a great way to introduce kids to a galaxy far, far away.

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© Hub Network / Hasbro Studios

The fourth season of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic draws to a magical close this Saturday on Hub Network. In the two-part season finale, Princess Twilight Sparkle continues to struggle with her identity as a princess. When Princess Celestia has a premonition about a mysterious evil foe from the past and turns to an unlikely source for help, Twilight Sparkle feels extra pressure to prove her worth.

To answer questions about the season finale and everything My Little Pony, Hub Network hosted a web chat called “What’s the Hubbub?” with star Tara Strong and lead writer Meghan McCarthy. Strong, who plays Twilight Sparkle, is even more animated than the character she plays. As the interview kicked off, she called the finale “big.” McCarthy agreed, saying that the one word she’d use to sum up the end of season four is “epic.”

© Hub Network / Hasbro Studios

When I asked if the season was completely planned out from the beginning, McCarthy noted that the big story arcs like the Equestria Games and the mysterious locked box were part of the plan, but the season finale took shape later. While they couldn’t talk much about what’s in store, McCarthy did say that the season finale sets up next season, coming in 2015.

Brony culture was a hot topic in the chat, and while Strong and McCarthy acknowledged that those fans are important and a big part of the show, they don’t write exclusively with them in mind. So how do they write with two different audiences, bronies and young children, both tuning in? “It’s first and foremost about the characters. That’s what guides us,” McCarthy said.

McCarthy also spoke briefly about Equestria Girls: Rainbow Rocks, the sequel coming this fall. “I like to call it the Empire Strikes Back of Equestria Girls,” she said with a laugh. “Everything gets kicked up a notch.”

Check out the full chat for more My Little Pony fun, and don’t forget to tune in to the season finale this Saturday on Hub Network.

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© Disney Junior

Nurses keep their calm and stay focused on helping anyone in need, no matter what comes their way. If your kids are fans of Disney Junior’s Doc McStuffins, they know that description also fits Nurse Hallie, Doc’s invaluable partner and wielder of the Big Book of Boo-Boos. In a new episode airing next week, “The Big Storm,” Hallie does everything she can to help Chilly and the rest of her friends when a thunderstorm rolls in.

Grab your preschoolers to get their first look at a clip of the hugely helpful hippo in next week’s episode.

“The Big Storm” premieres on Friday, May 16 at 9:30 a.m., ET/PT on Disney Channel. Speaking of nurses to the rescue, National Nurses Week is celebrated every year from May 6, also known as National Nurses Day, through May 12, the birthday of Florence Nightingale. If you’re a big fan of a special nurse in your life, take the time to give him or her a huge thank you this week!

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All photos: Kelly Knox

Sunny days are here again! Here in Seattle, that means we can finally emerge from our houses and spend time outside again without getting drenched.

One of my five-year-old’s favorite activities is drawing with sidewalk chalk. We’ve been talking about space and the solar system recently (thanks, Cosmos!) and we decided to create our own solar system on the sidewalk. While it’s fun just to draw the eight planets, you and your preschooler can estimate the scaled distances of the planets to the sun with measurements provided by NASA. This science activity not only gets you outside on a sunny day, but gives your little learner an idea of just how big our solar system is.

If this is your first time talking about the solar system with your preschooler or kindergartner, you may want to start with a book. I highly recommend First Space Encyclopedia, which is packed with photos and information about the sun, planets, and stars.

Then grab your chalk and head outside! Find a nice stretch of sidewalk in your neighborhood, at least 100 feet if you’re going to include planetoid Pluto. (Poor Pluto.) If you’re stopping at just the eight planets of the solar system, you’ll need about 75 feet.

Don’t forget to take the measurements with you. Here’s the 100 foot (30 meter) to Pluto model provided by NASA:

• Sun
• Mercury – 11″
• Venus – 1′ 10″
• Earth – 2′ 6″
• Mars – 3′ 10″
• Jupiter – 13′ 2″
• Saturn – 24′ 2″
• Uranus – 48′ 7″
• Neptune – 76′ 2″

Your preschooler can get to work drawing each planet after you estimate the scaled distance from the sun. While you can certainly send older kids out to do this activity on their own with a tape measure to get it just right, my five-year-old and I simply counted the steps for each planet to estimate the distance.

Next we talked about what each planet looks like, how big it is, how hot or cold it might be, and other distinguishing features. It’s not feasible to draw the planets to scale, but discussing the comparative size of planets can be helpful for your little astronomer, too.

And don’t worry if your kid doesn’t get something exactly right when drawing a planet—it’s just another chance to talk about the size or appearance of the planets or work on writing those letters.

By the time we got to Neptune, my daughter was starting to get an idea of how big the solar system is, and she got excited to learn more about the rest of the universe. “We gotta draw all of outer space!” she yelled.

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Sesame Street has long been known for taking full advantage of the Internet with unforgettable videos, and their newest one is no exception. Today’s message is for the parents, though!

Chuck and Tangled leading man Zachary Levi flexes his singing voice for “A Lovely Sunny Day,” an ode to getting off the screen and getting outside. Kids watching might not know what Instagram and Snapchat are, but can still get the same idea from this romp at the park: get out there and play!

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