Tomorrow school lets out early, so the girls and I are hosting a screening of the original Curious George movie in our basement. We’re going to have snacks and a craft, and hopefully give their friends’ parents a couple of hours to do a little last minute grocery shopping for Thanksgiving, or just relax for a bit. I know it’s going to be fun. You can’t go wrong with Curious George and the company of good friends!

You too can tune in to watch the broadcast premiere of the original Curious George movie, which will air as part of the Curious George Holiday Spectacular tomorrow, Wednesday, November 23rd.

The three-part-movie on-air event starts with Curious George, featuring the voices of Will Ferrell, Drew Barrymore and Dick Van Dyke, and the music of Jack Johnson, followed by Curious George 2: Follow That Monkey and Curious George: A Very Monkey Christmas. Encore presentations of the Holiday Spectacular will air on PBS KIDS throughout Thanksgiving weekend. Check your local listings for times.

THE MOVIES:

Curious George
Curious George follows everyone’s favorite spunky monkey as he sets off on a series of (mis)adventures. In the film, after the Man with the Yellow Hat accidentally brings back George from a business trip to Africa, the unlikely twosome embarks on a fun-filled journey through the big city, and ultimately finds their way to a lasting friendship. Featuring gorgeous and old-fashioned two-dimensional animation that echoes the simple colors and shapes of the books by Margret and H. A. Rey, Curious George includes voice talents Will Ferrell (as the Man with the Yellow Hat), Drew Barrymore, and Dick Van Dyke, as well as all-original music from Jack Johnson.

Curious George 2: Follow That Monkey
In Curious George 2: Follow That Monkey, the fun-filled sequel to the hit animated movie, Curious George and the Man with the Yellow Hat set out on a madcap cross-country adventure to reunite Kayla, a homesick elephant, with her family. This unlikely trio faces all types of comic calamities and colorful characters and in the end learns that with family, friends and determination you can achieve anything. Curious George 2 features the voices of Tim Curry, Matt Lauer, Jamie Kennedy and Jerry Lewis.

Curious George: A Very Monkey Christmas
In A Very Monkey Christmas, Curious George and the Man with the Yellow Hat are having a wonderful time getting ready for Christmas. There’s only one dilemma – neither of them can figure out what to give the other for a present! In the end, both gift-giving predicaments are simply and beautifully resolved, revealing the true spirit of the holiday season.

Disclosure: PBS sent me the Curious George movie as well as supplies for hosting our screening party.

I honestly did not want to like The Chew when it premiered back in September. The name sounded silly, and I really didn’t need yet one more show to watch.

But watch I did. And I got hooked. The hosts – Mario Batali, Michael Symon, Carla Hall, Daphne Oz, and Clinton Kelly – seem to be having fun sharing some really good recipe ideas that seem simple enough to make. While sometimes they’ll have a celebrity guest or two, it’s all about the food.

Right now, there are nearly 100 Thanksgiving recipes that you can find online at The Chew’s Thanksgiving Headquarters. All their shows for the past week and a half have focused on Thanksgiving, so it’s nice to see all the recipes in one spot. Two that stood out to me are Daphne Oz’s Chestnut Soup and Clinton Kelly’s Sourdough Stuffing with Apples. I’ve never cooked with chestnuts (and we have a tree in our backyard) so I find this soup intriguing. The stuffing… well, I’m always looking for a good stuffing recipe!

Sourdough Stuffing with Apples

Ingredients

• 3/4 pound Sourdough Bread (cut into 1/2 inch cubes)
• 1 pound Sweet Italian Sausage (casings removed)
• 1 Large Onion (chopped)
• 1 stalk Celery (chopped)
• 2 tablespoons Butter
• 1 tablespoon Fresh Sage (chopped)
• 1/4 cup Flat-leaf Parsley
• 1 1/4 cups Chicken Stock
• 2 large Eggs
• 3 cups Granny Smith Apples (cut into 1/2 inch cubes)
• 1/2 cup Golden Raisins
• Salt and Pepper (to taste)

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350F.
2. Cube bread, and toast on baking sheet until golden, about 15 minutes. Once toasted, transfer to bowl.
3. In a saute pan over medium-high heat, heat a tablespoon of olive oil, and saute sausage until cooked through, about 10 minutes, breaking into small pieces. Once cooked through, transfer sausage, retaining the fat in the skillet, to the bowl with the bread.
4. Saute the onion and celery in the pan with the sausage drippings until soft and transluscent, about 10 minutes, then add to the sausage and bread mixture.
5. Add butter to same skillet, until tender, about 5 minutes, add herbs, apple and raisins and cook an additional minute. Return the sausage, celery, onion, and bread to skillet and mix. Add the eggs to the stock and mix into stuffing. Season with salt and pepper, toss, then transfer contents to a baking dish and bake at 350 until golden brown, about 30 minutes.

Doesn’t that sound good? And super easy?

WIN IT!

The Chew crew would like to give a reader of The Domestic Buzz a blanket and keychain/bottle opener, both with The Chew logo. Pictured below, it would make a fun gift for a fan of ABC show. To enter to win, please visit The Chew’s Thanksgiving Headquarters and leave a comment below telling me which recipe sounds the yummiest to you!

The Chew air weekdays at 1pm et/12 pt/c on ABC. You can continue the conversation with The Chew on Facebook.

Simply put – my daughter loves this laptop. She can pick from 40 different games, but her favorite mode already is in the adventure mode where she can pick her favorite character (for her that is always KoKo). It takes her through a series of different activities and when she gets them correct she earns a badge. The other night, I was working on my laptop and she sat next to me with her laptop and let me know she had some work to do too. She even asked if she could have computer time before bedtime so she could play with her Chuggington laptop. I have to admit that I have played it a few times myself and it was really fun.

The VTech Chuggington Traintastic Laptop features 40 learning activities in 5 different modes: Letters, Numbers, Logic & Games, Exploration Mode, and Adventure and features all of your favorite Chuggington characters. She can turn the train to which mode she wants and then pick the activity on her own. It is very easy for her to navigate on her own which is great so she can truly play with the laptop by herself. I think the sound effects and the animation on the screen are good quality. I should also mention that it appears to be quite durable as my 4-year-old has already dropped it a few times. I think this is a laptop that will grow with her and she will enjoy playing for some time.

BUY IT

You can purchase the VTech Chuggington Traintastic Laptop at Toys “R” Us stores and online at toysrus.com for $29.99 on sale for $20.99, as well as on Amazon.com.

WIN IT Giveaway closed!

Honk your horns! One reader of The Domestic Buzz will win a VTech Chuggington Traintastic Laptop! To enter to win, please leave a comment below telling me what you love most about Chuggington.

For extra entries:

• Subscribe by feed reader or email (or let me know if you already do). 1 entry
• Tweet about this giveaway one time using the Tweet button below, or copy this: #Giveaway! Win a traintastic Chuggington laptop at The Domestic Buzz! http://thedomesticbuzz.com/?p=14329 #TDB - 1 entry
• Like The Domestic Buzz on Facebook. 1 entry
• Comment on a recent blog post here at TDB and leave a comment below telling me you did so. No link is necessary; just the title or a quick description of the post is enough, as I can verify that you commented by looking up your email address. 1 entry

Contest ends Wednesday, September 21st, 2011. US entries only, one person per household. Leave a separate comment per entry and a valid email address. Winner, chosen at random, has 3 days to claim their prize.

Disclosure: I was provided with a complimentary VTech Chuggington Laptop in order to facilitate this review, but all opinions are my own (and my daughter’s!) Find more of our Chuggington content here.

It seems that most games my daughter plays are on my iPhone so I was looking forward to playing an old fashion board game with her. She loves “choo choos” as we call them and wanted to play this game as soon as we walked in the door. The game is really easy to understand and we already have our favorite characters. She is always Koko and I am Brewster.

The object of the game is to spin the wheel and open the different boxcars to see if you can find the right cargo for your train. It teaches her to look for colors, shapes and counting as part of the game. It also tests her memory as she tries to remember what is in each boxcar. The game doesn’t take that long to play so it is a great game to play as we are getting ready for dinner.

BUY IT!

You can purchase the Traintastic Cargo Game exclusively at Toys “R” Us stores and online at toysrus.com for $16.99.

Disclosure: I was provided a complimentary Traintastic Cargo Game in order to facilitate this review, but all opinions are my own (and my daughter’s!)

The lineup for the upcoming season of DWTS was just announced this week.

Photo Credit: ABC

BACK ROW

• Ron Artest, an LA Laker, is dancing for his cancer-survivor daughter. I already know I’ll be crying. He’s partnered with Peta Murgatroyd (new pro?)
• David Arquette, an actor, is dancing with reigning champ Kym Johnson.
• J.R. Martinez, a soap star & Iraqi war veteran, is partnered with Karina Smirnoff.
• Rob Kardashian, reality star (Keeping Up with the Kardashians) is dancing with two-time champion Cheryl Burke.
• Chaz Bono, the show’s 1st transgender contestant, will dance with Lacey Schwimmer.

FRONT ROW

• Ricki Lake, actress and talk show host, is partnered with Derek Hough. It might be early to say, but this will probably be one of my favorite couples. I love Ricki!
• Kristin Cavallari, reality star, is dancing with two-time champ Mark Ballas.
• Chynna Phillips, a singer (Wilson Phillips) will dance with Tony Dovolani.
• Nancy Grace is partnered with Irish dancer Tristan MacManus.
• Hope Solo, American soccer player, will be dancing with Maks Chmerkovskiy.
• Elisabetta Canalis, a model best known for being George Clooney’s ex-girlfriend, is partnered with Maks’s brother Val Chmerkovskiy.

NOT PICTURED

• Carson Kressley, television star, Oprah correspondent, “fashion savant” on Bravo’s Queer Eye, is dancing with Anna Trebunskaya. I met Carson a couple of years ago, and he’s super nice. This is another couple I’m rooting for.

What do you think? The two-hour season premiere of “Dancing with the Stars” is Monday, September 19th at 8pm EST on ABC. Will you be watching?

Couldn't get his attention if I tried!

We are a transportation-loving household. Buses, cars, trucks – if it has wheels, we love it. We, or should I say my two-year old son, C, also has a special place in his heart for trains. Specifically for a famous blue talking train who I’ll call N’omas for the purposes of this entry. C’s love for N’omas left me wondering if he had room in his two-year old heart for any other track-riding vehicles.

While at Target one day, I saw a Chuggington DVD and on impulse (the best kind of Target buys), I bought “Chuggington Let’s Ride the Rails.” I was extremely apprehensive about playing this DVD, as its rejection would subject me to yet another viewing of N’omas which had the potential to push me right over the edge. Let me note that we are not glued to the TV, which almost makes watching the same thing over and over worse.

With shaking hands, I inserted this new DVD and we sat down and watched. A strange look came over C’s face…puzzlement and then, could it be…a smile! While recognizing that a younger version of myself would have been bewildered at the sight of me getting so excited over a train movie, the prospect that we had added a new DVD to our collection made me want to stand up and dance a jig.

This is why, when we sat down to watch the latest Chuggington video, “Chuggers to the Rescue”, I felt as if I was tempting the fates. Should I push my luck or just leave well enough alone? Throwing caution to the wind I attempted a post bath time showing.

“Chuggers to the Rescue” did not disappoint. While slightly less believable with flying trains and a voice activated weather machine (yes, I know that talking trains are not realistic to begin with), the episodes are action packed and still deliver the positive life lessons that fans of the show have come to expect.

Chuggington follows the adventures of three young trains, Brewster, Wilson, and Koko as they “find fun and excitement while helping each other out of jams, leaning emergency rescue skills and taking on new responsibilities.” The first three episodes alone teach the importance of exercise, patience, and team work. Each of the six “traintastic” episodes is approximately 10 minutes in length and the DVD also offers bonus features such as a jigsaw game and coloring and activity sheets.

This video is perfect for all ages and even those not in love with trains will find enough action and clever animation to keep their attention. The only downside is that after watching you may be caught sitting at your desk singing the catchy, but somewhat irritating, theme song. “Honk your horns! Chuggington, Chugga Chugga Chugga…”

BUY IT!

“Chuggers to the Rescue” and “Let’s Ride the Rails” are available at retailers across the country as well as online at www.chuggingtonstore.com and Amazon.com. For more information and for online games and activities, visit www.chuggington.com. Watch video clips of Chuggington here.

Disclosure: I was provided with a complimentary sample of “Chuggers to the Rescue” in order to facilitate this review; the opinions are my own.

To me, May is all about celebrating moms!

Mother’s Day is next Sunday, of course, but I also celebrate it on the 10th (Mexican Mother’s Day) and the 27th (Bolivian Mother’s Day). One of the perks of being part of a multicultural family!

How do you celebrate Mother’s Day?

Other than calling my mom, grandmas, and a few other special moms I know, we don’t do anything out of the ordinary. I basically hang out with my kids all day. There are tons of hugs, kisses, and I-love-you’s, playing and goofing around… so, really, everyday is Mother’s Day! Actually, I do have plans for this Sunday – Maya and Maura don’t know it yet, but we’Il be starting a garden. I don’t have a green thumb whatsoever, so wish me luck!

WATCH IT!

A brand new Mother’s Day episode of Curious George that celebrates Hispanic heritage and Latina moms is premiering this Friday, May 6th, on PBS KIDS.

“Mother’s Day Surprise” features George helping his new friend Marco surprise his Mami with a party. Like every episode, it’s a lot of fun, and features the sweet and endearing little monkey getting into some kind of trouble! If your kids are anything like mine, they’ll be begging you to help them make a piñata after seeing this! Watch this short preview:

Check your local listing for the exact time “Mother’s Day Surprise” will be on. If your kids love Curious George as much as mine, you should also visit pbskids.org/curiousgeorge, where you’ll find games, video clips, and printable coloring pages. Tip: Maura, my 3-year-old, loves the sand castle game!

YOU’RE INVITED!

I’m co-hosting the #CuriousGeorgeMoms Bilingual Twitter Party this Thursday!

• What: Moms Celebrating Moms, brought to you by Curious George
• When: Thursday, May 5th from 1pm – 2pm EST (10am PST)
• Where: Follow the hashtag #CuriousGeorgeMoms
• Who: Your co-hosts are @OhMariana (me!), @mamalatina, @thoughtsofamomy, and @Tracy_Iglesias. Moderated by @lbconnect.
• Special guest: One of the Executive Producers of WGBH will also join the party! Dorothea Gillim (@DorotheaGillim) is the Executive Producer of Curious George for WGBH and creator of WordGirl, an Emmy Award winning series on PBS KIDS. She has also been involved in the creation and production of several series including Science Court for ABC Saturday Morning and Hey Monie for Oxygen.
• Prizes: Three winners will pamper themselves with a $100 gift certificate from Aveda.com!
  To be eligible to win, you must participate in the party! Do so by making sure you have at least one original tweet within the hour (RT’s not eligible) using the #CuriousGeorgeMoms hashtag and answer the giveaway questions. Read more about this event on Facebook, and RSVP at Twtvite.

If you’re up for a little monkeying around that afternoon, please join us! We’ll be tweeting bilingually, giving you a chance to practice your Spanish before ordering those margaritas on Cinco de Mayo.

Disclosure: I’ll be compensated for my participation in the #CuriousGeorgeMoms Twitter Party. We received a preview DVD for review purposes, but all opinions are my own.

My husband thinks I’m weird, but sitting on the couch for an hour straight makes me feel a little guilty. For this reason, I love to exercise during TV commercials. I’ll run up and down the stairs, do some crunches on my balance ball, or maybe jump on the rowing machine. It may not seem like a long time, but these quick 2-minute bursts of activity get my heart pumping and it all adds up over the course of an hour or two!

To celebrate season 5 of Lifetime’s Army Wives, I’m giving away a fun boot camp prize pack, which includes:

• Camo Gym Bag
• Gaiam Yoga Mat/Bag
• Padlock
• Dog Tag
• Water Canteen
• Tank Top
• Terrycloth Sweat Towel
• Messenger Cap
• Yoga Ball
• Jump Rope

How awesome is that? To enter to win, simply leave a comment below telling me why/who you want to win this for. Be sure to watch Army Wives on Lifetime every Sunday night at 9 PM ET/PT.

Giveaway is closed. Winner has been notified and is listed here.

About Army Wives
Army Wives returns for a fifth season! The show follows the struggles, dreams and friendships of a diverse group of women — and one man — living with their spouses and families on an active Army post. The series films in Charleston, South Carolina, and stars Kim Delaney (Claudia Joy Holden), Sally Pressman (Roxy LeBlanc), Brigid Brannagh (Pamela Moran), Brian McNamara (Michael Holden), Sterling K. Brown (Roland Burton), Wendy Davis (Joan Burton), Drew Fuller (Trevor LeBlanc), Terry Serpico (Frank Sherwood) and Catherine Bell (Denise Sherwood). The series is based on the book Army Wives by Tanya Biank, who serves as a show consultant.

For extra entries:

• Subscribe to my feed by feed reader or email (or let me know if you already do). 1 entry
• Follow me, @ohMariana, on Twitter and tweet about this giveaway ONCE using the Tweet button below, or copy this – #Giveaway! Get in shape for Army Wives Season 5! Win a boot camp prize pack: http://thedomesticbuzz.com/?p=13035 #TDB – 1 entry
• Like The Domestic Buzz on Facebook. 1 entry

P.S. Remember I’m giving away Army Wives Season 4 on DVD! Ends March 14th.

Disclosure: Lifetime provides the giveaway prize. Contest ends March 20th, 2011, at midnight EST. The winner, chosen at random, must be located in the US. Leave a separate comment per entry and a valid email address.

Army Wives returns for a 5th season THIS Sunday, March 6th at 9 pm EST/PST. 13 all-new episodes!!

If you haven’t seen it, the show follows the struggles, dreams and friendships of a diverse group of women — and one man — living with their spouses and families on an active Army post. The series films in Charleston, South Carolina, and stars Kim Delaney (Claudia Joy Holden), Sally Pressman (Roxy LeBlanc), Brigid Brannagh (Pamela Moran), Brian McNamara (Michael Holden), Sterling K. Brown (Roland Burton), Wendy Davis (Joan Burton), Drew Fuller (Trevor LeBlanc), Terry Serpico (Frank Sherwood) and Catherine Bell (Denise Sherwood). The series is based on the book Army Wives by Tanya Biank, who serves as a show consultant.

Army Wives on DVD, as well as Army Wives the book, is now available in the Lifetime Shop! Relive the heartwarming drama of one of America’s most beloved series.

WIN IT! Prize: (1) Army Wives Season Four DVD

Giveaway is closed. Winner has been notified and is listed here.

To enter to win, please leave a comment on this post telling me about another show you watch on Lifetime, or something that caught your eye in the Lifetime Shop.

Lifetime provides the giveaway prize. Contest ends March 14th, 2011, at midnight EST. The winner, chosen at random, must be located in the US.

“Hey mom, I don’t have any underwear for tomorrow.”

I swear I’ve heard this a million times from my 6-year-old. See how this mom responds:

Are We There Yet? is on tonight with BRAND NEW, back-to-back episodes at 10p and 10:30p (ET/PT) on TBS. Based on the film of the same name, the show is produced by Ice Cube, who also stars in it. It’s a funny show!

Disclosure: I received a sneak peek of tonight’s episode and a special gift from Klout, but was under no obligation to talk about the show. I like it, though, and thought you might, too! http://cmp.ly/2/va