Kiddie Village News

Arkansas News raves about Mom & Tot Workout

2006-10-30T21:44:00.000-08:00

NEW WORKOUTS
BY RHONDA OWEN
Posted on Monday, October 23, 2006
URL: http://www.nwanews.com/adg/Style/170597/

Getting into shape after having a baby can be challenging, primarily because new moms simply don’t have time to go to the gym. Plus, sometimes, it’s just hard to muster the motivation for jumping back on the treadmill.

So don’t go to the gym. Stay home, exercise and bond with the baby instead. Barbara Colby, a personal trainer and a grandmother, provides direction with Mom & Tot Workout, a beginner-level routine designed so that adults can exercise while keeping an eye on babies or toddlers. Plus, with this video, very young children can participate in their mom’s workout — not as weights, but as actual participants.

The workout begins with separate warm-ups for moms and tots, but the segments meld so well that it’s hard to tell where one begins and the other ends. That’s not a problem, however, because the point is for the kids to join in as much as possible.

The demo-exercisers in the video are young mothers with babies or toddlers, some with both. With all the kids in the video, the cuteness factor rates high and there are many “ahhh” moments. But there are also “argh” moments, such as lunges and squats. No matter what exercise DVD you buy, there they are; just flex and bear it.

Breezy, cheery music moves you through a tone-and-sculpt segment, for which you need light handweights (3 to 5 pounds ) to perform tricep, bicep, back and shoulder exercises. Colby cautions adult viewers to stay at least two arm lengths away from the children while working out with dumbbells so they don’t get whacked on their noggins. The little ones can still participate, although they can’t use real weights. The video kids have fuzzy, soft toy dumbbells.

After toning and sculpting, moms and kids stretch out on the floor for floor work. All the basics are here — crunches, leg lifts, modified push-ups and the plank. Most of the time, the camera focuses on the adults and periodically cuts away so viewers can see the kids performing their versions of the movements. (Yes, the toddler interpretation of the plank involves sticking the rear end in the air. )

Mom & Tot Workout is not only a charming addition to the fitness DVD shelf, but also a practical one. The workout is gentle enough to ease new moms back into a fitness routine, but challenging enough to produce results. The kids will like it, too.

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THANK YOU ARKANSAS DEMOCRAT GAZETTE!
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Parenting Magazine picks "Let's Play Music"

2006-10-05T14:45:00.000-07:00

Parenting Magazine (Oct 2006 issue) picked "Let's Play Music" as the only DVD for Birth to 18 months in its Mom Tested Buying Guide, with a stellar review ...

"A merry visual montage of strings, keyboards, brass, and woodwinds accompanied by classical tunes introduces your baby to the sights and sounds of music making. Meanwhile, fuzzy puppets, floating feathers, and stringed beads drift on and offscreen, lending color to the toe-tapping, clap-along action."

Thanks Parenting Magazine!!!

Midwest Book Review

2006-10-05T14:17:00.000-07:00

Three superbly produced DVDs for use with children of all ages from Kiddie Village encourage activity, creativity, and fun for little ones.

Mom & Tot Workout (KID-DV-005, 50 minutes) features the exercise and 20 years of expertise of personal fitness trainer Barbara H. Colby. Designed to help mothers and children very young children bond while instilling a beneficial appreciation for healthy exercise, Mom & Tot Workout is a workout program that adheres to the dictates of the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology, and can be safely followed all during pregnancy.

Let's Play Music (KID-DV-002, 28 minutes) is a creative experience intended for little ones age 0-36 months, and features puppets, real musical instruments, classical music and jazz created for young children, as well as basic music-related words. A top-quality educational program designed to spark creativity an appreciation for music and the joy it can bring, Let's Play Music is a wonderful experience to share.

Fun With Dance (KID-DV-001, 30 minutes) is intended for a slightly older audience of tots 0-5 years, and encourages children to explore simple dance movements, build motor skills, and enjoy the art form of dance. Hosted by professional dancer Shannon Mulcahy DiNota, Fun With Dance is a great way to experience physical activity and build self-confidence in little tykes, and includes loop play as a special feature. All three volumes will prove to be very welcome additions to the DVD libraries of new and expectant parents.

L.A. Times Reviews "Mom & Tot Workout"

2006-07-24T21:48:00.000-07:00

No time for exercise? Fit the kids into your routine
Jeannine Stein
July 24, 2006

Having a child can seriously cut into a workout routine — just try squeezing in even an hour at the gym. Exercise instructor and grandmother Barbara Colby has come up with a solution: "Mom & Tot Workout" (Kiddie Village, 2006), a fitness DVD that moms can do solo or with their young children.

"Mom & Tot Workout": The beauty of this beginner-geared DVD is that it's meant to help moms get back into shape, but doesn't exclude children. The various segments include warm-ups for kids and moms, muscle toning and moves for the abs and lower body. The muscle conditioning (done with light dumbbells) incorporates easy movements, such as stepping side to side, to boost cardio benefits. Some modifications are provided for pregnant women.

Infants can be stretched and moved by mom in the warm-up section, which features leg and arm stretches, while bigger kids can do the exercises by themselves. Toddlers and older children can mimic the movements of mom during other segments that target the entire body, such as shoulder presses, tricep kickbacks, planks and lunges (kids should use plush dumbbell-shaped toys, not the real thing).

"My whole concept is to be involved with your child [during exercise], not to use the child as a weight," says Colby, a fitness instructor and certified personal trainer in Boca Raton, Fla. "The workout is about the mother, but the children can watch or you can incorporate them to keep them interested. When I teach classes, the kids are right there with them, having fun, jumping around."

Price: $14.99, available at http://www.kiddievillage.com and http://www.amazon.com .

— Jeannine Stein

Shoshana quoted in TDMonhly Magazine

2006-05-05T15:19:00.000-07:00

Kiddie Village CEO Shoshana Zisk was interviewed by TDMonthly Magazine who pubished her view of why the children's special interest DVD market is booming.

"With schools drastically cutting back on all but the core reading/writing/arithmetic, parents know that if their children have special interests beyond ABCs and numbers, DVDs are a fantastic way to educate and engage them."

Kiddie Village Exhibits at Yeah Baby Expo!

2006-03-17T09:30:00.000-08:00

Kiddie Village exhibited at the Yeah Baby Expo in Sacramento. Yeah Baby is the world's biggest baby and family expo. Thousands of visitors came by our booth where we featured videos, contests, and more.

Kiddie Village earns Kids First! Endorsements

2006-01-23T09:50:00.000-08:00

The Coalition for Quality Children’s Media just gave Kiddie Village a KID'S FIRST!® two star endorsement. The Kids First jury evaluates videos for appeal, content, production quality and developmental benefits. To be endorsed, it must be approved by both adult and children jurors. Titles that meet or exceed the criteria receive an "Endorsed Title" or two star rating -- our rating for both videos!

View Fun With Dance endorsement

View Let's Play Music endorsement

Thank you CQCM!

Kiddie Village wins the Dove Family Approved Seal with "5 Doves" ratings for all three videos

2006-01-23T09:02:00.000-08:00

We just won with The Dove "Family Approved" Seal for ALL of our titles! And all titles earned the highest rating of "5 Doves" per title.

The Dove Foundation is a non-profit organization established to encourage and promote wholesome family entertainment. The Foundation, free from commercial pressures, awards a blue and white Dove Seal to any movie or video that is rated "family-friendly" by its film review board.

It is great to be recognized for our commitment to create DVDs that are appropriate and entertaining for children.

IT'S A GIRL!

2006-01-12T15:30:00.000-08:00

Kiddie Village producer Shannon Mulcahy Dinota gave birth to baby Simone Carolyn Dinota on January 5, 2006 at 3:18 pm. She weighs 6 pounds, 14 ounces and is 19 inches long. Baby and mom are doing just fine. Congratulations Shannon!

FREE downloads to video iPod available now with Prodigem

2005-11-28T08:12:00.000-08:00

Kiddie Village formatted our Gold Award Winning "Fun With Dance" for the Video iPod. It looked so good we decided to make it available for FREE for promotional purposes. Go to http://www.prodigem.com/torrents/torrent_987.html to download the Video for free using Bittorrent, or go to http://www.prodigem.com/torrents/torrent_990.html and download the Video for $15.99 and we will send a full quality DVD of this program to the U.S. based billing address. If you're not in the US or would prefer not to download using Bittorrent, please send an email and we'll work it out for you. As far as we can tell, we're the first company offering Baby Videos for iPod, and the first with the "buy digital receive physical" business model. Enjoy! :-)

Thank you Prodigem!

National Parenting Publications give Kiddie Village both "Gold Award" and "Honors Award"

2005-11-01T12:34:00.000-08:00

Fun With Dance has been honored by NAPPA with a Gold Award. Let's Play Music has been honored with an honors award. The National Parenting Publications Awards (NAPPA) is one of the country’s most authoritative consumer-awards programs recognizing the best in children's and parenting resources. By winning a NAPPA Gold Award Kiddie Village is guaranteed high-quality nationwide coverage in local publications and on a national Web site that parents trust. Reaching nearly 6 million purchasers nationwide, NAPPA coverage is targeted directly to parents and grandparents.

Thank you NAPPA!

Kiddie Village Teams with EZTakes for Video Download and Burning

2005-10-13T12:55:00.000-07:00

Kiddie Village has partnered with EZTakes the first DVD Movie Download Store so that soon fans will be offered the ability to buy, download, and burn Kiddie Village DVDs in the comfort of their own home. We are thrilled to particpate in this experimental new delivery method, and hope folks will test it on out and let us know what they think.

Thank you EZTakes!

Kiddie Village Teams with Brightcove to Stream Videos on Website

2005-09-08T12:17:00.000-07:00

Watch the videos

Brightcove is an online video-on-demand service which enables video publishers to feature video online. Brightcove offers plenty of choice and control over the viewer experience, promotion and distribution, and economic packaging. We are delighted to be part of the Brightcove beta launch.

Thank you Brightcove!

Film Advisory Board Gives Kiddie Village Award of Excellence

2005-05-15T13:10:00.000-07:00

Kiddie Village is honored that the Film Advisory Board has honored their videos.To qualify for the prestigious FAB "Award of Excellence", products must meet specific criteria.

Our "Award Winner" seal is recognized worldwide as identifying entertainment products suitable for viewing and use by families and children. Look for it when purchasing your entertainment products.

FAB's Review Committee reviews and votes year round to select films for this sought after award. In cases where products are targeted specifically for children, a child panel is used in conjunction with the adult panel.

Thank you Film Advisory Board and your panel of judges!

National Parenting Center honors Fun With Dance with "Seal of Approval"

2005-04-05T16:50:00.000-07:00

THE NATIONAL PARENTING CENTER

If you have a little one that loves to dance, twirl, spin and move, then Fun With Dance will surely capture their interest. Visually appealing, with lots of dancers in colorful costumes, this video shows off dances from around the world. There are lots of animals and other children to look at which seemed to have particular interest for our young testers. This isn't going to rivet any parents to the screen, but for children with a predisposition to dance, it'll be right up their alley.

Thank you National Parenting Center!

Kiddie Village signs with Koch for Canadian Distribution

2005-03-24T10:27:00.000-08:00

Kiddie Village is thrilled that our videos will be made available in Canada through Koch, the nation's leading independent distributor of music and videos. We are thrilled that working with Koch will enable our entry into huge stores such as WalMart and Zellers, while at the same time providing stellar service for smaller accounts including libraries who are so important to our company's future.

Thank you Koch Canada!