Hi Loyals! Please welcome a fabulous guest today here at I Love You More Than Carrots! Andrea so lovingly volunteered to write a bit for me as I get my act together for Blissdom next week! Like me, Andrea is a fellow boy Mama who is all things creative and crafty and today, she's sharing some of her and Coop's favorite iPhone and iPad apps! Be sure to show her some good ol' ILYMTC lovin'! Thanks and Happy Friday!
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Hey friends! I am so excited to be here guest posting for you today! AP, thanks so much for having me! My name is Andrea, and I’m a 33 year old mom of a 2 year old boy named Cooper. My blog is My Chihuahua Bites – one part mommy adventures, and two parts crafts, cooking, beauty product reviews, humor, NOTD (Nails of the Day), and makeup tutorials.
(This is how pictures look when you have a busy 2 year old.)
Today I want to talk to about kid-friendly iPhone and iPad apps. I’ve been part of the iPhone family since Verizon started selling the iPhone in February 2011. I had been dying for an iPad, but we didn’t pull the trigger until last month. It has turned out to be such a great purchase for the whole family! My son loves to play educational games. I use the iPad to keep up with my blog, Twitter, and Facebook. My husband, who is in school, can access his study documents while we’re on the go. Definite win!
Here are some of my favorite apps for kids:
This is one of my favorite apps for toddlers! I knew you could read children’s books on the iPad, but I had no idea the books were so interactive. You can set this app up so that either you read to your child, or Grover and Elmo will read the book. Each page has some way for your child to participate – remove the paperclips Grover uses to stop Elmo from advancing to the next page! Knock down the wall of blocks Grover built to keep you from moving ahead in the book! This book is $3.99 in the App Store.
Cooper’s favorite book is Mickey’s Spooky Night Puzzle Book. Cooper loves Mickey, and this book features his favorite character and is interactive! Every other page is a puzzle, which you must put back together to reveal a special spooky surprise. Throughout the book are ghosts, which you must collect to complete a task at the end of the book. This is on sale for $.99 in the App Store.
If you have any of the Hallmark interactive characters (Cooper Bear, Abigail, etc), the books are available in the App Store. If you aren’t familiar, Hallmark has developed a line of books with corresponding characters. You purchase the book and the character, and as you read the book, the character responds to your words. We have Cooper Bear, and the books are free in the App Store.
Our favorite game/teaching app is definitely Monkey Preschool Lunchbox. This app teaches your child letters, counting, colors, and shapes. Cooper’s favorite part of the app is the matching game – you are given a series of blocks you must turn over to find the matching fruit. This is a great way to build your child’s memory! Your child earns stickers for completing tasks, which he or she can add to his/her sticker wall. This is $.99 in the App Store.
Photo Touch Farm Animals is great for younger children (1+) to learn about animals. What I love about this app is that it features animals (goats, goose, lamb) that other apps/children’s shows don’t really talk about. This is free in the App Store.
Shapes Toddler Preschool is a great tool for when your child is learning about shapes. You can set up the app to quiz your toddler (where is the circle?) or it has a flashcard app, which shows pictures of different shapes. The toy box has different games you can play with shapes you have learned about. This is also free in the App Store.
ABC Go would be an excellent app for older children (2+). The app teaches your child new words through sight, sound, and touch. For example, if you press on “race car” above, the app will show you a picture of a race car as well as the spelling of the word. It also has video that shows you what a race car is and what it does! This app is $2.99 in the App Store.
I’d love to hear from you! What are some of your favorite apps for children?
Disclaimer: I purchased all of these apps with my own money, and the opinions concerning the apps are my own.
Omg I'm in love with this guest post! I just downloaded every app!!! Thank you so much!!
ReplyDeleteGreat information! Thanks for sharing. My daughter loves to play with my phone and iPad and I cant wait to let her try these.
ReplyDeleteI love this post! Thanks Andrea! I will be hitting these apps up for C when I get home. He is getting bored of the apps we have on there now. I must say I am actually excited for the Monster at the end of the book app :) Mama loves some Grover.
ReplyDeleteWhat a great post! Thanks for sharing Andrea. We don't have an IPad yet, though I'm sure we will in the future, but we let Little M play with the I Touch all the time. She has a few apps but I am always looking for some new ones!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the suggestions! Got some of these on the 'ol iPad. :)
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you guys found this helpful! I hope you love the apps as much as Cooper & I do!
ReplyDeleteThank you for that post! Awesome! I have an iPad the my 2 year old Cooper also loves to play with and I've never heard of these apps/books. I know what I'll be doing tonight! :) Have a great weekend!
ReplyDeleteI'm always looking for new apps to entertain my 18 month old! Thanks for the great recommendations!
ReplyDeleteMonkey lunchbox is our favorite!
ReplyDeleteLove this! Is there a way for me to pin this on my pinterest?
ReplyDeleteThanks!