Pardon the cliche, but it was Christmas in July at our house when the postman delivered a big brown box from ebeanstalk. My children hold the postman in the highest regard; they eagerly anticipate his arrival and the prospect of a letter or package. And the postman knows my children well; he toots his horn and waves to them from the street, talks to them and listens to their crazy stories when hand-delivering the mail to our door.

Awhile ago, I signed up to be a member of ebeanstalk’s Motherboard, a group of moms from across the United States who test and review products for children and then provide feedback. The big brown box contained contents of what I (or rather my youngest child, aged 24 months) was to try out. The first item I plucked from the box was a full-size can of Banana Boat Kids Tear-Free Lotion Spray . As my toddler is a strawberry-blond, fair-skinned pixie, you can imagine the copious amounts of sunblock we go through during the daylight hours. Whilst most children wriggle and squirm away from moms attempting to coat them in white goo, Bridget has learned that going outside means patiently enduring a five-minute rubdown. We’ve tried the spray lotions before (different brand) and she likes how the aerosol spray tickles her skin. I like its ease of use and the fact that it’s less goopy than the bottle variety. Also included was a sample pack of sunblock for the wee variety.

While I was ogling the free sunblock (remember, we spend a small fortune each year and I couldn’t get over the fact that this was free!), Bridget’s toddler eyes spied a hint of blue and red, her two favorite colors, which turned out to be two Baby Einstein cups, one with a sippy lid and the other, a flip-up straw. She also discovered the Baby Einstein divided plate with matching spoon and fork, which she used during lunch today. Bridget *loves* Baby Einstein products.

It was my son (5) who discovered the last goodie in the box, Alex Draw in the Tub bath crayons. We trust and enjoy Alex products, and the kids quickly retreated to the tub to test out the new toy. I was a little concerned that the marks would not easily erase from the walls, but I was pleasantly surprised at how well the included duck sponge wiped the crayon clean. The best part, however, was that my children took multiple baths just so they could play with the bath crayons. Woot!

What a great box, ebeanstalk! Thanks!