Baby Diaper Bag Backpack Review + Giveaway

Baby

MBE partnered with AnyHug for this post

by Neima Pollak
MBE Staff Writer

The Age-Old Diaper Bag Challenge

The struggle is real. Diaper bags are definitely a necessity for new multi-tasking parents, who for generations have performed the delicate juggling act of having a diaper bag slung over one shoulder while balancing a child (sometimes more) with the other arm. Now with AnyHug, a mom-owned business, there is finally a stylish, large, multi-functional, durable, and amazingly affordable baby diaper bag backpack alternative to the traditional over-the-shoulder bulky, not so attractive diaper bag.

AnyHug Diaper Bag Backpack, Cream Style

Style for Busy Modern Family Living

AnyHug diaper bags, available on Amazon and priced at under $30 with free shipping worldwide, feature quality craftsmanship and clever designs at a reasonable price. The high quality materials and strong design -- including magnetic closures which really come in handy when you don't have both hands free -- mean that these bags potentially will be by your side to support you beyond those halcyon diaper bag carrying days.

Mother's Testimonial

"I've been using the gray bag style (shown below) for more than a year, " one AnyHug user says. "Every day I take it with me to work and it still looks quite new.”

AnyHug Diaper Bag Backpack, Gray Style

Unisex, Functional Diaper Bag Style

Available in two color options (gray or cream) which you see pictured in this review, AnyHug diaper bags are styled with on-to-go moms and dads in mind. What's more is they're sophisticated looking enough and meant to be carried seamlessly, from bringing your child to daycare to heading into the office.


Each of these two AnyHug bags has 13 pockets including two insulated ones, a laptop pocket to store and organize everything you need, a convenient outer pocket for the quick retrieval of tissues, isolated pockets for baby bottles, and other pockets to stash a variety of smaller items you may need to easily access on the spur of the moment.

Thanks to the versatile and unique design, this bag goes beyond just being an infant or toddler diaper bag. When the kids are out of diapers, it keeps working for you, making a truly functional travel backpack for family trips, adventures and just about everywhere life takes you.

In addition to all those bells and whistles to organize and store all the important stuff, these sleek diaper bags have padded shoulder straps making them comfortable enough to be worn as a backpack, even when heavily loaded. They also feature a carrying handle on top and adjustable straps so you can easily hang it on your baby carriage or stroller. 

More about AnyHug Diaper Bags

As with any product, especially one involving daily usage and children, diaper bags will get soiled. Constructed of waterproof fabric, AnyHug's diaper bags are surprisingly simple to maintain. Just use a damp cloth to surface clean and air dry your bag to keep it looking good.


The AnyHug Gray Diaper Bag Backpack measures approximately 18 x 5 x 12 inches, while the AnyHug Cream Diaper Bag Backpack dimensions are slightly different, about 17 x 13 x 5 inches. Note: Exact sizes differ between these bags based on how you measure each -- for example, with or without the handle and with or without the side pockets. Both are available from AnyHug for shipping worldwide on Amazon.

Each AnyHug bag includes two free gifts with purchase

• A multi-use portable, compact diaper pad
• A pom pom key chain (with the gray bag) OR a sports bottle (cream bag)

Enter to WIN

on Instagram

Thanks to AnyHug, one lucky MBE giveaway participant will win this AnyHug Diaper Bag in Cream with gray accents. To enter this AnyHug Diaper Bag sweepstakes Mommy Blog Expert is hosting, visit this MBE Instagram page. Contest open to residents WORLDWIDE. Hurry, giveaway ends August 27, 2019 at 12 am PST/3 am EST. One (1) qualifying winner selected at random from all eligible entries submitted will be notified. AnyHug is providing the prize and is responsible for delivery to winner.

Ugly Dolls Kids Movie Review + Giveaway

Movies

MBE partnered with Universal Pictures for this post

New Digital, Blu-ray, DVD Release

by Neima Pollak
MBE Staff Writer

Being different is a beautiful thing. That, in a nutshell, is the central theme in the Ugly Dolls movie from Universal Pictures now on Digital and launching on Blu-ray and DVD on July 30. For sure, celebrating individuality is something parents and educators should strive to instill in today's children. When we embody this lesson and model it for our kids, it will encourage and inspire them to appreciate what makes each person unique and special.

Storyline

Based on the Ugly Dolls characters created by David Horvath and Sun-Min Kim, the Ugly Dolls sing-along movie edition introduces audiences to the town of Uglyville, home of the Ugly Dolls where every doll's differences is what makes them wonderful. The Ugly Dolls have always been happy with their appearances, until they discover a neighboring town called Perfection, where beauty is only skin-deep. Join the Ugly Dolls on their musical expedition and discover what happens when these two worlds collide. 

All-Star Cast

To create a film with such fabulous song, it is no wonder that director Kelly Asbury (Smurfs: The Lost Village, Shrek 2) brought together such a talented celebrity cast to infuse this animated musical with their melodic voices. You probably recognize most of the names in this group of all-stars, whose talents range from country singing to rapping. The Ugly Dolls celebrity cast includes Kelly Clarkson (The Star, "The Voice," and popular song Stronger), Nick Jonas (Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle), Janelle Monae (Hidden Figures, Rio 2), Blake Shelton (Angry Birds Movie, "The Voice") and Pitbull ("Empire," Epic). 

Release Dates and Formats

Available for digital download on July 16, fans can instantly access the Ugly Dolls movie anywhere on any device that supports streaming or downloads. You can also join in the musical journey when Ugly Dolls launches on Blu-ray and DVD on July 30. 

When you experience Ugly Dolls on Blu-Ray you will experience the added benefits of theater-quality surround sound and 6 times the image resolution than DVD resolution. 

Fun bonus Blu-ray features

• Sing-Along Edition 
• Sing-Along Tease (small taste of the fun in the full Sing-Along edition)
• Fun with the Cast of Ugly Dolls
• Making of Ugly Dolls
• Theatrical Trailers

Enter this MBE Giveaway 
on Instagram 

Thanks to Universal Pictures, one lucky MBE giveaway participant will win the new Blu-ray + DVD + Digital combo edition of Ugly Dolls. To enter the Ugly Doll sweepstakes Mommy Blog Expert is hosting, visit this MBE Instagram post. Contest open to US + Canada residents. Hurry, this giveaway ends August 6, 2019 at 12 am PST/3 am EST. One (1) qualifying winner will be selected at random. Universal Pictures is providing the prize and is responsible for delivery to winner.


Be sure to check out the official Ugly Dolls movie trailer. To learn more about the film and for more fun with UglyDolls, visit the Universal Pictures Home Entertainment website and the film's Facebook, Twitter and Instagram pages.

Apollo 11 Movie IMAX California Science Center

Movies

MBE partnered with California Science Center for this review

by Neima Pollak
MBE staff writer

Apollo 11 IMAX Movie Review

On July 20, 2019 the USA will mark the 50th anniversary the first landing of the Apollo Lunar Module Eagle on the moon. There are many kid friendly activities happening nationwide to celebrate this momentous day and one event that my family and I had the opportunity to experience was a press screening of the new documentary film, Apollo 11: First Steps Edition (2019) now showing nationwide, including in my hometown of Los Angeles at the IMAX theater at the California Science Center. Yes, there already are other films about the Apollo 11 space mission; this new release sets itself apart by showing never before seen historical footage to the public.

Image courtesy of MacGillivray Films/CNN Films

A New Look at the Apollo 11 Mission

Most everyone knows the basics of what happened when man landed on the moon: How NASA astronauts planted the American flag on the moon and Neil Armstrong's now iconic quote "That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind." But there are many more lesser-known, yet equally important and fascinating details of the Apollo 11 story which this IMAX presentation reveals for the first time. For example, what the dialogue between Mission Control specialists and the astronauts in orbit at the time as well as images of the science experiments which our astronauts left on the moon.

The film is broken down into a timeline of each day of the mission. Before the set of scenes from a given day, a black screen is shown with the date and the day of the mission. For example, "July 18, 1969. Day 2." I think the timeline was a wise feature to include because it put the span of the mission into perspective, as opposed to having one long unbroken string of scenes without referencing dates. As a result of how the movie was structured, the audience feels the tension and excitement mounting with each passing day flashing across the big screen.

Q&A Interview

Following the media screening of this film, the audience was treated to a live Q&A interview with Director Todd Douglas Miller and Mission Control specialist, Poppy Northcutt. On explaining the process of creating the film, Miller shares that it started out as a large-scale research project, a compilation of whatever materials they could access at NASA. 

Northcutt, who was working at Mission Control and was present when the astronauts landed on the moon, sums up the impact this film made on her. "The first time I viewed the finished movie in its entirety it simply blew my socks off," she concludes.

Images courtesy of MacGillivray Films/CNN Films

At first look, the research gathering and sorting sounds relatively easy, but Miller shared with the audience that the reels from the mission were not organized at all, and for the most part were originally just a jumble of information and images. Up until now, the reels had not been sorted, meaning that the reels were one big unlabeled mess. 

Recalls Miller, "At best a reel would be labeled as 'Apollo 11.' If you were lucky it would have a date written on it with an added plus if the reel happened to have list of film shots on it.
To complicate things further, each person who worked on the mission in the front and back rooms wore a headset which recorded everything said on one long loop. This meant that the production team had to spend many hours listening in order to pull out the most valuable portions of dialogue."

Northcutt, at the time a 25-year old career woman from Texas, was the only female in the control room. This was still a strange oddity toward the end of the 1960s when the women's liberation movement was just  beginning to have an impact. 

On explaining her role in Mission Control, Northcutt relays she was hired by NASA through a contractor to work as a computress. Although she filled the same functions as her counterparts known as the male computers, her job was labeled with a gender-identifying title typical of the gender-oriented stereotypes of the times.





As a woman her promotion to the technical staff was "A giant leap for womankind," Northcutt says. "The labor laws in 1969 stated that employees were not allowed to work more than 9 hours a day, 54 hours a week. So I interpreted that to mean no more than 9 hours of paid work."

Miller confirmed the widespread rumor that astronaut Buzz Aldrin did indeed use a felt-tip pen to fix the switch circuit breaker during EVA (Extravehicular Activity). Aldrin had knocked the breaker off, but since they no longer had most of their tools onboard, the astronaut had to improvise by jamming a felt tip pen in with the broken piece of plastic.

The panel discussion concluded with a tear-jerking thank you to Northcutt from an audience member who said he was inspired to go into aerospace engineering after seeing the moon landing live on television when he was just a child. 

Run Dates and Venues

You too can experience the wonder of Apollo 11: First Steps Edition all across the USA. To find a theater near you, visit https://apollo11firststeps.com. This film is running now at the California Science Center (CSC), 700 Exposition Park Drive Los Angeles, CA 90037. Visit the CSC website for more information and showtimes.