I See Me! Personalized Children’s Books Review & Giveaway

“What book do you want to read tonight?”, Going Mom and I ask our daughter each night before she goes to sleep plays around singing out loud for 30+ minutes before finally giving in. “Goodnight Little Avery” has been her answer for several weeks now, even for naptime.

I See Me! Personalized Children's Books, reading, kids, gift, gifts

We have many books to choose from, but this one from I See Me! is different from the rest. I See Me! makes personalized children’s books to bring your kid into their very own story of magic, wonder, adventure, and, in our case, sweet dreams.

Goodnight Little Avery is from I See Me!’s Goodnight Little Me Storybook, just one of 100+ personalized books just waiting to star your kid as the main character. We all love reading this book to Avery as every high quality page is filled with beautiful illustrations and words to amaze and delight those curious little eyes.

I See Me! Personalized Children's Books, reading, kids, gift, gifts, custom, customized

We even catch her reading it by herself sometimes. I think her infatuation with the moon is what really draws her into this book as it’s on every page, just like her very own name. I’m sure the fact that the illustrations are created by Mary GrandPré, the illustrator of the Harry Potter series, helps a little too.

I See Me! Personalized Children's Books, reading, kids, gift, gifts, custom, customized

Personalized storybooks created by I See Me! help to encourage your little ones to read as they recognize letters and learn to spell their own names at same time. When children see their own name and picture (if you choose the option) this helps build self-esteem by making them feel special for having a book with them as the main character.

I See Me! Personalized Children's Books, reading, kids, gift, gifts, custom, customized

Want more options than a nighttime book? No problem. I See Me! has books with themes like animals, adventure, ballet, dinosaurs, fairies, farm, garden, love, outer space, pirates, princess, sports and things that go. You’re sure to find several books your kid will absolutely love, and you will too.

These books make the perfect option for gits to celebrate birthdays, going to school, new baby sister/brother, Christmas, or just because they’re books and your kid will be reading. When ordering, you simply fill out info needed for I See Me! to put your child into their very own story like name, date of birth, gender, and you can even leave a dedication. Going Mom and I chose to dedicate it from Mommy and Daddy.

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Pretty cool if you ask me. Just don’t ask me what year our daughter was born, because apparently I don’t know! She was born in 2013, not 2014 like I entered for her book. In the words of Homer Simpson.. Doh!

But no worries, I See Me! has a 100% satisfaction guarantee, and will replace a book at no charge if lost or stolen during shipping, or only charge 50% of original product price plus shipping if you need to change the personalization options. Which, as you can tell, I needed to do, and I See Me! delivered a new book with the right date!

Avery, my wife, and I are extremely impressed with the overall looks and quality of this wonderful book and we want to get more for Avery to read soon. Maybe this time I’ll add the optional photo for Avery to see…um, Avery in her very own adventure book!

I See Me! Personalized Children's Books, reading, kids, gift, gifts, custom, customized

You can even find personalized growth charts, lunch boxes, coloring books (how cool is that?!), stickers, and more on I See Me!’s site. I strongly urge you to check out all they have to offer, and afterward, come back here to enter a giveaway to win a personalized storybook for that precious kid in your life.

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Visit I See Me! on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram to keep up to date with the latest news and products. Good luck!

Disclosure: I received the Goodnight Little Me storybook for free in exchange for my honest review. All words are my own and I was not compensated in any other way.

How to Catch Your Mommy

Hi-Ya! Avery here.

how to catch your mommy, cute, toddler, funny, humor

Today I have a very important How to for my toddler compadres. It’s my secret on how to catch your mommy. It sounds easy on paper in text on the computer/tablet/phone screen, but those mommies can certainly be tricky to catch.

I’m sure you’re eager to learn the way of wise, me, so let’s get to it. First, and most importantly, you must lead them on as if they are going to catch you.

how to catch your mommy, cute, toddler, funny, humor

Make sure you go slow for your mommy so you don’t pull too far ahead too fast. Even a little taunting turn will help to keep her thinking she has you.

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But then go back straight and pick it up a little.

how to catch your mommy, cute, toddler, funny, humor

Find a dead end or barrier that requires you to stop, making your mom think it’s over for sure and she’ll have you in her grasp soon.

how to catch your mommy, cute, toddler, funny, humor

Right as she’s going in to sweep you off your feet, make a battle cry as you turn around to chase them down. They’ll quickly turn the other way in fear.

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Chances are, your scary battle cry will pump the adrenaline pretty high, giving your mommy super speed. Don’t let that derail you, she’ll slow down fast. Remember, you are faster!

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Soon, you’ll have your prey within reach and will have mommy contained in seconds. Just act quickly to grab and…oh, wait, this isn’t right.

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Okay, just go limp if they grab you instead. Trust me, I’ve done this bef…..noooo, how did she do that?!

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Everything is upside down, I have no control!

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It’s okay, just remain calm and wait for your moment to turn things around on mommy and hold her upside down.

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Crap, still waiting for the right time. Not finding it.

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Ummmm, soooooo, maybe this should be How Not to Catch Your Mommy. Maybe it’s the blood rushing to my head, but I’m feeling hopeless.

Well, my apprentice peer, let’s just forget this How to tutorial ever happened. We can revisit at a later date, when I’ve had time to think and recover my dignity. If you are successful in catching your mommy, please send me a text, I could use the pointers….obviously.

Dear Frog, I’m Sorry For Killing You

We’ve had a frog friend around our home for almost a year and always enjoyed searching for him when we went outside each day. Avery was a tad bit reluctant to get close to the frog at first, and I’m sure I didn’t help matters much.


As a reptile/amphibian lover, I couldn’t accept her not liking our new froggy friend, so I would gently hold him up to her hoping she’d find the courage to pet the little guy.

petting frog, kids, amphibian, reptiles

I was just happy when she didn’t run the other way when I held him up to her. At a safe distance, of course.

petting frog, kids, amphibian, reptiles
Yes, Dad, I see it. That’s far enough!

Over the months, she found enjoyment searching for Mr. Frog burrowed in one of his several spots in our backyard. For a while, her and Going Mom would find him in a hole at the base of one of our trees. They’d peek down inside and tell him “hi”……he never responded.

Eventually, the frog made use of our rain barrel by seeking shelter underneath the raised water capture device while enjoying the perfect amount of shade and moisture. Every time I mowed our lawn, Avery would follow and find him venturing out from his hiding spot. Maybe to say hello, but I’m thinking the mower had something to do with it.

Sometimes he’d be burrowed in a muddy spot right in front of us and we would never see him until he finally spooked and jumped away to the safety of the rain barrel cover. Then we’d just get on our hands and knees, to stare at him as most likely hoped we just left him alone. Normally, we stopped trying to pester our amphibious friend, unless he reemerged from under the barrel.

A video posted by RC Liley (@going_dad) on


I’m just happy she’s into the cold-blooded insect eater now. Every dad’s dream, right?

Well, this dad I know…aka me…..put an end to our froggy fun this past weekend. I was mowing in the back like normal, careful to check all around the area Mr. Frog hung around before passing over, but never saw his bumpy skinned self in sight. So I carried on with mowing expecting to see him later when all of the sudden I hear “thump-a-dee-thud-thud-errrrr” emit from the blades.

Sh*t

Out of the side discharge shot Mr. Frog, or what was left of him. Apparently, he found a new spot to burrow. Unfortunately, it was not as muddy there and he couldn’t burrow himself down enough to allow the mower to make a clean pass. That was the end of our backyard frog friend. At least we still have the burrow spot to keep him in our thoughts.

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Avery was there, but her attention was devoted to screaming “dandelion” at the top of her lungs as she just recently learned their name and loves picking them. Plus, she still doesn’t understand death, even after seeing the frog’s torn carcass.

So, frog, my friend (we’re still friends, right?), I just want to personally say Sorry. Had I known you were in a new spot in our yard, I totally would of avoided mowing there or tried to relocate you. Most likely holding and petting you first, but still, safe and still alive. Again, sorry, and I hope you’re in some sort of  special froggy land catching the juiciest of flies with that extra long and sticky tongue of yours..

The good news is that we still have a frog at the front of our house. We see him sitting on our front porch each night as we finish dinner, and Avery makes sure to say goodnight to him with Mommy before her bath. Hopefully he doesn’t find a new spot to hang out next time we mow!!

Have you ever killed a wild yard-dweller by accident?

What about on purpose?