The iPhone Mom

Lola’s Flag Adventure is a polished and entertaining app that’s all about the maps of the world.  It’s broken into two types of games, Memory and Trivia. In the Memory game you’ll choose from the easy, medium and hard levels. Each level is represented by an adorable panda of a different size, the smallest being for the easy level. The memory game is traditional, tap a card to turn it over and look for it’s match. When you tap a card you’ll hear and see the name of the country that it belongs to. I thought this was a nice touch. Each incorrect move will cost you points but you’ll earn plenty back when you make a match. As you are playing you’ll notice a panda climbing up a piece of bamboo on the left side of the screen. When you make a match he climbs up but if you’re wrong he’ll slide back down. There are twelve cards in the easy level, sixteen in medium and twenty-four in hard. When you’ve matched all the cards you’ll receive a final score. The scores can also be seen on a scoreboard. One last thing – you get a glimpse of the cards at the beginning of the level before they are flipped over.

In the Trivia game you will pick a category from the regions of Global, Asia & Pacific, Europe and Americas. Now you will see a flag and the names of three countries from that region. Your task is to pick the country that matches the flag. On the right side of the screen is an ant crawling down a piece of bamboo. You need to make your guess before the ant reaches the ground. On the left side is your panda and he’ll climb his bamboo with each correct answer. Again at the end of the round you’ll receive a score that can be tracked on a scoreboard. My one complaint about Lola’s Flag Adventure is with this Trivia game. I like the game and the way it plays but in order to choose your answer you must slide your finger across the country’s name. This seemed awkward to me and there were times when I thought I’d done it correctly but my answer didn’t register with. Personally, I think it’d be much easier to tap on the answer.

If you’re looking for an app that will help your children learn the world’s flags, Lola’s Flag Adventure is a cute one. I like the pandas and the way they climb the bamboo as you play. I also like the way the app has the two separate games. Overall it’s cute stuff!

Price when Reviewed: $1.99

Seller: BeiZ, Ltd.

Disclosure: I received a free copy of this app for review purposes.

I’ve never been to New York City.  From what I’ve seen on TV and in the movies I’m sure the city would completely overwhelm me.  I can’t imagine navigating those busy streets (not to mention the subway) with all my kids.  I think we’d never leave the house. Well, Lara, a smart mom from NYC, sent me her app, iKidNY to check out. She created it to make maneuvering through the city with little ones easier. Bless her.

The app features five different location categories: Outdoor Activities, Indoor Activities, Restaurants, Changing Tables and Subway Elevators. Seems like a pretty good list to me. To use the app you simply tap on the category you want and then choose to see a list based on your GPS location or search a map of NYC. The list will pull up and then you’ll tap on the location you want to investigate. You can see this information on a map, get directions and put it on a favorites list.

I can imagine that this app would be a lifesaver for NYC parents. I go into a bit of a panic when we visit a store for the first time and I don’t know where the restroom is. I  know that if I stay in the store for more than five minutes it’s inevitable I’ll soon be literally running around, trying to get someone to the bathroom. The thought of walking down a busy street in New York and hearing the words “I need to go potty” makes me sick to my stomach.

My one suggestion for iKidNY would be to make the location information “pop” off the screen just a little more. I’m not sure if it’s the font size or color but it seemed to blend a little too well with the background.  Minor, minor thing though and not nearly as important as being able to find a changing table after a diaper explodes. Those of you living in New York City would be wise to check this app out. Well done Lara! I have a feeling you’ve eased the mind of quite a few of your fellow city dwelling parents.

Price when Reviewed: $2.99

Seller: Kid Friendly, LLC

Mom Maps name says it all – this app gives you maps for moms. It uses your iPhone’s location to give you lists of “kid spots” that are nearby. These locations are divided into different categories: parks, restaurants, playgrounds, museums and indoor playareas.  Select your category and the app pulls up a list of what’s around. From that list you can select a spot to see more details. You’ll get the address, phone number, a website, a rating and reviews. (The last three show up if available.)  You can also choose to see the location on a map or get driving directions.

Right now the app supports 8600+ different kid spots and they’re adding more everyday. The ladies behind Mom Maps were able to quickly add in my city so that I could test out the app.  It pulled up a ton of good stuff. Places I knew about and lots I didn’t. So any other Moms out there in Boise, this app is ready to go for you!

I asked Alesha from Mom Maps how they’ll be going about adding all the new locations and this is what they told me. “We are adding a couple new cities every week. We are working from a list of cities as we get requests and then we going to get all the major US cities. Anyone can add locations from the website, so if someone wanted it in their area before we get there they could help populate it by spreading the word to other moms in their area. Our ability to locate really great spots outside of SF is automated and still very much relies on great moms(and dads) contributing content.  We can find the basics, but if there’s a restaurant, store or indoor playspot you love that is not there, or rated properly, please let us know and we’ll fix it!   Right away!”

As Alesha mentioned we regular, ol’ moms play a key part in getting great spots into Mom Maps. There is a website, www.mommaps.com that you can join and then use to recommend locations you want to see added. Here you can also rate and review different places and those ratings will show up in the app. You can also search for kid spots directly from the  website. So like Alesha said, if you live in an area that they haven’t added yet you can add your own locations from the web and tell your other iPhone lovin’ moms to do the same.

I think the idea behind Mom Maps is fantastic and the app is very well done.  I’m looking forward to using it in my city as well as when I travel. It’ll be a wonderful thing to be able to find a park without having to use a google search in Safari or the antiquated yellow pages. I also like having the ability to add reviews for a kid spot right from my iPhone. So if I find myself coerced into taking the kids to a fast food playarea and it smells strongly of stinky feet instead of fresh sanitizer, I can let other moms in the area know to steer clear.  We have to look out for each other you know.

*According to iTunes Mom Maps already covers the SF Bay Area, Los Angeles, New York City and their surrounding areas. If you want to see if your area is covered visit www.mommaps.com and type your city/state into the search feature and check it out!

Price when Reviewed: $2.99

Seller: Family Travel Tools

The Travel Games Ultimate Edition app combines five great travel games into one app. They’ve been translated well to the iPhone and the graphics are terrific. I wasn’t too fond of the music, mine seemed to keep getting hung up, but you can easily turn it off. At times the app felt a little slow but I’m chalking that up to the amount of things it was trying to do. Here’s the rundown on the different travel games.

-Scavenger Hunt – This one features a list of things that are commonly seen on car trips. You can play this game by yourself or against another player. Tap on the things you find to check them off and keep  score. You can also view the items that have been found on a map, using your current location.

-Hidden Pictures – Choose from five different pictures and try to find everything hidden in them.  You can set the timer on this game and compete against the clock. You’ll need to use your finger on the iPhone screen to scroll through the picture because not all of it fits on your screen. It would be great if future updates allowed you to view the picture in landscape mode. Also, if new hidden pictures were added.

-License Plates – This is the classic car game where you try to spot as many state license plates as you can. Play by yourself or against someone else. The included license plates are from the U.S.A. and Canada.

-Slug Bug – Another classic game but this time without all that violent slugging. It allows you to choose the type of car and color you’re looking for. When you spot one you tap a ladybug on the screen instead of punching your sister in the name of a game.

-Rock Paper Scissors – You can play this one against the iPhone or another player. It’s pretty straightforward. Tap the start button then choose your rock, paper or scissors. Play for best out of three.

Travel Games Ultimate Edition is well put together. Considering the fact that you get five games in one app the $1.99 price is a great bargain.

Price when Reviewed: $1.99

Seller: Twisted Technology, LLC

Summer road trips are now a thing of the past but soon it will be time for the holidays. Before we know it we’ll be back in the car heading over the river and through the woods with bored children in the back of our van. The Fun Kids Car Travel Game is an app designed for keeping your kids entertained AND interacting with each other in a non-combative way. With this app they can work together and play as a team against the clock or they can play against each other.

Begin by entering a team name (if you’re playing against the clock) or the names of up to six players (if playing against each other). Next choose “Town” or “Country” questions. This means the questions you’re given will relate to where you’re traveling – in the town or in the country. You can also select how many seconds are allowed between questions and what the winning score needs to be. Once the game has begun questions will appear on the screen. They’ll ask you to look out the car window and find different things. One person needs to be in charge of the score keeping. It will be their job to tap the team name when the object has been spotted. If you are playing against each other then the score keeper taps the name of the first person to spot the object. For each tap the app will keep score. When someone reaches the winning score the game is over.

The Fun Kids Car Travel Game is an app that will keep your kiddos entertained on a road trip and hopefully co-existing in peace in the back of your car.

Price when Reviewed: $.99

Seller: Mark Sanchez/Notion Arts

Pop Geo USA Geography is the first geography app that I’ve tried out and I liked it. The screen shows a map of the United States. You can play in states, capitals, parks or cities mode. When you try states four markers will show up on the map. Now four state names will begin floating around the screen. Your job is to tap a state and drag it to the marker where it belongs. If you get it right the marker turns into a star. Now you can tap the stars and learn more about the states. When you’re finished tap the continue button and four new states will appear. Your progress is marked by a mile marker at the top of the screen. When your game is over the amount of miles you’ve “traveled” will determine your finish placement.

With the “Capitals” mode you’re given the states on the map and you have to drag the state capitals to the correct marker. “Parks” has you matching parks with the state they’re located in. That one was tricky. And finally when you try “Cities” you have to match random cities with their states. Again, tap those stars to learn more facts about the capitals, cities and parks.

My one complaint about the app is that there’s no way to switch between the different modes without exiting the app and starting all over. A home screen of some sort would be helpful. But I had fun playing Pop Geo USA Geography and seeing how much I remembered from Elementary School. It was more than I thought I’d remember. She doesn’t know it yet but I’ll be assigning this app to my fifth grader.

*Laurent contacted me and let me know that you can switch between modes when you complete a map. I’d forgotten about that.
Price when Reviewed: $.99

Seller: Laurent Denoue/PopSoft

The Snaggle Find app was designed by a group of parents who were inspired by their kids. The idea behind the app is to go on a photographic scavenger hunt with your iPhone. The app provides you with hunts that you can complete and you can also create your own original hunt to share with others. You can share your hunts from the app, through www.snagglefind.com or using Facebook.

I’d suggest visiting the help section (found when you tap “Account”) before you start. It’ll give you an idea of how to navigate through the app. To choose a hunt you’ll want to tap the “Hunt” button at the bottom of the screen. Then choose “In Progress” if you’ve got a hunt already started or “New” to begin a brand new one. On the new screen you’ll see a list of Snaggle Find hunts. You can sort them by date, alphabetically, by rating or by difficulty. (Rating & difficulty are explained in the help section.) If you want to view hunts that have been completed then tap the “View” button at the bottom of the screen. Here you can see public albums, your albums or those of your friends. There’s also a competitive aspect to Snaggle Find so check out the help section to learn how to score points.

I thought that Snaggle Find was a very innovative app and I liked that it’s got the potential to get me out of the house with my kids. I think going on a photo scavenger hunt sounds like a perfect Sunday afternoon activity and with users all over the world creating and sharing hunts there’ll always be new ones to choose from.

*You can also get help on www.snagglefind.com under FAQ.

Price when Reviewed:$1.99

Seller: N-Tonic, Inc

Little Lala is a sweet storybook app about a girl who travels around the world, meeting friends and collecting exotic food dishes. The app itself is simple and the illustrations are sweet. I enjoyed the message behind the story. My one suggestion would be to enlarge the illustrations to full screen. I ended up flipping my iPhone on it’s side and they filled the screen out a bit more. The author behind Little Lala has a blog called LaLa Travels where she talks about places she’s been and gives travel tips. So with the app you get something for the kids and with the blog you get visions of exotic places that you can run off to some day.

Price when Reviewed: $.99

Seller: Lala

If you’re a mom who’ll be taking an exotic vacation this summer then you should check out the free Translator app. The app asks you to first choose a source language (that’d be English for me) and then choose a target language (I chose Finnish, just because). Now type in what you’d like translated and the app will pull it up for you. Very, very easy to use and excellent if you find yourself out and about without your own personal translator. This never happens to me (due to the lack of both a personal translator and exotic vacations) but I thought I’d provide this review as a service to any readers lucky enough to get away this summer.

Price when Reviewed: Free

See the app at iTunes

Seller: Petr Homola

Eileen from Rand McNally asked me to take a look at their line of Boredom Breakers- games and activities designed to keep your kids entertained (and you sane) on road trips. I’d not heard of them before but I’m more than happy to try out anything that might make traveling with my kids more pleasant. There are several different types of Boredom Breakers and a little bit of something for everyone.

	Car Karaoke – My girls think this one is great. It comes with a CD that has 12 songs on it. It’s a decent mix of music, there are some oldies as well as some more traditional kid music. This isn’t a Kidz Bop CD, the songs are sung by grown ups, and for that I’m thankful. Car Karaoke comes with song booklets that have all the words and cards you can hold up to rate each performance. My kids favorite part? The inflatable microphone.
	Story Starters – I liked this idea and have a sister-in-law it’d be perfect for. It comes with a CD and a book full of different story activities. There are mystery stories that you listen to and then try to solve. There are stories missing words and you have to fill in the blanks. If you’ve got a fourth grader this has the potential to be better than Mad Libs. My favorite were the “What Happens Next” tracks. You get the beginning of a story and then different styles of music. Take turns telling what happens next in the story to fit the music that’s playing.
	Magnet Message Makers – This is probably my least favorite. It comes with two rectangular magnets for the back of your car. You also get over two hundred stickers. The idea is for your kids to use the stickers to decorate the magnets. The magnets are reusable but the stickers aren’t. Knowing my kids they’ll bicker over who gets what stickers and then end up using the entire supply on their first magnet. If your kids are better sharers than mine you’ll probably have better luck.
	Car Game Countdown – This is my son’s favorite Boredom Breaker, if for no other reason then it comes with an electronic car shaped timer. He’d be happy if we just gave him the timer and let him set it over and over again. But for the rest of us there are 18 activities that you can do in the car. My favorite is the “Super Silly Nonsense Sentences”. You have one minute to make up a long nonsense statement without coming up for air. Thanks to the Pig Latin activity my seven year old has learned a new and useful life skill.
	Travel Card Games – This is my favorite Boredom Breaker. It comes with three different types of card games. First there is “Tough Choice”. Pick a card and choose between two things. For example, would you rather run down your block in your bathing suit or go to the mall in your pjs? My vote is for the pjs, my neighbors don’t need to see the alternative. Another card game is “30 Second Interview”. Draw a card and find out more about your family. Playing this game we learned that Dad’s favorite smell is new baby, if he could be any age he’d be 25 and his favorite cartoon character is Phineas. All very helpful information. Lastly there’s the “I Saw It First” card game. This one has you draw a card and try to spot what’s on the card so you can earn points. Spot a rainbow earn 20 points, a bicyclist earn 10 points. My favorite – a spaceship with aliens earns you a million points.

Thank you Eileen for sending the Boredom Breakers my way and giving me a chance to tell other iPhone Mom readers about them. If you’ve got a road trip planned this summer and you’re looking for an alternative to passing your iPhone around the backseat I’d suggest looking into the Boredom Breakers. They’re entertaining and creative and – if you can handle it – a chance to interact with your kids in between rest stops.

Click here to see Rand McNally’s Boredom Breakers