Why do I LOVE our CuddleTunes Bear????

My little guy is into cars. I mean REALLY into cars. At just over two years old, he can tell you if a car is a Ford, Chevy, Cadillac, etc. He also can tell the difference between a Peterbilt and Mack truck. So, when I was lucky enough to have won a CuddleTunes Bear from a contest on SwagGrabber, I was a little apprehensive about whether he'd like it or not. I even felt a little guilty about accepting my prize because I figured there was, in all probability, a little kid out there who would appreciate the musical bear more than mine. Boy, was I wrong!

 

The CuddleTunes Bear is really a great idea. It's basically an MP3 player built into a teddy bear. The feet hold buttons which control the volume, play/stop, and forward and reverse. A little zipper in the back hides the magic black box which controls everything and a USB cable. When you order your bear, you can download 5 lullaby songs with your child's name featured in them! My favorite is "Golden Slumbers" probably due to the Beatles' version of the song. When my guy heard his name mentioned, he gave the bear a sideways glance, as if to say, "Are you singing to me?!" It was pretty funny, and soon he had the CuddleTunes bear on his lap, listening intently for the next mention of his name.

Something that is especially great about this little bear is you can download your own music to the bear! It has  1GB worth of storage capacity (about 250 songs!) Now, since birth, we've played a compilation of John Lennon's slower songs at bedtime. The problem with using a CD was that, when it was time to go to sleep, we had to go into the other, music-free room to put him down. This always ended up in a protest. Now, with our CuddleTunes bear, he can have his music in bed with him. Another service that CuddleTunes offers is the ability to record sountracks on their Web site. This may not sound like a big deal, but it's great for loved ones who live far away to connect with your child. Maybe Grandma has moved to Florida and still wants to share a special bedtime story with her favorite grandchild? She can simply login to the site, record the story, and then you can download it to your child's bear. If there isn't a special story that you'd like to record, the company offers a story that you can record that introduces the songs.

The bear simply takes two AA batteries. No special $20 battery pack to seach for! And they last a very, very long time. He's been listened to for at least an hour a night since Christmas Day and I have yet to replace his batteries.

Another great feature of this bear is fun for kids and information for you. When the bear is on, a red light in its chest blinks on and off. My son calls it his bear's "heart beep." Cute, huh? To turn the bear off, you have two options: 1) Flip the switch on the box in the zippered compartment of the bear, or 2) hold down the play/stop button for a few seconds until the red "heart beep" blinks fast. The light will go out when you let go of the button and you will know that it's off and not using up power.

The CuddleTunes bear sells on the Web site for $59.95 and comes with the initial five-lullaby soundtrack with your child's name in the lyrics. You can read more on their site, including the text of the story.

You can find out more about CuddleTunes through their Web site, Facebook Page, or Blog.

*** I was not asked to write this review. I recieved a CuddleTunes Bear as a prize in a giveaway. All opinions are my own and I was not compensated for them in any way.