Great Kite Deals Going on Now at Amazon

OK so my favorite hobby, of which there are many, is flying Kites unfortunately I don't get to fly as much as I would want because the winds here in Raleigh are just not as consistent as one would like to truly enjoy hobby on a regular basis. But I do get to fly several times a year when we go to the Outerbanks of North Carolina and I have built up quite a quiver of kites over the lasts several years. Why would you need more than one kite? Well because they can be beautiful to look at but more importantly you need to have the right kind of kite for the wind that you will be flying in. There are kites designed to fly indoors with no wind, in low wind, in medium winds and even in high winds. So if you really want to be able to take advantage of the wind presented to you on a particular day then you will want to have the right kind of kite in your quiver to fly in that wind. You can however as a beginner buy a kite that will have a broader wind spectrum but obviously the performance level of those kites will not be as good as one designed specifically for a certain type of wind. As you progress in the sport you will want to start building your quiver for the various types of winds and flying styles you prefer.


Now the type of kites I prefer to fly are two line stunt kites mostly manufactured by Prism out of Seattle, Washington. I am a big Prism Kite fan, I guess because the very first stunt kite I bought was a Prism Quantum and thus I became familiar with the line and the level of support offered by the company. I have just about every Prism kite they make both stunt and single line with a few exceptions mostly on the Parafoil end. I do own a few other brand of kites though but my favorites are always the Prisms.


I happened to notice today on Amazon that there are quite a few Prism Models available right now at greatly reduced prices and thought I would share them with you incase someone might be interested.


The first model is the one that I first purchased back in 2004 from Kitty Hawk Kites which is the Prism Quantum and back then it retailed for about $80 bucks but now they retail for $112. Amazon is selling a few Prism Quantum models in the low $60 range which is a great deal on this entry level kite. It is big, durable and has a strong pull so it is easier to control because you feel the movement of the kite. It also has a built in shock absorber in the spine to help ease the effects of the inevitable crashes that beginners will have. It also has an adjustable bridle that allow for more radical settings one you progress in your flying skills. This kite performs well in a variety of winds although Prism states as little as 3 mph I would suggest 6 mph or more to be more realistic. I have flown this kite several times in high winds around 25 mph and been very pleased with it. I highly recommend this kite to anyone as their first kite and at this price it is very hard for even me to resist buying another one. Here is the link to the kite on Amazon http://www.blogger.com/www.amazon.com/Prism-QUANTUM-Quantum-Stunt-Kite/dp/B003H34NBO/ref=pd_sim_sg_1 and your price will vary depending on the color you chose but there are some colors that are really great deals.


The second model is the Prism 4D Ultralight Stunt kite and Amazon has one of the Yellow color for sale around $80. This is a pretty nice deal based on the retail price of $105 for this kite. As the name implies this kite is for low wind or even an indoor kite and actually is quite a good kite for flying in Raleigh as the winds tend to be relatively low here. I don't have this particular model but I do have it's predecessor the Prism 3D Ultralight and have been very pleased with it so far. I just want to mention that since this kite is designed for little to no wind it's construction is not going to withstand the physical abuse most beginner fliers will give a kite so I don't recommend this one as your first kite but if you have been flying awhile and are ready to start building your quiver then this is a good first kite to add. Here is the link to the kite on Amazon www.amazon.com/Prism-4D-Ultralight-Stunt-Kite/dp/B003L2THA8/ref=pd_sim_sg_5 and as mentioned the Yellow color is the one that is on sale for the best price.


The third and final kite I am going to mention is really more for the intermediate to advance fliers but it also is my favorite kite in my quiver and that is the Prism Zephyr.This kite retails for $280 and right now Amazon is selling the Prism Zephyr in the Eggplant color for about $146. This is an amazing price for this kite and probably your best overall deal as far as the savings are concerned. One of the biggest things I like about this kite is the wonderful hard shell kite case that comes with it. The case alone is worth $50 so you are getting a really superb deal on the Zephyr kite at this price. In my Zephyr case I can carry all my line sets, the Zephyr and one other kite and that is usually the Quantum. I can also fit my Prism 3D kite on the outside of the case strapped on by the the bungee cord lacing down the side if I wish. The kite itself is a low to medium wind kite and there is also an included weight set that can be put in the spine to help in the higher wind range. Being an higher end kite you will have some features not available on the lower end models such as a fully adjustable bridle, adjustable leech line and leading edge tensioners and yo yo stoppers making this a great competition kite. At this price even though it is designed for intermediate to advance fliers I would almost recommend it to new fliers who had the money because it is such a great kite. But my real recommendation would be to buy both the Prism Quantum and the Prism Zephyr that way you have something good to learn on now the Quantum and then also have a kite that you could grow into later the Zephyr and all for about the normal street price of the Prism Zephyr. Here is the link to the kite on Amazon http://www.blogger.com/www.amazon.com/Prism-ZEPHYR-Zephyr-Stunt-Kite/dp/B003L7TQB8/ref=pd_sim_sg_7 and as mentioned the Eggplant color is the one that is on sale for the best price.

As a side note I mentioned having different types of kites in your quiver based on the wind but please also be aware of the need for different types of linesets depending on the wind conditions and the length of line you desire to fly with.

I hope this helps someone looking to buy a kite soon. I don't know how long these prices are good for and Amazon's prices fluctuate greatly so take advantage while you can. Now I just need to resist the urge to take advantage of such great deals myself as I really do not need another kite unless someone really just wanted to get me one for my 37th birthday coming up soon then I could always use another kite.

Olivia's Birth Announcement

Just wanted to share the birth announcement I created for Olivia that we sent out to immediate family.  I heart Shutterfly!

Storybook Setting Birth Announcement

Customize your own baby announcement at Shutterfly.

View the entire collection of cards.

A few memories from Labor Day vacation



Olivia's first time for toes in the ocean water!



The gorgeous view of the sound from the back of our rental house

Daddy feeds the munchkin outside the aquarium

Olivia's favorite activity on vacation - laying on the couch!  She takes after Mommy!

Babylegs 75% Off!

Babylegs.com a company that sells these utterly cute leg warmers, tights and socks is currently offering 75% off any order $75 or more when you purchase items from their Costume selection. Enter code SPOOK75 at checkout. Shipping is FREE.

http://www.babylegs.com/Costume-C673.aspx

I was very giddy when I found out and I bought 7 pairs late last night for $20.50 shipped. They had a few none Halloween looking ones which were the ones I bought. Some have sold out so the selection now is getting very limited so if interested act quickly. I think our daughter Olivia is going to love these and they well help keep her warm and protect her little legs when she starts to crawl. Shannon probably thinks I am crazy and is not too sure what to make about them but I just adore them.

Here is one of the pairs I bought called Candy Apples

I am also very tempted to try out one of these WooBee Blankets which they have on sale right now with an additional 25% off using in code WOOBEE25 and also free shipping. I really would like the Cow Pattern one to go with Olivia's new Cow Pattern Car Seat.

To See they 3 different types and determine which one is right for you go to

http://www.woobeeforbabylegs.com/which-woobee.html

Or if you are already familiar with them you may go here to shop directly.

http://www.babylegs.com/Gear.aspx

They normally range from $30 to $64 and now with the discount are going from $18 to $36.

I love snails.....

Long long ago in a previous job we wore disposable lab coats and would write our initials on the back so we would know which one was our own when we took them off.  My initials at the time were SNL which looked like snail so I started drawing a little snail under my initials and over time the snail became my personal mascot, so to speak.  Since then I've loved anything with cute little snails on it. 

This past weekend my husband came home with the GREATEST thing ever....a snail toy for Olivia!  I have already told her that we love snails and polka dots so she was so excited to see a snail with polka dots!!  You can push the snail's tail and it rolls across the floor while playing a really cute song.  I'm not sure who loves it more, me or Olivia!

Scrabble Flash - Addictive Fun

So on TV the other day I saw an ad for a new variation of the old classic board game Scrabble. The commercial featured 5 small red blocks each with its own LCD screen displaying a unique letter that magically appear from the hands of what appears to be a magician, of which we only see his torso, arms and hands. The blocks float around in the air as he manipulates them to form various words. The letters on the blocks LCD display change allowing him to form even more words. The ad to me was very interesting and the product pitch must have been very compelling because that afternoon I went out and purchased the product called Scrabble Flash.



Well I must say the game can be quite addictive and has become so for me so much so that I was hesitant even to show it to my wife after I opened it and began playing with it.  This was out of fear that she might want to take possession of it for a while before I fully had time to appreciate and evaluate it.

Basically there are 3 different games that can be played 2 of which were designed for Single players and and 3rd that can be played by one or more players. The first game is called "Scrabble Flash" and you have 75 seconds to form as many 3 to 5 letter words as you can with the same set of 5 auto generated letters. You score one point for each 3 to 5 letter word you create and in addition for each 5 letter word formed you also gain an extra 5 seconds of play time. At the end of the game you line up the squares and you are given your achieved score i.e. how many 3 to 5 letter words you formed and the highest number words possible with those 5 letters.  The second game is called  "Scrabble Five-Letter Flash"and the goal for this game is quickly form a 5 letter word using the letters given and each time you complete a word the letters change causing to now create a new word. The play continues until you can no longer form a 5 letter word quickly enough before the timer ends at which point you are given a 5 letter word you could have created and then your score. The third type of play is "Scrabble Pass Flash"  which is vary similar except that you pass the blocks after creating your 5 letter word and each time someone fails to form a 5 letter word with their given letters before the timer runs out they are eliminated until only one player remains. The amount of time allowed to form the word shortens as play progresses.

If that wasn't enough for you or you wanted a slightly easier style of game play, you able turn off one piece and only use 4 blocks to play. This would change the would mean in the first game Scrabble Flash you would then only have to create 2, 3 or 4 letter words and for the subsequent two games it would only require you to form a 4 letter word instead of a 5 letter word.

The blocks are easily transportable in the small plastic case that is included making perfect take along capable of easily fitting in a purse, book bag or briefcase and because the game play is quick you can always find time to play during the day. 

The only real downside is the price point at around $29 and the fact that it takes 5 CR2032 batteries which is unless your me not as common to be found around the house already when they need to be replaced. The good news is that if you don't mind buying off brands then you can probably find a good deal online in bulk on generic CR2032 batteries. The last time I had to get some I ordered them online and got about 20 of them for about $5 versus the same price in the store just for 2 Duracell or Energizer brand ones.