The first night I met Kyle, he did card tricks for me.  I was smitten by his patter and smooth sleight of hand.  I’m a magician’s dream audience - I giggle at all the jokes and gape incredulously at the illusions.  And I really don’t want to know how the tricks are done - I love to believe in the illusion.

Our older daughter is just as fascinated by magic, but unlike me, she wants to know how the tricks are done - so that she can perform them herself.  Kyle has tried to teach her a few simple card tricks, but her tiny fingers aren’t quite adept enough to carry off sleights of hand.

Given her interest in magic, I knew she’d love the new DVD from illusionist Lyn Dillies - “Learn Magic With Lyn”.  Even though she’s a bit younger than the target age range (7 and up), she was able to follow the tricks easily and has had a great time trying them out on Kyle and me.  Some of the tricks require more attention to detail than others, but the simplest ones were no problem for her.  So I’m sure that kids who are within the target age range - and who are interested in magic and have the patience to practice tricks (and the patter to carry them off!) - could easily get good enough to perform for their friends or even in a school talent show.

Lyn herself is attractive and engaging, and I admire how she has built a career in entertainment borne out of her own longtime fascination with magic.  Her interaction with the kids in the DVD makes the show even more fun for kids who are watching.

There are lots of books about magic tricks, but watching an actual illusionist perform the tricks and then break them down step-by-step makes it much easier to learn and perfect the tricks.  I would definitely recommend this DVD for kids who are interested in learning magic themselves, and even adults like me - who still believe in magic - will get a kick out of it too.

Buy it!  Click HERE!

Win it!  I’ve got a copy of “Learn Magic With Lyn” - to enter, just e-mail mothergoosemouse@mothergoosemouse.com with MAGIC in the subject line by Sunday at 6pm EDT.  I’ll draw randomly from all the entries and announce the winner on Monday.

Does anyone else remember Le Mutt?  That darling stuffed doggie with the floppy ears and plush fur?  I had one and adored him.  Want to see a (really fuzzy) picture?

Given my long-standing love for Le Mutt, how could I turn down the opportunity to check out a book which features him on the cover?

Dirty Wow Wow, by Cheryl and Jeffrey Katz, is a collection of children’s lovies - pictures of the cherished objects and the stories behind the love that children have for them.

But this isn’t a very-special-episode-of-Blossom kind of book.  Brought to you by Ten Speed Press, an independent publisher with children’s titles that include “First Book of Sushi” (featured by Cool Mom Picks!) and “G is for Googol“, plus adult titles like “You Say I’m a Bitch Like It’s a Bad Thing”, Dirty Wow Wow tempers sentimentality with liberal doses of cleverness and cheek.

For example, we have Katie Kittenheart, a stuffed cat who used to be covered in thick white rabbit fur:

“Though Alex didn’t have a cat of her own, she possessed a modicum of understanding about feline grooming techniques, and she took to tidying up Miss Kittenheart with her own little human tongue baths.  Small wonder that twenty-seven years later, Katie Kittenheart still looks alarmed.”

And then there’s Onnette, a stuffed elephant who wasn’t so sure he liked being the favorite playmate:

“However, the most humiliating game that Onnette had to play was ‘The Princess and the Pea.’  Too small to be the princess, he was cajoled into playing the pea and forced to spend hours at a time squished beneath Betsy’s mattress.”

Some of these lovies still live with their original owners - like Green Ears, who resides in a study bookshelf - and some have stayed at their childhood home - like Blankie, who was tucked into the corner of the liquor cabinet decades ago.

Some have been lost and replaced by facsimiles - like Dup Dup, who was tossed into the trash bin by her aspiring basketball star owner - and some have been reunited under the strangest of circumstances - like Dog, who disappeared during a family move and turned up at an antiques fair.

The details of these stories are what make them charming.  And Ten Speed is featuring a contest where YOU can write about the details of your own Dirty Wow Wow (or your child’s, in the case of someone like me who never had a lovie and must therefore have no soul).  They’ll post your entry online, and each week (between now and the end of the month) a winner will be selected.

Each week’s prize includes your own one-of-a-kind handmade stuffed animal, a “Show Me Your Dirty Wow Wow” t-shirt (I know my mind’s in the gutter, but I think that’s the prize I can’t live without), and a copy of the book.

Even if you don’t enter yourself, check the Dirty Wow Wow contest page - I’ll be submitting an entry myself about how my girls’ Lambies have answered the philosophical question concerning the existence of evil.

Well, answered it to the satisfaction of a five year-old anyway.  And isn’t that what lovies are all about?