Finally! A Non-Germy Hand Towel for the Bathroom!

I have a little confession - I hate bathroom hand towels. I mean, sure they're pretty and they can match your decor, but when I'm at someone's house, I feel really awkward using those towels to dry my hands after I wash them. I'm not a super germ-a-phobe by any means, but reaching for a hand towel only to discover someone else has used it recently and it's still damp grosses me out. 

Of course, your hands are only as clean as the towel used to dry them, so when no one else is here, I often go to the kitchen for a paper towel to dry my hands. But putting a big roll of paper towels in the bathroom isn't exactly pretty, and a roll of paper towels soaks up any water splashed on the counter by children (or adults), putting me back in the same predicament again.

But Kleenex clearly tapped into my head and realized something needed to be done about this, creating the new Kleenex Hand Towels. These single-use, disposable hand towels are perfect for drying hands and the cute dispenser makes them decorative as well as practical. I've been waiting for someone to think up this idea for a long time now!

The Kleenex Hand Towels are in a pop-up type dispenser that can either sit on the counter or be inverted on the towel bar. When one is pulled out, another is ready to go. The towels are amazingly soft and free of dyes and fragrances. Dry-touch fibers also make them super absorbent for the sloppiest of hand-washers.  

Many of you are aware I'm a nurse, and I can guarantee that you won't see anyone at a hospital using a cloth hand towel to dry their hands! No way - we have disposable paper towel dispensers over every sink! You also wouldn't expect to see cloth towels in a public restroom - if that's all they had, I doubt you'd go back again.

Hospitals know that wet towels can spread germs. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines for hand washing recommends hand drying with a single-use towel to help reduce the spread of germs, yet in the U.S. alone, people dry their hands on cloth bathroom towels approximately 200 billion times per year.

Kleenex conducted a survey on hand-washing perceptions, and found that three quarters of Americans (73%) believe hand drying is less important than hand washing when it comes to helping stop the spread of germs. This, of course, isn't the truth.

According to the CDC, freshly cleaned, wet hands transfer pathogens more readily than dry hands or hands not washed at all. The residual moisture determines the level of bacterial and viral transfer following hand washing. Careful hand drying is a critical factor for bacterial transfer to skin, food and environmental surfaces.

So even though we're often in a hurry, it's important to make sure your hands are completely dry after washing them. And Kleenex Hand Towels provide a clean, fresh towel every time for better hygiene. Of course, try getting this message to kids, right? It's hard enough to even make them wash their hands, let alone dry them. Kleenex thought of that, too, and came up with this clever little hand-washing song to encourage kids to thoroughly wash and dry their hands.

I've tried to get my daughters to sing the song on video, but they are being extremely camera shy with their singing abilities. But they love the new towels - the hardest part is making sure they only grab one and not try to pull more out of the box each time! Mira even tries to make up reasons to go wash her hands again, just to play in the water and then pull out a new towel for herself. 

I'm completely in love with Kleenex Hand Towels and they are now a staple in my house. Oh sure, the little cloth hand towels will stay in the bathroom, but everyone will know they're strictly for decoration only. Need to dry your hands? Try a Kleenex Hand Towel and keep the germ spread to a minimum.

Win Some Cleaning Of Your Own!

Kleenex knows how important it is to have a clean home, and to celebrate the launch of Kleenex Hand Towels, I have a $50 gift card to ServiceMaster to give away to one lucky reader! ServiceMaster is a fantastic all-purpose cleaning and house service company. Whether it’s used towards a Merry Maids cleaning service so your bathroom is clean, tidy and ready for a fresh box of Kleenex Hand Towels or towards a lawn care service (summer is just around the corner!), you can experience a clean, fresh home.

To enter, visit the Kleenex Hand Towels site, then leave a comment here telling me one hand-washing fact you learned from the site. This entry is required.

For an additional entry, join The Motherhood's Hand Drying Song Circle and leave a comment here with your username.

For another additional entry, follow @TheMotherhood and @mommystory on Twitter and tweet this phrase:

RT Learn the Kleenex Hand Towels Drying Song and win a $50 ServiceMaster gift card! http://tinyurl.com/22u9849 #kleenexsong

Be sure to leave a separate comment with a link to your specific tweet for this to count!

For THREE extra entries, create a video about Kleenex Hand Towels featuring the Hand Drying Song. (If you're not musically inclined, get your kids to sing it!) Leave a link to your video in three comments on this post.

All entries must be received by 5/15/10 at 11:59pm EDT. One entry per type of entry per person - duplicates will be removed from consideration. Please make sure you leave your e-mail address so I can contact you if you win.

One winner will be chosen at random after the closing date and e-mailed confirmation. If winner does not respond within three days, another winner will be randomly selected.

Good luck and happy hand drying!

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Full disclosure: I was contacted by The Motherhood and Kleenex to learn about the new Kleenex Hand Towels and spread the word about the Hand Drying Song. In return I received product samples and compensation for my time involved in this project. All opinions on this product are my own and are 100% honest.

All The Water Slide Fun, None Of The Sand in Your Suit

I love swimming. I love water slides. I love spending an afternoon drifting on an inner tube. Naturally you'd think I spend my summers at the pool and save all my pennies for winter trips to Florida, right?

Wrong. Why?

Because I hate sand. I hate greasy sunblock. And I hate the sun, or rather, it hates me.

And honestly, why would I need to travel south when we have a better option right here in Ohio that lets me swim year round free of sand and sunburns? If I feel a need to escape for a waterpark weekend, I only need to drive south to Cincinnati to spend a weekend at Great Wolf Lodge - King's Island.

I've been to Great Wolf before - Aaron and I went there for our anniversary two years ago. I remember how a warm indoor waterpark looked pretty good when we were trapped there by the great blizzard of '08:

We didn't take advantage of the outdoor balcony in '08, obviously.

Still, if you're going to be snowed in, what better place than an indoor waterpark resort, right?

Last month my family was invited to spend a night at Great Wolf Lodge for the grand opening of their new waterslide, The Triple Twist. (Along with a few other bloggers, including two of my favorite locals, Moosh in Indy and Momo Fali.) To celebrate, the Lodge left the Triple Twist waterslide open all night long for the great Slide-a-thon, attempting to break the world record for longest distance traveled on waterslides over a 24-hr period. OK, I'll admit I wasn't a 3am slider, but I had to deal with kids who woke up at 6am, so I feel justified in my decision.

This was our first time taking the girls, so I wasn't sure how they'd react. We were staying in a "Wolf Den" room - it had a queen bed for Aaron and I, and then a little brightly-painted enclosed room inside the room, which housed a set of bunk beds and a TV. The girls immediately ran for their little room. "Look, we have our own TV!" Cordy cheered. "I want the top bunk!" They still talk about their little den and how they miss it.

 This is what our room looked like - the bunk beds are inside the little room.

But the room is minor compared to all of the other exciting things to do at Great Wolf Lodge. First, there's the obvious gigantic indoor waterpark, complete with several waterslides, water activity areas for the kids, a wave pool and a lazy river. Cordy and Mira enjoyed the wave pool, and Cordy liked going down the kiddie waterslides. I got the chance to break away from the family pack to enjoy some of the bigger waterslides, and really felt like a kid again as I grabbed my inner tube and ran up the stairs to go down again and again.

Each night, the Lodge offers up a story time for the kids. We got the girls into pajamas and took them up to the story time. They enjoyed listening to the story with the other kids, and then Cordy asked to have a photo of her with the bear in the lobby.

The Lodge also has a kids club area where kids can do camp crafts (with adult supervision), and next to that is a gigantic arcade. There are also plenty of food options, from sit-down dining to a quick snack of yummy homemade fudge. If you have some time away from the kids, take advantage of the on-site spa - or bring your daughters along for their own kiddi mani/pedi. Older kids (and adults) will love the Magi Quest game the runs throughout the Lodge - watch out for small wizards waving wands!

With the current economy, vacations to Florida or the Bahamas are simply out of the question. We'd rather get more vacation for our money by staying close to home, and Great Wolf Lodge is an excellent option to get away from it all without going that far. The rooms are comfortable and fun, the waterpark is simply amazing, and even one night at the Lodge can leave you feeling recharged, with great family memories to cherish. (And a lot of begging from the children of "When can we go back?")

If you're looking for a local family getaway on those rainy spring days (or any kind of bad Ohio weather days), I highly recommend Great Wolf Lodge - King's Island. With or without kids, you won't be disappointed.

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Full disclosure: I was provided with a one-night complementary stay at Great Wolf Lodge for the opening of their new Triple Twist waterslide. A positive review was neither promised nor expected for this stay, but after our experience, I couldn't find a bad thing to say!

The Blindside

** Please welcome Aaron as he provides a guest post for me on this great movie!

By now, if you haven’t heard of The Blindside, then you’ve probably been living in a cave for the past three months. Based on the real-life story of Leigh Anne Tuohy and Michael Oher, The Blindside has won significant acclaim – both for the film itself, and for star Sandra Bullock.

The plot of the film (and the book it was based on, and the real life-story) isn’t the most complicated. Michael is an outcast and an orphan, who is taken in by the Tuohy’s, and given a home. His great size and strength makes him a prize candidate for football, and the Tuohy’s encourage him to pursue this, even helping him raise his grades high enough that he can play. Then there is a moment of drama when it seems like they have been using him to get him to play for their alma matter, which ultimately is resolved with the message that family (which doesn’t necessarily mean the people you are blood related to) trumps all. And as most sports-drama films do, it ends with Oher being drafted in the NFL.

I’m not a huge sports fan, so I was mostly unfamiliar with the real-life story, but I have seen enough sports films to know how they typically end. A team, or a player, has a disadvantage (in this case, Oher’s impoverished upbringing and lack of education and family life), starts to overcome it – usually due to an inspiring coach or family member – has a brief relapse, and finally triumphs. So, there was little to surprise me while watching The Blindside.

I say that there was little to surprise me, and that’s true. But that’s not to say there were no surprises. And the biggest of these is the quality of the acting. By the time the video arrived, Bullock had already swept most of the major awards, so I expected her to be great – and she truly was. But what I didn’t expect were the quality performances from the rest of the cast. Quinton Aaron is superb playing Oher, and Tim McGraw does great work as Sean Tuohy, Leigh Anne’s husband. Also of note is Kathy Bates, who plays Oher’s tutor.

BONUS FEATURES

This disc is fairly light on the bonus features, with only a few deleted scenes. The Blu-Ray presentation includes several featurettes, including an interview with the real-life Oher, a head-to-head discussion between Sandra Bullock and Leigh Anne Tuohy, a discussion between director John Lee Hancock and author Michael Lewis, and a biography of Quinton Aaron. If you’re interested in these features, check out the Blu-Ray presentation instead. I wish that the studios were still in the habit of providing an extended or collector’s-edition DVD with the bonus features, but it seems like those of us without an HD player are going to slowly find our access to bonus features diminished.

OVERALL

While there is nothing amazing about the DVD presentation of The Blindside, the simple truth is that this is an amazing film, and one that is well worth seeing. It was obvious going in to Awards season that there was no way for the film to compete with the likes of Avatar and The Hurt Locker, but Bullock easily deserves every nomination and award she received, and the film more than deserved its’ nominations. If you have a Blu-ray player, skip the DVD for the Blu-Ray, but you owe it to yourself to – at the minimum – rent this movie. It’s a powerful and potent reminder of what family can mean and achieve.

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Full Disclosure: A copy of this DVD was provided for review. No further compensation was received, and a positive review was neither promised nor expected.

Ruining My Diet (Happily) With Dove Milk Chocolate and Peanut Butter

I love chocolate. That being said, something I love nearly as much as chocolate is chocolate with peanut butter. I remember buying bags of chocolate peanut butter cups as a kid and slowly devouring an entire bag, portioning out tasty rewards for myself for any accomplishment.

So I never miss a chance to try anything with chocolate and peanut butter in it. So when Mom Central asked if I wanted to try the new Dove Milk Chocolate with Peanut Butter Promises and Singles, I practically drooled on my computer as I typed "yes! yes! please!"

I already love Dove chocolate. It's smooth, it's not too sweet, and it's amazingly rich. Adding peanut butter to it seems like a brilliant idea, right?

The Promises are just like the solid milk chocolate Promises, only filled with a creamy peanut butter center. The peanut butter is far smoother than other chocolate/peanut butter combos - some have almost a gritty feel in the mouth, but this doesn't. I also like that it isn't overly sweet. Don't get me wrong - there's still plenty of sweetness here, but not so much that you feel the need to reach for your toothbrush immediately afterward.

I also like the size of the Dove Promises. They're the perfect size for a quick, small treat in the afternoon without being a calorie overload - only 44 calories a piece. And the taste is rich enough that one or two are often all I need to feel satisfied. The Dove Singles milk chocolate and peanut butter bars are just as good, although often they're a little too much for me for one sitting. Still, it didn't stop them from disappearing quickly in this house.

Official one-word review of Dove's new entry in the chocolate/peanut butter market: YUM!

If you believe chocolate and peanut butter are the perfect pair, you'll love the new Dove Milk Chocolate with Peanut Butter Promises and Singles. Slip a few of the Promises in your purse and have a chocolate/peanut butter mini-vacation whenever the craving hits.

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Full disclosure: I wrote this review while participating in a blog tour campaign by Mom Central on behalf of DOVE and received samples DOVE Milk Chocolate with Peanut Butter products and a gift certificate to facilitate my review.

The Movie That Changed Animation

I remember a long time ago - ok, 1995, but that feels like forever ago - I was a college student who was secretly a geek, and I loved animated movies. I still went to the theater to see the newest Disney releases, even if I was ten years older than the targeted demographic. And it was that year that I got to see Toy Story, and with it the first full-length computer-animated movie.

I was amazed by this little movie from the animation giant Disney and Pixar, a newcomer in the animation industry. The images were so crisp, but the story was heartwarming. So when I discovered Toy Story and Toy Story 2 were being released to DVD and Blu-Ray, I was thrilled to get the chance to see them again.

For those who haven't seen Toy Story, consider it a look at the secret world of toys. When people aren't looking, they come to life and have their own world based around knowing they are toys. They have their own social structure, they have their likes and dislikes, and they are especially afraid of being displaced by new toys.

So when Andy has a birthday party and receives a new Buzz Lightyear figure (voiced by Tim Allen), it immediately makes Andy's favorite toy Woody (voiced by Tom Hanks) nervous and determined to get rid of this new competition. In doing so, Woody ends up getting himself into trouble and the two toys have to work together to get back to Andy, all while Woody works to convince the clueless Buzz that he's a toy and not the actual Buzz Lightyear. Sounds like a simple story, but it has a strong theme of friendship and is a gentle reminder of the fantastic lives we imagined our toys had when we were kids.

While I saw this film in 1995, my daughters just got to see it for the first time, and they loved it. They liked the story, they laughed at the toys acting silly, and they enjoyed the music. And if you think they liked Toy Story, then you should have seen their reaction to Toy Story 2.

Toy Story 2 begins with Andy going off to summer camp, and Woody accidentally finding himself in the family yard sale when he tries to rescue another toy. He's scooped up by a collector and taken away, while the other toys - led by Buzz Lightyear - try to find him and rescue him. Woody finds himself in the collector's apartment, where he meets the other toys that were from the TV series Woody's Roundup.

The collector plans to sell them as a set to a toy museum in Japan, and while the other toys are excited about the trip, Woody only wants to get back home. Other than Jessie, the cowgirl, the other toys have never known what it's like to be loved by a child, and Jessie has bad memories of being forgotten by the little girl who owned her. Buzz and Andy's other toys eventually rescue Woody, and Jessie and the toy horse Bullseye come along to find a new home at Andy's house.

My girls loved Toy Story 2 even more than the original. First, it had a lead female character, Jessie, and the girls loved the toy cowgirl's vibrant and outgoing personality. Actually, that's primarily the reason they liked it more. The music was equally as good (Randy Newman is a genius!) and the animation was even better than the first. While the story isn't quite as simple as the first, it's still a good story that is easy for young children to follow while still keeping adults entertained.

Both of these movies were re-released last week on DVD and special Blu-Ray + DVD combo packs. This is the first time these films have been released in high-definition Blu-Ray, and each offers a range of bonus features, including a sneak-peak at the upcoming Toy Story 3.  Each has featurettes on the making of each movie at Pixar, deleted scenes, a "blooper reel" for Toy Story 2, and each includes a Buzz Lightyear mission log. The Blu-Ray discs also have movie challenges and other interactive features.

The Toy Story franchise was what originally launched Pixar into the big leagues of animation, and it's easy to see why. Not only was it a technological achievement, the story is unique and perfect for kids and kids at heart. If you don't already have them, be sure to add Toy Story and Toy Story 2 to your collection before the third in the series comes out this June.

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Full disclosure: I received a copy of Toy Story and Toy Story 2 for review purposes, but received no further compensation. A positive review was neither promised nor expected.

A Princess for a New Generation

To this day I still have a lot of love for all of the Disney Princesses. I grew up watching the classics, like Snow White, Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty, and then in my teen years I got to experience the Disney renaissance, with such new classics as The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast and Aladdin. Each of these groups of Disney films had an impact on my life.

The early classics, which are now seen as stereotyped and female-weak by today's standards, still taught me to hope for good and may have aided in my love of playing dress-up. The new classics, on the other hand, gave female characters more intelligence, more sass, and more power over their own destiny, although for most the end goal was still to find love, even if it was love wrapped up in exploration and adventure. They were modern women, wanting to find independence and make their own way in the world. Good role models for any girl.

And then last week, the newest Disney Princess debuted on DVD and Blu-Ray in The Princess and the Frog. My entire family got to see this movie before I did in the theater due to my work schedule, so my first experience was when I received this Blu-Ray+DVD combo pack in the mail.

This movie had a new first for Disney - the first African American princess. Set in New Orleans, the story follows Tiana, a hard-working woman from a working-class family who has spent her life saving and working towards her dream of owning her own restaurant. She is focused on her goal with no dreams of having a prince come rescue her and give her all she's ever dreamed of. So when a penniless, happy-go-lucky prince - Prince Naveen - comes to town looking for a wife, she doesn't give him a second thought.

The story really begins at the costume ball when Prince Naveen, now turned into a frog by The Shadow Man, convinces Tiana to kiss him in the hopes that she will turn him human again. Instead, everything goes wrong and she is changed into a frog as well. Their adventure through the swampy bayou teaches Naveen that there's more to life than fun, and reminds Tiana that her dreams don't have to exclude love and family - reminding her of how much her late father loved his family while working towards his dream.

Included throughout is a wonderful musical score, filled with lots of traditional New Orleans jazz music that will please young and old viewers alike. And just like many of the older Disney films, you've got plenty of talking animals, magic, and in the end the villain gets what's coming to him and our heroine finds love with her prince. But unlike past stories, he doesn't sweep her off to his castle - instead, they pursue her dream of opening a restaurant, working hard without the benefit of fortune.

It's interesting to see the different message being given to children today. In place of the old message of "when you wish upon a star....all your dreams come true," the new message is "when you wish on a star and work really hard towards your goals, all your dreams can come true." Not quite as magical, but a lot more realistic, I guess.

Honestly, I loved this movie. The story is original, the characters are well-developed, and it stands the test of repeated viewings. Tiana is a great new addition to the Disney Princesses, providing an excellent role model for young girls. I also really enjoyed that this was in the old, hand-drawn animation style. I love the crispness of computer animation, but hand-drawn animation seems to have more warmth and emotion to it. My daughters find the animal characters fun, and they love the story and the music.

Bonus features include deleted scenes, a look at the making of the movie, and an identify-the-princess game, as well as featurettes on Disney's Newest Princess, The Return to Hand-Drawn Animation, Conjuring the Villain (my favorite!), and more! (Note: Featurettes are only available in the Blu-Ray combo pack.) Audio commentary is also available, but good luck trying to listen if your kids want to watch the movie.

The Princess and the Frog is available on DVD and a Blu-Ray+DVD combo pack that includes a digital copy of the movie for your computer or iPod, too. Don't miss out on adding this one to your collection.

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Full disclosure: I was provided with a copy of this movie for review and no other compensation. A positive review was neither expected nor promised.

The Genius of Miyazaki

I recently wrote about last week's release of Ponyo, the newest animated film from Japanese filmmaker Hayao Miyazaki. Not only was Ponyo released to DVD and Blu-Ray by Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment last week, though - three other Miyazaki classics were also released on Special Edition DVD. If you have yet to add Castle in the Sky, Kiki's Delivery Service, or My Neighbor Totoro to your collection, now is the perfect time to do so.

For those of you who aren't familiar with any of these films, here's a brief description of each:

Castle in the Sky
Of all three films, this is the one most likely to appeal to older kids. Sky pirates, a floating castle, secret government agents, and a girl who floats down from the sky wearing a magical pendant are only a few things that will keep you and your child glued to the screen.

This fast-paced adventure is full of incredible imagery and features an all-star voice cast, including Anna Paquin, James Van Der Beek and Mark Hamil.

Kiki's Delivery Service
This charming story was my first introduction to the world of Miyazaki a few years ago. Kiki is a young witch who must follow tradition and set off on her own to become a full witch. She settles on a far-off city where she sets up her own delivery service to help the city. She and her cat encounter many obstacles and adventures in her quest for independence, and she learns responsibility as well as finding new friends and her place in the world.

Kiki is an upbeat, cheery film that would please all ages. My favorite part of Kiki has to be her cat, though, voiced by the late Phil Hartman. 

My Neighbor Totoro
Imagine the stress two small girls might face when their family moves to a new home. Now imagine those two girls find a new friend in a forest spirit that adults cannot see, and he takes them on spirited adventures where they meet all kinds of extraordinary characters.

My Neighbor Totoro is perhaps Miyazaki's greatest celebration of imagination and seeing the world through a child's eyes. It's a film that the youngest of children can enjoy, while reminding adults of the magic of childhood.

Each of these films feature a 2-disc DVD set filled with bonus features, including the World of Ghibli interactive experience that lets you explore all of the Miyazaki films in one area.

If I had any complaint about these special-edition DVDs, it would be that Disney didn't go one step further to make these Blu-Ray/DVD combo sets. I'd love to see the added richness of Blu-Ray like they did with Ponyo.

The best thing about each of these Miyazaki films is that they are nearly non-violent and encourage children to use their imaginations and continue to believe in the fantastical. Miyazaki is like the Peter Pan of filmmaking, encouraging all of us to keep believing in magic every day.

Castle in the Sky, Kiki's Delivery Service, and My Neighbor Totoro are all now available on DVD at Amazon or several other retailers.

Ponyo - Not Your Average Goldfish

It took a long time before we felt comfortable taking our oldest daughter to the movies. Because of her autism, we didn't think she could handle the dark theater, the loud audio, and the longer storylines. Her first movie was Up, and after that was a success, I carefully looked for the next movie to take her to. My next choice happened to be a perfect selection, and as a result, Cordy loves the brilliant Miyazaki animated film Ponyo, which just came out on DVD and Blu-Ray last week.

For those who missed it in the theaters, Ponyo is a must-have for your library, whether you have young children or not. Like other Miyazaki films, the story is simple enough for a young child to follow and enjoy, but rich in depth and beautiful animation to keep adults just as transfixed.

Ponyo is loosely based on the classic children's tale The Little Mermaid. It follows the little magical goldfish, Ponyo, a daughter of the sea goddess and a wizard, as she desires to learn more about the world and befriends a little boy named Sosuke. She becomes so enamored with Sosuke and all of humankind that she transforms herself into a little girl, and in doing so upsets the balance of nature and unleashing a flood on Sosuke's little village. Together the two children go on an adventure to save the world, not knowing that their adventure will determine if Ponyo can remain a little girl or will be transformed into sea foam.

OK, that recap may sound a little silly, but there's so much more to the story. If I tried to tell you all of it, this review would take pages to write. The relationship between the two children is both innocent and wise. Ponyo knows nothing of the world above the sea, and her wonder at even small things such as lanterns and wiggling toes is charming.



Sosuke's mother is also a strong woman who is brave, hard-working, and not without flaws - she could easily be one of many moms I know. And underneath the story is a not-so-subtle environmental message reminding us that we need to take care of our planet.

The cast is an all-star group of voices that fit their characters perfectly, including Liam Neeson, Cate Blanchett, Tina Fey, Matt Damon and Betty White. Other than Liam Neeson, no other actor was immediately recognizable by voice alone.

Ponyo is available on DVD and in a special Blu-Ray+DVD pack. The special features include an incredible series of documentaries titled Behind the Studio, which gives us a special look inside Studio Ghibli and the world of Hayao Miyazaki, and an interactive World of Ghibli feature.

While I'm already a big fan of other Miyazaki films, Ponyo might just be my new favorite. It's a movie that can be watched over and over without losing any of the magic of the film, and each time you watch it you'll notice something new. If you're looking for a new movie that's free of violence and reminds kids that there is still magic in the world, I highly recommend Ponyo - it will quickly become a classic in your home, too.