I’ve got three items here to take you into the weekend, and these will be of particular interest to you if your kids—like mine—are already done with school for the season. Everyone knows that there’s no magic quite like summer, and also no purgatory quite like a child who is only too eager to tell you that he or she is boooooooored.

(Ah, children! Can’t live with ‘em, can’t eat them for dinner without folks complaining.)

First up: Scholastic has once again launched their Summer Reading Buzz program, which is great either as a stand-alone pursuit or in conjunction with a program sponsored by your local library. Not only does it get your kids jazzed about reading, but every four read books your child logs means Scholastic donates another book to children in need. (This is one of my very favorite Scholastic sites, and I promise your kid will love it.)

Next: If your child has the chops to become a junior reporter, check out the Time For Kids Junior Talent Search. (Get your entry form here and make sure those entries are postmarked by June 20th, 2008.) It’s open to kids 13 years of age or younger, and twelve lucky winners will report for Time For Kids for a period of one year. Winners also receive… a t-shirt. Okay, this isn’t one you enter for the swag, but it sounds like a cool experience, nonetheless.

And last (but not least): How’d you like to be drawn into an upcoming Batman comic book? You can go enter the sweepstakes here or use this handy-dandy little widget right down here (click on the “WIN” tab):

The winner gets the original, signed artwork as well as 50 copies of the comic book. (And probably a deep love of milk mustaches, but that isn’t mentioned specifically.)

So there you have it; three distractions for your kids. No need to thank me.

My kids are a little too old for the Mr. Men Show, actually, but that doesn’t stop them from watching it whenever they pass it on the television dial. I understand; it is sort of mesmerizing, with its goofy little characters. It’s charming, just like the books. (I’ve always had a soft spot for Mr. Men.)

If you’re a fan, you likely already know that the show has an official Cartoon Network site, as well as an international official website. And it’s possible that you even checked into the Ty’s Mr. Men and Little Miss Store, before, although if you haven’t been there for a while, you’ll want to check again. (This Little Miss Chatterbox hat is new, for example, and I can think of several little girls who need that hat.)

I have a couple of goodies for you that you may not have already seen.

First, I don’t know how I missed it, last month, but Animation World Magazine’s Joe Strike did a great piece on how the show came to be. It includes little insights into character changes like this one:

Cartoon Network asked for — and got — a slight trim in the number of female characters and a more “boy-centric” attitude in the show’s humor. “The network was afraid it would turn off boy audiences,” says Casemiro, “so we dropped Little Miss Fickle, Miss Fabulous and the Little Miss Twins. They weren’t from the books, we invented them for the show. There were a lot of negative female characters in the original books: Little Miss Scatterbrain, Little Miss Stubborn… we had to realign them, make the Little Misses a little more positive.”

So that’s how Miss Calamity came about. (And all this time I just thought it was because her name is funny.)

Second—and this is positively awesome—did you know that there’s a Mr. Men Show Blog? There is! It’s listed as being written by executive producer Kurt Mueller, although most of the postings I’m seeing are authored by someone named Sarah. (Sarah, who are you?) Either way, it’s a bit of behind-the-scenes information, as well as your chance to talk back to the folks who work on the show. Pretty cool.

Haven’t caught Mr. Men fever yet? Check out the links I gave you, and tune in to Cartoon Network weekdays at 9:00. Just try not to find it charming—I dare you.

Well, I saw the new Indiana Jones movie this past weekend. We opted not to take the kids, after all, because I would hate to sully my title as the Meanest Mother Ever. But my husband and I, we were ready for some good old-fashioned Indy mayhem. The reviews were mixed, but we headed out with high hopes.

Our verdict? If you grew up on Raiders of the Lost Ark, this is a great film to take you on a fun little stroll down memory lane. It’s not the greatest movie I’ve ever seen, but I found it eminently satisfying for what it was. I’m glad we went.

(Most of the reviews complaining about the film are saying that it’s too campy or too predictable, to which I merely say, “I’m sorry, but have you seen the other movies?” Of course it’s campy and predictable. That’s sort of the point.)

Anyway, whether you’ve seen the movie yet or not, here’s a few little Indiana Jones themed distractions for you to check out this morning:

• AOL has 20 Fun Fact About Indiana Jones. (Did you know George Lucas wanted Tom Selleck to play Indy?)
• Dose has Ten Things Indiana Jones Can Do Better Than Your Grandpa. (So, your grandpa fought Nazis during WWII, for example, but Indy fights them before, during, and after.)
• Finally, MTV tells us 10 Things You Need To Know about Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, including the lowdown on Shia LaBeouf’s groin injury during filming (frankly, I could’ve lived happily without those details, thanks).

May I also just point out that Harrison Ford is now 65 years old, and looking really, really good? I thought he was maybe 50. I’m off to buy myself a fedora, as I now suspect it’s the key to staying youthful….

On behalf of all the folks here at Ty’s, I’d like to wish you and yours a very happy Memorial Day, today! May your day be filled with whatever matters to you most, whether it be mindful remembrance, charred hot dogs, or both.

To help celebrate, we’re running a shipping special. You have through tonight to place a $29.99+ order at Ty’s Toy Box and automatically receive free ground shipping within the continental U.S. (some restrictions apply; see details).

It’s so not fair.

Why is it that as women age, they lose their appeal, but when men start getting a little grayer and ruddier they generally just become more delicious? (Hey, I’m a mom, but I’m not dead.) As I was saying: Not fair.

I have no idea why that’s on my mind right now. Oh, why, helloooooo there, Harrison Ford! When Raiders of the Lost Ark burst onto the big screen I was not yet old enough to appreciate the excellent eye candy that Ford presents, but as the movies continued I began to see the appeal. And now—with Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull opening this weekend—I must say that I think he’s still looking mighty fine. See for yourself:

If you, like me, grew up on Indiana Jones, you’re now looking at a childhood treasure come full circle. With this latest installment, it’s your chance to share the adventure with your kids, and to listen to them hoot and holler and roll your eyes when you tell them that you saw the first movie back in fifth grade when the big boxes of candy only cost $.75.

Checking The Tomatometer yields excellent news; it looks like the new movie will not disappoint. But PG-13? Hmmmm. I’ll have to do some thinking, as I’m not sure my kids are ready for that yet. Maybe I’ll have to go see it without them, even. (Hey, the Indiana Jones LEGO sets are all on sale. I could assuage my guilt with one of those.)

And then there would be no eye-rolling and and I could just enjoy Harrison Ford, erm, I mean, the movie, in peace.

If you have a school-age child, chances are you are well-acquainted with the phenomenon that is High School Musical. Why, you’d be hard-pressed to avoid it. Just taking a look at the variety of items available in the Ty’s High School Musical store is an easy confirmation of the popularity of this particular musical phenomenon.

And now there’s a chance for your little darling’s dreams of being a similar musical star to come true, says Disney. In preparation for the upcoming High School Musical double-header on the Disney Channel this June, your child is being given a chance to star, as well! Check it out:

The Disney Channel is asking kids and teens 14 years of age and younger to submit their own music videos featuring themselves singing one song from the hit film franchise High School Musical. To participate in “My School Musical,” participants can choose from the songs “Bop to the Top”, “Getcha Head in the Game” and “I Don’t Dance”.

All videos must be uploaded by Friday May 30, 2008. Kids can rate their favorite video and link them to friends on Disney’s website. The winning video is scheduled to air during telecasts of High School Musical and High School Musical 2 on Friday, June 13 (6:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m., ET/PT) on Disney Channel.

Ready to have at it? Go visit the official Disney My School Musical site and get to work! Don’t want to submit a video? That’s okay; you can watch and vote on videos already submitted.

There are a lot of awfully cute kids on there, already, but of course yours is even cuter, I’m sure.

No, really.

You read that right. Not a canoe like you use to get across the lake, but a new kind of advertising capability, because heavens knows there was not enough advertising on television already:

Cable executives said on Monday they are weeks away from naming the first chief executive for a joint-industry interactive advertising platform project.

The platform would allow advertisers to automatically insert ads into video-on-demand shows and target consumers.

The cable industry has been working for the last nine months on a project to develop compatible standards for interactive advertising with any cable operator.

The first head for the project, code-named Canoe, will be named on June 1, said Comcast Corp Chief Operating Officer Steve Burke, speaking on a panel at the trade event The Cable Show in New Orleans.

Executives were bullish about the prospects for an advertising platform for themselves, their cable network affiliates and advertisers. They said the ability to automatically, or dynamically, place advertising spots as viewers watch video on-demand would add significant value for all parties.

“It’s about dynamic ad insertion. We know the advertisers want one easy way to do it,” said Landell Hobbs, chief operating officer at Time Warner Cable Inc.

I have to admit I haven’t used any sort of On-Demand programming in a long while, but there was a time when I loved the free offerings for kids expressly because it was ad-free. And now that’s going away? All hail the almighty marketing dollar, I guess.

But can I take just a little joy in it being called “Canoe,” at least? As in, up the creek without a paddle…?

Ever since Ty’s Toy Box and All Aboard Toys announced their merger, I’ve been spending some time trying to familiarize myself with All Aboard. You know, so that I can contribute something more meaningful to discussions about them than, “Huh?”

No, seriously, the truth is that All Aboard carries over seventy different lines, and between then and Ty’s I feel like I’m always scrambling to stay up on latest. My new strategy when someone asks me if either store carries a certain thing is to just say yes, because chances are, they do! And I can always check, later. (Note to my superiors: Just kidding! I always check first!)

Anyway, it turns out that there’s one area at All Aboard where I feel completely comfortable, and that’s their Community area. They’ve got all kinds of goodies over there, including a blog!

Their latest entry not only contains a LEGO Indiana Jones Mine Car Chase Video (which my son made me replay several times for him, thank you very much), but an exclusive interview with the clip’s producer. How fun is that? I mean, how else would you get this sort of education:

AAT: How many of the “individual” pictures were taken?

Producer: “Each second of video consists of thirty separate pictures, adding up to over seven thousand pictures in the total running time of approximately four minutes.”

That’s good information to have, especially after you’ve watched the LEGO Indiana Jones movie for the third time and your son is insisting that his LEGO guys want to make a movie, too.

Anyway, go browse around over there when you have some time. Good stuff.

Yep, another Cartoon Network project is premiering in just a few weeks, and Animation Insider brought us this summary last month:

Cartoon Network has announced their plans to premiere The Marvelous Misadventures of Flapjack in Summer 2008.

Raised by Bubbie the talking whale in the bubbling splendor of the sea, Flapjack’s life was once a world of peace and tranquility. That all ended the day he and Bubbie rescued an old pirate from a shipwreck, Captain K’nuckles, whose tall tales tangle up Flapjack’s head, consuming him with an unquenchable desire for adventure.

Although Bubbie struggles to protect him, Flapjack would do anything to win the approval of Captain K’nuckles, even if it means getting himself into a lot of trouble. The trouble Flapjack finds himself in results from his naive, overenthusiastic quest for adventure. The best things are what happened instead — the misadventures.

The sea community in which the three friends live, Stormalong Harbor, is pretty much home to them. Here Flapjack and Cap’n K’nuckles work at the dock to earn candy money, acquire supplies, and get into mischief, all in support of acquiring the most coveted title of all� Adventurer!

I’d seen the summary a few weeks back and promptly forgotten about it (hey, I can only retain so much information at one time, and the lyrics to all of the songs I used to listen to on my coveted cassette tape player in junior high are tough to oust once they’ve had decades to sink in, you know?), but then today I ran across a sneak peek episode. Go ahead and watch it. I’ll wait.

So—what’d you think? I watched it with my kids, who are now appropriately jazzed for the June 5th premiere, but I couldn’t help feeling just a little deja vu while I was watching it. Then I remembered the first time I’d seen an episode of My Gym Partner’s a Monkey and how I really wanted to hate it, but actually it was… well… sort of funny. Flapjack was also sort of funny. And sort of like what I imagine would happy if you put My Gym Partner’s a Monkey and SpongeBob SquarePants into a blender together. Which is to say, it’s entertaining, but also has a bit of “been there” feel to it.

It’s interesting, too, that it’s premiering in an 8:30 p.m. time slot. What, no Saturday morning love? Is the content too mature for little kids? (Funny, I saw a lot of candy and a head in a toilet bowl. I foolishly assumed that little kids were the target demographic….)

I’ll be curious to see how it does.

I’m labeling this “retro” even though this is one of the few times I won’t give you a long, drawn-out “when I watched this as a wee lass” sort of story to go along with an old show. Oh, sure—I grew up on Sesame Street and Superfriends and I’m only too happy to bore you with the tales of how important those shows were to me in my tender youth, but this time it’s different.

Because Fraggle Rock didn’t come out until I was already in junior high, see. So all I can tell you about it from my personal experience is that I babysat for some kids who loved it, and every time I let them watch it I found myself humming the theme song for days on end. I would be walking to the bus stop in the morning—”Down at Fraggle Rock!”—or working on a math problem—”Down at Fraggle Rock!”—or looking for a snack after school—”Down at Fraggle Rock!”—and often I wondered why I could only remember that single line. And then I would go listen to some Van Halen to try to get it out of my brain.

What? No, that doesn’t have anything to do with anything. Just sharing my Fraggle Rock experience, is all.

Regardless of the earworm properties of their theme song, Fraggle Rock enjoyed a huge following and great success; so it should come as no surprise at all to learn that it’ll soon be coming to the big screen as a feature film:

Cory Edwards, who directed the animated “Hoodwinked!” for TWC, will helm the picture and write the screenplay. The Jim Henson Co. will produce and TWC will distribute.

Just like the series, the film will be populated by a mix of human characters and Fraggle Rock puppets. TWC co-chair Harvey Weinstein, who has been steering his company more aggressively into the family film arena, made the marriage with Lisa Henson, who runs JHC with her co-CEO brother, Brian Henson.

Ahmet Zappa will be exec producer with Brian Inerfeld.

It would be wrong for me to hope that they come up with a new theme song, right? Probably it is. But I can hope.