Here is a copy of the press release that appears on prweb.com:
San Francisco, CA (PRWEB) February 09, 2012 — Armin Brott, of MrDad.com and Paul Banas of GreatDad.com are on the hunt for the best toys for dads and kids. Brott is the author of The Expectant Father and seven other bestselling books on involved fatherhood. Banas is Publisher of Pregnancy magazine. Both men strongly believe in the importance of involved dads in child development.
MrDad.com and GreatDad.com are promoting positive parenting for dads is by evaluating toys, services, and other products that help strengthen father/child bonds and awarding them their Seals of Approval.
Awarded quarterly, submissions are now open for the Mr Dad Seal of Approval and Great Dad Recommends Awards. The deadline for the Winter 2012 submissions is March 9. Winners will be announced on March 27.
“As dads, we know how hard it is balance life’s pressures to be the best fathers we can be,” says Paul Banas, founder of GreatDad.com. “But we also know that dads are more likely to get down on the floor and play a game if they like it too. We search for products and services that make it fun and easy to be involved fathers. We hope that by identifying toys that dads will play with too, families will spend more time together. The seals programs help us find new products that will help other dads—and their families.”
The New York Toy Fair, the largest in the Western Hemisphere, is the perfect venue to see many toys and games in one place and test games for dad interest. Dad-friendly toys and games are then tested with dads and kids together.
“Next to ‘I love you, Daddy,’ some of the sweetest words a father can hear are, ‘Hey Dad, can we play that again?’ But as our kids get older, it gets progressively harder to find activities to do with them,” says Armin Brott, bestselling author and founder of MrDad.com. “We created the Mr. Dad Seal of Approval to help dads (and those who love them) identify top-quality, fun products and services that will help them and their children stay connected at every age. Each seal recipient has been field tested by other dads to ensure that it truly has that play-it-again factor.”
Winners receive endorsements on GreatDad.com and MrDad.com, the two leading parenting websites for dads and can be used in advertising and on packaging. Winners may also be mentioned in Brott’s nationally syndicated newspaper column and radio shows, which air on over 500 stations. Past recipients include Lego, Haba USA, The Smithsonian, and Wild Creations.
Manufacturers large and small have also found that earning recognition from MrDad.com and GreatDad.com is good for business. “The GreatDad Recommends and Mr. Dad Seal provide assurance to our vendors that we have built a quality product that they can feel confident to sell to their customers,” adds Wayne Lifshitz, CEO, Full Sail International, LLC.
Banas and Brott are available for interviews to discuss the selection process, past winners, and their soon-to-be-released book collaboration, The Playful Father, which will feature many Seal and Recommends winners.
Submission categories include:
Pregnancy and infancy
Toddler and pre-school
Elementary school
Tweens and Teens
Good for all ages
Websites
Family Wii games
Kid-friendly websites and mobile apps
Products and Services for dads who are away from their kids.
The last category is a new addition because so many families are separated these days. Both GreatDad.com and Mr. Dad are especially interested in recognizing products, services, and organizations that help fathers and their children stay connected–even when dad is far away. That could be because of military deployment, business trips, or even divorce.
The Mr. Dad Seal of Approval and Great Dad Recommends Award application deadline is March 9, 2012
Notes for News Editors
About MrDad.com
Headquartered in Oakland, California, MrDad.com, along with founder, Armin Brott, has helped millions of men around the world become the fathers they want to be. The author of eight bestselling books on fatherhood, Armin also writes the nationally syndicated newspaper column, “Ask Mr. Dad,” and hosts the internationally syndicated “Positive Parenting” radio show.
About GreatDad.com
Headquartered in San Francisco, California, GreatDad.com is a leading source of experience, recommendations, inspiration and advice for dads – delivered from the male perspective. GreatDad.com has the only weekly pregnancy newsletter written for dads.