Be There Bedtime Stories

Be There Bedtime Stories Webcam / Video Storytelling, Partnered Post…

One problem with marrying someone from another country is that, at all times, we have family abroad. This has made it very difficult to share the special moments of our daughter growing up with both sets of grandparents. Plus, there’s a 9-hour difference between the US and the Netherlands. When we’re waking up, the other family is going to sleep, and visa-versa. I wish Be There Bedtime Stories was available back then.

Be There Bedtime Stories allows family and friends to share in your child’s special story time from anywhere and whenever. If one parent must travel, they can still read their kids a good night story before bed. This is just not reading though. Children can follow along with the storyteller as the digital pages turn and they watch the recorded video above. All the voice inflections, all the expressions, all the props, and all the personality of their loved one is there for them to cherish.

There are several ebooks to choose from and in many categories. I chose to review books by age range, one for 3 and under and one for ages 4-8. None of the books were familiar to me but all seemed bright and inviting. In the future, though, I hope they include more well-known family favorites. I really like the fact that you can flip through the books at no charge to see if the story is one that you’d want to share.

Even recording a video is free! The only thing you pay for is to saving your video and sharing it. Each book is around $9.99 and there’s no limit to how many times it’s watched or shared. I think the price is reasonable when you consider the service you’re getting. Feel free to watch either of the stories I recorded, Poodle & Doodle (age 3 and under) or Moose and Magpie (ages 4-8).

Making a video takes next to no tech knowledge. Just log in, pick a book, turn your webcam on, and record. You can always preview your reading or re-record it. Once you’re happy with it, just enter the recipient’s name and email address. As soon as they click the included link, they can listen to the story whenever they want and unlimited times. No uploading, editing, or fancy movie magic that needs to be done as everything is automatically put together for you. There’s heavy flash usage so make sure your computer can handle it.

Be There Bedtime Stories is a great service. The idea seems simple yet it can really make a huge impact on bonding with our little ones whether they be our own children, grandchildren, nieces, nephew, etc. The family and friends I would share this with are now too old to want stories read to them. However, I will be recommending this to others I know.

One feature that’s missing right now is an iPad app, a project that’s currently being worked on. You can check out the Be There Kickstarter page to see how you can support this mobile application reach its fundraising goal. In fact, if you help spread the word, you might even be able to win an iPad mini and two (2) free stories from Be There Bedtime Stories! Enter below!

 
I was provided with two ebooks to review and a gift card for my participation. All opinions are 100% my own.