Meet My New Assistant!

 

 

This week we’ve been working on welcoming a new member to our family – our Google Home Mini!

This tiny little device packs a big punch, and it’s already made a huge impact in our home. I don’t know how I made it through this year without one!

 

 

 

 

 

 
I can set alarms in the kitchen, check the weather in the morning while I’m making breakfast, and ask the Google Assistant to turn on music while we get ready for our day! My favorite part is that my son can use this device so easily. He asks so many random questions – and my Google Home Mini can answer them so much more easily than I can! “Hey Google, how many teeth does a Tyrannosaurus Rex have?”. My Google Home Mini says 60+, and so that’s my new answer moving forward if anyone asks.

The Google Home Mini is compatible with Nest, Wemo, Spotify, Chromecast and other apps and partners so you can easily make changes to your thermostat, turn on or off the lights, and more. With a Google Play subscription you can play what seems like an unlimited list of music as well.

I think one of my favorite spots for my Google Home Mini is the kitchen!

Making dinner can be difficult enough, but my Google Assistant saves me quite a bit of frustration! My Google Assistant can read my recipes to me step-by-step, it can set timers, and if I’m in a pinch and don’t have a certain ingredient I can ask my Google Assistant for the substitute! This is something I would normally Google on my phone, but instead I can just ask while I’m searching through my cupboards.

The Shopping List is another one of my favorites! I can just say “Hey Google, add ice cream and chocolate chip cookies to my shopping list”, and those items are added in real time to the list in my Google Home App. This is SUCH a timesaver!

 

 

 

 

 

 
It was especially helpful this past weekend when we wanted to make sugar cookies! We said “Hey Google, what is the best recipe for sugar cookies?”, and Google gave us step-by-step directions on how to make these ones!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
The Google Assistant acts as just that – you ask the questions, and it provides answers. A few new experiences have recently been launched that are specifically designed for families with kids, and so far they’ve been a big hit in my home!

First up my favorite – Call Santa! Your Google Assistant will connect yourself and your child to the North Pole by saying “Hey Google, Call Santa”. You can hear Santa busy rehearsing for a musical concert! My son thought this was really cool!

Another one I love is CBC Kids News. Just say “Hey Google, Play CBC Kids News”, and listen to not only local news stories, but national and international stories that are relevant to Canadian children. My son thought this was such a cool feature, and I heard him later in the day tell his Dad about what he heard on the news!

If your kids love The Wiggles, they will love the Choose your Own Adventure with Emma feature! Just say “Hey Google, talk to the Wiggles” and this new Wiggles experience (exclusively for the Assistant) comes to life with Emma travelling through town to find friends to bring to her concert! Kids can get involved by being encouraged to dance, play games and list to fun songs with the Wiggles.

Something very exciting is coming in 2019! Soon families can ask their Google Assistant to set a Hatchmals alarm. The alarms include Hatchimals music, but also include jokes, challenges, fun facts, and other phrases from the heroes of “Adventures in Hatchtopia”. Just say “Hey Google, set a Hatchimals Alarm”, and next year your kids can have a blast!

This device is so great for me because it saves me time, and provides me with assistance when I’m busy and need some quick information, or when I need an answer to a question that I would rather call out than type into a device! My son is so entertained by our Google Home Mini – he says “Hey Google, tell me a Santa joke” and he’s laughing away! He can play some of his favorite games with the Google Assistant like freeze dance, musical chairs, trivia, or even just asking for fun facts keeps him occupied!

My new Google Home Mini has been so much fun for all of us so far! To celebrate how much I love my Google Home Mini, I’m giving one away! Head to my Instagram account here to enter!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Items in this post may have been provided to me for review, but all opinions are fabulously my own. This post contains affiliate links.