Snacks: Snack Knack, Inc Crunch & Sip

Crunch & Sip (and the Extreme Sport Chicken Nugget)

Tested: 10/2/2005 to 10/20/2005

Crunch and Sip

Here’s a little issue I’ve got. It didn’t start with the Crunch & Sip, but the Crunch & Sip brings it all up. Why can’t I just get plain old kid’s things without a bunch of annoying images on them? Can I please get a box of diapers without cartoon characters? Lunchboxes, backpacks, tableware, clothes, pacifiers, bottles, food, and almost every other manifestation of baby gear has more stuff on it than not, half of which the kids don’t even notice, so the only one to even see this stuff is me. Maybe I wouldn’t be so bothered if there were some news printed on there, or dictionary definitions so I could work on sounding smart. Sure, I’m all for some Buzz Lightyear from time to time, or Hello Kitty on occasion, but for crying out loud, it’s gone too far!

Enter the Crunch & Sip. At first, I’m just annoyed. Yet another thing geared toward my children with weird little cartoony things on it (an artist’s rendition of something that looks like a chicken nugget on a skateboard). I don’t want to like it because of my little peeve.

But this little gadget is fabulous! What is it? It’s a cup and snack holder all in one. Looking like an hourglass, the drink compartment is on the bottom. On the top is the snack compartment. There’s a center piece that holds them together and acts as the anchor for a straw that goes up through the snack part and comes out the top. My son can drink his juice and get his crackers all by himself. He loves this. He loves to dole out snacks to everyone just to open the nifty, smart lid to the snack container, which simultaneously closes the straw so juice doesn’t spill when the Crunch & Sip is turned over. When the straw is put up again, the lid to the snack section is closed. Genius!

My 16-month-old daughter loves it too, though she can’t get the snacks out. That’s OK, she’s content just shake, shake, shaking it and drinking her milk. My son will give her all the snacks she wants. It’s all dishwasher-safe, including all four pieces (bottom cup portion, middle straw section, top snack part, and lid). Yes, it’s a little cumbersome, but the beauty is I don’t have to carry it. My kids tote it everywhere. No more diaper bag overflowing with small Ziploc bags with three pretzels left in them. Yes!

The flaw in this design (beautifully, I think to myself) is that the sticker with the Extreme Sport Chicken Nugget printed on it is coming off after two passes through the dishwasher. This makes the snack container look dirty and scratched up. But that will pass once the sticker falls off. Then sweet victory will be mine! Bwahahahaa!

Another issue is that when the Crunch & Sip gets dropped on a hard surface, the lid sometimes pops open and the snacks spill out. It must be quite a challenge to make the lid tight enough so this doesn’t happen, but loose enough for little fingers to open it. Right now, the lesson for my son is, don’t drop it. A good lesson to learn anyway, right?

Two thumbs up for the Crunch & Sip (or six if you count my two children’s thumbs as well). Nugget and all, for now.