Spirit: Riding Free ~ Season 7 now streaming on Netflix!

We are pleased to partner with Allied Marketing and DreamWorks Animation 

to help promote this release. We were provided with gifts to thank us 

for our participation, but all opinions expressed are our own.

My girls have had a blast spending time with Lucky, Spirit, and their friends this weekend on Netflix! The debut of Season 7 of Spirit: Riding Free was yesterday, November 9, and it is fantastic. 

When we're not watching the show or listening to the theme songs, we're playing with this amazing Playmobil Spirit: Riding Free set featuring Lucky, Spirit, and horse stall, and all the supplies needed for Spirit to be well taken care of. It's a huge hit!

Run wild and free with Spirit Riding Free today - 

Season 7 is now streaming on Netflix! 

Share your Spirit love online using the hashtag #SpiritRidingFree!

DIY Christmas Ornaments - Perfect Gifts for Friends and Teachers!

We received free product to facilitate this post. No other compensation was received. 

All opinions expressed are our own.

I've shared before that my oldest daughter is a giver. She can find any occasion to give gifts to her friends. Christmas is one of the more obvious times of year where she starts planning months in advance for the most perfect, thoughtful, true-to-her, gifts for friends and teachers.

This year she chose to make ornaments for gifts. She knew she wanted them to be "winter color" themed ornaments with blue, turquoise, purple, white, and of course, anything sparkly. She loves to be creative and I love to be low-maintence these days, so these DIY winter themed Christmas ornaments were perfect for us both!

We started with some Clear Christmas Ornaments and then simply just filled them up with blue and pink Snowflake Beads, Winter Pony Beads, Silvertone Jingle Bells, Winter Fun Loops, Snowflake Jewels, Tiny Pom Poms, Glitzy Buttons, and Foam Snowflake Craft Shapes.

What we got were some colorful (just like my daughter!), wintery, super cute ornaments that will look great on Christmas trees this year and for years to come!

What a simple and fun way to ring in the holiday season and help us gift a lasting memory to our friends and teachers this year!

We got all the supplies for these super easy DIY Christmas Ornaments online from Oriental Trading.

Shop the Oriental Trading Christmas Sale today!

Halloween Costumes for All Ages

We received free product to facilitate this post. No other compensation was received. 

All opinions expressed are our own.

Halloween is coming! You already know we're ready for our party that night, and now we're ready for trick-or-treating too! My oldest daughter typically begins preparing her costume plans on November 1 of each year. As soon as she takes one costume off, she starts planning for the next. Historically, I've made her costumes but now that I have a toddler as well and am working full time outside the home, my time and energy is more limited. Off to the internet we went, searching for costumes for both girls.

Oriental Trading has so many costume options for trick-or-treaters of all ages! Whether you're looking for something for a baby, a grownup, or anyone in between, you'll find it. Group costumes, family costumes, themed costumes galore. On the top of our list when we look for costumes is a costume that works practically for us. Halloween night is typically cold in New England but no kid likes to wear their jacket on top of their costume. We were on the hunt for something cozy that we could layer underneath for warmth. Stylish, fun, and practical - that's what my girl was looking for.

Introducing our snow leopard and our duck!

I'd love to be able to convince my I'm-not-2-yet-but-I'm-in-the-terrible-twos toddler that she should wear her costume, but her favorite word right now is "no" so that's not happening. Fingers crossed she changes her mind by the end of the month!

I love these costumes and look forward to making memories with them this year! They are creative, fun, cozy, and high quality.

If you're looking to save yourself the hassle of a store trip to picked-over, messy costume aisles, browse Oriental Trading online. I guarantee you'll find something that works for you and your whole family. Happy Memory Making this Halloween!

Peanuts® Halloween Party Planning

We received free product to facilitate this post. No other compensation was received. 

All opinions expressed are our own.

When I was young, I lived in a neighborhood full of friends my age, and trick-or-treating was truly a group affair. Everyone would eat a quick dinner and head out into the darkness (there were not even street lights!) for treats and fun.

We've carried on the same tradition in our family now that I have children of my own, but there aren't many kids my kids' ages that live in the neighborhood so the fun factor is not quite as high. Last year, thinking about our own situation, and knowing that we have several friends from school who live on busy streets that are unsafe for trick-or-treating, we invited some school friends over to our house and then headed out together for trick-or-treating. For one friend, it was her very first time trick-or-treating, because she'd never had a safe place to enjoy the tradition! 

Our little get-together last year was so much fun so it was an easy decision to make this an annual tradition! This year, we plan to invite even more friends, and even picked a theme for our pre-trick-or-treating Halloween party - Peanuts®! We're hoping to catch a peek at the Great Pumpkin this year!

We've gathered together some simple decorations to set the mood. They are so fun!

We'll cover the wall in our dining room with this a-m-a-z-i-n-g Great Pumpkin Backdrop. It's made of three strips of plastic that stick to our wall with static electricity - I didn't even need to use tape! There are only two of the strips hung here because I couldn't fit all three in this space. The completed set is 9 feet x 6 feet. 

I expect that we'll put this life-sized Great Pumpkin Cardboard Stand-Up outside on Halloween, but for now, on this rainy day, it's set in front of the Backdrop. Won't this make for some super fun photo ops?

We'll serve pizza because it's quick and easy, and we'll set our table with this Peanuts® themed Halloween Plastic Tablecloth, along with these themed Dinner Plates, and Napkins.

Hanging Paper Lanterns and Halloween Cutouts will complete the look!

We can't wait to have our friends over again this year... and can't wait to surprise them with this fun Peanuts® themed party!

All of these items - and more - can be found at Oriental Trading! Plan your holiday get-together easily with goodies to match whatever theme your heart desires. There are tons of fun and affordable options available!

Canobie Lake Park - New England Fun for All Ages!

We were provided with complimentary tickets to Canobie Lake Park to facilitate this review. 

All opinions expressed are my own.

Last weekend we took our annual summer trip to Canobie Lake Park! It's always a relief to make the final arrangements for this super fun day trip because I'm asked almost every day of the summer, "Can we go to Canobie Lake this weekend?" Being another crazy summer that included broken bones, we had no choice but to again wait until the end when we were all cast-less and ready to play.

Canobie Lake Park is conveniently located in Salem, New Hampshire, just a couple of minutes from Route 93. It's easy to get to, parking is free, and if you plan to spend the entire day there, I can promise you won't get bored!

We have a seven year old and a 19 month old and they both, not surprisingly, had a blast at the park this year.

Our big kid will ride most all the park rides. A few of this year's favorites were the Canobie 500 Cars, the Kiddie Dragon Coaster, the Caterpillar, the Policy Pond Log Flume, the Boston Tea Party (SO WET!), and the Pirate Ship.  We decided to wait one more year before riding the biggest roller coasters like the Yankee Canonball, the Corkscrew Coaster, and Untamed.

Our little one enjoyed her first carousel rides(s) this year! I lost count of how many times she rode the Antique Carousel but the nice things about Canobie Lake Park is that once you've paid for admission to the park, you're good for the day and can ride what you love an unlimited number of times!

Our entire family loved riding Over the Rainbow.

It is so fun to have rides that can be enjoyed by the whole family!

Although our youngest was big enough to ride the rides in the kiddie section of the park, I didn't quite trust her to ride alone and my oldest is a tad too big for those rides. For the most part, these rides have a 48" max height. If this girl wasn't in a phase filled with "no" and some pre-terrible-two defiance, I may have trusted her, but climbing out of cars and boats mid-ride wouldn't be good! Next year!

The food at Canobie Lake Park is always delicious and this year was no exception. In fact, this year was better than ever before with the new Smokin' BBQ! My husband and I enjoyed delicious pulled pork sandwiches with baked beans, coleslaw, and iced tea. My parents tried out the BBQ chicken. My southern husband is pretty critical when it comes to barbecue and he was impressed in this authentic, delicious meal! Smokin' BBQ is only open Friday through Sunday, starting at 1pm, and only until the food runs out. We got there at 1:00 to get the freshest of the batch and we'll do it again next time for sure.

You can't bring food or drinks into Canobie Lake Park, but there truly are tons of options for meal and snack time! We enjoyed popcorn, cotton candy, and ice cream throughout the day. We'd been looking forward to them all year and they surely didn't disappoint!

If you haven't had a chance to make it up to Canobie Lake Park yet this year, it's not too late! There is still tons of fun to be had at Live Shows, the Canobie Petting Zoo, and Screemfest, which begins this weekend! Start planning your trip today!

New Play Sets for Outdoor and Indoor Summer Fun

We received free product to facilitate this post. No other compensation was received. 

All opinions expressed are our own.

This summer has been the first in a long time that I've been free of out-of-the-home work so the kids skipped camp and we've been enjoying our summer off with lots of stay-at-home days!

I don't shy away from some extra screen time in the summer - tv, iPad, iPod, etc. are okay with me within reason, but getting outdoors and moving our bodies takes the priority. 

I pulled together a list of some of our favorite outdoor activities on the blog a couple of years ago which I encourage you to check out if you're looking for some new ideas.

We are so thankful to have a big yard and a refreshing pool but even with those treats, summer days can get monotonous so we were excited to get a few new play sets for the yard this year to add to the fun.

Here's what we chose...

We are big fans of ladder ball but our old set broke, so we picked out this new one (with LED lights that are super cool for nighttime play) online from Oriental Trading. Ladder Ball is a great two player game in which players take turns tossing balls, connected to strings, and try to land them hanging on the horizontal ladder rungs. It takes some practice to get just the right toss but it's fun for kids and adults alike!

We also found some good old fashioned Lawn Darts because those are fun for all ages! Another great game for two players who take turns tossing their "darts" through the air and try to land them in their ring. This is tricky! I haven't figured out the special touch with these yet. They always bounce out of their ring when I throw them. My husband, on the other hand, has mastered it!

Bean bag toss games and some good whiffle ball never disappoint. I think we go through a whiffle ball and bat set each summer. My daughter is notorious for breaking balls when she hits to hard and my husband is notorious for breaking the bats when he hits too hard! This one is holding up so far this year and it's certainly gotten a lot of use!

Perhaps the highlight of the summer has been this Inflatable Water Slide! I'll be honest, the anxious mom in me cringed at the idea of it, but truly that has been so fun and we've avoided injury thus far!

New England summers always come with their fair share of thundering, rainy afternoons, so we thought it would be good to add a little something new to our indoor play sets as well. 

All kids love to play house - at least my two do! With this super cute, amazing quality play set from Melissa & Doug, they can play house, and help with chores all at once. 

My big girl is a big helper - she loves to help with housework. My one year old has recently started to look for chores she can do. She helps empty the dishwasher, throws every little crumb on the carpet into the trash, and puts away laundry without being asked (I find her Daddy's socks in her sock bin all the time!). Both of them adore this new set and it's been perfect for our days inside.

It's hard to believe we'll all be back to school in just a month's time! I'm glad we've had the opportunity to make a lot of fun memories this summer - both inside and out!

You can find all these fun play sets online at Oriental Trading.

Road Trip Must-Haves

We received free product to facilitate this post. No other compensation was received. 

All opinions expressed are our own.

This summer, my husband and I did something we said we'd never do. We took two kids, one age 7 and one age 1 on a road trip! Don't get me wrong. We actually love road trips and have taken more than we can count. Before kids, we would leave for our trips late at night, stop for coffee, and drive through the night until we reached our destination. Who were we?! 

We road tripped (is that a verb?) twice with our first daughter and knew we'd have to start breaking up our trips into two days and staying overnight in a hotel. And then we flew to our destination once... and it was sooooo easy! And we said NEVER AGAIN will we do a road trip. 

And then we saw the outrageous price of airline tickets to our intended destination and planned a road trip again. 12 hours. With two kids. With a 16 month old. And we knew we were crazy. But WE DID IT! And actually, it went so well that we'd do it again for sure. 

We split our 12 hour trip into two days again and stayed overnight in a hotel in between. We made sure the hotel had cribs available and thankfully our daughter slept - probably even better than we did!

We packed well - and we packed a lot. I think my husband thought I was a little nuts for packing as much as I did but I was so intentional about making our travel time work. It's hard to occupy kids for 6 hours at home, in their house, with all their toys. I needed to find a way to do it in a car, with them strapped in, and confined. They did so well that we did not have to stop even ONCE on our first leg. We drove 6 hours with no stopping and only minimal fussing.  

The two things that saved our travel sanity were...

SNACKS AND TOYS!

We went to the store and got all sorts of special snacks. I know my snack packing technique will make some of you cringe because I used approximately one million disposable zipper lock bags, but it worked like a charm. I promise that I actually use reusable snack bags during the school year but I don't have one million of them so I had to break all green-living rules to make this work. 

Each snack was separated into small serving sizes in the baggies. All those baggies were then packed into a large bag. And all the different large bags filled with small bags were packed into a small carry-on size suitcase which was stowed, unzipped, between the two car seats in the back seat. GENIUS. The 7 year old served up snacks to the whole family throughout the drive. 

New toys are a must for both road trips and plane rides. Their newness is intriguing and they don't tend to get bored quite as quickly. I surprised the girls with some new travel-friendly toys and activities that were perfect for the trip. Oriental Trading had a lot to choose from.

We love these Farm Friends Hand Puppets from Melissa & Doug. They are so cute, soft, and fun! They made for a lot of silly interactive play, especially with our youngest daughter. I'm pretty sure I sang "Baa, Baa, Black Sheep" no less than 100 times during one particularly traffic-y part of our trip. Every time I stopped, she started baa-ing and we'd sing it again with our puppet friends dancing to the beat!

The Oomee cube (pictured on the left below) is a fantastic invention - a puzzle with pieces attached so nothing gets lost! It's rubbery so no one gets hurt when it's thrown. It's made of 100% food-grade silicone so it's safe for teething too. And of course it encourages shape learning. It's a win on all levels and was well loved by our toddler.

The Find It! Seek & Find Game, travel-sized Perplexus, and Extreme Dot to Dot book were enjoyed by our 7 year old. We also had crayons, colored pencils, and coloring books. 

Another big hit were Water Wow! books from Melissa & Doug. I've been eyeing these little books online and in stores for a couple of years. I finally took the plunge, purchased a few, and we're all hooked. I've purchased two more since this road trip for another vacation this summer. They are an amazing invention! Simply fill the little paint brush with water, and colors show up as you paint the cardboard pages of the book. When they dry, the color disappears, and you do it again! These are so fun. Both girls (and even I!) enjoyed them.

Our road trip was a huge success, but lest you think it was all hearts and butterflies, this is how it culminated...

Real life, my friends, this is real life. My boisterous toddler has, just since school got out in June, lost a fingernail, had eye surgery, and broke her leg. I won't list all the things she did during the months between her birth and then! She keeps us on our toes... even when she can't be on her own!

Thankfully these travel-friendly toys are not only perfect for carseat-confined kiddos, but ones who are confined in other ways as well!

We Love July... We've Gone Red, White & Blue Already!

We received free product to facilitate this post. No other compensation was received. 

All opinions expressed are our own.

I cannot believe it's almost July! This is my first summer off from work in a long time and I am living it up. We are doing our best to venture out of our own backyard at least a couple times a week for some new adventures such as the playground, or our favorite children's garden. We are loving lazy days too, though, and are enjoying the sunshine right outside our own door.

We've had a great month, but the countdown to July has already begun! One week from today we enter our favorite month of the year! July is always an exciting time for us - multiple family birthdays and parties, tons of day trips, a road trip, cookouts at least every weekend, and of course (because we would never miss a reason to celebrate...) the 4th of July!

We are in 4th of July mode already around here! A quick online Oriental Trading order (I avoid shopping in stores if I can help it!) had us all ready to go.

We have a super fun Large Patriotic Bean Bag Toss Game, some Patriotic Traffic Cones to be sure we're playing fair, and a Patriotic Ball & Bat Set to replace the two whiffle ball sets that my husband and daughter destroyed last summer by hitting balls too hard.

For the littlest family member, we have an adorable Inflatable Patriotic Pool full of Patriotic Mini Rubber Duckies.

Because you really can't celebrate right without candy, we've got some of that too... some Patriotic Candy Corn Fun Packs and some Red, White & Blue Tootsie Pops!

And to get us ready for actual 4th of July Festivities like fireworks, we got some Mini Star Premium Glow Wands, in red, white, and blue. They will be perfect for the big night!

Oriental Trading is having a great sale on patriotic goodies right now - up to 50% off! Order in the next two days and you're guaranteed to get it by July 4th! Woohoo!