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Gifts for Moms

I received these products free for purposes of my review. All opinions are my own.

I LOVE reviewing products for moms, because that means I discover some cool stuff for myself while I’m at it. Here’s 3 items for that mom or female friend on your gift list that is just impossible to shop for! They’re all unique, fun, and probably something that she doesn’t have yet!

Moxie Malas

Moxie Malas is Crystal Healing and Aromatherapy jewelry. Each piece is hand crafted in the United States using semi-precious gemstones and crystals.

Moxie Malas sent me this beautiful “I Just Can’t Even” bracelet to review.It’s a 7 inch bracelet on a stretchy band. It seems appropriate considering how difficult it is to keep my cool with the mixture of work stress, educating my children, and unusual holidays this year.

This bracelet has amethyst, aquamarine, moonstone, rose quartz, prehnite, and howlite for a mixture of courage and calming semi-precious gemstones and crystals.

The porous purple stones on this bracelet are lava stones. And, aside from being the perfect addition to this bracelet, they can be used for essential oils if I want to add a little scent to my bracelet.

A lot of Moxie Malas jewelry items have these porous lava stones for adding your favorite aromatherapy to your crystals bracelet.

They even have a monthly bracelet club if you want something new every month but are just overwhelmed by all the great options like I am, and can’t make up your mind!

Bombay Hair

I love playing with my hair, but I hate owning 50 different curling wands (well, I don’t think I actually own 50 – but I definitely own at least 10). All those power cords, sizes, etc.

So, I was excited to receive this 5 in 1 Curling Wand to Review. Basically, I have 5 curling wands, and only 1 power cord. That’s just awesome! This set comes with a rest for setting my hot curling wand on and two hair clips for helping me keep my hair where I want it while I’m curling.

This wand heats up super fast. Yay! That’s really important to me because with 4 kids, when I sit down to work on my hair, I don’t have 10 minutes to wait on my curling wand to heat up. Full disclosure here – with the exception of a couple wands that I’ve purchased for my daughters, I’m still using my curling irons from the 90s and those things take almost a decade to heat up. I think I was way overdue for an upgrade.

The different sizes are super easy to swap out, and there’s a lock switch so you can’t accidentally twist your wand off the base while you’re curling – because that would be a problem. Just make sure that your wand is completely cool before swapping ends. – which is the only down side of a 5 in 1. You can’t use multiple sizes at the same time.

My favorite is the second from the left (in the picture) that has the smaller base and larger end. I start at the scalp and wind my hair around so the end of my hair is at the end of the wand. I have long hair and it’s always frustrating when my ends curl but the top doesn’t, so being able to curl tighter where it’s more difficult and looser where it holds better makes my curls come out so much more even.

Prank-o

These gifts are amazing for that white elephant gift exchange, or for the impossible to purchase for person on your gift list.

I’m actually re-gifting these because I have a couple people on my gift list that just need a gag gift.

These call of nature mugs are funnier the longer you look at them, and the gift cards are perfect for that person who is always telling you how much they love gift cards – or the person who insists on giving everyone gift cards every year. No matter which side of the gift card fence you fall all, these are awesome!

You can actually go to the web address on the gift card (Prank-o owns those domains) and it will give you all the details about how you’ve been pranked.

Prank-o also has prank gift boxes, prank greeting cards, prank flyers, and more. All perfect for bring out the laughs however you choose to exchange gifts this holiday season.

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Family Friendly Holiday Activities

I received these items free for purposes of my review. All opinions are my own.

Elyptol

I know we’re all staying home for the holidays, but I still want my surfaces clean for all the fun family activities we’re doing. So, before we get started, these hard surface wipes from Elyptol are perfect for wiping down the table or counter.

With natural ingredients and a Eucalyptus clean scent, these wipes are perfect for any solid household surfaces.

Elyptol has hand sanitizer, sprays, wipes, and liquid soap. Even if I wasn’t being extra cautious about germs this year, my 3yr old son is still struggling to accurately hit the inside of the toilet, so, I’m doing a LOT of bathroom cleaning. It’s nice to do it with a product that doesn’t dry out my skin and that leaves my bathroom smelling amazing!

Use code: germ free for a 20% discount when you order.

Adventure Challenge

Now that we have a clean work surface, the first thing my kids wanted to try out was this Adventure Challenge book.

There’s a plethora of fun family activities, you scratch off one, and have to accomplish it before you can pick another one. We just finished the one where you create a sculpture out of something from your fridge. It was so much fun!

There’s tape strips by each challenge for sticking on a photo of your adventures. When we’re all done it’s going to be an awesome book full of fun memories!

It’s hard to beat having fun AND being able to look back easily and remember it.

I’m loving the randomness of the activities, this makes them so fun and unique. And I love that I have a fun activity literally at my fingertips for those days when we just can’t think of anything to do.

So much fun!!!

You’re Pulling My Leg Jr

This game is simple, you ask a question – like tell me about a time an animal tried to bite you – the answerer flips a coin and doesn’t let anyone else see it, heads is the truth and tails is a lie.

The Answerer then answers the question by telling a story with the designated truth or lie and the listeners have to guess if the story is true or not.

We started this the other night and the kids did not want to stop! It’s so much fun coming up with random stories (or true stories) and trying to trick your siblings (and parents).

We got many laughs out of this game and have plans to play it again tonight.

The best thing is, you can easily play this game with a large variety of ages and everyone can have fun tricking everyone else. I plan to pull it out for our next extended family zoom call.

Pando

So this game arrived all wrapped up, with this cool note. I liked the game before I even played it! Obviously, the creators of this game are super creative, which is everything I could hope for in a get to know you trivia game!

This game works as a couples game, a group party game, and even as a family game. It’s funny how my questions my husband and I did’t know the answers to for each other!

The kids thought it was so fun to learn random information about everyone, and there really are so hilarious questions/answers that happened while we were playing.

This is another game that is perfect for family or friend zoom calls as well as family game night.

With all these awesome activities, my kids are well entertained this holiday season, while still learning about each other, and staying safe!

 

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Tween Gift Guide

*I received free samples of these items for purposes of my review*

Tweens start getting more complicated to shop for. They want fewer toys and more personal care items. My tween loves games, beauty products, and baking! So, I’ve rounded up a few items that I know she’ll love.

Eco Lips

This fun chapstick comes in 3 very festive holiday flavors, Raspberry truffle, Candy Cane, and Gingerbread.

Eco Lips are organic and fair trade so something you can feel good about giving your child.

These are small and make terrific stocking stuffers or buy the multi pack and wrap it as a present.

The way my daughter looses lip balms, I’ll need a couple multi packs just to get her to next Christmas.

Not into holiday scents? They have lots of other flavors available. Including tinted products and bee free products. There’s something here for everyone!

America’s Test Kitchen – the Complete DIY Cookbook for Young Chefs

My daughter loves to bake! And this cookbooks is perfect for her. From making your own sprinkles, to sweet and sour dip, to ketchup, to butter, to milkshakes, to really anything you can imagine. The instructions are easy to follow. There’s lots of pictures. And everything in here is simple enough that my daughter can do it on her own – though sometimes I just can’t resist joining her.

This is the perfect gift for that kid who just loves to experiment in the kitchen!

Scenties

I feel like the 80’s are back! Well, the part I loved about the 80’s is. Scrunchies!!! And, they’re better than ever, they smell like cotton candy, cupcakes, and bubble gum. Honestly, my girls are obsessed with scrunchies. And I can’t blame them, they’re so easy and comfortable for fixing long hair, and what’s not to like about smelling like cotton candy while you’re at it.

Out of this set, the bubblegum hair bands are the favorite. We’ve been using those over and over and they smell like bubblegum every single time. It’s so much fun! Plus the little tag on them is just so cute, and honestly makes it just a little bit easier to grab onto the rubberband without grabbing my child’s hair.

And, if you really want to be all fun and 2020, they have face masks, with velcro loops that you attach the scented bands to. So you can wear a cute face mask AND sport your favorite scent at the same time. How cool is that?

My daughter has requested one of everything for Christmas!

Evel Knievel Stunt Cycle

I remember this being a thing when I was a kid. So I was super excited to check out this toy for my daughter.

It’s way more fun than I expected! This re-release of a classic toy is so well done! It’s quite sturdy and works way better than I was anticipating! All of my kids are having fun with it.

They built some ramps out of cardboard boxes and set up their own stunts in the driveway. They’re so cool! The toy is super easy to wind and use, and it balances well. We’re still working on mastering the wheelie – sometimes we can get it and sometimes we can’t. But, we’re close to figuring it out.

This toy has provided hours of fun and creative play and everyone is super excited every time we pull it out. We can’t wait to figure out what stunt Evel Knievel can do next!

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Fun with Back to School

*Sponsored Post*

I know it’s a different back to school than we’re all used to. So, this year I’ve been focusing on how I can make it fun for the kids and inspire their interests! I’ve got a few essentials on my list, but mostly, it’s important for them to engage and find something that they’re excited about or interested in doing every day.

First up, let’s talk about these cute masks from SwaddleDesigns. Typically, SwaddleDesigns makes swaddlers, blankets, and bedding for babies. These things are super cute and look so soft, but my littlest isn’t a baby any more. I was super excited to try out their masks! They sent 3 masks. 1 Adult and 2 Child masks.

The matching rose masks are both cotton masks. They are 100% cotton, 180 thread count, 3 layer cloth masks. There’s a pocket for a filter, the ear elastic is nice and soft, and even though this mask is 3 layers it’s still quite lightweight. My favorite part is the chin gusset. It’s a little tab shaped to go around your chin, this keeps the mask from riding up into my eyes and it keeps the bottom part of the mask from being super tight under my chin (like the straight rectangle masks seem to do). This is pretty much the only cotton mask that I’m comfortable in.

The child cotton mask is designed for kids 2 to preteen. It fits my 12 yr old daughter really well. So, if you’re concerned about sizing, it does actually fit a preteen. Depending on the actual cut, sometimes she needs the adult size and sometimes she needs the kid sizes, with these swaddle design masks, the kid size is perfect.

The polkadot mask is a 2 layer cotton mask of premium flannel. Because flannel is a little thicker the 2 layers work great. There’s no pocket in this one. The ear elastic is the same as the cotton masks so super soft and comfortable. Flannel is just a little bit warmer than the 180 count cotton so it’s super cute and fits great, and I can see her using it a lot more in about a month when the weather gets a little cooler. Right now, it’s just really hot on her face. They do have some super cute designs available in the flannel.

Between the 2, the 3 layer cotton is my favorite, but they’re both soft and comfortable, and cute.

Since I started with practical items, I’ll save the fun stuff for later. With all this everyone at home I’ve been teaching the girls how to do their laundry. And some new detergent doesn’t hurt! I do prefer the Biz Stain & Odor Eliminator Liquid to the powder. Mainly because with a HE washing machine, the liquid is just easier to use. My kids are a bit sensitive to detergents but they don’t have any trouble with Biz. Plus, with it’s odor eliminator it really helps reduce that odd smell that front load washers can tend to get.

I’m loving the OxiClean on the Go sticks. I keep one in my purse and they’re super handy with the reduced access to restrooms and such these days. Instead of having to wash something out of the kids clothes, I can just use my stain stick to go and take care of it.

And, I don’t know about you, but I very much dislike going to the drycleaner. So, unless it’s stained and I really have to have a professional, these Dryel at Home Dry Cleaner are awesome! It makes keeping up with my dry clean only clothing so much easier!

My last practical item here. This InnoGear Diffuser. With 4 timer settings and a color changing LED, my girls have been using it as a nightlight/room refresher at night. They also sent a set of 6 OnePure essential oils to go with the diffuser. I appreciate that these oils aren’t’ super strong. The girls are enjoying their nightlight and picking their evening scent.

I will say, Peppermint is my favorite scent for their room. It just smells so refreshing and almost clean. And my girls need all the help they can get with a clean room!

This diffuser is super easy to use, shuts off automatically if the water runs out, and with 3 diffusing settings you can pretty easily control how strong or mild your scent is just by turning it up or down. Plus, I’ve always loved the color changing night lights! I find the right scents super soothing, and this collection of scents is awesome!

My kids were so excited about this “A Family Guide to Terrariums for Kids“. I have the brownest thumb ever but my daughter wants to grow everything and I don’t know where to begin. This book has easy to follow instructions and suggestions for where to find the items to build your selected terrarium.

There are lots of awesome looking terrarium ideas to pick from, and lots of helpful hints including things like how to pick the right container, the best plants, and how to care for your terrarium. There’s a section on the different types of growing mixes and care instructions for individual plants.

This is a terrific project for homeschooling or just encouraging your kids to explore some different plants.

We’ve been using this “Kitchen Explorers” cookbook from America’s Test Kitchen for the baking segment of our homeschool this year. With all this extra time at home, and my kids already love cooking, we’ve been branching out and trying new recipes. The recipes in this book are tasty and easy enough for the kids to make.

I love how we can get some science, math, and tasty treats all at the same time! If you get this book, you definitely need to make the cake in a cup. It’s amazing!

My kids were super excited when their CrunchCup arrived! With no group snacks at events this year, we’re getting plenty of use out of these cups! You put the milk in the outside, the cereal in the inside, and then when you tip the cup they both come out at the same time, so you can have your cereal and milk (or snack and beverage) at the same time without needing a spoon!

The first thing I was worried about was leaking, but there’s a little seal between the color and the clear plastics that seals well. So far, we haven’t had any leaking. It did take everyone a few tries to get the hang of how far to tip the cup. None of us had any experience trying to drink a beverage and a snack at the same time so it does take a little practice to get milk and cereal without getting too much at once. Once they got the hang of it though, they now want cereal on the go all the time!

With the different color lids we always know who’s cup is who’s. Check out their youtub video for a demonstration!

And last but not least. Hasty Baker card game. We love baking so much, we’re even playing a card game about it! Actually, this game is pretty simple to play and it has some bonus/powerup cards that keep the game interesting and different every time we play. I can see why it won the 2020 Tillywig Best Family Fun Award. It’s simple enough for my 7yr old to play and fun enough that I even enjoy playing with the kids. A fun game that the entire family can enjoy.

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Clothing Subscription Boxes

I have a love hate relationship with styling services. I try, but there’s one critical time of year that none of them can figure out. I have yet to find a styling service that can nail clothing for the summer in the south. I think they all live somewhere where it never gets up to 90 degrees and they have no idea (despite my efforts on many styling sites to explain this baffling phenomena) of the importance of sending outfits that do not require any sort of jacket ever.

So, while I am sharing my favorite styling services, I actually do not recommend any of these if you require clothing for 90 to 100 degree summers. Despite repeated attempts to explain that even at 2 am a jacket of any kind might kill me, they all insist on sending me jackets for “those chilly nights”. I’m not sure what’s chilly about a low of 89 at night.

Summer is my favorite season, and I absolutely love the heat and I love not needing a jacket. None of these services get that.

If you’re looking for the perfect holiday outfit, or something to wear to the office, these styling services are all terrific. So, that’s what I use them for.

Stitch Fix

This is the first clothing subscription box that I tried and sometimes I love it and sometimes I hate it. I used to love my fixes, and then they changed stylists on me and she just didn’t get me. I haven’t ordered anything for a couple of months and I’m focusing on updating my style profile – if you go in every day you can like or dislike different clothing pieces to help your stylist out.

I’ll also request a new stylist next time and hope things go better. I’ve had good success in the past and when I look on their site, they have cute clothing. They’re just not sending any of it.

They do carry a few things in talls, which is nice, because I’m tall and even though things like crop tops are super cute, they just don’t work for my height, so it’s nice to have a company that can send me things just a little bit longer.

I find that most of their styles are fairly practical and have gotten many of my basic pieces from them. I keep encouraging my stylists to send me something crazy, but so far, no one has.

Use my link to get $25 off your first box.

KidBox

With 4 kids, I’ve tried out quite a few kid subscription boxes. So far, KidBox is the only on I’ve found that consistently sends me high quality clothing that fit my kids and that my kids want to wear. I liked to get the seasonal boxes for my kids because it helps me keep up with having clothing for them in their correct sizes as new seasons arise (lets just say that my son was not excited about none of his pants fitting at the beginning of winter last year – and we would all like to avoid that incident again).

At $100 for a minimum of 3 outfits (or 8 pieces) with seasonal add ons (like socks, jackets, swimwear, etc.) it’s a great price for the convenience of having high quality clothing shipped to my door without having to spend hours shopping online. If I don’t need a box for any or all kids for a specific season, I just skip.

ThredUp

Currently, this is my favorite clothing subscription box. First off, they send you a LOT of clothing! Enough that you know they probably don’t ever intend for you to keep it all, but they definitely want you to find something that you like.

This clothing is used, but still in great condition, and so much cheaper than other clothing subscription options. I like to shop their site as well, so I’ll add things to my favorites, and often, when I’m just not sure I want to commit to something without trying it on, I’ll request a favorites box. This is where they send you a box filled with clothing that I’ve favorited. I’ve had some things really not fit and some things that were amazing using this method and it’s such an easy way to try on and only pay for what I want.

You can also request seasonal, themed, or just a box of whatever you’re looking for. It’s fun to try thing and I always find a few things that I love.

Use my link to get $20 off your first box!

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Telestrations Upside Drawn – Review

I received 2 copies of Telestrations Upside Drawn from Tryazon & The OP Games to have a board game party and share with my friends.

We have a couple families that we’re hanging out with these days so we had them over for a game night. Telestrations Upside Drawn was so much fun!

Having phrases as one of the categories was a unique twist on Pictionary and was definitely a learning curve for us. Once we figured it out, it was pretty funny!

The words are generally simple enough that the kids were able to join us and be fairly successful at playing. Though, the game was much more lively when it was just us adults playing. Because, let’s face it, one of the best parts of a drawing game is making fun of people’s drawings. And this game did not disappoint.

One of my favorite things about this game is the 4 drawing markerboards. Those are awesome! No more hunting for paper. Each team has a markerboard and it was so much easier.

This is such a fun family and party game!

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WonderWorks Pigeon Forge to Offer Educational Opportunities for Fall 2020

PIGEON FORGE, Tennessee – (August 19, 2020) – WonderWorks Pigeon Forge is offering a range of new educational opportunities for the fall of 2020. With both in-person and virtual options, WonderWorks is expanding upon current programs and adding new ones to be a part of the new education “normal” 2020 is bringing. These programs come at a time when many parents and teachers are searching for additional educational opportunities for their students, to help enhance the virtual and homeschool learning environment many families are opting into.

“We understand the educational experience this year will look different, but we want to be a place where education meets entertainment,” explains Ed Shaffer, general manager for WonderWorks Pigeon Forge. “We’re excited to offer our new virtual Learning Labs, as well as the Sm-ART Art Contest.”

Educational opportunities being offered by WonderWorks this fall include:

SM-ART Art Contest – WonderWorks Tennessee is launching an annual Smoky Mountain art contest for local student artists. All semester long, students can submit their artwork to be featured in the iconic upside-down house. This year’s contest theme is “Time to Think.” Submissions will open on September 8, 2020. Selected winners will receive four free tickets to WonderWorks to be able to see their artwork on display in the gallery. Additional information and submission forms can be found online: https://www.wonderworksonline.com/pigeon-forge/art-contest/.

Virtual Learning Labs – New this year, WonderWorks will offer Professor Wonder’s Virtual Learning Labs which cover in-depth explorations of topics such as the principles of pressure, the states of matter, severe weather topics, the water cycle, adaptation, and more. This program was developed as a way to meet the needs of teachers and students looking to enhance their distance learning experience during these unprecedented times. More information can be found on their website: https://www.wonderworksonline.com/pigeon-forge/virtual-labs/.

Homeschool Days – WonderWorks expanded their Homeschool Days for the fall. This event will run every weekday in September through November, excluding holidays. Homeschool Days include reduced ticket prices of $12 per person for homeschool families, or $10 for groups that book ahead of time. Additional classroom activities, lesson plans, and scavenger hunts are available upon request. More information on Homeschool Days is offered online: https://www.wonderworksonline.com/pigeon-forge/homeschool/.

“Engaging the community while meeting educational needs is something that we’ve always strived to do,” added Shaffer, “and we’re not going to let these unprecedented times change that.”

WonderWorks has adopted new COVID-19 safety protocols, including reduced hours, enhanced cleaning efforts, social distancing measures, employee health screenings, and employee personal protective equipment (PPE). Guests are encouraged to review all safety procedures prior to their visit: https://www.wonderworksonline.com/pigeon-forge/covid-19.

WonderWorks in Pigeon Forge offers 35,000 square feet of “edu-tainment” opportunities, billing itself as an amusement park for the mind. It offers over 100 hands-on exhibits covering natural disasters and space discovery, an imagination lab, a physical challenge zone, a far out art gallery, and a light and sound zone. WonderWorks is open daily 365 days a year. For more information, log on to their website: https://www.wonderworksonline.com/pigeon-forge/.

About WonderWorks

WonderWorks, a science-focused indoor amusement park, combines education and entertainment. With over 100 hands-on exhibits, there is something unique and challenging for all ages. Feel the power of 71 mph hurricane-force winds in the Hurricane Shack. Make huge, life-sized bubbles in the Bubble Lab. Get the NASA treatment in our Astronaut Training Gyro and experience zero gravity. Nail it by lying on the death-defying Bed of Nails. Conquer your fear of heights on our indoor Glow-In-The-Dark Ropes Course. For more information, visit their website: https://www.wonderworksonline.com/pigeon-forge.

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Claudette’s Miraculous Motown Adventure

*This is a Sponsored Post*

Claudette’s Miraculous Motown Adventure
by A.K. Morris & Claudette Robinson
Illustrated by Pamela C. Rice

Summary
Little Claudette lives in the magic kingdom of Motown, where all the happy children sing and dance int he streets. Then one day, an angry witch casts a spell, and the kingdom descends into dark silence. Unhappy and bored, Claudette finds a box of Miracles in her attic. Inside are four little fellows – Smokey, Bobby, Ronnie, and Pete – who sing music so sweet. Claudette and the Miracles begin to sing together, but will it be enough to bring light and laughter back to the kingdom of Motown?

Review
This book was published in 2019, commemorating Motown’s 60th Anniversary celebration. It’s such a cute book, showcasing a little girl’s journey as she discovers the power of music.

The Author, Claudette, uses her own name, and fancifully tells of her journey as the first female artist with Motown Records.

The back of the book has a biography on The Miracles and their lengthy and accomplished career.

About the Author
As an original member of The Miracles, Claudette Robinson was the first female artist to sign with Tamla/Motown Records. In 1960, “Shop Around” became their first million-seller, prompting Berry Gordy to declare Claudette: “The First Lady of Motown.” During the Miracle’s six-decade career, the group has sold more than 60 million records to date, been inducted into the GRAMMY Hall of Fame, and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. In 2017, the City Council of L.A. awarded a Resolution to Ms. Claudette Robinson for her varied accomplishments in the recording industry and her continuing philanthropic efforts.

Giveaway
Check out the Claudette’s Miraculous Motown Adventure playlist! Print out the coloring sheet for your kids to color while everyone listens. And, enter the giveaway for your chance to win a copy of Claudette’s Miraculous Motown Adventure.

Connect
Follow Claudette Robinson at:
Website
Facebook
Instagram

 

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Fun and Unique Easter Basket Ideas

*I received many of these items for free, to review*

So, we’re all stuck at home and trying to come up with some fun Easter plans for the kids! I’m working on an indoor scavenger hunt, and rounding up plenty of Easter Basket gifts that aren’t candy. Because kids, inside, with parents working, and lots of candy, just don’t mix!

B Nutty Peanut Butter

I have to admit, I opened these early and made snacks – check out these easy and fast snacks out here – because they’re so good! The little jars are perfect for kid’s baskets and the larger jars are for adults. Or just for me. I made the mistake of just grabbing a spoon and the Totally Toffee the other day, and I ate way too much! At least Peanut Butter is good for me, right?

This gourmet peanut butter is delicious and they have so many varieties, it’s easy to find one that will be perfect for your gift basket!

My kids love the Cinnamon Sugar Cookie peanut butter. They’re pretty sure that a little bit of this on a ritz cracker qualifies as dessert.

You can purchase directly from B Nutty’s website. And you can join their newsletter for 15% off a purchase.

Woodridge Snacks

I’m not sure that my kids will like these, but my husband and I are definitely enjoying them! The Sriracha Sticky Rice Chips are his favorite. He ate them all in one day and has requested more. So, guess what he’s getting in his Easter Basket!

The Mochi Rice Nuggets look suspicious, but they taste WAY better than they look. Just get a bag and try them. I opened them and was like “I guess I’ll take one for the team here” since I had agreed to test them (btw this was the first bag I tried, lol). They’re surprisingly good, and I love how crunchy and airy they are!

The Tempura Seaweed Chips have a decent crunch to them as well, but you can definitely taste the seaweed. If you love seaweed, you’ll love these, but as much as I try to like seaweed, it still always tastes really strong to me. Probably not my first choice, because the two rices are awesome! But they’re still pretty good, and if you just love seaweed snacks, you’ll definitely love these!

The Ginger chews are basically what I expected. They pack a lot of flavor, and probably not a snack that I’m going to sit down and just eat the entire bag, but one or two of these is perfect to finish off some snacking with. And with all the snacking I’m doing these days working at home, I need some snacks that are good for me.

Get 20% off your first order with code: WR20APRIL (expires April 30, 2020)Head on over to the Woodridge Snacks Website and order some tasty and order some unique and tasty snacks for those Easter Baskets you’re working on!

Choc Zero

First things first. This chocolate is sweetened with monk fruit extract instead of sugar. Meaning, that for chocolate, it’s quite low carb. So, if you’re gifting to someone doing a keto diet, you’re in luck!

I’m always skeptical of sugar free candies but I generally like monk fruit so I was willing to give this a try. It’s Delicious!

My favorite chocolate is milk chocolate and these milk chocolate squares are packed with real chocolate and perfectly sweetened without sugar.

I don’t always like dark chocolate but this dark chocolate almond bark is amazing! With all the stress of working from home, homeschooling, etc. lately, it’s nice to be able to stress eat some chocolate without feeling bad about it.

The white chocolate chips are amazing! As I expected, after trying the other 2 chocolates. I’ll be posting a recipe with them later. I’m way behind on recipe posting with all this craziness these days.

And, of course, the syrup. We’re eating so many pancakes with everyone home every single morning. This was such a fun treat for the kids. I’m thinking that they each need their own bottle of syrup for Easter this year.

Choc Zero can be purchased from their website, or from Amazon.

Unstable Unicorns

The first non-food item in my list, because I seem to have this thing for food in Easter baskets! I just couldn’t resist this game for my unicorn loving tween. This card game is a tad complicated, so definitely ideal for older kids. But once you figure it out, it’s so much fun!

We’ve spent hours this past week playing this game. It takes time to play, which is perfect for keeping the kids busy while we’re social distancing. If you have a kid who’s as in to unicorns as mine is, she’ll love this game! And with the hours upon hours of play time this card game offers, you’ll be glad you bought it.

Taco Cat Goat Cheese Pizza

If you have slightly younger kids who really want a card game too, but can’t handle the strategy required for Unstable Unicorns, you’ll love this game. Even my 2yr old tries to get in on it by slapping the pile randomly.

It’s super easy to play and fast paced enough that it keeps the kid’s attention easily. Between this game and the Unicorn game I’ve had my kids busy with card games for days! Definitely another great addition to your Easter Basket that will help entertain the kids.

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Fun Valentine Gift List

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Valentines day is a week away and this year I’ve been looking for unusual Valentine gifts. My kids love Valentines day, we have little mailboxes, valentine cards, chocolate, and a tea party for dinner. But for me, let’s be honest, hubby and I are a bit tired of the usual chocolate and roses every year. So, I’ve rounded up some family friendly, unique Valentine gifts for this year!

1. Sunglasses from Sunglass Warehouse – Summer is just around the corner so what better way to say “I love you” than with a cool new pair of sunglasses? Sunglass Warehouse has sunglasses that are fun and inexpensive. So I can gift something useful and fun without breaking the bank!

I’m loving these Oversize Cat Eyed Sunglasses – Bianca by Foster Grant. They’re so much fun! And this pink Daisy case is perfect for keeping them safe!

And check out the “Superman” glasses that I got for my husband. They remind me of the glasses Clark Kent wears. For some reason I’ve always loved this style on my hubby! They’re actually called Castle Rock, and they’re Polarized Retro Square Sunglasses. My husband saw them when I was taking pictures and stole them right away (I almost didn’t get pictures), couldn’t even wait for Valentines Day. And at $15 they’re practically a steal. He stuck these glasses in the soft case with a cleaning cloth, and he’s good to go.

2. Glow Battle from Starlux Games – I have 4 kids and this makes a perfect group gift for them! They’re basically light up foam swords and the kids love them! Even the 2 yr old insists on being in on the action.

They have a switch for turning them on and off and have a replaceable battery so they’re amazing for multiple uses. The foam is soft and covered with a plastic sheet that is sword patterned.

There’s 10 swords (5 blue, 5 green), 10 bracelets (5 blue, 5 green), a whole stack of game ideas, and 8 beacons (4 blue, 4 green). From just running around the yard and sword fighting, to capture the flag with the beacons, they’re having a blast. And we’re planning a back yard evening with friends as soon as the weather warms up so we can use all 10 swords at once!

I am loving how Starlux games has replaceable batteries because I know we’re going to go through a lot of them this summer!

3. Umbrella from La Bella Umbrella – I’m just loving this “Love at Sunset” umbrella from La Bella Umbrella. They have a variety of umbrella designs and styles to choose from. From animals, to food, to paintings. And considering the amount of rain we’ve gotten so far this February, this is the best Valentine Gift yet!

While the hand shaped heart is perfect for a Valentine Gift to my husband, it’s also a great gift for my girls, who love pictures with hearts and love umbrellas. In fact, I chose the stick umbrella because it’s their favorite style!

This umbrella is sturdy, large, and so cute! If you don’t want hearts they have many other fun designs. And they have umbrella styles from stick to automatic so there’s easily something for everyone.

It’s so hard to not just claim this umbrella as my own. I’m just loving the white handle! It’s large, soft, and has a terrific grip making it a lot easier to hold on to.

And, it comes in a carrying case with a strap so I can tote it around hands free if I want it along but don’t need it yet!

With these gifts, we’re basically all set for spring! Sunglasses, umbrella, back yard game! Because once Valentines day is over, I’m hoping for some early spring weather!