There are many reasons for a pizza night at our house. We love pizza for Friday movie nights and my 12-year old son feels pizza is a must when he’s watching the collage football games.  My favorite time for a pizza night is when I have a busy day!  Nothing is easier that making a Papa Murphy’s take ‘n’ bake pizza for dinner.  Add the fact that I can save money with the Papa Murphy’s Dinner Circle email and text club and I am even happier.  When you sign up for the the Papa Murphy’s Dinner Circle email and text club they will send you money saving offers straight to your email or phone.

I usually plan ahead and order my pizza and sides online.  I love how I can customize my pizza however I want.  If I want to remove the artichoke hearts from the Chicken Bacon Artichoke I can, it’s just a simple click of a button.   Their website is super easy to use and customizing a half and half pizza is a breeze too.  You don’t have to order a head of time, but I like how quick and easy it makes picking up my pizza on those busy days.

I schedule a pick up time for when I know I will be done with my errands and I swing by just before I head home. Once home, I keep everything in the refrigerator until it’s time to bake.

I enjoy the fact that I can also pick up a pre-made salad. The Italian salad is my personal fave, I love that is has pepperoni and olives in it.

Dinner is a breeze!  We cook our pizzas and pull the salad out of the fridge.  We get a fresh, quality dinner in very little time and there are no complaints because everyone loves pizza.

It is great that Papa Murphy’s also offers several different options when it comes to the crust, we got the thin crust Chicken Bacon Artichoke Pizza (without artichokes) and it was really good.

We end the meal with the Papa Murphy’s Cowboy Cookies.  These are cookies filled with Oatmeal, Coconut, White Chocolate Chips and Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips.  They are so good!  We just bake them while we eat dinner and they are ready to go by the time we are done. Yum!

Make sure you sign up for the Papa Murphy’s Dinner Circle so you too and save money on pizza night at your house. Signing up is easy and you can choose to receive savings via text or email (or both).  I love saving money and I love pizza nights when I don’t have to do the majority of the planning and cooking, it’s a fun night off.  Plan a pizza night soon, they are the best!

The post Have a Papa Murphy’s Pizza Night & Save appeared first on Gather Lemons.

Fall means football and we love it! We enjoy watching the Friday night high school football games and the Saturday college games too.

If you have a child that plays football you know they often have long grueling practices. Make sure you stock up on POWERADE to help them stay hydrated and power through those practices.

POWERADE is not only great for the athletes, but us spectators too!

My son is probably the biggest football fan in our family.  He loves making signs and taking them to the game to cheer on his favorite team.   We came up with this fun pennant that he can use on to cheer and wave his team on to victory.   It’s super easy to make, here is what you need:

• Thick Posterboard
• Letter cut-0uts or Stickers (I used my Cricut to cut out my letters)
• Glue
• Dowel
• Duck Tape

Cut a triangular pennant shape out of the posterboard.   Cut out letters or attach stickers to the pennant.  I cut out “Go Team” with my Cricut.  Cut the dowel to about 16 inches long.  Use Duck Tape to attach the dowel onto the back of the pennant.  You are done and ready to cheer on your team!

In addition to watching our high school team we like to watch our favorite college team too.  I love that Saturdays aren’t only about the game, they are also about connecting with family and friends and food…lots and lots of great food!   Here are some fun football viewing party ideas to inspire you to throw your own football party soon.

Throw some bright yellow napkins in a bucket and label them “Penalty Flags”,  this is a simple and fun way to add a little football flair to your party.

Inexpensive pom poms make great table decorations and you can easily find them in a bunch of different colors to match your teams colors.

I love the festive football tablecloth I found at Walmart, it made a great base for my football themed table.  When it comes to the food and drink, I like to raise some of the fare up by using tiered trays and cake stands.

The portion in the back that holds all the Coca-Cola and POWERADE was made using a white shelf I already had on hand and I raised it up by using 2 boxes of pasta from my pantry.  I just covered the boxes in green cardstock so you couldn’t tell they were boxes of pasta.  I’m all about using stuff you have around the house!

Here is our hot dog condiment station.  I put different condiments in small metal pails and placed them on a tiered spice rack that I borrowed from my craft room. This pails work well for a potato bar too, which is another great food option.

Guests can load up their hot dogs with ketchup, mustard, cheese, onions, relish and bacon.

No party is complete without cupcakes!  I love that I can make the cupcakes the night before and then just frost them the day of the party.  Adding fun football cake toppers is a cheap and easy way to continue the football theme.

Popcorn is a must for our family when it comes to football games.  I love serving popcorn in these single-serve containers, it helps prevent popcorn from getting all over the place when you have it in one big bowl.  Coca-Cola is a classic party drink.  I love that their are so many varieties to make everyone happy, including Coke Zero and the classic Coca-Cola.

Banners are such a fun and simple way to decorate for parties.   I bought this plain silver glittery banner awhile back and I have used it for so many parties.    To customize it for whatever type of party we are having I use my Cricut to cut out letters and attach them to the banner.  I’ll admit sparkly silver banners probably don’t scream football, but every party needs a little sparkle, right?

When it comes to the table decorations you can even use actual footballs you have around your house.   You don’t need to spend a ton of money on decorations, I like to save my money for the drinks, food and fun little finishing touches.

If you plan on hosting a football party check out NotSoFastMom.com for even more tips and make sure you stop by Walmart to pick up Coca-Cola and POWERADE to score extra points with your party guests and your football playing kids.

Let’s hear about your favorite high school or college team, will you be going to a game this season or watching it on TV?

The post Football Party Ideas & Kids’ Pennant Craft appeared first on Gather Lemons.

Summer is here but that doesn’t mean learning needs to take a back seat.   We love to keep our kids learning and entertained with STEM-based toys and projects during the summer months.    In fact, the very first week of summer my son spent a week attending  a Robotics Camp put on by our local high school.   He spent the week in a team of four building a robot and then the last day of the camp his team got the chance to battle other teams and their  robots.   He had a ton of fun and learned lots!

My son was thrilled to keep building at home with the Hexbug – VEX Robotics Robotic Arm.   He was excited to built the robotic arm and was happy to point out that the robots they built at the camp used VEX Robotics parts too.

My son is 11 years old and he was able to assemble the this STEM-based kit all on his own.  This kit pays special attention to important scientific principals like gear reductions and power transfer through the robotic arm’s intricate gearing techniques.   I love the fact that my son kept entertained while building the Robotic Arm and learned some things during the process too.

The Robotic Arm is hand powered and can pick up and relocate items with precision because their are four different ways the robot can move.   The whole crane can also rotate 360 degrees.

I love the fact that you can build the Robotic Arm, but you an also go online to get the instructions to build 2 alternative projects like a chopper and a scorpion.

You can keep your kids learning and entertained this summer with the Hexbug – VEX Robotics Robotic Arm from Best Buy.   We can wholeheartedly recommend this one.

The post STEM-based Play with Hexbug VEX Robotics Robotic Arm appeared first on Gather Lemons.

Our family of 7 headed to Sea World San Diego for a day of fun. My husband and I have been to Sea World before but we have never gone with our kids so it would be a new adventure for all of our kids. The weather was great and the crowds were low. We went the last week of August when the majority of California schools are back in session.

As soon as you enter the park there are areas where you can touch and feel the fish.

My boys where quite fond of the cleaner fish.   These fish nibble plant and animal matter off solid surfaces like rocks.

They also nibble stuff off your hands.    I was not brave enough to stick my hand in that tank, but my boys loved every minute of it.

We found lots of opportunity to hold sea life throughout the park.   Here we had the chance to hand sea stars.

We also got the chance to pet stingray, which were kind of slimy.

We chose to pay $5 to feed the stingray.    This was a lot of fun!

Sea World is probably most known for their shows!    The dolphin show was probably my favorite.

We also saw the One World show in the Shamu Stadium.   Before the show started they had all the military personnel stand up and be recognized.   Sea World has a program called Waves of Honor where they offer complimentary admission to all active duty military members.   How awesome is that?

The shows are fun because they train the animals to splash and splash they do!!

If you don’t want to get wet make sure you avoid the seating with the words “Soak Zone”, but really getting soaked is all part of the fun.

We sat in the first and second rows and got drenched!!

One of our favorite exhibits was the shark exhibit. It was fun to ride an escalator through the shark tank. It was super cool!

My daughter loved watching the turtles.

You will find Sea World also has some great rides. We rode the Manta rollercoaster which was an awesome roller coaster, it was smooth and fast. The loading process was a little lacking, they just let everyone go for whatever spot they wanted so our family wasn’t able to sit together.

I really liked that all the rides really fit the theme of the park. This fun water ride is a perfect example.

We were thrilled to see that they were offering a FREE concert series for Summer while we were there and we got to see Fighting Gravity.

Sea World also has a section for littles ones with rides and a water play area.   We don’t have kids this small anymore, but it looked like a great area.

Our family had a fun day at Sea World San Diego.   If we end up in San Diego again we look forward to visiting Aquatica by Sea World, my daughter visited this park in Orlando with her friend and she loved it.  It was her favorite day of the entire vacation she took with them.

The regular rate for adults is $89 (as of 9/9/15), but you can always check their site for specials. We were able to buy the extra tickets we needed for only $50 each because they were having a special where you could pay a reduced rate if you visited Monday-Friday. That was a super deal. Through October 31, 2015 they are offering a FREE childs ticket with every adult ticket purchased.

The post Our Day at Sea World San Diego appeared first on Gather Lemons.

Summer is the perfect time for kids to start a new book series because they have more time to dedicate to reading and it helps them stay on top of their reading skills before they head back to school in the fall.  I recently found ThriftBooks.com which sells used books at the lowest everyday price on the internet.  They have a great selection of millions of books, and great features that help you find out-of-print and second-hand treasures.   Another great thing I love is that you will get FREE Shipping on US orders of $10 or more and your items are shipped quick (within 24 hours).

We always give our kids books for their birthdays and Christmas and have kept most of these books so they can be passed down and enjoyed by each of our 5 children.  My two youngest love to hang out on the hammock in the backyard and do their reading there.   I love to see them reading a book outside, it’s like the best of both worlds!  We have compiled a list of 20 of our favorite series that are great for kids and teens. I would love to hear about  any of your kids favorite series that you would add to the list.

1.   The World According to Humphrey – Betty G. Birney (9 book series)

2.   Ivy + Bean – Annie Barrows (10 book series)

3.   Lemonade War – Jacqueline Davies (5 book series)

4.   Little House – Laura Ingalls Wilder (9 book series)

5.   Origami Yoda – Tom Angleberger (6 book series)

6.   Guardians of Ga’Hoole – Kathryn Lasky (16 book series)

7.   The Goose Girl (Books of Bayern) – Shannon Hale (4 book series)

8.   Wrinkle in Time – Madeleine L’Engle (4 book series)

9.   Warriors – Erin Hunter (6 book series)

10.  Hatchet (Brian’s Saga) – Gary Paulsen (5 book series)

11.  Elle Enchanted – Gail Carson Levin (3 book series)

12.  Redwall – Brian Jacques (22 book series)

13.  The Chronicles of Narnia – C. S. Lewis (8 book series)

14.  Kingdom Keepers – Ridley Pearson (7 book series)

15.  Michael Vey – Richard Paul Evans (5 book series)

16.  Harry Potter – J.K. Rowling (7 book series)

17.  Gallagher Girls – Ally Carter (7 book series)

18.  Fablehaven – Brandon Mull (5 book series)

19.  Percy Jackson and the Olympians – Rick Riordan (5 book series)

20.  Maximum Ride – James Patterson (8 book series)

My son is just starting the Fablehaven series and we misplaced the first book in our Wrinkle in Time series, so I was able to add a these books to our reading library at a great price thanks to ThriftBooks.com.    Thrift Deals is their bargain section, any title marked with a DEAL tag on the detail page will be priced the following way:

• 2 books for $7.00
• 3 books for $10.00
• 4 books for $12.00
• each additional is $3.00

Here are a few features I enjoy about shopping at ThriftBooks.com:

Reading Rewards – Their loyalty program that rewards you with a $5 coupon for every $50 you spend on books (no annual fee).

Tell-a-Friend –Their referral program gives your friends & family a 15% OFF coupon if they are a new customer.  You also get one for referring them if they sign up within 14 days; unless you’re a Reading Rwards member. Then it’s 20%!

Wish List – Their handy Wish List will email you the instant an out-of-print book comes in-stock.  They  also show you how often they get copies of the title you want and how many other Thrift Books customers are interested in the same title.

ThriftBooks is a great option when you want a hard copy of a book, their prices are great and the shipping is quick!  Head on over to ThriftBooks.com to do some browsing (I think browsing for books is just as much fun as reading sometimes).  Not only is buying secondhand books great for your wallet, it’s also great for the environment!

I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.

The post Save Money with ThriftBooks.com & 20 Books Series that are Great for Kids & Teens appeared first on Gather Lemons.

Our family is really looking forward to the new MARVEL’s The Avengers: Age of Ultron movie that will be released on May 1st. To keep us entertained before the movie’s release day we downloaded Super Heroes Assemble app.   You can download this app in the Google Play store or via iTunes: Super Heroes Assemble.

This app has a fun interactive feature where you can head to Walmart and scan The Avengers signage while using the app.  Doing this  will unlock special features.    To find the items to scan you will want to select the Discover button within Super Heroes Assemble app.   Check out the example below:

1. I clicked on the Hulkbuster and this was the image I needed to find.
2. I found the image in the toy department.
3. I scanned the image and the Hulbuster’s digital content is now unlocked

Walmart has a huge selection of MARVEL’s The Avengers: Age of Ultron  toys like action figures, Nerf Bow, Captain America Flying Shield, LEGOs and more.  This is a great area to check for the special signage to scan within the app.

One of our favorite features of the app is the Suit Up section where you can suit up as your favorite Avenger character.  This was so much fun to play with, especially with the teenagers at my house.   My youngest had fun too, he kept suiting up like different MARVEL characters and laughed like crazy.   It was super cute!

The Movie button will keep you up-to-date on the latest teasers and content from the upcoming MARVEL’s The Avengers: Age of Ultron movie

The Character button gives you the background and information on all of your favorite AVENGER characters.  I still need to unlock THOR (my personal fave)!! Other app features allow you to explore a Hulkbuster training facility in a cool 360 degree interactive space and to bring MARVEL’s The Avengers: Age of Ultron characters to life with augmented reality.

While at Walmart you can also watch for special MARVEL’s The Avengers: Age of Ultron  packaging on some of your favorite brands like:

• Cheez-It
• Kellogg’s Fruit Snacks
• Doritos
• Dr Pepper

I also found special signage for Doritios and on the Cheez-It box that you can scan with the Super Heroes Assemble app. I found the following items in the soda, chips and cracker aisle at my local Walmart store.

Who is looking forward to seeing MARVEL’s The Avengers: Age of Ultron?    I can’t wait!!   Do you see the movie the day it comes out or do you wait a week or two?

The post Avengers: Age of Ultron Super Heroes Assemble App appeared first on Gather Lemons.

When the weather starts getting nice we love to head outdoors. One of our favorite outdoor activities is Geocaching.  It combines hiking and trekking through the woods with the fun of a treasure hunt.  Geocaching is great for all ages!   You don’t need much to get started, you just need a handheld GPS or Geocaching app on your phone and a sense of adventure.

Here’s what we packed for our afternoon of Geocaching:

• Bottled Water
• Tree Top Apple Sauce Pouches
• GPS (Geocaching app on your phone works too!)
• Small Trinkets (to exchange when we find a Geocache)

We stopped by our local Fred Meyer to pick up the Tree Top Apple Sauce pouches.  In an effort to bring awareness to “Raising Good Apples”, Tree Top is partnering with the National Gardening Association’s KidsGardening.org to help educate kids on gardening.  For every box of Tree Top Apple Sauce Pouches purchased through 5/31 Tree Top will donate $1 to help KidsGardening.org to help build and grow youth gardens.   I love that!

We found our first geocache fairly quickly.   We brought along my five year old nephew for his first geocaching adventure and he was a little disappointed to find out there wasn’t “real” treasure inside the box.   I think he was expecting a box full of gold coins.    Once we told him he could exchange one of the trinkets we brought for something fun inside the box he was happy.

Our next geocaching location had us heading to the Arboretum at our local park.  Nothing beats walking around in the great outdoors, it’s beautiful!    This geocache was a lot trickier to find than our first one.   We spent a good 30 minutes combing the area until we finally found it.

Since the geocache at the Arboretum took more effort than we expected we stopped for a snack and water break.

The Tree Top Apple Sauce Pouches were perfect to bring along because they are made with wholesome, simple ingredients and the make a great on-the-go snack.   I love that the Tree Top pouches come in lots of great flavors in addition to just apple.   The Strawberry Apple and Mixed Berry Apple are some of our family faves.

I love that Tree Top is a local company, it’s located in my home state of Washington, right in the heart of apple country.  Tree Top is a grower-owned co-op with deep roots in the community.   For more than 50 years, Tree Top has been delivering top-quality products with premium ingredients inside all their sauces, juices and smoothies.

Once we were done snacking we headed out for more geochaching.  We had a fabulous day spending some quality family time outdoors.   You can’t beat a day filled with exercise, fresh air, beautiful scenery and family fun.   If you haven’t tried geocaching I encourage you to give it a go this spring.   It’s great fun for the whole family and it’s frugal too!

Giveaway: Tree Top is giving away a “Kid’s Gardening Kit” to one Thrifty and Thriving reader!   The giveaway kit will contain the following: “My Gardening Journal”, Red Tubrug pail, Kids gardening gloves, Watering can, Soft touch hand tool set, Favorite Five Sprouting seeds, and Tree Top Apple Sauce Pouches

How to enter:  Leave a comment on this post telling me what fun family activity you do to ensure you are “Raising Good Apples”.  (Go on a hike, play at the park, work in the garden, etc)

The giveaway will close on Monday, April 27th at 9pm PST.

The post Geocaching: Fun & Frugal Family Activity & Tree Top Giveaway appeared first on Gather Lemons.

March is National Reading Month, so now is a great time to get more involved in your children’s reading and foster their interest in books.   Reading has always been one of my favorite past times, as a kid and I can remember getting excited every time I got a new book in the Nancy Drew series.   Even now, I prefer reading over watching TV any day of the week.

I have tried to instill the love for reading with each of my children by taking frequent trips to the library and finding books that would pique their interest.  It was a piece of cake with my oldest, he reads like crazy!  His love for reading meant I often made more than one trip to the library in a week.   He would always come out with a stack of books.

With my youngest it was a different story, he would read when it was required for an assignment, but he never really got into it, that was until he found Harry Potter!   His teenage brother encouraged him to read the Harry Potter series.  His brother said he would re-read all the books too and once they both finished a book they would watch the corresponding movie.   (We have a rule in our house, if you want to watch a movie based on a book you have to read the book first).  It didn’t take long for my youngest to fall in love with reading and all the great characters he found in the books.  He finished all the Harry Potter books in a month and a half.   Now he reads non-stop, we will often find him with his nose in a book during free time, on car trips or before bed.  I love it!

I’m a firm believer that kids can learn to love to read once the find a book they love.   There’s a book out there for everyone!

I knew with his new found love for reading the Kindle e-reader would be perfect for him.  With the Kindle e-reader he is able to take it anywhere and he can load as many books on it as he wants.   There are many features I love on the Kindle including the fact that it can hold its charge for about 3 weeks.

The Kindle e-reader ($79) is the perfect gift for kids starting to read chapter books, it is designed to make great books as accessible and engaging as possible, with zero distractions.  One of the main reason that I love this device, is because it is made primarily just for reading.  We don’t allow devices with access to the internet in our children’s rooms, so this device is perfect for our family.   Plus, he loves the fact that he doesn’t have to carry around a heavy book all the time.   I can keep the Kindle in my purse or he can store it in his backpack.

With Kindle, your children can:

• Increase the font size for easier reading.
• Look up definitions as they read. To find the definition of a word they simply hold their finger over a word they don’t know the meaning of and the definition will pop up.   My son has used this on several occasions.  It’s such a great tool!
• Use features like Vocabulary Builder – which stores words that kids look up and allows them to quiz themselves with flash cards – or Word Wise, which provides short and simple definitions above difficult words as they’re reading along.
• Read thousands of books for FREE, including classics like Treasure Island and eBooks from their local library. We love our local library system for borrowing eBooks, if you aren’t currently using your library for eBooks I encourage you to check it out.
• They can easily take their books with them without loading up a heavy backpack. This will help to increase the amount of books they read. When one book is finished, they can start the next one right away!

Kindle FreeTime

Kindle FreeTime lets you create personalized profiles for each of your kids.  It gives them access to titles from your collection of books. Kids are rewarded with achievement badges when they reach their goals.  A progress report keeps parents updated on total time spent reading, number of words looked up, badges earned, and books read.

Amazon FreeTime Unlimited

Amazon FreeTime Unlimited is another great resource that encourages kids to read.  Amazon FreeTime is an all in one subscription starting at $2.99 per month ,it offers unlimited access to hundreds of hand-picked chapter books and early readers, all curated for age-appropriateness, so parents don’t have to spend time and money guessing what their kids will enjoy.   Kindle FreeTime Unlimited even includes my sons favorite books…The Harry Potter series.

Kindle Unlimited

I also encourage you to check out Kindle Unlimited which allows access to over 700,000 books for both adults and kids.  You will pay a monthly fee of $9.99 to gain access to the Kindle Unlimited books (you can cancel at anytime.)  You can read books on any device that is linked to your account.  I was able to read books on my device and my son read was able to read books on his Kindle at the same time.  In fact, he made it through all 9 books in the Diary of a 6th Grade Ninja series.

How do you instill a love for reading in your children?

I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own. #KindleforKids #CleverGirls

The post Inspire a Love for Reading in your Kids with Kindle and FreeTime Unlimited appeared first on Gather Lemons.

Thanksgiving is a time for friends, family, good food, and of course, football.   You can show your team spirit with festive glasses, trays and bowls, coasters, decorations, and so much more with the NFL Homegating collection.

NFL Homegating brings the rituals, traditions, and celebrations of an NFL tailgate to the comfort of your home.   Turn your home into team headquarters and stay warmer this way too!

With four boys we are all about football at our house!   We love to show our team spirit by wearing Seahawks apparel and enjoying great snacks during the games.

The NFL’s Homegating app makes planning a Homegating party easy.   First, you to select favorite your team, we choose the Seattle Seahawks (GO Seahawks!).   Once you have chosen your team you can view upcoming games, send party invitations, get tips on how to Homegate like learning how to grill steaks, learn about chicken temps, and even some baking tips too.

The app also lets you view and share delicious exclusive recipes from Marc Payero, Chef at NFL Headquarters.  You can shop the NFL Homegating collection directly from the app too.   The fun NFL Homegating app is available for iPhone, Android, and Windows!

I used the NFL Homegating app to plan a fun party to root for our hometown team the Seattle Seahawks.   I used the app to decide on the food I would serve. The app had great recipe categories like: Touchdown Entrees, Secondary Sides, Extra Point Desserts and Breaktime Beverages.

There are even great recipes that would be perfect for Thanksgiving:

• Sage and Rosemary Roasted Turkey
• Sweet Potato Casserole
• Apples and Dried Cherries Stuffing
• Fresh Turkey Breast Sandwich
• Maple Pepper Roasted Brussels Sprouts

For our NFL Homegating get-together I made these yummy Shredded Chicken Tacos with Black Bean and Corn Relish.   I made this recipe with the help of the NFL Homegating app.   They were so good!

Every football viewing party needs chips and salsa and nothing is better than fresh Pico de Gallo. I was thrilled to find a recipe for fresh Pico de Gallo in the NFL Homegating app.

I think NFL themed servingware adds to the fun.  I made my much loved chocolate covered pretzels and placed them on the festive Seahawks serving platter. The pretzels were of course dressed up with sprinkles in our teams colors.

Some of the biggest football fans in our house are the kids, so kid friendly drinks are a must!   We served root beer floats and sparkling cider in the fun Seahawks glasses.   I’m not sure why but everything tastes better in a fancy glass!

If your family loves to cheer on your favorite NFL team, make sure you check the the NFL Homegating app and all the festive NFL Homegating collection to make your party a smashing success!

This post was sponsored by NFL Homegating.  All thoughts, opinions and love for the Seattle Seahawks are my very own and honest and true.

The post Throw an NFL Homegating Party with the NFL Homegating Collection & App appeared first on Gather Lemons.

Halloween will be here before we know it! Halloween is such a fun time for kids, they get to dress up like anything they want to be. My youngest is living out his dream by going as a Washington Husky Football player.

While Halloween is fun for the kids, there are some safety tips we should follow to make it fun for us parents too. I like to keep my Halloween free from trips to the emergency room and I am sure you do too!

Here are a few tips to keep your kids safe this Halloween:

1. Have everyone carry a flashlight with fresh batteries:  It’s important to see and be seen while it’s dark outside.  Make sure fresh batteries are in your flashlight so you know it won’t go out on you while trick or treating.

2. Inspect the loot:  I remember my parents always making sure all of my candy was “safe” before I was allowed to eat it.   The same still goes today, make sure all the treats are factory wrapped and also make sure there aren’t any items your kids are allergic to.

3. Wear colorful costumes:   If possible, choose costumes that are bright and colorful.  Stay away from costumes that are all black because they make it hard to be seen.   If necessary add reflective tape to costumes or trick-or-treat bags.

4. Remind kids to look both ways when crossing the street:  Kids get so excited about trick-or-treating they often forget about things that we have told them time and time again.   Stress how important it is that they don’t run into a street in order to get to the next house.

5. Replace Real Candles in Pumpkins:  Instead of using real candles in pumpkins use LED candles or flashlights.

Rayovac is currently running a special on the Rayovac Glow In The Dark Flashlight (with fresh batteries included!).   Your kids will love carrying this flashlight because it glows in the dark.   I haven’t met a kid that doesn’t love anything that glows in the dark.

During October, you can save $1 off the price of the Rayovac Glow In The Dark Flashlight when you use the code GLOWINTHEDARK at checkout. That will bring the price of the flashlight down to only $3.99. They also offer FREE shipping when you spend $25 or more.

I am a Rayovac Power Blogger I was sent a Rayovac Glow in the Dark Flashlight to share in my post. I was compensated for my time, however all thoughts and opinions are my own.

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Looking for a vacation that won’t break the bank?  This year we decided to go on a road trip to Silverwood Theme Park in Idaho.  We wanted to have a nice family vacation where we could do something that everyone in the family would enjoy.    Silverwood is not too far of a drive from the Seattle area, it was just under six hour drive for us.    They have a huge water and amusement park that all ages can enjoy.

Where to we stayed:  Silverwood RV Park (3 nights lodging cost 84.00)

A great way to save money is to camp.  We stayed at the Silverwood RV Park, the camp sites are 28.00 for the tent sites, and 60.00 for the RV spots with full hook up.  We decided to stay at Silverwood RV Park for three main reason:

1. We have three boys with a broad age range, the two older boys are 12 and 14 and the youngest is 4.  I really liked the idea of being so close to the park (just a short walk) so the two older boys could stay at the Silverwood when the 4 year old gets tuckered out and needs a break.
2. I also liked the idea of being able to walk back to the campsite for meals and not being required to eat at the park.  There were times we eat out and I have to say Silverwood has done great in offering lots of food option at a very reasonable rate, our family of five was able to get a full meals including drinks for under 30.00.
3. We went to the park during the 4th of July, so we wanted to be able to see and enjoy fireworks from our campsite.

When we arrived we were greeting by the very friendly staff, checked in and off we went to find our camp site.  When we found our site, somebody was actually in our spot.    So we went to the front desk, talked to the staff and they promptly found a solution.  We were given a couple options for spots and have to say it was a better option then our original site.  We had heard that this RV park had some draw backs such as no campfires allowed (which I not going to lie was kind of a bummer),  but I knew this when I booked the site because it is mentioned on their website.   I had also heard that it can be a bit loud because it was located near busy roads.   The noise was not bad at all and we had no problem sleeping.    The tent sites are a bit small and they only allow one tent.  The park had a store with for coffee and supplies, and two buildings with bathrooms and couple showers (one MUST have showers when camping).    We had a great time staying here and would recommend it for a short stay.  If you have plans for a longer vacation you might stay here for the Silverwood portion of your trip, then move to one of the other parks for the remainder of your trip.

Bonus: If you stay at the Silverwood RV Park, they offer discount tickets to the park for only 39.99 per person and 19.95 for 7 and under and seniors. This is a couple dollars cheaper per ticket then the discounted price on the Silverwood website.

Other Lodging Options:

Farrugut State Park – This is a very large campground with lots of things to do such as hiking trails, play grounds, frisbee fields and swimming in the lake.  From what I understand the campsites are a nice size and you can have open campfires.  It is less then 10 minute drive to the Silverwood Theme Park.   It has bathrooms and showers.  There per night fees are 28.00.

Lake Coeur d’ Alene Camping resort – This campground also has lots of the activities such as hiking, biking,  boating, fishing and swimming in the pool, game room, laundry and a store.  This campground has full hook-up for RV’s ad nice large camp sites for tents,  They also have cabins if you don’t like sleeping in tents.  They do have a two night minimum stay required.    The cabins start at 70.00,  RV Sites at 40.00, tent sites 32.00.  They do not allow pets,  and you can have an open fire.

Not the camping type:  There are lots of places to stay in the Coeur d’Alene or surrounding areas.

What we ate: (food cost 200.00)

Because we were camping were were able to make most of our meals,  so our cost was not much more then our normal grocery budget for five days.  We went out a couple times,  and splurged on goodies and snacks at the park.   I brought about 100.00 worth of groceries  for the five days, and spent 100.00 eating out and snacks.

Travel expense:  (Cost of gas for mid-size SUV $150.00)

We used about 40 gallons of gas to get to Silverwood and back home.

Sliverwood Park tickets:  (Two day pass cost for family of 5 – $330.00)

I recommend a two day pass, which will give you one day for water park (which is only open for about 6 -8 hours) and the rest of the time in the amusement park.  If you are on more of a conservative budget you can fit a lot in in one day and enjoy some other activities in the area such as hiking,  swimming,  and enjoying the outdoors.

Here are some places where you can get discount tickets to Silverwood Theme Park:

• Local Costco in Coeur d’ Alene (I have found them at my Seattle area Costco too)
• On the Silverwood website (cheaper than buying tickets at the gate)
• Your hotel or RV park may offer discounted tickets
• If you are not sure you want a one day or two,  you can buy a one day then on the day you go,  go into any retail store and ask for a hop back pass for the second day it will be half the price of the full day single fair.

I had never been to Silverwood before and was not sure what to expect, we went on what I figured would be a very busy weekend (4th of July) and I was expecting to deal with long lines and big crowds.  I was delightfully surprised!  We got a two-day pass and spent our first day (July 3rd) at the amusement park.  It was amazing, there were no lines and lots of room to move about.

There were rides for all ages!   My older boys had a blast on Aftershock, Spin Cycle and Tremers.  My little guy had a great time on the little kiddie rides.  The train ride was very cool and entertaining for the whole family.

They have a magic show that was short but impressive.   We enjoyed the main street with shopping, and lots of treats as well as places to get meals.  I was really impressed with the prices for the merchandize and the food they offered.   Everything was extremely reasonable.     My older boys both got nice sweatshirts.  The most expensive sweatshirt was around $35 but the average was about $25.  We found the employees to be both helpful and friendly.

On the second day July 4th (which I understand is one of their busier days) it was much more crowded but still very enjoyably.  We started out at Boulder Beach for the first part of the day.  We didn’t get there until about noon and all the chairs were taken.  If you go to the water park, make sure you go early enough to get a chair you can use for the day.  You also have an option of renting a private cabana for 143.00.   If you want any shade to get out of the heat I would recommend these, they were very nice.   My older boys spent a good amout of time on the slides and wave pools, and they loved it.   The wait time was about 30 minutes on the high demand slides, but for one of the busiest days of they year, it didn’t seem too bad.

I went on the lazy river with my 4 year old and we had a great time relaxing in the sun,  you can float up to a place that sells frozen drinks and drift on the lazy river with a yummy and refreshing beverage.

The rest of the day we spend back at the amusement park and it was definetly more cowed than the day before, but the lines were still very reasonable,  with the longest wait time at about 30 minutes for the3  most desirable rides.   Several rides had no wait times at all even with the larger crowds.

At 10:00 pm the park had a firework show for the 4th of July,  it was amazing and quite long.   It could easily compared to our local Seattle show.  We could see it from the edge of the RV park, in the grassy area.

Overall, I’d say this park rocks!   Our family had and absolute blast and we will definitely be going again, I love that it’s close enough to home that it only takes a half a day to get there.  This was an amazing trip our family will not soon forget.  It was fun and very affordable, its a place that just about any family can afford.     Two thumbs up from us!

I was given admission tickets for my family in exchange for an honest review.   All thoughts and opinions are my own.

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The National School Lunch Program provides FREE and low-cost lunch and breakfast to children who meet income guidelines.   When school is out, that’s two less nutritious meals for some children.   We all can pitch in and help hungry kids with Champions for Kids: SIMPLE Service Project.   SIMPLE Service Projects are simple ways for people to help children in their communities.

Every SIMPLE Service Project has 4 basic steps:

• GATHER your friends, family, and co-workers.
• LEARN about the needs of children in your community.
• GIVE items to help kids enjoy happier & healthier lives.
• SHARE your story with us to inspire others.

You can will $25,000 for your school.  Do your own SIMPLE Service Project and you can win $25,000 for your own school!     You can get all the details on how to share your story and be entered for the funds for your school

I think it’s important to teach our kids about serving others.    We have done several service projects as a family including cleaning up our community, donating food to our local food bank, working at Northwest Harvest and donating our time at the local soup kitchen.    Now would be a great time to gather up or family and friend and put together a Champions for Kids SIMPLE service project.

We wanted to make a donation to our local food bank, so I loaded up the youngest 2 in the car and off we headed to Walmart.

We picked up groceries that we could take to our food bank, we made sure to pick up several items from the Champions of Kids: Simple Service sponsors including:

• Tyson
• Birds-Eye
• State Fair

You can get involved in the Champions for Kids: Summer of Giving program by visiting the frozen food section at your local Walmart Super Center where you can learn more about how you can help provide 5 million meals this summer.

I participated in this program on behalf of Champions for Kids and The Motherhood. All opinions are my own.

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One of our favorite family activities is Geocaching.   It gets us outdoors and helps us spend some fun quality family time together.   Plus, purchasing fancy Geocaching equipment isn’t necessary (thanks to the use of Smartphone apps) so it can be FREE too.    Family fun that is FREE is always good!

What is Geocaching: Geocaching is an real life outdoor version of a treasure hunt. You use a GPS-enabled device to help you navigate to a specific set of GPS coordinates.  Once you are there, you search around and follow clues for the hidden container (the Geocache).

What are you looking for: Generally the Geocache will be a small container.  It really can be any shape or size that can be easily hidden somewhere, we have seen large containers, film canisters, Altoids tins and even creative containers like a light bulb shaped Geocache.

What’s in the Geocache: Each Geocache usually contains a log book so you can sign your name and the date your found the Geocache. Often times there will be small trinkets inside the container. You are allowed to take an item from the Geocache, but in return you should leave your own item of equal or lesser value.   Make sure you brings some small trinkets along, kids love to exchange their items for ones that are inside the Geocache.

Here are some examples of items we found in one of the most recent Geocaches we found. This Geocache container was much larger than normal so several items in the container were much bigger than what you would normally find.

• Mini Slinky
• Sunglasses
• Crayons
• Whistle

What do you need to go Geocaching: You will need a Geocaching GPS or a Smartphone with a GPS app installed. You do not have to have an expensive device for this, their are several cheap or inexpensive apps that will help you get the job done.

Where are the Geocache’s Hidden: You may be surprised to find out you have a Geocache hidden just down the road from your house, they are everywhere!   We found that we even have one walking distance from our house.   A great place to see where they are located is to use a Geocaching GPS or a GPS app , but you can also go to Geocaching.com to get an idea of what is available in your area.

Once you know the general location, you will find the Geocache is often hidden in logs, under rocks, in trees or just about anywhere.   Many Geocaches will give you a “clue” or a name of the Geocache that will give you a hint as to where to look once you reach the correct GPS coordinates.

Once you find the Geocache:  Once you find the Geocache, you can sign the log book and trade an item of yours for something inside.   You will need to put the Geocache back exactly where you found it so others will be able find it too.

Has your family been Geocaching yet?     You should give it a try, it’s a great way to get outdoors and enjoy some family time.    I’d love to hear about your Geocaching experiences.

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Today we have put together a fun kit that would be great to give to boys (or even girls).   My husband and boys made these several years ago and they had lots of fun with them.

The best part, these are super cheap to make!  The PVC supplies should cost around $2.50 for each shooter, when you add the cost of the marshmallows you have a fun gift that only costs about $3.50. They are simple to make too!

Marshmallow Shooter Supplies

• 1/2″ diameter PVC Pipe (at least 38″ long for one shooter)
• (2) 1/2″ PVC caps (not the threaded type)
• (2) 1/2 ” PVC elbow (not the threaded type)
• (2) 1/2″ PVC tee (not the threaded type)
• Saw(to cut PVC pipe)

You will need to cut the PVC pipe into the following sizes:
(1) 13″ length
(5) 5″ length

Packaging Supplies:

• Shirt Box (I picked mine up at Kohl’s when I bought a shirt)
• DIY Marshmallow Shooter Printable label (for the top of the box)
• DIY Marshmallow Instructions (just print out and include in the box)
• Package of Mini Marshmallows

Assembling your gift:
Take all of the pieces of the PVC and include them in the box with the bag of mini marshmallows and printable instructions, so the recipient will be able to construct their own shooter.

Make sure you adhere the printable label to the top of the shirt box, so they know exactly what it is they are getting (they might not know otherwise). Wrap it up and you are set!

Printables::

Click on the images below to print the label for the top of the gift box and the instructions for inside the box.

Once you have your marshmallow shooter assembled you will do the following:

Load and aim

Blow

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