March 2014 - Rave & Review

Find the perfect Mother’s Day present at ReCollected Pieces

What does every mom want for Mother’s Day? The answer is something personal and from the heart.

This is easy if you happen to have crafty kids or love macaroni necklaces, but what about for the rest of us? We can turn to Re:Collected Pieces, a Portland-based company that makes custom jewelry and more that any mother would love.

We’re not talking silver jewelry with personalized messages like anyone with a hand stamping set can make – what Tabitha at Re:Collected Pieces does is even more personal than that. Photo pendants, repurposed items, and artwork all become statement pieces to be adored and each custom work can be personalized in many levels. After checking out the ReCollected Pieces Etsy shop, I was smitten and knew I just had to have a custom piece. Starting the process was easy, I merely sent over pictures {one of my littles and one of hubby and I} to Tabitha with the instructions that she should have fun with them and show all that she can do.

You might wonder why I didn’t give specifics on what shapes I would like, sizes I would prefer, and baubles to add, but after looking at the Re:Collected Etsy shop, I knew it wasn’t necessary. There wasn’t a pendant or design I wouldn’t love to wear in the collection, and I trusted that Tabitha would make me something awesome.

And, I was blown away by what she sent back. Just look at how amazing these pendants look.

Rant: who’s hoarding all the Frozen stuff?

It’s been brought to my attention that I don’t do nearly enough rants here these days, so I’m going to fix that with a lengthy rant about Disney’s Frozen. No, not the movie itself, which we love, I’m talking Frozen STUFF.

You see, I have two Frozen fanatics in my house. These kids would love to own an official Anna and Elsa dress or two. In fact that’s all my 5 year old asked for this past Christmas, but all that was available locally was toddler-sized. We bought her the cheapie toddler dress from Target because Santa doesn’t let kids down like that, but it’s just too short for her and it’s apparently “very scratchy”.

It's this one, if you're wondering:

What we’re playing with: Radio Flyer Pro-Glider scooter… indoors

Yes, I let the kids have a scooter… indoors. You may think I'm crazy, but I really wanted them to get the feel for riding in a relatively safe place before I let them loose in the neighborhood.

What we’re playing with: Schleich figures

You know how some toys are so beloved that they are returned to over and over again throughout the years? Schleich figures definitely fall into that category. These were one of the first toys we bought for my daughter, purchased so she could play with them on the long plane ride to Europe, and they are one of the few early toys that she still plays with today.

She {or maybe it was we} got so addicted to these little figures that we eventually had a drawer full, and then two drawers full, and now we've got a massive amount of these little guys.

Spend your tax refund wisely with unlimited talk text and data for less

I am a member of the Collective Bias® Social Fabric® Community. This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper amplification for #CollectiveBias and its advertiser.

Is it just me who is bothered by all those "how to spend your tax refund" ads that are really just frivolous ways to waste your money as soon as you get it? How about actually putting that money back to work for you by investing it in something that will lower your monthly expenditures and hopefully put even more money back in your pocket? Are you curious yet? I'm talking about the lowest priced unlimited plans anywhere.

Most people wouldn’t see a cellphone service as an investment, but when chosen carefully, the right plan can slash your phone costs in half or even more. By making a switch to Walmart Family Mobile you don’t have to compromise on anything and can get the hottest phones available paired with the lowest priced unlimited plans anywhere to make the most of your tax return.

Though I’m a huge saver, even I can justify a one-time expense that ends up lowering my monthly bills on something I need to buy anyway. But, I’m sure you’re wondering just how low of a price you can get through Walmart Family Mobile, and the answer is that it is even cheaper than you think. At $29.88/month for unlimited talk and text or $39.88/month for unlimited talk and text with internet service, it makes it possible to get a great plan at the lowest price anywhere.

Add a roof to your trampoline in minutes with a play parachute {easiest DIY ever!}

Our trampoline is easily the coolest thing we own, so naturally we spend a ton of time jumping on it, relaxing on it, and playing all sorts of games that include it. But, I'm always looking for ways to make it even more awesome, and I think I found the ultimate trampoline DIY. It's quick, it's easy, and it's really inexpensive to do.Introducing the trampoline playhouse:
Just look at that smile. That's the look of a child in their own bouncy playhouse.

What we’re playing with: Wishbone Flip

Remember my post back in 2012 about the Wishbone Flip, the coolest ride on toy, ever? {I'll wait while you check it out here}

Our Flip has gotten so much love in the past two years that it is simply called "sweet ride". As in, "I love my sweet ride," or, "get your sweet ride out of the kitchen, I'm trying to cook dinner." That kind of love.

Seeing as how the life of most baby toys is typically a few minutes, tops, I fully thought he would be done with his sweet ride by now. But, not only is he not anywhere near done with the Wishbone Flip, it's the one toy we rarely make him share because he's almost always riding on it.

Part of what made the Wishbone Flip last so long is that it's been able to grow with him. Not only does it adjust for height so it physically grows with your child, it also can be used in three different ways. First as a great toddler pushing toy, then as a rocking toy, and now as a super fast ride on toy that can be used in just about every game my little guy plays.

This will always be how I remember his childhood:

Circa 2011 – Look at him! He's just a teeny tiny baby!

Encourage a love of reading with Kobo Kids

If I were to summarize what I’ve learned so far about preparing your child to learn, it would look like this: foster a love of reading in your child. This message has come in many forms, but it’s always the same takeaway. Read with your child, give your child access to great books, and, likely most important, lead by example, and you will prepare your child for success in numerous facets of school and life.

I feel we’ve done fairly well at this in most regards and we are definitely raising little readers, but up until recently we haven’t had much time to model this behavior ourselves. Any parent of young children will tell you that there simply are not enough hours in the day, and one of my main struggles has been finding the time to get back into the kind of reading I did pre-kids.

Need for Speed Seattle screening and Q&A with Aaron Paul and Scott Waugh

by Tyler, editor and reviewer

A few weeks ago we got to hang out with my pals Aaron Paul and Scott Waugh for a bit when they came to Seattle for a press screening of their new film, Need for Speed. We talked about fast cars, explosions, and what it's like doing stunt work while driving around cars worth hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Not impressed yet? What if I told you that I also got to hang out with Sir Mix-A-Lot before the movie started? Oh, yeah, this happened.

The Head and the Heart – back in Seattle at last

My love of The Head and the Heart started with a single song. A song I loved so much that I would listen to the radio just to catch it playing. We bought the album after only hearing that one song, and it was quickly added to our daily playlist. And, it never came off.

These songs quickly became the soundtrack to the last few years, and I’ve found that the more I’ve listened to it, the more I love it. But, it's not just me. In this house, we're all fans of The Head and the Heart. I figure the kids can listen to crappy music when they can pay for it themselves, so until then they can choose from our music libraries. And, it just so happens that they chose The Head and the Heart. Good choice, kiddos.