Kid-friendly cereal and candy “sushi”

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. Kid-friendly cereal sushi ideas and images are mine alone. #StockUpWithPost #CerealAnytime #CollectiveBias My kids love helping in the kitchen, so I love thinking up creative snacks that they will be excited to make and eat with me. I was trying to think of … Read more

Get ready to rock back to school with Gymboree

Gymboree dance

I’m currently in denial that back to school is right around the corner. We had so many plans this summer and it feels like the entire two months just blew past in a blur of travel, lazy summer days, and play dates. I feel like I’ve now got a deadline looming that I might just … Read more

Matching Girls Monday: solar eclipse fun

Matching Girls Solar Eclipse

Matching Girls Solar Eclipse 4Did you watch the solar eclipse today? We didn’t go out of our way to see it, but we did step out onto the porch to watch it. We were only 93% eclipsed here, but it was still pretty cool and I’m glad we got to see it with our neighbors. It was the first of my lifetime in the Pacific Northwest and I wasn’t exactly sure what the expect. It didn’t get nearly as dark as I thought it would get, but it was still pretty spectacular.

Solar Eclipse family

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Elevate your road trip with the Mazda CX-5

This last week we escaped all of our day-to-day obligations and headed east into the mountains for some much needed family time. It’s been a hard few weeks for my family as we said goodbye to my family matriarch. We have been dealing with the pain of losing a beloved grandma {and great-grandma}, and I … Read more

Matching Girls Monday: blueberry picking and pie contests with neighbors

Gymboree kids

It’s now been three years of blueberry picking and pie contests with our fun-loving neighbors*, and to celebrate we headed off to Mountainview Blueberry Farm in Snohomish, WA. Our annual tradition usually just includes picking berries together and then making pies later to share, but this year they invited us over after picking to bake … Read more

What to expect during the August 21 2017 total solar eclipse

Usa_eclipse_map_v2_print
My first time really hearing about a solar eclipse was while reading A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court with my third grade class. The solar eclipse is a fairly big plot point in the story, so we spent a day or so going over what happens during a solar eclipse.

My teacher had experienced the last time the Pacific Northwest had a total solar eclipse, back on Feb. 26, 1979. No one in the class other than him was alive during the eclipse and I remember we all had a ton of questions for him. Hearing him talk about seeing the sky darken like that seemed like a life changing experience. Ever since then, I've wanted to see one for myself, and I'm super excited that the August 21 solar eclipse will be partially visible in Seattle. The first in my lifetime, and it just might be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

Want to know what to expect during the total solar eclipse that will cross the United States on August 21? Here's a quick primer:

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17+ ways to bond with your kids at Great Wolf Lodge

Debating whether you should vacation with your kids at Great Wolf Lodge? Maybe you are worried that your kids are too young or too old {they aren’t – trust me, there are activities for every age}. Or, maybe you’re worried about the last 15 pounds you want to lose? Whatever it is that is holding … Read more

Matching Girls Monday: shopping girls

shopping with matching clothes

Summer time cute with Hanna Andersson mermaid shirts, white Salt-Water Sandals, Minnie Mouse jean shorts from Kohl’s {bought for our Disney World trip last year}, and light silver sweaters from H&M. This was clearly before the Seattle heatwave that has rendered sweaters unwearable. Or, as I like to call them “the good old days”.Want to know … Read more

Sick Just Got Real: How do you handle summer germs?

This post has been sponsored by Pfizer Consumer Healthcare. All thoughts and opinions are my own. I have kids, which means it’s a constant struggle to balance the sometimes not-so-clean activities of young kids without becoming the anti-bacterial gel wielding mom. This year has been especially bad and while I’m tempted to sanitize every surface they … Read more