Leanne, Author at Rave & Review

Happy Fourth of July from Portland

With back to back vacations scheduled that had us running for two weeks straight, we decided we needed a low-key Fourth of July holiday. Instead of rushing back up to Gasworks park in Seattle where we normally watch the fireworks, we decided to stick around the Portland area after my cousin's wedding last week and … Read more

Getting sporty with the Mitsubishi Outlander Sport

By Tyler, Editor and reviewer

We’ve tested, borrowed, and rented quite a few cars in the past few years. But never have we been asked so many times whether we were thinking about buying those cars than with the Mitsubishi Outlander Sport that we borrowed this week. Maybe it was the bright blue color, or the fact that it’s a bigger car without being too big, or maybe it was because we’re due for a car that can handle the kinds of adventures we love to go on, but whatever it was, it seemed to be the consensus that we belonged in a vehicle like the Outlander Sport.

Make BBQ season last all year with 2-in-1 healthy grilling indoors or out from George Foreman

I can’t even tell you how many times our plans to grill have been thwarted by rain. Without a covered area to cook under, grilling in the rain just doesn’t sound fun and we usually end up just using the oven or the stove instead.

If only there was such thing as an indoor/outdoor grill that could safely be used both inside AND outside. Well, that’s exactly what the George Foreman 15 Serving Indoor/Outdoor Electric Grill {GFO240GM} is designed to do, and it can make it so inclement weather never ruins your next grilled meal.

Effortless curls with the T3 Twirl 360 styling iron

Every time someone is styling my hair at an event or for a special occasion, they all want to do the same thing – bold, beautiful curls in ringlets. I always love when they do, because this is one style I have never been able to master on my own.

I can do okay in the front, curling little sections at a time until it’s full of ringlets. But, the problem comes when I try to curl the backside of my hair. I’m famous for clamping the hair and then forgetting which way to curl and I end up crimping my hair on accident. As anyone who has ever done this before knows, those crimps will never, ever come out until you shower… so basically the hairstyle is ruined before you even finish.
But, now I’ve got a way to curl my hair naturally with just a flick of the wrist. Yes, really. The T3 Twirl 360 is a groundbreaking curling iron that senses the movement of your hand and rotates the barrel in the desired direction. That means no accidental crimping, no wrist fatigue, and no asking your husband to help you curl your hair {True story: He curls my hair more often than I curl my own hair}.

Stylish Quilted Koala “Mommy & Me” totes keep you organized on-the-go

If I could name one thing that keeps me sane as a mom of three kids, my answer would undoubtedly be “organization”. Gone are the days of happy-go-lucky Leanne where I would simply grab my purse and leave the house. Now going anywhere requires a few lists: the must-haves, the would-be-nice-to-haves, and the if-I-have-time items. I’m constantly organizing things into small piles each night, prepping what I can ahead of time so that our mornings and days run a little smoother, and for the most part I would say that I’m pretty well organized and we haven’t had any major catastrophes in terms of planning.

And, while I never committed to a full diaper bag with my two older children, I’ve reached the point where the “mom purse” is getting out of control. As if leather purses weren’t already heavy on their own, I’ve been known to find full-fledged rocks in my purse but there by my little darlings. Rocks, people. I carry around rocks in my purse.

Obviously, a mom purse is not the right solution to keep us organized on-the-go. What I have been searching for is a bag from Quilted Koala, the makers of the perfect lightweight 100% cotton tote bags totes to organize everything I haul around each day.

Create a Mickey-inspired Disney Baby basket

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #MagicBabyMoments #CollectiveBias There has been a big baby boom recently, and just in our family alone we have welcomed 4 babies in the past year. But, while all babies are celebrated, only first babies get a big baby shower with extended family and friends, second {and third, and fourth} babies get what is known as a Meet & Greet.

Never heard of a Meet & Greet? It’s basically the answer for the non-baby shower that takes place after the baby is born to celebrate each birth and to introduce them to the family. Where baby showers focus more on the pregnant woman and showering the parents to be with presents, the Meet & Greet is more about the baby.

But, that doesn’t mean there can’t be a present or two. It’s for these occasions that I love the welcome baby basket. Instead of bathtubs and baby gear that the parents likely got with the first baby, the baby basket is more about items that often need replaced after each child like sippy cups, baby care kits, bibs, utensils and blankets. Of course, there has to be one or two fun things for the baby, too, like the awesome Disney Baby Winnie the Pooh Cloud B lamp and a blanket.

Happy Father’s Day from Rave & Review

I was looking through some pictures today and I started to get teary thinking of how OLD my babies are getting. It seems impossible that I have a seven year old {and a four year old, and a newborn} as I swear it feels like only yesterday that I was bringing them home from the … Read more

Why you should take your kids to see Disney•Pixar’s Inside Out

Sometimes I forget how hard it is to be a kid. Navigating childhood is a mine field filled with mean kids, peer pressure, tough schoolwork, and embarrassing moments. And, all the while you are figuring out who you are and how you fit into your family, your school, your teams, and with your friends. Now that my kids are getting older, I find myself looking at them a lot and wondering what is going on inside their heads.

Is that a tired look, or is that sadness? Is that pure joy, or are they holding back for some reason? Are their friends including them or are they feeling left out? Try as I might to find out what’s going on, most of the time when I ask how things are going or about how they feel about specific people and situations I get the same response.

“Good,” they say. Good? What does “good” mean, anyway?

Great gifts for Dads and Grads from AT&T

When it comes to gifts for dad, you really can’t beat awesome tech accessories, and you can find all sorts of great tech gifts at AT&T. This June AT&T retail stores are offering a variety of gadgets under $100 that make great gift ideas for Father’s Day and Graduation that we adore, and I’m sure your dad or grad would as well.

One of our favorite items on the gift guide is the Braven BRV-1 speaker. We got one of these awesome Braven speakers from AT&T earlier this year and we absolutely adore it. It can go anywhere, do anything, and it sounds amazing. It’s rugged enough for camping and can even handle damp conditions. You can check out our full review here.

Neposmart: the customizable and wireless camera system that grows with you

The sound of little feet running around the house can be quite comforting, but it’s pretty awful when those sounds are followed by a loud thump or crash. This is why as soon as our kids were mobile we started looking into cameras to use throughout the house to better keep an eye on the kids – day and night.

What started off as a baby monitor search has morphed into a search for a camera system that can be used well after the baby stage to keep our whole house secure. With break-ins becoming more and more commonplace, we wanted something that would allow us to watch our home, even when we were across the country.

Our search led us to the Neposmart IP camera system, which was the only system we found that had everything we were looking for and more. This is far more than just a wireless home security camera; the Neposmart is an intelligently designed system you can operate remotely via your smartphone to survey and interact with your home.