Holidays Archives - Page 20 of 41

Think Portrait Innovations for family pictures this fall

Did you read my post last month about our awesome photo sitting at Portrait Innovations and have been meaning to make an appointment? Do it now, seriously. Trust me when I say that the holidays will sneak up on you and before you know it you will be ordering holiday cards wondering why you don't have one single picture of your family with everyone smiling {nicely} at the camera with their eyes open. I know this because that was me last year, and the year before, and the year before…

But not this year, because I thought ahead and scheduled a fall sitting at Portrait Innovations that gave me lots of pictures to choose from when it comes time to order holiday gifts, prints to frame, and finally, holiday cards. The family photo shoot was easy, it was professional, but most of all it was actually fun. Yeah, I said fun. With three kids under 7 you rarely hear the words "fun" and "photo shoot" in the same sentence, but it was surprisingly enjoyable and the pictures really speak for themselves about what kind of shoot it was.

Enjoy the season with the new Glade® Limited Edition Fall Collection scents

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #GladeForFall #CollectiveBias My grandma always told me that they ended up in Washington for a number of reasons, but the big selling point for her was that it had all four seasons. Like my grandma, I love the changing seasons so I am very appreciative that they decided to put down roots here. But, as much as I adore spring, summer, and even winter, my favorite is fall.

Fall is bursting with promise. The promise of crisp air and cooler nights, colorful nature walks, road trips to see the foliage, and of family days spent walking corn mazes in tall boots and enjoying this beautiful place we call home. Fall is the month we get to enjoy all of that and more, and we get to do so with a steaming mug of coffee and a knit cap.

Upgrade your walls with photo art from AdoramaPix

Oh, AdoramaPix, where have you been my whole life? My walls have never been happier. Ever since I was little, I have loved photography and have taken way too many pictures. But the problem has always been getting those pictures printed. Back when film was my medium, I would save up money to get rolls of film developed at the drug store and whatever teenager that was on duty would process them, which was mostly awful. Then, once everything went digital, I would order prints either from kiosks or online, but either way, the quality was always subpar.

Other labs, pay attention. This is how you do it.

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

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

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.

Kid tough dress up gear from Aeromax {Junior Fire Fighter Suit review}

In our house, dress up day is any day that ends in a "y". We don’t merely have dress up time – pretty much all play time these days is done in costume. And, for us, dress up isn't limited to just inside play. My kids wear their costumes to stores, to parks, walking to and from school, and so much more.

This is just a small snapshot into the last year with my little man.Obviously, we can't get by with cheapy costumes designed for one day use; we need Get Real Gear from Aeromax. My son has become so famous for his amazing Aeromax costumes that I swear I could sell their dress up clothes right out of my car and retire for life.

Non-candy Easter treats from Corolle dolls

My kids really aren't big on candy, which makes me really happy. Sure, they get the occasional treat at school or during holidays, but I never load up on holiday candy because it just takes up space in my pantry after the kids forget all about it. Since I already know what happens when they get bags and baskets of treats, I'm always thinking of creative things I can give them in their Easter baskets, and I always think Corolle first.

If anyone thought that having a real live baby of our own would diminish the kids' love of all things Corolle, they were wrong. Baby dolls are a very big deal around here and show no signs of going anywhere anytime soon, so I love the idea of getting them each a little surprise in their Easter baskets that can add to all the doll play and make it even more fun.

No-stress Easter dinner with HoneyBaked Ham

Some people are natural born hostesses with buffet tables stocked with everything they could need for gatherings of all kinds, recipes at the ready to wow, and the organization to pull it all together. For me, even the thought of entertaining used to really stress me out. I worried about whether I would have everything perfect for guests, I worried over how clean my house was, and most of all, I worried what I would serve to eat that would work well for a crowd.

But, this year I've been entertaining more and more now that it's just easier to stay home with a newborn and have everyone come to us. And, while I wish I could say I've gotten better about tidying up before house guests, the truth is that now I just blame it on the baby. But, there's one thing I've gotten really good about doing as a mom of three: delegating.

That means when someone says, "Can I do something?", the answer is, "Yes." Sometimes that something is just playing with the kids while I get stuff done, sometimes it's bringing a dish or two, and sometimes that means handing off my baby to the first one in the door so I can enjoy some much needed time using both of my hands. But, my best delegating has got to be the addition of HoneyBaked Ham to our entertaining routine. My #1 tip for surviving entertaining during the holidays is letting HoneyBaked Ham handle the food for me.

Plan ahead for play time with Rayovac

Remember a few weeks ago when I was reminding you to run out and purchase batteries for all the new treasures your children were going to find under the tree this holiday season? Well friends, I'm here to tell you I failed. Yes, I stocked up on batteries. I even got more batteries than I knew I needed.

But, you know what I forgot? The fact that other people would also be buying for my kids and they were going to come home from Christmas with friends and family with new toys that took batteries in sizes we almost never carry. Can you say "planning fail"?

Luckily these gatherings were a few days before Christmas and we had time to run to stores to pick up the odd sized battery pack or two, but I still felt really bad telling the kids that they couldn't play with their new toys. If this had been Christmas morning or even the days following when we had gathering after gathering, it could have ended much, much worse!