Recycled Regatta: How to Make Sailboats out of Recycled SunnyD Bottles

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone.
#WhereFunBegins #CollectiveBias

It's time to pull out the sails and have some summertime fun! If you're looking for a summer craft to add to your summer bucket list, or if you just need a boredom buster for your kids, they'll love these fun recycled DIY boats! #WhereFunBegins #ad

I am a huge fan of crafts made with supplies I pretty much have on hand. When my son says “I’m bored!” I like having a project available for him to do. Because of that, I tend to save things like bottles and straws in a bag in our pantry– they make the COOLEST homemade toys!

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How to Get Kids to Do Chores (With Free Chore Chart!)

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #CleaningUntangled #CollectiveBias

Are your kids slobs? Are they fighting you on pitching in with the chores? Do you struggle to get organized because of the clutter, mess, and lack of family participation? You can get your family to help with chores, without a fight! Get some tips (and print a free chore chart) to get your family motivated to clean up! #CleaningUntangled #Ad

Why does it so often feel like it’s mom’s job to do all of the housework? And how many times have you asked your kids to make their bed, clean up their toys, and help out with cleaning, only to get a fight? It’s an absolute pain, and in our household, it was time to say Enough. Is. Enough. It actually isn’t hard to get kids to do their chores– without the fight. You just have to get a little bit creative.

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Blended Strawberry Mock-aritas and Hot & Spicy Cheese Dip for Cinco de Mayo!

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #DelimexFiesta #CollectiveBias

Wanting to celebrate a delicious Cinco de Mayo with friends and family? You'll love this delicious strawberry mock-arita... it's just like your favorite restaurant margarita, without any alcohol! Strawberry and lime abound, and they're delicious. It makes for the perfect drink recipe for summer. #DelimexFiesta #Ad

Green chiles and hot sauce add a little kick to this cheesy delight! You'll love this dip for your next fiesta, whether it's Cinco de Mayo or anytime! It's creamy, cheesy, and served hot, which makes it SO good for any time! #DelimexFiesta #Ad

I’m coming at you today with not one, but TWO recipes that will be perfect for your Cinco de Mayo fiesta! You’ll love these recipes for sharing with friends, or even enjoying yourself after a long day. The first is a perfect blended strawberry mock-arita (it’s alcohol free, so even your littlest sippers can enjoy some this summer!) and the second is a hot and spicy cheese dip that will be the hit of the party, whether you’re dipping chips or the Delimex Taquitos and Rolled Tacos that pair perfectly with it!

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How to Tackle the Laundry Pile (And Get Your Kids to Help!)

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #LongLastingScent #CollectiveBias

Laundry stinks... sometimes literally! But tackling the laundry pile isn't impossible. Even the youngest of kids can help with laundry-related chores, because there's an age-appropriate task for almost anyone! So read this post, gather the family, and conquer the laundry pile, once and for all!    | household tip | cleaning | laundry hack | #longlastingscent #ad

Laundry stinks. Sometimes literally. I’m not kidding, laundry is my least favorite chore. I don’t mind washing so much, but the remembering to move clothes from the washer to the dryer, the act of folding and sorting and turning everything right-side out drives me bonkers. And don’t even get me started on putting it away– I’d live out of a laundry basket if I could! But the laundry pile? It has to go, and with a little help from your kids, it won’t even take that long! Who says mom should have to do all of the laundry? It’s time to tackle the laundry pile, and get your kids involved in lightening the load, so you can all have a great break afterwards.

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DIY Recycled Bottle City Craft

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #BringingInnovation #CollectiveBias

Don't toss out those bottles or newspapers! You can use them to create a fun bottle city for your kids! Learn about this craft, plus other ideas on how to teach kids to reduce, reuse, and recycle here.    #BringingInnovation #ad

If you walk into my house at any given time, you’re bound to find a few items lying around the toy area that aren’t quite what many would view as toys. My son’s play kitchen is fully stocked with real items– empty milk jugs, honey bears, coffee creamer bottles, and more. I love to repurpose items when I can (and of course, recycle them when I can’t), because I’m just not a huge fan of the thought of so much waste going into landfills. One of my new favorite crafts, though, is to take all of those little bottles– the ones from juice or soda or water– and make them into cool toys, like this great city. It’s so easy to do, which means your kids will love joining in on the fun, too!

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50 Ways to Bond with your Child (Without Leaving the House)

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #FrozenCustardTime #CollectiveBias

Forget the extensive preparation-- here are 50 ideas for you to bond with your child at home so you don't even have to leave the house! I love spending time with kids and enjoying family time. Between hopscotch, puppet shows, and Edy's Frozen Custard parties, there are a TON of ideas here! #frozencustardtime #ad

It’s so important to spend time with your children. Kids are at this vital part of their life where they need to be shown love, time, patience, and how to interact together during family time. That’s why you can’t put a high enough value on time spent together. But truthfully? Time together doesn’t have to require any extensive planning at all– with a few things you probably already have around the house, you can take time to unplug and enjoy bonding time together. Here are some of my favorite ideas for spending time with your children (without leaving the house!)

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Salted Pepperoni Chocolate Bark

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #PepItUp #CollectiveBias Forget chocolate covered bacon... the new treat this spring is Salted Pepperoni Chocolate Bark! Sweet chocolate blends with meaty pepperoni, making it the perfect new twist on a classic trend. #PepItUp #ad I’m not exactly sure who started this whole sweet and savory chocolate covered meat trend. I’ll be honest– I was even skeptical the first time I tried chocolate covered bacon. After that, it seemed people moved on to chocolate covered beef jerky, and now, well, I’ve found the next logical incarnation of the trend. A new season means it’s time to ditch the old chocolate covered meat we’ve come to know and love and try something new… and that something new? It’s Hormel pepperoni. Read more

Must-Make Lemon White Chocolate Toll House Cookie Bars

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #EasterEssentials #CollectiveBias

The Easter season can be crazy busy... drop in guests, fitting meals between egg hunts and events and beautiful weather. Make life easier at Easter by getting your #EasterEssentials taken care of with Nestle! Try these must-make lemon white chocolate bars, using pudding, whipped cream, and lemon white chocolate chip Toll House cookie dough! They're quick and easy, so you can get back to your busy season. #ad

The Easter season is upon us. Can you believe it? I certainly can’t– this year is flying by! One of the things I love about springtime, and about the Easter season, is that the weather is nice and you can finally get out. No more snow to hold you back from visiting friends and neighbors or just enjoying the great weather. But between egg hunts, time with family, and those drop in guests, the Easter season is busy. Who has time to bake during all of that craziness? You. That’s who. Because these awesome lemon white chocolate bars are semi-homemade using NESTLÉ® TOLL HOUSE® White Chip Lemon Refrigerated Cookie Dough, making them quick and easy to prepare (especially if you have unexpected company)!

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Top 5 Ways To Eat Rev Wraps

Ever since Rev Wraps from Hormel started appearing in stores in July, I’ve been addicted. It didn’t take long to get my son and brother hooked on them, too, and with so many varieties, you didn’t eat the same variety twice very often. It was perfect for on-the-go. But since trying our first Rev Wrap in July, we’ve been finding out that they’re really convenient to munch on in a lot of different settings and situations. I’m going to share with you my top five ways to eat a Rev Wrap, starting with….

5. As a Carry-On Snack

I have been traveling NON-STOP this summer. First, to Alabama for my annual beach vacation, then to Chicago for BlogHer, and finally, to New Jersey over the weekend for Duncan Hines. It has been go-go-go, and I seem to always be skipping meals when I fly. Since planes have slowly stopped offering on-board snacks, and I just never seem to have any that have enough protein to keep my headaches at bay, I usually just feel blah by the time I land. However, lately, I’ve been packing a Rev wrap. It takes up like, no space, in my carry-on, nesting next to my books, notebook, and hand sanitizer as a super convenient plane snack. It also works great for a long drive.

4. On the Way To Practice

I had to stop Jeffrey on the way to practice the other day and snap this photo… Rev Wraps are a staple for him when it comes to practice. With at least 15 grams of protein in each wrap, they’re definitely providing real energy for a long soccer practice, and it really helps him stay right on top of his game on the field when it comes down to crunch time. He feels satisfied and refueled, and it’s so portable that he can just toss it in his bag as he goes. I’ve even caught him with a Rev wrap while on his longboard, while practicing headers in the backyard, and while darting off to a friend’s house.

3. In our Picnic Basket

An occasional picnic, whether it’s at the park or on the floor of the living room, is always so much fun with Zach! It always ends in a fit of giggles. Rev Wraps are an easy thing to pack alongside our fruit, veggies, and hummus dip, and I know that they’re only around 300 calories per wrap, so I can feel okay with eating one as part of a balanced lunch, especially considering the amount of protein I’m scoring to keep up with a busy little guy on the playground!

2. A Sleepover or Afternoon Snack Tray

A lot of times, our house is packed with teens who are just hanging out. Whether it’s a group of exchange students stopping by to say “hey” or all of Jeffrey’s friends coming over for video games or jumping on the trampoline in the back, Rev wraps are an easy afternoon snack or movie night snack to keep on hand. For afternoons, it’s perfect for everyone to just grab their favorite, and for sleepovers and movie nights, they’re perfect for pairing with fruits, veggies, and a favorite sweet snack mix for everyone to share!

1. As a one-handed snack when you’re busy working

Whether Jeffrey is working on the car, or I’m typing a blog post or balancing a camera, Rev Wraps are a perfect one-handed snack to enjoy when you just don’t have two hands. They’re convenient and simple, and I’m not kidding when we all seem to grab one when we need something we can eat while we’re getting some hardcore work done. I love that you only really need one hand to eat them once they’re open, because I don’t always have two hands available. Sure, it’d be nice if God gave me one more hand, but he didn’t. So, I need something that is pretty hands-free.

If you really think about it, as a whole, we really need more snacks that are packed with protein and will help kids get through a day. 83% of teens are now a part of at least 1 extra curricular activity. Jeffrey is in Improv classes AND competitive soccer. 90% of those teens participate in their extracurricular activity on a weekly basis, but many, like Jeffrey, participate in their extracurriculars more than once per week.

More and more teens and adults are looking for a snack that will provide them with energy that lasts, rather than just a “quick fix” for their snack. The protein that this snack provides is a huge benefit in creating that sustainable energy that will last through an entire practice or act as part of a balanced lunch or breakfast.

Plus, I’m not even kidding, they’re really, really, good. I personally love the Pepperoni Pizza and Meat Lovers Pizza varieties. Jeffrey also loves the Meat Loves Pizza and the Ham and Cheese. Zach thinks that Ham and Cheese rocks his socks, too. There is something for everyone, though, including turkey, ham, and pizza-inspired varieties. And, at $1.99-$2.39, they’re really a reasonably priced option for snacking.

I also love to add a little bit to them by unwrapping them and pairing them with lettuce, diced tomato, and a little bit of ranch or mayo for a more filling wrap. They’re perfect after a few seconds in the microwave to melt the cheese, or straight out of the fridge.

I really do believe in Rev Wraps as a wholesome, well rounded, protein-rich snack that I can trust for my son and my brother. And I also love to grab one for myself on occasion. You can find them in stores in the lunchmeat section, near other ready-made lunch options.

 

 

Disclosure: I have received compensation in the form of free product from Hormel for this post; however, all opinions above are my own.