Traveling with Kids by Car and Airplane

Irvine, California

Phoenix, Arizona

Evanston, Wyoming

Salt Lake City, Utah

These are some of the places we've been with my husband while he was working.

In 2002, my son Joel, who has 16 months old at the time (along with Michael in my womb), flew with my husband to Irvine, California (southern), where he had been working for a while doing engineering work. We stayed there for three weeks and then Joel and I flew back to KC alone. We didn't want to leave so soon, but I had taken donations for a World Breastfeeding Week walk and felt like I should actually do the walk.

My grandma thought I was nuts to travel with a little kid while also pregnant (she pretty much always thought I was nuts — five kids, homeschooling, traveling, working from home). But I always wanted to be a flight attendant, and travel was in my bones from the time I was born. My mom always understood, though, as she was a GO GO GO person who married my dad and went to Germany with him immediately (where I was born). That woman will travel ANYWHERE! My dad also likes to travel, so I come by this naturally.

Juppy Baby Walker Review and Giveaway

Alright, so obviously I don't have a baby around anymore, so I gave this Juppy Baby Walker to my friend Merriett to review since she has a little girl who is trying to walk. Here is what Merriett had to say and here are some photos. (stay tuned after this for a giveaway!)

"When she is in it she tends to lean forward so it really wasn't helping her "get her balance" and learn to walk. It might have been better for a baby just figuring out what to do with their feet but for our daughter she has been holding our hands to walk for several months now...she just can't get the balance thing down yet. It does say that it is normal for it to take a little time for the child to grow accustomed to it...but we used it 3 separate times and each time she would lean forward. 

The funny thing is that I actually think this product would be awesome for a child that is already walking. I could see us putting her in it while we went shopping or something so we could walk with her and she can't stray too far from us and we don't have to bend down to hold her hand. (Kind of like those leash things but looks a little nicer).

I also was really impressed with the craftmanship. The material is very sturdy, I imagine it lasting for quite some time. "

Later ...

"See how she is leaning forward? I just don't think this will help her walk at all. Its nice on our backs but I don't believe she is learning this way." Merriett also included a photo that was funny ... of the Juppy being used as a carrier!

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

The Mint Dress for the Upcoming Wedding and Pictures at Funerals?

I went out last week looking for a swimsuit and had ZERO luck (see this post about bras and boobs). I kept passing by these super cute dresses and finally this one SPOKE TO ME and I had to just grab it and try it on along with all the swimsuit disasters I had. It's from JCPenney, it was about $40, and it's a size 12 in case you were curious. It makes me happy because it is comfortable.

I don't care if my arms are too big for a sleeveless dress or that I will have a pooch belly in it. It is gorgeous and it makes me feel gorgeous. I am wearing it to a family wedding with totally inappropriate shoes because we now don't have the money for new shoes for me;. Likely I will be barefoot much of the time anyway.

The point is, it makes me feel pretty and it reminds me of my Great Aunt Eva for some reason. It's washable and I can wear it all summer long.

What makes you feel pretty?

Mom, are you happy now that I posted this like I said I would? I love you.

Updated April 2017. So when I wore this dress to the wedding, it was the last time my grandfather recognized me and he died a few months later. I wore it also to see him in the nursing home and snapped a selfie of us which I won't share here because some of my family FREAKED OUT when I shared it on Facebook. How dare I capture one last memory of my Poppy and myself and share it? In a nursing home? Then I went on to have my friend take pictures at the FUNERAL as well. I treasure those pictures as well and am glad I don't think like "everyone else" ... I am more sensitive, that's for sure, and I love having pictures to look back on, even if they are sad.

Also, even though I felt like I was busting out of it, I wore this dress also to Easter Mass this year. I love this dress :-)

Butterfly Day at the McLoughlin Academy of Rock

This morning when Callie got up we hit the books right away. You see, we homeschool in the summer. We pretty much do light school all year so we can take breaks, explore other interests, travel, socialize, play and more. It just works for us.

Anyway, we learned about insects today, which led to coloring pictures of butterflies (just Google "butterly coloring pictures") and fairy butterflies and reading poems about butterflies and learning about the life cycle of the butterfly. We'll inspect our parsley plant daily for caterpillars so many we can make a butterfly jar like we did another time. Eva and Sam color pictures, some have a B on them. Callie is going to color a bookmark with butterflies on it.

I love when learning one thing leads to another. It's like I start the conversation by cracking open a book and they continue it themselves, taking me along for the ride.

Later, since we're heading into social insects like ants and bees, I'll put "Bee Movie" on hold at the library. I also have to remember to put The Secret Garden on hold!

Check out my piece over here with 6 Family Friendly Outdoor Projects, as well, if you're feeling outdoorsy!

Review: Ride Along Dolly Doll Bike Seat

Okay, so this Ride Along Dolly Doll Bike Seat came in the mail so I could review it and stuff.

My girls were super excited, but only one has a "real bike" ... so Callie was chosen to try out the product. So after she put on the included decals and had so much fun doing that, it was time for Mr. Kerrie to assemble the seat.

Mr. Kerrie gives it a thumbs-up in the easy-to-assemble department

Callie would not get off her bike and rode up and down, up and down the sidewalk with her American Girl Doll-knockoff (how well do you think a $100+ doll would fare in my house, people? So we just don't even go there ... we get the $30 Our Generation Dolls from Target, thank you very much). Rather, SANTA does.

My little model loved this so much. The doll needs a ponytail, though, because her hair almost got caught in the spokes. And I noticed that the seat was saggin' a couple of weeks after it was installed. Mr. Kerrie said he fixed it but it sagged again. Just sayin'. If I was not honest you would not love me.

 

Hook up with them at Facebook and Pinterest!

 

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.