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7 Tips to Maximize Your Experience at Diggerland USA

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We received complimentary tickets in exchange for our thoughts in this post.  All thoughts and opinions are our own. 

Have you heard of Diggerland USA yet?  It’s such a unique place unlike anything you’ve been to before. This amusement park is guaranteed to be a unique experience for the young and old members of your family.  Since Diggerland is just down the street from us, we’ve been here a few times. First, when they opened and then a few times since. Now that our oldest is 4.5 years old, we finally feel like we found the perfect age to go. Don’t get me wrong, even the little had fun at almost 2 on our recent trip, however, for maximum experience, we think we’ve found the best time.

Today, I wanted to share with you how to make the most of your trip to Diggerland. After going a few times, we think we have the expertise to let everyone know how to get the most for your money at Diggerland USA. For us, cost versus benefit is a big factor in where we go as a family. We know it is for our readers as well.

Watch our trip:

How to Maximize Your Trip to Diggerland USA

  1. Save on Tickets

    • Buy tickets online. You automatically save $5 on most tickets just for purchasing online.
    • If you are planning to go more than 2 days during the year, or during your trip, look into buying a membership BEFORE the season opening – you can typically purchase for around $50.
    • Check for Discounts on-line – Military, First Responders, and AAA members get discounts off tickets. Students who bring a report card showing straight As also do.  Additionally, seasonal discounts are offered like Free Mom’s Admission on Mother’s Day.

  2.  Get there Early, During the Week

    • Pick a day that you can get there around 10am and plan to spend at least 4 hours there.
    • Ideally, if you want to do every ride, you can maximize the full day of 10-6.
    • Go during the week instead of the weekend.  Weekday waits for us have been about 1/3 of the weekend wait times, especially on the more popular waits.

  3. Pack a Lunch

    • You can’t bring food into the park, however, the park has picnic tables set up outside the gates. There is a concession style stand there, but the prices are typical amusement park prices.  Save money by packing a lunch.
    • If you do want to buy lunch, we recommend getting the whole pizza combo that comes with a 16″ pizza and (4) 21oz drinks for ~$30
    • There’s also numerous fast food and sit down restaurants within 5 miles of Diggerland. You are allowed to come and go during the day of your pass as long as you have your wristband on.

  4. Have an extra adult for smaller kids under 36″

    • There’s only one actual ride that a child under 36″ can get on currently.
    • Many of the rides for kids 36-48″ needs adult supervision.  Even if babywearing a smaller baby, they will not let you be the adult on the ride with a child if you have a young child under the height requirement with you.
    • Once your child hits 42″ they can pretty much do everything with an adult helping them, so we preferred this height to go if paying to maximize the experience.

  5. Take a break while they play at the park

    • The Kid Zone is a large park with steps, slides, and activities built in throughout the area. There’s also four “baby-style” swing with a canopy. Benches throughout the area allow parents to relax for a bit in between rides while kids an still play.

  6. Wear tennis shoes/closed toe shoes

    • I really can’t stress this one enough.  A lot of the rides have this as a requirement, so if you don’t have closed toe shoes on, then you won’t be able to get on the ride.

  7. Coming from out of town? Check out the hotel partners which gives you a packaged deal with tickets and your hotel stay.

    • You can find those partnerships listed on the Diggerland USA website here.

BONUS TIP! Check for special activities going on at Diggerland USA.  Recently, WHYY was there and brought Buddy from Dinosaur Train with them! It was a special surprise and our littles were so excited.ama

5 Dishes to Try at Bahama Breeze

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We don’t eat out often. Never really have and since having kids, it’s been even less frequently.  Partly to save money, partly because kids act crazy as soon as you sit down at a table. However, before we had kids we absolutely loved Bahama Breeze.  With Andrew’s Caribbean culture, it’s a nice way for him to get a taste of home when we can’t make it over to his parents for dinner (I haven’t mastered the flavor profile yet – though it’s on my to do list).

Recently, we headed over to a nearby mall and once there I told Andrew that we should have an early dinner at Bahama Breeze. This is the face I got. I’m so happy that he loves somewhere so much.

The girls absolutely love the food at Bahama Breeze too. I know the flavor is in their bones, but I also love that we can expand their palates of different foods at such a young age at one of our favorite places.

Today, I wanted to share with you a complete meal from start to finish of some of our all time and recent favorites. I’ll share with you a few extras too.

Appetizers – Beef Empanadas. These are a new favorite.  They are perfectly fried pastries filled with beef and potatoes. Everyone loved them. The jumbo lump crab stack is another fav of ours.

Soup – Seafood chowder.  Hands down one of the best soups I’ve ever had.  What’s even better is that this soup broke the ice for Andrew trying soups.  He swore he hated soup until he tried this.  Now, he won’t try other soups still, but when we are at Bahama Breeze, he will keep asking for bites of mine.

Entrees – The girls always continuously ask for bites of ours as soon as we order our dishes. Andrew always gets the same thing – Calypso Shrimp Linguine. Creamy, spicy, perfectly sautéed entree that embodies Caribbean style.

Trinidad Chicken Curry Bowl. This was a new one for me, but instantly a favorite. Chicken, chickpeas, and tomatoes in a curry and coconut milk sauce. It’s served with pineapple chutney and naan and it’s just amazing.

The fish tacos and the jerk chicken sandwich are equally delicious. I have a goal to work out way through the menu one day.

You can’t forget the drinks!  We love a virgin Pina Colada as a fun and sweet treat.

The entire spread always looks amazing and we’re never disappointed. We absolutely love eating at Bahama Breeze.

And don’t worry – if you have littles that are less exploratory than ours, they have traditional kids meals like chicken tenders and fries.

Bahama Breeze is one of our favorite places and we just can’t get enough of it when we get out.

Spring Outdoor Challenge for Kids + FREE PRINTABLE

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

Are you ready for a Spring Outdoor Challenge!?

Spring has sprung and with that it means great weather is arriving. So I’m springing our little family out of the confines of our own home after hibernating this winter and we’re ready for a Spring Outdoor Challenge.

Every year winter comes in and seems like it restricts us to our home. As much as I try to get us out and doing activities at indoor places, nothing truly beats the fresh air and magic of really being outdoors. There’s something remarkable that happens with your mood when you are able to open the windows, hear the birds chirping, see fresh cherry blossoms, and start getting your hands into the soil again to grow your garden.  I notice that winter completely drains my girls too, even at such a young age, and how delighted their faces are when we get to go outside day after day again.

So this spring, I want to motivate you to get outside and get your own kids (and yourself) active with us! We have a goal to be outside for a minimum of one hour,three days a week. I, mostly likely, will be in the garden, while the girls are chasing each other around and playing on the swing set on most days. However, we also have a spring bucket list of places we want to get too as well! So can you join me in that goal?

To make it easier for you, I’ve created this Spring Outdoor Challenge with FREE Printable! In our challenge, we give you 10 places to go, 10 things to find, and 10 things to take a picture of your littles doing. It’s a fun way to enjoy nature even more! And who doesn’t love a challenge!?

Before we get into the challenge, let me first give you a little PSA – PLEASE KEEP HYDRATED! When you are out, even in cool weather, it’s easy for you, and especially littles to get dehydrated. We are loving our Contigo AUTOSEAL® Chill Spill-Proof Water Bottle. Our Contigo water bottle is BPA free, comes with a carry handle for easier carry, keeps drinks cold up to 28 hours with their Thermalock™ vacuum insulation, and comes with Auto seal technology, so it knows when to close™, meaning leak AND spill proof!

Now let’s have a spring outdoor challenge!

(Get the Spring Outdoor Challenge printable below)

For our Spring Outdoor Challenge, we give you 10 places to go, 10 things to find, and 10 things to take pictures of on your adventures. We want you to have fun, be outdoors, and get yourself and your kids active, so we are staying heart healthy.

10 PLACES TO GO

  1. Local Park (within 5 miles of your home)
  2. Nature Trail that’s at least 2 miles long
  3. Local Farm
  4. State Park
  5. Lake
  6. Beach
  7. Cavern
  8. Pick Your Own Fruit Farm
  9. Campground
  10. Skate park

10 THINGS TO FIND

  1. Red Bird
  2. Brown Leaf
  3. Pinecone
  4. Acorn
  5. Rock larger than your hand
  6. Nest
  7. Animal prints in the ground
  8. A feather
  9. A spiderweb
  10. Lichen on a tree (the green fungus growing on some trees)

10 PICTURES TO CAPTURE OF YOUR KIDS

  1. Hugging a Tree
  2. Playing in Water
  3. Smelling a Flower
  4. Cloud or Star Gazing
  5. Taking a break
  6. Going Down a Slide
  7. Playing in Dirt or Sand
  8. Running as Fast as They Can
  9. Climbing Something
  10. Walking Across a Bridge

WHAT DO YOU THINK?

CAN YOU COMPLETE OUR SPRING OUTDOOR CHALLENGE?

Grab your FREE printable Here!

Wherever you go, make sure to pack a lunch and a cold beverage in your Contigo water bottle!

The Contigo AUTOSEAL® Chill Spill-Proof Water Bottle is available for a Limited Time Offer of $19.99 at Target with three Exclusive Target Colors – Matte Black w/Iced Aqua, Very Berry, and Monaco. You can find the Contigo spill-proof water bottle with AUTOSEAL® technology in the housewares aisle at Target so you too can keep your drinks cold for up to 28 hours.

10 Things to Do at Howell Living History Farm – Lambertville NJ

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A few weeks ago, we found ourselves at Howell Living History Farm in Lambertville, NJ.  I’ll admit that I had never even heard of this place before a friend suggested it, but it was just about an hour drive away, so we went. Once there, I couldn’t believe we had never been before.  This place is amazing! Seriously, I immediately told all my friends that we have to come back and bring our kids again. Andrew is really hard to impress, especially when I told him we were going to a farm, but even he was blown away by the awesomeness that we experienced there. And best of all, it’s TOTALLY FREE!

Howell Living History Farm is an educational facility that preserves and interprets farming life and processes from the era of 1890-1910. It was amazing to see a real life working farm from this era as if nothing had changed at all.  It’s recommended to wear older, comfortable shoes when you go as there is a lot of walking and possibly mudding in some places. Rain boots are a great option too!

Here’s 10 things you must do when you visit Howell Living History Farm!

  1. Grab a snack or even lunch in the main building
    • When we were there, they had soup, hot dogs, and mac and cheese, as well as homemade cookies, drinks, and bags of chips.
  2. Spot the beehives
    • Don’t get too close to the bees, but it’s fun to spot them and teach your kids about where honey comes from
  3. Visit with all the animals
    • There’s sheep, pigs, horses, oxen, chickens and more. The girls loved touching the thick sheep’s wool and trying to feed an ox. There’s plenty of opportunities to get up close with them if your patient enough.
  4. Watch the horses carry equipment from one area of the farm to another
    • While we were there, the horses were carrying containers to collect sap and then carrying it to where the maple syrup is made. Depending on the season you visit, will determine what you get to see the horses doing
  5. See if you can walk across the creek without getting soaked
    • There’s a few rocks you can hop on to get across the creek.  It’s a fun challenge for the little ones. Don’t worry, there’s a bridge to cross too if you don’t want to chance getting wet.
  6. Eat freshly made pancakes in the kitchen of the farmhouse
    • Unfortunately, we didn’t get to partake in this, but we did get to see the farmhand gather the eggs from the chickens and walk them over to be used to make the fresh pancakes
  7. Help cut and chop the wood
    • There’s a station set up down near the creek where you can help hand saw logs and then chop smaller pieces with a hatchet
  8. Pump yourself a fresh drink of water!
    • Our girls thought it was amazing that they could pump water from the ground! I haven’t seen one of these since I was little and remember having the same reaction.
  9. Take part in the special seasonal activities
    • We attended during maple syrup season.  While we were there, we got to see how to collect the sap and then got a lesson on when is the best time, how to see if you can do it at your own house, and how to spot the best maple syrup in the store.
    • Depending on the time of year, you may also be able to learn about beekeeping, plant things in the garden, collect and learn about egg grading, lambing, hog weighing, and more.
  10.   Have a picnic!
    • Bring your own lunch and blanket and have a picnic or eat at one of the picnic tables provided. There’s a ton of open space where you could eat at anytime during your visit

Bonus!  If you live close enough, consider enrolling your child in one of the kid’s programs.  These weekday and weekend programs, as well as a summer camp that immerses children in the farm lifestyle. In these programs, they will do things like gather the eggs, feeding the animals, gathering firewood, and so much more.

Learn more about Howell Living History Farm, including hours and location, here.

5 Kid Friendly New Jersey Sites To Visit This Summer

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Today, we’re sharing with you 5 Kid Friendly New Jersey Sites To Visit This Summer!

This summer we will have a 4 1/2 and 2 year old, which means more summer trips with less hassle.  Both girls are carefree and down for adventure at any given time.  They love getting out of the house and exploring the world around them.  Since I haven’t lived in New Jersey my entire life, there’s a lot of things I haven’t seen, so it’s just as much of a joy for me as it is for the girls. Andrew also works crazy hours, so being able to do day trips is really important for our family to be able to get out and explore together.

We’ve slowly been exploring more and more parts of New Jersey and we thought we’d share some of our favorites so far with you!

 

  • Ocean City, NJ
    • Hands down Ocean City is one of our favorite things to do every summer.  We’ve gone to Ocean City every summer since having kids.  It’s our favorite spot shore place!
    • Must-Dos! Of course the beach! But after you’re done, grab pizza at Manco & Manco, Gelato at Shriver’s, and then finish out the day with rides and games at Gillian’s Wonderland Pier! Don’t forget the taffy!

  • Adventure Aquarium
    • This is the first place that I took Serenity as a baby. Andrew and I also had been here before we had kids.  We all have a love for water, so it’s just a fun place for us to go! There’s always a new exhibit opening for you to learn more about and it’s the perfect place to go for rainy day fun. Touch a Shark and a Stingray, watch the hippos swim, walk across the Shark bridge and get face to face with over 400 animals in their 760,000 gallon home at Ocean Realm. Pack a lunch to eat inside or outside (or grab one in the cafeteria).

  • Paw’s Discovery Farm
    •  A recently new family favorite New Jersey location. We love the abundance of indoor and outdoor play spaces available, along with the ability to have lunch outdoors, take a nature walk, and get up close and personal with lots of fun animals! Make a weekend trip by checking out the Children’s Discovery Museum and Kid Fit Cherry Hill, both partner businesses.

  • Diggerland/Sahara Sams
    • This was the girls’ first waterpark, so it will always hold some special memories for our family.  We first went here during a birthday party for a cousin, but have been back since and every time we go it’s so fun. I love the ability to combine the waterpark and Diggerland passes together for the ultimate indoor and outdoor experience. We plan to head back to Diggerland soon since Serenity is now tall enough for most of the attractions! Lazy river and the slides are our favorites at Sahara Sam’s, and the swing ride was a favorite for Serenity at Diggerland in the past.

  • Howell Living History Farm
    • We know how hard taking trips can be when they are not financially feasible, so we wanted to include a FREE option.  Yup, completely free. You do have the option to make a donation to support the farm, but it’s totally optional. This is a real working farm based in the late 1800s.  You can pet animals, see how the farm actually worked then and is still working now – like watch as they collect eggs from the chickens, and take to the kitchen to whip up homemade pancakes.  Every weekend they have a different activity going on to teach you as well. The weekend we went we learned how to make maple syrup, but there’s also activities like Saw Milling, Ice Harvesting, Lambing, Beekeeping, and more!

This year, we’re also planning to go to:

  • Hiking trails in southern New Jersey
  • Wildwood, NJ and Morey’s Pier
  • Cape May Zoo
  • Edelman Planetarium
  • Storybrook Land

Looking for more inspiration?  We’ve teamed up with four other local Jersey bloggers to get 5 of their favorite places to visit in New Jersey. We took a sneak peek and there’s a bunch of fun places to check out!

What’s your favorite kid-friendly location in New Jersey?  Leave a comment below letting me know. We’re dying to get out and explore more, but these are a few of our favorites!

Finding Joy When The Family Vacation Goes Wrong

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How do you go about finding joy when the family vacation goes wrong? Let’s discuss!

In the blogging world, the elusive Disney Social Media Moms trip is on everyone’s radar. It’s a blogging conference about Disney where you can bring your whole family. No one really knows how anyone is invited on this family vacation or what the criteria is, there’s no application to apply, and it’s invite-only. We were first invited in 2015, but couldn’t financially swing it. Invited again in 2016, but at the time of the event, I would have been 36+ weeks pregnant with our second, and thus our doctor said no travel. Fast forward to last November, and we received our third invite.  We could make this happen. Andrew and I talked it over and ended up registering. You would have thought I was a little kid again. I was soooooo excited.

I was excited for a family vacation.  Our first as a family of four.  I was excited to go back to Disney. I hadn’t been to Disney since I was 8 and Andrew was around the same age. I was excited about the girls’ first Disney trip. I was excited about meeting other bloggers. I was just plain, stinkin’ excited.  I planned daily for the next three months. Everything from making Mickey ears, to planning our outfits, writing out all the rides we wanted to do and the places we were going to eat.  I don’t think I left any stone unturned.

The day came! 

I went into the day saying that nothing would railroad our trip, we were going to have a magical time.  It’s Disney, after all!!

As soon as we hit the airport, the issues started.

  • Both our bags were over the limit, we had no where to move anything around, so we just had to pay the overage fee.
  • The airline, put me in the same seat as someone else. Thankful for a not full flight, we got it all sorted so we could all sit together.
  • Serenity and I both experienced sharp eye and head pain on the decent into Florida. It was horrible and I hope neither of us ever experience that again.

“Okay”, I said, “Whatever! We’re still going to Disney! WE MADE IT!” We were just a short ride away from checking-in and heading over to the parks.

Fast forward, we got to the park, met up with some local Jersey native, now Florida resident friends, and made it through our first two activities (Meeting Talking Mickey & Tinkerbell!).  All was going well and the annoyances of the morning were a thing of the past. Serenity fell asleep while we were walking down Main Street to get to Tomorrowland. We ended up waking her up to get on Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin. Walking from the stroller parking over to the ride, she threw up everywhere.  All over herself. WE DIDN’T HAVE EXTRA CLOTHES WITH US. HUGE. MAJOR. #FAIL.  Even though she had been drinking water, we got her some more, found the closest store with her size clothes and bought her a shirt, and sought out somewhere to eat. In the mean time, she fell asleep again. We decided to just relax and let her sleep while we ate. Before we were finished she woke up and asked for ice cream. We were across the street from Plaza Ice Cream Parlor, so Andrew said he would walk her over there while I grabbed the baby and our stuff. I met up with them as a cast member was cleaning up her vomit again. At this point we decided to head back to the hotel. I missed my first official business part of the trip and the girls slept through the rest of the evening activities.

After a night’s rest, all seemed right the next day. We enjoyed all our activities. We had a great day at the park. Serenity and I rode Splash Mountain and Seven Dwarfs Mine Train together. We had a great day. The third day started off amazing too.  We boarded buses to take us to Port Canaveral for the second portion of our trip. I was so excited about this part because the hustle and bustle of the parks was so overwhelming, that I was looking forward to the confinement of the Disney Wonder cruise ship and having everything within a short walking distance. The whole first part of the day went great.  Then, disaster.

  • Sitting down to dinner the first night, the baby threw up everywhere.
  • Woke up in the middle of the night to Serenity throwing up.
  • Both girls threw up the entire first night.  We got about 30 minutes of sleep that night.
  • The baby threw up at dinner every night.
  • Andrew was sea sick the whole time.  He couldn’t join us for most of the dinners.
  • I was sea sick the whole time, though not as bad.

And more.

I say all that so you can see how our trip went wrong. But after all, we were still on a Disney Trip. So how did we find joy when everything was seemingly against us from having fun and making a memorable trip?

  1. Make it a Memorable Trip!
    • YOU have the power to change whether you make memories. You know what’s funny? If you ask Serenity, she’ll tell you she threw up but can’t wait to go back. She doesn’t care. Don’t let it ruin your joy if it’s not even bothering them. Be as resilient as your children are in the moment.
    • Take a Break and Reset
      • Going back to the hotel or stateroom and rest for a bit.  I know it’s hard, you spent hundreds if not thousands of dollars for this trip. But as Daniel Tiger says, “Rest is Best. Rest is best”. If you aren’t allowing yourself, or your kids in our case, to rest, the entire trip could go even worse. Stop. Break. Reset. Try again. Make fun.
  2.  Relish hard on the things you are able to do.
    • Sure we missed out on some things we would have liked to do, but the things we did get to do where so memorable. Meeting Talking Mickey, riding Splash Mountain, going down the water slide on the cruise, enjoying a Broadway caliber show, riding bikes on Castaway Cay.Watching the girls eyes light up as they met Anna and Elsa or Rapunzel, seeing the Frozen show, playing at the kid’s club.  These are the memories that I will hold on too from our trip. We truly did make so many memories.
  3. Savor the Moment.
    • Everything was going wrong.  We could have held onto that and stayed in the room miserable or we could get up and try again.  We kept choosing to try again. And that’s what allowed us to be able to create the amazing memories that our girls keep talking about now.
  4. Be willing to change plans.
    • We were scheduled to have sit down dinners every night and even one breakfast during the cruise. It didn’t happen because the baby kept getting sick when we would sit down at the table. Instead we went to the cafeteria and ordered room service. We still ate, we still had good food, it was just a bit different than the original plans.
  5. Be grateful.
    • Yeah, I didn’t want to do it either. But you are on a trip, some people can’t do that. You are with your family, some people don’t have that. We did about 1/50th of the things I had planned (literally), but I’m so grateful for the few things we did get to do.
  6. Give yourself (and your family) Grace.
    • Again, I know you’re thinking, I just spent so much money. You didn’t expect all this to happen and it’s sure not ideal, but it’s happening. Just give yourself grace and realize that there will be another trip, there will be more memories.

The main tip is and always will be, find the little joys, live in the present moment that you are in at the time. Don’t look back at what bad things did happen.  They are there, if you are willing to look for them. So if you’re having a rough family vacation, just look for the joy. I promise you can find it.

How do you go about finding joy when the family vacation goes wrong?  Leave a comment and let us know your tip!

 

 

10 Must Do Things At Paws Discovery Farm – Mt Laurel NJ

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Disclosure: We were hosted for this post at Paws Discovery Farm. Thoughts and opinions are 100% our own.

Having never been in New Jersey before having kids, there’s so many things to do that I’ve never experienced before.  I have a bucket list a mile long of places to take the kids, and Paws Farm was always on that list. It’s never happened though. Luckily, they recently rebranded to Paws Discovery Farm and invited us to their media day opening.  From the moment we walked in, I couldn’t believe I never made time to get the girls out there before.

Hint:  Stop putting off Paws Discovery Farm and GO!

My initial thoughts were blown away the second we walked in the door.  You pull into the parking lot to a small sign with a building that could look like a medical office.  But what’s inside will make you want to sign up for a membership that day. Think – you can’t judge a book by it’s cover.  You’d have no idea all that lies inside the acres behind those doors.

Here’s our 10 Must Do Things while you are there!

1. Play in the Welcome Center! Get crazy with the Wild Things, make music on the drums, jump in the ball pit and more, all as soon as you walk inside the doors.

2. Try to find a butterfly in the butterfly garden. It was a little too cold for butterflies to be out when we were visiting, but we can’t wait to go back and hopefully spot one ourselves.

3.  Play on the outdoor structures! A huge play house, a train, a tractor, a ship, and more gives you endless opportunities for imaginative play!

4. Have a picnic! Paws Discovery Farm doesn’t typically have food for sale, but you are welcome to bring a lunch and enjoy outdoor nature at one of their few dozen picnic tables.

5. Take a hike!  Literally, you can take a short hike on their nature trail.  Unfortunately, I didn’t realize how cold it was when we went and we weren’t dressed for that. But it just gives us some extra things to look forward too when we go back next time!

6. Explore the turtles, lizards, and more inside the Farmhouse.  This area wasn’t ready to open during media day, but it will be open soon! 

7. Inside Paws Farm indoor barn.  There’s so many fun activities inside the green barn! Learn about cows, play as a veterinarian, a grocery store, slides, trains, and more!  Coming soon is an A.C. Moore sponsored craft center too!

8. The Animals!  Head into Storybook Barnyard where you can find sheep, goats, swan, chickens, llama and so much more.  During busy days, there’s opportunities to go into the petting yard and get even closer to the animals.  Call Paws to find out those times.

9.  Spot the peacock! We almost missed this guy because she (or maybe he) was hiding out on top of a building.  I had no idea it was there so when the peacock got up and started walking, it kind of freaked us out. See if you can spot it!

10. Purchase a gift on your way out!  Lots of fun learning toys and games are available for a reasonable price, plus, there’s an an opportunity to donate to the farm by sponsoring a specific animal which I thought was so cool.  Lastly, there’s a table of local businesses you can support like a soap maker and a beekeeper with local honey!

We can’t say enough amazing things about our time at Paws Discovery Farm and we didn’t even have a chance to do everything.  We definitely plan to head back soon and spend most of the day there!

Paws Discovery Farm is located in Mount Laurel, New Jersey. Tickets are $10 per person for anyone over 1 and memberships are available.

Here’s some things that might help with your trip!

5 Essentials to Pack For Day Trips with Kids

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This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Sprout Organic Foods for IZEA. All opinions are 100% mine.

essentials to pack for day trips with kids

As I finally get the hang of having two children (it only took a little over a year), we have started taking more one off day trips to various places.  We love traveling and enjoying the world beyond our house. What I found though was that I was overpacking. One time, Andrew was like, “why is all this stuff going with us for 6 hours?” My response: “we might need it”. The truth is, we didn’t. And in the unforeseen circumstance that we may, there’s usually a store within 5-10 minutes of anywhere that we go. We could easily just run in to one and grab what we need. I mean I was packing the same amount of stuff if we were running to Target, going to be gone the entire day, or spend the night away. Seriously, moms, we have to stop overpacking!!

Whether the beach, a national park, or an amusement park, there are some things that I absolutely must pack. These are no brainers for us. I won’t leave the house for a trip without these 5 essentials to pack for a day trip with kids.

  • Cash
    • This may sound silly.  Everyone accepts credit cards nowadays, right? WRONG. We’ve run into many places that still only accept cash or other places that you can get a discount for using cash. So now, we always make sure we travel with cash.
    • Tip: If traveling for more than one day, see if your local bank is nearby your destination.  This way, you aren’t traveling with a lot of cash, and instead can just grab more as needed.
  • Extra Set of Clothes
    • No matter the age of your kids, pack an extra set of clothes.  Kids are messy, life happens, always have extra clothes.
    • Tip: Pick light clothing and fold it up into a gallon size resealable bag so it doesn’t take up a lot of room. Keep this in your car and switch out every 3-6 months.
  • DVD player or Tablet loaded with Games
    • Forget the toys. Instead load a tablet with educational games or take a DVD player. Toys get thrown, lost in the car, etc., and no one has time to listen to screaming because of fighting over a toy or because a toy fell onto the ground.
    • Tip: Load a CD case with DVDs if going on a long trip so you only have one case to take instead of trying to making 15 DVD cases.
  • Sunscreen or UVA protective clothing
    • No matter where you go, you’re likely going to be out in the sun at some point with your kids. We love UVA protective clothing so we don’t have to worry about lathering sunscreen on later.
    • Tip: Skip the spray sunscreen.  It’s not safe for kids to inhale and most kids can’t hold their breath long enough to not inhale.
  • Snacks
    • NEVER LEAVE HOME WITHOUT SNACKS! Almost all of your sanity can be saved with snacks.
    • Tip: Choose healthy, non-refrigerated snacks so you don’t have to worry about a cooler.

organic sprout food pouches

We love Sprout foods for our snacks options, especially the pouches! Unlike leading competitors that primarily focus on two flavors (apple or pear); Sprout offers delicious blends of whole fruits, vegetables, and grains giving babies greater exposure to wholesome foods. Additionally, Sprout honestly labels their products so Flavor names match the primary order of ingredients inside. This way Moms knows EXACTLY what they are feeding their babies. In fact,  Sprout’s Honesty Pledge commits them to transparency and honest labeling. Flip over the pouch and the ingredients on the back, match the ingredients on the front with whole fruits, vegetables, and grains! It’s one less thing I have to worry about on our trip!

sprout pouch label ingredients

Download a Buy One, Get One Free Sprout Coupons​ here to grab some new pouch flavors before your next trip! The new flavors are: Mango, Spinach Banana Apple, Blueberry Banana Oatmeal, and Pear Spinach Prune. Find out Where to Buy Sprout Snacks. 

sprout pouches

Watch the Sprout Video to learn more on how Sprout wants to “Keep it Honest, Make it Real” by being dedicated to research that shows developing a love of healthy foods early on helps foster healthy eating habits for life as a part of their Mission & Values.

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What about you?  What are your must pack essentials for a day trip with kids? What new flavor Sprout Pouch are you going to try?

5 essentials to pack for day trips with kids

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10 Budget Friendly Activities To Do With Kids At The Beach

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

10 budget friendly activities to do with kids at the beach

Living approximately 40 minutes from the beach, means that we never have an excuse not to go on a trip every year.  Even if it’s just for a day here and there, we can always have a beach day even at the last moment. It’s made for some truly memorable experiences while Andrew and I have been together, both before, and after having kids. After the kids came though, we had to be a little more practical about our beach trips. Even though it’s close, costs at the beach can quickly add up. Since we are on a strict budget this year, I needed to make sure that we could still afford a beach trip without sacrificing the fun.

First, I headed over to a local Walmart. I was due for an oil change and I love that I can shop at Walmart for all our beach (and home) needs while I wait for our car to be done. I will always remember my sister heading out for a trip and their car breaking down because they had waited so long for an oil change. Because of that, it’s one of the first things on my list when we plan a trip away.  Skibbles loves being able to walk up and down each toy aisle looking at all the things without being rushed through. Due to the wait this time, we also had a chance to grab lunch there too.

Since I have a bajillion miles on my car, I use the Pennzoil® High Mileage Vehicle® for cars over 75,000 miles. It helps to clean out the sludge lesser oils leave behind, but also reduces leaks and oil consumption that higher mileage cars are prone too. By getting our oil changed with Pennzoil® at Walmart, it saves me time and money, so I’m ready to get on the road as soon as the mechanics are finished. Pennzoil® High Mileage Vehicle® is on Rollback ($39.88 on Rollback to $35.88) from June 15 – September 28, 2016. 
 pennzoil oil change walmart

After getting our oil change, we are ready to head to the beach a few times this summer. Here’s 10 Budget Friendly things to do with kids at the beach other than building a sand castle.

  1. Bury them in the sand.
    • with little kids just do legs. Kids think this is hilarious. Better yet, let them bury YOU. 
  2. Dig for a treasure
    • see what cool things you can find- sea shells, something lost on the beach, tiny crabs, etc
  3. Build a moat
    • Okay, it’s likely you’re going to build a sandcastle any way, so make a moat around the castle. This keeps kids busy trying to fill it up. **Bonus parent points if you are a little further away from the water and have a small bucket.  It will keep them busier longer
  4. Teach about high and low tides
    • if you plan to be at the beach all day, set a marker in the sand (a stick works well). As the day goes on explain to them why the water is getting closer or further away depending on where and what time you’re at the beach
  5. Create a scavenger hunt
    • On your way to the beach, write out 10 things for your kids to find – like seashell, seagull, crab, etc. Once they find everything, treat them to ice cream or other fav boardwalk snack
  6. Beach ball games
    • Toss the ball back and forth, have a contest on who can walk with the ball between their knees the fastest, how many times can you hit the ball in the air before it drops, etc
  7. Fly a kite
    • Grab a kite from Walmart before leaving and then teach them once there. Kids are amazed at this easy and cheap activity. 
  8. Write names and year in the sand
    • After writing, take a photo of your kids in the picture. If you go to the beach every year, this is a great memory to create
  9. Play frisbee
    • Chances are you already have a frisbee at your house!  Throw it in the bag and play once you get there
  10. Collect things to make an art project at home
    • Kids love art.  Kids love collecting.  Allow them to fill up a bucket full of whatever they can and then once home, use it with some paper and glue to create a sand creation

kids activities at the beach

What’s your favorite thing to do at the beach with kids that’s budget friendly? Comment below and let me know!

Find your local Walmart Auto Care Center Here. 

The Sweetest Family Vacation

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sweetest family vacation hersheypark

As parents for almost 4 years now, Andrew and I have had moments where we question if we are really doing this parenting thing right. We’ve been hard on ourselves more often than not. Yet, as we see our girls growing into beautiful, thriving, older children, we know we are doing it right by them. After having our second daughter, we have definitely relaxed and tried not to stress about so much being “perfect”. With Skibbles, we both helicoptered over her making sure that she didn’t have screen time, didn’t eat anything that wasn’t healthy, and so much more. What ended up happening though is that we were both constantly stressed about messing something up. Then…. second child, and life kicks in and you realize that most things are just not that serious. The other thing we realized was that chocolate could cure almost every meltdown.  And it didn’t even have to be a lot, a small Hershey’s Kiss solves most of life’s problems for a toddler.

We were recently invited to Hersheypark on behalf of Pepsi and after our weekend getaway I’m convinced that chocolate can solve all of life’s issues for everyone.  A summit in Hershey, PA, with all the world leaders, would solve every world problem, I’m absolutely sure of it. Our whole family was so happy the entire time and we didn’t have one huge meltdown from Skibbles. I’m pretty sure the town of Hershey wafts chocolate in the air.  The residents there have to be the happiest people in the world.

As soon as we hit the town, I got instantly happy. The light poles were shaped like Hershey Kisses, so many places named cocoa this or that, how could we not be happy!? I wanted to make the most of our weekend trip, so I had our full itinerary planned once we got there.

  • Saturday
    • Chocolate World and go on FREE Chocolate Factory Tour
    • Hersheypark to do some rides and visit ZooAmerica (Free admission when purchasing Hersheypark tickets)
    • Check into Hershey Lodge (resort)
    • Have dinner
  • Sunday
    • Breakfast
    • Head to Hersheypark
      • *Download the Hersheypark App before heading there
    • Visit the Boardwalk (water park into Hersheypark)
    • Check out Pepsi Oasis
    • Hershey Waterworks (inside Hershey Lodge)
    • Dinner
  • Monday
    • Check out of Hershey Lodge
    • Visit Hershey Gardens (free admission when staying at Hershey Lodge)
    • Visit The Hershey Museum (free admission when staying at Hershey Lodge)

Watch our 3 videos over the course of our stay. (Scroll down to read more)

Hershey Lodge and Waterworks

Hersheypark, ZooAmerica, and Chocolate World

Hershey Gardens

We arrived early in the day on Saturday and headed straight to Chocolate World.  Both of the girls absolutely loved the Chocolate Factory Tour, which is completely free.  We ended up doing it both Saturday and Sunday because Skibbles asked to do it again.  While at Chocolate World you can also upgrade to paying activities, like making your own chocolate bars.

chocolate world

Once we were done, we walked the short distance to the Hersheypark entrance.  I had downloaded the Hersheypark app, so we knew exactly where to go for the rides that Skibbles and the baby could go on based on their height. The app even tells you how long the wait time is for rides.  It was perfect for helping our family. We made our way to ZooAmerica first.  It was so hot, we stopped and grabbed a Pepsi souvenir cup that costs just $.99 to refill anytime all season long or free water refills. It was the best investment we made. I kid you not we refilled that bottle at least 30 times over two days.

zooamerica

ZooAmerica was so much fun, but Skibbles was begging for rides. Hersheypark has been by far our best family park experience thus far. Skibbles was able to ride a pretty big roller coaster and she was so thrilled we rode it three times in a row. I was also excited about how many things the baby could ride with us helping her. On Sunday, in addition to the rides, we fed ducks, and went to the Boardwalk, the waterpark area of Hersheypark.  Since the baby’s leg is broken, we decided not to do much there, but we did let Skibbles run around for a bit in the splashpad area. We were also excited to find the new PepsiMoji statues and check out Pepsi Oasis. The PepsiMoji statues are Pepsi’s way of bringing the emoji craze to real life. You can check out more or share your own with #SayItWithPepsi

pepsiatthepark

Inside the Pepsi Oasis is the new Pepsi Spire machine, an innovative digital beverage fountain that allows you to completely customize you favorite Pepsi beverages. Skibbles thought it was so fun that she could pick and choose flavors to make her drink taste better. She chose Pink Lemonade with Strawberry and Grape.  I’ll admit it was actually really good.  I tried Sierra Mist with Raspberry and YUM! So, so good. There’s other flavors like vanilla, lemon, cherry, and more also.  It’s all about having fun and getting inspired surprises.

The accommodations at Hershey Lodge were phenomenal.  There was so much to do and there’s no way we came close to doing even most of it. Kids get their own check-in and lanyard with chocolate, coloring page and crayons. We were given a list of all the kid’s activities to do at the resort like free craft time or up close with some animals brought over from ZooAmerica. It was also the opening weekend of Hershey Waterworks, the indoor water area at Hershey Lodge. When you stay at Hershey Lodge you are given complimentary passes to The Hershey Museum and Hershey Gardens, and there is also free mini golf on location.  There is also a free shuttle that runs every 30 minutes back and forth to Hersheypark. Best of all, if you show your resort key, you get into Hersheypark an hour early!

hershey gardens

The food.  Oh, the food. Hershey Dining was divine. Again, it’s something just about the abundance of chocolate that makes you enjoy everything more. Hershey Lodge has an abundance of restaurants on location.  While there, we chose to dine at The Bear’s Den and Hershey Grill for dinner and we went to Libbie Leibericher’s and Cocoa Beanery for breakfast.  There were also a ton of locations to eat around the immediate area as well. At Hersheypark we also had the most amazing Reese’s funnel cake and rainbow Dippin’ Dots that tasted like sherbet. I had never seen before but at Dippin’ Dots you could even make a float with your choice of Pepsi beverage.  I thought that was neat! At the end of every meal you get Hershey Kisses instead of mints too!  Naturally, Skibbles loved that.

hershey dining

Overall, we had an amazing experience and we can’t wait to go back.  There were so many things that we weren’t able to do just because time ran out. We highly recommend staying at a Hershey resort and experiencing the whole chocolate experience.

mug tradition

We even decided to start a family tradition where we will purchase a mug every time we go somewhere.  It was actually hard to choose just one, but this is the one we ended up going with! Do you have a tradition of something to purchase when you go somewhere? 

****GIVEAWAY****

Leave a comment below letting me know where you would head to first once you arrive in Hershey, PA. One lucky commenter will receive 4 passes to Hersheypark.  *Must be 18 years old to enter. Giveaway will run from 6/9 /16 to 6/16/16 at 11:59pm EST. No purchase necessary. Giveaway winner will be chosen by random.org based on the number of comments entered. 

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