Another Day At The Market

I know I write a lot about Pike Place Market here in Seattle, but I just can't help myself.

Do you remember the scene in "Sleepless In Seattle" where Tom Hanks is in the Market and buying groceries to make dinner for that silly woman he was dating? And what about the restaurant where he was talking about Cary Grant with his buddy Rob Reiner?

Those places are here in the Market, and every time I see them, it makes me happy. In fact, every time I watch "Sleepless In Seattle" I get happy in a teary, ridiculous, nostalgic kind of way.

So I was at Pike Place Market on Sunday with my daughter Megan, and my son David. We played tourist and went in all the shops, looked at the flowers, the food, the people, and just generally hung out and had a good time.

The picture above was on a produce truck parked in front of the Market. It was so colorful and pretty that i just had to take a picture of it. And really, when is the last time you saw a truck like this at your local supermarket? Just another reason to love my Seattle.

Posted by Patricia

Boba is launching Project Lending Library #ProjectLL

We have worked with Boba Baby Carriers a few times on our blog. We like the quality of their carries and recently carried the youngest of the Frugal Family Tree kids all over Nevada and a few airports in one!

At Boba, they especially admire and have great gratitude for babywearing groups and lending libraries, and the amazing individuals who run them. These groups, which range from semi-informal sharing groups to well-established non-profit organizations, help teach parents all over the world how to use carriers and wraps correctly, and give them a chance to try them out for free. Boba salutes these groups for spreading the babywearing love! That’s why for the entire month of July they are concentrating efforts on recognizing and equipping these groups with more carriers and wraps for parents to try.

Through July 31, 2012 they are taking nominations for U.S. babywearing lending libraries and groups with the goal of partnering with at least one new library in each U.S. state, to which Boba will donate a free Boba Carrier and Boba Wrap!

 To help spread the word, get the most nominations possible, and thank you for taking the time to nominate, Boba is giving away a Babywearing-aholic Prize Pack to one lucky nominator. Every person that nominates a lending library will be entered to win the prize package, which includes one Boba Carrier and matching stuff sack, plus our organic teething pads. (One entry per valid nomination, no limit per person. Winner will be chosen at random from all confirmed nominations received via the form to the right)

You can read more about the Project and Nominate a group here.

Preparing for a Summer Fun Family Night with Nestle and Tombstone

I just adore being a grandmother and spending time with my grandchildren is a true joy in my life. I think I'm very lucky to have these four marvelous little people to love.

We always enjoy getting together as a family, and I love trying to come up with creative ideas to have fun with my grandchildren. We had Dinner and A Movie Night a few months ago and it was such a big hit with everyone that I decided it was time to do it again. Summer is the perfect time for casual, fun family gatherings and  there is no such thing as too much fun in my book!

I headed to my local Walmart to do a little shopping for our Dinner and A Movie Night. My two little grandsons love ice cream and pizza of course, so that is what is on the menu. Nana likes to make them happy!

We have all loved Nestle Drumsticks in our family for years, so they are the perfect choice as a treat to have while we watch the movie. But with all these choices of drumsticks, I just have to get a few different kinds!

My family always enjoys Nestle Tombstone Pizza so that's what I've chosen to get for dinner. I love pizza with tons of toppings, especially veggies, but the kids only like pepperoni pizza. I'll buy a few of the Tombstones so that there will be plenty of pizza for our fun night.

My cart full of Nestle Tombstone #GrabSummerFun items from Walmart

I have picked up some chips and dip, pinwheels for the boys, bubbles, and some fun paper plates. I'm hoping we don't have any rain so that we can have dinner out on the deck, and the kids can blow bubbles and play with their pinwheels before we eat.

I have also found a cute painting project on Pinterest from SheKnows.com for them to do. It is so simple and easy for young children to do, and I love the 4th of July theme. The boys love painting and this will be fun. Here's hoping the sun shines!

On the evening of our little party, it is pouring down rain. I am disappointed that we can't eat outside and the kids can't play outside either. But we will just eat inside and not let the rain stop us from having fun. We always like to #GrabSummerFun indoors or out!

I'm making the classic and super simple onion soup and sour cream dip to go with potato chips. I know some people might think it's a little out of date but I fondly remember my parents making it all the time. I still love it and so does my family.

It is so easy preparing for our Dinner and A Movie Night that I feel almost like I'm cheating! But easy is good, and as long as my family has fun, that's all that matters.

I'm previewing a couple of movies to see what we should watch. The kids love Alvin and The Chipmunks, but I also want to choose something that will appeal to the grown-ups too. But who doesn't love Alvin? I know I still do!

This preview looks pretty cute and age appropriate for the little guys. Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked will be our movie this evening. My preparations for dinner and A Movie Night are easy enough that I can relax and enjoy myself with my family. Can't wait to get started, and I am getting a little hungry for that Tombstone pizza and Drumstick ice cream. I'll let you know how our night turns out!


You can read my Google+ Story about my shopping trip to Walmart to shop for Nestle and Tombstone items for my Grab Summer Fun Family Night.

 *I am a member of the Collective Bias™ Social Fabric® Community.  This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias™ and Nestle #CBias #SocialFabric  #GrabSummerFun All opinions are my own.

Building Another Raised Garden Bed

We had so much fun with our first raised garden bed we decided to build another one. My son has been great about helping water and picking "appies", for some reason all fruits and veggies are now apples. We planted watermelons, squash, pumpkins and green beans in the new container and its looking great. This has been such a fun project for us this summer. Our tomato plant is making so many big tomatoes I cant wait to pick some and add them to a salad.

I have seen many great gardening ideas on Pinterest too. Have you checked out our Gardening Board yet?
Do you have a garden inspire board on Pinterest? We would love to see, leave us the link to check out.

Holiday Inn Express Pre Trip Review

When we started planning our Summer Vacation Road Trip we knew that our hotel costs were going to be the bulk of our expenses. We wanted a great price with great amenities, it's nice to get a good price but quality is just as important. We seem to have found both with the Holiday Inn Express in Roseville, California!

Just looking over their web site we see that our stay will be comfortable with lots of extras. They have an outdoor pool, we can surf the net with free high-speed wireless Internet or we can work out in the fitness center. With 2 adults and 3 children and so many meals out, the free hot breakfast bar featuring their famous cinnamon rolls is definitely a bonus for this family! 

They also offer a Best Price Guarantee here is more about it from their site-
We're so sure the best prices for our hotels are found on our websites that we were the first to offer the most powerful price guarantee ever by a global travel company. Find a lower price elsewhere and your first night is free.  That's our Best Price Guarantee and just one of many benefits you get with the Book With Us Advantage.

Think the Best Price Guarantee is cool? How about one more added bonus from Holiday Inn Express? They are offering a $75 prepaid Mastercard just for staying 2 consecutive weekend nights! Here's more info-
Getting your $75 Vacation Pay Prepaid MasterCard® is easy. Here’s how:
Stay for two consecutive weekend nights (Friday, Saturday or Sunday) between May 14, 2012 and September 3, 2012 at any one of the over 4,500 hotels in the IHG® Family of Brands and we’ll give you a $75 Vacation Pay Prepaid MasterCard (up to $300) to explore.

There are so many local attractions that we will be close to staying at the Holiday Inn Express in Roseville. For instance we are right by the Golfland Family Fun Center and Amusement Park, Magic Circle Theatre, the Maidu Indian Museum, Folsom Lake and the Westfield Galleria Mall.  We can't wait for our vacation to start and can't wait to stay at the Holiday Inn Express! Go here to make your reservation today!

To learn more about Holiday Inn Express Roseville CA you can follow them on Twitter and be a fan on Facebook. 

*We will be staying at the Holiday Inn Express for our Frugal Family Tree Summer Vacation Road Trip. We will be provided accommodations and were not paid for this post.