Water Babes

I love the summers in Washington. Most of the time. Some years are better and warmer than others, this year has been pretty good. We can't really complain. Not really hot but we have had some really beautiful warm days. Recently we went to a local park that is set on the beach, what a great way to spend the afternoon. We took our buckets down to the beach to collect rocks and shells, I really had no intention of the boys actually get in the water. I thought for sure the water was too cold, even for kids. I guess I was wrong. In a matter of moments they were both knee deep in the water with their shirts off frolicking, playing and collecting creatures.

Liam toughing it out in the cold water!

Catching the baby crabs :)

JJ checking out his catch of the day!

Insurance. We all need it.

Are you noticing as life goes on and we grow older that things like Insurance; car, life or other are more and more important? Also have you noticed the older you get the more your car insurance goes down but your life insurance goes up? We are always trying to get the best rate and the best coverage with the right company. When researching car insurance there are so many things to take into account. I am one that wants all of the coverage but really need a lower deductible just in case something does happen and I have to pay out of pocket. I have been in a few accidents in my life and while most of them were not my fault, there was one time I was the one who was at fault. I rear ended a truck at a stop light. We were all ok and nobody was seriously hurt, but the front of my car was all smashed up and things were leaking all over the place. Because it was my fault, I was the one paying for the damages. The good news was that because I had been fully covered with the right insurance my deductible was very low, only $500 to completely fix my car. If I had not been properly insured the damages to my bank account would have been thousands of dollars.That is and was something that can cause hardship a hardship in life. Not to mention my insurance covered me in case there were any medical bills from either party. I was and am very grateful to have the coverage that I need at a price that I could afford. You never know when you may need it in life. There is a lot of information out there and it can be a lot to take in and you can feel like you are on information overload. The good news is the information is out there, click here for more information and facts. There are so many ways to save on insurance, your age, marital status and driving history are all things that can help you save money. I know that before I kids I never really worried about anything other than car insurance. While car insurance is important, there are so many other ways to protect your family, you should check out all options available and make the best choice for you and your family.


*This is a sponsored post. All opinions are my own and may vary from your experience*

DownEast Basics Summer Outfits and Blogger Event

My favorite display in the store. I purchased the skirt shown.

Last week I was able to attend a great blogger mixer thanks to an invite from another local blogger. The DownEast Basics Blogger Event happen to be on my birthday! So cool to be able to meet some great local bloggers and shop all on my bday. We had just left an outdoor festival and planned to go to the mall to do a little birthday shopping so it was a perfect plan. The sales gals were super sweet. They had gift bags, cookies and drinks for us. My plan was to bring my mother in law but she was not feeling up to it (she has Lupus) so I brought my husband and son with me. My husband is actually fun to shop with. He tends to pick out stuff I would not think to buy, he tries to get me out of my little fashion box I tend to stick to.

Turning 31 I feel like my 30s needs to be more fashionable. Less dressing like a tshirt and jeans gal and onto the skirts and colorful tops. DownEast Basics is the perfect place to start that. They have comfy clothing that is cute, stylish and colorful. The great thing is they have sizes XXS to XXL which means you can go shopping for just about anyone in the store. I can even shop with my skinny sisters there LOL.

Super cute display with the gold frame

I purchased the Orange Flower Afternoon Picnic Skirt with my blogger gift card, THANKS DownEast Basics! I also found a white shirt for $5! I looked for an orange top like the one I made on my Pinterest Board but did not find on the fit right on my top. The tshirts are a comfy fit though. I was also looking for a Yellow Subtle Nuances Skirt that I saw on the DownEast Basics website, it was not in stock but they sales gal was nice enough to add me to the list to give me a call when it was in stock. I am loving yellows and oranges for the summer and I think will be great into the fall.

I will be back to DownEast Basics for my yellow skirt when its in stock and hopefully will have the chance to work with DownEast Basics more in the future. You can shop in stores or online for great prices. They are having a $25 and under sale on fashion tops / sweaters and a denim sale of up to 40% off.






*This is a personal post, I was not paid for this post but was provided a gift bag from DownEast Basics for the event.

Ice Age Contential Drift Arctic Games Wii Video Game Review

We enjoy playing the Wii. Its easy for my son to do and I like easy games too. The new Ice Age movie coming to theaters had us excited for the new game. We have not seen the movie yet but playing the game was fun.

Game Story:

Team up with your favorite Ice Age characters in a continental competition of glacial proportions!  Battle for treasure with the Herd and the Pirates in their craziest adventure yet!

Hop, Smash and Dash in 10 wild arctic events including Glacier Hopping, the Prehistoric Plumber, Bob-Smashing and Coconut Slingshot!
Battle for Prehistoric Plunder and win gold, silver and bronze acorns!
Climb to the top of the leaderboard as you challenge your friends in fast-paced multi-player action!
Test your skills in multiple modes including Story Mode and Free Play designed to test even the most skilled arctic athletes!

Ice Age Continental Drift™ & © 2012 Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation. All Rights Reserved. ©2012 Activision Publishing

 My son was really excited to see the characters from the Ice Age movies on the game. We have been watching all of the Ice Age movies this month to lead up to seeing the new one in theaters.

The game was fun. Its based on a clash between the Ice Age characters and the "bad guy" Pirates. Sid finds a huge acorn full of food just as the pirates find it too. They declare a battle of games to see who will win the treasure of food. The games are easy enough for my son to play and have a fun story line to them. The game play was ideal for kids. This will be a fun game for your kids who are fans of the Ice Age movies.

You can watch the Ice Age Confidential Drift Arctic Games Video Game Trailer on Activision Game site.

My son testing out the game:

*I was not paid or compensated for this post. The opinions in this post are 100% mine and may vary from other opinions. I was provided for free a copy for my review.

The need to be Organized

Cubbie from Pottery Barn

It seems every year around the beginning of August I am thinking about home organization. Not sure if its the long days of summer that give me plenty of sunlight to see my home in its frazzled state or if its always right after my birthday and I am full of ideas for change.

I have declared the first week of August in my house organize week! I will be sorting my stuff to keep, sell or donate. I want to get some labels and those clear shoe boxes to have the stuff I do need organized. My son and I were painting and I did not realize how much great stuff he has for art time that we dont use simply because I did not know it was there. 

I will start with my office, then the closet and finish in the kitchen. I have dreamy thoughts of perfect organization fueled by Pinterest but if I can just know where stuff is that will be great!

One blogger I am reading more of is Organize with Sandy. Click on her Organize Your Home tab for great tips. I found a great Organize Pinterest Board on her account with over 1200 pins to the board. I will be going through it as I clean and organize this week looking for ideas.

I would love this for my entry. Bench and Mirror from Crate&Barrel

I will be busy as a bee cleaning this week. 

If you have any organizing tips, especially for kids toys I would love to hear them.