review Archives - Page 41 of 232 - Have Sippy Will Travel

Visit Chuck E. Cheese for Helen Henny’s Birthday! #ad

June 2, 2016 by Samantha 6 Comments

How long has it been since you have been to Chuck E. Cheese? Hopefully not too long, but if it has been, this is your reason to take the kids- Helen Henny is having a birthday, so head on over! They have some really fun promotions that you will want to take advantage of.

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Helen’s Birthday Promos

$1.50 Dippin’ Dots
$2 off Helen Henny plush dolls
Everyone gets a Helen Henny coloring sheet with 5 free token coupon when they leave
Helen Henny will be there to celebrate + take photos with guests
Chance to win a pair of virtual reality headsets, a pair of wireless Bluetooth headphones and guest passes in the Helen Henny birthday sweepstakes (last day to enter is 5/27)

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Make sure you know your “Helen Henny Fun Facts” before you go!

Helen Henny’s deep passion for music began at an early age, growing up in New York City—right down the street from Broadway!
Helen is a vegetarian – no meat for this chick!
Helen is a great singer, but she’s also an amazing gamer and takes pride in mastering every new game at Chuck E. Cheese’s
Helen first met Chuck E. when he challenged her to a game of Pong (which of course she won!)
ChuckE. invited Helen to join his band right on the spot when he heard her sing a victory song after their Pong match

My son had the best time playing games and listening to the band play- he loves Chuck E. Cheese, and always has a great time. The pizza really has improved, and there is also new “thin and crispy” pizza if you’d prefer- so if it’s been a while, give it another try mom and dad.

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What kid wouldn’t love to spend some time playing games, eating pizza, and collecting prize tickets? It’s a really fun way to spend the afternoon (evening, what have you). On killer hot days, rainy days, or during endless winter- you know where to go.

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You can also follow Chuck E. Cheese on social media- here are some links;

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This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Chuck E. Cheese’s. The opinions and text are all mine.

Filed Under: review Tagged With: family

Visiting Dorney Park #DorneyFirstTimer #ad

June 2, 2016 by Samantha 5 Comments

Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Cedar Fair Entertainment Company in conjunction with Blog Meets Brand, and I have been compensated for my participation. All opinions are my own.

Now that it’s, summer (and now that nature has hopefully figured out what season is it) it is now time to enjoy the sun. One of the best ways to enjoy that beautiful weather is by screaming at the top of your lungs on a thrill ride or roller coaster. One of the most popular local amusement parks is Dorney Park in near by Allentown Pa.

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Dorney Park is the perfect destination for fans of summer fun- all ages and enjoyment levels will have a great time, from the roller coaster enthusiast to the little ones who just want to play with familiar Peanuts characters and get their feet wet. The best way we have found to tackle an amusement park is by splitting up at some point. Mom and little guy venture off together to the kids area while dad ventures onto the roller coasters. This is the way the day starts because lines are shorter earlier in the morning. We all get in several rides before meeting up again to discuss the plans for lunch and the rest of the day.

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As my son is getting bigger and more adventurous, he is sometimes interested in something with a bit more thrill and a little less little kiddie. He is now able to hit the roller coaster rides with Dad, but sometimes height and safety requirements are just not there yet for him. He gets on the ones he is able to, and we do the “lighter” ones as well. Dorney Park has rides for all levels of enthusiast, including eight roller coasters spread out throughout the park. Snoopy Planet is perfect for the little ones, which not only includes rides but also have character interactions and an amphitheater for special kid oriented shows throughout the day.

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There are also classic thrill rides which turn up the fun with big turns, big twists, and big fun. Family rides are perfect for everyone to enjoy (even those of us who can no longer do the big thrill rides). These are similar to the carousel, road rally cars, and a Ferris wheel.

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Some tips for Dorney: Come early, keep hydrated, always know where the bathrooms are, bring comfortable shoes, and if hitting the roller coasters but are of a taller or heavier weight then average- ask the employees for their honest opinion on if you will fit in the seats, it will save a ton of time and a ton of embarrassment, lol.

LASIK – a good option for parents and why #VisionGoals

May 31, 2016 by Samantha 5 Comments

Disclosure- This post was written by my husband, who wears glasses, on behalf of the client. All opinions are his own and honest. For more, see “I Disclose” .

Parenting can be a difficult but rewarding experience, and every one of us can use all the help we can get. One of the oddest experiences is definitely having glasses or corrective lenses and having kids. It is amazing how many finger prints and smudges get on your glasses that are from little fingers. It boggles the mind how many activities lead to glasses smashing onto the ground, including rough housing, playing outside, water parks, even just helping cleaning up toys. Each activity comes with it’s own unique glasses smashing experiences. People think that the simple answer is “so don’t wear them during these occasions”. Well for those of us ‘blessed’ with horrific vision, this is not possible, your family turns into blobs of color, and those three dimensional objects you want to grab at, quickly become flat and two dimensional. It’s really not an option.

This is where LASIK eye corrective surgery comes in. After a few weeks of recovery, you will have new eyes, where vision is as it should be without glasses or smudges. No longer will you need a glasses case in the beach bag, a pair of glasses for the car, prescription sunglasses, a glasses repair kit at work and at home, or time spent trying to clean off those finger prints or smudges from little fingers. These reasons may seem superficial, but another good reason is in an emergency situation in the middle of the night do you want to stumble about looking for your glasses or jump into help mode and make the situation less of an emergency.

Contact lenses are another possibility for getting rid of your glasses, but there are added cleaning rituals that need to be followed as well as more chemicals and stuff to carry around with you.

Some parent guided LASIK tips are below:
Have a friend, family member or babysitter come over to take care of the children on the day of your surgery and perhaps spend the night if your children need care during the night.
Have your special someone (spouse, significant other, mom, dad, bestie, etc.) drive you to the LASIK center, stay with you during your procedure, drive you home and make sure you rest afterward.
You’ll be able to shower the next day and get back to your normal routine but you shouldn’t exercise or do any heavy lifting for at least four days—get the kids to take out the trash.
Let the kids know they need to be careful around you: no pokes in the eye or roughhousing.
You won’t be able to take part in any contact sport for one week after surgery or swim for 10 days, so rest on the sidelines during family outings.
Remember to take your post-op drops for as long as your surgeon prescribes, usually four days or so.
Keep your eyes protected when outdoors on sunny days. Bonus! Have your family help you choose a cool new pair of nonprescription sunglasses.

Filed Under: health, review

WIN Highlights Every Day App #HighlightsEveryDay

May 31, 2016 by Samantha 30 Comments

Highlights magazine has been the most read children’s magazine for years, and has a long history of delivering child friendly, educational, and fun activities month after month. Since its inception in 1946 by Dr. Garry and Caroline Myers, Highlights was built on the belief that “Children Are the World’s Most Important People™.” Today, every Highlights product is designed to help children become creative, curious, caring, and confident. Have you seen their newest app, “Highlights Every Day”? This app is a new way to get Highlights fun to your children.

The way it works is every day your child will receive a digital “present” from Highlights, which will contain up to 5 pieces of content ranging from original videos and quizzes, engaging fiction and non-fiction, and fun puzzles that build skills and stretch young minds. Also included are the enjoyable Hidden Pictures puzzle, popularized by Highlights magazine. This app is not simply a re-hashing of Highlights magazine, but is a way to get safe, trusted, educational content that you expect from Highlights in a new on-the-go, portable format.

The app now features a free 30 day period to try it out. After this initial trial, there is a monthly fee of $7.99 per month. This includes new content delivered daily, as well as the ability to revisit any content previously delivered in your child’s collection. As more digital presents are delivered, your child can save more content and build their own custom place to learn, play, and engage their creative side.

This app is perfect for children of all ages, especially new readers who just want to absorb everything they can. My son isn’t the best reader (this is something he tends to struggle with), but Highlights Every Day is still engaging, and encourages him because it’s enjoyable and fun. When you like what you are doing, it’s not a chore, and learning is something one looks forward to.

There are some deals going on you will want to take advantage of.

· Monthly subscription: $7.99/month (or just 23¢ per day for 5 new daily activities!)

· Free 30-day trial

About Highlights:

Devoted to providing “Fun with a Purpose,” global family-media brand Highlights for Children, Inc. has helped kids become their best selves for generations. In addition to its flagship magazine (Highlights), the company’s other offerings include a preschool magazine (High Five), a bilingual magazine (High Five Bilingüe), an infant and toddler magazine (Hello), a children’s book company (Highlights Press, which includes Boyds Mills Press), puzzle book clubs and a variety of digital products.

About Fingerprint:

Created in partnership with Fingerprint, Highlights Every Day features classic Highlights “Fun with a Purpose” activities reimagined for the growing digital consumption habits of children. Fingerprint is a global mobile technology company that powers games and curates play-and-learn content to targeted customers around the world through dedicated mobile networks. For more information, visit fingerprintplay.com or facebook.com/FingerprintPlay.

Highlights Every Day is available for iOS 8.0 and higher and Android version 4.4 or higher.

You can win a gift bag of reading and puzzle fun from Highlights (value=$50). Please feel free to enter the RC form to win. Ends June 17, 2016. Good luck!
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Filed Under: education, giveaway, review

Travel Light, Pack Right

May 27, 2016 by Samantha 2 Comments

Disclosure- I received the below in order to facilitate this review. All opinions are my own and honest. See more at “I Disclose”.

When you are taking a family vacation, you want to be ready for anything. You also don’t want to pack everything and the kitchen sink. What do you really need when you are headed out?

A good cell phone is key. I know some people are die hard apple fans, but I love Samsung. In my opinion, it is the better option and I have preferred them for years. The new Galaxy S7 is amazing, you won’t want to put it down. The photos are sharp- which is a must for not only travel but anyone with children, the apps you can download are great and varied (nearly everything comes in an android version now, and if it doesn’t there is something similar), and most of the new versions are water resistant, which makes them that much more durable. They tend to last longer then other brands I’ve had as well, without getting “glitchy” or throwing as many errors or slowing down as much as they get older. (Yes, I keep my phones for the long run, then I let my son play with them on wifi only when I upgrade.) Sprint, the network that I’m using, also pairs really well with the new Galaxy S7 or S7 Edge and has some really awesome offers at the moment for both new and existing customers, so it’s the perfect time to upgrade. Summer travel is only a few weeks away, check out all that you can get with these new phones and services. No one likes to be in a dead zone, or “out of range”. Options and prices vary, visit your Sprint store for details.

While your phone will likely be your main source of photo taking, lets be real- you need a camera for all the “big stuff”. You don’t want to take your phone into a lake, the ocean, the pool, or ziplining- at least I don’t. The photos might be awesome, but I don’t want to lose the phone (or ruin it) in the process of getting those “must have” shots. The new GoPro HERO4 Session is the smallest, lightest camera that has come from the GoPro family yet, and the price point is doable at $200. It has an app that lets it connect to your phone (for free) and you can see your photos and videos right away if you would like. Smart remote sold separately. You can hold it, mount it, wear it- really, anything you’d like. It’s waterproof, so you can take it jet skiing, snow tubing, kayaking- whatever suits you. It’s really a camera that is ready for any adventure, and provides high resolution, sharp, professional-looking video. Charge it up, and it’s ready to go capture some memories. Pick yours up at https://gopro.com/ .

You will want to dress appropriately, without having to pack everything. A good pair of shoes is top of the list, and one pair that I really like (and that does double-duty) is The Sara by NAOT. Not only super cute, but super comfortable. Dress them up or down, these gladiator inspired sandals are padded, and have an anatomic cork and latex footbed which is wrapped in oh-so-soft suede. Yes, it can get wet and still look fine and function. As you wear it, the sole molds to the shape of your foot. The heel and back panels have additional lining and padding as well for extra comfort no matter how long you wear them. I have worn these all over the place, and have not got blisters or weird “ow” spots from strange rubbing . Of course, that doesn’t mean go hiking the first day you wear them, be smart- they are still shoes, break them in. Get them at http://naot.com or Amazon for about $150, several colors available.

Looking to stay warm? Why not keep the dreaded bugs (now with added Zika virus) at bay with the new line from Craghoppers. The NosiLife Apparel with Insect Shield® insect repellent as well as sun protection woven into the fabric is non-irritant and non-hazardous to the skin. The jackets are cute and comfortable as well, perfect for summer weather excursions and nights when it gets cooler. My son tried out the new Nat Geo NosiLife Chima Jacket, which is soft and lightweight, has front pockets, zip front, and a hood for when it gets chilly. It’s also nearly impossible to wrinkle, which mom appreciates. I tested out the NosiLife Astrid Cardigan, which has neither pockets nor hood, but is easy to dress up or down, so it’s perfect for trips where you can’t pack too much. Also soft, lightweight, and hard to wrinkle, neither of us had bug bites on our arms while wearing these jackets. Pick up jackets for your crew at http://www.us.craghoppers.com/

One more item that has become somewhat of an essential for me is the RFID Travel SCOTTeVEST. It’s perfect for all those times when you don’t want to or can’t carry a giant bag, but want to carry things with you. Your camera, binoculars, tablet, granola bars, wallet, maps, whatever provisions you prefer- this vest has room for it all. It has 18 pockets, is super lightweight, and looks nice on as well. You won’t look like the marshmallow man when wearing it- huge plus. It comes in several colors, and has a special RFID blocking pocket to keep your passport, credit cards, etc safe from pickpockets and identity thieves. Because the pockets are on the inside, your stuff is also safer from wandering hands. You can choose from a regular or 2 way zipper as well- and yes, there are men’s versions. I’ve been using this for way more then travel, it’s certainly gotten tested. Regular life can require a lot of pockets sometimes! Since getting it, I’ve been surprised how much use I’ve gotten out of it. Pick one up, and you will see what I mean. http://www.scottevest.com/ for $135 .

Filed Under: clothes and shoes, review, traveling Tagged With: newspaper cross post, packing, travel

Povi App For Kids #ad

May 24, 2016 by Samantha 2 Comments

This post is part of a sponsored campaign for Povi. I received compensation for my participation, but my opinions are my own.

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Povi is a brand new toy with a very special lesson. Instead of teaching children the alphabet of mathematics and reading comprehension, Povi helps improve your child’s Emotional Quotient. An emotional quotient is how your child deals with emotions, feelings and empathy. These abilities and social skills are dissolving with the addition of more screens and less face to face interaction. Learning school subjects is of course important, but in order to have a happy, successful child grow into a happy successful adult, they sometimes need help. This type of education has gained momentum in recent years, in large part due to concerns over school violence, bullying, and teen suicide. Parents want the best for their kids but it can be difficult sometimes to break through the hard shell of, “How was your day?” “Good”, “”What did you do today?” “Nothing”.

With Povi, there is a chance to interact with your child on various life learning topics like caring, resilience, confidence, motivation, thankfulness, and other valuable life skills. The toy was designed to be play with a parent, not alone. This helps conversations blossom from stories and flow naturally into a learning experiences. Kids learn to ask and answer questions like, “If you could be someone else for a day, who would you like to be?” or “How can you tell when someone is sad?”

Povi comes with 10 stories and a free app (available for Android or iOS) featuring additional questions parents can ask related to those stories, as well as 20 additional stories that are age appropriate for each individual child. Parents can choose from three levels- for ages 3-4, 5-6, and 7-8. The stories are written and curated by experts including psychologists, teachers, and parents. Povi is available for funding on kickstarter now and if you are one of the first 2,00 backers you can get Povi for 40% off, for the price of $49.

Filed Under: review Tagged With: app

Poise and LBL #PoiseLinerLove @walmart

May 23, 2016 by Samantha 6 Comments

Disclosure- This I received compensation and / or samples in order to provide this review. All opinions are my own and honest. For more information, please see “I Disclose”.

Light Bladder Leakage (or LBL) is a common occurrence for women of all ages, backgrounds and nationalities. This occurs in one in every three women and some of the most common reasons are;

Physical changes from childbirth, pregnancy, hysterectomy, or menopause, being overweight, complications from surgery, stroke, or chronic diseases like diabetes, multiple sclerosis (MS) or Parkinson’s disease. It can also occur from a bladder or urinary tract infection, or bladder irritants (certain foods and beverages).

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As a personal sufferer of LBL, it can be daunting trying to find a way to either cover it up or work around it. Sometimes it’s just a funny joke or a silly life event occurs and I happen to leak a bit. Other times I just leak. Luckily for me, I realized the best way to go about this is by having a little protection during daily activities. This comes in the form of Poise Micro liners and liners. Micro liners are great for when you know you are going to have a ‘good day’ with little to no issues, or if you don’t leak all that much. Liners are great for those “more then just a few drops” days. With an absorbancy of 2 out of 6 these are perfect for the infrequent spurts and drips.

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In our house, we always have at least a full box in the cabinet in the bathroom. One of the best places to purchase Poise pads it Walmart, with great prices on bulk packaging, they are the clear cut winner against small packages at a local drug store. One of the difficulties with bulk packaging is, will I use said item before it expires? The beauty of Poise pads and liners, there is no expiration date and have more on hand is always a good thing. Just in case.

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Poise liners are available in many different options, including micro liners, liners and the new 3 drop thin shaped pads. All of which are available at your local Walmart. If you aren’t sure which products are right for you there is even a simple question and answer/survey available at Poise.

Filed Under: health, review Tagged With: women

@miraclegro Gro-ables #GroablesProject #ad

May 23, 2016 by Samantha 7 Comments

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Miracle-Gro Gro-ables for IZEA. All opinions are 100% mine.

There is a new way to grow a garden and it couldn’t be simpler or smarter at the same time. Gro-ables are a garden starter kit, in simple pod form.

Each pod is planted int he ground and watered. Then before you know it, it sprouts and you have garden full of fresh vegetables. Is this an over simplified explanation? No, it isn’t. Each pod contains growing material, plant food, and a seed. The growing material nestles the seed perfectly, and when watered, delivers the perfect amount to bring about root growth which then grows into the plant food giving the plant the boost it needs to grow big and green. It brings you the most delicious garden greens and vegetables. From herbs, to vegetables, and even lettuce- there are lots of choices to pick from.

In addition to the pod itself, there is also a Gro-ables app which helps you remember to water and cultivate your new garden and makes sure your Gro-ables do grow.

“At Miracle-Gro®, we believe that there’s a lot to learn from even the smallest plants. So we started The Gro–ables® Project: a movement to share the joy of growing herbs and veggies while giving kids truly hands-on learning experiences. Join us by planting your own Gro–ables, taking part in the activities below and sharing your story!”

Gro Ables are available everywhere plants are sold as well as online. They are available as Jalapeno peppers, basil, cherry tomato, cucumber, globe tomato, lettuce, sweet peppers, watermelon, zucchini, and broccoli.

Pardon the mint! He loves it, and won’t pull it out unless he’s using it.

These are prefect for those of us with a less then green thumb, and little kids who want to help in the garden. My son loves gardening, and these are a welcome addition to our annual vegetable garden. Every year we try to grow some new things in addition to our regular garden, and these will be fun (now that the weather has finally started to cooperate!)