DAILY LIFE
Explore the world and help local small businesses in an innovative way with TROVE a travel subscription box from Seattle
January 11, 2021**An update**It seems that TROVE has either paused or shut down for awhile. You might want to try Sakuraco or Dalla Fonte if you are looking for subscription boxes with a travel theme. Just before the holidays, I heard of a new travel themed subscription box made by two Seattle based best friends who love […]
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Finding safe holiday joy in Seattle at Starlight Lane
December 18, 2020Last night my family and I went to the Starlight Lane light show in Seattle so we could drive through a parking lot decorated with lights. Tickets were priced around $40 and with Ticketmaster fees and taxes, I think the final cost was about $50. Going into the event I saw some horrific reviews on […]
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Shopping at Grand Ridge Plaza in the Issaquah Highlands this 2020 holiday Season and beyond
December 1, 2020This is a post created in partnership with Grand Ridge Plaza in Issaquah Washington and Regency Centers to help shoppers discover the community resources that help them flourish and all thoughts and opinions are my own. Why my Seattle family shops at Issaquah Highlands Grand Ridge Plaza Although we live in Seattle, we spend a […]
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If you live near Seattle and want to cut your own Christmas Tree
November 29, 2020Add researching how to cut your own Christmas tree to the list of local firsts we’ve tried in Seattle in 2020. We usually go to the same tree farm in North Bend where we’ve gone almost exclusively for the past 10 or 11 years. But this year we were worried about distancing and not sure […]
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15 seconds of Stardom in Seattle (a chance to play with the Seattle Star) and other fun local gifts for the holidays
November 24, 2020This year it’s more important than ever to shop locally to help support the businesses and places in Seattle we love. So here’s my running list this year for Seattle gift ideas that have caught my eye. Many of them are things our family will be buying and giving to friends and family as well […]
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The best trip for Thanksgiving 2020 for us will be spending a thankful week at home in Seattle this year
November 17, 2020This time last year we were packing for an epic Christmas Market trip for my 40th birthday. I wanted to see crowded markets in Germany and London with twinkling lights and people holding Gluhwein, nibbling Raclette and drinking hot chocolate to keep warm. One of these days I’ll get to posting about these markets but […]
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Holiday Gift ideas from a Seattle family with a pup and two nearly-teenage boys
November 3, 2020Usually I’m more of an experience gift type person but since experiences are a little more tough to execute this year we’re on the lookout for more tangible holiday gift ideas. And I start my shopping early because it feels even better when I find a good deal on a holiday gift as well. We’re […]
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A Seabrook Schoolcation at the dog-friendly Big Wheel Beach house
October 19, 2020When in history has “how is your wifi” been so important for being able to just get away from it all for a while? While we aren’t flying anywhere for fun and it’s too tough to cross the border to see family, sometimes just changing our scenery while the kids are schooling from home is […]
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Driving an all-electric Chevy Bolt EV to find all the pumpkin treats in Seattle and beyond for Halloween
October 13, 2020I partnered with Chevrolet recently to explore the Seattle area in an all-electric Chevy Bolt EV to find pumpkin treats and see how far we could go knowing that this car has a 259 mile range. We are doing Halloween a little differently this year-we are looking for events that give us more space and […]
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Agate hunting on the Red Top Lookout Trail near Cle Elum with two kids and a dog and the cutest little outhouse we’ve ever seen
October 8, 2020Ever since we went rockhounding a few weeks ago with the kids at Hansen Creek, hunting for rocks has been on everyone in my whole family’s minds. One of the guys even bought a rocktumbler at the beginning of summer so he’s been dying to find gems worthy of the two to three weeks dedication […]
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Learning about food waste in our home and what we can do about it with the free Food Matters Action Kit
September 17, 2020This is a sponsored post on behalf of CEC about shrinking food waste in our homes and using the Food Matters Action Kit however all thoughts and ideas expressed are my own. Lately, there have been so many things in life that feel like we have little or no control about, so I’ve decided to […]
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How a $10 package of Nescafe coffee can help you save money to start investing in yourself
September 14, 2020I love coffee shops and bakeries more than most other places on earth and while I don’t know the street names even blocks from my house, you can drop me anywhere on the planet and you will probably find me in the closest adorable cafe to where I landed and I’ll have a latte for […]
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A visit to Nita Lake Lodge and the train wreck hike in Whistler BC with grandma, two kids and a dog
September 10, 2020Before this year, I would not have thought that going home to visit my family just outside of Vancouver BC from Seattle was really travel. We can get there in 2.5 hours and some months we often visit a couple times for family and friends’ birthdays and events. But this year it suddenly became a […]
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Trying Sambucol Black Elderberry Gummies as we go back to school
September 3, 2020I received Sambucol Black Elderberry Gummies products for free from Moms Meet to use and post my honest opinions. Compensation for this post was provided and this page may contain affiliate links. I don’t remember a time when I’ve seen so few people in real life. We spent the summer in what felt like a […]
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Rockhounding at Hansen Creek, a kind of hike that might be fun with kids that you’ll find an hour from Seattle
August 27, 2020Have you ever been rock hunting or “rockhounding” as the experts call it? Before you actually collect any rocks you need to check if you’re allowed to collect them and you will definitely find more information on your local government site about all the rules of rockhounding in your area. We have never rockhounded on […]
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10 things that got me through a 14 day quarantine in isolation with kids and a dog in Canada
August 7, 2020I saw a tweet today that said “When are we going to have something ‘unprecendented’ yet this year?” and it is totally sums up how I feel. Nothing in 2020 feels like anything we could have ever expected and even in February of this year if I told myself that this is what we’d be […]
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A 5 day loop roadtrip from Seattle around the Olympic Peninsula (that you could make shorter or longer depending on how much time you have)
July 30, 2020Suddenly everyone in Seattle has discovered the Olympic Peninsula and we have too. I guess when circumstances force us to explore our own backyard we realize we’ve been neglecting one of the prettiest places on earth for more faraway adventures. We recently drove a 5 day loop through the area, from Seattle to Sequim via […]
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Dungeness Bay Cottages in Sequim, a dog-friendly place to stay on the Olympic Peninsula that is great for families too
July 17, 2020If you aren’t camping it can be tough to find dog-friendly places to stay on the Olympic Peninsula that are good for families with kids too. There are an abundance of traditional motel-style rooms but it is harder to find a place that allows for a little more spread. We had a few days to […]
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A Seattle pup travels to Ocean Tails in Seabrook WA with his family
July 6, 2020Our life has become our dog’s life. We used to take for granted that we could pretty much vacation anywhere with our kids but with our new little pup we actually have to do a lot more planning to make sure he can tag along. We are staying locally this year (and isn’t everyone) so […]
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On what I think of buying a Ruggable you-can-put-it-in-your-washing-machine rug
June 29, 2020We were at the part of 2020 where I needed to replace a rug we’ve had for a long time VERY quickly because we got a new puppy (did you get a new puppy too?) and the puppy decided he liked to roll around in the rug and it made the rug shed everywhere. We […]
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