This just popped into my email and I had to share! C2K is doing their refurbished desktops and laptop program for San Diego, CA area residents again, just in time for back to school!
Saturday, August 5th from 9:00 am to 11:30 am
Montgomery High School @ 3250 Palm Avenue, San Diego CA 92154 (Drive Thru Event)
Computers are available to low-income families with no other criteria.
Pay at the Event. We accept Cash, Debit & Credit cards.
Contact C2K at (858) 200-9788 or programs@c2sdk.org
I’ve never purchased one of these computers before, but I know several people who have participated in this program in years past. These are great starter computers for kids!
We’ve been participating in Tryazon events for three+ years. We’ve gotten to try all sorts of fun toys, games, and food. You can learn more about Tryazon here.
Add sparkle to your favorite drinks ANYWHERE with this Tryazon Featured Party opportunity from Drinkmate. The instaFizz Stainless Steel Water bottle is the perfect companion for the road, gym, hike, and office and lets you carbonate almost anything, anywhere! Weighs less than a pound and can hold up to 21 oz! Add delicious fizz to any cold beverage with one twist of the bottle. Wrap up summer with a SPARKLE!
Tryazon has 100 hosting spots open for this opportunity! Those selected receive a party pack with a Drinkmate bundle to share with friends and family! Learn more and apply here: https://www.tryazon.com/instafizz-anywhere-party/
We’ve gone to this event in the past, and it’s always a fun time with great resources. This year, the All Inclusive Day of Play & Resource Fair on Friday, July 14, from 11 am-2 pm Miramar Hourglass Recreation Center, 10440 Black Mountain Rd., 92126
FREE community event with activities, games, crafts, raffles, shopping, and resource booths for families of all abilities.
Activity Stations for kids including favorites:
Light Saber Creation Station
Rubber Duckies Literacy Pond
Super Mario Wheelchair Awareness Course
& many more!
Family Resources & Networking – Resource and service providers will be on-site to speak with parents and offer helpful information. Be sure to pick up a copy of Flourishing Families at the Special Needs Resource Foundation of San Diego booth.
Stop by our ShopAble Bazaar to peruse and purchase amazing products and valuable services from business owners with disabilities.
All activities and resources are FREE and open to the public!
*Craft projects and giveaways are available while supplies last.
This popped into my inbox last night. I’m so glad it’s back.
Looking for something fun, air-conditioned, and cheap to do this summer with the kids?
Kids Bowl Free has been around for years, and it’s a great way to get kids active even when it’s hot outside. I’m so excited it’s back again.
Kids 2-18 can bowl 2 games for free each day the program is running at participating bowling centers all across the US and Canada. All you pay for is shoe rental- or bring your own if you have them!
This program is available all over the US and Canada. The complete list can be found here. Sign up is quick and easy. To get started, register here. If you live in San Diego, the only bowling alley participating is Aztec Lanes.
I encourage everyone to take advantage of this deal! It’s one of our favorite summer activities.
It’s the first day of Summer Break here, and I’ve already got a list of the fun stuff we can do to get the kids off devices and out of the house. I do not want to hear about boredom at all!
This list is very San Diego County-centered, but with a little bit of googling, I’m sure you’ll be able to find fun freebies and adventures near you.
Free summer concerts are all over the place! Santee has them on Thursdays. To find them close to you google “your city name +free summer concerts 2023”.
Check with your local shopping mall, many of them offer free events for kids and families during the summer. For those of us in San Diego, Parkway Plaza in El Cajon has a twice-monthly event.
Kids Night Out
Jun 23rd, 2023
05:00 pm – 06:30 pm
Kids Night Out is back and better than ever! The party continues right outside of Ulta Beauty every 2nd and 4th Friday from 5pm-6:30pm, starting in February.
There will be free crafting for kids, dancing, games, giveaways, and more!
Registered guests will be entered to win rotating prize packages. Register here.
In La Mesa, Grossmont Center Mall has events for the entire family from summer concerts to Free Lego Building events.
Summer is here, or will be soon. The kids need to brush up on their skills-I can’t be the only parent looking for information on swim lessons and getting kids’ water ready.
My usual go-to is the swim lessons held at our local high school district, Grossmont Unified High School District. They have lessons for kids ages 3 and up. Schedules and pricing can be seen here.
The City of San Diego has private, semi-private, and group swim lessons at several of its pools. The prices are pretty decent. The prices and more info can be found here.
If you live in El Cajon, you’ve got some really excellent swim lesson options. Visit the Rec Center online here and take a look at all of the classes. Anyone can take classes, but El Cajon residents (of the incorporated city) can get killer discounts.
The Kroc Center offers swim lessons. Information can be found here.
The YMCA offers swim lessons at many of its facilities. Currently, they are offering private/semi-private lessons only. You do not need to be a YMCA member to take lessons there, however, the rate is cheaper if you are. The list of San Diego, CA area YMCAs that offer swim lessons can be found here.
I also did some digging for parents of kids on the Autism Spectrum. Aqua Pros offers classes specially designed for kids on the spectrum! More information and class prices can be found on their website.
These are just a few of the options available. There are of course private swim instructors and private companies that offer private or small group lessons. The ones listed above are for more of the price-conscious in mind.
Talk Back: If you or your kids have had great swim lessons, leave a comment and let us know where! The more options, the better!
There are 6 days of school left for my kids, and maybe your’s too. And you know what that means- keeping kids occupied so we don’t have to hear choruses of, “I’M BORED!” And how do we do that?
Around these parts, both kids go to summer school, but we also take advantage of free and low-cost summer programs. One of my favorites is the Summer Reading Programs that are sponsored by both the City of San Diego Library system, but also the County of San Diego Library system.
The City of San Diego Summer Reading Program started June 1st. You can find out more details here.
If you want your family to experience a multicultural world through reading, I recommend PJ Library. PJ Library sends free, award-winning books that celebrate Jewish values and culture to families with children from birth through 12 years old.
My kids love learning about faraway places and experiences different from their own. The PJ library books have opened their eyes to new holidays, customs, and ways of life.
Read Conmigo provides free books for kids by mail in Spanish and English to children ages preschool to fifth grade. They are only available to kids in CA, TX, and Florida. We used to receive the books, and they are ok, but my kids aren’t interested in learning Spanish.
Barnes and Noble have a summer reading program starting July 1st. More info here.
Dolly Parton has established the Imagination Library, it is available in select regions (sadly not available in San Diego California), and those who live in participating areas can receive one book for their kids every month via mail.
Book It has a summer program called Camp Book it, where kids can read, and earn free personal pan pizzas from Pizza Hut! Book It is the FAVORITE reading program in my house. parents can enroll their kids for the summer!
Over Spring Break we had guests. While our house is clean, it was definitely disorganized. I had reorganized the pantry and kitchen drawers not long ago, so it was my mission to organize some of the other areas of our home including the kids’ rooms, the front bathroom, and the living room.
The wallpaper I chose.
I headed over to Dollar Tree to grab some organizational items. If you haven’t checked out Dollar Tree lately, they have a great selection of baskets, totes, and boxes with lids to help with organizing your space.
I picked up a few square frames, removed the artwork, covered it with the peel and stick, and placed it back into the frames. It took less than ten minutes and it was super easy. The best part: they look really cute.
I also bought a small two-drawer container to corral all of my hair ties and for Qtips. I decorated the top with decals meant for a glass jar. I think it turned out great.
I placed a basket on top of the toilet tank and filled it with an extra roll of toilet paper, wipes, and new washcloths. I scrubbed out the shower, placed down a shower mat (from Ross), and restocked the front bathroom shower with shampoo, conditioner, 2 body washes, a new pouf, a new back scrub brush, exfoliating gloves, and my absolute favorite body scrub from Tree Hut: Moroccan Rose (which does not smell like roses). I also spent time organizing the HBA stockpile under the front bathroom sink, condensing boxes, and half-filled bottles, and removing unnecessary packaging to make storage easier. I also went through the first aid kit and discarded all of the old, expired meds, ointments, and bandages that are no longer adhesive.
The kids love to draw and there are pencils and pens all over the house. I picked up a three-pack of small baskets and placed 2 of them on the kitchen tables, filling one with pencils, and the second one with ballpoint pens. Hopefully that will solve the “MOOOOOOM, where are the pencils???” Quandary.
Heading into the kids’ rooms, I reorganized Margaret’s room with a few baskets and plastic boxes with lids. The headband/hairbow situation had gotten out of hand, but it was easily wrangled with a plastic box with a lid. Now everything is all in one place. Same with underwear and socks. Separated into two baskets and stored on top of her dresser, which has been upgraded and moved into her larger closet. Yes, her room has two closets- one is very small, and basically is only used to hold clothes that need to be hung up.
Back in the living room, I needed better storage options for our fidget/stim basket and masks. I upgraded to black woven baskets. We still have masks at home (for use when we go to crowded places or when we are feeling under the weather and need to leave home- Target Drive up, anyone?). These weren’t from Dollar Tree, but Dollar Tree Plus and Family Dollar both sell them. And yes, that’s a plastic shoe box with a lid from Dollar Tree next to them- Full of crayons.
So that’s how I spent the 1st three days of my Spring Break. Getting my home organized- It has made finding things a lot easier.
This weekend was so busy. Birthday Party, clothing swap, meal prep, making cookies, laundry, house cleaning, and yes… meal planning.
The freezer and fridge is organized and the meals are planned for the upcoming week and beyond.
Our Yasukochi Family Farms CSA box is usually delivered on Mondays, but we’re taking a break for the next month to eat up what we’ve got. I’ve been stashing the extra fruits and veggies in the freezer over the past 2 months. When I do veggie prep each week, I make up bags of vegetables to use at a later time.
We’ve been trying a lot of new foods lately, thanks to the really great freebies from Social Nature lately too. It’s fun to try new foods.
I’ve gotten a pretty good inventory of the pantry, freezer, and fridge (I try to update it after every shopping trip), so I’m able to plan meals and use up what we’ve got with little waste.
I only post our dinner plans for the week, because our other meals are usually the same each day.
Breakfast: Coffee with 1/2 and 1/2 for me, and pancakes or something along those lines for the kids. They are also into fruit and bagels for breakfast. Lately, the big kid has been digging protein shakes in the morning. This is his favorite kind.
Lunch: I have a plastic tote in the cupboard full of self-serve snacks. I buy treats and snacks in bulk and fill up snack-sized zip-top bags. The big kid brings his lunch every day, and the little one buys her lunch about half the time.
Dinner: I’m making sure to start our meals with lots of veggies. Now that I’m back in the gym and the kids are both in Martial Arts, we need to fuel our bodies properly.
Sunday: Chicken Strips, Mac and cheese, orange and apple slices
Monday: Breakfast sandwiches (eggs, cheese, onions and peppers, and sausage on ciabatta rolls), fruit salad
Tuesday: Cauliflower & broccoli cheese soup and rolls
Wednesday: Split Pea and Ham Soup, fruit salad, cheese toast
Thursday: Protein shakes, fruit, cheese, and crackers
This recipe is 100% Midwestern hotdish and 0% South of the Border. It is, however, pretty good. My brother recently texted me and asked for this recipe. It was a favorite of my dad.
Ingredients:
1lb ground beef
1 can of refried beans
1 envelope taco seasoning
2 cups Mexican cheese
8-10 taco-sized flour tortillas
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 small tub sour cream
Directions:
Cook ground beef per taco package directions, once cooked and seasoned, add beans and combine.
Spread 1/4-1/2 cup of beans/beef inside the tortilla, top with a sprinkle of cheese, roll up and place seam side down in greased baking dish.
Once the dish is full, top with a soup and sour cream mixture. Sprinkle the remaining cheese on top.
Bake at 350 for 20-30 minutes.
Serve with Spanish Rice and a Salad Kit (I like the Avocado Ranch chopped salad kit from Taylor Ranch)