kids

Free fun from Lego!

Abby H.

Screen Shot 2017-11-08 at 11.49.51 AM.pngHenry loves Legos (Duh, you may have gathered that from reading this blog), and they are pretty expensive. There are never coupons and most Target and Toys r us deals/coupons specifically exclude Legos.

However, you can still score some cool freebies and deals from Lego!

First, sign up to be a Lego VIP here. It’s free, and here are just a few of the benefits…

  • Points towards valuable rewards! Get a $5 reward for every 100 points earned!
  • Members-only gifts and more! VIPs enjoy access to special promotional gifts throughout the year.
  • Monthly promotions! Earn bonus points on select LEGO sets every month, both online and in store.

Once you are signed up as a VIP, you’ll be able to register for free Monthly Mini Model Build at the LEGO Store. Registrations start the 15th of the month prior to the event (e.g. sign up in November for December event), and space is limited at each store, so don’t wait. We’ve done a couple and they are always fun!

Don’t forget that Toys R Us also has fun, free lego events a few times a year as well. It’s important to RSVP to TRU events, so you definitely get a kit.

Lastly, did you know there is a free Lego Magazine for kids age 5-11? You can sign your kids up for a free subscription IMG_0236.jpg. The latest issue arrived yesterday and Henry poured over it for hours. The magazine is packed full of comics, activities, LEGO® fan creations and building tips (Henry’s fav part), and kids receive the magazine 5 times a year!

 

And here is a tip on how to keep your feet Lego-free…. When the kids play Legos, I spread out a huge table cloth and pour the Legos onto it. Once play time is over, I pick up the cloth and pour the Legos back into their big tote.

Screen Shot 2017-11-08 at 11.58.04 AM

This set up provides hours of fun, and just a few minutes of clean up. And the best part… No stepping on tiny pieces of Lego in the dark, unleashing a torrent of swear words and threats of bodily harm to those under the employ of Lego.

We have a lot of Legos- Hand me downs from friends who have outgrown them, some from when Tyler was a kid, and some sets and kits that Henry has been given. Even though we save all the directions, there is nothing more satisfying to me as a parent than to see Henry and Bitty express their creativity through building.

This is a combine. Henry built it all by himself. Not bad for a 6-year old who has never seen one in real-life. The big wheels in the front moved. Screen Shot 2017-11-08 at 12.14.44 PM.png

Talk Back: What are your money saving tips for Lego Lovers?

San Diego Local Moms- Upcoming Play Date!

Abby H.

As previously promised, I’ll be holding playdates every few weeks. This is a great chance for moms to meet other moms and let the kids play.

We met at the park last month and it was tons of fun, this month we’re going to be delving onto my craft stash to make some fun holiday crafts. We also  have a craft kit from Creative Hands Crafts to explore. Screen Shot 2017-10-31 at 8.29.00 PM.png

Check out the event and learn more (including the awesome giveaway I’ve got for the first 5 moms to RSVP and attend the event, go to the event page here.

 

Craft time! Colortime Crafts and Markers – Glow in the Dark Halloween Tote!

Abby H.

photo_5429

I love this time of year! There are all kinds of fun crafts. We  go through bags like crazy, so I am stoked to be receiving the Colortime Crafts and Markers Glow in the Dark Halloween Totes!

colortimelogoIf you know me, you know I’m not a huge fan of goodies bags at parties- I much prefer that the guest do a fun craft or an activity. Colortime has great goodies for birthday parties and sleepovers! Fun kits like coloring pillowcases, t-shirts, backpacks, permanent fabric markers, and more.

For savings, join their Birthday Club and receive 20% off and a free backpack, with your order!

I’ll be receiving some goodies from Colortime, including a Glow in the Dark tote. I’ll post a review with photos once we are able to get our craft on!

Click here for the Latest Online Special offers and promo codes to Colortime Crafts and Markers
 

 

@usfg

Back to School Routines and New Play Dates!

Abby H.1 Comment
Screen Shot 2017-09-13 at 5.51.26 PM.png
Big Man on his first day of First Grade!

Now that we’ve been back to school for about a month, we are pretty set in our M-F daily routine to get Henry off to school. And Bitty and I have set into a schedule, but she keeps asking to, “Play Wif mo’ Fwends, Mama!!”

 

We go to the YMCA 4 days week after we drop brother off at school, but that’s only 2 hours of our day.

So taking a hint from the two year old, I’ll be starting playdates 2-3 times per month at various parks across San Diego! You can find the full schedule of upcoming playdates here on our Facebook page. They are public, so please RSVP if you are interested in attending. Sometimes we’ll be joining another event that’s already planned (like story time at the local Library).

Screen Shot 2017-09-13 at 6.37.59 PMWe’ll play at the park, do fun (and frugal) crafts. It’s a great way to meet other local moms. And because I’m a MomCo Mom, there are bound to be fun giveaways and goodies to try out!

IMG_7589.jpg
Courtesy of Clicks by Christine/Christine Boyce

These playdates are FREE and open to anyone with kids! If you have a company that sells a product of service for moms or kids, I am always open to play date sponsorship. This can be anything from samples, sponsoring at your location, offering a discount/coupons. Email me at hewesfamilyfun@gmail.com and we can talk!

I’m also hoping to find a location where I can start hosting Couponing and frugal living seminars. If you have a church or community center that is interested in hosting shoot me an email at hewesfamilyfun@gmail.com! I tailor my talks to my audience!

LEGO NINJAGO®Days – September 23-24, 2017!

Abby H.

Henry is so excited for the new Lego Ninjago Movie, which opens Friday September 22, 2017. To celebrate, Legoland California is having Lego Ninjago Days September 23 and 24!

Screen Shot 2017-09-12 at 4.12.24 PM.png

There will be so many fun activities to celebrate, in addition to all of the rad stuff that happens at Legoland daily!

The kids can become a ninja with fun activities throughout the day.

THE LEGO® NINJAGO® MOVIE™ Character Meet & Greets
Meet the stars of the movie in LEGO® NINJAGO® World!

Mystery Mosaic LEGO® Build
First come, first serve. Work together to build a LEGO mosaic and check out our FB page to see it completed!

Miniland Scavenger Hunt
Find the ninjas in Miniland U.S.A. and complete your entry form for a chance to win a LEGO® NINJAGO® prize pack!

WB Family GameSpace featuring THE LEGO® NINJAGO® MOVIE™ Video Game
Master new skills and upgrade your weapons in your training to find your inner ninja in this brand new video game.

We’ll be there on the 23rd and I’ll be posting photos on Instagram throughout the day, so make sure to follow me!

Toddler and Child Wearing with Freeloader!

Abby H.

freeloaderYa’ll know I love to baby wear…. Well, Itty Bittums isn’t so bitty anymore and we have had to pass along some of our smaller carriers to new homes. I am sooo looking forward to checking out the new Freeloader!

freeloader3The Freeloader is the First Child Carrier Built Specifically for Toddlers! It is a new, better child carrier. Compact, lightweight and portable, the Freeloader child carrier uses advanced materials and design to create a better experience for parents who love spending time with their kids. Whether you are traveling by air, going to the zoo, or hiking with your little ones, the Freeloader is ready to help carry the load. When not in use, the Freeloader’s integrated aluminum seat folds up neatly to the size of a daypack. The Freeloader is a perfect fit for parents that want a lighter, more versatile carrier. The Freeloader features an easy-to-use, 5-point safety harness. The safety harness is specially designed to fasten securely and safely out-of-reach of your child.
11063893_436296996539685_3379109432765157363_nThe Freeloader provides wide, ergonomic shoulder and waist straps to evenly distribute your child’s weight to your hips and core. The contoured shoulder straps are adjustable and provide extra padding for comfort and support. Padding in the back panel and seat offers extended comfort for your child.
The Freeloader is small enough to carry-on and stows away neatly, making it perfect for air travel, road trips and more! See more at http://www.myfreeloader.com/ and find Freeloader on facebook.

Thanks to Freeloader and the great folks at USFG, you can save on your Freeloader! Freeloader FUN with the Family – 10% off your Freeloader Child Carrier when you enter the code “freeloaderfun” Take your children on the adventures of their dreams!

I’ll be receiving my Freeloader in a few weeks, testing it out, and I’ll report back with my thoughts, as well as some pictures and even a video or two!

 
@usfg

Celebrate July 11th with Chick-Fil-A and 7/11!

Abby H.1 Comment

Screen Shot 2017-07-10 at 1.28.33 PM.png

Tomorrow is 7/11/17 and that means FREE SLURPEES at 7-11. From 11am-7pm, most (like 99%) of 7/11’s in the US will offer a free special sized Slurpee.  WOO HOO.

It is also Cow Appreciation Day at Chick-Fil-A! That means if you show up in a cow themed costume/apparel from opening until 7pm, you will recive some sort of free food!

  1. Make or buy your cow costume (or any sort of cow apparel, really).
  2. Wear your cow costume to your favorite Chick-fil-A between Opening and 7 p.m.
  3. Receive a free entree!

To find the full details and a list of what you can receive for free, check out this page. Kids get a kids meal, and adults get an entree (but free is free, so woo hoo!).

Screen Shot 2017-07-10 at 1.38.28 PM.png
2016 Cow Appreciation Day Outfits!

We love free events! In order to participate and keep our our out of pocket low, I re-purpose stuff around the house to suit our needs for the event.  Last year I made Henry and myself shirts and kept them. His shirt was a little too big and thankfully he has grown up, not out. It might be a little shorter than he’d like, but it will do. he’s got black shorts to wear as well )I’ll probably wear black yoga pants).

I painted a Cow onsie for Bitty Bird last year, but it doesn’t fit.  I think I gave it to someone who was going to have a baby.

IMG_4744.jpgIMG_4746.jpgI made tails from pieces of felt, and pinned them to the shirts (and the back of Bitty’s tutu). We will be re-using our tails again this year too. I’ll be making new ears for all of us. Mine will be attached to hair clips, Henry’s will be on a head band.

IMG_4742I dug through her closet and found a black shirt for her, a white tutu, and a headband that I can sew a couple cow ears onto.  To cow-ify it, I painted white spots onto the shirt.

To keep the paint from seeping through the shirt and the paint sticking the shirt together, I re-used an old Amazon shipping envelope.

We had all of this stuff in the house, so it will cost us nothing! I will be kicking down a few bucks for a large sugar free lemonade!

Are you going to either event tomorrow?  

Super Busy Summer!

Abby H.

I haven’t had much time to sit at the computer and write lately, but we’ve been busy! There are so many free and frugal things to do in the summer, and we haven’t even done a 1/3 of what we have planned!

Here are just a few of the adventures we’ve been having (and you can try them too)!

 

IMG_4527
IMG_4523
IMG_4524
IMG_4525

 

IMG_4379
Henry’s Handiwork!

Rock Painting!  Some of you have seen pictures of the painted rocks we’ve been making, hiding, and finding all over town on my Instagram feed.  Santee Rocks was started by a local teacher to spread kindness.  There are lot of other “rocks” groups all over San Diego, and the US! We even hosting a Rock Painting party at a local park! Over 30 people showed up, painted, and played. We hope to host another one in July.

We’ve also been hitting up our local libraries for all sorts of fun events and activities. Our favorite is the El Cajon Library. They serve lunch M-F, 11:30-12:30.  Afterwards there are a variety of events and activities from special speakers, concerts, and even crafts! And they even serve an afternoon snack!

There is a small play area for kids with an interactive discovery structure, and a Duplo Wall! There is a shaded playground out front as well. It’s a great way to spend a few hours in a climate controlled place without visiting the mall or any place where you might spend money. We usually end up bringing home a few library books too.

We’ve been on adventures with friends! Playing T-ball at the park and going on the hunt for decorated rocks was the biggest hit so far.

IMG_4534
Playing dress up is a frequent stay at home activity. Here we have the Pirate T-Rex, trick or treating for meat.

And of course, We spend time at home, doing crafts, swimming in the community pool, playing Legos, and just hanging out!

I’m of the mind that summer doesn’t need to be packed with activities sun up to sun down. Frequently, we spend our time at home spending time together. We have friends over to play, but it’s super low-key.

I’ve taking a break from trying to pound out an article or post each day. I want to spend time with the kids and family.

What kinds of activities and adventures has you family been having this summer?

 

Healthy, Frozen Fruit Pops!

Abby H.

file000380806960.jpg

It’s summer and my kids would eat popsicles 24/7 if I let them. Most commercial popsicles (or as they are sometimes called, frozen dessert confections) are full of sugar and artificial ick. A few months ago my dad bought me a package of Zipzicles on Amazon. Zipzicles are long, skinny zip top freezer bags that can be filled with whatever you’d like and frozen. Think DIY Otter Pops.

What I really like is that you can be creative, use what you have on hand, and create healthy and fun treats with your kids.

Here are two recipes that the kids and I came up with. If you follow me on Instagram, you may have seen this pictures recently.

Screen Shot 2017-06-23 at 7.46.47 AMMixed Berry Pops

Makes about 12 pops

  • 2 cups mixed berries (use whatever you have, I used 1.5 cups of strawberries and 1/2 cup blackberries)
  • 1/2 c water
  • 2 t. honey

Place all ingredients into the blender and blend until smooth. Use a small funnel to fill the zipzicle pouches. Place all Zipzicle pouches into a cup or larger zip top bag and place in freezer. Ready to serve in approx 4-6 hours, or as soon as frozen solid.

Screen Shot 2017-06-23 at 7.46.35 AMTropical Pops

Makes about 20

2c frozen bananas
2c frozen Strawberries
1 pkg frozen mangoes
2c Orange Juice
Blend together, pour into Zipzicle pouches ( I use a funnel). Store in freezer until it’s time to consume.

They are so good, and no extra sugar is needed, because the bananas are so sweet.

Next, I think we’ll be making Bachelor Mousse treats. I think it will freeze well, and everyone loves fudgsicles!

For your convenance, Zipzicles can be purchased here (affiliate link), but you can also find them at Bed, Bath, and Beyond.

What would you put into your Zipzicles?

Summer Lunch Resources for Kids in San Diego!

Abby H.2 Comments

file000671182294.jpg

School is out (for most of us, the rest will be getting out next week), and that means there are some parents (and kids) who usually rely on free or subsidized school lunches may find themselves wondering what to do.

Thankfully, a lot of great organizations have stepped up and partnered with local area school, rec centers, and civic organizations to provide free breakfasts, lunches, and snacks for al kids 18 and under this summer.  For those of us in East County, here is a list of locations!

Screen Shot 2017-06-12 at 6.33.41 PM.png

Those of us in the greater San Diego Area, there are a lot of great options all over town!

There is a kick off BBQ at Skyline Hills Park 6/21/17 10:30am-2:00pm! Parents eat free at this BBQ and there are all kinds of activities!

Screen Shot 2017-06-12 at 12.53.16 PMLindo Lake in Lakeside is hosting a summer BBQ that’s free for kids, and only $4.00 for parents on August 15th! The best part is that each family leaves with 6 lbs. of fresh produce thanks to Feeding America! If the two lists above aren’t in your area, you can also turn to the USDA Find Summer Meals map here.

 

All of these programs are free and there is no proof of need and you do not have to sign up in advance. Just show up and hte kids get a tasty meal!

 

What I love about this program is that there are tons of rec centers hosting these lunches and they are usually adjacent to a playground, which means after a long morning of playing, the kids don’t have long to wait to get a yummy lunch!

Looking for a few ideas of summer fun with a nearby lunch?

If you know of more summer lunch programs for kids in San Diego County, I’d love to hear about them! Please leave a comment!