lego

Ninjas invade Legoland today!

Abby H.

Screen Shot 2017-09-24 at 5.38.26 AM.pngHenry and I went to Legoland yesterday to experience all the fun of Ninjago weekend!

Like any event at Legoland, there are tons of things to keep any little ninja busy!

Screen Shot 2017-09-24 at 5.39.45 AM.pngWe started off the morning by checking out the new LEGO NINJAGO MOVIE Video Game at the WB Family GameSpace. It’s available on all the popular platforms. Henry played by himself and with a few other kids and had a great time exploring Ninjago City as his favorite character (The Red Ninja). You can check out the game too from 10am-5pm today.

Screen Shot 2017-09-24 at 5.39.50 AM.pngNext up, it was time for the LEGO® NINJAGO® MOVIE™ Character Meet & Greet with Lloyd, the Green Ninja! Henry was so excited to take to Lloyd all about his adventures with the Ninjago gang (and Master Wu too). There will be many times available today to meet many different Ninjago character! 10 a.m., 1 1a.m., 12 p.m., 1 p.m., 2 p.m., 3 p.m., 4 p.m.

After riding a few rides, we checked out the Mystery Mosaic LEGO® Build (available from 10 a.m. – 3 p.m.). We each got to build a square for the mosaic! It’s very easy, so even the youngest builder can help!

We finished up our day with a quick lunch and the Miniland U.S.A Scavenger Hunt! It was a little difficult, but we did it! It takes and eagle eye to find the ninjas in Miniland U.S.A. and complete your entry form for a chance to win a LEGO NINJAGO prize pack! Available 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.

And of course, no trip to Legoland is complete without a goofy photo…

Screen Shot 2017-09-24 at 5.39.59 AM.pngIf you are looking for some family fun, check out Lego Ninjago Day today at Legoland California!

Screen Shot 2017-09-24 at 5.58.22 AM.pngOr if you are looking for something  else to do, the Lego Ninjago movie is out in theatres now! Henry and I saw a sneak preview of it on Tuesday night, and it’s a great movie for your little ninjas.

Henry and I both enjoyed it. It’s full of family fun, discovery and friendship, and of course, a cat laser!

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!

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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!

Legoland for only $30 on 4/29/17!

Abby H.

img_1693Looking for a good deal on Legoland Tickets?

Check this out!

The Carlsbad Education Foundation (CEF) is hosting their annual ‘Celebrate Carlsbad Day™’ at LEGOLAND® California Resort.

  • What: Specially-priced $30 LEGOLAND tickets
  • When: Saturday, April 29
  • Time: Enjoy extended Park hours 12pm-8pm

LEGOLAND will donate a portion of the event proceeds to the Foundation to support district-wide science initiatives for students at all CUSD Schools.

 To purchase tickets online, visit www.CarlsbadEd.org

This event happens once a year! If you are looking to do a frugal trip at Legoland, check out this post about doing Legoland on a Budget here.

Freebie Roundup!

Abby H.

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It’s that time again! Let’s dive into spring with some new samples!

Free Color Sample of Kelly-Moore Paint (these samples are great for small projects, like painting wooden craft kits)

Free Sample of Natures Design Supplements (They have a limit of two samples per household!)

Free Bottle of Diet Standards Prenatal DHA

Free Samples of Seni Pads & Briefs

Free Sample of Naked Essentials Jerky Bites or Kibble
Free HydroMassage Massage on April 15th-22nd

Free Comic Book Day on May 6th

Free 2017 National Parks Entrance Days (there is only 1 National Park in San Diego county- FYI)

LEGO Monthly Mini Build – Free LEGO Race Car

If you are going to be near a Penzey Spice store tomorrow, here is an awesome freebie! Free Penzeys Embrace Hope Spring/Easter Mini Gift Box In-Stores

Another program that I love is Social Nature. They offer coupons for free natural products in exchange for honest reviews. I’ve sampled many really tasty products, including Ezekiel products (they have yummy high protein English muffins).

Here is my post all about how I score free stuff, beyond finding cool samples like these online. There are a lot of programs that are looking to share full size products with you for free!

 

Lego Batman Days at LegoLand California!

Abby H.
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Ahoy, Building Adventures AHEAD!!

One of Henry’s favorite things to do on a Buddy/Mommy date is go to LegoLand! And, lucky for him, LegoLand hosted us yesterday to experience the fun of Lego Batman days!

img_1694There was so much to do, that we only went on ONE RIDE!!

We did the Mosaic build, which was super fun (We left before it was finished), and it was fun to sort through legos and build something that was going to be part of a project that was so big!

We got to Meet Lego Batman, but by that point my phone battery had died. Henry didn’t care, he was just so excited to meet Batman and tell him how much he loved his movie.

We did the scavenger hunt and built and raced our own Batmobile creation. That was probably the most fun. Henry won two races! It was so much fun watching the kids (and adults) build cars, sharing Legos, swapping, and helping each other.

And of course, no trip to LegoLand is complete without building and racing boats!

 

llc-batman-logo-small.jpgIf you’ve got little friends that love Lego Batman, you’ve still got one more weekend to check out Lego Batman Days! Next weekend, the 25-26th, there will be tons of fun to be had!

We also picked up a few blind bags at the Big Store on our way out. The newest series (series 20, for anyone counting) is all characters from The Lego Batman movie.

I got March Harriet, Henry got Harley Quinn, and hubs got Ballet Batman. We always bring hubs home a blind bag mini-fig… And a key chain.

Frugal Tip: If you are looking for a way to save on admission, most San Diego area Denny’s locations have kids get in free with the purchase of any adult admission coupons.

Thanks to LegoLand for Hosting Henry and I yesterday, as always we had a blast, building and exploring!

Legoland on a budget: It can be done!

Abby H.2 Comments

DSC06398.JPGWe love Legoland, but it can get to be pricey. Here are a few tips that we personally use that can keep our trips more affordable!

Tickets:

  • Look for coupons savings. A quick search of Google is a good place to start. Frequently fast food or quick service restaurants will have Buy and adult pass, get a kids ticket free. Recently Denny’s had coupons up front near the register.
  • Sometimes schools and libraries also have these coupons. Our school had some in the front office last year, all you had to do was ask!
  • A few times a year, Legoland will have buy one day, get a second day free for the same price as a 1 day pass. That’s the perfect chance to enjoy two days to play and explore!
  • Don’t forget to check Costco or Sam’s Club! They frequently have discount 1 day, multi-day, or annual passes.

Snacks:

  • Take water bottles or travel cups with straws. Most restaurants with fountain drinks will fill your bottles or cups with filtered water for free. There are also tons of drinking fountains in the park.
  • There are lots of picnic areas, and places to sit and eat. We always bring our snack backpack (it’s this one) stuffed with applesauce cups, granola bars, dried fruit, popchips, 100% juice pouches, and other yummy snacks.
  • 180s.jpgSplurge on one snack or treat. Our favorite treat in the park are Granny’s Apple Fries! They are soooo good. It’s a batter dipped apple slice that’s flash fried and served with vanilla whipped cream. They are heavenly.
  • There are so many places to eat in the park too! Check eat location for specials like Kids Eat Free (last time we were there, the pizza and pasta buffet was having a promo after 3pm).

 

Souvenirs:

  • Our tradition is to buy a new min-figure keychain on every trip. I let Lil’ Man chose. He also gets to spend $20 on whatever he wants in the main gift shop. He earns money helping around the house and also when we do secret shops (he loves it, he thinks he’s being a secret agent).
  • Unlike Disney and other companies with theme parks, you can’t really get deals on Legos or buy them at discount shops and give the kids the goodies once in the park (that’s what we do with Disneyland). You can however bring in your own glow sticks and glow necklaces if you’ll be there after dark to save some money.

Etc:

  • There are tons of play areas in the park. If you are tired from waiting in line for rides, stop by a play and build area. There is a great Duplo themed one in Heartlake, and large play area in Castle Hill, complete with slides and tunnels! Take time to play and let your kids build and use their imagination!
  • Bring towels if you’ll be in the park when it’s hot. There are multiple water fixtures and splash pads for the kids to cool down. No need to pay to get into the water park (which is only open seasonally).
  • Bring a mini-figure or two to trade! Most Park employees have min-figs on their name tags and they will trade.

I’d love to hear your tips and tricks for saving at Legoland!

Bricks 4 Kidz Imagine This Contest!

Abby H.

Ok, so we are slightly Lego obsessed around here, when I found out about the Bricks 4 Kidz Imagine This Contest, I had to share!

Post a Photo of Your GREATEST ORIGINAL LEGO CREATION For A Chance to Win $200 And Be Featured in A NATIONAL BRICKS 4 KIDZ ADVERTISING CAMPAIGN! Want to win? Here’s how…Visit their Facebook page here and Submit Your Photo. Encourage friends and family to VOTE FOR YOUR PHOTO. The person with the most votes wins!

The contest runs through September 12th. The person with the most votes will receive a $200 cash prize and be featured in the 2017 Bricks 4 Kidz advertising campaign. Second and third place winners will receive a $50 cash prize. Enter your Creation Today!

Lil’ Man is working on his entry right now!

Win a family vacation to the LEGOLAND® Florida Resort from Little Passports!

Abby H.

**The links in this post are affiliate links and I will receive a small commission if you make a purchase after clicking on my link.**

 Win a trip to the LEGOLAND® Florida Resort and a prize package worth more than $3,500!

Little Passports is partnering with the LEGOLAND® Florida Resort and Southwest Vacations to give away a family vacation that’s #builtforkids!

One Grand Prize Winner will enjoy:

  • A 2-night stay for 4 people at the LEGOLAND® Florida Hotel.
  • A family four-pack of tickets, good for use at the LEGOLAND® Florida Theme Park + the LEGOLAND® Florida Water Park.
  • Round trip air travel for 4 people via Southwest Airlines® to Orlando (MCO) compliments of Southwest Vacations®.
  • (2) 12-month Little Passports subscriptions.

 

This Sweepstakes ends on July 31st 2016! Enter the Little Passports and LEGOLAND® Florida Resort Sweepstakes today!

LEGO, the LEGO logo, the Brick and Knob configuration, the Minifigure and LEGOLAND are trademarks of the LEGO Group. @2016 The LEGO Group. No purchase necessary to enter or win. A purchase will not increase your chance of winning. Void where prohibited. Open to legal residents of USA, age 21 and older at the time of entry. Approximate retail value of prize $3787. Sweepstakes will be open from 7/1/16 at 8:00am PT through July 31, 2016 at 11:59pm PT. For complete details, odds, and official rules, www.littlepassports.com/sweepstakes. Sponsors: Little Passports, LEGOLAND Florida and Southwest Vacations.

 

 

The Solution for cleaning up Legos…..

Abby H.

lego parts

We play with Legos a lot, and that means that there are legos EVERYWHERE. I looked online to see what other moms do to combat the land mine field that stray pieces turn into late at night.

I found this Lego sack on Amazon, but I didn’t have any Amazon Credit, so I decided to improvise.

I pulled out a top sheet. Because, really, how many of us use topsheets on our kids beds? In fact, this top sheet was once part of a set that belonged to hubs as a child. The fitted sheet has long since passed on, but the top sheet lives on, since we never use it on the bed.

IMG_1931I poured out the box of Legos onto the sheet. After we played and built for a few hours, I gathered up the corners, so all of the legos were snug in the center of the sheet and deposited the sheet full of Legos into our 12 gallon plastic tote (like this one). It is the tote that has housed the Legos for a while.

Now when it’s time to play, all we have to do is lift out the bundle, lay it on the floor and spread out the sheet.

IMG_1932I am so glad that I no longer have to chase around stray pieces, and there are no more late night swearing sessions when we step on one in a darkened room.