This blog post on Fun School Lunch Ideas for Kids is Sponsored by Babbleboxx on behalf of Funkins.
School started a few weeks ago and it’s been amazing to see Addie and Lawson get into their school routines. Miss Addie has started 2nd grade and Lawson is now in Pre-K 3. I remember growing up as a kid and getting excited about my new backpack and lunch box for the year. There’s something so fun about it! I love making Lawson a fun lunch and even though Addie has a g-tube, it’s important that she has that same enjoyment too! I thought I’d share some fun school lunch ideas for kids that we enjoy and hope they bring joy to your family too!
Some fun school lunch ideas for kids:
1| Don’t miss out on the power of a fun lunchbox. One thing that brings both of my kids a smile with lunch time is having a fun lunchbox. Addie loves her new Mermaid Lunch Bag and Lawson’s Transportation Lunch Bag makes him so happy! Both are from Funkins and are insulated, durable with reinforced seams, easy-to-use zippers, and can be thrown in the washing machine. They come in all different kinds of fun patterns, too! Don’t forget to throw in a Funkins reusable gel ice pack, too!2| Take a few moments to write a sweet note. Funkins carries coordinating lunch box note cards, stickers, and sticky note pads. Whether it’s a quick stick drawing or an “I love you” with some added stickers, I really enjoy slipping notes into Lawson’s lunch before he heads to school for the day. Got older kids? Try writing a silly joke, words of encouragement, or even a sweet memory. Get creative with these cute school lunch accessories.
3. Go Waste Free: We’ve switched so much in our house to be better about waste. We use un-paper towels in our bathroom, glass whenever we can instead of plastic, fabric cotton rounds instead of disposable, and more. It’s been a great idea for the kids to go green too! Funkins has cloth lunchbox placemats and napkins for kids that are bright and cheerful, durable, and earth-friendly! Such a win. I love packing Funkins cloth lunchbox napkins with their lunches in case there’s a formula spill, sticky fingers, or a mouth that needs wiping. The kids enjoy the fun patterns and it just makes for a fun home or school lunch accessory. 4| Get the set! If you home school, your kid has school virtually, or they have a day off from school, make school lunch fun for kids with the Funkins Bamboo Fiber Dish Sets. Lawson has school twice a week, so when he’s home, he uses his Funkins dish set. He likes all his foods separated, enjoys all the transportation pictures on his natural bamboo set, and I like that we are helping the environment!
It’s so much easier than you think for fun school lunch ideas for kids! Funkins makes it super easy, and I’m grateful because we’re always busy. Everything is so bright and cheery, durable, and it puts a smile on the kids’ faces. Doesn’t get better than that!
Use code Fun21 for 20% off all Funkins products now through September 30, 2021 so your kids can have a fun school lunch too!
This post on Octonauts Above & Beyond Adventure Mix and Bingo Printable is sponsored by Octonauts Above & Beyond.
Our family, like most, is often busy. We have school drop off and pick ups for Lawson, virtual school for Addie, therapies, doctor appointments, errands, and more. It can get pretty hectic. One thing I love to encourage while we have the availability is to have “Pajama Fridays” every week. I try to plan something fun for us to do each Friday to end our week on a high note and foster family time. Sometimes that looks like playing board games, other times it means snuggling on the couch and watching our favorite Netflix shows.We’ve been able to get a sneak peek of the new Netflix show, Octonauts Above & Beyond, and the kids love it! As a former teacher, I love planning a fun activity or craft with our Pajama Fridays, so I came up with Octonauts Above & Beyond Adventure Mix to create alongside our watch party!
Lawson loves watching Octonauts and has always been drawn to their underwater adventures. There’s so much to see and explore under the water! Barnacles, Kwazii and Peso embarked on various adventures in their fleet of underwater Gups with the mantra to Explore, Rescue and Protect the underwater creatures and environment around them. I love that their adventures are based on real creatures, real environments, and incorporate real science. Octonauts Above & Beyond is a new spin-off series where the Octonauts take their adventures beyond the sea and onto land! In this new global mission the Octonauts are equipped with an exciting new fleet of land-based Terra Gups and a new flying HQ, the Octoray! In the first episode, The Skeleton Coast Adventure, our favorite characters shipwreck onto a desert coast and meet Paani, a scientist. Lawson loves new Octo-Agent Paani, and keeps talking about how he needs his own Octoray, the new mobile land HQ. The Octonauts mission remains as vital as ever- they’ll EXPLORE harsh and remote environments, RESCUE animals that need their help, and PROTECT the land and all living creatures!
Octonauts Above & Beyond Adventure Mix
While you and your littles are enjoying Octonauts Above & Beyond, all of you can enjoy this delicious Adventure Mix alongside it! With 8 ingredients representing the Octonauts’ adventures on land and sea, it’s a fun way to enjoy the show in an interactive way.
Here’s What You’ll Need:
The amounts are purely up to you and your family. Enjoy more or less of each ingredient! The important thing is to have fun as a family. Goldfish– for the Octonauts’ sea originsAnimal Crackers– for the land animals the Octonauts will meetDried Strawberries– representing the beautiful colors found in the jungle Cheerios-representing the dry desert the Octonauts will seeAlmonds & Pumpkin Seeds– representing the Octonauts’ forest adventuresMini M&Ms– bright, fun colors to represent the characters in Octonauts Above & BeyondChex Cereal– to tie it all together! Grab a big bowl and let your kids go to town making their very own Adventure Mix! Lawson is currently exploring the opportunity to do more things independently. I love giving him some measuring cups and allowing him to create a snack mix the way he wants. It makes it more fun for him and helps him learn several daily living skills!
Octonauts Above & Beyond Bingo
Looking for an activity to go with that Adventure Mix? Try playing the Octonauts Above & Beyond Bingo! The game is simple: Each player starts with a Bingo board and Bingo counters. Choose one person to be the caller. The caller pulls one item and announces it. If a player has a matching square on the Bingo card, place a counter over it. When you get a horizontal, vertical, or diagonal row of 5, yell out Octo-Alert! That person becomes the winner!
Want to play Octonauts Above & Beyond Bingo for yourself? Click to download 4 playing cards and the calling card and don’t miss Octonauts Above & Beyond, now on Netflix.
This post on Day Trip Must Haves is sponsored by Walmart+. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
If you’ve been keeping up with us on social media this summer, you know that we’ve been enjoying all kinds of fun family field trips. We’ve seen Mammoth bones, fed giraffes, enjoyed the beach, hiked, and more. It’s been an absolute blast of a summer, and we aren’t done yet! I don’t know about you all, but our family is trying to pack in as much fun as we can before school starts. I wanted to share some of the things we like to take on our day trips from Walmart+ whether they’re in town or a couple hours of driving away.
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We’ve been using our Walmart+ membership for about a year now and I am so grateful for it because of our busy schedule. Having the option to get free same-day delivery from Walmart+ helps me so much, especially when I don’t think about things I need until the night before we go somewhere. It’s so nice to be able to whip out my phone or computer, put in an order quickly, and get what I need in just a couple hours without having to leave my house. Whether it’s fresh, high quality groceries, or anything else, Walmart+ always has what I need for our day trips.
With a Walmart+ membership I’ve been able to get free same-day delivery from my store* – groceries & more delivered as soon as today, at the low prices I love (*$35 order minimum. Restrictions apply). I greatly appreciate that I’m able to enjoy the same everyday low prices I expect from Walmart and there are no markups on items. If you haven’t tried Walmart+ yet, I highly recommend it. It literally only took me 10 minutes to order everything I needed for our last day trip and came straight to our door!
Grab your Walmart+ 15 day free trial here
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Here’s some things from Walmart+ that have made our lives easier for day trips:
Snacks– Whether you’ve got kids or not, snacks are an integral part to any day trip. I like to make things super easy so I like to order bread, lunch meat, veggies, condiments, chips, salsa, and drinks. I also always make sure we’ve got drinks because it’s so hot in Texas. My fave? Peach Unsweetened Sparkling Water. Yum!Snack Box– Can I give you a parenting hack? I love using tackle box organizers to have a variety of snacks available for Lawson. It’s saved me on many day trips, and it’s also something I like to do for flights. It’s an awesome product to keep in your trip arsenal.Small Cooler– We have a variety of coolers depending on where we’re going, but one I love most from Walmart is this one from Artic Zone. It holds 30 cans, ice, and has a plastic tray so you can store food on top.
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Foldable Wagon– As parents, we all like to be prepared, right?! That usually means we take everything we may possibly need and end up being pack mules. My saving grace? This foldable wagon from Radio Flyer. It helps SO much when trying to get the kids and everything we need once we arrive at our destination.Sunscreen & Wipes– I’m a huge stickler for two things, and you’ll always see them with me during the summer: sunscreen and my homemade Thieves wipes. I love the mineral sunscreen options from Hello Bello for our whole family (you can find them in cream, spray, and stick form). As for the Thieves wipes, I love buying Huggies wipes and adding distilled water mixed with Thieves cleaner. Hands get dirty and it’s nice to have these around to not only clean, but safely take germs away.Comfortable Outfit– Whenever we go on a day trip, I know I’ll want to take lots of pictures of our family. I try to be mindful of what I’m wearing in case I get in photos, but I also want to be comfortable. I love wearing jumpsuits because they feel like pajamas but look put together! This No Boundaries jumpsuit is really comfortable, can be worn with or without straps, and is so cute. I also appreciate a good denim jacket to throw on top for dinner out or when we go into a chilly venue/attraction. This Celebrity Pink denim jacket is oversized, so if you prefer a more traditional fit, make sure you size down.
Day trips are a great source of fun for our family and we hope you all will enjoy some before summer ends. It’s fun to play tourist in your own town or drive close by. Whatever you do, don’t forget to grab your fresh groceries and other day trip must haves from Walmart+!
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Looking for more from Walmart+? Check out other awesome things you can get via the Walmart archive and grab your Walmart+ free trial!
This post on 5 Paw-some Dog Gifts Your Dog Will Love is sponsored by Babbleboxx. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
I don’t know about in your house, but in ours, dogs are family. We have 3 dogs, Pearl, Winky, and Ahsoka and they bring so much joy to our lives. Pearl, a Maltipoo, was our baby that we brought home 2 months after being married. Winky is a Shih-poo rescue dog that was saved from an awful housing situation. She’s Addie’s best friend and sidekick in person and in my book, Authentically Addie. We recently adopted Ahsoka, our big Sheepadoodle, who is quickly growing into the biggest dog we’ve ever seen. All 3 are white and fluffy, and we wouldn’t have it any other way.All of our dogs have very different personalities, but they can all agree that they love getting dog gifts! I wanted to share 5 paw-some dog gifts we’ve recently come across that we love, and so will you and your pets!
Custom Pillow from Petsies
I’ve been eyeing the Budsies website for a few months now, and stumbled across their Petsies product line recently. They make cuddly and affordable custom pet pillows that are SO cute. They have two different types of pillow options to choose from: ones shaped just like your pet and custom throw pillows. Both options just need a photo of your pet so Petsies can work their magic.I love this picture of Ahsoka as a puppy and I thought it was a fun way to see how much she’s grown since the Spring. Sometimes Lawson leaves the Petsies pillow of Ahsoka on the couch and I swear for a second it makes me think I have 4 dogs! I have done a double take several times and just laugh so hard. Grab one of your pet from July 12-July 31 and get 15% off all custom pillows using code: Stephanie2021
EASE Joint and Hip Chews and
RELAX Calming Chews from Green Gruff
Having dogs ranging from nearly 10 years old to nearly 8 months old can be very interesting when it comes to care. Green Gruff recently sent us their EASE Joint and Hip Chews and RELAX Calming Chews, and they’re a hit with all 3 of our dogs. Although they may look like treats, nutritionally they’re vitamins and minerals, so they should be taken like supplements. Our dogs are enjoying them daily! Green Gruff chews have 9 essential amino acids, more iron than spinach, and significantly more sustainable than beef. Pearl loves the EASE Joint and Hip Chews, while Winky and Ahsoka love the RELAX Calming Chews. Both supplements are made with CBD and are organic. You can get 30% off either RELAX or EASE (90-count) Green Gruff supplements through 8/15 using discount code GGDD30.
Eat, Play, Love (Your Dog)
We lead a busy life, but we always make sure we have time for the dogs. Between appointments, therapies, and more- it’s incredibly important to show them as much love as we can when we are home. Eat, Play, Love (Your Dog): The Ultimate Guide for Every Dog Owner by Lara Shannon from Hardie Grant helps readers understand why dogs do what they do, so you can enjoy a full and happy life together with your furry friend. It’s available wherever books are sold and a great gift for dog owners or prospective owners. I’m loving this dog training book and already finding it helpful!
Dog Toys from Multipet
Multipet toys are some that we’ve gotten over the many years we’ve been dog owners. They’ve been around for 25 years and test each product for safety and durability- both super important things in our house. Pearl, Winky, and Ahsoka got the Multipet Ball-Head Unicorn and love it! It’s got a rubber ball in the head with a plush body that squeaks and crinkles! They go crazy for that crinkle sound! It also has a soft mane and tail with glittery hooves, ears and a horn.The dogs also got the Multipet Cross-Ropes Duck, and it’s quickly become Ahsoka’s favorite. She enjoys toys that are rugged and have heavy construction! It’s made of a durable ballistic-style nylon with reinforced seams for dogs like Ahsoka that are tougher on toys. It features a cotton rope for tossing and tugging, different textures, and a built in squeaker for lots of excitement for your pet. Both of these toys are great for families looking to keep your dog engaged, active, and excited during playtime!Warning: Always supervise your pet when playing with pet toys. This product should be inspected periodically for damages. Do not permit your pet to continue playing with a broken or damaged toy. Please discard when worn. No pet toy is indestructible. Intended for pet use only.
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NutrientBoost™ from Solid Gold
It’s been very important from the beginning for us to get the dogs quality dog food. Solid Gold is the pioneer in holistic and natural pet food, with real meat, whole grains, and nutrient dense superfoods. Solid Gold NutrientBoost is a premium line of delicious recipes powered by plasma to improve digestion and nutrient absorption. The NutrientBoost Meal Topper for Dogs has our dogs going WILD. NutrientBoost is packed full of minerals, amino acids, and antibodies. It’s also proven to improve the digestibility of food. Between Pearl getting older and Ahsoka having Giardia as a puppy (causing her to lose weight initially), I love the benefits NutrientBoost gives them. If you thought gut health was only for humans, think again!
>I hope you have found these 5 Paw-some Dog Gifts Your Dog Will Love helpful! Which will you be grabbing?
This post on Keeping Toddlers Entertained During Summertime was sponsored by ABCmouse as part of an Influencer Activation for Influence Central and all opinions expressed in my post are my own.
Summer is here and our family is so excited to enjoy a little bit of downtime. Between working from home, writing a book, assisting with virtual school, going back and forth for Addie’s therapies (and more), it’s been a hectic year. I’ve made it a point to make a schedule of activities for each day of the week, and I’m excited for the fun it’ll bring. Although we have lots planned, there are times where we need down time so I can work. It’s definitely not easy to be on conference calls, Zoom meetings, or on the computer writing when there’s a toddler interrupting or trying to get on the screen. I wanted to share some things we’re doing this summer to keep Lawson entertained indoors during the break and I hope they’re helpful to you all as well!
Educational Games
When I’m in a meeting or call, I love being able to give Lawson the family iPad to play with ABCmouse. It’s very user friendly for children, bright and colorful, and it’s so fun that he constantly asks for it.ABCmouse has a ton of different things for kids to enjoy. Lawson loves the Step-by-Step Learning Path, which is specifically tailored to him for his age and changes as he progresses. The Step-by-Step Learning Path activities continue as he finishes one, so I’m able to get work done and not worry about clicking the next activity for him. The Learning Path has many different things for kids to do: puzzles, books, games, art, and songs. It’s all really engaging and really interactive so it keeps his interest for a long time. Kids also earn Tickets & Rewards as they complete activities and can purchase virtual pets and other things with them. Lawson loves collecting his tickets! We aim for 45 minutes a day (instead of tv) to help ensure Lawson is ready to start Pre-K3 in the fall and to support his learning journey.One of my favorite things about the ABCmouse Learning Path is that once I’m done working, I’m able to visit the Progress Tracker on their website and see what concepts Lawson has learned and how he is doing. There are easy-to-read graphs that show progress for his academic level and by the curriculum subject. It’s a really helpful tool.
Care For A Pet
As Lawson gets older, he’s learning more about having household responsibilities. Through ABCmouse Lawson has been able to earn Tickets & Rewards to choose fish for a virtual fish tank, and care for a virtual hamster. He loves it! After playing ABCmouse for the past few months, he’s asked to help with our fish at home, enjoys gathering eggs from our chickens, and happily playing with our dogs. Learning responsibilities with pets is a great activity for toddlers to learn in the summer, and I’m so glad to know he’s enjoying it virtually and in the home.
Learn Spanish
Not many of my readers realize this, but we’re a Hispanic family. Mathew’s side is Scottish, but my side has Mexican and Spanish roots. Don’t let my blonde hair fool you- I’m Hispanic and the kids are half! We try to immerse the kids in learning more about Hispanic traditions and the culture through food, vacations to visit family, and more.One thing we want to do this summer is introduce Lawson to Spanish. ABCmouse not only comes in English, but it’s offered in Spanish as well. I, unfortunately, have never been fully fluent in Spanish, and because sharing our Hispanic culture and language with the kids is important, we have plans to use ABCmouse to help. ABCmouse allows kids to explore, learn and play all while practicing their Spanish. Lawson knows a few words in Spanish already, so it will be fun!Because ABCmouse is a comprehensive early learning program, I truly think Lawson will learn Spanish faster through exploring, playing and learning. My grandmother has Dementia and now only speaks Spanish, and it would be such a treat for Lawson to be able to speak with her. ABCmouse has over 1,500 books, puzzles, and activities offered in Spanish. There’s so many ways to learn! As a work-from-home mom, I’m so appreciative that we have ABCmouse at our fingertips. It’s been a subscription that has not only benefitted Lawson in huge ways, but I’m excited to see how he will progress over the summer. It’s wonderful to know we have a fun tool that benefits him, and I’m able to get work done as I need.
Want to subscribe to ABCmouse for your child?
ABCmouse is the app you have to get! As a work-from-home mom, I highly recommend ABCmouse. You won’t regret grabbing a subscription for your child and I think you’ll be surprised at the learning gains that are possible when ABCmouse is used at least 45 minutes a week. It’s super affordable too! Right now they’re offering a special deal: $5 for 2 months with a subscription, then $12.99 per month, until canceled.
Learn More About ABCmouse from a former teacher perspective
