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Summer Bucket List For Kids

One of the reasons this blog was started was to encourage me and my previous co-author to spend more quality time with our kids. I admit, work and social media have gotten away from me lately and quality time with my girls has been in short supply. This summer, I'm determined to unplug a bit more and spend face-to-face time with Kiki (aka Nutty) and TJ (aka Tottie). I came up with a summer bucket list for kids that should be fairly easy for the girls and me to complete this summer. Our summer vacation is about 3 months long so I came up with 60 things for us to do. That equals 5 things a week. Totally accomplishable as we can double up on some of them. When my girls say, "I'm bored" I can point them to the summer bucket list and have them pick something to do off the list. I think the two hardest things for us to complete will be geocaching and going to a baseball game but the girls haven't done either of them before so I decided to add those as new things to try. They've … [Read more...]

Do hot and cold water really SOUND different?

Have you ever been waiting for your shower to warm up and noticed that the pitch of the water changes when the water is warm? The hosts of my local radio station were talking about that very thing on my way to work a few days ago. The female host said that she knows her shower is ready because the water sounds different. I agree with her. The male host thought that people like us (who think the shower sounds different) are nuts. Do hot and cold water really sound different? The girls and I decided to try an experiment... Do hot and cold water really sound different? Why do they sound different? Let's explain... Water changes it's viscosity, or stickiness, when it's temperature changes. Cold water molecules move slower than hot water molecules. Therefore, cold water is more viscous or sticky than hot water. Because cold water is more viscous, it pours in a more steady stream, splashes less, and bubbles less than hot water. This makes the pitch of cold water a lower sound than … [Read more...]

5 Activities to Keep Your Sick Child Quiet but Occupied #SickJustGotReal

I have partnered with Pfizer Pediatric Platform for 5 Activities to Keep Your Sick Child Quiet but Occupied. The products featured, information, and additional gift pack have been provided by Pfizer Consumer Healthcare. All thoughts and reviews are my own. It may be spring in Minnesota but we're still not quite out of cold and flu season. In fact, my friends and their children are getting sick left and right lately (at least that's what it seems like). Pfizer Pediatric, Target, and I want to help you get prepared for the fevers, coughs, and colds that may still be coming your way this season. If Sick Just Got Real™ for your family, products like Children’s Advil®, Children’s Robitussin®, and/or Children’s Dimetapp® may help your children feel better, while the 5 activities below will keep them occupied but quiet so they can recover faster. Infants’ and Children’s Advil® provide unsurpassed fever and pain relief(1), and contain ibuprofen, the medicine pediatricians use … [Read more...]

Samsung’s New Products at Verizon Wireless

A few weeks ago Verizon Wireless invited me to an event at their destination store at the Mall of America to check out the Samsung Galaxy S7 smart phone, the Samsung Gear VR, and the Samsung Gear S2 smart watch. I'm not a fan of attending events at Verizon's destination store because I always leave wanting to buy everything I'm shown. Remember the Tech Byte Lunch? After that event I ended up buying a GizmoGadget for my girls. After this event I'm determined to get a Gear S2 for myself! Yes, I realize I put the watch on upside down :) Speaking of the Samsung Gear S2, I am in love with this smart watch! It's not big and bulky and it doesn't look like a smart watch if you don't want it to. It's seriously an entire phone in a watch plus it has an activity and heart rate monitor and water and coffee tracking too. It's personalizable with custom watch faces and interchangeable bands. Leave your phone at home because the Gear S2 has 3G connectivity which allows you to make calls, find … [Read more...]

Popsicle Stick Bow and Arrows

It's spring which means it's rainy outside. It's easy to let the kids play on their tablets all day but that's not exactly good for them. Today I'm adding to the popsicle stick bow and arrows to our collection of rainy day activities. These mini bow and arrows are something the whole family can have fun playing with! To make these mini bow and arrows you'll need: popsicle sticks dental floss q-tips a knife scissors Start by making two small notches on each end of the popsicle stick. They should be about 1/2 inch from the end of the stick. These notches help hold the dental floss in place. I used a knife to make the notches but use what works best for you. Next, wind dental floss around the popsicle stick where the notches are. Once you've wound it around a few times, pull tightly so that the popsicle stick bends. Then wind the dental floss around the notches at the opposite end. Make sure you start on the same side of the stick as you ended when you … [Read more...]

Save 60% Off ROBOTS-4-U Summer Camps

Are your kids into Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Math? Do they love robotics? I've go the perfect summer camp for them: ROBOTS-4-U Summer Camps - Where Fun, Thinking & Learning comes to Life! Campers will have a BLAST, learning about Robotics and Science in an independent and exciting way while playing in a dynamic environment. ROBOTS-4-U Summer Camps are geared toward boys and girls ages 7-14 and are offered June, July, and August. Each camp is Monday through Friday either 9:00-11:30a.m. or 12:30-3:00 p.m. Learning is hands-on, self-paced, and goes beginning to expert. Camper ratio is about 1 Instructor to 16 participants. You and your kids can choose from: Robotics--basic design, building, programming, and mechanics Dynamic Art--the experience of making moving sculptures Battle Robots--building robots that are specifically designed to compete against those of other campers Drones--learn navigation and common aerodynamic concepts and … [Read more...]