Get it? 'Cuz it's May. Well, the end of May. And we've been places. And done sh*t. I feel like I have actual wisdom to share with others. We've spent the month traveling, finishing homeschool, planning for summer, and not doing any of the projects I had planned for this spring. It is what it is, but those raised garden beds never got built, the yard is a jumble of weeds, and the house currently smells kinda funky since we've been gone so much. So there's all of that.
These nine things make me happy though:
1.) I'm eagerly awaiting the season two premiere of Evil on Paramount+, but I started Big Sky on a whim and it's totally my kind of show. Of course, whenever I see a semi I instantly think, "is it him?!?" Give it a try if you like suspenseful, murder mystery, psycho type shows.
2.) Does a healthy granola bar of sorts even exist? We pack a lot of Cliff bars this time of year when we hike, but I wanted something a little different. I've bought gluten free Nature's Bakery Fig Bars for daycare and we loved them too. They're a great easy breakfast on the go or a quick snack after hiking.
3.) I'm sure I've shared my love of Seventh Generation products before, but recently I ran out of the dishwasher pods and picked up another brand (I won't name names). It just made me realize how much I truly like the Seventh Generation dishwasher pods and numerous other products.
4.) There's only this week left, so I highly recommend getting to the Blank Park Zoo to see the Wild Lights display! We had so much fun with it!
5.) Five humans + one dog in a Toyota Highland for 10+ days. We had camping gear, luggage, boogie boards, beach toys, dog stuff, too much to name really. How did it all fit? With a car topper of course! We purchased the Rightline car topper and it held EVERYTHING and more. It was easy to put on, we secured it extra because the straps it came with didn't seem as strong as we'd like, and we discovered it IS very waterproof (we went through a couple of thunderstorms with no issues). This car topper will likely get a lot of use in the coming years.
6.) Imagine you're driving into downtown Chicago, or any metro city, and you're wondering, "where should I park?" You have options here: you can drive around looking for parking, take a chance with a parking garage being open OR you can hop onto SpotHero and reserve a parking spot in the location of your choosing! This should be a no brainer. I noticed that we only paid $13.75 for two hours of parking in a parking garage that charged $16 per hour. Plus, it's all pre-paid, so it saved us time not needing to stop and pay at the booth.
7.) Summer vacation is upon us and that means a lot of "owies." I stocked up on our favorite bead ice packs for those occasions.
8.) We've spent soooo much time in the car lately. The kids are kept busy with homeschool work, but they were also gifted a bunch of car games that were played constantly this month. Hangman and Tic Tac Toe were played the most.
9.) The minis are obsessed with boogie boarding. We simply do not have the room to cart around surf boards (nor do I know how to surf), but boogie boards are smaller and easier to use. These are our favorites and now all five of us have our own.
Now for something I don't recommend: Ozark Trail camping mats. It was softer just sleeping on the ground! Next time I won't opt for the cheapest camping mat. Not all is lost though, the kids said they'll use them to do yoga this summer.