What Summer Time Means to Me

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Tomorrow is officially the last day of July. August is literally right around the corner, and fall is creeping up on us. It seems that every year, after my birthday, I get this feeling of nostalgia. Summer has this way of lifting my spirits, brightening my day, and bringing an overall effect of happiness into my life. Every one has a favorite season, mine happens to be summer time.

Summer time means a number of things to me.

Summer time means warm weather. Sun shining. Tan skin. Temperatures reaching in the 90s.
Summer time means birthday. A celebration of life. Continuation of life. And life to come.
Summer time means family. Family activities. Family memories. Family fun.
Summer time means vacation. A time spent away from our every day lives. Yet, not. Taking our family, some of our belongings, and traveling 700 miles across the country to relaxation. If you want to call it that with kids.
Summer time means ice cream, watermelon, milkshakes, and more. More cold everything. Ice cream every day during the summer? Totally acceptable.
Summer time means flip flops and dresses. The most appropriate attire for any and every day of the week. The easiest to throw on when running late out the door. And the easiest to throw off right before climbing into bed.
Summer time means water. Lots and lots of water. Sitting by the pool. Putting our feet in the sand by the beach. And scarfing down bottles and bottles of ice cold water. Remember...the heat.
Summer time means sparkles. Fireworks. Freedom. It's a time for us to celebrate this country and all the freedoms that at times we take for granted.
Summer time means carnivals. Crazy rides that scare you to death. Food that.. well.. scares you to death, yet tastes so good. And laughter and smiles all across the board.

Summer time. It's the season that makes me smile the most, and the season that also goes by the fastest. The season that I am always anxious to say hello to every year, and yet, one that I'm ready to say goodbye to come August.

Something else we will be saying goodbye to soon? Andrew's car. It's been good to us, but time for a change. Something new, something fun, something that makes me want to eat ice cream and cruise around with the windows down. Like summer time.

We've been looking at the Kia and have loved what we have seen and read. We are looking to test drive in the next few months. Right around fall time.... oh fall.

By then, I'll have a list of what fall means to me. And maybe what a new car means as well.

I'm ready.

I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls Collective and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.

The Beans are Back

“This shop is part of a social shopper marketing insight campaign with Pollinate Media Group™ and Jelly Beans but all my opinions are my own. #pmedia #JellysAreBack http://cmp.ly/3/8vNxcO”

Do you remember wearing Jelly sandals as a kid? Do you remember how you begged your parents to own a pair? You needed to have one and you needed to have one now? Not to mention, you needed one in every color. Am I bringing up some memories in your head? Did you look down at your feet thinking that they are in fact missing something in their life? The feet, that is. Your feet.

These were the exact thoughts that crossed through my head when I had heard that Jellys were back. 

They reminded me of jumping in puddles as a kid. Skinned knees, dirt on my pants. I grew up a tomboy. They reminded me of running around in nothing but a swimsuit and jellys on in my backyard. Each and every summer. They reminded me of listening for the ice cream truck to make his stop around our circle, to beg my parents for a "couple bucks" and then to sit on the sidewalk while we gobbled down every bit of the cold heaven on a stick. Only to dream about waking up the next day to do it all over again.

How does a pair of shoes even do that? Bring back sweet summer memories. Just like that. I'm not sure the answer to that, but I sure was excited to be able to finally get my hands on a pair. The only question that remained was... what color.

Initially, my mind instantly went to black. I'm a black and white kind of girl. I like plain and simple sometimes because it is what works with anything and everything. However, lately, I've been venturing out the box, and I knew that if I truly wanted to relive my childhood all over again, that I would have to do it the right way. Pink.

So pink it was. Pink it is. And pink definitely made me feel young and fresh all over again. It was, it is, the perfect shoe for summertime. From comfort to style, to hello-one-of-a-kind-look-at-me kind of shoe. I know that when every celebrity starts to wear them, at least I can sit here and say... hey, I started the trend! A girl can dream.

I'm not all too trendy to be honest with you, but I sure do like myself a pair of comfortable shoes and anything that reminds me of jumping in puddles, swinging off trees, and playing with the boys in the baseball fields. Then I'm all about it.

The last, and probably the best perk of all? The fact that I can match my daughter. The fact that she points down at my shoes and says "MOMMY! COOOOOOL SHOES!"

Yup. That's a win in this mama's book.

I hope that my daughter grows up with a pair of shoes that remind her of the good days. The great memories. The summer sun, the mama-daughter dates at the pool, and the sound of an ice cream truck turning the corner. I'm sure her memories will involve things that are much more hip and advanced in comparison to mine, but one thing will remain the same:

Summer is made to have fun.

And Jelly Beans? The Beans are back.

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Want a pair? They are available now with free shipping to US Residents and ships here from the US by visiting the websit: jbeans.co
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We have a cruiser on our hands

“This post is part of a social shopper marketing insight campaign with Pollinate Media Group® and Huggies, but all my opinions are my own. #HuggiesSlipOn #pmedia http://cmp.ly/3/8vNxcO

You know how there are moments in life where you wake up and you realize that your world will never be the same due to a significant change, or in a mom's case, a new milestone that our babies reach. And then you catch yourself saying, "already?" Things like, "this soon?" and "surely it's not time" come out of your mouth. Perhaps maybe even a little panic sets in. "Man, I'm just not quite prepared for this," you say to your husband as it becomes evident that changes are ahead.

For me, those words and phrases came out of my mouth much more often the second time around. And much sooner at that. Simply because everything is happening much sooner, and time is flying by much faster. Because the first time around? You're all excited and jumping with joy. And not that I'm saying we're not excited for every new milestone with our Graham man, but perhaps we're just more aware of what these milestones entail. A little more cautious. A lot more hesitant.

Crawling. It's the beginning of a new chapter. One that my husband and I celebrated with high fives and loud voices {screaming and yelling... "look at him, look at him go!"}, but also one that left us scrummaging around to pick up every little toy on the floor, every little hidden puzzle piece and block, and anything else that our cruiser could get his hands on. Not to mention baby proofing all over again. Because with each baby comes a spew of curiosities, and this one, this little Graham of ours, I have a feeling will be one that will keep us on our toes.

So a month and half into this crawling gig and now he is cruising along. He went from the typical army crawl to fast-paced-I-need-to-get-there-right-now-crawl. He's a determined kind of guy. Therefore, when it comes to diapers? It's important for us to find ones that can sustain all the motions and movements of this tiny baby on a mission. Because we all know that outfit changes are no joy at this age. That comes with the milestone.

We have recently had issues with leakage and were excited to have the opportunity to test out the Huggies Slip On diapers to see if this could help resolve {and save} some unnecessary changes, help contain things, and make our lives a little bit more easier by saving time. We all know those are all crucial things in the diapering a baby world. Surprisingly, I had not realized how big of a difference these diapers would be. In fact, these are the first diapers that were dramatically different from any of the ones we have had, and in a very good one. Not only was the process of putting the diaper on so much smoother with stretch sides {see images}, easy on & off design, and a perfect fit for the standing baby {oh yes, we reached that milestone as well}, but it completely blew us out of the water with the leak protection. So far, so good. Actually, so great.

Because no leaks in my book? Means something we have not yet encountered.

Have a busy cruiser at home? Need trusted leak protection? Grab a box of Huggies Slip On from Target and use this $2 off coupon to save some money.  Save some money, and save some diapers at the same time. You know me and my love for deals.

So now that we have mastered the crawling and now onto the standing stage, we all know what comes next... walking.

If there is anything that I'm not quite ready for yet, it would be just that.

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And before you run, enter below for a chance to win a $25 Target Gift Card so that you yourself can go buy a pair of Huggies Slip On diapers {although not required}. 

Only requirement to enter: Leave a comment and tell me about a little cruiser that you know and  what he/she likes to get into! Winner will be announced on Sunday!

U.S. Residents only.

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