Road Trip!!!

Summer is right around the corner; I can practically feel the heat right now. 

In our house, Summer means ROAD TRIPS!!! 

We love nothing more than to pile in the car and go on a road trip! Even if it's just a few hours away. We absolutely love to get behind the wheel and head out to explore. Last Summer, we drove to the beach, to Missouri, to my parent's house, and we made lots of trips to Texas.

I mean, we're practically road trip experts because we've made trips every Summer in the car- starting our first year of marriage, when Gretchen was little, and heck, we even made a road trip when Megan was 2 weeks old! See, we're experts! 

Since we love to travel so much, I thought I'd share some fun road trip toys and must haves for all ages! Grab them now, so you can plan ahead; there's nothing worse than planning a last minute weekend away, and then not having some way to keep your kids occupied while you're in the car! 

Travel Toys for Babies-Preschoolers:

Travel Toys for Elementary Kids:

Okay, now, here are my best tips for road trips:

1. Plan where and when you're going. Decide on what time of day you'll leave. When our girls were younger, we would leave right before nap time or right at bedtime. Sometimes, we would leave around 5 am, and just scoop them out of bed in their pj's and let them sleep a little more in the car. Now, we leave after we wake up & have a quick breakfast, so we usually hit the road around 8. You'll also want to keep in mind rush hour and if you'll be hitting large cities right at noon, around 3, or around 5. We do our best to time out the trips so we don't hit cities at peak times. 

2. Don't let your kids pack their own bags. I know, it's tempting to just have your kids throw their favorite toys in a bag for the car, but I promise, they'll have a random assortment of junk that doesn't go together or make sense and then they'll have nothing to do when they're in the car. 

3. Grab snacks! There's nothing worse than hearing "I'm hungry!" I always pack a bag of fruit snacks, raisins, dried fruit, granola bars, and other healthy snacks to have with us. 

4. If your kids can read, make sure they have a few chapter books with them. Gretchen once read three books through on a road trip, so we make sure she has several available! 

5. Stop at rest stops and get out at gas stations. Again, you don't want to hear "I need to potty" right after pulling out of a gas station or when you're in the middle of nowhere. We make sure everyone gets out and stretches their legs and goes potty! When the girls would younger and we would all have to use the same stall, we would play games while we were waiting our turn- Simon Says was a fun one because it gets the kids moving and gets their wiggles out. 

Here are a few other posts I've written about traveling with kids:

In 2012

In 2014

And you can find all of my traveling posts here, and my pinterest traveling board here. 

Friday Favorites: Lost Tooth Edition

Happy Friday friends! I hope you've all had a blessed week! 

We've had some pretty relaxing and low key days around here, which were much needed after our busy Easter weekend. 

I'm linking up today with Andrea, Erika, and Narci for Friday Favorites and sharing a random assortment from the week! 

First up, R.C. essential oil. Y'all the pollen is nuts this year, and every once in a while I wake up with a stuffy nose and hoarse voice. I put a drop of R.C. on my nose and throat and felt so much better! 

My usual work wear is yoga pants because I'm on the floor playing with kids or in their mouths helping them learn to talk, but twice this week I thought I'd put on real clothes- ha! 

My distressed jeans are hands down my favorite jeans ever. They have the perfect amount of stretch, and I love the rough hem line. 

I wore my jeans with a ruffle sleeve t-shirt. 

And later in the week, I wore a coral tank with a long sweater. My tank is sold out, but this one with a twist front is super cute! And of course, another pair of my favorite brand of jeans. 

This girl has been a little toot this week! She's getting a little mischievous at school and and at gymnastics.  She's such a mess. 

Over on my Instagram, I shared a #photoeveryhour of my day! It was so fun! 

Are you following me on Insta?

My Young Living order came in and DJ and I were both pumped! I ordered Zyng and Ningxia for our favorite drink, and then an oil that I'm sending to a few of my members! 

If you're curious about essential oils, head here to learn more! 

And, when you're ready to order a Premium Starter Kit to get started (it's the best way to join Young Living) I'll send you $25.00 back! Just be sure to use my referral link ;) 

Gretchen had her Gifted & Talented showcase yesterday, and I was so proud of her and her project! She researched "Kids in the Middle" and made the largest diorama ever! 

While I was listening to Gretchen's project, Adalyn's class walked in and she was carrying a tiny blue box. My first thought was "I hope her teacher knows she has that lego, and I hope she didn't find that lego on the ground somewhere!" Then, she walked over and told me she lost her tooth!!! 

It's her very first tooth to loose, and will be our last "first tooth" in our house. 

Insert me crying here! 

And finally, please take a minute and pray for Ruston, La. 

DJ and I moved to Ruston just 7 weeks after we got married as he took his first video position at La Tech. We lived in three houses there and bought our first home there. We learned what it meant to be married and to rely only on each other. We did a lot of growing in this town and this week they were devastated with a tornado that ripped through the small town and the university. Two people lost their lives; the softball and baseball stadiums were destroyed as well as homes, apartment buildings, and businesses. 

Have a wonderful weekend my friends!

Come On In: Girls Bathroom

Hey friends!!!

We're continuing our house tour today! I love getting a sneak peek in to my friends homes, and I love sharing ours on the blog. 

If you've missed other parts of our home you can find them here:

Living Room

Kitchen/Dining Room

Gretchen's Room

Adalyn's Room

Megan's Room

Today, I'm sharing the girls' bathroom. 

While the bathroom is upstairs, Megan and Adalyn share this one. Gretchen uses the bathroom downstairs since she wanted her own. I love a kids bathroom to have two separate spaces. I just feel like it gives it more privacy, even though my kids don't care a lick about that right now! 

Their rug came from Target.

They have a ton of storage space in their bathroom. The drawers hold toothbrushes and toothpaste, hair brushes, pony tail holders, and clippies. I like to keep the countertops as clutter free as possible. They already get messy enough with little kids, so I don't like to add much else on top of the cabinets.  

My mom made us a little mermaid vinyl for their soap dispenser.

I buy the Thieves foaming hand soap, in the refill size, and just fill up all of our soap dispensers with it. You can find the soap dispensers here. They're also great for a DIY hand soap or even a DIY face wash! 

A blogger friend did monthly boxes, and sent out the Glitter print, and I framed it using a cheap frame from Hobby Lobby. 

We had these pink flower hooks in their last bathroom and we bought the canvas from a friend for an adoption fundraiser. 

For hair bow storage an over the door towel holder like this one. I just sew ribbon on circle rings and hang them on the hooks and clip the bows on to the ribbon. 

We bought the girls a simple shower curtain that would go with any theme! Right now, they wanted mermaids, but I just found this rainbow rug, that would be cute to change out their theme a bit. But for now, they have this mermaid tail rug. 

Their bathroom also has open shelving, so we have lots of baskets to help keep things organized. Most of them have their headbands, but we also have toilet paper down low, towels, and wash cloths. 

And then I have their extra shampoo, body wash, a cleaner, and their oils higher up. 

Mermaid Rug

It's just a simple, clean, white space. We may eventually add some wall paper in here, but I'm waiting to make big changes for when they're teenagers and need something that's a bit more practical for teens. 

Get the look here:

Costco & Sprouts Haul

You guys know how much we love Costco around here! We joined in October and we've been huge fans ever since! I went several weeks ago and did a big haul, but forgot to share, and I've had lots of people asking me about brands we love and prefer, so I wanted to share with y'all!

I also have a Pinterest board for Costco if you're an avid Costco shopper! 

I picked up these bowls for lunches, and I have to admit, I'm not a fan. Way too much spinach, and not enough chicken. It was pretty bland. Maybe topped with cheese these would be a little better, but after I force myself to eat the remaining three bowls, I won't be buying these agin. 

We're a fan of these granola bars. The girls take them for a snack at school, have them after school, or I'll add one to their lunch. 

We're also huge fans of their chicken fried rice. I serve this with their orange chicken for quick dinners, but I could eat a bag by myself :) 

In the Fall, Costco had chocolate covered mangoes, and we were obsessed. They haven't carried them in a while, so I grabbed these as a hopeful replacement. But, I'm not a fan of fig. The girls are, and they snuck in to the pantry to eat these! 

These are our favorite chicken nuggets! 

And here's that orange chicken that I serve with the fried rice. We get two dinners out of this box. 

These layered fruit bars are a favorite too! They're a fun treat for the girls lunches or for a quick snack. 

Baby carrots for the win. 

I bought these for Easter dinner, and they were a huge hit! Super cheesy and so yummy! 

I love these chicken skewers. They're juicy! I take these to work and heat them up, but I'll also throw them in Gretchen's lunch box and she eats them cold. 

We've always eaten Applegate brand hot dogs, but someone recommended these on Instagram, and they're good! DJ was never a fan of the applegate, but he loved these! So, I'll be buying these from now on. 

I love the convenience of these apple slices for the girls lunch box or an after school snack! 

And someone recommended these chips on Instagram and they're SO good! They're clean and the ingredients are potatoes, oil, and himalayan salt. That's it! 

We love to grab fruit from Costco because we're huge fruit eaters and it's affordable. 

Strawberries for the win! 

I always grab a bag of bell peppers too. 

Pro Tip- as soon as you get home from the store, wash and cut all of your fruits and veggies and put them in the fridge. You're more likely to eat them if they're cut and ready to go! 

The girls love these baby cucumbers in their lunches. 

And I usually grab a bag of cuties for lunches. 

I picked up these brownie bites as a treat and they barely lasted 4 days in our house. They're SO good! I definitely won't get these every trip, because we don't need to eat them, but I wish we could! Ha! 

I'm a huge fan of these roll-ups. I love them with turkey, cheese, mayo, and spinach, or I've made paninins with them with grilled chicken! 

Okay, so I went to Sprouts last Friday and grabbed a few new brands to try. 

These Bobo's are stuffed peanut butter and jelly muffins. Addy's eaten one and said it was good, but I thought they'd be good to throw in a sandwichless lunch with a hard boiled egg and fruits & veggies. 

These are little chocolate cookies, and they're yummy! I ate a bag on my way home from the store, and Adalyn ate a bag too. She loved them! 

And I picked these up for me. Usually when I'm on my way home from work, I like to eat a quick protein bar or have a little snack so I'm ready to go once we get home, so I thought I would try these, and I'm really hoping they're good!

Let me know if you guys enjoy when I share our grocery store finds! And, do you have a Costco near you?

Firecracker Casserole

Last week, I needed to throw together a quick dinner, with ingredients I had on hand, and I had no inspiration. Thankfully, Pinterest is always reliable, and I found a recipe for Firecracker Casserole. It's a tex-mex inspired casserole, and I thought I'd share it for y'all too! 

Here's my final dish! Lots of cheesy goodness! 

Here's what you'll need:

1 can Cream of Mushroom Soup

1 can Rotel

1 can Black Beans

Tortillas

Shredded Cheese

Ground Beef

Bell Peppers (optional)

Taco Mix or seasonings. 

Here's what you'll do:

Brown your ground beef, add in chopped bell peppers (onions would be a good option too), and taco seasonings. 

Our local HEB makes tortillas fresh in store, and they're the best! I love having these on hand for a quesadilla, taco night, or for this casserole. 

While the meat is cooking, mix together your cans. (You'll definitely want to drain and rinse the black beans.)

In a casserole dish, spray with cooking spray (I use coconut oil), on the bottom of the dish, layer some of your soup mixture, and then torn up tortillas on top. Then, add your taco meat, soup mix, and some cheese. Repeat this process all the way to the top and finish with cheese on top. 

Lots of yummy layers! 

Bake in a 350 oven for 50 minutes. I think 30-40 would've been fine! My cheese got a little crisp! 

We ate in individual servings, and I added some fruit for the girls! 

If you make this dish, let me know! 

You can find all of my pinned dinner recipes on Pinterest here.