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This Parent Is Positively Prepared For Back To School
- 7:19 am
- 0 comments
- by Adanna Dill
I have received information and materials from JOHNSON & JOHNSON CONSUMER, Inc., McNeil Consumer Healthcare Division, LLC. The opinions stated are my own. This is a sponsored post. #PositivelyPrepared #BacktoSchool #CollectiveBias

Most of us moms go out of our way to ensure that we get everything on our checklist for our kids to head back to school and guess who we forget about in the process? Ourselves. Whenever school starts I realize that just like my kids, I need to get some shopping done for myself too so that I am at my best for them. Their needs and my needs are changing as they get older and our lifestyle changes. Here are 6 things that are necessary for me to be prepared for back to school this year:

1. Sunglasses

Now that I have to prepare lunches, make breakfast and dress two kids every morning I am sure that there will be many mornings that I wouldn’t have the time to put even consider makeup. I love sunglasses because they make me feel pulled together and are perfect for hiding tired eyes. I got this fun pair that really speaks to my personality and I know would brighten up my mornings.

2. Tote Bag

I need all the space I can get to carry around everything that I need to support my kids on school days. A tote bag is really necessary especially for the days we have after school activities. I usually walk with snacks, water, and extra clothing and or extra layers for the kids and myself.

3. Comfortable Shoes

I love ankle strap sandals and how well they work with so much of my clothes but most styles usually have heels that are at least 4 inches tall which made me very excited to find them with 2″ heels this weekend. They’re perfect for the warm days as the weather transitions from summer to fall. I also love that they look great with just about everything and make me look a little more dressy.

4. Planner

I’ve become really addicted to my planner and I try to plan my days as much as I can. It’s a lifesaver and I know once my kids return to school it’s going to be even more important so I can remember all of the PTA meetings, school events and field trips for both of my kids.

5. Alarm Clock

My alarm clock isn’t a new purchase but I made sure to get new batteries for it since it’s been out of commission all summer (I am happy about that). I am not a morning person so I need all the help I can get, a combination of alarms on my phone and my clock usually gets me out of bed.

6. Pain Relief

By now most of you know how much I love Target and while I was grabbing a few things for the kids recently I made a detour and got some pain relief medication since I noticed our cabinet was running low. I hope I wouldn’t ever have to use it but I like to be prepared in the case that I have to.

I try my best to get a good night’s rest and as I mentioned before I make an effort to go to bed as early as possible but if I have any aches or pain I’m usually unable to fall asleep. I picked up TYLENOL® PM for that rare night since I’ve found it to effectively relieve minor aches and pains at night so I can fall asleep. It’s non-habit forming when used as directed which is very important to me.

Of course, aches and pains don’t just happen at night so I also picked up Extra Strength TYLENOL® which I’ve found to work well against tension headaches or to temporarily relieve minor aches and pains caused by the common muscular aches, premenstrual and menstrual cramps and to temporarily reduce an adult fever when used as directed. Whew! I really hope I wouldn’t need it.

I wasn’t selfish and only purchased what I needed. My husband prefers MOTRIN® PM for his pain relief especially after a long day of work. Although he rarely gets aches and pains like myself I wanted to be prepared so he wouldn’t be up at night in pain.

Now that I have everything that I need, I am looking forward to the new school year and I will be sure to keep you updated with how it goes for my family.

How are you preparing yourself for back to school?

*Always use and store medication as directed. Get positively prepared with the right pain relief for you and your family at Target.
Family Travel, Sponsored
Where to stay in Chicago with kids
- 1:13 am
- 7 Comments
- by Adanna Dill
I partnered with Embassy Suites by Hilton as a #PrettyGreat ambassador for this sponsored post.

My family had a pretty great time in Chicago earlier this month. I was happy to share all the fun things we did in this post and I was even happier when a mom tagged me on Instagram to thank me for the suggestions because her family had such a good time. So I wanted to go a step further and share more about where we stayed in Chicago, Embassy Suites by Hilton Chicago Downtown Magnificent Mile.

The kids and I in the lobby of Embassy Suites by Hilton Chicago Magnificent Mile

[Tweet “Make sure your Chicago trip is #PrettyGreat! Here’s where to stay in Chicago with kids!”]

Ease of making reservations and checking in.

So I am going to start from the beginning of this trip. Once Mr. Rattles and I decided to go to Chicago I hopped on my computer to book our stay and it took me only two minutes. I’m not exaggerating either, in two minutes a confirmation email was sitting in my inbox. The day of our arrival using the Hilton HHonors app, I had the option to check in, request a room upgrade and activate a digital room key all from my iPhone.

Comfy beds.

A few nights before we left for Chicago, my husband asked me what’s one thing I would really want to get out of this trip. My natural response was “Just to have fun and make new memories as a family”. He gave me a side eye, and as I laughed at my cliché answer I responded: “I just want to sleep in late and eat breakfast in bed.” Well, the first thing I learned about this hotel when I got in and plopped my entire body in the middle of the king sized bed was that the beds are comfy which is not something that I say often since I am a bit of bed snob. I slept in about an hour late every morning while we were there.

[Tweet “I just want to sleep in late and eat breakfast in bed.”]

Suite Life

As our kids grow older, we are much more conscious of our need for privacy so the two room suite was certainly welcomed. While the kids napped in the bedroom, Mr. Rattles and I got the time to catch up on some Netflix and to chat by ourselves. There is a sofa bed in the living room area which makes this space perfect for families.

Free Breakfast.

My husband who is the early riser of our family would go down to take advantage of the free breakfast and bring back a tray for the kids and I to have in bed. The free breakfast was a wonderful perk since we were traveling with small children and the last thing we wanted to do was go out and hunt for food for them. It’s not an awful free breakfast either, there was a really wide range of options so we didn’t end up boring ourselves eating the same breakfast 4 mornings in a row.

Location

I’ve mentioned this before but I think it’s worth saying again. The location of your hotel will impact the quality of your trip. This hotel is conveniently located close to all of the fun things I mentioned that we did in my previous post. The Navy Pier, Chicago Children’s Museum and the Riverwalk are all a very short walk from here. The Magnificent Mile area where the hotel is located is filled with culture, shopping and tourist attractions. For instance, there was a Target store only one block away, banks, restaurants, and even a movie theater next door. We were looking forward to trying Chicago’s famous Grimaldi’s deep dish pizza and was happy to learn that there were a few locations within walking distance.

We also stocked up on snacks and grabbed dinner on our last night at the Wholefoods grocery store across the street from the hotel.

Evening Reception.

After a long day wandering around Chicago, it was nice to come back in and enjoy the evening reception at the hotel. They served both alcohol and non-alcohol drinks and of course I enjoyed a glass of red wine one of the nights we were there.

Gym

After enjoying wine and pizza, my body needed some exercise so I went to the gym for a quick workout. The equipment were all modern and clean. The best part is that the view from the gym was fabulous which served as motivation.

Views

Okay, it’s not just the gym but the views of Chicago from our room were also breathtaking. The Princess Fairy enjoyed staring out the window and daydreaming. For me, it was the nighttime lights that really got me excited. I enjoyed going to bed and waking up to the sights of the beautiful skyscrapers of this midwestern oasis. If you follow me on Snapchat, then you know that I couldn’t stop talking about the views. We stayed at this property during July 4th holiday and the rooms that faced the Navy Pier had wonderful views of the fireworks. If you’re planning to visit around that time of the year, I would suggest that you reserve a room with a view of the Navy Pier.

Chicago was epic! I think everyone in our family will always treasure the memories we created there . I’m so happy we get to share it all with you and hopefully inspire you to go make some family memories too.

What do you look for in a hotel when you’re traveling with your family?

Related: 10 Awesome things to do with kids in Chicago
Healthy Eating, Lifestyle, Motherhood, Product Reviews, Sponsored, Things to do
Summer Picnic with Kids
- 6:06 pm
- 7 Comments
- by Adanna Dill
So I have a really good weekend story to share but you have to promise to read all the way to end (or you will miss the best part). Saturday was hot here in New York City, so hot that I didn’t take the kids outside so they stayed in and enjoyed The Super Knight’s leftover ice cream cake and watched Zootopia. That worked on Saturday but by Sunday they weren’t having it, they wanted to get out of the house. Since we had a really nice picnic last Sunday, I figured we do it again this week.

[Tweet “#UnleashClean at your picnic with kids because there will be spills and maybe an uninvited guest! “]

Now a summer picnic with kids seems really simple right? but it’s not. My kids are super picky about everything from finding the perfect spot at the park to what we should eat. Oh, did I mention the dragon flys the size of my head buzzing around that makes it even harder to find the right spot?

First things first, we I decided that since it was so hot we needed to keep our snacks light and healthy. I packed fruit cups with green grapes and strawberries, sour cream flavored popcorn and sea salt crackers that I topped with olive tapenade. To make sure that the fruits remained fresh, I placed a Viva towel in each up and covered with cling wrap. Over on Snapchat, I shared the refreshing mix of seltzer water with strawberries, mint leaves, and blueberries that I made in a big mason jar for us.

Once we found the perfect spot I laid out our spread and decided to relax for a bit until the little ones insisted that we get up and blow some bubbles together.

Well with no support our blanket blew over, thankfully not completely but enough that our drinks spilled. Fortunately, I had Viva Towels that I’ve mentioned a few times before on hand. I love Viva Towels because they are strong and durable like cloth. The Viva Vantage towels are perfect for cleaning more grimy dirt like dirt on our picnic blanket because of it’s a scrubby texture

I love the job that Viva Towels do so much that I even packed some and folded them as napkins.

Anyway, the kids went right back to alternating between playing and snacking (especially The Princess Fairy she loved the snacks).

I settled in with a magazine until my daughter looked up and announced that there was a raccoon in the tree above staring at our picnic. I thought she was joking until I made eye contact with him myself. A seriously chilling moment guys!

[Tweet “I #unleashclean at our Sunday picnic and a raccoon showed up”]

Listen, you may think I’m a wuss and I know it’s not cool to show your kids your fear but there was something about the way that raccoon that scared me. He looked like he was ready to come get our picnic AT THAT VERY MOMENT. I’ve never packed up so quickly in my life. It’s hilarious in retrospect but as I put all out things away and he started moving around in the tree and the fear in my body was too real.

I explained to my kids that raccoons are nocturnal and although they are sometimes spotted during the day that could be a sign that he’s sick. They both felt really bad and thought he was cute. Me on the other hand, I couldn’t stop thinking about his claws and the eye contact we made but I hope he’s okay and if he was sick they were able to get him help. We told a couple who were playing nearby with a ball just so they didn’t accidently hit him and they immediately went over to bring it to the park’s staff attention. This lead to a small crowd gathering around the tree (which I am sure scared the raccoon).

Needless to say, after the raccoon showed up at our picnic, I’m probably done with picnics for this summer. I think we can find something else fun to do.

Ever had an uninvited animal show up to your picnic?

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