Category Archives: Cruising

Have MORE fun with your kids using Groupon Coupons!

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Disclosure: This is a sponsored post.  I received monetary payment for this post, but all opinions are my own. 

Groupon coupon
As a single mom, money is always tight and when I have a little extra, I want to have the most fun possible with my kids.  If we plan a trip to do anything at all, I am looking for coupons to use so I can save money on that activity.  (More money saved = More fun we can have!)

When we start planning something to do, the very first place I start is Groupon Coupons.  If I know what I want to do, or a round about location we will be visiting I search their site and see what deals and coupons they are offering.  Usually, I can save at least 50% on our outing if I can find a Groupon.

For me, having the Groupon either means one of two things.  Either I am able to spend the extra money on something additional for the kids, like a souvenir or extra snack or a meal out.  OR the activity is now affordable and we can go vs I may not have had the extra money to go without using Groupon to find extra savings.

We have used Groupon for a variety of activities, but now they have additional coupons like through Hotels . com.  Well if you shop through Groupon Coupons you can get an additional 50% coupon for Hotels.com, so in addition to the great deal you would be getting on a hotel, you are also going to get an additional discount too!

If you love to travel, here is a list of what you can save even more on using Groupon:
Hertz
Hotels . com
Hotwire
Travelocity

Also, don’t forget to check your zip code and travel destination for LOCAL Groupons!   Not only to save money, but also for ideas of things to do!  I have found many cool things to do both in my area and on vacation through Groupon.com!

colton at Indians Game

Never Iron on Vacation again Thanks to Downy Wrinkle Release

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Nothing is more annoying than packing your suitcase for vacation and arriving only to have to iron all your wrinkled clothes.  Trust me- as someone who travels a lot- I know all about that.  Well thanks to Downy Wrinkle Release you never have to break out that iron again!

Downy Wrinkle Releaser

Just add a travel sized bottle to your suit case- when you get to your destination, spray down all your wrinkled clothes and viola!  Wrinkle Free Clothes, and a hassle free vacation!

Step 1:  Spray your garment

 

Downying Spraying

Step 2:  After 15 minutes, smooth our garment.  And Boom!  Wrinkle Free.Downy ComparisionI love this stuff and I definitely bring it along when I am traveling.  I also use it on my clothes that have a tendency to wrinkle- lets face it, with two kids things don’t make it from the dryer to closet as fast as they used to. :-)

Disclosure:  I received free product to test out for the purpose of writing this post.  

40 Bloggers + 1 Royal Caribbean Cruise Ship = #SeasTheDay

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Earlier this month I joined 39 other bloggers and we set sail on a Royal Caribbean Cruise Ship.  While I really wished my family could have been there, it gave me some much needed (okay not really needed because I have had a lot of it lately) me time and a lot of fun.

What did we do?  I am SURE you are wondering what is it that 40 bloggers would do on a cruise together.  Well we did A LOT!

jamie and i

The first day I got in I met my AWESOME roommate, Jamie, from Toys In the Dryer.  She was pretty much a perfect roomie match for me.  We both like to have fun and stay up late.  We had a complete blast together and I don’t think I could have been paired up with anyone better.  :-)  We met everyone later that evening at a little social where we learned about everything we would be doing on the cruise.  This is a really great group of bloggers- everyone is friendly and everyone will talk to everyone.

The next day we had a complete tour of the ship Liberty Of the Seas.  It is HUGE and there was so much to see.  I will have a complete blog post about the ship, but to highlight a few things: a first class spa, a wellness center with options to take classes so you can keep the pounds off while on the cruise, a kids zone complete with age appropriate rooms and activities, an arcade, mini golf, rock climbing, and a surf simulator.

seas the day 1

There are also MANY shows to see while you are on LIberty of the Seas, we saw the Ice Skating show and Saturday Night Fever as a group.  The Ice Skating show was really awesome, and the night we saw it they also had a hula hoop talent and she was FABULOUS.  They kept us on our toes during the whole show, but my favorite part was the Hula Hoop girl.  The first time I saw Saturday Night Fever was on the ship, it was a good show but I thought it was really sad in the end :-(  Many of the other group members also saw the shows Love and Marriage Game and .

funny faces

I also went rock climbing with a bunch of the other bloggers.  First- it is WAY harder than it looks, second- I am surprised at how well *I* did- especially for how out of shape I am.  It was really fun and something I will definitely try again!

I think one of my favorite things to do was to order room service every morning and eat lunch on our balcony.  I know, I know but it was such a relaxing way to start my morning.  I have stayed in an interior room before and now that I stayed with a balcony, I am not sure I can go back because it was REALLY nice to have that :-).
seas the day breakfast

Oh and Jamie and I also had a great time going to Catabombs and dancing our hearts out with some other bloggers.  The one thing I can say about Royal Caribbean Ships is that they crowd is definitely more mature- no crazies on the dance floor, just a great group of friendly people all having a good time.  They also have a Karaoke night.  If you want to sing on the stage you definitely need to get there early.  When we got there the list was full for the ENTIRE night- so we went to the Karaoke booth and sang instead.

Okay and Now you get to know what I would like to see changed about the Liberty of the Seas, there is always room for improvement, right?
1. SMOKING IN THE CASINO.  This was my HUGE HUGE HUGE Pet peeve about this ship is the cigarette smoking in the casino.  I would have loved to go play a little in the casino but couldn’t stand to walk through it, let alone sit there because of the smoking.  The way the casino was positioned you HAD to walk through it, and it was horrible.  Not only this but if you were in the lounge right outside the casino the cigarette smoke lingered to there and it made enjoying this lounge intolerable as well, even though the piano music was really great.
2. Smoking on the pool decks.  I learned really quickly that one side of the main pool deck was smoking and the other wasn’t.  It was still disgusting- it would be great if the entire ship was non smoking.
3. Drink Packages-  I opted to go without the drink package, and I was really fine without it since I do not drink pop, and only drink water anyway.  But there were a lot and it was very confusing and expensive to get some of the drink packages.  Once I understood each of the drink packages, it was easy to know that I would never actually drink enough to get one.
4. More food options in Windjammer.  I was not a fan of eating in the Windjammer restaurant at all.  Jamie and I ate in the formal dining room almost always but the few times we ate in Windjammer I was definitely less than thrilled.  The food in the formal dining room was delicious though- I am not sure why there was such a difference in food quality- it is probably because Windjammer was a buffet style so it sat out before I ate it.

This trip was definitely a fun one.  The cruise was awesome and the friends I met will last a life time!

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