Tags
After Bite, Alastin, backyard toys, beach bag, bottled water, bug bites, cleansing cloths, Hawaiian Volcanic Water, pool tote, pool toys, Summer Beauty, Summer's Eve, summertime, sunscreen, toy-lending library, Toybrary, Waiakea, wipes
This summer we’ve been spending A LOT more time outside: checking out the best playgrounds in Austin, visiting our neighborhood pools and checking out area splash pads. All those activities out in the elements require some extra supplies! It’s easy if the pool tote just stays in the trunk so it’s packed and ready to go for wherever we end up. Here are some products that are perfect for your summertime beach bag!
A Sweat-Proof SPF: 
ALASTIN HydraTint ProMineral Broad Spectrum Sunscreen SPF 36 is lightweight, oil-free, absorbs quickly and has a complexion-enhancing tint to even out tone for light, comfortable coverage. Other sunscreens make skin slick and sticky. But ALASTIN HydraTint’s active ingredients, titanium dioxide and zinc oxide, sop up excess oil and help create a mattifying effect on skin—so you can say good-bye to shine.
The best part is that it’s ideal to wear when you’re going to be active outdoors during the summer. It has a 40 minute water resistance rating, which helps wick off sweat and keep skin protected during a sweat sesh. Plus, since this is a mineral sunscreen, it won’t sting if it gets into your eyes. When you go out, consider this the only all-in-one skin enhancing, age defying, broad spectrum sunscreen you need. Here’s to effortless beauty—even when you sweat.
Instant Relief for Bug Bites & Stings: 
I was stung by a yellowjacket in my backyard last week and this stuff worked in a flash. I immediately iced the area, followed with a dab of After Bite, and the wasp sting was gone! After Bite has provided instant itch relief from bug bites and stings for over 40 years for adults and kids. The pharmacist-preferred, proprietary mix of soothing ingredients acts fast when you need it most so that bites and stings don’t ruin family fun. After Bite Kids is also available with a non-stinging sensitive cream that is gentle on kids or perfect for anyone with sensitive skin. Available at Walmart, CVS, Target, Rite Aid, Walgreens, Kroger, and at afterbite.com.
Rental Pool Toys: 
Don’t want to invest in a multitude of outdoor-appropriate toys this summer? —Toybrary to the rescue! Use your membership to Austin’s local toy-lending library to rent backyard, pool & bath toys this summer. They’ve got bikes & trikes, sit & spins, cones & parachutes, a mini Radio Flyer wagon, and lots more. Banish their summer boredom with new toys every two weeks! I picked up some fun cars & trucks, this tug boat Pictured above, and a little swing for my toddler’s dolls during our last visit. We can pop the cars and this little boat in the pool bag and we’ve got an easy enhancement for our outdoor play dates.
Hawaiian Hydration: 
Gotta admit: I occasionally entertain the indulgence of splurging on fancy bottled waters from across the globe. Pack a few bottles of this alkaline water all the way from Hawaii to feel a little fancy during your next day in the sun. Waiakea Hawaiian Volcanic Water has just launched eco-friendly six and 12 packs of its award-winning alkaline water. Waiakea is not just the only certified CarbonNeutral bottled beverage in the country (helllllooo, eco-friendly), but it is also lauded for its wide variety of ethical initiatives that benefit communities both in its local Hawaii and across the globe.
Refreshing Wipes: 
Ever feel the need to freshen up? We’ve all had daily “not so fresh” moments, especially during the heat & humidity of summer! Whether running to a class or a meeting, post work-out with no time to shower, or even during that time of the month, Summer’s Eve Cleansing Cloths provide an easy and discreet way to feel confidently fresh. The cloths are lightly fragranced and quickly wipe away odor-causing bacteria. Available in scents like Aloe Love, Island Splash, Sheer Floral, and Simply Sensitive at CVS, Duane Reade, Walmart, Target, Amazon and Walgreens.
FREE private spin class for Austin mamas & their friends! Join me for a pre-Mother’s Day appreciation ride at 
Can’t wait to see y’all! ~Lindsey
Home to our city’s only indoor skydiving tunnel, this place is legit. So legit, in fact, that when we arrived for our mid-morning “flight,” the freaking ARMY was training there. Legit soldiers were in full gear practicing for when they’ll have to jump out of planes to keep America safe. Understandably, they wouldn’t allow me to take pics. Seeing a few minutes of their training was an honor.
Then, we were ready to fly! Neither of us have gone skydiving before so it was our first experience with anything like this. –SO hilarious to see each other’s reactions! With the basic level ticket price, you get two flights. For the second round, we chose to upgrade a bit…the instructor takes you on spins and way up high to the top of the tunnel. This way, even though you’re a beginner, you still get to experiment with trying some tricks! 
It was an unexpected adrenaline rush that left us energized for the week. So, if you’re like me and feel like you & partner’s typical date-nights are in a bit of a rut, definitely give indoor skydiving a try. It’s the “something different” you’ve been looking for, trust me! They’re open until 9 or 10 p.m. most nights, so it can really fit into any schedule. Safe to say, we definitely bought ourselves return flights before we left. Thanks to iFLY for a truly unique day-date experience — we’ll be back!
The boot socks, woven with merino wool & contour cushioning, are essential for anyone that loves a good hike as much as we do. 
They’ve just opened a plethora of presents under the tree and were drug to more holiday events than they can count. As much as we try to make them feel special and not forgotten after the Christmas chaos, winter birthdays aren’t the best. Everyone’s coming down from that yule-tide high and ready to just #NetflixandChill. After those packed schedules that come with the holiday season, people are beginning to settle back into their regular routine and at this point, are frankly partied-out.
But what to do when the dreary days of January & February have most of us ready to hit the fast forward button to Easter? My little one has an early January birthday and last year I kept it low-key for her first birthday celebration. Admittedly, that approach was due to me feeling like I was still getting my shit together has a new mom and couldn’t fathom adding party planning into the mix. So we went for something small and intimate, no guest list to manage, no decorations to fuss over. I have a little twinge of mom-guilt over it, but we ended up skipping the traditional 1st bday party in lieu of a morning of simply doing an activity she loved. We chose to spend a couple hours at 
This year, I am kinda taking the opposite approach… Thankfully it is now in my capacity to take it up a few notches for her second birthday. We’re throwing our little one a Texas “2”-Step themed party. To kick things off, we are hosting local children’s music artist 
Lunch will be catered by Austin’s famous 
Austin’s official children’s museum is a wealth of opportunity for fun & learning for families with kids of all ages & stages. They put on a slew of summer camps, reserve a “Baby Bloomers” morning just for the littlest crawlers, host a number of special events throughout the year, etc. As my “Community Placement” with 
Here’s the dollar-by-dollar breakdown: the average family in the U.S. spends $740 a year on toys if they have one child, and $1,200 a year on toys if they have two children. (PRWeb.com) With Toybrary memberships at $40 per month & a year’s membership adding up to $420, the savings most families see is over $300 per year! If you go once a week, and check out 3 toys each time, the kids get to use 12 toys per month. But don’t forget, families can visit and exchange toys as often as they like.
This selfie snap = my mood driving from home this morning: angry Mozart on blast and wearing head-to-toe black, almost as if in mourning for the future of our nation. Well, the Lord has a way of speaking to our hearts at exactly when we need to hear Him, amen? I’m thankful the Pastors at 
The full video of their 17-minute message is linked above, but from my notes, I wanted to share some Scripture-based takeaways that helped me begin to Keep Calm and Carry On:
We recently had the special opportunity to shoot our family holiday photos at 
Although it’s private property and you do need an appt./permission to shoot there, I spoke with the owner at length before our session & he is opening it up as much as he can for photos. The venue (his home) is his labor of love and called it like a cultural center…holding weddings there is donation-based, for example.
It’s sad, really: due to some city zoning issues & complaints from neighbors, it’ll probably get all torn down and turned into condos soon. You can read more about the plight of the our community’s “secret theater” 
Today, I’m sharing photos from inside the greenhouse, but more moments from the rest of our shoot will be shared here on the blog & 
