Tags
Alkaline Water, Alkalizing Water Treatment, caffeinated soap, DirtyBird Energy Bar, ENERGYbits, Father's Day, Father's Day Gift Guide, Practical Gifts for Dad, spirulina supplements, Summer Travel
After nine years of married life, my husband and I have evolved into gifting each other more practical, useful gifts for the holidays. Case in point: we recently celebrated a wedding anniversary and our gift to each other was a new vacuum. –Seriously. It was a really nice hi-tech vacuum, but a household cleaning device nonetheless. We figure, we have everything we need and buy ourselves what we want –within reason and many times after each other’s counsel. Now, for milestone birthdays & anniversaries, we favor the gift of experiences: i.e. international travel, concerts, weekend staycations, etc. But especially since becoming parents, for those “greeting card holidays” like Valentine’s Day & Mother’s/Father’s Day, we appreciate unique everyday gifts that are consumable and practical. For starters, he’s asked for a tub of Tacodeli’s “Dona” sauce (now available at Whole Foods Market!) and it’s already in the fridge waiting for him. Here are some other ideas:
For the Clean Freak Dad: Caffeinated soap. DirtyBird Energy is dedicated to creating products to help productivity for active, busy lifestyles. Whether it is at the office, during a workout, or raising children, they want to help everyone be at their best and most productive. Each DirtyBird Energy Bar is infused with ingredients to help achieve this goal.
—The Energy Soap bars are infused with caffeine and peppermint oil to energize the body and mind. Scientific studies show caffeine absorbs through pores and hair follicles, which will energize the body even before your first cup of coffee in the morning.
—The Relax Soap bars are infused with lavender, chamomile, rosemary, and ylang ylang essential oils. Each of these oils absorbs to relax the body and mind as well as soothe the skin. An evening shower with Relax helps to promote a restful sleep allowing him to wake up refreshed & ready for the day ahead.
And the soap isn’t the only thing that’s special! Each soap comes packaged in a patented reusable container that snaps shut and allows Dad to take his soap anywhere (the gym, camping, vacation, etc.) or use it to keep other goodies in. And DirtyBird Energy is proudly made in the U.S.A. — another plus! DirtyBird Energy Soaps are available in singles, a 2-pack variety, 6 packs or in a monthly subscription, delivered right to his doorstep every month.
For the Traveling Dad: Alkaline water. With summer around the corner, the whole family will be drinking a lot more water. These alkalizing sachets by Coral LLC help raise the pH of his drinking water, buffer chlorine, and add Vitamin C & antioxidants by way of ionic trace minerals. This is a great thing to pack in his backpack during summer travel — useful for weekend camping trips and international excursions alike (both places where the tap water can be suspect!)
I especially love their portability — perfect for amping up water fountain tap water when refilling your reusable water bottle. Whether at home or on the go, the convenient mineral sachets can easily transform ordinary water—bottled or treated—into a boosted beverage that may help support optimal energy and hydration. Alkalized water has also been known to help the body maintain a healthy pH balance, hydration level, and metabolism, as well as support natural detoxification.
For the Dad Who Does It All: Spirulina supplements. ENERGYbits spirulina tablets fire up your thinking, improve your alertness and protect your brain health all WITHOUT caffeine, chemicals, sugar or gluten. After his big day, RECOVERYbits step in by speeding muscle recovery. These supplements are a 1-2 punch that will improve everything Dad does, from his golf game to his career. 
He’ll love how razor-sharp his thinking gets with ENERGYbits and it’s all thanks to their high concentration of healthy fatty acids, plant-protein, chlorophyll and B vitamins, with no caffeine, chemicals or sugar. These tiny little algae tablets are the healthiest way for everyone to focus better, recover quick, and work smarter not harder. Show your dad (and yourself) some love this Father’s Day and feed your brain with bits. One size fits all!
The Chicago-based Backpack debuted in September and is available in two blend varieties, Cheek Rose’ and Snappy White, in four-can packs. 
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 
The HartFelt 360 Toothbrush is the world’s first 360 degree toothbrush and revolutionizes your brushing experience with unparalleled cleaning power.
INVO Tropical is packed with 5 essential electrolytes, low in sugar and 99% fat free. With a great source of vitamins C and B, INVO’s cold pasteurization process locks in all the nutrients, giving that freshly cracked coconut experience, just as nature intended. It is never frozen, never heated and has nothing artificial added, making it a healthy beverage choice to experience the tropics without the guilt.
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.
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 & 
Thrive are made up of a superfood ancient grain blend, are all less than 200 calories and provide plant-based protein, essential fatty acids, and prebiotic fiber to fuel your body and mind. Like all GoMacro products, Thrive are USDA-Certified Organic, Non-GMO Project Verified, Kosher, Gluten-Free certified, 100% Vegan, and soy-free. Thrive is currently available to purchase online and will become available at Whole Foods Market locations this month. *Special discount for Blog Joie de Vivre readers: Use code Thrive30 for 30% off of your purchase for Thrive at 
A healthy alternative to other fattening dips on the market, HOPE makes a terrific snack for the whole family. Eat it with pita chips, vegetables or try one of their 
Lightweight and long-lasting (no refrigeration necessary), the all-natural, Non-GMO Project-verified snack is ideal for Halloween, but also perfect for school lunches and extracurricular activities for kids (and parents) constantly on the go. There are NO skeletons in the closet here – Crispy Fruit has no cholesterol or fat, no added sugar, is free of additives and preservatives, is nut-free, Kosher certified and has a long shelf life. Crispy Fruit is available online and in retailers such as The Fresh Market, Harris Teeter, ShopRite, Safeway and selected Whole Foods Markets.
This event will also celebrate the launch of Taco Cabana’s month-long fundraiser, Taco Treat, to benefit the 
