My Life

Free Breakfast at Chick-fil-A (Blessed Seven – Vlog #1)

March 26, 2015 by Sandra 6 Comments

I overcame my fear of vlogging today. Although, I do think you can hear a little uncertainty in my voice. 😉

But even so, I made it through one video and found out that it was easier than I thought it would be. I do use the word “um” quite a lot, though. And I didn’t realize that until I started watching the videos. I’m going to work on not using that word so much in the next video.

There’s that, and when I was watching the videos at home, I realized that Elisabeth’s car seat strap wasn’t totally right. She likes to adjust her own straps so that she’s comfortable, but sometimes she overdoes it.

Here’s the video:

By the way, we’ve decided to name these video blogs our “Blessed Seven” vlogs. We chose this name because there are seven of us, and we’re very blessed. 🙂

We thought about naming it “Our Happy Seven” but felt that “Blessed Seven” was more true to life.

Six Flags Great America, a Crazy Funnel Dog, and the Peptocopter

November 8, 2014 by Sandra 4 Comments

A few weeks ago, I had the chance to go out on a date with my husband and very attached 2-year-old daughter, Elisabeth.

That’s right.

We’re a party of three on dates at the moment. And while it’s true that Elisabeth is almost 3-years-old, she’s terrified of staying home with anyone except for me or Ruben. So she always comes along whenever Ruben and I get the rare opportunity to go out on a date.

We’ve pretty much always practiced attachment parenting, but we may be taking things to a whole new level these days. 😉

Or maybe, this is just a perk of being the youngest of five. Either way, she enjoys her solo time with mommy and daddy!

Six Flags Great America

I went to Six Flags as a blogger, but only to have a good time and not for anything work related. I’m writing this wrap-up post just to share about our experience. 🙂

And that happened to involve trying a crazy-weird funnel dog and seeing what’s known as the “Peptocopter” in action.

Because Elisabeth was with us, we decided to focus on riding things she’d enjoy (another baby-of-the-family perk!). So we rode the carousel over and over and stuck to going on child-friendly rides. She loved it!

The Frank’N Bacon Funnel Dog

We’ve eaten food at Six Flags in the past and enjoyed the typical amusement park foods offered like chicken tenders, fries, pulled pork sandwiches, and funnel cakes.

But this time was different. WAY different.

This time we tried the Frank’N Bacon Funnel Dog.

And, yes, it looks as crazy as it sounds.

To be completely honest, I knew this particular funnel dog would be one of the most unhealthy foods I’d ever eat in my life. I knew that.

But I still wanted to like it.

Because when you’re indulging in unhealthy food… it usually tastes good! 😉

Um, that was not the case here.

I disliked this funnel dog — a lot.

I think it was the actual hot dog inside that was the unpleasant part of it. It simply didn’t have a good taste to it. Perhaps, if that part of the Frank’N Bacon Funnel Dog had been different, I might have a different opinion.

In case you’re wondering, Ruben felt the same way. An he regretted eating as much of it as he did!

We ended up sharing a funnel cake later that day. And the funnel cake indulgence was much better than the funnel dog. 🙂

The Peptocopter

All this talk of unhealthy food brings me to the Peptocopter: a helicopter that drops off Pepto-Bismol to those who go a little overboard on unhealthy foods and need some quick relief.

And, guys, if you eat an entire Frank’N Bacon Funnel Dog, the Peptocopter might just become your best friend.

If you look closely, you can see the Pepto-Bismol secured to the bottom of the Peptocopter.

Ruben and I watched as the Peptocopter sprang into action and delivered some relief to a waiting Six Flags guest. It was pretty entertaining.

And I think it’s a fun way to tackle overindulgence at an amusement park. 🙂

Our little date turned out great! I even enjoyed the long drive there and back. It gave me and Ruben the chance to have a conversation without constant interruptions.

That was nice. 🙂

Have you been to ever been to Six Flags Great America, tried a Frank’N Bacon Funnel Dog, or had a look at the Peptocopter?

Child Hunger Ends Here: Map the Meal Gap and How We Can Help

August 15, 2014 by Sandra 2 Comments

This is a sponsored collaboration with The Motherhood and Child Hunger Ends Here
to bring awareness to child hunger in our country.

When I read the online headlines or simply check my Facebook news feed, it seems like there’s no shortage of bad things happening in this world.

They’re everywhere. And it all seems so overwhelming.

I’m sure you know a lot of the headlines I’m eluding to, but one particular issue that has my attention right now is child hunger. To be more specific, child hunger that’s happening here in the United States — in our own backyard.

Child Hunger Ends Here Program

Last month, I talked about the Child Hunger Ends Here program and how you can easily make a difference in a child’s life by simply buying foods your family already loves and entering the codes found on certain products into the widget in my sidebar.

For those families and others across the country, every meal counts, and you can help! You can continue to visit the Child Hunger Ends Here website to enter codes found on participating ConAgra Foods product packaging through August 28, 2014.

Each code represents one meal for a child who needs it!

Map the Meal Gap

This month, I want to show you one way you can get an idea of how child hunger impacts your state and even your local community by using this hunger map. I checked my home state of Illinois and found that there are nearly two million people that are food insecure! That simply should not be true! 🙁

The hunger map actually lets you take things a step further and allows you to see how many people need meals in your local community. This was also eye-opening for me.

DID YOU KNOW? Child hunger is an issue that is closer than you think. You can find hunger statistics for your area on the Child Hunger Ends Here website.

Just select your state and county from the interactive map and learn more about your neighbors struggling with hunger and the food banks that serve them.

Teachable Moments

I’ve been working on planning our home school year, and I’m going to add a lesson on child hunger and what we can do about it. I’m hoping my kids take it to heart and it becomes teaching that sticks with them for a long time to come. 🙂

Did you check out the hunger map for your area? What are some ways you’ve helped fight hunger in your local community?

A Quick 1 to 2 Minute Survey

Would you be willing to take a quick 1 to 2 minute survey to help gauge awareness about child hunger? If so, head on over here to share your thoughts. Thank you kindly.

Review and Fave Features of the HTC One (M8) Harman/Kardon Edition Smartphone

May 29, 2014 by Sandra 2 Comments

I participated in a campaign on behalf of Mom Central Consulting (#MC) for Sprint. I received a product sample to facilitate my review and to thank me for participating. #SprintMom

I mentioned in a previous post that I’m a 2014 Sprint Ambassador. This means that over the course of a year, I’ll have the amazing opportunity to try out various Sprint devices and service options and then share my experience with you here on The Sensible Mom.

Today, I’m sharing my thoughts on the beautifully crafted all-metal HTC One M8 Harman/Kardon Edition smartphone.

This phone is awesome.

What really sets it apart from other smartphones is the high-caliber design inside and out that provides you with a music experience unlike any other. No joke. The sound quality coming from this phone is superb. The HTC One M8 Harman/Kardon Edition smartphone even includes headphones that are not only comfortable, but they also help to create a marvelous listening experience.

3 Favorite Features

Besides the listening experience, here are the other features that I love about this smartphone:

1. I love the 5-inch Full HD screen. My regular smartphone is the Moto X, which has a smaller screen than the HTC One M8 Harman/Kardon Edition, but I instantly fell in love with how my site and other websites displayed on the larger screen.

2. With Sprint Sound Sessions, I love having access to Spotify’s catalogue of more than 20 million songs! My favorite music to listen to is Christian music, and I was pleased to see that after getting the Spotify app set up on my phone, I could immediately start listening to the music I enjoy most.

My husband and kids will confirm that I’m the type of girl that likes music playing all day long. I’ll turn it on in the morning and then let it encourage us until late in the evening. Dancing and singing throughout the day with my baby girl isn’t optional. 😉

3. I love the camera. It actually takes better pictures than my current smartphone.

Here’s one of the pictures I took during one of our playtimes outside:

And here’s a picture I snapped at the NRA Show in Chicago:

Harman Kardon Onyx Studio

Along with the smartphone, I was able to try out the Harman Kardon Onyx Studio. And just — wow. This little speaker is unbelievable.

Let’s just say that we watched the movie FROZEN during a recent family night, and the Harman Kardon Onyx Studio has been blasting out Elisabeth’s new favorite songs, “Let It Go” and “In Summer.”

We don’t own the FROZEN soundtrack, but because of the bluetooth technology in the Harman Kardon Onyx Studio, we can listen to anything we want to from YouTube and make it sound awesome with this speaker.

Oh, and we also used the speaker when we celebrated Nathan’s 14th birthday last weekend. It definitely took our little family party up a notch!

And Finally…Who’s Keeping the Smartphone

Sprint’s website talks about the type of person who will love the HTC One M8 Harman/Kardon Edition smartphone. They say this phone will be adored by “creative changemakers.” I guess that’s me. But I also hope that it’s my husband, because he’s going to keep it.

I’m calling it an “Early Father’s Day” gift. 😉