How to Pack to Save Money and Have Fun at Great Wolf Lodge!

Next week we will be heading back to the The Great Wolf Lodge to join many other local home school families and to celebrate my husband's 43rd birthday!

I never thought we would be Great Wolf Lodge enthusiasts, but we are. The indoor water park has something for everyone, the staff is friendly and very helpful, it's a clean hotel, and the lifeguards are some of the best I've ever seen! They often have discounts offered on Groupon, and always offered for military and emergency response families, as part of their Howling Heros deal.

January 2016 - Family of 6!

It all started with a trip last November. Daddy scored a great deal and off we went. I scoured the web for tips and tricks on how to save money while staying at GWL. The ideas I gathered greatly helped me pack and prepare for our overnight stay.

After one trip, the kids were hooked (including the biggest kid of all - Daddy!). We returned to the Lodge in January to celebrate my daughter's 7th birthday. Only this time we were a little wiser and had a newborn with us. My husband's parents and brother, along with his family, joined us as well! It was a blast!!!

As a mom of four little ones and a mom with specific dietary needs (Trim Healthy Mama diet specifically), I thought my experience and tips may help others as well. So, here's a run down of things to pack and/or prepare for as you plan a trip to Great Wolf Lodge. 


BE IN THE KNOW:
 - Great Wolf Lodge (at least the one in Grapevine, TX) has the corner on the food market. They boast of their 7 different restaurants to choose from, but when it comes down to it the food isn't as good as home-cooked meal and is very spendy. So.... pack a cooler of food! Pretend that you are camping... in a hotel! There is a microwave and a mini fridge in every hotel room. This makes life easy when storing food from home and warming up a meal or a snack.

- You CAN take a few snacks into the water park, but not bags of take out food from your favorite local restaurant. I usually pack water bottles and snacks in our backpack so we are less tempted to purchase an over-priced snack or drink from the food stand in the park.

- In the past we have ordered pizza and salad from the pizza shop in the Lodge and eaten it for dinner at least one night during our stay. When we return next week, we plan to order from Little Ceaser's down the street and pick it up for a pizza party with friend in our hotel room. Again, saving money and a bit of heartburn, as the GWL pizza is pricey and greasy!

Pizza and giggles for dinner at the water park!

- There are various other "expereinces" offered at the Lodge. We stay away from MagiQuest and ShadowQuest but have enjoyed the Howly Wood XD Theater (a movie theater with short shows that you can enjoy in 3-D in chairs that shake and move), The Scoops Salon (an over-priced, heavy-scented place for girls to have their nails painted) and the Northern Lights Arcade (see below).

- On our first visit we purchased a refillable game card to add money to to play the arcade games. The games are much more enjoyable for the kids and Dad than our local Chuck-E-Cheese. Some games give tickets and at the end of our stay the kids have enjoyed choosing a stuffed animal or other toy from the prizes offered. This isn't necessary to enjoy GWL, but the arcade games offer a break from the warm air and chlorine in the middle of the day.

Daddy hit the ticket jackpot!


THINGS WE PACK:
For the water park:
 - goggles for the kids (they are in heavily chlorinated water all day and the goggles help protect their eyes)
- Swimsuit covers and beach towels. Even though towels are provided at the water park, we take our towels to wrap our wet children in as they walk back to our room.
- Flip flops or water shoes. All of our kids prefer to swim without water shoes on, but Daddy likes having them on. At least have a pair of flip flops near by when you need to walk to the restroom or head back to your hotel room.
- A bag with water bottles, snacks (nuts, fruit, granola bars, etc), diapers, wipes, and sunscreen and sunglasses if headed to the outdoor pool.
- The Lodge provides great life vests and arm floaties. They fit our kids better than our own floaties did.

 Snack time at the water park.

For the hotel room:
- A 12-cup coffee pot, sweetener and creamer of choice. This saves my sanity and pocket book! Even though there is a small coffee pot in the hotel room and a Starbucks down the hall, I prefer a good, cheap cup of coffee each morning to get my gears turning. A regular-sized coffee pot and even a mug from home makes my day begin well, especially if we stay two nights. I have also used it to brew hot water to make hot chocolate for the kids for a special breakfast treat.

- A small fan. This provides white noise for night time sleep as well as nap time. Being in a hotel with other guests guarantees that there will be some noise to deal with. A fan makes it easier to rest.

- Favorite movies, coloring books and picture books. Sometimes kids need to rest. That time for our family is in the evening before bed or even mid morning. A short show to watch on our laptop, or a book to read together helps out a lot!

- Food your family likes and that is easy to warm up in a microwave. We have ordered pizza for dinner before and have even gone out to eat at a local restaurant. The following ideas are for when you want to eat in.

• Breakfast items we have enjoyed - microwavable breakfast croissant sandwiches, homemade quiche, Jimmy Dean sausage and pancake on a stick (much like a corn dog), homemade pancakes, and cold cereal. Don't forget the syrup and milk!
• Lunch - sandwich fixings, fresh fruit, chips, drinks, and salad in a jar for mom.
• Dinner - microwavable Angus Burgers (from Costco), hot dogs, homemade lasagna and cut veggies with ranch.
• Snacks - nuts, granola bars, fruit snacks, fresh fruit, pretzels, yogurt, microwave popcorn, oatmeal in a jar, etc.
• Non-food items - paper plates, bowls, paper towels, cutlery, a sharp knife or two, extra cups for hot beverages, water bottles (lots of them), coffee pot filters, stir sticks, condiments (for burgers, sandwiches, pancakes, etc).

 Breakfast time!

IDEAS TO MAKE YOUR STAY MORE ENJOYABLE:
- You are allowed to arrive to play at the water park as early as 1pm on the day of your overnight stay. Packing a small bag with your suits, flip flops and goggles that is separate from your larger bags is wise. Then you can leave larger luggage in the car, as check-in is at 4pm, and go enjoy the water park. This will also help when it's time to load up your belongs and check-out by 11am, but you want to stay and play at the park. Guests are free to stay at the Lodge to play until the water park closes at 9pm. Just pack a change of clothes in your small bag and you are ready to have fun, then head home!

- If someone in your family is celebrating a birthday, tell the front desk when you check in. That person will receive a special wrist band that will allow them to get free ice cream throughout their stay (about one scoop per hour we were told). They also receive special birthday hat wolf ears! You can also bring your own decorations from home to place on your hotel door and in your room. This has made my kids feel so special, and also helps us find our hotel door easier  :o)

Our birthday kids in front of our hotel doors.

- The nightly show at the Great Clock Tower is enjoyable for little ones. Although, after seeing the 8pm show once, our kids weren't interested in seeing it again at our next stay. The bed time story that is read following the show changes up each stay. At the end of the story there is a chance to take a picture with the character who helped read the story. That's always fun!

 November 2015 with Oliver and January 2016 with Violet

- Take advantage of the FREE Shutterfly photo book coupon (you just pay around $8 to $10 for shipping/taxes). In each hotel room is a card with a promo code on it for a free photo book. We have made one with photos from each visit and now my kids each have a book of birthday memories to enjoy!

- Be ready to make the most of the water park. As a mom of four kids, ages 7 and under, I can run on little sleep. But taking a rest with the baby in the afternoon is sometimes needed. I would say, be ready to be in a noisy (yes lots of rushing water is noisy) and heavily chlorine-scented environment for most of the day. But if you need to step out and take a break, do it and don't feel bad! Enjoy the time with your family and make great memories.

Momma with her baby boys... Nov. 2015 and Jan. 2016

I hope some of these tips and ideas help you enjoy your stay at Great Wolf Lodge even better! We are looking forward to our trip next week, although our kids don't know about it yet. We can't wait to surprise them!

God bless and have fun,

Homemade Laundry Detergent - that WORKS!

For years I have wanted to make my own laundry detergent but never bit the bullet... until now! What got my attention with this detergent "recipe" was the simplicity of it and that it made a concentrated detergent. And after seeing that a ranching momma friend used it one her family of four boys' clothes, I figured it would get our occasional dirt out too!

I had saved up about six empty laundry detergent bottles over the past year, so that when I finally made liquid detergent I would have something to store it all in. Now those can be recycled! All you need to store this Whipped Laundry Detergent in is two quart sized mason jars! Easy peasy!

Thanks to Budget101.com for this AWESOME homemade detergent called "Mom's Super Laundry Sauce". The original recipe has great pictures and information for you to follow, there is even a "no cook" version of this recipe available. Even so, I would like to add a bit more info from my own experiences in making and using this Whipped Laundry Detergent.

From My Experience:

•  For our family of five, I do about 4-6 loads of laundry every week. One batch of this detergent makes two, full quarts and that lasted me exactly two months. At times, I used a bit more than just a tablespoon per load, especially if it was a fuller load. The clothes always came out clean and fresh, without a "soapy" scent at all!

• Even though this recipe calls for dry ingredients, they cook and are incorporated together and when used in my washing machine, this detergent doesn't leave any white residue on our clothes (like powdered laundry detergent tends to do). This is especially important when it comes to my husband's navy blue uniforms. 

• The smell of the ingredients cooking on the stove, especially the Fels Naptha bar, is very overwhelming to me and at times gives me a headache. Proper ventilation while making this recipe (even an open window and fan on during the winter) is important!

Ingredients:

1 bar Fels Naptha (grated)
1cup 20 Mule Team Borax
1 cup Arm and Hammer Super Washing Soda (NOT BAKING SODA!)
4 cups of hot water

Quick Note: Follow the directions carefully, adding the ingredients at the wrong time will result in a grainy textured detergent that will not dissolve well in the washer.

Directions:

Step 1: Put 4 cups of water in a large heavy saucepan over high heat. While that is heating, mix the borax and washing soda together in a bowl, mixing well, set aside.

Step 2: Grate the Fels Naptha- I have found that using a cheese grater and a little elbow grease gets the job done quickly and efficiently. Another way is to grate it is to cut it into several smaller chunks and then run it through a food processor.

Step 3: Add the freshly grated soap to the boiling water in the saucepan, stirring constantly (I use a whisk and stir it around slowly, so as not to make many bubbles). Reduce the heat to medium, It will take approximately 10 to 15 minutes for the Fels Naptha to complete dissolve. If it takes longer, your heat wasn't up high enough. DO NOT let this boil over, or you'll have a big mess!

It should be a rolling, simmering boil where you must stir constantly but it does not foam heavily. The photo below shows how much "foam" you should see.

Step 4: Once the Fels Naptha has completely melted, remove the pan from the heat and add in the Borax and the Washing Soda, stirring constantly until the powders are completely dissolved. This will take about 3-5 minutes. Do not under-stir or your soap texture will be very grainy rather than smooth. (You can fee the "graininess" on the bottom of the pan - once you can't feel it, it's incorporated fully!)

Step 5: Pour the liquid equally into (2) 1 quart Mason jars. (my jars were both a little over half full with the mixture)

Step 6: Add just enough water to bring the contents up to the “shoulders” or Rounded part of the jar, leaving approximately 1 ½ inches of head space.

Step 7: Put the lid on the jars and turn them UPSIDE DOWN and let them sit a few hours (about 4 hours - any longer will make the mixture more grainy). The reason for this is that the soap is going to separate into layers while it's resting and instead of scraping the bottom of the jar with a spoon, when you are ready to mix it, just taking the lid off and pouring it into a bowl will make it easier to incorporate!

Step 8: Using a hand mixer (or see original website post for directions on how to use your blender to mix it), whip the ingredients one jar at a time until fluffy and well blended. Transfer the ingredients back into the jar, cover and store until needed.

Chunky and watery before mixing

Smooth and creamy after mixing!

Ready to ladle back into the quart jar.

The jar on the left is how the detergent looks after sitting upside down for four hours, before mixing it in a bowl. The jar on the right is the finished product!

Whipped and ready to use!

Step 9: To use, add 1 tablespoon to a load of laundry in any type of machine. Add the detergent directly on the dirty clothes. The detergent is smooth and creamy and looks a lot like Mayonnaise. Be sure to label the jar to prevent anyone trying to taste it!

 So easy and quick to use!

To use: fill the machine with dirty clothes, start the water (any temperature you prefer), use a spoon to measure a tablespoon of whipped detergent, hold it under the running water to let it fall into the wash, close the lid and let the machine do all the work!

And if you aren't sold on giving this a try yet, check out this cost breakdown from Budget101:

Fels Naptha:  .99 bar
Borax:  76 oz box = 9.5 cups     $3.29 box = .34 c per cup
Washing Soda:  55 oz box = 6.875 cups     $2.97 box = .43 per cup

Total Expense for 128 loads of Laundry = $1.76

I hope that you are encouraged to try this laundry detergent recipe and reap the benefits of clean clothes AND saving money!


Have a blessed day,

PS. Wondering what to do with that left over Borax? Use a teaspoon or two and make some FLUBBER! One of our favorite rainy-day activities!

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DIY Tri-Fold White Board {Thoughtful Momma Monday}

Thoughtful Momma Monday

As we dive into the world of Classical Conversations this week (Wow! Already?!), I wanted to be prepared to substitute for any CC class that may need me. In my online searching, I came across this excellent idea for creating a tri-fold whiteboard.

I can use it at home to review our weekly memory work, and if called upon, I can write the week's work on it and tote it to our CC campus to tutor a class! I'm very excited to be prepared and ready to help out.

This Do-it-yourself project can be traced back to the Kids Activities Blog and Suzanne Shares blog. Both Rachel and Suzanne are great examples and an encouragement to my heart in our own home school journey - especially when it comes to using Classical Conversations' method and curriculum.

I think he was more excited to sit on the kitchen table than about writing on his new lapboard :)

While making my tri-fold whiteboards, I found that I needed a bit more clarity than what was offered on either site mentioned above. So I thought I'd snap pictures along the way and share them with you! I hope this helps you out a bit.


DIY Tri-Fold Whiteboard Instructions 
(Makes 2 tri-fold whiteboards and 4 lapboards)

Tools and Supplies Needed:

• Scissors
• A pen or pencil
• One 4x8 Tileboard
• One roll of duck tape (or a variety for fun looks)

 

You can tell I have a little girl in the house :)

Just to give you an idea of the board I purchased for this project.

I purchased my tileboard from our local Home Depot for $15 and I had fun duck tape on hand, but picked up two new rolls for my boards at $3 each. My total bill for 2 tri-fold whiteboards and 4 lapboards came to $21! That breaks down to about $2 for each lapboard and $6.50 for each tri-fold board!


Here's how to have your new best friend (aka store clerk) at your local hardware store rip the tileboard for you:

1. Have them first cut one foot off, straight across the bottom of the board (blue line). This leaves you with a 3x8 foot piece to cut the tri-fold pieces from. The bottom piece that is 1x8' will become your 4 lap boards. 
2. Cut the larger board at, 2 feet, 2 feet, one foot, one foot, and one foot - leaving one last foot. (red lines).
3. Lastly cut the long, thin board by one-foot increments, creating 4 lap boards that are 1x2' each (green lines).

Board Assembly Directions:

Gather up your materials on a level surface - a large table or on the floor. 

 Tape around the outside edge of each board, leaving the insides (that will be taped together) alone.

(the only edge missing boarder tape is the edge closest to me)

To get a great look around the edges - cut your piece of tape about an inch longer on each side of the edge of the board you are working on. 

Press the tape to the back of the board, keeping half of the tape hanging off the edge.

Fold the tape up and gently press it against the very thin edge of the board.

 Fold tape over to the front of the board and press out any bubbles that occur. 

Smooth to the edges and trim any excess off the sides.

 Turn the boards over, keeping the taped edges on the outsides. 

Place your pen or pencil between the center board and a side wing and stick a 

piece of tape next to it to keep the gap in place.

Slide the pen down to the other end and stick a piece of tape there as well.

Remove the pen and tape over the gap, creating the wing effect!

After gaping and taping both wings, turn the entire board over carefully 

and tape down the gap on the front side!

And TADA!!! Your tri-fold whiteboard is ready to go!

 

To make the small lapboards, just tape a boarder around the entire board and hand them out. Your kids will love to draw for large amounts of time and practice writing on them. It's a good idea to give them their own whiteboard pens and a rag to erase that they can keep in a basket nearby. 

My three-almost-four-year-old is learning not to press the life out of whiteboard markers, so having his own set keeps mine fresh to use for school :)

 I would love to hear any ideas you come up with when either creating or using your tri-fold whiteboards. 

And remember, you will have 2 boards -  one to use in your home, and one to bless a friend with! 

Who can you bless today?

 Enjoy and God bless!

"Almost Free" Art For Your Home

Oh, how I love to reuse jars, tin cans, paper towel rolls, etc. for fun projects... especially when it's for crafts for the kids, home decor or or helping to organize my space.


Here's an up-cycle project from this summer that was fairly simple and quick to accomplish.


The possibilities are endless when it comes to reusing t.p. and paper towel rolls. I'd love to hear what you have done or made with yours!

Crafting tools ready to go!

T. P. Wall Art
Cost: $2
Time to make: 1 hour, plus dry time


To get started gather your tools:  empty cardboard rolls, a hot glue gun, scissors, a ruler and paint (I chose spray paint).


I used brown cardboard paper towel rolls for this project. They held up well to being cut, glued and painted. I have also hear that the white t.p. rolls are very sturdy.

 

I held my paper towel rolls next to a ruler and made a pen mark at every inch.

 

Just choose the size (depth) you want for your art and keep it uniform.

 

Squish the roll flat, just enough to cut it at each mark. They will bounce back a bit and that's okay.

 

 

Lay your pieces out to get an idea of the pattern you want to use.

 

Play around with it a bit, there are so many possibilities! I kept my design pretty simple.

 

I tried to do this craft from start to finish in one nap time and made it!

 

 

 

Next glue the cut roll pieces together.

 

I just used a dot of hot glue and pinched the sides together until they held fast.

 

(Didn't even burn myself this time!)

 

 

 

Your finished product will straighten itself out when you are

done gluing it together.

 

Sometimes there are little pieces of the rolls that want to stick up,

just trim them off.

 

 

 

Lastly I took the pieces outside to spray paint them.

 

I placed a couple of 2x4's under them so that I could spray at every angle.

 

After drying on one side I flipped them to paint from the other side.

 

The cardboard soaked up the paint a bit, and some evaporated on the 100+ degree day I chose to be outside painting! It took almost an entire can of spray paint to get the look I wanted.

 

Keep painting until it looks good and covered.

Ta da!

 

Display your t.p. roll art proudly... no one will ever guess what they are made of.  (unless they have seen them around Pinterest :o)
 

To display my art I hung them each on a small nail. I really like how the color of the art brings out the bird in my painting. It was just the touch of color that I was looking for this summer. And now... it's on to changing my decor for fall! I can't believe how the time is flying by this year!


Besides making these I continued my paint kick by purchasing 5 old, wooden frames for $2 at a garage sale,  which I lightly sanded and painted. I really enjoy the look of them hanging on my kitchen wall (hope to post pics soon).

 

A little sparkle goes a long way!

 

 

 

 

"I will take you home, little sample, and you will be mine!"

The pretty turquoise paint used in this frame was 50 cents, a discarded sample I found at Lowe's. I LOVE the color and I have plenty of this paint left for a couple other small projects.

And to keep the kids happy while getting my frames painted I gave them a job... making shapes from Play Doh!

 

Playing, learning, visiting and having fun!

I added a pop of color to my living room wall by spray painting a frame that I have had for a few years. I used the left over paint from the t.p. roll art projesct!

 

Does it really look that crooked on my wall?! Goodness!

 

 

 

 

Scripture art I created to remind our family to REJOICE ALWAYS!

 


I hope that you are inspired to create something lovely for your home. It doesn't have to be expensive or really even cost anything. Look for something you already have lying around and make something new out of it!


Now to change my decorations for the fall... let's see what I can come up with!


Have a blessed weekend,

"Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God."

1 Corinthians 10:31

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