Happy April!: Where I've Been

I had this post as a draft to go up last week and was going to say how excited I was to post monthly but alas, here we are at April! It amazes me how much social media has changed since I started this space in 2009 as a digital journal of young family life. While I continue to stay most active on Instagram, I'm grateful to still have this space to return to document important updates.

Here's where I've been lately...

Zoo To You with MEFA’s U.Fund College Investing Plan

Disclosure: This post is sponsored by MEFA's U.Fund College Investing Plan; all opinions expressed are my own.

One of my family’s challenges this season has been staying engaged with many of our favorite sites including our local zoo. Thankfully, ZooToYou, brought to you by MEFA’s U.Fund College Investing Plan, brings the zoo experience right to you via Facebook Live!

Our Family's Boston Globe Feature

This past Friday, October 23 my family was included in the Boston Globe's "In the Family Way" feature showcasing how 3 local families are currently coping given all that's going on. In it I shared a day-in-the-life including what it's like balancing remote and hybrid learning for Grayson and Nia, respectively, as well as managing with Uka recovering from surgery. 

Planning Ahead with World Sports Camp

Disclosure: This post is a paid partnership in collaboration with World Sports Camp. All opinions expressed are my own.   

As the end of the year approaches, I’m starting to think about my kids’ plans for next summer, especially because we're a big sports family. My husband’s former professional basketball career has definitely inspired the kids to lean towards basketball, and this school my 5th grader has successfully taken up intramural tennis, Covid-19 precautions and all. When I recently learned about World Sports Camp right here in Massachusetts and their plans for Summer 2021 I was excited to learn more!

A Decade of Harlem Lovebirds: Where Am I?

Thank you Terrence Adderley for our fall photos!

October 1 marked 10 years of our family starting in Harlem. 

Ten. Years. 

Now more than ever I continue to see how this online space translates into incredible offline opportunities. 

A bit of what I've been up to...

Comcast #InternetEssentials in Action

Disclosure: This post is in partnership with Comcast; all opinions expressed are my own.

With the back-to-school season underway, it’s easy to take for granted how widespread internet access appears to be, but with the recent expansion of Comcast’s Internet Essentials initiative I’ve learned that the digital divide is very real. Comcast is doubling the number of eligible households to now include Federal benefits such as Medicaid, SNAP and SSI for Internet Essentials in its national footprint to help close the gap of 25% of U.S. households currently without home internet service. And, in case you haven’t heard of it before, Internet Essentials provides free digital literacy training, Internet service for $9.95 per month and the opportunity to buy a laptop for less than $150.

What a Weekend: Wellesley, Wear Orange and DanceNastics

At Boston's Wear Orange Day

This past weekend ALL the things converged! Was it like that for you too? I had 3 annual events on my calendar: Wellesley's reunion, Moms Demand Action's Wear Orange Day and my daughter's dance recital. 

It was a lot so when I woke up Sunday early evening after a 3 hour nap it truly felt like a dream that I had made it (SUCCESSFULLY!) to the other side of all of those big events.

I'm deeply affected by sunshine so when I saw the forecast called for sun all weekend here in Boston it immediately made me feel like I was one step ahead of the game!

It made all the difference...

Ready for Spring Break with Goldfish Swim School

Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Goldfish Swim School. All opinions expressed are my own.

{Image Source: Goldfish Swim School}

Today we're excited for spring because not only does it mean spring break feels even closer, but because tomorrow my kids start swimming lessons at Goldfish Swim School! We've visited in the past  for their themed Pirate Night - a fun family swimming experience, but with my children's 4th cruise coming up I decided it would be a great refresher to brush up on their swimming skills. 

Are you curious about swimming lessons for your little one? Check out what makes Goldfish Swim School special...

PAW Patrol Live is Coming to Boston!

Disclosure: This post is in partnership with the Boch Center. All opinions expressed are my own. 

Recently, I was out for a girls' night and walked by the Boch Center and saw the poster for the upcoming run of PAW Patrol Live here in Boston! My son and his preschool friends are totally obsessed with this show, and I made a mental note to check it out.

You can too this March 29 - 31 at one of their six shows! 



Come roll with the PAW Patrol as everybody’s favorite heroic pups race to the rescue on the day of the Great Adventure Bay Race. When Mayor Goodway goes missing, Chase, Marshall, Skye and the rest of the PAW Patrol will need to team up with Ryder to save Adventure Bay’s mayor and stop Foggy Bottom’s Mayor Humdinger from winning the race.

Tickets start at only $25, and you can get them here: http://www.bochcenter.org/pawpatrol2019 or by calling 800.982.2787.

Does your little one like PAW Patrol too? 

P.S. Stay tuned for a giveaway...

My Top 5 Quotes from Becoming: An Intimate Conversation with Michelle Obama

I don't know how I had the foresight, but before I knew we'd have 11 straight days of guests starting a week before Thanksgiving I booked a single ticket for myself to see Michelle Obama on the Boston stop of her book tour. A few month's prior I had set an alarm the day the tickets went on sale to try to snag two tickets to no avail; I could only purchase one. They sold out so fast!

Somehow it all worked out because after a long week of hosting I slipped out of the house to catch a train downtown for two hours with Michelle Obama. It was everything I needed. 

Nia's Magazine Debut (& a MASSIVE Spring Update!)

We are hurtling towards the end of the school year (Grayson's done in 2 weeks and Nia has another 4 weeks), but in the interim I wanted to share some of the exciting things going on around here...

It's Time: W.E.L.L. Summit Boston 2018 & a Giveaway

This is the first year that I'm unable to attend W.E.L.L. Summit Boston, and if you've been following my championing of this event since 2015, you know this is a big deal. W.E.L.L. Summit is the one conference I attend that is solely for my well being - it's just for me and not about my social media media persona or my career as a mompreneur. 

Bloggers, Business and Boston: My First Paint Night

Disclosure: I was invited a guest of NEXT On Scene Magazine; all opinions expressed are my own. 

I still feel like I'm getting re-acclimated to living in Boston and one of the best ways to do that has been getting acquainted with the Boston blogging community. When I last lived in Boston (all the way back in 2007!), I hadn't started my blog yet and thankfully there are so many amazing Facebook groups that have been so welcoming including a wonderful group brought together by NEXT On Scene Magazine founded by Jackie Zuk.

Parkland, Florida

There was another post that was supposed to go live today, but I decided not to post it. 

In the wake of what happened today in Florida with 17 young lives lost in yet another school shooting, it's easy to do a quick search and see all the times I've posted about events like this over and over. 

As I recently shared in my "Quiana in Action" post, I no longer could sit idly by crying while sending more "thoughts and prayers." Instead, I've joined Moms Demand Action and tomorrow just so happens to be Lobby Day. While Massachusetts is the leader in smart guns laws in the U.S., there is still work to do and I'm looking forward to showing up tomorrow at the Statehouse. 

Interested in learning more about Moms Demand Action? Check out their website here.

And if you're local, please join me at the New Members Meeting coming up on March 8:

Click here to RSVP.

 

Happy 2018!

{This card was designed in partnership with Minted (not an affiliate link); photo by Third Eye Chic}

Check out our past New Year's cards here!

 

Let the Holidays Begin with #XfinityMoms!

Disclosure: This is a sponsored post in partnership with Comcast; all opinions expressed are my own. 

What I love about being back in Boston is seeing how certain things have changed and that includes Comcast. I've shared before how I was a Comcast customer in my single-hood days of living in Boston post-college, and once I moved to NYC it was so hard to get used to a different provider. Now back in Boston with Comcast I'm loving all the new updates especially now that I have a family. 

So I Live in the Most Racist City in America

The Boston Statehouse on the morning of the election protest

When I first came to Boston I thought it'd just be for education then I'd bounce. Five years after graduation I left Boston for NYC and vowed never to return.

Well we know how that went...

Whoa December!

We went to a tree farm fully prepared to cut our tree, but this pre-cut one was our fave!

I looked up and this year is pretty much over. Welp!

Here's what's going on lately (in pictures)...

Our Jr. Celtics Gameday Clinic Experience

Disclosure: I received complimentary Jr. Celtics admission to facilitate this review; photo releases were signed by participants pictured and all opinions expressed are my own. 

Can you spot Nia? {Photo Courtesy of Boston Celtics}

Love and basketball. That's always been an underlying theme of my family - Mr. Lovebird and I met in college, and while he doesn't believe I played basketball in middle school and high school, he played all the way through to college and then professionally abroad.

Nia knows this is a part of her family history, and while we've gently tried to suggest basketball to her she's always been quite reluctant. 

That changed when she was invited to the Jr. Celtics Gameday Clinic.

Playing Tourist in Boston

While we were in Chicago last week, the weekend before that we got to play tourist here in Boston when my BFF Julie and her family visited us all the way from Ohio. We try to see each other once a year usually when we return to my hometown of Columbus, Ohio each August as it coincides with Nia and her great-grandmother's birthdays and the Ohio State Fair. This was our first time having all members of both of our families altogether in years, so it was extra special! 

The best part? After chilly, rainy weeks here in Boston we lucked out with perfect weather during their visit!

Here's a photo recap of our Beantown adventures...