Sunday, August 30, 2015

Pittsburgh Irish Festival: Ticket Giveaway

Growing up with a name like 'Kelly O'Neil' and having red, curly hair, I had more than a few Irish comments sent my way when I was younger! Now that my last name has changed and the red has faded from my hair, no one refers to my Irish heritage any longer. But those roots are still there and I am excited to take part for the first time in the Pittsburgh Irish Festival. It will be held at the Riverplex (between Sandcastle and Waterfront). 1000 Sandcastle Drive, West Homestead (Pittsburgh), PA 15120
 
Friday, September 11,  4:00 pm to 11:00 pm
Saturday, September 12, 11:00 am to 11:00 pm
Sunday, September 13,  9:00 am to 5:00 pm
 
The Pittsburgh Irish Festival is a celebration to bring together the Pittsburgh community for three days of Celtic camaraderie. The goal is to contribute to the rich cultural expression of Irish history and tradition that exists in Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh Irish Festival is also the largest Irish festival in the state!
 

What is there to do at the festival? 
Children’s Arts and Crafts for the wee folk: Take home a handmade souvenir, enjoy an Irish story sing-a-long, and dance an Irish jig! There will also be traditional and contemporary entertainment, Irish food and refreshments, Irish marketplace, children’s activities-performances-sing-a-longs, storytelling, Irish dance workshops and performances, ceili dancing, Irish Mass (Sun 10am), Irish conversation, Irish musical instrument demos, Hedge School, Whiskey and Cider Tastings, Blarney Bingo, Sheep, and more. Visit with dogs native to Ireland in the Irish Dog Tent! Meet breeds such as Irish Setter, Irish Wolfhound, Irish Water Spaniel, Irish Terrier, Kerry Beagle, and the Soft-coated Wheaten Terrier.
 
 
Are you ready to try some mouth-watering Irish eats? Menus will include Irish sausage, Irish stew, boxty pancakes, corned beef and cabbage, Dublin Coddle, potato soup, fish, colcannon, ham and cabbage and more. The desserts will be plentiful and delicious as well!
 
Here are a few of the Irish entertainment acts you can enjoy: 
Gaelic Storm, Red Hot Chilli Pipers, Screaming Orphans, Makem and Spain, The Willis Clan, We Banjo 3, The High Kings, JigJam, Matt and Shannon Heaton, Rice Brothers, and Dennis Doyle. Local Entertainers: Abbots Cross, Ballet Academy of Pittsburgh, Bell School of Irish Dance, Burke Conroy School of Irish Dance, Corned Beef and Curry, Devilish Merry, Donnie Irish, Cahal Dunne, Mike Gallagher, Terry Griffith, Hooley with Liz Shovlin, Alan Irvine, Macdonald Pipe Band of Pittsburgh, Matthew Craig and The Kerry Tipper Band, NaGaels, Pittsburgh Ceili Club, Pittsburgh Irish Reelers, Pittsburgh Police Emerald Society Pipes and Drums Band, Jack Puskar, Red Hand Paddy, Patrick Regan, The Rivermen, Shovlin Academy of Irish Dance, and The Wild Geese. (Program subject to change)
Have you seen The Willis Clan on America's Got Talent or their recent TLC show? A family of 12 kids who are fantastic musicians! We are excited to see them and they will be performing all 3 days of the festival. 
 
 
ADMISSION:
$12.00 - adult advance, $14.00 - at the gate, $30 - weekend pass, $8.00 - Senior (60+), Students with ID, Military Active/Retired and Public Safety Officers with ID,
Kids, 12 and younger, are FREE!!
Tickets can be purchased at the gate or in advance at www.pghirishfest.org.
$5.00 ADMISSION FRIDAY 4:00-6:00PM ages 13 +,
$5.00 ADMISSION FRIDAY 6:00-8:00PM WITH COLLEGE ID.

GIVEAWAY:
We have a giveaway for 2 tickets (keeping in mind that kids under 12 are free). Go here to enter:
  
This post sponsored by Pittsburgh Irish Festival. All opinions remain my own. 

Tuesday, August 18, 2015

Our Adoption Celebration

On July 1, 2013, an 11 month old and 23 month old entered our home as children #6 and #7 to stay with us through foster care. The first year they were with us entailed a long roller coaster as we weren't sure what their future would hold. At the end of a year with us they were moved to another state to live with relatives. This was a heart-breaking transition for us, but we knew this is how foster care works and we knew what we signed up for in the process. However, the home where they were placed did not end of being a place where they could stay long term and after five weeks they came to stay with us. We were overjoyed to welcome them back and they were giddy with happiness to be back as well. After that the courts began to talk to us about the option of adoption and we said without a doubt we would welcome the chance to be their forever family. It still took most of the next year, but on July 30, 1015 we were pronounced an official family in a downtown courthouse! It is an amazing feeling to have so many stresses behind us: no more questions on how to answer their questions about their future, no more case workers who had to make regular stops in our home, no more challenges on whether we have authority to oversee their medical care or make school
decisions, no more anxiousness about their future, no more, no more! God has been good, faithful and gracious to us in so many ways. We are thrilled to have ended one stage of the journey and to be standing at the beginning of the next phase.



Here are some beautiful snaps by Journeyings Photography (highly recommend!) of our recent celebration. 



These special people are all adoptive families who we have met along our foster-to-adopt journey. They are such a source of encouragement!


We rented a shelter in North Park which was a perfect space! (FYI, their shelters are waaayyyy cheaper than city shelters!) Most of the shelters have playgrounds close to them and there are plenty of shade trees and areas for kids to roam and play. 


Six of my family members (including my sweet sister here) flew in to surprise us. We were so excited to see them!


We had a framed picture of the kids for all our guests to sign. 


And then entered.....AL MAZING! I was so grateful when Al cleared time in his schedule to be at our event. Al Mazing has long been my favorite Pittsburgh kids entertainer and his magic show at our party was simply awesome. Kids absolutely love him and he manages to get quite a few laughs from the adults as well. If you are looking for someone to capture kid's attention, book Al for your next event!




The SPIDER! 


He had belly laughs coming from my son at the imaginary coins clinking in the bucket. 


We can't begin to thank all the people who have supported us during this two year process. Without a doubt, it takes a village and God has gifted us with a beautiful village. 



Sunday, August 16, 2015

Wildwood Highlands: Wristband Giveaway

My family was recently invited to come check out some of Wildwood Highlands summer attractions! Their summer options include go carts, bumper boats, mini golf, kiddie rides, and water wars. We decided to start with the go carts. It was 2 of my kids first go carting experience and they LOVED it!




Next we headed to try out the mini golf. You can choose from 2 different courses (or pay for both). Kids 4 and younger play free with a paying customer. 


You definitely don't want to get between this girl and a golf ball. :) 


Their bumper boats are the perfect chance to cool off a little on a hot day!


"Woody's Den" consists of a few kiddie rides including a Carousel, Train and the SLIMER. The Slimer is similar to spinning tea cups and my kids enjoyed it a lot!



The wristbands we had were also good for a few of their inside attractions which included shooting nerf balls at each other. What could be more fun? :) 


The last ride we did ended up being one of our favorites of the day! We had to convince my son to try it, but after one ride, he was hooked! In my experience, bumper cars are often very jarring and not that fun. But these have a thick rubber tube around the outside, so you didn't feel the impact so much. They also randomly start spinning you around in a circle which was fun! I loved that there was an extra seat that could be added, so my 4yo daughter could ride with me. Since this ride is also indoors, it can be enjoyed year round!


Another indoor venue that we love for Pgh Momtourage playdates is Kiddie City. Kiddie City is a gigantic four level jungle gym that is filled with twisting slides, ball pits, and soft mats. The Pre-School Special (5 & Under) is Monday-Friday, 11am-3pm, and includes One Admission to Kiddie City, One Kids Meal and 4 Game Room Tokens for $6.95!

GIVEAWAY:
We want to give you the chance to enjoy some outdoor fun at Wildwood Highlands before summer comes to an end! I have 4 wristbands to giveaway to one family. Wristbands are good for 5 different rides including go-carts, mini-golf, bumper boats, Woody's Den, water wars, nerf wars, or bumper cars. Head to link to enter (please fill in answers completely to avoid being disqualified, TY!)

Wednesday, August 12, 2015

The #SnackMob truck

Have you heard that the Bolthouse Farms #SnackMob truck is here in Pittsburgh? They are traveling around our city handing out FREE snacks that your kids don't want to miss. For those of us who will soon be packing school lunches, they have great healthy options to add to packed lunches. You can find the Bolthouse Farms Kids™ line in the Produce Section at your local Giant Eagle and they contain no added preservatives, high-fructose corn syrup, or artificial flavors. Their new kids line include smoothies, veggie snackers, and squeezable fruit tubes. 

Last week was National Night Out where neighborhoods across the country plan events to encourage greater community awareness. My church was hosting a kickball game for kids in the neighborhood and we were thrilled when we heard the #SnackMob truck was able to come by during the event. The Snack Mob truck is a happy and friendly crew and we enjoyed hanging out with them for the evening. 


They passed out smoothies and carrot snack packs. I loved seeing so many people walking around with healthy foods in hand!


Lots of happy customers! We had 125+ guests which included neighbors, church members, police officers and other officials. 


It was pretty cool to have the Bomb Squad + S.W.A.T. truck stop by as well!



The Snack Mob truck will be at a lot of venues over the next few weeks. A few to highlight are:

Sunday evenings through August: Citiparks Cinema in the Park Movie Nights (dusk)

August 15: "Kindergarten … here I come!” at the Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh ​ (9 a.m. – 10 a.m.)

August 30: First Responders Day at Kennywood Park(10:30 a.m.) 
September 19: Junior Great Race at Point State Park (8 a.m.) 

You can find the complete schedule for the Bolthouse Farms #SnackMob truck here


------->>>> Head here to print a coupon for $1 off any Bolthouse Farms Kids™ product!

But that's not all....YOU could have the #SnackMob truck to come to your party! 
Here are details to enter the #SnackMob #Contest:
  • WIN a visit from the Snack Mob by tweeting @BolthouseFarms for a chance to get the #SnackMob truck to deliver Bolthouse Farms Kids™ product for free at your next party! 
  • Be sure to use the hashtags #Snackmob and #Contest in your tweet, and include the date and type of event (e.g., soccer tournament, block party, etc.) in your entry. Contest ends Sept. 10, 2015 at 11:59pm. You must be at least 18 years old to enter. Maximum of 100 people per event.


Follow Bolthouse Farms Kids™ :
http://www.bolthouse.com/
http://www.bolthousefarmssnackmob.com/
https://www.facebook.com/bolthousefarms
https://twitter.com/bolthousefarms
https://instagram.com/bolthousefarms/



This post is brought to you by Bolthouse Farms Kids™ and The Motherhood. All opinions are my own.

Wednesday, August 5, 2015

Get your labels + save 20%!


So your kids never lose stuff, right? (Said no mom ever.) As my kids progress into school years I shudder to think how many gloves, hats, and who knows what I else I will be replacing over and over! So I try to be as proactive as I can with labels. I have worked with Label Daddy several times over the past few years and I'll tell you, I love these labels! We have used them on water bottles, sweatshirts, baseball gloves + much more. They stick on through washing machines, dishwashers, kid wear & tear and hold up extremely well. So just in time for school, you can save 20% Label Daddy labels! 


Label Daddy is the number one solution for labeling your belongings! Remember to label all clothing, sports equipment, electronics, and other personal belongings your kids bring to school, camp, sports leagues, day care, vacation, and other places. Label Daddy labels keep them from getting lost or mixed up with others. These labels are great for adults too! -- Put them on your sunglass/eyeglass case, phone, camera, sports equipment, tablet, e-reader, hats, clothing, and more.


These labels are super durable peel-and-stick washable labels -- they're washer/dryer safe, microwave safe, dishwasher safe and UV resistant. Label Daddy labels are also fun and attractive. You design your own labels! Pick from tons of colors, sizes and logos, including Disney and Marvel characters, MLB, NBA, and NHL team logos, other sport and fun logos, and more. Their exclusive laminated coating gives labels an extra layer of protection and is a must for camp. These labels are made in the USA and shipped directly to you worldwide.



So go here to grab your 20% savings on your entire Label Daddy order - this is the best discount available anywhere! Use code USFAMILY20 at checkout. 




This post sponsored by U.S.Family and Label Daddy. All opinions remain my own, I don't endorse products I don't love. :)