Family Fun Weekend! Toddler Approved!

 
Starting off summer with a bang over here!

 We went all out for a family fun weekend for Langston. 

First stop was a Monster Jam show in Greenville, SC! Langston is obsessed with monster trucks and monster jam so we knew this was going to be an awesome surprise for him. The Monster Jam show was in a small arena so be sure to wear your mask and your head phones to conceal the loud motors of the trucks. Langston gladly wore his the entire show. I bought these for him from amazon. They had good reviews and worked well. The show started on time at 1pm, had a 20 min intermission and ended promptly at 4pm.  It fell right in the middle of Langston's nap time. He got a little sleepy and wanted to sit on my lap but he stayed awake the entire time. We packed snacks and sandwiches and ate in the truck right after the show. Save your money! The prices of the snacks in the arena were obscene as always.

This show featured six trucks! Two of which are Langston favorites. Grave Digger and Scooby Doo.

Adults need ear coverings too!

Next we headed to Atlanta. We purchased a CityPass to get into the aquarium and the zoo at discounted rates. I highly recommend purchasing entry this way to save money. Due to Covid each venue is operating at limited capacity and ask that you reserve a time slot prior to arriving. A week prior to our trip, I went to our City Pass email confirmation and from there I was able to select which attractions we wanted to attend along with date and time. Entry was into the Zoo and the Aquarium was quick and easy. They did temp checks, mask checks and metal detector checks as well. 

Sunday we had breakfast at Highland Bakery. It was soooo good! After that we headed to the Zoo. I am not a fan of zoos. I was not thrilled about going but I wanted Langton to see some african animals. The vibe at the zoo solidified my feelings on going. The animals seemed so unhappy. Most of the animals were either sleep or avoiding all human contact. I was hoping Langston could feed the giraffes but there was a line of parents getting refunds because the giraffes wanted no parts. It was just sad. The only lively exhibit were the pandas. Two baby pandas were wrestling which was exciting for Langton to watch. 

After the zoo. We took a little nap at the hotel then woke up and went to the Botanical Gardens. Entry to the Botanical Gardens is not included with the City Pass. On this Sunday they had live music and a bar. One of the best parts is the children's garden. It had a play area, tree house with a slide and a stage. Langton loved it. He kept calling it a secret garden and pretending to look for treasure. 

The Botanical Gardens were beautiful! Almost breathtaking! We walked around a lot. I wish we would have stashed some snacks in the stroller. They have a snack stand and a restaurant in the gardens but the food was very expensive. We definitely could have gotten away with bringing a few snacks as they did not check the stroller at the entry. 

Langston loved the children's garden! 

For dinner Sunday night we just ordered some take out and called it a night! I was pooped! At 20 weeks pregnant all that walking had my pelvis a little sore. I was glad to just shower and eat in bed.

Monday morning we headed to the aquarium at about 11am. Langton really loves to watch octopus documentaries on youtube to he was super excited to see sea creatures. We saw every exhibit at the aquarium. The best ones were the sharks, otters and Langston loved being able to touch the sting rays! The only thing we did not get to see was the dolphin show. 

How cute are these two!

Later that afternoon I met up with my friend at the park.  Langston and her son were able to play for about an hour, then we headed to our dinner reservation. 

We ate at a restaurant called Grana. The ambiance and food was amazing! I ate every bite of my mafalde pasta! Sooo good! Highly recommend but be sure to make a reservation. They are pretty popular. They indoor and outdoor seating and a beautiful rooftop terrace. They also teach you how to speak italian in the bathrooms. 

Langston had a blast the entire trip! I'm sure I'll be hearing about for weeks lol. 

Love, 

ALW

Leave a Comment 20 weeks pregnant, atlanta aquarium, atlanta botanical garden, blackgirlsblog, blacklifestyleblog, blackmomsblog, blogger, road trip, road trip with a toddler, summer toddler activities, toddler fun

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Powder Room Remodel

Hi Everyone! 

Quarantine, yes we are still in quarantine, got me again. I decided to remodel my powder room. Power rooms don't get enough love. I mean, its not like tons of people are visiting but when guest come over the powder room is one of the most used rooms in your home. I decided to spruce mine up a bit, and by a bit I mean a lot. All credit goes to Anna Mae Grooves. Her entire home is lovely! She is lovely too! I've been loving her content lately. I saw her powder room remodel and had to do mine too. 

Lets jump right in! 

Here is what my powder room looked like before. I liked the shelves, so I knew I wanted to keep those. But the oval mirror and light fixture had to go. 

I went with my go to, Target for the shelves and mirror. I purchased the light fixture from Shadesoflight.com This was my first time using that site and they have a ton of inventory and decent prices. 

I used thumbtack for the shelf and light fixture install. I have used thumbtack a lot and I have never had an problem with the handymen or the app itself. 

I knew I wanted to do something to the walls but I didn't want to be bothered with paint. Initially, I picked out 2 different peel and stick wall paper patterns from amazon. They have some good options. I also saw several that I loved on Chasingpaper.com . Then I stumbled upon Anna Maes' Instagram page and fell in love with wall decal concept. I searched Urbanwalls site and was blown away! They have some amazing decals and peel and stick wall paper on their site. I am also obsessed with their Instagram and pinterest page. 

Cons to using the decals:

1. The decals on urban walls site are kinda pricey. I waited until they had a sale and was able to get a coupon code from their online chat as well. 

2. Their shipping is also kinda slow. I know....first world problems. They are made to order so mine took about a week and 2 days to arrive. 

3. When your decals arrive they come in long sheets. You have to cut each image out of the sheet. I found this time consuming and quite tedious. Take your time though. The cut out does not have to be super concise but you don't want to cut any of the decals either. 

Pro tip: Because all of a sudden I am a pro right? lol place your decals on the wall before putting your fixtures back up. I'll tell you why, just keep reading.

I used painters tape to stick the decals in spots to get an idea of how it would look before committing to sticking them down. 

To adhere the decal I used paint smoothing tool, I have no idea what it is called, but it worked well. The Urbanwalls instructions recommended a credit card for smoothing. Had to ask my husband to help since I'm so short. 

Next, I knew that the faucet, towel holder and tissue holder would have to be swapped out. Initially I purchased a gold faucet and tissue holder you see above from amazon. It ended up being the completely wrong color of gold. It was hideous and did not match the brassy gold mirror frame or light fixture. I ended up retuning it at Kohl's (they are an amazon hub so you can return your items there if you have on close to you). 

I went with a dark brass colored faucet, towel holder and tissue holder. I also switched out the light switch and outlet for brass colored set I found at Home Depot.

Somebody was supervising my every move. 

See how the decals are coming out from under the fixtures. This is key. It makes the decals look more like wall paper when you apply them before your fixtures. 

I did the same thing here. I love how it looks. 

Here is the final product! I really like how it turned out. I may swap the shelves out for some darker colored wood shelves I already have. I think it may make the dark brass fixture pop more. What do you think? Have you tried peel an stick wall paper or decals before? I love this because its less permenant. A little heat from a blow dryer and they peel right off! So cool!

Stay well,

ALW

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Boredom Strikes Look Book

Hi Everyone!

I was a little bored and I convinced my husband to help me shoot a lil look book! I can't lie, I have still been doing some online shopping and just wanted to share some cute date night outfit inspo. I have been a bit paranoid to actually go on a dinner date due to Covid. But we have had a few movie date nights at the house. Did I wear any of theses fits? No, but hey I'm a work in progress.

I am thinking of doing a staycation at the beginning of September for my husband and I.
So if you see these looks again, just mind your business! lol

Look One: 
These shorts were designed by one of my favorite bloggers Sai De Silva. She designed these shorts with Amazons' The Drop campaign. Basically, Amazon got a bunch of fashion influencers, youtube personalities and bloggers and had them create pieces for their site. I think its a short 2 day limited edition sale, so the shorts are no longer available. I purchased two pieces from her drop.
-Black body suite
-High waisted paper bag shorts
-Simple black sandal

These black and white heels are from ASOS. They literally take a simple black and white fit up a notch! I love them but they are sold out ladies. Sorry!

This wig is from a youtuber named Terri. I used to watch her weaver hair reviews years ago. Now she makes amazing quality wigs for a pretty reasonable price. 

Look Two:

I really love this top. It is from Urban Outfitters and I saw another one of my favorite bloggers Nikki with it on. I just had to have it too. Reasons it's a must have; You can dress it up or down, it is the perfect matcha green color and it has every cute detail a shirt could have. It is cropped, wrap around and has puff sleeves! I will take every color please! Honestly, Nikki could wear a trash bag and make it look bomb. I love her style so much! Check her out! 

-Green puff sleeve criss cross crop top

-Grey denim mom jeans

-Clear funky heels

These jeans run a little big. I plan to get them altered. I recommend sizing down.

These shoes are about 2 years old. I got them on clearance at Nasty Gal. I love that site! They have cute quality clothes, great prices and they are always having a sale. 

Look Three:

I purchased this dress from Pretty Little Thing. After this purchase I vowed to never purchase from them again. The quality and price point appears to be that of Forever 21 but every time I receive items from them they are Citi Trends quality at best. I have received items from them with holes in them and with threads hanging. Take it from me and don't waste your coins sis. 

-Mini Dress

-Nude Clear heel

If you are part of the itty bitty titty committee then just throw on some pasties like I did. 

One thing I can appreciate bout this dress is that it comes with a black slip sown into it. I guess PLT got that right at least. 

Look Four:

This look is a little relaxed to me for a full on date night. I would wear this out for drinks or maybe even a concert. I think the little peek-a-boo detail turns a simple white crop top into a sexy one! This entire outfit is from Nasty Gal and I love it. The pants again are a tad bit too big and long but such is life for a petite gal.

-White Crop top

-High wasted black jean

Personally I love the under boob cleavage. For small chested girls like me cleavage is hard to come by. lol

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Homemade Snow Science Project

Hi!

I hope everyone is well at home and trying to enjoy quarantine life! We've been doing lots of cooking and enjoying family time and this awesome weather.

I saw Sai De Silva do this easy DIY homemade snow craft project with her children and thought we could try it out.

WARNING! Do not leave your child unattended while playing with this. 

My son tried to lick his fingers a few times lol.

What you need:
- a large bowl
-baking soda
-Gillette foam shaving cream
-clean flat surface

Instructions:
1. In a large bowl mix 1 cup of baking soda and 1 cup of foam shaving cream in a bowl with your hands
2. Empty contents onto a flat clean surface and mix thoroughly until it starts to clump together and get colder.
3. Enjoy your homemade fluffy snow!

My son had a blast with this! He played with this for about an hour!

He was a little apprehensive at first but it wasn't long before he was hands on a loving it. 

Of course the paw patrol was able to rescue all the cars from the snow avalanche.

Easy clean up outside. We literally just sprayed everything down with water hose when we were done.

We grabbed some beach toys and cars too!

 Enjoy & cherish time with your love ones y'all!

Love,
ALW

Leave a Comment blackgirlsblog, blacklifestyleblog, diyscienceproject, diysnow, mcaprillately, snowproject

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