Life with Dylan

Category: Icicles

  • If you must buy bottled water, look for this on the bottle

    I am a huge fan of drinking water, but not a huge fan of plastic water bottles. Sure, I recycle all the cans and bottles that my family uses, but why even make plastic bottles at all?

    A few months ago I voted on some artwork for Icicles Premium Frozen Yogurt – they were choosing a design for a new product – bottled water. We love Icicles and go there all the time because the store is just down the street from us, so I choose the label I liked best. I had no idea that I would actually be the one randomly chosen to win a $50 gift card and an entire case of the new bottled water.

    I was happy about the gift card, but not too excited about a case of bottled water. I try my best not to purchase plastic bottles. At least I will recycle the bottles and the water tastes pretty good.

    When I opened the case of water, I noticed something different about the bottles. They looked different and they felt different. It wasn’t just the shape of the bottle, which by the way fits very nicely in your hand, but it was the feel of the plastic. Then I looked closely at the bottle.

    So this is why it feels so good in my hand …

    The bottle is made from 100% recycled plastic. Unlike other plastic bottles of water that have a recycle symbol someplace small and out of sight, these bottles show it proudly. Not to mention the bright green background telling you that the bottle is made from recycled plastic.

    Wait, that’s not all, the bottle even says this

    This means that all those plastic bottles we recycle were used to make this bottle. RPET stands for Recycled  Polyethylene terephthalate and the amount of energy saved making bottles from RPET is amazing. Aside from not filling landfills, bottles made from 100% RPET can reduce the carbon footprint by 65% compared to non-recycled plastic bottles.

    So, if you must buy bottled water (and I know sometimes it can’t be helped) look for 100% RPET on the bottle and always recycle your plastic bottles. 100% RPET is the eco-friendly way to drink bottled water and I applaud Icicles for doing their part in keeping the planet green.

  • Instagram Summer

    I can’t believe my summer vacation is over in one short week. Where did the time go? 

    When I look back I think we didn’t really do that much – and then I scroll through my Instagram pictures and realize we did. 
    Days at the beach – impromptu trips for ice cream and frozen yogurt – visits to Aquarium of the Pacific, San Deigo Zoo, and his birthday at San Diego Zoo Safari Park – raising over $1,000 for the tigers – lazy days by the pool – sailing – time spent drawing – basketball at the park – Nighttime Zoo – Reptile Walk – Behind the Scenes Safari
      

    Not bad for a summer vacation. This week we have another trip to the San Diego Zoo, a final trip to Legoland, and of course time by the pool and beach. 
    The best part was that we spent time together. Late nights watching Animal Planet and NatGeo Wild were the best, but no Instagrams of that. 
    Dylan still has another month of summer vacation (lucky kid) and I’m sure he will have fun at Nature Camp and with Grandma. I’ve been having so much fun on my vacation that I never got around to my to do list of chores, but that’s ok, I’m sure they will all be there waiting for me next month. 
    What have you been up to this summer?

  • The Pinewood Derby is Serious Business

    For those of you who have sons in Cub Scouts, you know that the annual Pinewood Derby is serious business. Not just for the kids, but for the parents (mostly the Dads) – because the parents are usually the ones doing most of the wood cutting and sanding. Sure, the kids paint the cars and help, but really how much can a 7 or 8 year old do with saw? Well, at least safely.

    This year was Dylan’s third year racing in a Pinewood Derby. He has yet to win. And I found out that this was my Dad’s 21st pinewood derby car to help make.

    Being an Eagle Scout, he has raced his own cars as well as those of his sons, and now his grandson. I stay out of it because it’s just too much pressure to have the perfect car. The perfect weight. The perfect wheels.

    In my head I’m thinking ‘people, it’s a piece of wood’ – but I know better than to say this out loud around the guys. I may be a girl, but I’m not stupid!

    Dylan named his car the Silver Bullet. He drew his own bullet on the car and decided to put a driver in the car. What kind of driver do you put in a pinewood derby car? A LEGO driver of course!

    Like I said, this is serious business. The boys have to pass inspection and certification at check-in. From here the cars are taken and the boys don’t touch them again until after the race. This stops people from adding weights or anything that may give their car an advantage after the car has been inspected. Shocking, I know, but it has happened. (I told you this was serious business)

    Each car races in four heats, a different lane each time. This keeps it fair in case one lane happens to be slower than another. The car who wins the most heats will win for that level of Cub Scouts.

    Dylan’s Silver Bullet won 3 out 4 heats. Proud day in our household and proud day for Grandpa.
    After building and racing in 21 Pinewood Derby’s, this is only the second time he has stood in the winners circle.

    So happy and proud of my little guy. We had to go out and celebrate.

    Where? Icicles of course! 
    He didn’t want to leave his car or trophy in the car, so we brought them with us. I think he secretly wanted people to ask him about the trophy – and that’s totally fine with me. he deserved a little recognition and praise. After all, he just won the Pinewood Derby!

  • The Dark Side of Halloween

    This Halloween was one of the best we have had. We started celebrating in early October by decorating the house and getting in the ghostly mood. Then it was time to start making the rounds … visiting the Irvine Railroad Pumpkin Patch, previewing OC Zoo-tacular, attending the ENC Fall Faire, and finally some Brick-or-Treat fun at LEGOLAND California! Whew, I’m exhausted just writing all of the things we did.

    But it didn’t stop there. We still had a pumpkin to carve and some trick-or-treating to do!

    Pumpkin carving has always been something I look forward to doing. It’s another outlet for my creativity – this year, I let Dylan be the creative one. I know, so selfless of me huh?

    He chose a simple design that he thought would be just scary enough for the neighborhood. Evil eyes, no nose, and a monsterish looking mouth filled with sharp teeth.

    The initial cut is always exciting because you never know what you will find inside. Will it be filled with seeds and “guts” that will take major elbow grease to get out, or will it be a hollow pumpkin that only takes a few scrapes to clean out? Dylan’s pumpkin was just about in the middle this year and it didn’t take too long before we started carving away.

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  • Icicles in August?

    Well, sure … if you’re talking about the delicious Icicles Gourmet Frozen Yogurt! For those you not familiar with Icicles, they are the go-to place for kids of all ages in my neighborhood. The other night I decided to surprise Dylan with a trip to Icicles after dinner and thought, “hey, I could write a blog post about this”

    So here it is …

    So many decisions … which flavor will he choose?

    They had tons of new flavors … Georgia Peach, Peanut Butter, Red Velvet, Raspberry, and of course the classics like Cake Batter, Euro Tart, Chocolate and Vanilla. Dylan went with a mixture of Vanilla and Red Velvet.

    Now that he had his frozen yogurt it was time to select a topping. Oh my, so many decisions!

    Fresh Fruit
    Granola, Peanuts …
    Nerds, Gummies …

    Chocolate Chips, Cookies, and of course Rainbow Sprinkles!

    And for those with a real sweet tooth, they have these!

    I went with a combination of the new Georgia Peach and Cake Batter (plain, no toppings) and we got a cup of Peanut Butter topped with Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups as a surprise for Grandma and Grandpa.

    I love that you can get as much or as little as you want. How much you spend depends on how much frozen yogurt is in your cup. The self-serve is great for saving money and kids love making their own! Only $.39 an ounce.

    I love using my prepaid gift cards too! Dylan won an Icicles gift card last year at school and today we used it to pay for our treats! Oh, did I mention they also have a Loyalty Card? Each time you buy a cup of Icicles Frozen Yogurt they stamp your card. After you buy 9 cups, the 10th cup is free!

    Woo-hoo! Our next cup is Free!

    Snow in August … in Southern California … NO, but Icicles in August … Always!