BenSpark Family Adventures

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #00704 Every year since 2008 we have given a donation of toys to Christmas is for Kids. It has become a family tradition to save some money throughout the year and go on a toy shopping spree a few days before we make the donation. However, this haul that you see is not just from our purchases. Many of the toys have come from companies that I have worked with throughout the year on reviews and more. Twice a month I do a Twitter Party with The Toy Insider and occasionally companies send us toys to promote. I don’t have to open these so they can be donated. Sometimes companies send me duplicates and I take those and add them to the donations as well. Sweet Suite and Holiday of Play send a swag box filled with great toys. I do a video unboxing of them and then some of the toys we keep and some we donate. Ever since we moved into the house we have set up the toys on the stairs and done a stairwell shot of the donations. It is nice to see the donations, and the kids, gr...

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #00703 General Mills sent me a set of new products to check out for free. Opinions are my own. The Other day General Mills sent me a package of their new Cinnamon Toast Crunch and Lucky Charms Soft Baked Bars and both were quite tasty. They also included some cool stickers like the “Professional Kid” one which is completely me. They also included a custom Tic-Tac-Toe board that Andy and I can use to play all the time. He loves playing that game.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #00702 Our friends at Playmobil have sent us a JUMBO Advent Calendar this year for free to check out. Opinions are our own. We have been opening Playmobil Advent Calendars for the past few years. This year we received the Stunt Show Advent Calendar and it is amazing. This is one of the JUMBO advent Calendars because it not only comes with the 24 days of surprises but also a large vehicle to house those items. Andy and I built the truck yesterday and it is really sweet. He unboxed the character figure yesterday and the motorcycle today. That is good because right off the bat you have a character and a vehicle to play with. Through the course of the season he will be able to unbox another couple of characters and also a go cart, ramp and more! This is a very dynamic and exciting set and the box shows other amazing Stunt Show sets that I think Andy might enjoy. You can see it all in the video below. I have been unable to find the Stunt Show sets anywhere on Amazon.co...

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #00701 Our friends at Funko provided us with a free Harry Potter Advent Calendar. Opinions are our own. Harry Potter was Eva’s go to book series a couple years back. She loves the books and the franchise and so when I got the chance to check out a Harry Potter Advent Calendar for her I jumped at it. I did a video review on the blog but did not unbox it and spoil the daily advent surprises for her. She has been opening the set each day and id quite excited for what she has found so far. Today was the first day and of course it makes sense that Harry be the one in Day 1. This is a Christmas themed Harry Potter and it is very cute. You can see my video below.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #0700 Crayola sent us a free review unit of the Paint and Pour Washable Art Set for us to review. Opinions are our own. The Paint and Pour Washable Art Set is a great way for kids to enjoy the art of pouring paint and not make a giant mess. The kit gives you everything you need to get started. The set includes (10) 2 Oz Paints (5 Colors), (3) 6 x 6 Canvases, Paint Tray, Beaker, Pouring Base, Strainer, and 3 Stir Sticks. To start off you have to mix the paints with a little water to make them flow smoothly. The instructions give you the details on how to do this. I had Andy mix up each of the five colors (red, yellow, blue, purple and white) in the beaker. I cleaned it between each color mixing. Once he was done he put the colors into the beaker to get it ready for pouring. Andy then poured the mixture through the strainer onto the canvas and tilted it this way and that to cover the whole canvas. We did cover the table but the paint was mostly contained by the pain...

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #00699 Today I helped my Dad and sisters do some more cleaning out of our old house. I thought that I had everything of my own out of the house but I decided that there was one thing more that I would like. My mother calls it a “Hall Tree” and it has stood in our hall all my life. My dad explained to me that it was something that he wanted from his grandfather. He ended up having to buy it through an auction but it stayed in the family. Now it will stand in our hallway. It is almost a perfect fit.

  Photo-A-Day 2.0 #00698 We returned home from the Cape today and as with all years our Elf on the Shelf, Fitzy is waiting for us. This year is different, though. Fitzy is quarantined for 14 days as his note explains. Therefore, he cannot move about the house until the 14 days are up. Once they are I bet he’ll have some interesting things in store for the kids.