Anti-fog, Shatterproof, UV Protective Swimming Goggles #Review #AegendGoggles

     I have been so cold these past few weeks that I find myself often wondering if Spring will ever get here at all.  I can't wait for warm weather and dry ground, sun shining bright... and the beach.  Man, do I love the beach!  We're already preparing for it with things like our new culinary torch for roasting marshmallows.

     And one of those cool new things we got for the beach is this awesome new pair of swimming goggles by Aegend.  They are UV protective, Anti-fog, water-tight, and come in a hard protective case with a locking clasp.

     They are really comfortable and don't rub on the side of the head or against the ears.  The band is fully adjustable to fit any sized head and they unclip with the press of one button.

     The lenses curve into the vision field and can be a bit dizzying until you get used to it.  Around the lenses is a silicone suction barrier to prevent water from getting into the eyes.  It does create some pressure, but it doesn't feel so strong that you feel like your eyes might get pulled out of your head or anything.

     The goggles look pretty nice and we're definitely going to be using them every day at the beach this year.  I would recommend them.  To learn more, check out Aegend on Amazon.

Except for the product(s) given to me for the purpose of reviewing, I received no compensation for this post. All opinions are 100% my own.

#TheBrightOutdoors Solar Camping Lantern #Review

     My kids are scaredy cats.  I mean, I remember being terrified when I was a kid that someone might break in through my window, but I also remember sucking it up and dealing with it.  My kids... not so much.  The idea of walking down the hallway alone will bring them to the verge of tears and they have no problem being very vocal about that fear.  We live on the back of a five acre lot with nothing but woods behind us and enough dogs in the apartment building to stop any bad man in their tracks, so I'm not sure what they're soooo scared of.  Monsters?  Maybe?  They all sleep with a light on, which is pretty costly.  It's something that needs to change.

     Streaker just got herself some solar flower lights to put in her window to charge in the day and light up her room at night, but we need to cover 3 bedrooms.  So we're looking into more options.  More boy/tom boy friendly options.

      One option is a solar powered camping lantern.  It charges in the window in the day and lights up all night, just like the flowers.  We tried this one out by Bright Outdoors.  It's the most awesome thing ever!  It's both a flashlight and a lantern, both solar and battery, both compact and not.  Check it out!

     Okay, so first of all, it is LED, so you know it's bright.  But it also doesn't take as much power to run.  When the lantern is folded down, the light makes for a super bright flashlight.  You can change it between bright, really bright, or an SOS flashing light.  Being able to choose is a great way to make the power last just a little bit longer.

     Secondly, it folds up into a lantern, just pull apart the two ends and voila!  A lantern.  It's still very bright and will easily light up a tent or small camper for any night time purposes.  It has a handle to hold it from, so you could use it for port-a-potty runs at night, etc.

     A really awesome feature is the power bank feature.  Yes, it's a solar charged lamp, but if you are in a hurry, you can charge it via USB.  Not only that, but you can charge other devices using the lantern!  It will charge a normal smartphone up to 50%.  So if you are lost in the woods with a dead phone, this will charge it enough to call someone for help or find your GPS coordinates.  I don;t know about your phone, but mine lasts a LONG time on 50%, certainly enough to help me find my way back to a road if I'm only a mile or two out.

     And one last awesome feature, it's waterproof.  So a trip to the bathroom in the rain is no problem... for the lantern.  In fact, it's so awesome that I couldn't justify keeping it for a night light.  We ended up giving it to my survivalist brother.  He's been collecting camping and outdoor survival equipment for years and he was really impressed with this lantern.  He especially liked that it's solar and has a back up battery.

     I definitely recommend this to anyone who goes camping, it's an incredible asset to have.  To learn more, check out Bright Outdoors on Amazon. 

Except for the product(s) given to me for the purpose of reviewing, I received no compensation for this post. All opinions are 100% my own.

#PillowToGo Self-Inflatable Pillow #Review

     Now is the perfect time to stock up on camping supplies for next year's camping season, now that snow has finally hit.  One of my biggest struggles with finding and buying camping equipment is that I need things that will take up little room, but still be useful.  One of our biggest space takers is bedding.  We're talking a pillow each and a warm blanket for at least every two people.  That's minimum, so for a family of seven, that's a lot of bulk.

     It's kind of unnecessary bulk too, because those things don;t need to take up so much space.  for instance, a neat alternative for the pillows would be self-inflating pillows.  They roll up tight when not in use.  Then when you need them, just unroll, loosen the valve and let it sit for a few minutes.

      The Pillow-To-Go self-inflatable pillow by Practico Outdoors is just that kind of pillow.  It comes in it's own drawstring bag.  It's about the size of a roll of paper towels when it's all rolled up and in it's bag.

     When out of it's bag, it's held into it's roll shape by two wide elastic bands.  When they're removed and the valve is loosened, the pillow rolls out flat and starts inflating.  To be honest, it doesn't inflate so much that I would be comfortable.  But the valve is so easy to blow into that it's really quick work to inflate it more full.

     The pillow is waterproof and has a 100% Lifetime Warranty.  It measures 20"x12" when laid out flat and is ergonomically designed to be super comfortable.  I recommend this pillow for anyone who goes camping or travels a lot.

     To learn more, check out Pratico Outdoors on Amazon or on their website, Praticogoods.com

Except for the product(s) given to me for the purpose of reviewing, I received no compensation for this post. All opinions are 100% my own.

50% Off Solar Camping Lantern

     Wanna see a little sneaky peak of something I get to check out this next week?  It's a solar camping lantern and flashlight combo  with an emergency power bank that's rechargeable.  It's a pretty awesome camping accessory.  I love all things solar anyway, it just makes sense.  And this lantern is collapsible to boot, so it takes up less space.

     Well this baby sells for $19.95 on Amazon, but I have a 50% off coupon for you that will drop it down to $9.99.  All you have to do is enter the code JXGHI872 at checkout after adding it to your cart.  I can't wait until mine comes and I can tell you more about it.  I hope you make good use of the discount and I'll see you all in a bit!

Retractable Dog Leash with Light #Review #SmartRangeDogLeash

    On my husband's 30th birthday, we got him a dog.  It was perfect, we all saw the Humane Society posts and we just fell in love.  He looked just like our dog Rosco, like his twin!  And that's hard to find.  Turns out it's harder than we thought, cause when we went to adopt him, we realized how completely UN-alike they look.  Check them out!

     He was such a sweet dog, He liked to play fetch, sleep on the bed, and was great with Rosco.  He was just a very kind and loving animal.  But since he's new, we didn't want to just let him out to pee and he wouldn't go in the kennel.  So we needed to take him for walks.  That was fine for a bit, but it gets old fast, so we like to have the kids take turns helping out with that.

     Problem is it's winter and there's a whole 2 hours of daylight in the winter.  I kid, but there isn't a lot.  The kids understandably don't want to take him out at night.  That's why this retractable dog leash with light is so perfect.  It's got a nice bright light so the dog can be walked even in the dark.

     It's got a battery compartment for AA batteries.  To be honest, it was hard to open and close, but we managed.  It also has a big handle, a reflector on the sides, and the leash is retractable up to 16 feet.  It holds dogs up to 50 lbs.  We used it on Blue regardless because he is super well behaved.  The leash is really just to steer him back inside and to make sure he listens.

     It also has a lock on it that will prevent the retractable part from further retracting.  When released, the leash can go in or back out.

     I think although the quality seems a bit under par, as far as being able to withstand a fall or such... it really is very handy and I'm glad we have it.  To learn more, check out SmartRange on Amazon.

Except for the product(s) given to me for the purpose of reviewing, I received no compensation for this post. All opinions are 100% my own.

Magnetic Screen Door #Review #MagneticScreenDoor

     My front door opens right into the kitchen.  In the summertime, when I'm cleaning the kitchen, I like to leave the front door wide open.  There was something about the doors being open and the kitchen being exposed to all that fresh air that made it feel even more clean.  I'd leave the doors open all summer if it weren't for the wasps and hornets that hang around.  Some years they get in and I don't even know how.  We even had one show up in our fridge once!  They're clever, but we certainly don't invite them in.

     We've been wanting a screen door for a while, but we have big French doors and having a screen floor would ruin the look.  So the best thing for us is a removable cloth screen door, like this magnetic screen door from Premium Choice Products.  It's basically a cloth screen door that attaches with Velcro strips to the door frame to be removed whenever convenient.

     The part about this door that's different than others like it is that the door automatically closes after you walk through it.  The magnets enclosed in the center align to come together without you having to do anything.  That's what it was designed to do, so here's how that played out for me:
     First, you are supposed to lay the screen door out on the floor, Velcro side up.  Then you cut the extra Velcro roll to fit the areas you need them and then stick the Velcro together.  They don't come pre-cut, but that's okay with me.  Luckily it wasn't too hard to find scissors.  There was just enough Velcro, with maybe an inch extra.  You're then supposed to hold the screen door up to the door that you are installing it on and figure out the best place to set it.

     This is where my issue came, I have no center post on my French doors, so there was no real place to stick it to that was convenient.  So I decided that instead of being used for a bug screen, I'd use it to just separate spaces, almost like a beaded curtain.  So I decided to install it in my room where my closet is, there is no door and it bothers me to have my closet so exposed.

     So I held it up and realized that the screen is a great size for this doorway.  I was able to stick the Velcro straps to the outsides, leaving a 2-3 inch border around the three edges.  I will warn you though, especially if you are an apartment dweller... stick this to woodwork, NOT painted areas.  I stuck it to my walls and when I adjusted the strap, the paint peeled right off the walls.  To be honest, this doesn't bother me, I'm a hard person to upset.  But it didn't upset me because I have no trim work there yet, it's an unfinished space.  Landlords might not be happy if it were on their walls.
     At the same time, I do love that the strips are so strong.  But just in case you worry or don't want to peel the paint, you could always use the package of tacks that are provided.  They're nice tacks.  I'm actually going to use them for a furniture project that I'm working on in a couple months.

     After I peeled and stuck the whole perimeter, it only needed a little adjusting and the center came together nicely.  When you go through the door, it really does just close behind you!  I love it!  I think after I paint that last part of the wall, I might just put the closet trim right over it.  It seems pretty durable, like it could last for years.

     I'm so happy with the way it works and how easy it was to install.  I just think this is great.  I definitely recommend it for any normal door.  To learn more, check out Premium Choice Products on Facebook, Youtube, Google +, Blogger, and Amazon, as well as their website on Premium Choice Products.com.

Except for the product(s) given to me for the purpose of reviewing, I received no compensation for this post. All opinions are 100% my own.