All posts by Jennifer_Duncan

It’s one of my favorite times of the year. Although I miss the fall I grew up with in Northeastern PA, I do enjoy the crisp cool weather we get here every once in a while in Central Texas. So why not get into the Pumpkin Spice Season, with these tasty Pumpkin Spice Protein Bites? Great for kiddos and adults alike!

Since my children were about 8 months they loved to play with sensory bins! We’ve done everything from scooping black beans and rice, to sorting poof balls into toilet paper rolls, to kinetic sand and excavators. This time, I wanted to do something a little different!  My least favorite part of sensory bins is making sure my 2 and 3 year old keep the items from the sensory bin, out of their mouth. Even though they know they shouldn’t stick it in their months, they still do. So today I decided to try completely edible sensory bins!*This post may contain affiliate links where I may earn from qualified purchases.For these bins you’ll need the following!

• 16qt  Plastic Bin – I bought these at target and they’ve been great!
• Tapioca Pearls or Boba Pearls – You can find these on Amazon!
• 6oz Jello – you can use any flavor or color I used Berry Blue
• Strawberry Cheerios
• Gummy fish or bears
• Annies Chocolate Chip Bunnies
• Blender or food processor

We’re going to start this one off by saying… I’m 36 years oldand bought and played with my first set of slime last weekend. I’ve fallen down the TikTok rabbit hole of slime scoopability videos. I never for the life of me, would have thought, this is the most enjoyable thing to watch. So of course, I HAD to buy some. After playing with the slime for over an hour I decided my kids needed to partake in this fun too!*This post may contain affiliate links and I may earn a small commission from qualifying purchases! ​

Today we’re making a very simple DIY Slime recipe at home that you and your kids can make together! ​Ingredients:

1. 1-Cup Glue Note- You can use Elmers or any similar type of glue. I like Amazon Basics Clear Glue 
2. 1- Tablespoon Baking Soda
3. 1.5-2 Tablespoons Contact lens solution. Note- I like this one

Add In-  Not necessary but makes them a ton of fun! I bought a simple kit from Amazon which you can find here!
Food coloring
Essential Oils -To make it smell delicious!

*This post may contain affiliate links where I may earn a small comission from provided links

After almost 4 years with our Evenflo Pivot Xplore, which I will still recommend as a great budget wagon, we finally decided to upgrade! You can read my full blog post here on the Evenflo Pivot XploreMy major push for upgrading our stroller wagon was the outings I used to once enjoy was slowly turning into a nightmare between kicking and screaming. Those outings that were once filled with caffeine stops and Target runs were slowly being put off and then eventually avoided. As a mom of two toddlers, 13 months apart, I just wasn’t about that life, so an upgrade was needed! We also had an upcoming beach trip that I wanted to upgrade our wagon before going on.
There was a huge change in the market from 2019 to 2023 when looking into and researching stroller wagons. We went from 3 possibilities to over 10 different brands to choose from! Luckily, I was armed with 4 years of experience with a stroller wagon so I already knew what I wanted! Armed with this experience it made researching stroller wagons a little less daunting this time. Here’s what I wanted in an upgraded stroller wagon

• Space
• Canopy like the Jeep wagon ( vented sides, and full top) I prefer not to have the moveable shades like the Evenflo.
• Heavier weight capacity (200 lb+)
•  Possible foot well, but not 100% needed
• All-terrain
• Can grow with us.

My needs were pretty easy but there were endless possibilities. So, let’s dive into the options! The wagons that had 90% of the things I needed were; Keenz XC+,  Jeep Wrangler Stroller Wagon, I circled back to the W2 and W4, and, The Larktale Caravan.

*This post may contain affiliate links where I may earn a small comission from provided links

When we first found out we were pregnant after two long years of TTC we were ecstatic! The flood of emotions after such a long journey, which yields the long-awaited results is unmeasurable in words. We were cautious about announcing and waited until 12 weeks to reveal our big surprise! During that time though, I did a lot of careful planning! Research, research, research! It can, and did, become quickly overwhelming!What were the best products to buy? Will my baby like this? What if I don’t purchase the correct items? What if I’m missing a necessity? Getting pregnant after a long unexplainable infertility brings on a new sense of anxiety. At least, it did for me. I decided my best thing to do was to make a baby registry, not only as a means for my friends and family to purchase items for our baby but as a list for myself. I used my registries in a couple of different facades. ​

1. To make a complete and total list of items I researched and wanted,
2. To keep an eye on price changes and deals,
3. A place for my family and friends to get ideas and shop for the baby, and
4. The registry discount

I ended up using two registries for our first pregnancy and will list them and the details about them below!

*This post may contain affiliate links where I may earn a small comission from provided links

Making a baby registry and researching all of the available baby products was a super fun part of pregnancy for me. I highly enjoyed researching different brands, features, and accessories! When it came to picking a stroller wagon, it almost seemed like a daunting task. Back in 2019, there weren’t as many options as there is today, but, there was still a pretty decent amount of choices to review and choose from. What also made this harder, and is still an issue today, is most of these stroller wagons aren’t available to test drive and view in stores. More and more are coming available now in 2023, which is a great plus for parents on the hunt for a versatile stroller option!Options I was looking for in 2019. Although I was pregnant with my first, I knew the most important thing I wanted was space. I wanted enough space for another rider, the diaper bag, and any other fun baby gadgets that would accompany us on our ride. I wanted something versatile enough to work from newborn to at least, age 4 or 5. I wanted a luxury push and something that folded compact. Researching these features felt tedious. These wagons weren’t available in stores to test drive, to see how the push was, to get a feel for the fold and the wagon overall. My saving grace was joining national Stroller Wagon Facebook Groups and connecting with other parents who have owned these wagons. ​ ​

Wagons available in 2019 were slim pickings. I can name the brands available on one hand, at least, from what I can remember. Although the brands available were small, there were a ton of options. Even through my research, I wasn’t familiar with features such as footwells, parent consoles, and extra accessories. The Wonderfold Wagon at the time was available in a 2 seater and 4 seater and was the top contender and most loved and valued wagon among the stroller wagon groups. I was lucky enough to find a local mama with a W2 wagon and she left me to “test drive” it around the neighborhood. This was an absolute advantage for me because it let me quickly determine that Wonderfold was not for me. In my opinion, it was already too heavy and bulky. I loved that it had elevated seats and easy access for young toddlers to crawl in and out. The size, weight, push and not to mention price were a deal breaker for me. 

Next up, were budget-friendly wagons. In this category, there were two available at the time. The Babytrend Expedition and the Evenflo Pivot Xplore. I’m going to be honest, I did very minimal research on the Babytrend wagon. From my research and the information I gathered from the stroller wagon groups, it was easy for me to rule that wagon out. Although, it’s a great budget wagon for families with 1 or 2 small children! ​

Let’s explore the Evenflo Pivot Xplore! When I originally decided this one was the one, I was planning for future babies. This wagon does have a car seat adaptor, but it only works with the Evenflo infant car seats. We had already purchased the Chicco infant car seat, so this setup was not going to work for us. The saving grace, and probably one of my favorite features of the Evenflo Pivot Xplore wagon is the second seat pictured below!

Let’s talk features! The Evenflo Pivot Xplore is jam-packed with features for being a budget wagon! All-terrain wheels and suspension, child snack and drink tray, and one that is available with the second seat, that luxury push/pull, adjustable handlebar, double vented UPF 50+ canopies, removable storage basket, footwell, compact fold, and numerous pockets inside and out for storage! The Evenflo Pivot Xplore had all of the features I was looking for plus more! The Evenflo can handle all types of terrain as well, grass, mud, loose gravel, beach sand, as well as pavement. The second seat was a great option from newborn to about 9 months for us. It holds 55 lbs, fully reclines and has an expandable footrest. It can attach to the wagon to the forward or rear face, and when attached, leaves enough room for 3 children up to 4 years to comfortably use the wagon! I also have a great video here, showing the Evenflo going over deep fluffy sand! ​

Fast forward to almost 4 years of use on this wagon and my 90+ percentile toddlers (3.75 & 2.5) have started to outgrow the Evenflo Wagon. I started to notice that trips outside of the home were becoming less enjoyable for me. My toddlers were constantly kicking each other in the footwell, pushing each other, and screaming. It became inevitable that if we wanted to enjoy longer trips or solo parenting trips with both toddlers we needed to upgrade our stroller wagon. Below are some images of how crowded the wagon became for us. My oldest toddler does like to walk a lot, but for longer day trips like the zoo or aquarium or road trips, a larger wagon was a necessity.

Conclusion, the Evenflo Pivot Xplore is a fantastic budget wagon for families with up to 3 small young children. It can be utilized as a grow with me wagon from newborn up to 4-5 years depending on the size and height of your children, even longer if you have a single child or older independent children. If you’re looking for a high quality budget wagon, the Evenflo Pivot Xplore is it! In conclusion, the Evenflo Pivot Xplore is a fantastic budget wagon for families with up to 3 small young children. It can be utilized as a grow-with-me wagon from newborn up to 4-5 years depending on the size and height of your children, even longer if you have a single child or older independent children. If you’re looking for a high-quality budget wagon, the Evenflo Pivot Xplore is it!