Saturday, April 20, 2019

Hosting a Marvelous Passover with Mrs. Maisel

This year, we've been fortunate to take you, our readers, on some fun experiences. One such experience was the season 2 premiere of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, hosted by Xfinity and Amazon Prime Video thanks to their new partnership. We enjoy watching Mrs. Maisel and other Amazon Prime Video favorites on our Xfinity X1 box! Be sure to check it out using the Apps feature of the X1 remote!

Well, a few short weeks later, Amazon Prime Video partnered up with the folks from Maxwell House to release a limited edition "new 1958" version of their popular Haggadah for the Jewish Holiday of Passover that is themed from The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.

What's new about this version (nu?) is the updated design and fonts making things easier to read as well as the English translation has been updated to be egalitarian and doesn't refer to the higher being as "He" but rather just "G-d" or the "Divine".

Our family enjoyed looking through and using the new copies because we use the old ones every year. We've been so used to our copies saying thine, yea, or speaketh. I thought the language update was a welcome change along with new graphics, and even a recipe for brisket!

If you're a fan of the show as we are and you want your own Haggadah, you can still order Maxwell House coffees direct from Amazon that come with the special Haggadahs (haggadot, in Hebrew).









NOTE: We were provided with the Haggadahs from Maxwell House to facilitate this review. No other compensation was provided. As always, all opinions are our own.

Saturday, April 13, 2019

Fun April Vacation Ideas: Red Sox, Blue Man Group, GOT at Primark & Baseball Beanpot

Looking for something to do this April vacation?

Here are some fun highlights with more details below:


ALL WEEK: Blue Man Group
Blue Man Group is bringing more family fun to school vacation week this April. In addition to the unique show experience, kids and parents alike can get creative before the show with free art-inspired activities. And, new this year, patrons can take advantage of a special discount: 25% off a Family Four Pack of tickets.

With an expanded scheduled of 18 shows between April 15 to 21, there’s plenty of opportunities to see the boys in blue including added matinees throughout the week.

From April 15-17, prepare to enter the Blue Man Group tribe when the theater staff offers glow-in-the-dark face painting in the Charles Playhouse Lounge before the show. Kids and adults can pick out tribal-inspired designs and glow during the performance!

From April 18-21, roll up your sleeve and channel your inner Picasso when you “decorate-a-mask” using various materials like feathers, gems and special black light markers.

All activities are free for ticketholders. Children under the age of 3 are not permitted in the theatre.

After all performances, guests are invited to stay and meet the Blue Men and take the ultimate selfie to add to their collection. Doors open one hour before each performance, and, in addition to the school vacation week special activities, there is also a full bar and interactive music and light installation created by Blue Man Group called the “Lounge-U-Lum.”

WEDNESDAY April 17
Baseball Beanpot at Fenway Park
The college baseball doubleheader will feature teams from Boston College, Harvard University, Northeastern University, and the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. Tickets are general admission and priced at $10 each.

Net proceeds will benefit the Pete Frates #3 Fund, named after the former Division 1 college athlete who was Captain of the Boston College Baseball team and diagnosed with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease.

FRIDAY April 19
Game of Thrones at Primark Boston
On Friday April 19th and Saturday, April 20th, Primark Downtown Crossing will host the Iron Throne from HBO®’s mega-hit series, Game of Thrones. Friday, April 19th, 9:00 a.m. Fans are encouraged to don their best Game of Thrones garb and be ready to snap and share pics with the Throne just as the store opens. The first 50 who arrive on the 19th in costume and get a picture with the throne will win Game of Thrones collectibles. See store for details.

SATURDAY April 20
Saturday, April 20th, 12:00 – 4:00 p.m. Fans can capture themselves with the Throne in a dynamic, shareable format using Primark's GifGif booth. We will have props from their collection to add to the fun! Lastly, Primark will be running a social media competition on April 19th and 20th.

Fans who share a static post (not just a story) with a picture of them in the throne using the official #PrimarkGoTSweeps and #PrimarkUSA tags will be entered into a competition with the chance to win Primark’s GoT season premiere survival kit. Entrants must be 17 years or older and need to follow @primark.usa to qualify. One winner will be notified on Monday, April 22nd. No purchase necessary. See store for full terms.

April 22-25
April 26-28
Fenway 4-pax
Score 4 Red Sox Tickets, 4 Fenway Franks and 4 Fountain drinks for $99. To purchase tickets please visit www.mlb.com/redsox/tickets/packs/family-4-pax.

NOTE: We are providing this information for our readers! As with all of our Red Sox posts, we are providing this information as we are Red Sox Parents. No compensation was provided in exchange for this post and our opinions, as always, are our own.

Monday, April 1, 2019

Watching the Harlem Globetrotters in Worcester

I recently had the opportunity to bring my daughter and her friend to see the Harlem Globetrotters at the DCU Center in Worcester. This year the Globies are on their Fan Powered tour taking their fun times and hilarious antics to the next generation.

I was my first time going to the DCU Center and we parked in a nearby garage. We walked to the door and found a line had formed outside as you have your ticket scanned immediately on walking through the doors.

We found our seats just before the teams were announced and then the fun antics began with team introductions and Globie, the mascot entertaining the crowd.

Be sure to plan on staying after the game - you can go down to the court level and go around and meet the players, get their autograph and take photos with them. Such a cool experience. If you go to meet the team, just be aware that the players generally don't move, you need to walk around to meet them and get their autograph.

You can SAVE 25% for ALL Harlem Globetrotters Games with promo code FUNFAM http://harlemglobetrotters.com/tickets

The next game in our area will be this weekend in Providence, RI on April 6 with two shows, one at 2 pm and one at 7 pm.

Here's some photos from our game:

The line outside of the DCU center went somewhat quickly, but be prepared to wait outside.

The view from our seats was great.



There were so many hilarious antics during the game, like this one - one of the players hopped up on the top of the hoop during the game. So fun!

At the end of the game, you can go down to the court. to meet the players, get autographs and take pictures. Just be aware that you need to move around to meet each player - they don't come to you.


NOTE: We were provided with tickets to the game to facilitate this review. No other compensation was provided. As always, all opinions are our own.

Tuesday, March 19, 2019

Enjoying time with family and friends...

I've really been taking some time over the past month to slow down, enjoy the moment and cherish time with my family. I love being able to partake in fun activities with the kids, friends and family and as it's starting to warm up, we are spending more time outside.

Recently, we had some late snowfall (in March!) in a quick burst. I had a chance to take a quick break and go sledding - something I haven't done for at least 20 years. It was so much fun and we were laughing all of the way!

I think spending time outside and slowing down, and being present, is so important. There's truly nothing like listening to laughter, having fun, and playing outside.

Thursday, February 21, 2019

Xfinity xFi gives you the best speed, coverage and control of your in-home wifi

NOTE: This is a sponsored post from Comcast about xFi.

I had been using my own modem for a few years and it's been a good experience, especially when you're trying to save a few bucks off of the monthly bill. I quickly noticed some tradeoffs, most notably not getting the full benefit of increased network speeds since Comcast's technology is always evolving, which quickly made my purchase dated technology.

I've recently changed to renting the modem, which gives a few advantages: when Comcast makes any improvements, I can just swap the modem. They have also included quite possibly, one of the best new features at no additional charge - xFi, which is only available if you're using their latest rented, in-home gateway.

xFi gives you greater control through a simple, modern, easy-to-use experience so that you can choose who can access your network at any time.

You can download the enhanced xFi experience through your mobile device app store, available for iOS or Android, which enables you to see what devices are on your home WiFi networks, troubleshoot issues, and even pause your home WiFi connections during those times you want people to be focused on things other than the internet and screens.

One great feature is that you can assign a time allowance per device (think different lengths of time per iPad) so you can ensure your kids aren't spending too much time watching videos on Youtube.

Once your modem is installed by a Comcast technician, you have quick access to your home network and can customize things easily through the enhanced xFi experience. You can do things such as:
  • Pause with a Tap: using the xFi app you can pause the network access by time, device or even user.
  • Home Network information: you can view and/or edit the home network name and password
  • Name and Organize devices: You can assign a name to each device and organize the devices
  • Who's using a device: You can create users and assign devices to them
Check out xfinity.com for more information!

Sunday, February 10, 2019

The Globetrotters are coming to Worcester's DCU Center on 3/23

The Original Harlem Globetrotters are coming to Worcester on March 23rd brining their all new fan-powered world tour to town!

The Globetrotters are known for their amazing feats of basketball, humor, and acts of goodwill on and off the court. And they have always been about the fans, but this year, everything they do will bring fans closer to the action more than ever before. Join them as they celebrate fans during the all-new Fan Powered World Tour! There will be over 20 occasions before, during and after the game where you have the opportunity to directly interact with Globetrotters stars.

Don't miss out - get your tickets today and save 25% off with promo code FUNFAM

SAVE 25% for ALL Harlem Globetrotters Games with promo code FUNFAM https://www.harlemglobetrotters.com/tickets

Monday, January 21, 2019

A fun, cold weekend

It's been a cold weekend here but we had fun playing outside in the snow with the kids and enjoyed some family time. The weather was crazy... we had a few inches of snow, followed by a few hours of rain and then the temperature dropped quite a bit and then made the driveway like an ice rink!

We ran errands and cleaned up things around the house. I'm always amazed how often I'm washing the kitchen floors - right now it seems to be every weekend. Is it just me? It's a wonderful thing though and I'm happy to do it.

We watched the AFC Championship game between the Patriots and Chiefs and it was pretty exciting to see the Pats win and head to their third straight Super Bowl. I can't believe that it will be 17 years to the day when the Patriots last faced the Rams, in Super Bowl XXXVI.