Crystal by Cirque du Soleil on ice came to Boston and it was outstanding!

Crystal by Cirque du Soleil on ice came to Boston and it was outstanding! We were offered tickets to see the show at Agganis Arena in Boston and the show totally blew us away. We arrived a bit close to show-time and when we picked up our tickets we didn't recognize the section later to find out they were right on the floor. We have never had seats this close and they were unreal.

The show started on ice and it is the first time that Cirque du Soleil performed a show on ice and we were amazed at the acrobatics and artistry performed on ice! We happened to somehow land in seats that the artists interacted with a few of us throughout the show and totally caught me off guard when one of the artists passed a glowing orb to me and I caught it. This has *never* happened with the seats that I got but this was a performance we will remember for sure!

The story was wonderfully told through quite a few series of ice skating, gymnastics and aerobatics. 

Cirque du Soleil is bringing their show to the Dunkin Donuts Center in Providence, Rhode Island from July 7-10 for five performances. You can get discounted tickets starting at $39 each thanks to Cirque Week which ends on Sunday, June 26 by clicking on the link here.

NOTE: We were provided with tickets to the show in Boston in order to facilitate this review. No other compensation was provided and all opinions, as always, are our own.

The Scooper Bowl is coming to Patriot Place in Foxboro on Saturday

One of my favorite events of the year, the Jimmy Fund Scooper Bowl, is back in person this year at Patriot Place in Foxboro this Saturday! 

I used to attend when it was in downtown Boston and always had the best time. Kids would have contests to see who could eat the most ice cream and stack their cups throughout the event in celebration of their feat.

Tickets are on sale now through TicketMaster with the proceeds benefitting the Jimmy Fund, which supports adult and pediatric cancer care and research at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.

The full press release is below:

PATRIOT PLACE TO HOST THE JIMMY FUND SCOOPER BOWL FOR THE FIRST TIME SATURDAY, JUNE 18

Tickets for all-you-can-eat ice cream festival on sale now at www.scooperbowl.org

FOXBOROUGH, Mass.  – Patriot Place will host the Jimmy Fund Scooper Bowl for the first time on Saturday, June 18 from 12 p.m. until 8 p.m.

The annual all-you-can-eat ice cream festival celebrates its 39th anniversary this year and first time at Patriot Place. The Scooper Bowl will be held in Lot 22 between the west side of Gillette Stadium and the Renaissance Boston Patriot Place Hotel. Attendees will sample a variety of frozen treats in all their favorite flavors while enjoying live music and fun interactive activities for the whole family. There will be sweet treats for everyone, including non-dairy, nut-free and gluten-free offerings.

Tickets are on sale now at www.scooperbowl.org. Tickets are $20 for adults and $15 for children 5 to 12 years old. Children under 5 are free and will not require a ticket for entry. Tickets must be purchased online or via credit card onsite. All proceeds benefit the Jimmy Fund, which supports adult and pediatric cancer care and research at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.

“We are proud to partner with the Jimmy Fund to host the Scooper Bowl at Patriot Place for the first time this June,” said Diana Griffin, Director of Marketing for Patriot Place. “The fight against cancer is extremely important to us here at Patriot Place and we are honored to work with the Jimmy Fund to support adult and pediatric cancer research and care. We look forward to teaming up with our guests in support of this cause on June 18.”

ABOUT PATRIOT PLACE

Patriot Place is a shopping, dining and entertainment destination located adjacent to Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts. Patriot Place features large and boutique retailers, 23 casual to high-end restaurants and other nightlife venues. Among the highlights of Patriot Place are New England’s first Bass Pro Shops, a state-of-the-art, 14-screen Showcase Cinema De Lux, the award-winning Patriots Hall of Fame presented by Raytheon, the retro-style bowling alley, Splitsville Luxury Lanes, the modern gastro sports pub, CBS Sporting Club, the four-star Renaissance Boston Patriot Place Hotel, the Hilton Garden Inn Foxborough/Patriot Place and Helix eSports, the region’s largest egaming center and social hub. Patriot Place is also the home of Brigham Health and Brigham and Women’s/Mass General Health Care Centers. For more information, visit www.patriot-place.com, follow Patriot Place on Twitter (twitter.com/patriotplace) or like Patriot Place on Facebook (facebook.com/patriotplace).

 

Monster Jam roared into Foxboro and brought fun and energy to Gillette Stadium

On Saturday, June 4, we went to Monster Jam in Foxboro at Gillette Stadium with our friends and we had an absolute blast! Before every Monster Jam show you have the chance to buy additional passes for the Pit Party and we wanted to have the up close experience for the kids to see the big trucks and tires that were almost as big as me!

It was a nice day so we brought some food to tailgate with the boys before the show and gates opened two hours prior to showtime - we went in with an hour to go and it was more than enough time to get to our seats and be ready!

If you go, be sure to bring hearing protection - the monster trucks can get LOUD! We wore hearing protection for us and the kids too!

Here is my friend's recap, for a different take on things than I usually give:

My 2 boys (ages 7 and 4) absolutely loved Monster Jam. After enjoying their first tailgate in the parking lot, the Pit Party was a great opportunity for them to get up close and personal with the trucks and their drivers. Then the show itself was a blast and they could not get enough of the non-stop action and music. 

Entering the night, Grave Digger was the household favorite but Zombie stole the show with its stunts and the crowd going wild whenever it’s music (Thriller) was played. The next morning my youngest asked me when the Monster Trucks would be back  and we’ve been watching videos all week on YouTube. Safe to say we’ll be back next year!

NOTE: We were provided with tickets for show in order to facilitate this review. All opinions are our own and no other compensation was provided.

Awair Element monitors the air quality in your home or any indoor space you choose!

These days, we listen to the TV, radio, or read things on the internet that talk about how the air quality is so poor especially indoors. I've been interested in learning how to measure the air quality in our house over time and to improve it or what impacts it. After looking up indoor air quality monitors, I had the opportunity to test out the Awair Element air quality monitor.

The Awair Element tracks five factors that influence the quality of their air inside your home: temperature, humidity, carbon dioxide (CO2), volatile organic chemicals (VOCs), and PM2.5 (atmospheric particulate matter smaller than 2.5 microns). I've had it running over the past few weeks and it gives you a visual representation using a bar graph on the front of the unit (represented in dots) as well as a percentage number out of 100.

If you are worried about your cleaning supplies or forced air system emitting so many chemicals or circulating the same stale air throughout the house, Awair Element will show you if you need to turn on your filter or open the windows to let fresh air in.

I have mine set up in my basement office where I spend a great deal of time whether I am working from home or looking to relax. Since it has been monitoring the air quality, I have been able to rest assured that the things I can control to help the air quality in my house are set up properly, whether its temperature, windows, reducing the chemicals we introduce into the air from cleaning or painting or something else!

Overall, the Awair element is a great air quality monitor if you're looking for something sleek and reliable to track and give you accurate air quality readings. There is a great app for iOS that will let you view more detailed trends and measurements along with giving you great tips to improve or keep the air quality in your space.

NOTE: We were provided with an Awair Element in exchange for this review. There was no promise made of a positive review and all opinions, as always, are our own. No other compensation was provided.

Checked out Supercross LIVE! at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro and it was energetic!

This weekend, we checked out Supercross LIVE! at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro and it was so energetic. We got to Patriot Place and walked around for a little bit before entering the stadium. The security and mobile ticketing process was a breeze and we were quickly inside.

We walked around the concourse and watched some of the qualifying matches before we got to our seats to enjoy the start of the show. We learned that they trucked in over 26,000 pounds of dirt to the stadium from over 500 truckloads! There were lots of bumps and jumps for the riders to go on throughout the course. After the national anthem and presentation of the colors, it was show time.

There were two different races that were taking place and it was so exciting to watch them. It was quite exhilarating and there were a few moments where we were captivated by the action. It was definitely a new experience in a location where we are used to watching football games and music concerts.

NOTE: We were provided with tickets in exchange for this review and some social posts. No other compensation was provided and all opinions are our own.

Checking out Imagine Van Gogh in Boston was such a fun treat

Last weekend weekend, we had the opportunity to check out the Imagine Van Gogh exhibit at the SOWA Power Station in the South End of Boston and we really enjoyed it. When we arrived we went into the first area where there were a bunch of floating boards suspended in air and we had the opportunity to read about Van Gogh's life and how the artists' life experiences helped to shape his artwork. We also learned of the techniques the company used to display Van Gogh's artwork in a new immersive exhibit that was literally larger than life!

We were surprised to learn that Van Gogh lived to 37 years old, especially as someone who is older than 37, it was very interesting to learn of the life he lived and the experiences he had to give him the inspiration for the artwork he created. Previously, while in high school and college, I remember learning about the type of art he and other artists created, and the different styles they used but I hadn't thought of the experiences they had that would influence their art. It was also interesting to go through it as a parent and to see my children experience the exhibit as well and to see them enjoy it.

There was classical music playing throughout our time in the gallery and we were able to sit on the floor and take in the entire immersive exhibit at our own pace. We saw kids also run around and be kids and everyone seemed to take in the experience on their own time at their own pace. It seemed that everyone was respectful of everyone else and there were lots of people taking photos and videos throughout their time as well.

NOTE: We were provided with tickets for this exhibit in exchange for this review. All opinions are our own and no other compensation was provided.

Looking for fun snacks? Folio cheese wraps, Old Amsterdam Gouda, Walden Farms Dressing and Mighty Sesame Tahini

Are you looking for fun snacks? We had the chance to try some Folio cheese wraps, Old Amsterdam Gouda, Walden Farms Dressing and Mighty Sesame Tahini. 

Folios™ Cheese Wraps offer a low-carb, gluten-free, and keto-friendly option for your meals and snacks. These are the first cheese wraps introduced to the market with only 1g of carbs per serving! We tried the Jarlsburg swiss cheese wraps and the cheddar and parmesan wraps and they were all delicious! The ones we liked the most were when we microwaved them for around 90 seconds and they got crispy - sooooo delicious!

Old Amsterdam Gouda was a delicious cheese and we truly enjoyed it! Old Amsterdam Aged Gouda is aged for a minimum of 8 months and has a perfect balance between sweet and savory. 

Looking to dress things up with your salads or wraps? Walden Farms Salad Dressings have no (zero!) calories, net carbs, fat, sugars, dairy, etc, and add the most delicious flavor to everything! We loved adding it to our salads and the cheese wraps. It was also great as a dipping sauce too!

I have always wanted to make baba ghanouj (a middle-eastern eggplant dip) and found it REALLY easy by mixing roasted eggplant with Mighty Sesame Tahini which comes in an easy-to-use squeezable bottle so just a few teaspoons added to roasted eggplant makes the best baba ghanouj! I added some Absolutely Gluten Free crackers we received to do a quick taste test and it all got rave reviews!

NOTE: We were provided with samples of these products to facilitate this review. No other compmensation was provided and all opinions, as always, are our own.