tell me I'm not the only one still figuring out summer

I feel like it’s still April, yet suddenly here we are in June 👀

I don’t know about you, but I’m still trying to sort out our summer plans (tell me I’m not the only one?!) because I thought we had more time.

This past weekend was crazy, in the best possible way. Ben ran his first ever trail running race. He has run a marathon and several halfs in the past (actually we both have!), but trail running is a whole different beast.

The course he ran was 10 miles and had 2,000 feet of elevation gain, and he did great! He got 13th place (out of 110!) and was still a functioning human being after, which is a big win if you ask me!

Fairy (Half) Birthday Party!

We also hosted a super magical fairy-themed (half) birthday party for Juniper and it was so much fun!

We had planned on doing a sledding birthday party for her actual birthday, but with so little snow this year we pivoted and leaned into her current obsession with fairies!

🧚🏻 If you have any little ones who love fairies as much as she does, the fairy theme was SO MUCH FUN! I made a list of all the stuff we used for the party in case you’re interested.

Oh, and at the bottom of this email, I’m sharing the recipe for the GIANT BUBBLES we made which were such a hit!

Jumping on Flight Deals

Speaking of still not quite having our summer ironed out, we’ve been scouring flight deals lately and have decided we might just choose where to go based on where we can get the best flight… but even that is proving difficult because we’re finding so many good deals!!

I mean, just look at some of these:

If you also want to get flight alerts like these into your inbox, I highly recommend joining Thrifty Traveler. We’ve been members for more than 10 years.

We started with the free newsletter (a great place to start if you don’t want to pay), but ever since we switched to the Premium membership 3 years ago, we have not paid full price for a single flight.

If you have any questions, we’re happy to answer them! Just reply to this email.

And if you sign up with our link, you'll get $20 off your first year since we partner with them. We are only sharing this because it is a service we are genuinely obsessed with!

Start getting flight alerts in your inbox!

Going to the Oregon Coast this summer?

Ben just published a quick little video tour of a recent Airbnb we stayed at on the Oregon Coast. If Pacific City is on your summer bucket list, you’ll definitely want to give this a watch!

🎥 It’s only 5 minutes long, and it really helps our channel when people watch and engage, so we truly appreciate it! Leave a comment if you like the video or Airbnb!

My current obsessions

LINEN PANTS: I’ve seen people recommend these linen pants for more than a year now, but when I saw them on sale (50% off!), I finally decided to give them a try. Holy moly. They really are that good! I will be wearing them on repeat this summer! There are still a few colors on sale (I just ordered another one). I have them in undyed (kind of like a khaki) and white is coming soon!

BEACHY WAVE SPRAY: I got this texturing wave spray and am in love. It has a nice vanilla scent (without being overpowering), and it helps give my hair some summery body and texture with no “crunchiness”.

CAMPING LOVESEAT: After 2 years of having it on our “wish list”, we finally bought this camping loveseat and could not be happier. We brought it to the park recently and all 4 of us can fit on it (with our toddler on one of our laps). I’m so excited to bring it camping this summer and know that it will make hanging out at camp together so much more fun (& comfy!).

GO-TO SALAD: I’ve been loving the “Jennifer Aniston salad” lately. It feels so fresh and is packed with fiber. It has lots of plant-based protein, but I sometimes add grilled chicken for a little extra boost.

Giant Bubble Mix

If you want to make giant bubbles this summer, THIS is the perfect recipe!

We made this for Juniper’s birthday party and it was a huge hit! I know we’ll be making it a bunch this summer.

Before I dive in, there are 3 things to know:

You will need a big bubble wand to make the most of these bubbles (this is the one we got and love!)
Guar gum is the secret ingredient. It won’t work without it.
this recipe on an old Reddit forum. I just rewrote it to make it more concise and added some of my own tips. Credit goes to @papatonepictures!

Ingredients:

4 cups hot (almost boiling) water
2 tsp guar gum
200ml (about 1 cup) Dawn ultra soap 3x or 4x
2 tsp baking powder
10 cups cold water

Steps:

Boil water in a large pot. Remove from heat and let cool for one minute.
Slowly sprinkle guar gum into the hot water a little at a time, whisking constantly. Do not dump it in all at once or it will clump. The mixture will thicken as you go. Work quickly so it doesn’t cool down completely. Some gum will stick to the whisk; that’s normal.
Slowly pour in dish soap while continuing to stir until fully incorporated.
Sprinkle in 2 teaspoons of baking powder the same way you added the guar gum: slowly and a little at a time, stirring until each addition fully dissolves.
Pour in cold water two cups at a time, stirring gently as the mixture cools to room temperature.
Transfer to a sealed container to store.

Wander on,