This post is sponsored by Tobacco Free New York State. All opinions are my own.

I have always thought smoking is disgusting. I remember sitting in the back of a limo on the way to a bar mitzvah in middle school and watching one of my classmates pull a pack of cigarettes out of her sequined purse, as if she was the coolest thing since roll-on body glitter. She lit one, cracking the window and puffing outside while giggling like a fiend and no doubt feeling like a total bad ass. She passed it around and some of our friends took a puff, while others pretended to look through her as if they had no idea what was happening.

I was one of the latter.

The idea of inhaling poisonous fumes combined with the amount of trouble I would get into if I was caught was way too much for me. I would have been happy to melt right into the slippery leather seats.

This post was sponsored by the Boys & Girls Club of America as part of an Influencer Activation for Influence Central.

This year, Samantha’s 10th birthday coincided with the last day of school. We surprised her with a (refurbished) iPad and it was clear within a few hours that we would have to put some serious restrictions on her usage of the thing this summer. If it were up to her, girlfriend would be on musical.ly 24 hours a day until the bus comes back to drag her to fifth grade.

But this is not a blog post about the evils of screen time. Because, to be honest, I don’t think all screen time is evil. Ellie has been doing yoga almost daily lately, thanks to DVDs we picked up at the library. Yes, there’s a screen involved, but she’s up and moving her body in ways she might not have been.

While I don’t want my girls glued to glowing screens all day, I’m no fool. Technological savvy will be a major asset to them in the future. By 2018, jobs in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) are expected to grow almost twice as fast as jobs in other fields in the US. Plus, there are ways to have them use tech positively so that they’re learning without even realizing it. Samantha is obsessed with apps like Scratch and Hopscotch, which teach kids basic programming and coding skills. I like that they stimulate her and encourage her to continue learning—even while on summer vacation.

This post is sponsored by Minted, but all opinions and squeals of delight are mine.

There is nothing more annoying than buying the kids something brand spanking new only to have them leave it at school or camp or on the bus. It’s even more annoying when you realize that there might have been hope in getting it back—if only you’d listened and labeled the freaking thing like you were warned to.

Sound familiar? It’s a story that unfolds over and over and over again. Will we ever learn?

Now that I’ve discovered Minted’s name and clothing labels, I just might. I’ve always loved Minted and the beautiful designs by independent artists they feature, but I had no idea they had products that are so practical. I should probably be embarrassed to admit this, but I’m much more likely to use something practical if it’s really, really cute. These personalized name labels totally pass the test.

For me, tea and crafting go together like movies and popcorn. It’s a pair that you just don’t mess with.

There’s something so freaking zen about sitting down and making something with my own two hands while I sip a cup of tea. It puts me in my happy zone. Another thing that puts me into that zone is laughing my butt off with my closest friends. A few weeks ago I had a (brilliant) idea: why not combine these forces of goodness into one big, fat, happy party?

So I did.

This post was sponsored by Klondike as part of an Influencer Activation for Influence Central. I received complimentary products to facilitate my review but shoved them in my face all on my own.

I’m a little depressed (and, apparently, really dramatic). If you follow me on Instagram, you know that the girls and I have been obsessed with catching the sunset lately. We make sure we get down to the riverfront about a half hour before sunset so that we can watch the sun dip behind the mountains on the other side of the river.

I just Googled “sunset” to see what time we’d need to get there tonight and found that it sets at 4:48. 4:48! Curse you, daylight savings time!

I already feel myself sliding into hibernation mode. I want all of the cozy blankets, fuzzy socks, and comfort foods. And I don’t want to leave the house. I just want to curl up on my favorite spot on the couch and binge watch TV shows while nibbling a Klondike bar until there’s more sunlight and life on the trees again.