More Free Fun Summer Activities in Utah

More Free Fun Summer Activities in Utah

June 16, 2025

Are you sick of going to the playground or are your kids too grown-up for splash pads? Don't worry, there are more free fun summer activities in Utah coming right up. From farmers markets to summer movie clubs, LEGO building, and cultural events. Utah is not lacking in fun, free events!

Farmers Markets

I've always loved going to the Ogden Farmers Market, but did you know that there are more awesome places to get fresh produce and hand-crafted goods? There is a different one in a different city in Davis or Weber County almost every single day.

• Tuesdays from 5-9 PM. 85 W 1800 N, Sunset, UT 84015. Provides residents with convenient access to fresh and artisanal goods while fostering a sense of community pride and support for local businesses.
• Wednesdays from 5-8PM. 4059 S 1900 W Roy, UT 84067. Fresh air, friendly faces, and homegrown goodness await!
• Thursdays from 5-9 PM. 1891 W 1700 S, Syracuse, UT 84075. The Syracuse Farmers Market is all about fresh food and local businesses! Shop directly from local farmers and vendors offering seasonal fruits and vegetables, honey, baked goods, crafts, services, and more. 
• Thursdays from 4PM-8PM. 100 S 100 E Bountiful, 84010. The Bountiful Farmers Market is a wonderful opportunity to purchase fresh vegetables, fruits, and goods from artisans and retailers. Local farmers, food court, and crafters.
• Fridays from 5:30 PM. 437 N Wasatch Dr. Layton, 84041. Layton FEST (Farmers, Entertainment, Shopping, food Trucks) is an open-air market that brings together the best of Layton City and Northern Utah. 
• Fridays from 5:00 PM – 9:00 PM. 550 N 3500 W, West Point, UT 84015. Come enjoy a vibrant evening supporting local farmers, makers, and small businesses in the heart of West Point! There's something for everyone - food, crafts, fresh air, and community spirit.
• Saturdays from 8AM-1PM. 25th Street from Wall to Washington Blvd, Ogden, UT 84401. Farmers Market Ogden transforms Historic 25th Street into a lively festival of fresh, locally grown fruits and vegetables, floral arrangements, and handcrafted goods. 

Summer Movie Clubs

Sometimes I want to beat the heat and find somewhere with air conditioning so I can cool off. Summer movie clubs are the perfect solution. They aren't free, but with ticket prices between $1-3, it's close enough. 

The Kaysville Theater always has $5 movie tickets, but during the summer, they have $1 matinee kids movies on Wednesdays and Thursdays at 12 PM and 2:30 PM. I haven't see many of the movies that are on the list this year, so I think we'll be going quite often.

• Cinemark has its summer movie clubhouse on Wednesdays at 9:30 AM. https://www.cinemark.com/series-events-info-pages/summer-movie-clubhouse/
• Megaplex has 10 movies for $25 https://store.megaplex.com/products/digital-kids-summer-movie-pass-2025

Free Play and LEGO Building

Bricks and Minifigs (4074 Riverdale Rd, Ogden, UT 84405) has a free Open Build for kids 4-12 every Wednesday from 11 AM to 4 PM. "We’ll bring the bricks—you bring the imagination." It’s the perfect midweek break for curious minds and creative hands. 

BONUS: Want to take your creation home? Kids can pay their age to keep their build! No sign-up needed—just drop in, build, explore, and play all summer long! It's another great way to beat the heat.

Cultural Celebration Series

The Hale Center Theater is excited to announce the return of their Cultural Celebration Series! Celebrate 3 different cultures throughout August. I've never been before, but I'm excited to check it out. 

When: Mondays in August,  Food trucks available at 4:30PM, the program starts at 6:00 PM.

• August 4 - The Hot House West Swing Collective
• August 11 - Halau Ku Pono I Kamalani
• August 18 - Ballet Floklorico Eck Junenil

Where: Cairns Plaza Fountains 9900 South Monroe, Sandy, UT 84070

What to bring: blankets, water, camping chairs, Umbrella, etc

Price: Free admission and parking.

I love living in Utah where there are so many activities we can enjoy for free or close to it. Let me know which event you're looking forward to attending this summer.

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Free Fun Summer Activities in Utah

Free Fun Summer Activities in Utah

June 07, 2025

We love all the sunshine and free time that summer brings, but fun summer activities in Utah can get expensive. I've found some great options for families in Davis and Weber County that are absolutely FREE!

Free Saturday RAMP Activities

My very favorite thing is the free Saturday R.A.M.P. activities. Weber County offers 6-9 different activities that families can attend for free every Saturday. They can be crowded sometimes, but it's usually not too bad. Here's the list of where and when you can go to places all over Ogden for FREE. 

Family Friday Film Series

I love going to the Kenley Centennial Amphitheater on Friday evenings at 7 PM. It is located in the Layton City Park (403 N Wasatch Drive, Layton). Davis Council of the Arts is awesome for providing this free event every week. The screen is nice and bright, so they can start the movie before the sun goes down. 

You can bring snacks or even dinner if you want. There are quite a few seats, or you can bring a blanket or chairs and sit on the lawn, it has perfect picnic vibes. Friday movies are completely free and family-friendly. They usually have a nice combination of newer choices mixed with some classics. This year's lineup looks awesome! 

• Friday, June 13 - Twisters
• Friday, June 20 - The Wild Robot
• Friday, June 27 - Uncle Buck
• Friday, July 11 - Cars
• Friday, July 18 - Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves
• Friday, July 25 - Hook
• Friday, August 1 - Moana 2
• Friday, August 8 - Harold and the Purple Crayon
• Friday, August 15 - Toy Story
• Friday, August 22 - Mufasa
• Friday, August 29 - Wonka 

You can come early at 5:30 PM for Layton FEST. It stands for Farmers, Entertainment, Shopping, and Trucks (foodtrucks). It's fun to walk around and window shop, but you'll likely end up spending quite a bit of money, so I didn't want to open with this.

Free Sunday Concert Series

The Davis Arts Council also sponsors free concerts every Sunday night at the Kenley Centennial Amphitheater (403 N Wasatch Drive, Layton). It's open seating and the gates open at 6:15 PM. The concerts start at 7 PM just as the sun is setting, it's pretty magical. 

I haven't heard of many of the artists, but it's usually a great experience. The lineup this year is a variety of styles from folk to classical and even a tribute band. What a treat that my kids can experience so many types of live music for free. Shoot, I might leave the kids at home and enjoy a date night with my husband. All the details are found at davisarts.org/upcoming-events.

Splash Pads in Davis County

I love splash pads because you don't have to worry about your kids drowning. Young kids are usually more inclined to play on their own, without me having to get wet. I don't mind playing with my kids, but when I bring them somewhere, it's nice to just have a little chat with a friend while the kids entertain themselves.

• Syracuse Island Splash Pad (1800 S 2000 W Syracuse). This is a huge, newer splash pad that also has a playground. The kids really love to float little boats and other toys on the river feature.
• Ellison Park (700 N. 2200 W. Layton). It is one of Utah's only splash pads with a slide and elevated splash pad toys. Nice shade is available for parents. There is a playground, a skatepark, and ballfields nearby.
• Heritage Park (150 N. Fairfield Rd. Kaysville). Includes a splash pad, playground, and pavilion.
• Creekside Park (600 East Millstreet, Bountiful). Includes a playground, water play area, and a nearby creek.
• Legacy Regional Park (1140 West 1100 North, North Salt Lake). This park includes a playground, pavilions, basketball courts, and a splash pad.
  

Splashpads in Weber County

• George E. Wahlen Park (4200 S. 2175 W. Roy). Has a nice big playground, splash pad, tennis courts, multipurpose basketball court, and a triplex T-Ball field.
• Riverdale Park Splash Pad (4300 S Parker Drive, Riverdale). There are two brand new playgrounds and a nice variety of water features for the kids to play on.
• Burch Creek (4300 Madison Ave. South Ogden). Includes a small water play feature, two large new playgrounds, and pickleball courts.
• Nature Park (5874 S Park Vista Dr, South Ogden). Includes a splash pad, playground, and large grassy area.
• Harrisville Park (1350 N Hwy 89, Harrisville). This is a smaller splash pad with various water features.

There are some really great splashpads in Davis and Weber Counties! You could try a different one every week of the summer and then revisit some of your favorites. Invite some friends and have a blast.

Free Summer Treats

You've got to try Free Frazil Friday from Maverick. You just download their app, and everyone who is with you can get a frozen treat anytime on Fridays in June. Don't forget a free Slurpee from 7/11 on July 11th. It's the little things that make it fun!

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DIY Father's Day Gift

DIY Father's Day Gift

June 05, 2025

Who doesn't love a DIY Father's Day Gift? Especially one that the whole family can enjoy! Dad doesn't need another tie or more golf balls; he needs a custom family board game! I have the perfect gift that's easy, cheap, and super fun. Make a customized Guess Who game with the faces of people in your family. 

DIY Father's Day Gift: Guess Who Game

To make your own Guess Who game, start by finding a picture of each person in your family. I stole some from Facebook or asked family members to send me one. There are 24 characters, so you need to have at least 24 different people in your family to make it work. If you're short by a few, you can add extended family or pets. 

Each card is a little over 1 inch wide and 2 inches tall. I made a template on Canva.com that you can just drop your pictures in. If you would like to use my template, Venmo me with the comment "Guess Who," and I'll send it to you for $5. 

Once you have the link, you'll need to sign in to Canva.com, click File, then "Make a copy." You'll upload your pictures and then drop them onto the different smiley faces. Double-click the pictures to crop them how you'd like them to print. You can change the word "Family" to your last name, or make any other changes; it's your file now.

Once you have all the pictures of your family added, click "File," then "Download," and save them as a PNG file. You'll need to "unzip" the files, then you can send them anywhere to be printed. Print three copies of each picture, one for the red team, one for the blue team, and one set for the draw pile. 

Thrift stores usually have old Guess Who game boards. I've had the most luck at the DI or Goodwill. You'll need to cut the pictures you printed so they'll fit in the game. Then you just take out all the old cards and put in the new ones.

It's so simple, silly, and so fun! It costs under $10, and your family will play over and over again. Venmo me with the comment "Guess Who," and I'll send you my Canva template for $5. 

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Paris Destination Guide

Paris Destination Guide

June 02, 2025

When I go on vacation, I like to see as much as humanly possible in a day, so if you're up for walking 12-15 miles a day, this is the guide for you. Buckle up for our museum-packed trip to Paris to celebrate our 20th wedding anniversary. 

Museums and Monuments

One of the best things we did was climb to the top of the Arc de Triomphe at night. We skipped paying to go up the Eiffel Tower, you really just need pictures in front of it for Instagram. Instead, we used the Museum Pass to go to the top of the Arc, and got a great view of the tower all lit up. It sparkles at 9 PM and every hour on the hour.

Of course, you have to go to the Louvre if you're in Paris, but I probably enjoyed D'Orsay even more. They had more art that I recognized from Van Gogh and Monet. If you like modern art and you plan on visiting the Centre Pompidou, try to go in the evening. It has an amazing view of the city, especially when the sun is setting. 

The Cluny is a small museum with a great summary of the History of the French people from 100-1400 AD. I don't know much about history, so if you're like me, I would start here to have some context to build from while learning about French culture.

Sainte Chapelle is a beautiful church with the most incredible stained glass. The only bummer was that even with a timed reservation, we had to wait over an hour to get through security. The breathtaking art made it worth the wait. Concierge is nearby, it was the prison where Marie Antoinette was held before going to the guillotine. I enjoyed learning more details about the French Revolution. 

Versailles

Versailles was just incredible! We felt like we had to rush through the palace to make it to our other timed reservation. But, we still had time to be wowed by all the wealth and opulence, and where the Treaty of Versailles was signed.

We walked for about an hour to make it to our 12 PM reservation at Trianon. There's a cute little Hamlet that the queen built, but I don't know if it was worth the long walk. For 5€, we took a tiny train back to the gardens and we got to see the beautiful fountains and grounds. It's normally a separate 10€ ticket to visit the gardens, so if you're willing to make the walk, it will save you 5€.

If I were to do it again, I would make reservations for the palace at 2 PM, instead of 10 AM. I would leave Paris in the morning and have breakfast in the town before visiting the palace.  If you want to go to Trianon, you do not need to make a timed reservation, it wasn't busy at all. Just know that once you leave the palace, you can't go back in.

Paris Museum Pass

We decided to get a Paris Museum Pass, and I'm so glad we did. We were able to visit about five museums or monuments a day for four days. It costs 90€, so that's about 23€ a day. It gives you access to things that are 15-25€ each, so as long as you visit more than one place a day, you'll be saving money. It includes tickets to all the places we visited, and more, I would definitely buy it again.

Some museums and monuments require a reservation, some are closed on Mondays, some are closed on Tuesdays, so it does require a bit of planning if you want to see them all. I have a PDF of our full itinerary listing which museums require reservations and when they are open. Fill out the contact form with the message "Paris" and I'll send it to you for free. 

What We Ate

Rex had duck and potatoes, and I got veal and truffle risotto at one of the oldest bistros in Paris, Polidor (41 Rue Monsieur le Prince). It was super cute and the staff were very attentive and friendly. We like to have a competition to see who orders the tastiest dish, and I won that day. 

We had the most delicious pastries at Gosselin (258 Blvd Saint Germain). I don't remember what they called it, but it was a very crunchy pistachio pastry that you have to try. The lemon meringue pie was also very delicious. We stopped at a chain bakery called Paul a few different times. I enjoyed the baguette sandwich with ham, Brie, and yummy pickles.

We saw people in line for lunch at Bouillon Pigalle (22 Bd de Clichy), so we decided to give it a shot. I'm so glad we did! They had people absolutely crammed in there, but it was a fun experience with every French dish you could ever want at really great prices. It was fun and a little different. I would definitely go again! 

I really loved the sea bass at Cafe du Marche (38 Rue Cler). It came with the most delicious potatoes and squash, and I don't even like squash. I may have been a little tipsy from the sidecar I ordered, either way, it was fantastic! The whole Rue Cler area is great, lots of little shops and cafes, you can't go wrong.

What Else We Saw

You have to go to Notre Dame! The line to go inside moves pretty fast, and it's just beautiful. We walked along the river for a bit, and I tried to use the public bathroom. When I entered, it was locked from the inside, it was dark, and started to get sprayed down. I tried to get out, but I couldn't figure out how. Thankfully, I felt a little space in the doorway that I fit into, and I didn't get wet. I finally found the button to unlock the door and got out of there. Always an adventure.

I really enjoyed Montmartre, just know that it's on a hill, and there are 181 steps just to get out of the subway stop. I could have watched all the artists in the square all day. St. Sulpice was my favorite church that we visited, I loved all the stations dedicated to different saints.

What Credit Card Points We Used

We opened an Air France credit card and got a 70,000 sign up bonus. Then we found round-trip direct flights out of Denver for only 30,000 points each. The airline fees to Europe are always high, and we each had to pay $315, but I'll take it. We used our Southwest Companion Pass to fly to Denver for 24,485 points and $11.20 in fees. 

We stayed at the Vendôme Opéra Hotel. It was a cute boutique hotel that was very clean and quiet. The rooms were small, but they had a fridge stocked with free drinks and snacks every day. We booked it in the Chase Travel Portal for 146,140 points for 8 nights. We did have to pay for the city taxes once we got there; they were about 150€.

Paris was an absolute dream, and there's no way I could include everything we did in one blog post, but I hope you enjoyed reading the highlights and have some ideas about where you'd like to visit when you go.

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Outdoor Pools and Waterparks in Northern Utah

Outdoor Pools and Waterparks in Northern Utah

May 26, 2025

Summer break has officially begun, so I wanted to give you some ways to cool off that won't break the bank. My kids always ask to go to Lagoon, but there are some really great outdoor pools and waterparks that are much more affordable. Bring a lawn chair and a good book, and say goodbye to standing in line at Lagoon! 

My kids really love a lazy river, so their first choice would be North Shore. It is a great outdoor pool with a big waterslide, an interactive play set, and a toddler pool with all kinds of fun stuff. They have lots of picnic tables and grassy areas to set up your own chairs or blanket. I especially love that they allow you to bring your own food and drinks.

The Roy Aquatic Center is a close second favorite because it's closer to us and has almost all the same things as North Shore. Instead of a lazy river, they have a fun fast slide that goes straight down. Both places have a large pool with 2 diving boards and a splash pad. They're hours of fun for a great price.

Splash Summit is our favorite waterpark, which we would say is worth the drive all the way down to Provo. It has a nice variety of big and small waterslides, a lazy river, a wave pool, and some decent pools for younger kids. They don't allow outside food or drinks, and you will probably want to rent a tube for $6/person. We can usually find parking on the street in a nearby neighborhood to save $10 on parking. If you go on a weekday, you can save $2-3/person and Groupon.com often sells tickets for less. 

We have been to Cowabunga Bay before; it’s quite a bit smaller than Splash Summit, but still a great time! My kids love the huge lazy river and the big bucket that dumps water on you. Tickets are $22-26, but parking and tube rentals are included. The only bummer is that you can only go for the morning (10:30 AM – 2:00 PM) or afternoon (2:30 PM – 6:00 PM). It seems a bit short to me.

Classic Waterslides is quite small, but it’s still fun. They have 3 twisty slides that the kids will ride over and over again. Things can get a little crazy with all the twists and turns, many bathing suits have been ripped and a few joints have been twisted, but I guess you have to take the good with the bad. 

Layton Surf and Swim has a big wave pool and another pool, but that's about it. You can't bring your own tube, and it's $3 to rent one. Clearfield Aquatic Center has some outdoor play areas, but it’s mostly indoor, so it’s not our favorite. They make the kids wear these weird headbands, so it's not our favorite.

Lorin Farr has an outdoor pool with a diving board and some slides, but we haven't been there very often. I don't know why, because I just checked the price and it's only $3. Fun fact, the Sandlot movie was filmed there, the scene with Wendy Peffercorn is just a classic.

Here are prices in order of our favorite to least visited:

• North Shore $9.50 (free parking and outside food is allowed) 2480 N 200 E, North Ogden, UT 84414
• Roy Aquatic Center $8 (free parking and outside food is allowed) 2977 W 5200 S, Roy, UT 84067
• Splash Summit $18-28 ($10 parking + $6/person tube rental) 1330 E 300 N, Provo, UT 84606
• Cowabunga Bay $22-26 (free parking and free tube rental) 12047 S State St, Draper, UT 84020
• Classic Waterslides $13 (free parking)  4465 S 600 W, Riverdale, UT 84405
• Layton Surf and Swim $5 + $3 tube rental (free parking) 465 N Wasatch Dr, Layton, UT 84041
• Clearfield Aquatic Center $8 (free parking) 825 State St, Clearfield, UT 84015
• Lorin Farr Pool $3 (but I'm thinking this is going to move up our list this summer) 1691 Gramercy Ave, Ogden, UT 84404

You could actually go to all of these water parks and pools and STILL save $10 over the price of a ticket to Lagoon. This is what I'm talking about when I say I try to evaluate is something is worth the price. Would you rather go to Lagoon once, or have 8 days of family fun throughout the summer? Whatever you decide, I hope you can have some fun with your family, all while spending less. Let me know in the comments which places you plan to visit.

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All Good Things Must Come to an End

All Good Things Must Come to an End

May 08, 2025

There are good credit card offers, there are great credit card offers, and then there are two of the best credit card offers that I've ever seen. It's really a no-brainer to open one of these credit cards. The only hard part is which one to open first. Especially because the offers are ending next week, I will walk you through what I would do if I were you.

The two credit cards with the amazing sign-up bonuses are the Capital One Venture Card and the Chase Sapphire Preferred. Please use the links in this article when applying so I can get credit for your application. Here is a summary of these incredible offers (click on the credit card link for more details about each card):

Capital One Venture Card

• Sign-up bonus: 75,000 points (worth $750) and $250 travel credit
• Minimum spend: $4,000 in the first 3 months
• Annual fee: $95
• Offer ends May 12, 2025
• Apply NOW!

Chase Sapphire Preferred 

• Sign-up bonus: 100,000 points (worth $1250 in the Chase travel portal)
• Minimum spend: $5,000 in the first 3 months
• Annual fee: $95
• Offer ends May 15, 2025 at 9 AM (EST)
• Apply NOW!

Strategy 1 - Open Both Credit Cards!

If you don't want to miss out on either of these offers, you can get both of them as long as you will be spending $9,000 in the next 3 months. Depending on your household expenses, it may be easy for you to spend $3,000 per month. Life is expensive.

I would start with the Capital One Venture Card because the offer is ending first, on May 12, 2025. Then, in a few more days, I would apply for the Chase Sapphire Preferred. Just make sure you apply on or before May 15, 2025.

I would put all of my regular expenses on the Capital One card until I spend $4,000 on that card. Then I would switch to the Chase Sapphire and make sure I spend $5,000 on that card in the first 3 months of opening it. Then you will have over $2,250 in free travel, enjoy! 

Strategy 2 - Use Player Two Mode

If you are married or have a partner, you have now entered player two mode. It is possible to get approved for both cards right in a row, but you have to have very good credit to do so. If you are denied or don't want to risk being denied, you could have your partner apply for one of the cards.

Use this link to apply to the Capital One Venture Card and have your spouse or partner use this link to apply for the Chase Sapphire Preferred. DO NOT put your spouse as an authorized user because later, you can refer your spouse to receive a referral bonus (usually 10-20,000 points).

Strategy 3 - Go Crazy!

If you are married or have a partner and you could spend $18,000 in the next 3 months, then both of you could open both cards. If you have a large purchase coming up that you could put on a credit card without adding extra fees, now would be the time.

Most used car dealerships will let you buy a car with a credit card, so that could be an option. Have to pay tuition or insurance? Put it on your card and then pay it right off. Do you give to your church or another charity? Put a year of giving on your card and pay for it all at once. 

Book a trip on your Capital One Venture card and it counts towards your minimum spend AND you can "erase it" within 90 days. With a little creativity you can find a way to meet the minimum spend. I would just discouraging you from spending money on things you don't need.

How to go crazy? Both of you would apply for the Capital One Venture Card on or before May 12, 2025. Then, a few days later, both of you apply for the Chase Sapphire Preferred, on or before May 15, 2025. Make sure you meet the minimum spend on all 4 cards, and you get over $4,500 in free travel.

If I Had to Pick Only One Card to Open

If you can't easily meet the minimum spend or only want to open one credit card, I would choose the Chase Sapphire Preferred. They are both great offers, but you can only get a sign-up bonus for the Chase Sapphire Preferred every 48 months. I wouldn't anticipate another offer like this from Chase, so I would be confident that I got the best deal possible.

No matter what you decide, please be sure to pay off your credit card bills in full and on time every month. It doesn't matter how good the sign-up bonus is, it is not worth it to go into debt to get "free travel." Let me know which strategy you're going to try.

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Fun Party Idea: Women Wine Tasting Party

Fun Party Idea: Women Wine Tasting Party

May 06, 2025

What could be better than a blind taste test with all your girlfriends to determine the best wine? I’ll give you all the details so you can plan a fun women wine tasting party that is sure to be a hit with all your girlfriends. Not everyone needs to know each other; by the end of the night, everyone will be besties anyway.

How to Host a Women Wine Tasting Party

Pick an evening and invite 12 friends for dinner and drinks. Ask everyone to bring 2 bottles of the same wine covered in tin foil so no one can see the labels. 

The host can choose a type of wine: red or white, or a specific grape: cabernet or chardonnay, or leave it up to the guests and have a variety of wines. People can decide how much they want to spend on the wine they bring, or you can set a budget. 

I found the perfect little cups for the taste test. We felt so fancy with our real glass cups, and they weren’t much more expensive than the plastic. Now that I have them, it just gives me the excuse to have another party! Here is a link to buy the cute little cups.

I also got some little charms for our cups so we could remember which one was ours. Here is a link to buy the wine charms. It might be a good idea to get some boxes from the liquor store for the winners to bring bottles of wine home. 

You can make dinner for everyone or have people sign up for a potluck, whatever sounds easier for you. We decided to start at 5 PM. Guests can taste the wine in any order, they just try to keep track of each wine as they taste it, giving it a score and some comments. 

After each person has tasted every wine, they may want to go back to taste some of them again so they can pick a winner. Everyone needs to choose their favorite.

Determining the Winner of the Women Wine Tasting Party

The host tallies the points and determines who won first place, second place, and third place. The third-place bottle is revealed first, then the second-place winner, and finally, the ultimate winner of the night is revealed. 

Then all the other bottles are revealed. My sister ended up bringing everyone’s favorite wine, and she doesn’t even like wine or know anything about it; she just picked it because Snoop Dog was on the label.

Encourage people to take pictures or write down the names of the ones they liked so they can remember them the next time they want to get some wine. This was one of my favorite things about the night, because I never know what to get a the liquor store, but now I know what I like.

Prizes for Winning the Women Wine Tasting Party

The person who brought the first-place wine gets to bring home their top choice wine, it might not be the same as what everyone else voted for, and that's just fine. Whichever is their favorite, they get to bring home. The person who brought the wine that won second place gets to choose next. Then the person who brought the third-place wine.

The third-place only gets to bring two bottles of wine home. The second-place winner gets to bring home four bottles, and the first-place winner gets six. The host gets to keep all the open bottles or can send some home with the “losers.” Here's how the winnings go if you need it explained a different way.

Round 1 
First-place: pick a bottle to take home

Second-place: pick a bottle to take home
Third-place: pick a bottle to take home

Round 2

First-place: pick a bottle to take home

Second-place: pick a bottle to take home
Third-place: pick a bottle to take home

Round 3 and 4

First-place: pick a bottle to take home

Second-place: pick a bottle to take home

First-place: takes home the rest

You’ll have a chance to go home with 6 bottles of wine, but you’re guaranteed to have a fun night. I loved being able to taste 12 different wines and discover some new favorites. So find some friends and have a wine tasting party together!

The Best Travel Credit Card for Beginners

The Best Travel Credit Card for Beginners

April 15, 2025

I have NEVER seen an offer this good, especially for the best travel credit card for beginners! We open a new credit card about every three months, but if I were to only have one credit card, it would be the Chase Sapphire Preferred. It’s my favorite travel credit card because your points go far, their travel portal is easy to use, and you can transfer your points to many different airlines and hotel brands.

An Amazing Offer From The Best Travel Credit Card for Beginners

For a limited time you can earn 105,000 points after spending $5,000 on the card in the first 3 months of opening a Chase Sapphire Preferred. If you use the travel portal to redeem your points, they are worth over $1,300 in free travel. The annual fee is $95 and will be on your first month’s bill. Be sure to use this link so you can get the sign-up bonus when you apply. 

If you’ve been thinking about opening a new credit card, this is the one you want to pick. The usual signup bonus is 60,000 points. Sometimes it will go up to 75-80,000 points, but 100,000 points is almost unheard of. On top of that, they are doing another crazy thing until June 15, 2025. For stays at certain hotels, 1 point equals $0.02 in redemption value. So if you jump on this quick enough, your 105,000 points can become $2,100 if free travel.

Why the Chase Sapphire is the Best Travel Credit Card for Beginners

If you don’t have a specific trip in mind, if you don’t know where you want to go, what airline you plan to use, or a certain hotel in mind, the Chase Sapphire is great because of how flexible it is. The travel portal is very similar to Expedia.com, so you can use your points to book flights on different airlines, hotels from almost any brand, rent a car, or book excursions.

When we went to Disneyland, we booked a hotel through the Chase travel portal for around $300 per night. The current promotion makes it 15,000 points per night. The Del Sol Inn is right by the entrance to Disneyland and is actually a shorter walk than walking to the parking garage. The kid rooms have bunk beds, a microwave, refrigerator, an outdoor pool, and parking for $30 per night (it’s $35 at Disneyland).

You can read here about how to pay for your tickets to Disneyland using points. I’ve already told you how much I love Southwest, so if you need more Southwest points, you can easily transfer your Chase points online. Here’s a list of other transfer partners:

• AerClub, loyalty program of Aer Lingus
• British Airways Executive Club
• Emirates Skywards®
• Air France KLM Flying Blue
• Iberia Plus
• JetBlue TrueBlue
• Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer
• Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards®
• United MileagePlus®
• Virgin Atlantic Flying Club
• Air Canada Aeroplan
• IHG® One Rewards Club
• Marriott Bonvoy™
• World of Hyatt®

Another favorite of mine is the World of Hyatt because they have many all-inclusive properties for fairly good rates. The best place I’ve ever stayed is the Hyatt Ziva in Cancun, Mexico. The food is incredible, the entertainment is wonderful, and the property itself is just amazing. They even have dolphins on sight, I loved watching them play every day.

Random Facts About the Best Travel Credit Card for Beginners

A couple of little perks that I enjoy that end up paying for my annual fee are a complimentary DashPass and a monthly credit. I don’t use DashPass very often, but I love that the Chase Sapphire Preferred gives you up to $10 off an order every month on DoorDash non-restaurant orders. I get candy, soda, or junk food for my kids at 7-11 because they have a “pickup” option, so I don’t have to pay for delivery or any extra fees. If you do this every month it ends up being $120of free food, which is more than the $95 annual fee.

Remember to use this link so you can get the sign-up bonus when you apply. Do not add anyone as an "authorized user." After you are approved, you can get another bonus by referring your spouse and they can also get a sign-up bonus. If you add someone as an authorized user they can't get a sign-up bonus for their own card.

Something else to keep in mind, is that your points are associated with your credit card. If you close your card, you lose your points. You’ll either want to spend your points before you close your card, or pay the $95 annual fee to keep it open. You could also call to “downgrade” your card to one that doesn’t have an annual fee, but you lose many of the perks that come with the Chase Sapphire Preferred.

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How to Host a Great Bunco Night

How to Host a Great Bunco Night

April 14, 2025

I've played a dice game called Bunco for a few years and I'd love to share with you how to host a great Bunco night. I love hanging out with my friends, it’s getting it scheduled that seems impossible. Having a recurring event already on everyone’s calendar is one of my very favorite things. Bunco is an easy dice game that’s fun to play and gives us an excuse to get together.

How to Host a Great Bunco Night - Where to Start

First, find 11 friends that you want to hang out with once a month. It’s nice if you live within 30 minutes of each other. Then, pick a day and time that works for everyone. Ours meets on the second Tuesday of the month at 6 PM. We have dinner together, so 6 PM is a good starting time if we want to be done around 8 or 8:30, depending on how chatty we are.

Once I recruit all my friends, I send an email to make sure everyone understands the commitment. I always host first so everyone can get an idea of how it will work. Print out a spreadsheet with the months listed so people can sign up for when they would like to host. The email template and signup sheet are in my Bunco PDF that you can purchase.

Pay $10 via Venmo @jesgriffin and fill out the contact form with “bunco” in the subject line and I’ll send you the PDF.

How to Host a Great Bunco Night - When You Host

The host sends an email the week before, and everyone RSVPs to her. If someone can’t make it, she just asks another friend to be a sub. They don’t have to be an official member of the group, they can just show up for that week. It’s fun to meet some new friends too.

You’ll set up three tables: a high table (with a bell and a feather boa), a middle table, and a low table. Have an area for “binky gifts” and an area for the “cash.” The table signs, score sheets, and tally sheets are in my Bunco PDF that you can purchase.

Make dinner for 12 people with drinks and/or dessert. It’s always a good idea to ask if anyone has any dietary restrictions so the host can plan accordingly. It doesn’t have to be fancy, some people just order pizza. It’s not a cooking competition, I promise that everyone is just excited they don’t have to cook.

How to Host a Great Bunco Night - It's Time to Play

Everyone brings $5 towards the cash prizes, and an unwrapped gift worth $5. Part of the fun is taking home a gift at the end of the night and the chance of winning a cash prize. All the rules and how to distribute the cash prizes are in the Bunco PDF. I usually review the rules at the beginning of the night in case there are any subs that haven’t played before.

Pay $10 via Venmo @jesgriffin and fill out the contact form with “bunco” in the subject line and I’ll send you the PDF.

At the end of the night, we gather up the bell, dice, feather boa, signs, pens, rules, extra tally sheets, and score sheets. We put them all in a bag to give to whoever will be hosting next month. Some people don’t have a card table or enough chairs, so the group has some to share if needed.

It’s really fun to rotate houses every month and get to know people through food and a silly game. It’s a great bang for your buck because you cook dinner once and then someone else cooks dinner for you once a month for the rest of the year. You don’t have to start in January, find 11 friends, and start next month!

You could also just host it one time with any number of people, it just works best in multiples of 4. Once we had a party at church with 20 tables, that’s 80 women if you’re not good at math. It was so chaotic, but it was a blast! Whatever you decide, you’ll never regret getting together with your girlfriends.

My full-color Bunco PDF is only $10 and includes:

• Email templates for inviting friends and the monthly reminder
• Signup sheet
• Table signs
• How to host checklist
• Bunco rules
• How to distribute cash prizes
• Score sheets
• Table tally sheets

Pay $10 via Venmo @jesgriffin and fill out the contact form with “bunco” in the subject line and I’ll send you the PDF.

Why I Love Capital One Venture Card Miles

Why I Love Capital One Venture Card Miles

March 24, 2025

I love that Capital One Venture Card miles are flexible and easy to use. Right now they are offering the best sign-up bonus I have ever seen for this card. They haven’t said when the offer will end, just that it’s available for a limited time.

The sign-up bonus is 75,000 points (worth $750) and a travel credit of $250. The minimum spend is $4,000 in the first 3 months, so as soon as you spend $4,000 on that card, you’ll get $1,000 worth of free travel. The annual fee is only $95 and it will be on your first bill. Be sure to use this link so you can get the sign-up bonus when you apply.

How to Redeem Capital One Venture Card Miles

Most travel credit cards are locked into one airline or hotel company, making it difficult to get the exact vacation you were hoping for. The great thing about the Venture Card is that you can use the miles on anything that codes as “travel” on your bill. This makes the miles very flexible and valuable.

You can use Capital One Venture Miles on flights from any airline, any hotel company, any rental car company, for a cruise, bus tickets, train tickets, and the list goes on and on. You pay for these things using your Venture card, then log in to your account, click on “view rewards” then “redemptions” and you just erase the purchase off of your bill using your points. 100 points will “erase” $1, so your 75,000 points is worth $750.

The $250 travel credit works a bit differently. You use it toward purchases made through Capital One Travel Portal. The Credit may be used in whole for a single purchase or in part over multiple purchases. Keep in mind that credits expire a year after you open your account.

My Favorite Ways to Use Capital One Venture Card Miles

Hotels and plane tickets are easy to get for points, but what about tickets to Disneyland? There’s even a way to get them for FREE using credit card points. You need to purchase the tickets with your Capital One Venture card from a travel website like www.arestravel.com. They also have tickets to Universal Studios, LEGOLAND, Sea World and more.

If you buy them directly from Disney, it will not be coded as travel. If you get Disneyland tickets from a travel website, you can erase them from your bill. You have 90 days from the purchase to erase them, so you could even use the purchase of the tickets to help you meet your minimum spend, then erase them once you get the points

When I’m traveling with a large group I love staying at an Airbnb, but they don’t offer any credit card sign-up bonuses. You know I’m not about to pay with cash for a vacation, so what’s a girl to do? Luckily, Airbnb codes on your bill as “travel” so you can use your Capital One Venture Card miles. Victory is mine!

Some Things to Note About Capital One Venture Card Miles

Your miles are linked to your Capital One credit card account, so if you want to use the miles, you need to keep your account open. I usually close my card 11 months after I open it so I don't have to pay another annual fee, but if you haven't redeemed your miles yet, you would want to keep your credit card open.

Remember to use this link so you can get the sign-up bonus when you apply. Do not add anyone as an "authorized user." After you are approved, you can get another bonus by referring your spouse and they can also get a sign-up bonus. If you add someone as an authorized user they can't get a sign-up bonus for their own card.

Some people have asked if the Capital One Venture X card is worth it, and the short answer is “no.” I wouldn’t get it because it has a higher annual fee, $395 instead of $95. They will give you a $300 travel credit to help offset the higher fee, but the math just doesn’t make sense to me, pay $300 to get a $300 credit.

Other Perks From The Capital One Venture Card

If you want to skip security lines at the airport, you can receive a statement credit of up to $120 for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck. You can also enjoy a $50 experience credit and other premium benefits with every hotel and vacation rental booked from the Lifestyle Collection. I’ve never tried either of these options, but they sound great.

If you aren’t into travel you can also use your miles to pay for purchases on Amazon.com or use them at other online retailers that take PayPal. You can also redeem your miles for physical or digital gift cards. You can even get cash back, either as a statement credit or a check.

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How I Make Bread

How I Make Bread

March 21, 2025

I’d love to share with you how I make bread. For the longest time, I was intimidated by making bread from scratch. I thought it was difficult or required fancy techniques or equipment. I don’t know what gave me that impression, humans have been making bread for thousands of years. Jesus said "Man shall not live by bread alone," but sometimes I wonder if a woman like me could. If they could make it in Bible times, surely it can’t be that hard.

We hopped on the sourdough bandwagon for a while, but I didn’t like the pressure of needing to feed my starter all the time and bake bread so often. No one is the boss of me, especially not some weird blob of flour and water in my fridge. So instead, I have perfected a couple of simple recipes using instant yeast that you can make when you actually want to. Is anything better than the smell of freshly baked bread?

How I Make No-Knead Artisan Bread

I love a loaf of rustic, crusty artisan bread with big holes inside. Probably what we all think of when we think of a sourdough loaf. It’s so easy to make, it’s stupid. It’s literally just water, flour, salt, and yeast. You don’t need a mixer or even to knead it, you just need time.

I combine everything in a glass bowl in the morning, cover it with plastic wrap, and bake it while I’m making dinner. You can also let it rise overnight and cook it in the morning. It just needs 8-12 hours to rise. The secret is to bake it at a high temperature with a lid for part of the time. For best results, I use a ceramic dish with a lid like this one. You could also use a Dutch oven like this one.

You can add “everything bagel seasoning” to the top. WinCo sells it, or you can make your own. I’ve also added rosemary and thyme to the dough for herb bread that’s especially good with beef stew. You can add garlic and/or cheese to the dough. Or just leave it plain and slather some butter on there or dip it in some olive oil and balsamic vinegar, now we’re talking.

How I Make Crescent Rolls

I grew up making crescent rolls with my mom and I love making them with my kids. Not to be confused with croissants, the fancy French pastry that I made once in 2020, but never tried making again. Crescent rolls are very easy to make. Again, it’s just time that you need. They take 3-4 hours to rise, so you need to plan ahead. But I’m telling you, it’s worth it.

If you have a KitchenAid or similar stand mixer, that really comes in handy for sandwich bread and dinner rolls, including crescents. There’s no way I’m going to knead my dough by hand, just no. If you don’t have one, they are pretty pricey, but you can usually find them for sale second-hand on Facebook marketplace.

This recipe can also be used to make sandwich bread, just cook it in a loaf pan, and it works great. You can shape the dough into breadsticks or garlic knots. Just top them with melted butter, garlic powder, salt, and grated parmesan cheese. I also use the same recipe for pizza dough when we’re making homemade pizza. You don’t need to let it rise at all, so it’s a super quick dinner. I’ve also used this as the base for cinnamon rolls.

With a little planning, you can make delicious bread for your family or impress your friends at the next potluck. Your secret will be safe with me that it costs like $0.14 to make that fancy loaf of artisan bread. I promise you’ll feel like a domestic goddess when you start baking your own bread. Give it a try and let me know how it goes.