Yankee Candle Holiday Haul

It's that time again!!
































I got my favorite delivery from FedEx earlier this month!  My holiday order of Yankee candles!
I ordered 8 different scents this time.  Some are ones we had had before and some we new scents.

Two old classics for us are Christmas Wreath and Apple Cider.  Beau is a big fan of pine scents so Christmas Wreath is one of his favorites as it smells very strongly of pine.  While it isn't my favorite, I do like to get whiffs of it now and then and it does mix well with other Christmas scents so we usually put it near our (fake) tree then another at the other end of the room.
Apple cider smells exactly like fresh apple cider.  It just smells so nice and spicy and warm.  Just love it.

The next two we got were Balsam & Cedar and Gingerbread.  Balsam & Cedar is another that we have been buying for years.  It smells strongly of cedar and smells very loud when lit.  Just another Christmas staple for our house.  Gingerbread is a new one for us although as soon as I opened it, i regretted not getting it before.  It has a strong smell of ginger when you open it but the smells goes all warm once you light it.

Another old classic is Sparkling Cinnamon which smells just like...Cinnamon!  It is very strong though so be careful with this one.  Sugared Apple is a new one for us.  I haven't burned it yet and I hope the smell is stronger when it is lit.  The smell is nice but muted.  It smells like a sort of vanilla apple with a little bit of sweet to it.

Apple Spice and Magical Frosted Forest are both new ones for us.  I really like apple spice and the fact that there is a doughnut on the front pretty much did it for me.  It smells a bit like apple cider but its not nearly as strong and burns with a much warmer scent than Apple Cider. Magical Frosted Forest smells very evergreen-y.  I smell both cedar and pine and its not overwhelming which I also like.

Until next time!!!

Washington Plaza Hotel, Washington, DC

Beau and I spent the past weekend in Washington, DC while Jordyn spent the weekend at home with my parents.

We had been planning the trip for a couple of months and had been having trouble finding a good hotel at a good price in the area we wanted until someone recommended the Washington Plaza hotel to Beau at work one day.

I did some looking around online and saw that the reviews were pretty good and the prices were awesome compared to other hotels in the area.  We were looking for something close to downtown, preferably within walking distance of the Mall and most of the large museums.  The plaza was right in the area we wanted.  It is only about a 20 minute walk to the White House and a 30 minute walk to the Capitol building and we were taking our time.

Their online booking options are a little different from other hotels I've booked before.  Once you select your dates, you then select the room type such as king, queen, suite, etc. then you get some rate options.  When we booked ours they offered several different ones like Best Available Rate which was the bare bones package, the Advanced Purchase Discount which included a discount if you paid in full up front with no refunds or cancels, Breakfast for Two Package which includes breakfast for 2 daily in the price, Park and Stay with included parking and the Romance in DC which included in room breakfast and chocolate covered strawberries.  We selected the Website Special Discount which turned out to be the lowest rate and allowed for cancellations and or changes to the reservation for a King size room.

We ran late getting there so we called ahead and let them know that we wouldn't be getting there until around 11:30pm or later.  They made a note on our account and we didn't have any trouble checking in late.  The staff was great for our entire stay.  They were accommodating and extremely helpful.

The room was not the nicest room we've stayed in but it was great for the price.  It was neat and clean and had everything you would need.  The hotel has a full service restaurant with room service with reasonable prices and tasty food (try the fish and chips!).  They also have a full bar and a large, secured parking garage.  We had planned to park at a public parking garage a few blocks away that was a bit cheaper but by the time we got there, they were all closed for the night so we just opted to park at the hotel.  It was a little more than we had wanted to pay but at the end of the day it worked out to be more convenient.

Overall we really enjoyed our experience here and wouldn't even consider staying somewhere else next time we are in DC.

Below are some photos of our room.  I didn't realize until after we got home that I forgot to take photos of the bathroom.

King Size Bed

View from Bed

Window & AC Unit

Balcony

View from Balcony

Mini Fridge and Additional Storage

Desk

What is in Our Winter Car Emergency Kits

We have two of these ful brand backpacks that we got in a crazy good sale during back to school time a few years ago.  Many survival experts recommend having your car's emergency kit in a container that is portable so that in the event that you must leave your car, you can take your supplies with you.
We often all ride in our mini van so we have that kit stocked for both of us and Jordyn.  Beau is the only one who uses his truck so that bag is only stocked for him.  (we just move the bags over if we all go in the truck)
We change over our bags twice a year.  We have a list for Summer or warm weather and one for Winter or cold weather.






Emergency Supplies in the Car, but not in the Bag:

• Jumper Cables... Duh!  
• Fix a Flat
• Ice Scraper / Snow Brush.  Just got this one off Amazon! 
• Extra Winter Coats.  We are both pretty bad about not bothering with coats if we are just running to a drive through or just running a quick errand so we keep some older, out of style coats in the back.
• Cell Phone charger
• Rescue Tool.  We got this one off of Amazon a while back and we chose this one for a few reasons.  One because the reviews were great, two because it also has a seat belt cutting option and three because it is a bright color so it is easy to find.
• Road Side Assistance Card
• Snow Chains
• Small Box of no clump cat litter

Supplies in the Bag:

• Emergency Card (Phone numbers, addresses, medical information)
• Emergency Candle 
• Matches
• Sewing Kit
• Yellow Glow Sticks
• Electric Flares
• Duct Tape
• Solar Charger
• Hand Warming packs
• Emergency Blanket
• Toilet paper
• Bottled water (enough for each person for 3 days is recommended)
• MREs (Meals Ready to Eat, enough for 3 days for each person is recommended)

First Aid Kit:

• Glucose packets
• Band-Aids
• Elastic Bandage/Wrap
• Gauze Pads
• Large adhesive bandage
• Quik Clot
• Anti Itch cream
• Antibiotic cream
• Decongestants
• Antihistamines
• Heartburn relief
• Gas relief
• Diarrhea relief
• Pain reliever
• Lip balm
• Hydrogen Peroxide

Check out our Emergency Pinterest page here for more lists, ideas and suggestions.

Also, if you are interested in reading about tips for other emergency/natural disasters, check out the Disaster Prep Summer Series on MyNavyWifeLife.com