November 11 is a day set aside every year to honor the men and women who have bravely served our country. While many businesses close on this day, there are plenty of restaurants and stores that remain open and offer discounts to active duty service people and veterans.
Keep scrolling to see 10 amazing Veteran’s Day deals for military families.
––Karly Wood
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What’s more magical than a traditional Christmas tree topper? A Harry Potter one, of course!
It might still be summer, but you’re going to want to conjure up this epic Harry Potter Hogwarts Castle Tree Topper ASAP. Measuring in at over nine inches tall, the new Harry Potter-themed tree topper from Hallmark is sure to cast a spell on you.
At the peak of your Christmas tree you can display a musical Hogwarts castle, lit up in rotating colors and playing “Hedwig’s Theme.” The lights and music can be controlled by a small remote in the shape of the Hogwarts crest.
The magical tree topper is also designed to interact with other Hallmark Harry Potter Collection ornaments. With Harry, Ron and Hermoine displayed alongside the castle in your tree, you’ll unlock special performances from Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, which the ornaments won’t display on their own.
The Keepsake Hallmark Harry Potter Collection Hogwarts Castle Musical Tree Topper With Light is available online for $120. The individual ornaments in the collection, which also include the Weasley’s house and a Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone book ornament start at $17.99.
—Shahrzad Warkentin
All photos: Courtesy of Hallmark
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Looking for a quick summer getaway? The city that never sleeps is offering some steep discounts on New York City hotels you can’t find anywhere else.
Travelers looking for a trip between Jul. 28 and Sept. 13 can receive up to 40 percent off at six Time Square hotels by visiting the Marriott website. But you have to act fast––the sale only lasts from Jul.16-20!
Hotels participating in the sale include the Algonquin Hotel, New York Marriott Marquis, Sheraton New York Times Square, W New York Times Square, The Westin New York at Times Square and Renaissance New York Times Square.
You can unlock this amazing deal by entering promo code LPR in the “Corporate/Promotional” code box when you make an online reservation, or calling 1-800-228-9290 and asking for promotional code LPR.
The code is valid for on any day of the week through Jul. 20, 2019, but there is a limited number of rooms available.
––Karly Wood
All photos courtesy of Marriott.
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Becoming a mom is often times nothing like what you read in the guidebooks. There are all sorts of wild and wonderful changes, but also changes you truly never imagined (or swore would never happen—until you experience them for yourself). Here are 21 hilariously true things that go down in motherhood.
— Ayren Jackson-Cannady, Kristina Moy, Phebe Wahl, Meghan Rose, Janine Dodge, Ruby Germain, Erin Lem & Kelly Aiglon
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Ordering from Amazon just got easier. Now Ford and Lincoln owners (select models only) are eligible for in-car delivery from the online retailer.
Following the initial success of the Key by Amazon In-Car delivery program for newer GM and Volvo cars last year, the super-sized site expanded the options to include even more models. So how does this whole in-car delivery thing work IRL?
photo: Courtesy of Amazon
You must be an Amazon Prime member and live in one of the 50 eligible-for-delivery cities. and then download the Key by Amazon App. Before going any farther, make sure that your car is compatible. Along with the existing GM and Volvo models, the program is now also open to eligible 2017 and newer Fords with FordPass Connect and 2018 and newer Lincolns with Lincoln Connect.
Download the FordPass or Lincoln Way app (depending on which car you have), create an account and activate in-car delivery, connecting your Amazon Prime accounts to it. Simply select in-car delivery at check-out, place your Amazon order and park your car somewhere that’s publicly accessible. You’ll get a four-hour delivery window and notification updates through the Key by Amazon App.
The delivery driver uses the Amazon Key app to unlock your car for delivery and lock it afterwards. That’s it! And don’t worry about wondering whether the driver remembered the locking step. You’ll get another notification when delivery is complete and the car is locked.
—Erica Loop
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When a mad flurry of spring cleaning results in boxes of schlock, and a few unused tech-y toys, you can turn your would-be trash into cash. Amazon’s trade-in program lets you swap everything from tablets to cell phones for gift cards to use on the mega-retailer’s site.
Not only does this program let you save money on future purchases, but it’s Earth-friendly too! Instead of ending up in a device-packed landfill, your gadgets and gizmos can get a whole new life with a brand-new owner. So how can you trade your tech-time gadgets in for Amazon credit?
photo: Courtesy of Amazon
Start by visiting the company’s Trade-In page. And don’t worry if your device isn’t in tip-top shape. While you won’t get a massive gift card for your trade, you may still get something. Create a Trade-In account and make sure your item is listed in the Trade-In Store. If it’s not listed there’s no current offer. That means no trade-in credit for you.
After verifying your item, you may need to answer questions about the condition. Before shipping your old device, video games, console or or other similar discard to Amazon (for free!), don’t forget to de-register or unlock it.
Now all you have to do is wait. According to Amazon’s Trade-In page, it can take up to 10 business days for the online retailer to get your item. When they do receive it, they’ll appraise your saved-from-the-trash tech and email you within two business days. That’s it! If your items doesn’t qualify for a gift card trade-in Amazon will return it free of charge. There are no returns for accepted items.
Along with sending your device directly to Amazon you can trade-in your Kindle in person at participating Amazon Books locations!
—Erica Loop
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When a three-year-old accidentally locked out his dad’s iPad, the Twitter-verse jumped to save the device. New Yorker staff writer Evan Osnos recently shared a screenshot of his iPad—and all 25,536,442 minutes try-again time!
We’ve all been there. Your kiddo gets a hold of some sort of pricey piece of tech and disables or otherwise locks it. Osnos’ story is the same, but to the extreme. With well over 25 million minutes until he could even attempt to unlock the tablet the dad took to Twitter, pleading for help.
Uh, this looks fake but, alas, it’s our iPad today after 3-year-old tried (repeatedly) to unlock. Ideas? pic.twitter.com/5i7ZBxx9rW
— Evan Osnos (@eosnos) April 6, 2019
So what advice did the internet have for Osnos? While plenty of people got technical with their responses, others had a more playful approach. One Twitter user suggested time travel:
https://twitter.com/Geopilot/status/1114708847128608768
Another commenter tweeted to give the tot the passcode. Of course, Osnos went more for the actual tech ideas and not the more imaginative options.
Following the initial tweet Osnos told his followers, noting he was still locked out: “It’s down a few hundred minutes from yesterday, but it looks like we’ve still got 25 million minutes to go. On Twitter, people have suggested various fixes but the consensus seems to be that we’re using an old operating system that won’t let us restart fresh from iTunes. When I get home from work tonight, I’ll give it a try and see what happens.”
According to an update tweet, Osnos was able to get the iPad into DFU (device firmware update) mode and start the restoration process.
—Erica Loop
Featured photo: LinkedIn Sales Navigator via Unsplash
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Get ready to take unboxing to the next level: YouTube superstar, seven-year-old Ryan of Ryan ToysReview, is coming to Nickelodeon this April! The series, Ryan’s Mystery Playdate, is about to become your kiddo’s new fave—and we’ve got the scoop on this new show.
The new Nick show will premiere on Apr. 19 at 12:30 p.m. ET/PT. Along with the Friday premiere, your tot can also catch a bonus episode on Saturday, Apr. 20 at 12:30 p.m. ET/PT. Look for Ryan’s Mystery Playdate to make regular appearances in your living room on Fridays at 12:30 p.m. ET/PT on Nickelodeon.
So what can you expect from Ryan’s new show? Instead of unboxing toys, the seven-year-old, his parents and animated friends Gus the Gummy Gator and Combo Panda will work together to complete creative challenges. With each challenge comes the chance for Ryan to unlock a mystery box that includes hints to piece together the identity of his mystery playdate that episode.
Not only does this new Nick series encourage creative thinking and problem-solving, it also focuses on physical play and positive family relationships. If watching Ryan once a week isn’t enough for your kiddo (and chances are it isn’t), you can also catch full-length episodes and short-form content on NickJr.com and the Nick Jr. app.
—Erica Loop
Featured photo: Courtesy of Nickelodeon
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When it comes to the best animated films, Disney and Pixar have led the pack with Oscar gold—but this year that reign came to an end when Spider-Man into the Spider-Verse took home the Oscar for best animated feature on Sunday night.
The Best Animated Film category was established in 2001 with the first award being given to Shrek in 2002. Since then, Disney has dominated the category with 12 films taking home the Oscar over the last 17 years. Now Spider-Man into the Spider-Verse has made history by breaking Disney’s six-year winning streak. The win also marks the first for Sony Pictures Animation.
photo: Courtesy Sony Pictures Animation
The film centers around Miles Morales, a half-black, half-Hispanic boy from Brooklyn—and it also made history for being the first animated film directed by a Black director to be nominated for and win in this category. Peter Ramsey shared the win with his co-directors, Bob Persichetti and Rodney Rothman.
“We wanted to put our best foot forward and create something that people would be able to relate to and love,” Ramsey said in an interview with NPR. “It means a lot for young black and Latino kids to see themselves up on screen in these iconic, heroic, mythic stories. It’s a need being fulfilled.”
To my brilliant co-director brothers @rodneyrothman and @bob_persichetti…my friends who get it pic.twitter.com/UYFAdyRQh2
— Peter (or is it?) Ramsey (@pramsey342) February 25, 2019
Ramsey continued, “There’s so many exciting black creators and creators of color and all genders, and the realization that this kind of diversity really does give rise to more interesting movies,” he says. “It just feels like it’s going to help unlock a key, creatively, for a lot of people in a lot of different ways that we don’t even realize yet.”
—Shahrzad Warkentin
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Can’t get your smartphone-obsessed kids to answer your calls? There’s an app for that—the ReplyASAP app for parents to be exact—and if your kids tend to “forget” to call, they will never forget again.
Designed by dad Nick Herbert, the simple to use app allows you to freeze your kid’s phone when they ignore your calls and texts. They are then unable to use their phones until they send you a response. It can also be set to sound an alarm if the phone is in silent mode.
https://twitter.com/OnlyInBOS/status/901806507544772608
As WCNC reports, the app has already been downloaded 75,000 times since it launched a little over a year ago and it’s not hard to see why. The concept is pretty genius.
The app is free, although for a few bucks you can upgrade to unlock more features, like adding additional phones if you have more than one forgetful teenager. The only bad news is ReplyASAP is currently only available for Android users; according to PureWow, an iOS version is in the works and will be available soon.
—Shahrzad Warkentin
Featured photo: Nature Addict via Pixabay
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