Review – Scottevest jackets – the Swiss Army knife of jackets

Happy family snap. Scottevest for Him and Her.

I had no idea of what Scottevest was before a recent trip to Europe. You see, before this trip, I thought that jackets were required only when it was cold. While travelling, I preferred not to have jackets but cargo pants that I could fill the pockets of with the phone, tickets, wallets and what not.

Now, I won’t go on a trip without the Scottevest!

Scottevest has pockets where you don’t think pockets could exist. Want to carry your phone, camera, passports (in my case – 9!), tickets, boarding passes, toys, money, wallet, credit cards, pens and even an ipad on you without feeling liking a porter? Then you need a Scottevest.

Not only does the jacket (pictured above in His and Her styles) carry all these items, it does so without putting the weight on your shoulders (literally). Never once did I feel that I was wearing anything other than a normal jacket. The jackets comes with a very smart weight distribution management system that somehow makes carrying all these things a breeze.

While going through airports (we went through around 20 in this trip) this was the one piece of garment that saved me hassles. Think 5 people and 5 passports, 5 boarding passes. All tucked away neatly in the inside pockets. Out in a jiffy.

And if you think with that many pockets, you are going to forget where you have kept everything? No! All pockets are cleverly marked. Iphone goes into the pocket marked with the iphone. Airline documents go into the pocket marked with the tiny airline symbol. And so on. (Yes, you are still responsible for keeping things in the right place yourself – it doesn’t do that automatically for you – not yet anyway).

And to top it all off, the jackets are super comfy, stylish and washable. If only they could make me look a few years younger, I would give them a two thumbs up. Oh well, that technology is not going to be invented – ever, so let’s just give them a two thumbs up!

If you have kids (and even if you don’t) and looking to travel you would well to buy a Scottevest before your next trip. They will free your hands up to chase after them.

CraftGossip received two complimentary jackets to review on this trip.

Lots of Americans seem to think that May 5 is Mexican Independence Day, but that holiday actually falls on Sept. 16.

May 5 is the celebration of the Battle of Puebla, in which the Mexicans defeated the French in 1862. Independence Day marks the beginning of their fight for independence from Spain in 1810. That was the day of what’s known as El Grito de Dolores, or the cry of Dolores, for when the Catholic priest Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla rang the church bells at his church in Dolores and declared that Mexico should be free from Spanish rule.

They would fight for their freedom until 1821 when they finally gained independence.

Fabulous Classroom has a little of the history and ideas for celebrating the holiday for all age groups. There’s also a link to a good video in that post about the real story of Mexican Independence Day.

Twinkl also has a good tops about the history and different activities, discussion ideas, crafts and foods that can be incorporated into lessons at school or used at home.

I also found a few pins that no longer link to a website but include good information on Mexican Independence Day, including some questions for students to answer based on the reading. You can find more printables and questions for kids from TX Homeschool Mama on Etsy (also available in Spanish).

You can find a lot more paid resources about Mexican Independence Day at Teachers Pay Teachers.

Mexican flag crafts are a fun option for celebrating Mexican Independence Day (though the current iteration of their flag has only been in use since 1968). Kids Activities Blog has a free Mexican flag printable and a few different ideas for decorating it including dot markers and torn tissue paper.

You can also find some great Mexican crafts at Red Ted Art. The post includes all sorts of Mexican inspired projects including Day of the Dead crafts, Frida Kahlo pinatas and upcycled musical instruments. I love the giant paper flowers they shared from Honestly WTF.

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