Cool Ways to Save Summer Memories

I received a set of products from HP to help us have more summer fun – and am so excited to share them with you! #HPFamilyTime.

“In the happiest of our childhood memories, our parents were happy, too.” – Robert Brault… I love this quote. It seems so appropriate for summer, since that’s the time that most of us truly try to slow down, enjoy life, and cherish the little moments and memories. Snuggling with the littles in a hammock. Lazing the day away on the water. Picking dandelions. Or just swinging on the swing set, staring at the clouds. Good times, right?

For me, photos are so darn important. They are what help me keep those small summer moments fresh. I love to browse my photos books, see prints on the wall, share pics with friends. And now, I have a super duper easy peasy new way to do that – My HP ENVY 5530 e-All-in-One printer! It is absolute must for every busy mom out there this summer, seriously.

Yes, this is a printer. Not the first thing you think of when you picture must-have’s for summer fun. But seriously – You are going to fall in love. Keep reading to learn why…

I can hang out with the kids by the pool, and snap pics all day from my iPhone. Then, as I get some good ones, I can push a couple of buttons and have them printed out and waiting for me when I get in the house. This printer connects wirelessly, so it’s just a couple of buttons to push to make it all work. Awesomesauce! And, anyone who comes over to hang out for a pool party or BBQ can connect to this printer too, and print their own favorites photos. How cool is that? And – you can even use the cool apps from HP to create collages or photo cards, that you can print right from your home!

You can add a ton of apps. Yes – apps for your printer! I can print out coloring pages, activities, and games for the kids, from Crayola, Nickelodeon, Disney, and more. I can schedule my printer to print out a daily crossword puzzle for me every morning. {Scheduling my printer? Woah. Awesome.} I can print my coupons, schedules, and more. There are hundreds of apps here to help you have more fun, stay organized, save money, and be creative! {Creative = SO.MANY.PRINTABLES.}

This makes for awesome party favors. Instead of spending a ton of money on treats or throw away trinkets – or over buying goodie bag stuff, not knowing how many kids will be at a birthday party – you can simply grab a fun shot of each guest, print them from your phone, and send them home with a photo to remember the event. Bonus – it can even work as a thank you card on the spot, if you take a second to write a quick message on the back of each one. MORE bonus – use the HP Photo Creations site to turn your fave pics into photo cards and collages, add cool borders and text, and more, like the example I showed above. So simple to do – even if you’re not a super creative type.

There’s more :) Say you’re traveling – vacation, road trip, adventures around town. As you snap pictures that you want to save and remember, you can use their awesome app to have them printed anywhere nearby – Walgreens, FedEx, Walmart, etc. You could even print them out as you travel along a road trip, pick ’em up locally, slap a stamp on the back, and send them to family and friends as post cards – so fun. Or, if you’re traveling for work, and have a form you need to print and scan, just click to have it printed out somewhere nearby, like the UPS Store, pick it up and scan it – done. Seriously cool. And a major time saver for busy moms.

And – instant ink. Oh…. Instant Ink. I thought I was in love with the versatility, portability, and all around awesome coolness factor of the HP Pavilion x360 PC. And I can’t even say enough about what a life and time saver this HP ENVY 5530 e-All-in-One printer is. But – here’s where the real magic comes in to play, as if these amazing gadgets weren’t enough – it’s called Instant Ink, a new service from HP. You sign up, your super smart printer automagically communicates with them when you’re running low on ink, and they send it to you before you run – right to your doorstep. You pay a flat rate depending on how much you print, it’s crazy-simple to get started, saves you loads of money – and is even better for the environment since you ship back your old cartridges to be recycled. Win-win-win-winner winner chicken dinner!

There’s so much more to say about Instant Ink that I’ll explain it all in a post on Thursday – so stay tuned! Be sure to subscribe to my emails, or follow me on social media, so you never miss updates. I’ve also got a couple of fun DIY projects in the works to share with you soon, using these sweet tools. And – as soon as we get our mini-vaca scheduled, you can follow along to see how these awesome HP products help me have more family fun, stay connected, be creative, and keep up on work!

Be sure to follow the #HPFamilyTime hashtag across social media, to see how other real families are using these products this summer – so many creative ideas! Follow my Summer Family Fun board on Pinterest for tons of cool ideas on using technology in your families summer activities. And watch for a super sweet HP giveaway coming soon!

For more info on the products:

• HP Pavilion x360
• HP ENVY 5530 e-All-in-One
• HP Instant Ink 
• Snapfish