Summer Bucket List | Top Phoenix Lifestyle Blogger

“This summer bucket list post has been sponsored by Sparkling Ice® . All thoughts and opinions are my own.”

S’mores party! If you’ve been here a while, you know that my family loves a good summer s’mores hangout by the fire. So today, with the help of our go-to neighborhood grocery store, Albertsons, and the portable summer-perfect drink we stock and sip all summer long, Sparkling Ice® Water (17oz. Bottles), we thought we’d update you with a little progress report on the fun summer bucket list we shared at the beginning of the summer! Here’s a glimpse inside one of our favorite activities on said list: a fireside s’mores hangout with the fam!

Click below and save when you stock up on Sparkling Ice at Albertsons and all of the accoutrements you need for s’mores, campfire fun and backyard bonfires!

There are few things I look forward to more throughout the summer months than a s’mores night (or ten) by the fire with my fam and all of the ooey, gooey deliciousness that comes with it. It’s one of my very favorite summer traditions, and when said fire also happens to be perfectly perched over the lake to give us the most incredible view of one of those cotton candy colored summer sunsets with the water shimmering beneath it, I’m in heaven! Based on the smiles on their faces and the sticky marshmallow remnants on their fingers, I think it’s safe to say that my entire family is, too!

If you’re a summer s’mores lover like us (which, come on, how could you not be), you know one universal truth – stacking and attacking a s’mores with the appropriate level of enthusiasm and reckless abandon pretty much requires the perfect beverage to follow it up and wash it down with. Finding the perfect summer s’mores drink pairing is an art form though, and is something my fam has had to taste and test over the years.

It has to be slightly sweet, but not overpowering. It also should be light, fresh, and fruity to balance and complement the rich, sugary goodness of the chocolate and marshmallow. Which is why, after a lot of summers spent dutifully taste testing to find the perfect drink to pair with our s’mores, as a family we’ve pretty much unanimously landed on the full-flavored sparkling water with zero sugar and real fruit flavor varieties that every member of the family can love: Sparkling Ice®!

I’ll be completely honest and tell you that when we’re together Sparkling Ice® 17oz. Bottles don’t last long in our refrigerator, which is why this summer when the fam was hunkering down together at home we wised up and stocked up every time one of us ventured out on the grocery run to Albertsons. Another reason we’re smitten with Sparkling Ice? It only has 5 calories and is packed with antioxidants and vitamins. It’s the complete package! We’ve really been loving the Peach Nectarine and Strawberry Watermelon flavors this summer. SO good!

You guys already know that my love for Albertsons runs deep, but I’m not even close to exaggerating when I say that during the summer season in particular Albertsons is my lifeline. Albertsons has the most well-rounded, creative selection of summer-ready snacks and drinks of all kinds. They also have a handy dandy app filled with awesome coupons to help me save while I shop, which is why they have my heart. We’ve also made sure we’re always stocked on s’mores accoutrements this summer, too. From our favorite Signature SELECT Honey Graham Crackers, milk chocolate bars, and plenty of fluffy’ mallows, much to our delight, post-dinner s’mores hangouts around the fire have been a much more regular activity this summer!

Beyond having pretty strong opinions about their s’mores beverage pairings, I’ve also realized that everyone in my fam is firmly convinced that their s’mores roasting approach or recipe is the best. Some of them are convinced that licking the marshmallow before they roast it ensures that you get an even, golden brown char on your ‘mallow. Though I’m convinced that’s just a ploy to taste the marshmallow before you have to exhibit the necessary patience required to actually make a s’more. Other approaches? Some of us like to go double ‘mallow for extra fluff, or double chocolate for super rich, melty goodness. And then there’s the family members that really go for it. Those select few visionaries that throw caution to the wind and go double everything, creating a big double layered s’mores stack that barely fits in their mouth, but is 100% worth the work. You know what? I respect that. I envy it. And someday I’ll be brave enough to level up my s’mores game that way!

We’ve tackled so many more awesome bucket list activities this summer, most of which were on our original list and some of which got added as the summer unfolded, which has made for double the fun! In case you missed our original Summer Bucket List post, you can get caught up on all of the summer fun that was on our list below. You’ll probably notice that we dedicated quite a bit of space on our list to DIY projects this year because we knew we’d be spending a lot of time at home, and we’ve been trying to tackle more exciting, involved or intimidating home improvement projects in the name of expanding our DIY horizons! I will admit though that the DIY projects included on our summer 2020 bucket list were a little bit ambitious (hey, we like to go big!) and because of that, we have yet to tackle all of them. We can always roll those over onto our fall list! The items that got checked off of our list pretty quickly and with ease? The activities that were all fun with no work required were camping, hiking, fishing, picnics, bike rides, fireworks and sunrise and sunset photography sessions. I can safely say that they have all added up to one epic summer.

We had to get a little bit more creative with this summer’s bucket list thanks to the current circumstances but, honestly, this summer has been just as unforgettable, if not more memorable, than ever before because we were sort of forced to slow down, get back to basics, hunker down with our nearest and dearest, and get creative with the ways we filled our days. Much to our surprise, that lead to some of our most fun summer days and nights to date, and we’re so glad our creativity was stretched in that way!