Review: Dream Water Sleep Aid

I love to travel. That's no secret. Even though I can pretty much sleep at any time and almost anywhere, there are times when I have issues sleeping. Oddly enough, I can sleep for hours all scrunched up on a plane in coach, but once I get to my destination, the first night is always a restless one for me. It takes me forever to fall asleep, then I toss and turn all night and I wake up insanely early and can't doze anymore after that. I guess it's just the change of scenery, since I can swap hotel rooms and beds and never have that problem after the first night. Is this just me? Maybe it's the excitement of being on vacation!

Dream Water reached out to me and asked if I would be interested in trying their all-natural sleep aid drink. It comes in one of those bottles that is a quick shot, so it's less than the 3 oz. that is the maximum for any container allowed in your 3-1-1 bag. On our quick trip to Vegas, we got all our liquids in one bag and then used our second bag for our Dream Water. Eric is just a terrible sleeper in general. He wakes up fifty times in the night, even though he falls asleep fairly quickly. Being a really light sleeper is not a great thing when on a trip, because all the noises going on can be different from at home and keep you from sleeping well.

On our first night, we did our normal bedtime stuff, then popped our bottles of Dream Water. I crawled into bed and read a chapter of my book and Eric watched some stuff on ESPN. The directions say to drink your sleep aid 30 minutes before you go to bed, but I found that 15 worked out just fine. I put my book down, didn't have issues with thinking a million things before I fell asleep. I succumbed to deep sleep for about six hours, which doesn't sound like a lot, but I didn't wake up once in the middle of the night, was able to doze off and on for another two hours and felt completely rested when I finally got up.

I got up with a load of energy and felt ready for the day. When I asked Eric about his experience, he said he also slept really well, didn't wake up until it was light out and also felt super rested. In my mind, that's a win, since we are the total opposite when it comes to sleep patterns. It made a great start to the beginning of our long weekend.

Dream Water in Snoozeberry, NighTEA Night and Paradise PM

Dream Water comes in three tasty flavors, has zero calories and contains no drugs. In fact, it is all-natural, made from a mix of ingredients including melatonin, a popular sleep aid. Because the ingredients are natural, so getting a good night's sleep is also healthy. That little 2.5 oz. bottle helps you relax, destress and enjoy some quality sleep. 

On our way back home, I stopped into a shop at the airport and while I was waiting to pay, I found a little display of Dream Water with the other "impulse" buys, like candy and gum. This is totally smart, because maybe you've realized once you got to the airport that you need to get some sleep on the plane, and if you normally can't do that - I think I'm in the minority there - then grab a bottle or two to bring on board with you. Use one on a long flight and then another when you get to your destination and are trying to deal with the dreaded time change. I'm thinking Dream Water may be a great addition to my 3-1-1 on my trip to Europe this fall, because I would love to fall asleep at a reasonable time, sleep well and possibly avoid jet lag, so I don't lose a day or more when I've already lost one to get where I'm going to begin with.

What are your biggest sleep issues on vacation?

Additional information

Where you can buy it: On the Dream Water website, Amazon and other retailers

How much it costs: $2.99 each, but they also come in 4-, 12- or 24-packs. Order now online and get free shipping.

Flavors it comes in: Snoozeberry (pomegranate-blueberry) | NighTEA Night (lemony tea) | Paradise PM (tropical pineapple)

Other specs: 2.5 oz., o calories, all-natural, drug-free

Disclosure: I was provided with a 4-pack of Dream Water for the purposes of this review, but all opinions are 100% my own.

SkyRoll’s New Spinner Bag

With the billion things people use Kickstarter for, it’s nice when you find an actual useful item that you want to back. You may remember my review of the original SkyRoll garment bag. That bag is super convenient and fits a lot in a little space, but not everyone can carry a bag on their shoulder – or wants to – and spinner wheels are so much more convenient than the in-line skate wheels, because they are more sturdy and your bag won’t flop around if you hit a rock or whatever.

Photo credit: SkyRoll.com

The original SkyRoll just doesn’t work for everyone, even though it’s so awesome. For one, you can’t put bulky items in it, like sweaters or your laptop. The new spinner will have a built-in laptop/tablet pocket on the inside. It can accommodate a 15” laptop easily, but you can even take your monster 17” one (if you have such a thing like I do) with a little bit of maneuvering.

Photo credit: SkyRoll.com

You won’t have to sacrifice the garment bag feature though, because not only does the SkyRoll spinner have a main compartment, but it also has an attached garment bag – a regular size one for men and a longer one for formal dresses for women. The bag has their signature toiletry bag. This whole bag fits under the seat on the plane, and you can unzip the top to get at your phone and other important items) that fit in the pockets on the inside top flap and your laptop. It all looks amazingly useful, especially going through security and for the business traveler who needs to take suits and other things for meetings, great for cruisers who need something for formal nights, but also a bag full of warm weather clothes. I think it’s also great for all travelers in between, too.

Photo credit: SkyRoll.com

The Kickstarter campaign went so well that SkyRoll raised above and beyond what they were hoping to get their new project off the ground, which means the new spinner will be out on the market as soon as possible. I’ll be formally reviewing it once it hits the markets, so you may have a new item to add to your holiday wish list or an idea of what to buy for that traveler who has everything….except a SkyRoll spinner bag!

You can preorder your bag right now if you can’t wait. The Kickstarter campaign is still going strong and donations are still being taken. $150 will get you a bag as soon as it is available (with free shipping or $75 outside the US). There are only a few early bird spots left, then it will be a donation of $200 to get your bag, which will retail for $300. Hurry and get your bag at a deep discount and have it in time for holiday travel.

How to Pack for a Weekend Getaway

Most travelers aren’t content never taking a vacation or even slaving away all year to wait for their annual trip. In fact, aside from the usual two weeks, it’s hard to make it through day-to-day without getting away a few other times throughout the year. We tend to take a few days here and there a couple times a year. You might not think you have the funds to do it, but if you step back and take a look at your travel style you can find ways you can cut corners, meaning you’ll need a smaller budget to fund these long weekends. There are plenty of ways to save money, no matter where you go or how you get there. If you’ll be road tripping on your getaways, like I did on my trip to Bend, Oregon, then you can find tips for saving on drives here and here.

When you fly to your destination, one of the easiest ways to save – time and money – is by traveling carry-on only. You don’t need much for a few days, which means you can pack quickly, skip the airline counter check-in and ignore the baggage carousel upon arrival. I always have a packing list to help me keep the number of items down and also to make sure I don’t forget any of the essentials. I know when I get to my destination I can probably buy whatever I missed packing, since a weekend getaway isn’t going to take me that far from home (like, I probably am not going to Bali or Columbia), but I’m adamantly against spending money for things I already have. Here’s how to build your packing list:

Instead of even travel-size shampoo/conditioner, these samples can work for a weekend getaway

Normally, I take this 3oz hand cream, but these two sample packs are more than enough for 3 days

Save those samples

I know I’m not the only one that has a bag full of samples and trial-size health and beauty items. Every purchase I make from Sephora or other department store makeup counters comes with mini sizes of beauty products. I also sign up for many freebies online. When I travel, I go through and see what I can use and then pack it in my 3-1-1 or toiletry bag. I’m never going to use a full-size thing on a two-week trip, much less just a few days, so there’s no point bringing a whole container of anything, be it toothpaste, moisturizer or shampoo.

Pare down your beauty routine

Even with all your travel-size items, it still smart to take less. If you have an extensive morning routine at home, see what you can just get away with. I don’t load up on the makeup normally, so I figure there’s no point in taking a bunch of unnecessary items that I’ll probably not use. I know when I wake up I’m going to do the bare minimum so I can hurry up and get on with my day. Four or five products are all I need: moisturizer, foundation, powder, blush and mascara (optional). See what things you can do without. If you are an eye makeup kinda girl, look for makeup palettes that have everything you need in a neat little package, so you don’t have to pack everything separately.

Decant, decant, decant

Sometimes you can't find samples of your fave products, but you don't need to waste space by bringing even a large travel-size container. In this case, I say decant. Eric has a fantastic shave cream from Kiehl's, but it takes very little for each use, so I put some in a travel pot and kept the actual container at home. This makes it doubly perfect for traveling.

Pack multipurpose items

I love it when things do more than one thing. Cheek tint that is also a lip stain. Tinted moisturizer with SPF instead of sunscreen, moisturizer and foundation. A maxi skirt that can also be worn as a dress. A tablet for games, books, email and internet. All these things are perfect companions for your carry-on bag, because they take up less space.

My Vegas attire: shorts, capris, dress, 3 tops, fancy sandals and a
pair of  ballet flats (to be worn on the plane)

Mix and match

As always, when you coordinate all your clothing, it’s super easy to pack in a carry-on. Two bottoms and three tops can mix and match to make SIX outfits. That’s way more than you’ll need for a long weekend. Don’t forget that what you wear in transit can also be rotated in as needed. And shoes! You should take two pair – max. Make sure they are both comfortable enough to walk in all day. Don’t be like my coworker who told me that she had 16 pairs of shoes she wanted to take with her to Mexico on a four day trip. Sixteen! I don’t even think that many shoes would fit in my carry-on and if they did, there would be no room for anything else, except maybe socks and underwear. Her trip was for a wedding, so aside from what she needed for the ceremony, she could have survived with a sun dress, a pair of shorts, her bathing suit and some flip flops. Learning to pack efficiently is important and can save you a ton.

That’s it. Think about what you truly need with you for three or four days and be realistic. Don’t play the “what if” game. What if I go out to a fancy dinner? What if it gets really cold? What if I want to go clubbin’? Did you plan for those things? Do you normally just change plans at the last minute? Sometimes it seems like it might be harder to pack for a short trip than a long one, but with some practice, it can be super simple. Just think, if you don’t bring something that you thought you could live without, by the time you miss it, you’ll probably already be back home.

Yup, that's my actual packing list!

This trip we’re taking two bottoms, three tops, a pair of sandals/flip flops and a pair of walking shoes (my sandals are walking shoes, so I’m also taking a pair of ballet flats) each and our packable jackets. I threw in a travel dress to wear to dinner with family. All that and our toiletries fit into our rolling carry-on, so I’ll be taking a the new Travelon Signature Messenger (review coming soon) to carry my regular purse stuff, important documents, netbook and snacks, and Eric will be carrying the Travelon Urban Tour Bag for the iPad, his 3DS and bottle of water. That’s it. We are traveling light. Staying at two places in three nights requires us to be able to throw everything in our bags and go quickly.

What are some of your favorite ways to travel light?