For the last few years, my family has happily used Tomfo’s Santa Beard Christmas Countdown to mark off the days until Christmas. While we still adore that countdown, I am seeking to make December even merrier and brighter with an Advent Activities Calendar. For this countdown, …
The school year has come to a close and my kids are now home all day, every day. It’s a nice change to have slow, relaxed mornings. I love the laughter, energy and joy that their presence brings into our home. And they’re still at …
One of the best parts about decorating for Christmas is pulling out the ornaments and remembering the special people and circumstances that brought them into our collection. This little Felt Christmas Tree is just one of those items: My mother-in-law and I spent an evening …
When it comes to play, I more often orchestrate activities than join the fun. This summer, I’m challenging myself to disconnect from devices, let the house get messy and be more present in play with my kids. I’m far from an outdoorsman, but growing up …
One of our most popular projects has been the outdoor playset we built for our kids in the fall of 2015. I am happy to report that it’s still in great condition — standing up to hurricane winds, downpours of rain and everyday abuses of …
Thank you for all the kind words and inquiries regarding our outdoor playset. We had a blast building it, but most importantly, our kids and their friends are having an even better time using it! My intention when I originally wrote the post was to …
My four-year-old son recently learned the game of tic-tac-toe. We played it several times while waiting for our food to arrive at a restaurant. He was instantly hooked and wants to play all the time now. So when I saw this episode of The Weekender by Lowe’s, I was …
Did you know that you can order from Amazon and have it delivered to your house within two hours of placing the order? Seriously. I watched it happen earlier this week. My friend ordered groceries while we were on the phone in our respective homes, …
Santa brought my son an Estes Conquest model rocket for Christmas. It arrived in a bunch of little pieces that needed to be carefully cut, sanded, glued together, and painted to form this awesome rocket. At skill level 5, it was too advanced for a four …
After living in Japan for six years with only an itty-bitty concrete front porch, a good-sized backyard was one of our requirements when we were searching for a new house. We wanted a private place to entertain — which led to our DIY pergola — and a …
