I’m so excited to bring you this Valentine’s Day activity, which is part of Toddler Approved’s 100 Acts of Kindness Project! My inspiration was Christina Perri’s Jar of Hearts - a melancholy song about a tortured break up - but this activity is about recognizing love and kindness in another and creatively expressing thanks for that person’s [...]
In the middle of all our Valentine’s Day crafting madness, both kids came down with their first stomach bug, so the posts have been slow as of late. The good news is that we discovered a new sensory play activity for our Fun With Food! series. Ingredients 2 packets of Jello water 13 x 9 [...]
This Old Fashioned Apple Crisp was one of the yummiest desserts I’ve made. We served it in individual ramekins, along with our Caramelized Upside Down Pear Tarte Tatin for Thanksgiving dinner, and it’s my new homemade favorite. Ingredients For the filling: 5 pounds McIntosh or Macoun apples (I used Granny Smith) Grated zest of 1 orange Grated zest [...]
On the days when the screeching and screaming won’t stop, the t.v. no longer holds their interest, Hubby’s not home to help me round up the rebels, and I just really really really want to get rid of them, I throw Jane and Sam in the bathtub with some shaving foam and a few drops [...]
For years, I have been obsessed with living in a grand New York apartment with a wall full of beautifully colorful frames like Ingrid Bergman’s in the film Indiscreet (one of my favorites): Source: google.com via Corley on Pinterest I’ve given up that dream, but still have an itch to create some kind of frame-decorated wall. Like this heart-shaped gallery [...]
After the Make Your Own Monster Gift Kit post, which featured some monster-themed gift ideas, some of you asked what themed gifts Sam received for his pirate-themed birthday party, so here you go! My favorite was this awesome set of pirate-themed gifts from our young hipster couple friends who picked up this cool booty from local [...]
My new header and buttons are up! Thanks so much to Thanh of Thanh Design for the fabulous blog styling! If you’ve been featured on the blog, please feel free to grab one of these lovely buttons (grab the code here): {Play} {Bake} [...]
For someone who’s so nostalgic about everything, I’m surprised at how much I’m looking forward to 2012. But before I get busy jumping ahead, here’s my favorite play post from 2011: Colorful Ice Cube Painting We got so messy, but we had so much fun! Jane was in heaven with the different textures and [...]
I was nauseated for most of the holidays, which was great for me because I lost six pounds, but horrible because I couldn’t make or shop for presents and stocking stuffers or properly prep for all the festivities. It would have been totally awful except that I have these wonderfully fond memories to laugh back [...]
Thanks to Walgreens for underwriting this post. I was paid as a member of the Clever Girls Collective, but the content is all mine. Visit http://www.walgreens.com/beauty. My name is Chrissy and I’m a drugstore junkie. I’ve been hitting up drugstores since I was in sixth grade. It began with me scouring the shelves for the [...]
I’m so excited to be sharing with you the activity for Day 23 of the Creative Christmas Countdown: Play A Card Game! One of Jane’s favorite games is the iPhone Toy Story 3 Memory App. She’s already mastered the Easy Level and isn’t fazed at all by the Medium Level. To break her away [...]
We’ve been having lots of fun making ornaments, like these Recycled Paper Ornaments, these Sequin Ornaments, and these sparkly, painted, and filled ornaments, and we’re still on a roll! I’m sure you’ve seen this stunning thumbtack wreath from Madigan Made Source: madiganmade.com via TheOutlawMom on Pinterest or these thumbtack trees around blogland. As an experiment, I wanted to see if Jane [...]
{Celebrate} Valentine’s Day | Fun With Jello!
{Bake} Old Fashioned Apple Crisp
{Play} Bathtub Painting
{Craft} Our New Gallery Wall
{Live} New Year, New Look, New Link Party, New Giveaway!
{Play} Best Toddler Activity Of 2011
{Live} Our Holiday In Quotes
{Live} All I Want For Christmas
{Play} Family Memory Game
{Celebrate} Homemade For The Holidays | Toddler Thumbtack Ornaments
November 23, 2011 in All Posts, Live, Products, Reviews, Sponsored Posts
I can’t believe Jane will be three in just a few months. Looking back over her old photographs (well, as “old” as a person who’s lived 33 months can have), it feels like decades ago that she was a little newborn and I was ooh-ing and ahh-ing over her first gurgle, her first giggle, and [...]
November 15, 2011 in All Posts, Live, Products, Reviews
One of my good friends is having her first baby! (A girl). (Yay!). She called to ask me what I couldn’t live without when I first had my babies, so I’ve put together a few lists to share with her and decided to share them with you, too! I used so many different products that [...]
October 24, 2011 in All Posts, Bake, Drink, Products, Reviews, Sponsored Posts
I stopped drinking all forms of caffeine during my two years of service as a human incubator. But as soon as Sam popped out and I literally became a walking zombie with two under two, I started unabashedly quaffing all forms of the legal liquid stimulant. Before kids, I wasn’t picky about my coffee. I [...]
October 10, 2011 in All Posts, Products, Reviews, Sponsored Posts
I’m all about the diaper cake these days. They’re such a fabulous decor piece - plus, the lucky recipient gets to take home the fruits of your well-meaning labor and put your present to good use long after the party. In case you missed the last one, here’s my tutorial for the pink and bling diaper [...]
September 6, 2011 in All Posts, Bake, Play, Products, Reviews
We’re refusing to let summer go. How can we when there’s still so much summer fun still to be had? Auntie C (remember her awesome White Wine Summer Fruit Sangria?) and Uncle B brought us these great Tovolo Rocket Pop Molds for Jane’s Special Agent Oso birthday months ago: They claim to “Make a cool treat [...]
August 31, 2011 in All Posts, CRAVE IT. COVET. LOVE IT., Products, Reviews
This {back-to-school} week I’m coveting personalized labels, like these colorful custom Orbit labels: What better way to label bottles, cups and sippy cups, than with these non-adhesive, reusable, FDA compliant non-toxic, dishwasher- and microwave-safe custom labels? You can even use these to label your own toiletry products, drink containers and insulated coffee mugs! Design your [...]
August 24, 2011 in All Posts, Live, MomStuff, Outlaw Posts, Products, Reviews, Style & Beauty
Since I’m loving weddings this week, I thought I would share the perfect look for your next black-tie or formal affair. This outfit took me through three events this summer, including a ballroom black-tie wedding, an outdoor wine country wedding, and a fancy dinner on the town, and will no doubt take you straight through [...]
August 24, 2011 in All Posts, CRAVE IT. COVET. LOVE IT., MomStuff, Products, Reviews
This week I’m loving weddings: Wedding season is wrapping up and we’ve been to three beautiful weddings - including a first-time marriage for our 65-year old uncle and his blushing bride - and witnessed two engagements - including my own lovely bachelor brother Uncle B’s proposal to Aunty C. My own wedding was a mere [...]
June 21, 2011 in All Posts, Live, MomStuff, Outlaw Posts, Products, Reviews
When I was little, my mother thought I had muscular dystrophy because I couldn’t squat, sit and run like the other kids. It didn’t help that I was duck footed (thanks, Dad) and waddled around, hips swaying from side to side led by wayward outward pointing toes. A few years later, in the first grade, [...]
March 14, 2011 in All Posts, Live, Outlaw Posts, Products, Reviews
Daylight Savings Weekend was quite eventful at our household. Sam finally mastered the pincer grasp and can pick up and eat Cheerios on his own: And Jane helped build - and actually slept in! - a toddler bed for the first time: I wasn’t quite sure how the whole transition from crib to toddler bed [...]
