Back to School Round Up

Emily had a terrific first day of 2nd grade, and we are looking forward to a great school year ahead!! In the spirit of back-to-school, I dug deep into our archives and around the web to put together this fun round up: From the Archives: 5 Easy DIY School Supplies Celebrating Education Nation with The 10! […]

Around the Web — 10 Quick Crafts for Busy Moms

Last night I put the girls to bed early, and Mark went out for a fantasy football draft, leaving me with some precious “mommy crafting time”. Many times with my own crafting, I’ve found that it’s not a matter of finding the time to craft, but making the time. I still had dirty dishes in […]

Twitter Party!

“With parenting, the days are long, but the years are very short.” For many of us with young children, saving for college can seem like something that is very far away. We are so busy trying to keep up with everything from toilet training, back-to-school schedules, and even what to put on the table for […]

Printable Play Space

I made up some cute play spaces from a sheet of card stock paper, and our peg dolls have made themselves right at home. The girls are having a great time with these, and I love how something as simple as a sheet of paper can make their faces light up!! There were lots of […]

Wordless Wednesday — The Happy Dance

10 Cheap Ways to Beat the Heat

Like much of the US, we are stuck in a “heat dome” which means it’s time to find creative ways to keep cool! Some tips to keep in mind — Avoid being outside during the hottest part of the day, stay in shaded areas, drink plenty of water, and be sure to offer kids lots […]

Calorie-Free S’Mores for Pretend Play

Want all the fun of making s’mores, but without the sugar-high afterwards?? These pretend play s’mores are SO easy to make, and they are calorie-free so the kiddos can make (and pretend to eat) as many s’mores as they could possibly want!! First, make up your pretend campfire — arrange stones in a circle and […]

Our Summer Bucket List

I thought it would be fun to share our Summer Bucket List today — which seems to grow longer by the minute, as I keep adding things to the list! Many of these activities are either very low cost or free (yay!!), and the kiddos are really looking forward to crossing things off of the […]

Giveaway — Stonyfield Party Prize Pack

I am SO excited to be hosting this super-fun giveaway from my friends at Stonyfield!!! Did you know that they have NEW organic frozen yogurt novelty bars?? They are dipped in dark chocolate, are cheaper than going out for ice cream, and they’re organic! So, no high fructose corn syrup, no synthetic growth hormones, and […]

I’m on Pinterest!

Exciting news!! Thanks to my lovely neighbor & friend Yelena from Chefin’ w/ Baby on the Hip, I’m on Pinterest! And I’ve been pinning away ever since! Pinterest is a FUN, easy, (and very addicting) way to catalog the things you love. Every day on my Pinterest boards, I’ll be sharing inspiring ideas for kid […]

How to Seduce a Man Using Bacon

Ten years ago today, I shamelessly seduced my husband Mark and tricked him into marrying me. Here’s how I did it using items I already had on-hand (super-frugal) in my tiny dorm room in college. Step 1: Cook bacon. Don’t let the man of your dreams get away. Be sure to keep a never-ending supply […]

Five Fabulous Bloggers

Thanks to Trop50 for sponsoring my writing about fabulous bloggers. This year Trop50 is granting 50 Fabulous Wishes. Click here to enter for a chance to win $1,000 to celebrate a friend with a refreshing attitude about looking and feeling fabulous! Today I’d like to share with you five FUN and fabulous blogs I visit […]

Let’s Build a Flower Shop!

Tucked away in the corner of our living room, you’ll find a bit of sunshine no matter what the weather might be like outside. The girls are still really enjoying this cardboard play house we built using our Makedo kits awhile back, and I thought it would be fun to turn it into a colorful […]

Mandatory Picnic

We’ve been blessed with beautiful weather lately! You know, the kind of weather when it feels like a crime to be spending any amount of time indoors?? Yeah, that kind. As I was just about to do my usual boring reheat the leftovers from last night’s dinner for lunch thing, I looked at Clara and […]

Fun Activities for Screen Free Week

Need a few fun activities to get you through the rest of Screen Free Week?? Here are some of our favorites to get you off the couch and outdoors! Basketballs are soooo over-rated. What you really want to do is play a game of Invisible Basketball — lots of fun!! One of our favorite outdoor […]

Super Easy Weekend Crafts

We’ve been taking it easy around here lately, so here are some EASY crafts for those laid back weekends. This star garland is easy to make using star-shaped sticky notes! Emily loved playing this easy fishing game — made with pipe cleaner fish! …and if Spring isn’t coming fast enough for you, try making your own tissue paper […]

I’m at BabyCenter.com for Easy Organic Living!

I’m over at the Easy Organic Living forum at BabyCenter.com to help share tips for eating healthy on a budget, getting deals on organics, and answer any questions you may have about budgeting for organic food! There have been some great questions shared so far, and I hope you will join us!! Thanks to BabyCenter.com, […]

Money Saving Tips for Teachers

I was invited to give a hands-on workshop for teachers at the Educator’s Networking Conference held at Cedar Crest College last weekend, and we had LOTS of fun!! The topic was Creative Money Saving Tips for the Classroom, and we were busy, busy, busy with all sorts of super-frugal classroom activities! I felt so lucky […]