Month: March 2009

by Allison

how to plant a garden in egg cartons.

It’s that time of year again….Spring! Which, to me at least, means gardening. We try to have a garden every year, just to give the kids Summer jobs. The produce is an added bonus, but I really want the kids to learn how to weed, water, and harvest. My kids actually get really invested in the garden, getting out to water and weed in the morning before it gets too hot, and I find them snacking on snap peas while they’re out playing. They love every aspect of it, I love that they love it, and we all love each other. I’m going to share a tutorial with you of what I wish I’d known 5 years ago in gardening. I’m far from hardcore, but I’ve had a few gardens and this is a pretty basic step-by-step account of how to get started in planting your vegetable garden. Ready? Let’s go.

Step 1: Egg Cartons


I start saving egg cartons in about January. Yes, really. They make the perfect little sized containers to transplant your plants once the ground is warm enough outside. Egg cartons are biodegradable, free {well, you know what I mean}, and you’re … >> find out more…

Allison

I'm Allison, founder and editor of Petit Elefant. I run the gamut from granola to glamour and love everything in between. I think the beach is always a good idea, as is Diet Dr. Pepper; on ice. Sometimes I put out the fires and sometimes I start them. Sometimes I really do have it all together. Sometimes my children say otherwise. We just like to keep it real around here.

by Allison

thanks leslie!


Wasn’t Leslie wonderful last week? I have a total crush on her blog A Room Somewhere and was so thrilled she visited for a whole week. If you love her, please go visit and say hello on her site, she’s very friendly. Thanks Leslie!!!


{photos via A Room Somewhere}.


… >> find out more…

Allison

I'm Allison, founder and editor of Petit Elefant. I run the gamut from granola to glamour and love everything in between. I think the beach is always a good idea, as is Diet Dr. Pepper; on ice. Sometimes I put out the fires and sometimes I start them. Sometimes I really do have it all together. Sometimes my children say otherwise. We just like to keep it real around here.

by Allison

sparkle power giveaway!


Who needs to decorate a nursery? Playroom? Laundry room? Up for grabs is a set of Vintage Map Wooden Blocks + a La La Love You poster from Sparkle Power. Total value = $25



+

=

cute!

Giveaway Details:

  1. To enter the Sparkle Power Giveaway leave me a comment on this post telling me where you’d put this fabulous set of blocks + poster.
  2. If you blog about this, you get an extra entry. Email me at allison@petitelefant.com to let me know you’ve posted about it, with a link to the post.
  3. If you twitter about it, you will receive an additional entry. Again, email me. You can email me once for both, just send me two links in one email. This means you can get TWO extra entries for this giveaway!
  4. If you post my button on your blog, again, you guessed it, an extra entry. You can find the button at the top of my page with instructions how to put it on your blog.
  5. Leave only one comment please.
  6. Anonymous comments will be ignored.
  7. The deadline to enter is Monday April 6th, Midnight MST. Winners will be announced Tuesday April 7th.
  8. If I don’t hear from

… >> find out more…

Allison

I'm Allison, founder and editor of Petit Elefant. I run the gamut from granola to glamour and love everything in between. I think the beach is always a good idea, as is Diet Dr. Pepper; on ice. Sometimes I put out the fires and sometimes I start them. Sometimes I really do have it all together. Sometimes my children say otherwise. We just like to keep it real around here.

by Alma

I blame my mother.

I don’t think you can blame your parents for everything, but there are certain things that they should certainly be blamed for. This, for example.

And this.


Recently I was sharing a story with my in-laws that I have not shared with anyone since the 7th grade. And this is it. In grade 6, I was put in a special group of students who had the privilege of taking a special field trip to see the junior high science fair. Basically, the 6th grade teachers chose the students who were most likely to succeed, who were most likely to participate in the science fair themselves the next year. The best and the brightest. That was me.

The next year, it was time for me to shine. Time for me to prove that I was still among the best and the brightest. All I needed was one really great sciencey idea!

And now I’ll take a moment to ask some very serious questions. Where was my teacher to help me out? Where were the resources to help inspire the students? Where were the handouts of 101 science experiment ideas? Where were the book suggestions? Where was the screening process of actually … >> find out more…

Alma

by Leslie

Miss Ruby Sue

Just can’t get enough of these hot, bright colors in Miss Ruby Sue’s Etsy shop . . .


Thanks for letting me visit, Allison! And thanks to all for reading and for your comments. Please come see me at A Room Somewhere! I’d love to share more with you.


… >> find out more…

Leslie

by Leslie

Vintage Kids

Find something old and diminutive, like this vintage cotton pinafore, at Baby Hank Vintage.

Or this fabulous little Mexican top, at Petit Vintage. This would be so cute with some little red shorts and white sandals.


***leslie

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Leslie

by Allison

quote of the day.

A little something to live by:

“How we spend our days is, of course, how we spend our lives”

-Annie Dillard-


A wake up call to myself, perhaps?


… >> find out more…

Allison

I'm Allison, founder and editor of Petit Elefant. I run the gamut from granola to glamour and love everything in between. I think the beach is always a good idea, as is Diet Dr. Pepper; on ice. Sometimes I put out the fires and sometimes I start them. Sometimes I really do have it all together. Sometimes my children say otherwise. We just like to keep it real around here.

by Kimberly

richard scarry’s best storybook ever.

As a child, from a very young age, I was a voracious reader. I simply loved to read–from Dick and Jane to Pride and Prejudice. Novels, short stories, biographies, anything. Among my most beloved books was this:

Richard Scarry’s Best Storybook Ever. My mom saved my tattered copy and sent it to me last year. Now it’s one of my son’s favorites.

It’s filled with short stories and little vignettes where silly animals depict human life in silly ways. From colors to ABCs to animals to cities, learning takes place on every page. Ideal for vocabulary development and also story time, as the stories are brief, fun, and delightfully illustrated. Pierre Bear, and any page with with diggers, trains or trucks, rates tops with my little one.
Luckily it’s still in print. Makes a great addition to your family library or a wonderful, ageless gift for little ones in your life.

… >> find out more…

Kimberly

...by day, making a home where the buffalo roam. By night, pretty much the same thing, punctuated by the occasional fantasies of sunny beaches, italian movies and sparkling lemonade.

by Leslie

Happy Rooms

I love this image from photographer Mark Lund. It reminds me that modern, bright decor doesn’t have to be expensive or straight from the uber-chic flea market (which has thus far eluded me). Pretty ribbons on a bright white dresser with a pretty paint color on the wall? Totally do-able.

My stylish and frugal sister decorated her baby, Stella’s room in a subtle mix of pinks and reds. She used the super-inexpensive fabric-in-a-hoop idea for a simple, modern wall element.

Some of my other favorite children’s rooms (some on the cheap) can be found here, here and here.

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Leslie