December has been filled with nothing but sickness at my house, which is par for the course. Kids coughing, cat coughing {I jest}, me coughing my little lungs out. It’s literally been a month-long lie-in over here; as I type this I’m sick in bed. Again. Enter ZarBee’s Cough Syrup for kids. You know how you can never get your kids to drink the disgusting stuff from the pharmacy, even when they sound like they have the plague and just…
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“A Christmas Carol” by Charles Dickens is beloved in our home. Mr. J reads the original story to his students each December, and we are familiar with its many cinematic interpretations. Last weekend we seized upon a babysitter in order to have a certifiable date night, and went to see the latest version, Disney’s “A Christmas Carol.” It was fantastic. Very true to the original story, very creative, with an excellent musical score. Because it is so true to the…
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A lot to celebrate at my house this weekend: our 9th wedding anniversary, the completion of graduate school, and our beloved babysitter is home from college, so we get to go out on a real live celebratory date. Oh, and Christmas is here, so we are delivering some goodies to neighbors and friends this weekend. It’s always such a conundrum for me, deciding what to share with them. My Auntie Nan always gives her homemade sweet pickles, my mother always…
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{photo via The Arizona Republic} Have you read the full story about Nie Nie’s ordeal in the Arizona Republic? Oh my. So well written it will make you weep into your shirt. Bring a tissue or two, or three. Love you Steph.
One of the activities on our advent was “make ornaments.” Together, my little guy and I made these beaded snowflake ornaments. Maybe they look more like stars, but I suppose it doesn’t really matter. It was simple enough for my little boy to do, and is pretty enough to hang on the tree. Simple, cheap, and a little bit shiny. I handled the twisting and bending of the pipe cleaners and my toddler did the beads–a great fine motor skills…
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For the little ones who have hung their stockings with care, might I suggest the following: a candy cane an orange–if you like to do things the old fashioned way a chocolate santa small cars (think hot wheels or matchbox) crayons or markers, maybe even glitter markers if you are brave novelty bath soap or bubbles a classic toy: a viewmaster with extra reels, yo-yo, or slinky fun toothbrush cozy socks, hat or mittens for older kids, consider a classic…
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If I were celebrating Hanukkah, I’d be all over this idea for the kids. A DIY kid friendly menorah.
Oh how I love to stuff those stockings; I look forward to it every year. In fact, I’m itching to do it right now…but Santa may not be too pleased with me. I love it so much that I hang gigantic stockings. Some of my most memorable Christmas gifts were those found in my own stocking on Christmas morning. In my most humble opinion, a properly stuffed stocking should contain the following elements: practical, frivolous, sweet, traditional. And most everything…
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Our three year old is something of strong-willed child: opinionated. determined. assertive. impossible. A pistol to be sure, now don’t get me wrong, I’m happy he’s not a bump-on-a-log, but sometimes the defiance willfulness is out of control. We are not the kind of parents that don’t believe in limits or discipline, but I find myself scolding more than I like, telling him “NO!” more than I like, feeling frustrated more than I like. All of this definitely more than…
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