2014

We are so excited to present our first Guest Blogger. Blaise is the Founder of Viva La Cloth, a cloth diaper company featuring easy styles that use great fabrics, simple colors at a price point that makes cloth start-up affordable for all families. As a recent cloth convert myself, I…

Who remembers making these simple, DIY ornaments when you were a kid?  When we put up our tree last weekend, I found one I made nearly 30 years ago, and decided I had to make them with Big M this year. DIY Ornaments with Cinnamon Dough It’s a perfect, low maintenance recipe…

My favorite crafts for my munchkins are based on anything I already have in my house.  This homemade Christmas wreath fits that bill. Shopping List: Paper plate Glue Green construction paper Pom poms Ribbon Cost: Free – Less than $5 Prep Time: Less than 5 minutes Clean-Up Time: Less than…

How many times have you been told – don’t compare your child to anyone else’s because every child is different.  From the pediatrician, from the preschool teacher, from fellow moms, we hear this mantra again and again.  I remember when Big M was little, she was the mellowest, easiest baby…

Even when I was working 80-100 hour weeks in Financial Services, I never so keenly felt the sense of there not being enough hours in the day until I was a mom.  Of course, work fed us, so with that basic need taken care of, it freed up a lot…

Believe it or not, this is actually an activity Big M evolved all by herself at just 2 years old!  I had purchased a giant bag of assorted Christmas pom poms at Michael’s to stock the craft closet for the holidays.  We first opened it to use for our Santa’s…

This is a super easy and quick Christmas countdown activity you can do each morning with even very young children at the breakfast table.  We did it last year with Big M when she was only 2… Shopping List: Santa beard print out White pom poms or cotton balls Glue…

“Would you like to save 10% off your purchase today by opening a credit card with us?” How many times have you been asked this one?  Sometimes it also comes with the promise of regular coupons, or an even steeper upfront discount, making it all the more tempting.  With Black…

Before there were Pinterest and ‘Life Hacks’, before there was Martha Stewart Living, and even before there were Hints from Heloise… there was my Grandmother.  The oldest of six children, mother to eight, grandmother to 17, and great grandmother to 13 and counting, she was our family’s personal walking encyclopedia…

With the appropriately stocked craft cabinet, this craft should essentially be free.  This is also the perfect craft to deploy on Thanksgiving while you are trying to entertain and cook for 15 people at the same time! Shopping List: Paper plate Assorted construction paper, tissue paper Feathers Googly eyes Glue…

It has been a very, long winter… So long, that I’ve been willing to do just about anything to keep Big M happily entertained in doors. Enter, Massive Floor Mural… Rainy Day Fun with Massive Floor Murals This requires very basic craft supplies, that you can turn to again and…

Coloring the driveway with sidewalk chalk is one of Big M’s favorite outdoor activities, and has been since she was barely walking. We live in a townhouse, with limited outdoor space, so it’s a safe, creative option. Shopping List: Sidewalk Chalk Cost: Less than $5 (and you can use the…

St. Patrick’s Day is a BIG deal in our house… My husband and I both went to Notre Dame, so though we may not be Irish by blood, we are definitely Irish by devotion! Big M is very into painting these days, so this was a perfect festive craft for…

We are fortunate to live a block from the beach… but it’s a long block with a toddler, beach tent, towels, and sand toys in tow! One hot day after getting home from the park, Big M spied her sand toys and wanted to go to the beach. Instead, I…

Big M has her own entourage – like a movie star or professional athlete; she has ‘people’. At first, I thought it was just my kid. I mean, I knew nearly every kid, myself included, had a security item – be it a special ‘blankie’ or teddy bear. But she…

This is the third installment in Our Favorite Things series. Check out our first two posts, covering the first six months, below: Part 1: 0-3 months Part 2: 4-6 months We hope to share with you what we loved, and what we didn’t, so you can learn from our trials…

This is the second installment in Our Favorite Things series. Check out our first post, covering the first three months, here. We hope to share with you what we loved, and what we didn’t, so you can learn from our trials and tribulations and hopefully save yourself some cash along…

A friend of mine is a co-founder of weeSpring.com. It’s basically Yelp for baby gear only better – a way to see what your friends think about that stroller you have been lusting after, not just the 200 random reviewers on Amazon or Diapers.com. If you haven’t signed up yet,…

Sleep… you will never talk about how much your child sleeps, or more likely, doesn’t sleep, as you do in those first few weeks you bring your child home from the hospital. Or when they consolidate down to one nap. Or when they learn to stand up in the crib,…