Big M is on her journey to reading! It is so exciting to watch and her enthusiasm for letters, sounds and recognizing words is contagious. At preschool, they have a letter of the week each week – last week was ‘C week’. She has to bring in a picture that…
Cooking
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CookingFor KidsFor ParentsPractical ParentingReal Mom MealsRecipes
Slow Cooker Chicken Tacos
by MeghanThis shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #YesYouCAN #CollectiveBias With 3 kids 4 and under, including a 2 week old newborn, the ONLY way I am serving up dinner these days is with my slow cooker. We would be starving…
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I participated in an Ambassador Activation on behalf of Influence Central for WaterWipes. I received product samples to facilitate my review as well as a promotional item to thank me for my participation. #WaterWipes #IC #ad With your first baby, all the grandmas, aunts and girlfriends can’t wait to throw…
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This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #BakeInTheFun #CollectiveBias A Fall Favorite in my family is my Great Grandmother’s Lazy Daisy oatmeal sheet cake. It was a family staple growing up from the first brisk morning in September through Thanksgiving. Today,…
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While pizza as we commonly know it may have first been invented in Naples, Italy in the late 18th century, it has become an American staple. And with a strong base of Italian immigrants here in our home state, and family-run establishments dating back to the early 1900’s, New Haven-style…
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This Spring, a group of my fellow kids activity bloggers and I worked together to bring you a Tour of the World by Flower, featuring flower crafts representative of our home states, provinces and countries from around the world. We all had so much fun, this summer we’ve teamed together…
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CookingFor KidsFor ParentsPractical Parenting
Back to School with Quaker Instant Oatmeal Muffins
by MeghanThis shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #QuakerTime #CollectiveBias I can’t believe summer is nearly over, and it’s already time to start preparing the kids to head back to school! We’ve started by stocking our pantry with the Ms’ breakfast,…
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I am super excited to join in Study at Home Mama’s 31 Days of Kids Kitchen Activities this month. The girls LOVE to help in the kitchen and run to pull in chairs as soon as I start putting ingredients on the counter. I love to encourage them given all…
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Last week, I discovered an awesome new-to-me social media platform: Yummly! While it has been around since 2010, Yummly is growing rapidly and quickly picking up steam. If you like using Pinterest for recipes, you will LOVE Yummly. It is a searchable recipe database where you can set up your…
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Last week, the Ms and I upheld one of our favorite summer traditions: strawberry picking! We went with a group of Big M’s friends from preschool. If you are local to Connecticut, Jones Family Farms has a great, family-friendly set-up, and if you go this week, you’ll just catch the…
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Last week, we went strawberry picking with a group of Big M’s preschool friends. It was a productive outing, and we came home with over 8 pounds of freshly picked strawberries! Tomorrow, I’ll be sharing over 50 different ways to put all those strawberries to use, but one looked so…
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Happy Friday, y’all! If you’re new around here, I’m Meghan, the founder of Playground Parkbench. I write about parenting, household tips, and at-home activities for kids. Every Friday, I partner with four of my fellow bloggers to bring you We Love Weekends, an open forum for our favorite family-friendly bloggers…
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You know the aisle at the grocery store that always has all the seasonal specials? Like pumpkin puree in the Fall, baking supplies at Christmas, and marshmallows and Hershey bars in the summer? I am a sucker for that aisle. And as much as I love S’mores, when marshmallows are…
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Growing up in Texas, King Ranch Chicken Casserole is a household staple. It was my Dad’s favorite meal, and given the labor involved to make it, my Mom only ever made it during the summer when she was off from teaching. She used to boil a whole chicken, save the…
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Earlier this week, I shared my book reviews for two books from Hands-On-Prints, Around the World from a to z and Nuts for Coconuts. Be sure to check out the book review for a chance to win a free book for yourself! Big M has become quite taken with both,…
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Earth Day is next week. In celebration, the girls and I have been exploring all about seeds, plants and gardening this week. It all started when Big M went to Home Depot with the hubby last weekend and the cashier gave her a tiny pot of sprouting grass… We let…
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The Ms love to participate in the kitchen – it’s an easy place to keep them occupied, involved, and there is so much to learn! Big M has known all her letters for awhile but is just beginning to learn to write them, while Lil’ M is just learning them…
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Have you ever had what could have been a kitchen disaster turn into one of your favorite foods ever? This Mint Chocolate Chip Banana Bread is just that – a giant oops, that ended up tasting so good, I now make it on purpose. Mint Chocolate Chip Banana Bread The…
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Book-InspiredCookingCraftsFor KidsFor ParentsSavvy Mom Life
Teaching Your Preschooler About Race
by MeghanMore than 50 years have passed since the Civil Rights Act was first enacted in 1964, and yet race seems to be as hot a topic today as it was in the 1960s. In honor Martin Luther King Day and his leadership in the advancement of Civil Rights, Big M and…
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When Big M was a toddler, she would eat just about anything. Then, the closer she got to her second birthday, the less and less she would eat. Food I had considered among her favorites (avocado, lunch meat, peanut butter), suddenly became tantamount to poison when put on the plate…