"DIY"

 I participated in an Influencer Activation on behalf of Influence Central for Hands-on-Prints books. I received books to facilitate this review. All opinions expressed are 100% my own. Books are probably the most prevalent, and most loved, toy in our house.  Big M’s library started before she was even born,…

Thank you so much for signing up for PGPB Guru Weekly! As a token of our appreciation, download our FREE DIY Tactile Alphabet Cards printable!  For the complete How To, visit the post below… You might also enjoy… PGPB Guru Most Popular Posts 25 Reasons My Threenager is Having a…

Happy Friday… and welcome to May!  We Love Weekends can only get better with the onset of longer days and finally, warmer weather.  As always, bloggers, link up your best family-friendly fun, activities, crafts, and readers, check out all the great content to fill your family’s weekend with fun. Last…

A few months ago, I had my fill of Big M’s bedtime reading selections.  She has a tendency to fall in love with a book and want to read the same one, every night, for weeks on end.  There are only so many times you can read the same Fancy…

Signs of spring have been popping up all around us finally… first puddles from melting snow, then buds on the trees, next daffodils popping open, and most vibrant of all, forsythia in bright, golden bloom everywhere.  Since moving to Connecticut nearly 9 years ago now, I have learned that forsythia…

Last week, Scary Mommy shared a post that went viral bashing direct sales businesses, and the women who sell these products to generate additional income for themselves and their families.  I get it – not everyone wants what someone sells.  Get invited to a Pampered Chef party and don’t need…

The Masters Tournament is this weekend!!!  And for those mommas out there who don’t share my love of golf (it was an acquired taste for me as well that I only got once I started playing myself), the Masters is one of the four major tournaments annually, and unlike other…

Contact paper has been on our craft wish list for a while now.  It’s one of those things that I always mean to get, but never remember when I’m actually at the store, nor am I entirely sure what the right store is to find it in!  Then, last week…

Before Big M started preschool, we used to attend a weekly playgroup at our local elementary school.  It was a great way to meet other moms with kids the same age, the kids got to play together, do a craft, and at the end, had a little circle time singing…

The secret to keeping your kids entertained, especially through this interminable winter, is a well stocked craft closet.  You’ll often notice in my At-Home Activity posts, I mention that an activity was free or cost me a $1 because I already had everything else in the craft closet.  So what…

Big M’s paper plate wreaths are beginning to become a fixture in our kitchen.  As soon as we remove one at the end of one holiday season, she asks to make another one for the next!  So far for Valentine’s Day, we have made 3 easy Valentine wreaths… two paper…

On Fridays, we offer financially savvy advice for the household CEO – from household budgeting, to saving for college, to where to find the friendliest deals for your wallet.  This week – where to find FREE, or very affordable, engaging activities for your kids, no matter where you live. Nationwide…

PlaygroundParkbench is my parenting, lifestyle and family finance blog, where I share practical parenting tips, kids learning activities and, informed by my former career in the investment world, family financial savvy. I love partnering with family-friendly brands to create relateable, informative and shareable content to help you reach my followers.…

My Instagram project sneak peeks put the pressure on to get these posted!  We first saw these on PopSugar as gifts for Mother’s Day, and like many of you clamoring for the How To…, we fell in love at first sight.  We finally got the chance to make them ourselves,…