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Gift Guide for the Artist 2020

Nov 21, 2020
3 min

Gift Guide for the Artist 2020

Here I've shared some of my favorite art supplies for the artist in your life. I include great supplies for the grown up maker, and kid friendly supplies too. For the Grown Up Artist Ticonderoga pencils, the best pencils, these are my favorite. Pencil sharpener, the perfect pencil sharper to keep in your bag; so, you are ready to sketch anywhere and don't have to worry about pencil shavings. Heavy duty, sharp scissors for cutting cardboard or thick materials, these are perfe

Gift Guide 2020

Nov 1, 2020
7 min

Gift Guide 2020

This gift guide covers gifts for men, women, and kids. I have been reviewing all the things I've bought on Amazon for as long as I have used Amazon, and have a comprehensive list I would recommend and buy again. So, if you are on the hunt for some gift ideas, I've got you covered. For the Men So, I find gift guides for men strange. They usually have joke or gag gifts, barbecue items, cuff links, and ties. None of these kinds of gifts work for my husband. I want to share

Road Trip to Yellowstone

Oct 27, 2020
4 min

Road Trip to Yellowstone

I wanted to share my favorite things from our trip, things that could have been better, and my best advice for planning our next getaway. These were my favorite places to visit in Yellowstone. First, the Grand Prismatic Spring at the Midway Geyser Basin. We arrived here shortly before sunset and the place just had a great atmosphere. It was cold outside, in the 40s, which helped create this steam everywhere that made the place beautiful. There was a wooden boardwalk that a

Toddler Birthday Ideas

Oct 21, 2020
3 min

Toddler Birthday Ideas

We just celebrated our youngest son's third birthday. We love a good low key celebration on birthdays and holidays. If you are looking for some birthday inspiration for the toddler in your life, I wanted to share what we came up with. Right now, our three-year-old is into dinosaurs. He loves to play with the model dinosaurs we have, and watch Gigantosaurus on Netflix. This gave me a theme, and we went from there. I already planned on making sugar cookies for his birthday,

Designing and Creating a Bulletin Board for Kindergarten

Oct 1, 2020
9 min

Designing and Creating a Bulletin Board for Kindergarten

I wanted to share some of my thinking and process of designing a bulletin board. The process I use to create a bulletin board is essentially how I plan most of my projects. This procedure can be applied to planning and executing a project of your own, whether it be an art project like this one, or if you're planning on organizing a part of your home and want to plan how you are going to do it the procedures for planning work just as well. I also want to back up and introduc

Marble Run Building Blocks

Jul 1, 2020
1 min

Marble Run Building Blocks

The most used toys in our house are the duplo blocks aka the larger lego blocks. My five year old builds all kinds of machines, characters, and places with his blocks that he then pretends and creates his own imaginative world. He would often build ramps and slide many unsuspecting toys down. I wanted to add to his ability to create something that could create a track or a path that objects could move on. These marble run building blocks are perfect. This set gave my hus

Creating Photo Albums and Photo Books

May 23, 2020
4 min

Creating Photo Albums and Photo Books

Taking photos has become easier and more convenient than ever before with the high resolution cameras available on cell phones. With this convenience, we also have a lot more photos than ever, and it can become overwhelming to sort through them all. I'd like to share my process of how to organize and print the photos I love. First, I look through the photos on my phone, and any I want to print, I give a heart which sorts these photos into a "favorites" folder on my phone.

Room on the Broom

May 6, 2020
1 min

Room on the Broom

Room on the Broom is a keeper. This is one of our favorite books. It's got rhythm and rhyme, beautiful illustrations, and a great story. We love reading this to our boys at bedtime. This book has also been made into a short film on Netflix that is just as lovely, and captures the story beautifully while showing our kids one of their favorite books in motion. If you need a new bedtime story, we recommend this one. #roomonthebroom #room #on #the #broom #book #books #read #

Favorite Books for Kids

Apr 29, 2020
1 min

Favorite Books for Kids

Here's a list of our favorite books for kids. Some are great stories, some have great rhythm and rhyme, some have beautiful photographs for identification, and beautiful illustrations, and some are great conversation starters. We are always finding new books, these are the ones we love. All Through My Town Busy Builders, Busy Week! Who Is Driving? My First Animals Solar System My First Words Whose Tools? All the World Little Blue Truck Leads the Way Weather My First ABC My

Easter Basket Ideas

Apr 4, 2020
2 min

Easter Basket Ideas

I'm sharing what I got for our Easter baskets. So, I am reusing the Easter baskets I got from Target last year, and I don't see them online this year, but they definitely have a lot of baskets if you need some. This year, I got each kid a t-shirt with a character that they are really into at the moment. I ordered my five year old a Mario Kart t-shirt, and a Toy Story t-shirt for my two year old. I got a boy's XS shirt for my 5 year old, and a 5T for my two year old. The

Mittens for Kids

Mar 12, 2020
2 min

Mittens for Kids

So, I know we're approaching spring, but it you live in a cold climate or want to stock up for next season, I'll be sharing all my winter gear. I have two sets of mittens for my kids. One set is just knit, soft, everyday mittens that can be easily put on and taken off, but they are not waterproof. These keep my kids hands cozy and warm on our everyday outings. My kids are also both able to put these on and take them off on their own. One is two years old, and the other i

Name Puzzles

Feb 27, 2020
1 min

Name Puzzles

I'm always on the look out for creative gifts that I think my kids will enjoy. My oldest, who is four, recognizes his name, and is thrilled to put his name in his room. My youngest, who is two, does not know how to spell his name yet, but this is a nice way to get him familiar with the letters in his name. The kids have fun matching the letters up with their corresponding spot. These also feel good to the touch. All the edges have been sanded and rounded for a smooth fin

We Moved!

Feb 19, 2020
2 min

We Moved!

It has been a long time since I've written, but I'm back. We have moved from Southeast Texas all the way to North Utah. It was a process of packing and planning and unpacking and storing and getting to know our new town. We sold our house in Texas and are now living in a two bedroom apartment with our pets and kids of course. We've just started looking for a house and are also considering building if we can afford to. The building cost seems reasonable, but land is expensive

All Through My Town: Favorite Books

Jun 18, 2019
1 min

All Through My Town: Favorite Books

All Through My Town is written by Jean Reidy and illustrated by Leo Timmers. This fun book is full of beautifully detailed drawings and a fun rhyming rhythm. After we read through the story, we like to go back and look at details on each page, like the neat rows of bread, the scene in the cafe, or the water from a hydrant filling up a car. Each time we read, we find something new to talk about. This is a board book, so, it holds up against rough handling by small people.

Who Is Driving: Favorite Books

May 28, 2019
1 min

Who Is Driving: Favorite Books

Book time! Here is another one of our favorite books. Who Is Driving is written and illustrated by one of our favorite artists, Leo Timmers. We got this book for our eighteen month old son, but my four year old loves it too. Each vehicle has a number of possible drivers, and older kids will quickly memorize who drives what, but what we love about Leo Timmers is his attention to detail. Parents and kids can look at which clothes each driver is wearing, and guess who is be

Favorite Toys: Radio Flyer Wagon

Feb 11, 2019
1 min

Favorite Toys: Radio Flyer Wagon

This Radio Flyer Wagon is the perfect size for little ones learning to take their first steps. It's solid and stable giving little ones a secure walking toy to hang on to. I have also had plastic walkers and found that my little guy would loose his balance and the walker would easily teeter over. This wagon remains upright and does not tumble over like other walkers do. The wooden sides in the bed of the wagon slide out and are removable which we have found out can also be

Art Project Box: Project Quilt Square, Documenting Work in Progress

Feb 4, 2019
3 min

Art Project Box: Project Quilt Square, Documenting Work in Progress

So, I announced I had an idea that was influenced by many things around me including: makers I see on Instagram and Facebook, beautiful interior design in nurseries and homes, and my own style and interest in art and home decor. My idea is to create an art project for anyone and everyone who is interested in participating. Now, I am literally at the starting point of this whole thing, so, I want to document and share the process of putting this project together. I like see

Favorite Toys: Dump Truck

Jan 30, 2019
1 min

Favorite Toys: Dump Truck

This little dump truck is perfect for a one year old. There are buttons to push that light up, make sounds, and play music. There are balls to drop into the hole and push into the dump truck's bed encouraging hand eye coordination, and it keeps little ones entertained. It also counts up to three when a ball goes through the hole. The blue lever on the side can be pulled to dump out the bed. This little truck is also a fun push toy with wheels that easily glide over the f

Favorite Toys: Play Kitchen

Jan 25, 2019
2 min

Favorite Toys: Play Kitchen

We got our three year old the Uptown Natural Play Kitchen by Kid Kraft. He loves to pretend and act out whatever Mom and Dad are doing, including cooking. Let me start by saying this kitchen took two and a half hours to build. It comes with a lot of pieces, but once we put it together, we we're happy with the result. So, be prepared to spend an afternoon or evening putting this together. It all came in one big box and was packaged really well. I did remove the towel bar

Favorite Toys: Pull-back Cars

Jan 21, 2019
1 min

Favorite Toys: Pull-back Cars

This Christmas we got Melissa and Doug's Pull-Back Vehicle Set for our one year old. We have a lot of toys already, so, we wanted something that wasn't a duplicate of what we already had, and was something both our boys would love to play with. These are soft, plush, pull-back cars. The wheels are removable, which we know our three year old will love to take off and put back on. The cars themselves are bright and fun with colorful illustrations. Both kids love to pull th