One of the many surprise discoveries I made after having a baby boy was that I'm actually pickier about boy clothes. Specifically, a lot of sports-themed duds don't pass muster, but select favorites make me swoon. But here's a new line t…
Spring break is on its way, and I'm making plans. But my spring break plans don't involve beaches, bikinis, or beer. Instead, I'm looking for ways to keep my kids busy . (Besides cleaning the bathroom, my standard fallback response to th…
When you think of foreign travel, Canada probably doesn't spring to mind. After all, we've got hockey, maple syrup, and a Francophile or two here in the United States, right? Well, yes. But as I discovered on a recent trip to Vancouver a…
While I've never taken my husband to task for only buying three lemons instead of the dozen I requested ("Who asks for a dozen lemons anyway?"), I have to confess that I avoid sending him to the grocery store because...well, whatever he …
I used to love reading parenting guides . My oldest child was an overachiever from the start, and the guides served as affirmation that she was a prodigy and I was a model parent. Then my middle child - my obstinate, tantrum-throwing, sp…
When I was pregnant for the first time, I developed an unhealthy affinity for those birth documentaries that had previously repelled me. Something about growing a baby myself made me want to click over and immerse myself in the gory deta…
Kids these days have it so easy: Cell phones, computers, and cartoons on TV twenty-four hours a day. Technology has even made studying a cinch. No more Encyclopedia Britannica -- now it's all about search engines. But flashcards are one …
I want to be a good hostess, really I do. But my idea of throwing a party involves opening a few bottles of wine and putting steaks on the grill. I'm a little shaky where it comes to the details that elevate a party from fun to fabulous.…
With a child heading to second grade next year (how did that happen already?), I'm well-versed in the usual procedure of collecting money for a group teacher gift . Problem is, we're still doing it the same way we did it when I was a kid…
I love the idea of a growth chart, but I'd never found any that appealed to my decor sensibilities, which are admittedly a bit quirky. Then I got a peek at the Dust Bunnies height chart from UK graphic wall art shop Spin Collective , whi…
I think I can safely state that most parents would like to spare their children as much trauma as possible, which is why I was intrigued by the concept of the Buzzy . This FDA-approved plastic bee uses mechanical vibrations to "confuse" …
I may have mentioned once or forty times that our family spends a lot of time in the pool . Which means that we buy bathing suits and board shorts as part of the new baby layette. Problem is, it's not that easy to find cool swimwear size…
Craft kits are perfect for moms lacking that creativity gene, but then there are moms like me who combine both lack of creativity with an aversion to clutter. Our kids happily create, but then we wonder what to do with the (precious and …
Obviously the greatest Father's Day gifts are the ones that actually come from the kids. But when you've got ones who aren't even old enough to sign their names to a card yet, check out the personalized Daddy books from iseemyface.com as…
I consider myself quite a connoisseur of strollers. Having lived in the city, in urban suburbia, and in the suburbs proper, I know that owning a variety of strollers can be as essential as owning a variety of handbags. My latest stroller…
When it first came time to baby-proof our apartment, I went to that big-box baby store to get supplies and learned there were far more ways that my baby girl could injure herself than I'd ever imagined. (Hello, bubble wrap). What I didn'…
When I put my little guy down for a nap, I close the door and don't look back. I'm not one for compulsively checking on him (because with my luck, I'll wake him up) and I'd never even considered using a video baby monitor. Until now. Lat…
Not to brag, but for a non-geeky girl I know my way around a computer. I'm not even afraid to dive into code. But where it comes to video editing, I'm a complete dolt. So when I created my very own free (free!) 30-second video at animoto…
My car is completely and utterly utilitarian; it gets me and my three children from Point A to Point B. But while an upgrade to something more fun isn't in my budget these days, Sugarcoat Decals are. These vinyl car decals helped me give…
Last fall, we couldn't wait for the weather to cool off so that we could dress our girls in the gorgeous Kit + Lili winter line. Now it's May and we're itching to save our pennies so we can get our mitts on their new girls' dresses for s…
The best part of bathing my baby is breathing him in afterward -- but it does call into question exactly what's in those bubbles and that bum cream anyway. The skin care artisans at Sweet Knee keep no secrets -- all of their carefully-se…
My kids aren't even all in school yet , and I already feel like I spend half my day in the car. As a multitasking mom, it nearly kills me to sit there and do nothing but drive. Carpool Karma is an ideal distraction for those of us who wi…
I'm the woefully unprepared mom at my daughter's soccer games -- the one who's sitting directly on the itchy grass (and who will probably forget to brush the grass off her rear end when she stands up). So I was practically giddy when I d…
While I'm greening up my act in many ways, I'm still pretty picky where it comes to baby wipes -- it's not totally unreasonable that I don't want to cut corners with the one thing that's keeping me from getting poop all over my hands. So…
