Egg Carton Tulips

In the past we've had fun using egg cartons for projects, we've made caterpillars and love bugs. So we were looking for a spring themed project and decided to make egg carton tulips!

Kids Cook: Banana Bread

We love getting kids into the kitchen, and this easy banana bread recipe means that everyone can get involved in the making of this treat.

If you've been reading our blog for a while now you know we love making muffins on a regular basis, but banana bread is also a staple in our household. The tips below really can be used with any banana bread recipe, but this just happens to be our favorite. 

1st Birthday Construction Party

Last week we celebrated Little Brother's first birthday. It's hard to believe how fast this year has gone, or how quickly my little guy is turning into a big guy.

I had a lot of fun getting ready for his first birthday party, and I have to thank Pinterest for most of my inspiration. The danger in perusing Pinterest is sometimes the parties are just so well put together and so well planned, that you forget they are not always the real party but something put together for show. As I looked my favorite parties were the ones that are real family parties, like the one we threw for Little Brother. The best part was, we had so much of this stuff, we didn't need to buy too much.

Crock Pot Chicken Sausage Tortellini Soup

When I started blogging I envisioned posting more family friendly meals than I have so far. While crafting and learning has become our primary focus here, I'm always on the look out for meals and recipes that the whole family will enjoy and that are convenient too. The crock pot is definitely a huge help in creating a little sanity in our family. So as I promised on facebook last week, here's the first of some of our favorite crock pot recipes.

I've been making this recipe for a couple of years now, and modified it a few times. It's mild enough to be enjoyed by both boys while still being flavorful enough for the grown-ups too.

Painting Snow- Inside!

We put this together on a whim this evening and we had so much fun with it I had to share it tonight. Dinner was taking a little longer than expected, and after a funny weather afternoon it was suddenly nice out. As it was too late to get everyone into their snow gear to go out, I decided to bring it inside!

We've painted snow outside before, we've used it to add color to snowmen and snow forts. We've also played with snow inside before, but we've never combined them. It was a hit!

Mud Season Monster Truck Bin

Everywhere I look there are reminders that spring is coming: Facebook, all the stores, Pinterest . . . that is everywhere I look that is not outside our windows. Last week's storm dumped another 18 inches on us, which has settled on top of what we already had to place us back in a Winter Wonderland. And these weeks cold temps are not helping.

Of course, in our part of New England before we get to spring we need to get through Mud Season. It's the fourth season here in Vermont. At this point I'd love to see that bare, brown time of year with just a hint of green; but you can remind me of that in a few weeks when I'm groaning at how the mud keeps getting tracked into the house.

To have a little fun with that idea I set up a Monster Truck Mud Season Bin for Big Brother. It's already gotten him excited about the idea that spring may actually be coming.