toys

I attended back-to-school night last week at my son’s preschool, and I was totally blown away when the teacher showed me his “This is Me” book. The last page said, “When I grow up I want to be a: BUILDER!” Underneath, the fill-in-the-blank question was a complex drawing of a ...read more

There’s nothing cuter than a real-life baby with a sweet baby doll. My precious little P has suddenly started expressing interest in “babies.” The second she spots a human that’s her smaller than her (and sometimes even bigger!), she giggles and points and says “Mama! Mama! ...read more

My big guy has been in Pre-K for four whole days now. That’s 10 hours total of school time under his belt thus far this academic year. (Yes, preschool is a whopping two and a half hours around here, but, hey, it’s five days a week—so I’ll take it!) Grant really likes to play, ...read more

My son is super tentative at the playground. He lets other kids pass him when he hesitates at the top of the slide and starts screaming if my husband pushes him just a hair too high on the swings. He generally skips the tall ladders and desperately clenches the ropes at the ...read more

My kids are totally into science and nature. I wanted to find to bring science and nature to life in our home - literally. I stumbled upon Ladybug Land a few months ago for a birthday gift for one of my daughter's friends. My daughter was intrigued by the whole idea of ...read more

One thing I absolutely love about summer is the flexibility to do things during the week that you may not normally be able to do during the school year. There's also this rule about being able to stay up later than usual and that means playing with toys that glow in the dark. ...read more

We have a new bedtime routine in our house... and it involves a game! That's right, we're playin' our way to snoozeville—and, yes, it means my son actually asks to go to go up to bed every night. (Hashtag Winning--in more ways than one!) Busy Town is part puzzle, part game, ...read more

My parents actually got my son his first car on his third birthday. Incidentally, they also got him his own [backyard play] house and a personal [baby] pool for "his" backyard. (Yeah, this kid livin' the American dream!) (And to think, they refused to get ME a pink Barbie Power ...read more

During the summer, my kiddos and I always head back East to Georgia or North Carolina to visit family. Being on the road with children is a different kind of family bonding, that's for sure. Shoving everyone in a small space—whether it be a car, plane or train—for an extended ...read more

In case you've been living under a rock these last few weeks, allow me to inform you: it's still National Ice Cream Month. We've been celebrating since the first of July with peachy-keen homemade ice-cream recipes and adorably easy DIY projects. (We also have a ridiculously ...read more

As a photographer, my kids see me take a lot of photos - for work and fun. I like to capture the little moments, especially when we're doing fun things together as a family. Summer brings lots of awesome things: vacations, day trips and activities. I got my little photographer ...read more

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MIQkQvw4RAI I’m going to be honest here… I love my kids, but sometimes I don’t feel like playing with the same ole toy or game over and over and over again. It can get a bit tedious, repetitive, and, um, exhausting... Especially at 5 AM. (It's ...read more

School may have just gotten out, but are you already worried about the brain drain that can come with those looooong days of summer? Luckily, you can keep your kids entertained and educationally challenged with these fun, brain-stimulating building toys - many of which build on ...read more

We love bringing you the latest toy trends every Tuesday in our Toy Tuesday segment. We choose toys that are not only fun, but have a lot of "play time" inspiration and encourage our littles to think creatively as well. This week, we will be chatting about two of our favorite ...read more

Summer… If you’re a kid, it’s all about freedom, fun, and play. (At least, it should be!) Just in time for the season of sun, sand, and surf, Amazon.com has launched its first-ever Summer Toy List. It’s an interactive shopping experience that’s meant to help kids and parents ...read more

We've been big fans of GoldieBlox for a while; and now that they've come out with the Zip-Line, we're totally hooked! This is the perfect way to get your girls interested in STEM activities. I loved seeing the girls open the box and immediately get to work. Together, they ...read more

"Give a kid a cardboard box, and you've got yourself a happy camper." I used to think this was a silly thing people just said. Then I had kids of my own, and I realized that this is one of the single unifying common truths of parenting. It never ceases to amaze me how ...read more

We are very much in picnic mode around here. Spring has sprung, and we’re making the most of it! Warmer temps, a subtle breeze, and beautiful blooms have us feeling positively giddy. We just want to go outside, run outside, play outside—even eat outside! In addition to our ...read more