August 2006

Playdate at our house this afternoon. Too hot to be outside so we designed beads using Sculpey, baked them and made bracelets. Great activity — the kids could really make the beads themselves, instead of just watch. I get my bead-making-directions from this book. I think I’ll get some pastel Sculpey and we’ll do this [...]

This is a really amazing collection of 12 fairy tales perfect for school-age children or preteens. The stories, written by Berlie Doherty, are the traditional ones, but with some unusual variations. The illustrations by Jane Rae are just stunning: detailed silhouettes, textile-pattern-like backgrounds and intricate compositions. Plus, the printing is excellent — most pages have [...]

Heard about the Ditty Bops on NPR. My kids and I are loving their music, listen to it here. When I found their very cool-looking website I liked them even more. Their bike/music tour makes a stop this month here in New York. I’m hoping to take my family. Share and Enjoy:

On my impossible quest to find new swimsuits for my children in August, I stopped into Old Navy. There were zero swimsuits, but I fell in love with this series of dresses for toddler girls. They’re even better in person. Impressive, Old Navy. Share and Enjoy:

Buckets in a kids room is a perfect fit. Several, grouped on a shelf can only look good. This company makes really good-looking fabric covered buckets in different sizes. I like small ones for dress-up jewelry and larger ones for my son’s ever-growing collection of Legos. Share and Enjoy:

I’m thinking back to school. I’ll be making 3 lunches every morning. Wouldn’t pb&j; taste so much better if you pulled it out of sandwich bag like these? Created by Mobi. Buy them here. Share and Enjoy:

There is evidently no end to the amazing talent of thomaspaul. Luxe pillows and fab melamine dishware. (Darn melamine. Become microwave safe already.) Share and Enjoy:

Huge rectangle modern bean bag things looked so comfy — and not just because I’d walked several miles by the time I found them. Fatboy also makes round shapes, footstool sizes and doggy beds. Love the original color choices and especially love that they teamed up with Marimekko. These just scream kid-friendly to me. Stock [...]