Today, Kate shares a great lead for those who want to try their hand at canning (perfect for preserving summertime bounty!):
My young daughter has never been a fan of peanut butter, but she loves strawberry jelly. On toast, on waffles, between two slices of bread, or licked off a spoon, jam is the queen of sweet condiments in our house. Given the quantities that we consume, I recently became interested in learning how to make jams and jellies at home. An experience about a decade ago had left me with bad memories of bubbling pots of steaming, sticky peach-flavored goop and lots of small and hard-to-handle jars, but I decided to give it another try.Today, Kate shares a great lead for those who want to try their hand at canning (perfect for preserving summertime bounty!):
My young daughter has never been a fan of peanut butter, but she loves strawberry jelly. On toast, on waffles, between two slices of bread, or licked off a spoon, jam is the queen of sweet condiments in our house. Given the quantities that we consume, I recently became interested in learning how to make jams and jellies at home. An experience about a decade ago had left me with bad memories of bubbling pots of steaming, sticky peach-flavored goop and lots of small and hard-to-handle jars, but I decided to give it another try.
Today, Lindsey (also of A Design So Vast) recommends a book/journal that I am totally ordering for myself and Laurel (and several friends with daughters) after I publish this post:
My daughter is approaching 10 and my primary concern at this point is to keep her communicating with me. Somehow I feel like if I can just keep her talking to and trusting me, we'll be okay in what I know are some more complicated waters ahead.
Friends, I'm diverting from regularly scheduled editorial today because my mind is swimming after my trip to Washington, DC yesterday. I am humbled and honored to share that I am now part of the ONE Moms advisory board, through which I will work on inspiring community action around issues such as maternal and child health, agriculture, and the empowerment of women and girls in developing countries. As part of this work, this fall I will travel to Ethiopia -- I can barely wrap my head around the magnitude of this upcoming trip; I know it will change my lens on, well, everything else in my life. And you all are part of why this is happening and I can't thank you enough.
Whitney Johnson impresses me in so many ways. She is smart. She is kind. She makes stuff happen. She wears fabulous jackets. And she's probably the only person I have ever talked to who ends conversations with, "So, what can I do for you?" Last year, unbeknownst to me, Whitney played a pivotal role in moving my book dream forward. And now, I'm just beyond thrilled that her book Dare, Dream, Do: Remarkable Things Happen When You Dare to Dream has launched. It was such an honor to help Whitney kick off her book launch last night at Pivot Boston. Read on for some thoughts about this book and what I have realized about my life dreams, as well as to enter to win one of two copies of this awesome book.
Today, PPLM Parent Education Program Manager Amy Cody shares a book recommendation for parents:
After hearing UMass/Amherst sociology professor Amy Schalet speak at a conference sponsored by the Massachusetts Alliance on Teen Pregnancy, I was intrigued to read her book Not Under My Roof: Parents, Teens, and the Culture of Sex, which proved to be a fascinating and well-researched analysis of the contrasting ways parents in the Netherlands and the United States typically handle teen sexuality.
Today, Lindsey (also of A Design So Vast) recommends a small book with big meaning:
My children have many, many books. I read them all, but I have a few special favorites. The Ant and the Elephant is one of these. Bill Peet's lovely story speaks of the importance of kindness to all and also of the immense power that is contained in cooperation and goodwill.
Today, Paige (also of Mudroom Boston) recommends a game that actually lives up to its name:
When my oldest son expressed interest in chess after reading the first installment of the Harry Potter series, I was excited, but tentative. While he loves to learn new games, he gets pretty frustrated when he can't master a game quickly. Not being a chess player myself, I had a vague sense that learning chess, let alone mastering it, was not going to be an easy task.
Even though the process can become messier and the results less perfect, I love baking with kids. It makes for a fun project (just this week we had a friend of Laurel's over for a baking play date -- so fun!), offers yummy rewards, and you can choose to work in some math teaching if you like. Laurel and I recently tried a new (to us) cookie recipe from Lori Longbotham's Luscious Lemon Desserts that was just delightful; a lovely twist on basic sugar cookies. Below I've edited the steps and added notes to offer some shortcuts and tips, as well as ideas for incorporating kids into the process. Enjoy!
Today, Lindsey (also of A Design So Vast) recommends a favorite family board game:
My family loves to play board games. I haven't had too much luck finding any beyond the old classics -- Sorry, Connect Four, Monopoly -- that everybody really gets into, but that changed when my daughter was given Spy Alley for her ninth birthday. Spy Alley is "a game of suspense and intrigue" and we have found ourselves playing it over and over again. Each player has a secret spy identity, and the goal is to complete your mission by obtaining code books, disguises, keys, and passwords while also hiding who you are from the other players. To do this you have to purchase the books, disguises, keys, and passwords of other spies, hoping to confuse your competitors as to your real identity.
Today, Paige (also of Mudroom Boston) shares a beloved book:
During a recent playground conversation with a fellow mom, we were recounting our childhoods. Although we grew up in different areas, our memories were the same -- hours and hours of unsupervised outside playtime with neighborhood friends, solo bike rides into town to buy candy, and walking to school by ourselves by the time we were in second grade. As we hovered over our four collective children, occasionally interrupting our own chatting with a "Don't run so fast!" or "Watch your head!", I reflected on how much life and "playtime" had changed for my own kids in just one generation.
My Canadian friend Leslie gifted Laurel with a copy of Anne of Green Gables a couple of years ago. Given that Laurel loves chapter books with female central characters, we've been looking forward to reading Anne together but the language is still a little too advanced (Amazon lists the series for ages 9 and up). I subsequently was thrilled to find an adapted version of Anne of Green Gables in a box of hand me downs from my sister-in-law Estelle.
Today, Lindsey (also of A Design So Vast) recommends a favorite book:
I love Jethro Byrd, Fairy Child for its assertion that magic is all around us, as long as you look closely. My children, six and eight, both love this book as well and often ask me to read it to them. The book opens with Annabelle looking for fairies in the "cement and weeds" near her house despite her father's firm statement that she won't find them. Annabelle's firm belief and tireless searching are rewarded when one Saturday she finds a boy with wings, as big as her finger, shivering in the breeze. As soon as he has introduced himself as "Jethro Byrd, fairy child," Annabelle spies a miniature ice cream truck that has fallen from the sky. Jethro's family -- his father, mother, grandmother, and baby sister -- are trying to tug the truck back to upright and ask for Annabelle's help. She quickly helps and then invites them to her house for tea.
My life list includes writing a couple of books that have been percolating in my brain the last couple of years (I'm actually drafting outlines for a potential publisher!). Meanwhile, I have a few friends who published books this year and I'm utterly thrilled for them! These titles technically are no longer new releases (though a couple of them, er, were in fact so when the review copies were sent to me during my Violet babymoon), but I wanted to share them before more time elapsed. The first title would be an entertaining gift for a new mom; the second and third handy for aspiring mamapreneurs.
I'm trying to get back into the habit of reading before bedtime, as both a means to transport and unwind. I so enjoyed Katherine Center's book recommendations earlier this year so I decided to query on my social channels for literary inspiration. The responses were so fantastic that I wanted to post the recommendations here, both to share the wealth and archive for myself. I left the responses intact instead of simply listing the books because the comments definitely are helping guide my choosing. Print this list out for your library/used book tote or go crazy at your local bookstore or on Amazon (note: I included affiliate links below). Thanks to everyone who commented in, and enjoy! And if you have other books to recommend, feel welcome to add them to the comments.
Today, Kate shares a home fitness recommendation (shockingly well timed as I've been thinking of taking ballet but haven't found a class that works with my schedule):
I have written before of my love of ballet, a love that has been kept at a very long arm's length by my lack of necessary talent, drive, and height. However, a recent discovery allows me to feel like a prima ballerina for a few minutes each day: Ballet Conditioning -- a wonderful DVD by Element (the producers of Pilates Weight Loss for Beginners) -- offers several hours of appealing and fun exercises, all based on classical ballet positions and stretches and all aimed at toning and lengthening different muscle groups.
Today, Lindsey shares a game that's fun for kids and grownups alike:
A few months ago I realized that I was rushing my children through dinner and bath to make sure we had time for TV before bed. Startled by this, I simply told them the next day that we weren't going to have TV. We enjoyed a more relaxed dinner and evening and that was that -- the transition was shockingly seamless. Instead, after bath and before bed, we now often play a short game. I admit that some of the board games stacked in our family room are, quite frankly, a little slow for me.
Today, Kate shares a great resource for getting your craft on:
For much of my life, I could sew on a button and mend small tears, but I didn't have the slightest idea how to tackle a real sewing project. My grandmother sewed and my mother occasionally used her sewing machine, but the skills and interest seemed to have skipped my generation. And then, two years ago, I suddenly became intrigued by the idea of learning to sew. I read up, bought a simple sewing machine, and plunged in. My projects to date have included several sets of napkins, a simple bag, a pillow, some basic summer dresses for my daughter...and lots of crooked seams and asymmetrical corners. I love the work, though, and the joy of picking fabrics and watching them come together into something both pretty and useful.