I don’t think there’s ever been a year where I’ve looked forward to summer more. If you’ve followed here long, you know that bucket lists are a big part of how we embrace new seasons. The promise of a fun summer easily dazzles us and summons visions of picnics and pool days, but often—as all seasons go—we get busy and forget to take time for the simple joys that summer’s all about. When we started making bucket lists, not only was our intent to brainstorm ideas of things to do, but to hold ourselves accountable. We hang our bucket list in a main area of our home for a visual reminder to do th ..read more

I do most of my kids’ wardrobe updates twice a year—in the early fall for Fall & Winter and in the spring for Spring & Summer. As I’m sure you well know, clothing comes out early and sells out fast. When it’s actually summer, all the stores are putting out their back to school and fall clothes. So now is the time to buy for summer; and summer clothes are my favorite to shop for my kids because everything is so vibrant and colorful, and our mind is on Summer in Michigan memories. If we had an actual fall with colder weather here in Florida, I’d love shopping for sweaters and fall hues i ..read more

If there’s a silver lining to this pandemic, it’s that we’ve sat in our houses long enough to appreciate the corners that bring us joy, identify what we want in a home if we were—say—stuck in it with no where else to go for a year, and tackle some projects on our list to make the corners that need a little help more functional and more expressive of who we are.  I recently tackled our bedroom, prompted by a partnership that gave us a new bed because if you give a mouse a new bed, she’s going to ask for a fresh coat of paint, a furniture refresh (new paint and hardware on a dresser) and an ..read more

I don’t know how we arrived here so quickly, but Easter is less than a month away; and we are delighting in the pastels popping up and the little spring joys that bring much needed light to this time of year. Preparing for Easter, as you know, also presents an invitation for me to return to one of my favorite pastimes—scouring the Internet for the best basket treasures. Stocking stuffers and Easter basket goodies are my favorite thing to shop for, and I do not take the job of finding cool stuff my kids will love lightly. Yes, there’s always the usual candy and sweets. But we also use filling t ..read more

Next week, it will have been one year since the pandemic hit and everything changed. Like many others, I’m remembering where we were last March and what we’ve learned in this strange year that’s followed. ******** Early last March, we were preparing to embark on a road trip through Savannah to the beaches of North Carolina for a travel partnership I had accepted for spring break. The virus had just hit the United States in a way that made us slightly cautious for travel, but no one could have known what was coming. We chose to drive instead of fly. I packed hand sanitizer and made homemade ble ..read more

We’ve always been a crafty art-loving family, but the pandemic has definitely invited us to spend more time making art this year, especially Lainey—and it’s been so rewarding! It is not unusual to find Lainey on any given day at the kitchen barstools, surrounded by watercolor palettes and art books for a good two-hour creative session. Over the years, we’ve collected some great art books that we frequently pull out for good creative inspiration. I’ve shared some of these on Instagram, but they deserve a nice round-up in one place. Extraordinary Things to Cut Out and Collage This one is our cu ..read more

This post is sponsored by Asterra Labs. You can’t pick up a women’s magazine these days without reading about the benefits of CBD. I first tried it a few years ago when my wellness guru friend pulled a bottle of oil out of her purse, squirted some under her tongue and noticed my curiosity. “Just try it,” she told me. “Lift up your tongue.” In the little valley under my tongue, she squirted a dropper full of bitter oil. “Hold it a few seconds and then swallow.” I winced. “It’s disgusting,” I told her. But fifteen minutes later, I admitted I noticed a difference. “I like it.” I’ve since used it ..read more

It’s no secret that I am a party person fueled by holidays, gatherings and the back aisles of Target designated for the next big celebration coming (the Peeps are coming!). Below these layers of festive displays though is the simpler truth that I’m really drawn to—the fact that taking time to celebrate memorable occasions in life is important and that much joy can be found in commemorating ordinary moments where celebratory potential sometimes goes unrecognized—or maybe we’re too busy to bother. With this past year more monotonous than most, I’ve found celebration even more important. Sure, th ..read more

We’ve been trying to expand our repertoire of meals beyond the repetition of tacos, spaghetti, chili and in doing so have pulled some of our old favorites from the archives. Last year during one of our meal brainstorming sessions, Brett reminded me of something I used to make a lot in my teaching days. “What was that shrimp thing you used to make with the peppers?” Ah yes! Shrimp & Rice with Poblanos. It had been years since I had made it, so I whipped it up again and the rest is history. Brett proclaims he could eat it every night. It’s since become the MVP meal of the pandemic and the a ..read more

Our normal rule for watching Parent Trap, one of our favorite family movies, is that it’s reserved for a Michigan summer tradition—preferably watched outside, under the stars with a campfire and popcorn while we quote all our favorite lines: “Honey, you never looked better.” We made a little exception to our rule this year as we celebrated Nella’s 11th (Eleventh! How?!) birthday this past weekend with a campy Parent Trap themed party—downscaled from our usual party crowds to include three school friends—and it was perfect. Since we’ve long been obsessed with camp vibes, we pulled a lot of thi ..read more