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4 Perfect Last Minute Gifts

December 22 by Steph (MPMK Founder)

#1 COBI Building Sets I found out about these sets last Christmas and they've been HUGE hits with my kids ever since. My now 12-year-old son got Battleship Missouri as his big gift under the tree and there are a few things that I instantly noticed put this set heads and shoulders above the rest. The first is the sheer size of it – not only is the finished product pretty massive, there are 2,400 pieces! (The number of pieces is the first thing my son looks at to judge the awesomeness of … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Uncategorized

10 Perfect Last Minute Gifts for All

December 20 by Steph (MPMK Founder)

The bad news if you haven't gotten your shopping done yet, Christmas is only four days away. The good news, many stores still have 2-day shipping and/or the option to buy online and pickup! Below are my top picks for everyone still left on your list- enjoy! The best part?... Nearly all of them are on sale! For you mom/sister/bestie Revlon One-Step Hair Dryer & Volumizer Hot Air Brush Was $58, Now $38.99 I have seen this thing everywhere since folks started … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Uncategorized

MPMK Gift Guide Glimpse: Best Toys for Burning Off Energy Inside!

December 16 by Steph (MPMK Founder)

MPMK Toy Gift Guide: Best Toys for Keeping Kids Active Inside - many of these have been a life-saver during the rainy season!

Whether you're just starting your holiday shopping or have already finished up for the year, you might want to make room on your list for one or two things in today's glimpse! This time of year, a few toys the kids can safely use inside to burn off some steam can be an absolute sanity-saver! For those of you not exactly sure what I’m talking about when I say "glimpse", this is a day when we highlight one of our favorite sections of the: MPMK Top Toys Gift Guides Why? Because I realize that … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: inside active toys, MPMK toy gift guides, Toys for active kids, toys for being active inside

14 Books to Read to Your Kids Before Winter is Over

December 10 by Steph (MPMK Founder)

14 Books to Read to Your Kids Before Winter is Over. Great list!!

 My friend and former teacher, Teresa, is back with her favorite winter reads and it's SUCH a good list.  Other than Christmas books, children's books about the seasons are my favorite.  It's such a great way to explore concepts and changes that occur with our children.  While we may have just seen our few fleeting days of snow here in the Seattle area come and go, it's still fun to read about it!   A few favorites around our house... Over and Under the Snow by Kate Messner is such a wonderful … [Read more...]

Filed Under: The Book Nook Tagged With: book nook, kid reads, snow books, winter books

Kid-Friendly Side Dish: Date Almond Rice

December 5 by Kristin

Are you a fan of sweet and salty? I most definitely am... and so are a lot of kids. It's the kind of thing where the sweet just needs a hint of salt to have that perfect satisfying bite. When I tell you about date almond rice, you might not be on board- but, you have to trust me on this one. Date almond rice is a Mediteranean-inspired side dish that will have you wondering why it tastes so good. The secret is a mix of salty and sweet. Dates are a source of antioxidants as well as … [Read more...]

Filed Under: In the Kitchen, Kristin Tagged With: almond date recipe, almond date rice, almond recipe, date recipe, healthy side dish, kid-friendly side dish, rice recipe, rice side dish

Giant Chocolate-Dipped Marshmallows

December 3 by Janssen

I had grand ambitions of baking a fancy madeira wine cake for each of my neighbors this year... guess how far I've gotten. I think, instead, I'm going to make a batch or two of these over-sized chocolate marshmallows with the kids and gift a few to each neighbor.  I love Janssen's idea of putting them on a stick and adding them to a decorative bag filled with hot cocoa mix in the bottom! Psst one quick thing... Christmas is coming SOON, be sure to check out our SUPER POPULAR toy gift guide … [Read more...]

Filed Under: In the Kitchen, Janssen, Seasonal Fun Tagged With: chocolate dipped giant marshmallows, chocolate marshmallows, Christmas dessert, Christmas gift, Christmas treat, dessert, dipped marshmallows, neighbor gift, teacher gift

Not a Drill: Black Friday Sales are Here!

November 27 by Steph (MPMK Founder)

Happy Black Friday, friends! But it’s only Wednesday, you say? I know, I know but a lot of the online retailers are taking the madness to the max this year and some of them are even starting BEFORE THANKSGIVING... right this very minute, in fact. I actually kinda dig it. (Note: this email contains affiliate links, see my P.S. for more info. and a brand new bonus offer.) I can get my shopping out of the way so I don’t have to wake up early and scramble for those … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Uncategorized

How to Have Healthier Kids This Cold & Flu Season

November 27 by Steph (MPMK Founder)

Image Credit: © Taylor Mackenzie | Lifeless | CC by 2.0 We're on day EIGHT of my daughter having a fever of 101 or more. It's official- fall is here and winter is on the way. And while there's a lot to love about that (warm fires, cozy drinks and brown paper packages tied up in strings)... there's also the cold and flu season. It hits us every year and every year I vow that I'm gonna take some real steps to boost my kids' immunity. So let's get on it together this year, shall we? My favorite … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Parenting, Uncategorized Tagged With: building kids immunity, cold season, fighting cold season, how to build kids immunity, immunity builders, kid colds

Gotta Try Dessert: Pumpkin Dump Cake

November 19 by Kristin

This pumpkin dump cake is the perfect semi-homemade holiday recipe and SOOO good!

If you've never heard, can I introduce you to the concept of 'dump cake?'  While the name is quite unflattering, the concept is genius!  The cake consists of several pantry ingredients and some eggs...involves a few stirs and about an hour in the oven.  And all the busy moms rejoiced!  Any time I have to make a dessert on the fly, it's a dump cake. This particular cake is of the pumpkin variety.  And hold the term cake loosely, because this tastes like a pumpkin pie … [Read more...]

Filed Under: In the Kitchen, Kristin Tagged With: dump cakes, fall desserts, pumkin dump cake, pumpkin dessert, pumpkin dump cake recipe, pumpkin recipe

Healthy Snack: Chia Seed Granola Bark

November 14 by Kristin

I love recipes you can't mess up. Add a little bit extra, you're still good. Short on something, it's okay. This granola bark has all the good stuff, little bits of chocolate to entice the sweet tooth and is fool-proof. The granola bark has a similar texture to Nature Valley crispy granola bars. It's a little chewier, which I like, because who wants to break a tooth? You break the granola into pieces after its baked. Smaller pieces are great for topping yogurt. Bigger pieces … [Read more...]

Filed Under: In the Kitchen Tagged With: granola, granola bark, granola recipe, healthy kids snacks, healthy snack

Christmas Toy Shopping: 3 Things You Need to Know

November 12 by Steph (MPMK Founder)

Thank you The Toy Association for sponsoring this post. Keeping kids safe while they play is the #1 priority for The Toy Association and its members. As you probably know by now, the 2019 edition of our much-loved annual toy awards was released last month. I work on them for months and always do my best to get them out by the end of October in order to give parents lots of time to research the very best toys for their kids this Christmas. I love being a trusted source for finding highly … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Uncategorized

Get More Veggies: Cauliflower Pizza Bites

November 5 by Kristin

Sneaking in vegetables has been a hobby of mine since my kids were toddlers. Jessica Seinfeld came out with Deceptively Delicious and I was hooked. Cauliflower was showing up everywhere! Fast forward to my kids' teenage years and I'm still trying to infuse extra vitamins into their diet. These Cauliflower Pizza Bites are a recipe that works from toddlerhood all the way to the teenage years. I can whip up this recipe in about 15 minutes and have a delicious meal that's nutrient … [Read more...]

Filed Under: In the Kitchen Tagged With: cauliflower pizza bites, cauliflower snack, kids vegetable recipes, snacks with vegetables, vegetarian kid snack, vegetarian recipe

Parenting Styles: The Most Important Thing in My Purse

November 1 by Steph (MPMK Founder)

I thought I'd keep it short and sweet today and just sent one quick universal parenting tip: always keep a card game in your purse. Last week my son had his final cross country meet and it ended a little earlier than I anticipated. Though we weren't initially planning on it, I decided to take advantage of the rare opportunity to have some one-on-one time and pop into our local pizza joint. While that surely would have been connection enough for my son, the experience was … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Parenting Tagged With: best card games, best kids games, one on one time with kids, parenting, parenting styles, top card games

Must-Try: Pumpkin Energy Bites

October 29 by Kristin

I'm just as basic as the next girl. When the pumpkin spice latte comes out, I'm the first in line. Fall is the season for us to infuse pumpkin into everything from candles to our coffee and I love a good pumpkin bread or muffin. This year, I decided to try my hand and making a healthy pumpkin treat. We love energy bites in our house all year long. The no-bake recipes are easy to make and can pass for breakfast on-the-go or an afternoon snack. The challenge in making a pumpkin … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: eating for energy, energy bites, energy foods, fall recipe, fall snack, healthy energy bite, healthy kid snack, healthy pumpkin snack, healthy snack, kid snack, pumkin bread, pumpkin energy bite, pumpkin muffin recipe, pumpkin recipes, pumpkin snack, pumpkin treat

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