Modern Parents Messy Kids

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Book Week: DIY Bunting

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We're half way through book week and I hope you all are enjoying it as much as I am!  This morning I wanted to share with you an adorable DIY book bunting project from Childhood 101.  Isn't it just perfect for a child's reading space? Speaking of which, be sure to check back later today for A LOT more on that subject.  Until then, head over to Childhood 101 for the full tutorial.  And if you like this project, you might also enjoy these book page flags I featured way back when. See you … [Read more...]

DIY Decor: Modern Monograms

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Monograms may be classic kid decor but there's nothing traditional about these five examples.  They're fun, inventive, and the perfect focal point for a kid room.  Most of these DIYs are also simple enough for children to do themselves (with some parental assistance), which means this could be the perfect way for an older sibling to contribute to a new baby nursery.  Without further ado, here are my top 5 modern monograms (clockwise from top left).   Button monogram from Spearmint Baby … [Read more...]

DIY: Postcard Thank You Notes

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Today's my last post on S's first birthday bash.  You might remember I mentioned doing a short photo shoot while we were at the park that day.  I saw this photo on pinterest and loved the idea of using the extra large balloons and a basket from home to mimic a hot air balloon.       Of course, it ended up being pretty close to nap time when we finally got around to taking the pics so I didn't have much setup time.  I'm also far from a professional photographer. Nevertheless, I … [Read more...]

5 Easy Ways to Spice up Your Space with Paint

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Since posting on DIY kid decor you can get done in a weekend, my mind has turned to the rest of the house.  (I'm sure my recently re-kindled friendship with HGTV has a little something to do with it.  I'm so glad they've finally started playing more than just House Hunters around the clock!)  It's long been said that paint can go a long way in sprucing up a room.  Today I've rounded up 5 projects that really put that theory to the test by using just a little paint to make a big … [Read more...]

A Colorful (& Cheap) First Birthday Bash

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I'm finally getting around to posting on S's first birthday party today (hip hip hooray!).  The celebration wasn't too long after our trip to San Diego so I knew I wasn't gonna have time to go over the top.  The problem was I made a giant, six layer monster cake for C's first birthday and I was feeling guilty about not doing something super spectacular for S too.   On the other hand, though, I've also developed a new outlook on kid parties since C's first.  Here's my take: while all those … [Read more...]

Everything You Need to Know to Start Composting

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Now that our trash diet is well underway, I wanted to share with you what I've learned about composting.  This is the part of the program I was most excited about because I figured it would be an easy way to immediately start reducing our waste.  But before I get ahead of myself, let me give you a quick primer on how exactly it works. See below for a visual step-by step guide:     No really - that's it!  I have no idea why it took me so long to jump on the composting … [Read more...]

Kid Decor DIYs You Can Get Done in a Weekend

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It's been too long since we had a good "design with kids in mind" post around here.  To make amends, I've got three of my all time favorite kid room DIYs.  These projects will add a nice punch of style to any kid space and (the best part) each can be completed in a weekend or less.    There's a lot to love about this modern gray nursery featured at Buy Modern Baby (the monotone wall letters for one).  But my favorite element is definitely the DIY dresser.  You all know I'm a big … [Read more...]

How to Get Great Pictures of the Kids

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With the abundance of digital cameras out there these days, it's easier than ever to capture all of your kiddo's special moments - or at least it should be.  Sadly, no matter how great your camera is, it doesn't change the fact that taking pictures of kids (especially young kids) is hard.  They never want to sit still, don't like to smile on demand, and you can forget about asking them to "act natural".  But don't worry, all hope is not lost as today I'm sharing two great tools every parent … [Read more...]

Sand Castles in San Diego

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There's something I didn't tell you guys last week... we took the boy and went on vacay to sunny San Diego (S got to hang out with the grandparents at home).  Did you notice I was phoning it in a bit?  I actually worked really hard to get all of the week's posts done ahead of time but there were still a few things that fell through the cracks like making the Look Book photos open in a separate page.  Oh well, the sun and fun were definitely worth it!   I literally took over 500 pictures … [Read more...]