Are your kids driving you crazy in the house? Good. The weather’s finally nice enough to throw them outside. It’s 70 degrees here in The Middle, my daffodils are blooming, and my three-year-old is in seventh heaven working in the
Kids in the Garden
Teeny Tiny Photographer
Whenever my friends let their young kids take pictures with their phones, all they get are seven thousand selfies and a low memory warning. My three-year-old was feeling a bit under the weather last weekend at my parents, and in
Use That Library Card!
Sometimes I walk into our neighborhood library and can’t believe that all these wonderful resources are available to us for free! Then I remember that I’m paying for it with my tax dollars. You’re already paying for your local library,
Hands-On History: Currency Inflation
If you’re teaching your kids about finances and not talking about inflation, debasement, and fiat currencies, you’re really missing out on a golden opportunity. See what I did there? For a hands-on exploration, get two quarters: one dated before 1965
Cooking with Kids
Just one more thing your kids are pretty unlikely to get in school: cooking class. That means it’s up to you to teach them at home. Fortunately, most kids love food. My three-year-old is all too eager to help out
The Wild Blue Yonder
We have committed to something that might be a bit crazy. Come next June, we are taking both of our boys — ages 1 and 3 — to Olympic National Park for a week. My husband and I love hiking
Get Yourself Some Unifix Cubes
… or something similar. These simple blocks are perfect for an endless variety of activities, particularly for math. Kids love the bright colors, and they stack together and come apart easily enough for little fingers. Left to his own
Can You Afford to Home School?
For many families, home schooling means going from a two-income household to having one parent work while the other stays home. This is a major lifestyle change, but it doesn’t have to be fraught with doubt and uncertainty. A little
Making Friends in Home School
In our discussions of home schooling, my husband and I come back around to one question over and over: How will they become “socialized”? Of course, the typical home schooling argument is that children learn how to live and work
OUTSIDE!
“Outside” was our three-year-old’s first two-syllable word. By the time he was about sixteen months old, he would go to our front door and ask to go outside, usually while signing “please.” He was absolutely right. Kids need to be