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How to host a fun & simple Polar Express party for kids

Want to make Christmas extra magical for your kids? Try hosting a Polar Express party! Here’s everything you need (including free printables) to host a festive party without the stress!

Want to make Christmas extra magical for your kids? Try hosting a Polar Express party! Here's everything you need (including free printables) to host a festive party without the stress!

Note: This post contains affiliate links to products that I have used and loved. See my disclosure to learn more.

Sometimes, I get ideas…and they snowball into something much bigger than I originally planned. That’s pretty much how this Polar Express party came to be.

It began with my boys remembering a Polar Express playdate we did with some friends a few years ago and asking if we could do it again this year. It ended with inviting 20+ kids over to our house on a Friday afternoon for a Polar Express party!

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Printable Christmas Bingo Game

This classic Christmas bingo game is a simple way to entertain kids at holiday parties or for a fun family game night. Just print, cut, and play!

Note: This post includes affiliate links that I recommend, but as always, feel free to shop around for the best deals. See my disclosure to learn more.

Are your kids going bonkers for Christmas right now? Mine certainly are. We have lots of festive activities planned for the next few weeks, so hopefully the time will fly by quickly for them.

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25 charming Christmas picture books you’ll love

These Christmas picture books for kids are the best of the best…stories your family will want to read again and again! We got our first real snow this week, and Black Friday ads are everywhere…so it’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas from where I’m standing.

We’re holding out on putting up the Christmas tree until after Thanksgiving, but we’ve been listening to Jingle Bells on repeat and we broke out the Christmas picture books last week. I started requesting books from the library weeks ago, knowing that by December 1st, many of my favorites will be backlogged until February….

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Easy DIY Batman Halloween Trick-or-Treat Bucket

Make a custom Halloween trick-or-treat bucket for your kids in thirty minutes or less with this simple tutorial that (truly) ANYONE can do.Make a custom Halloween trick-or-treat bucket for your kids in thirty minutes or less with this simple tutorial that (truly) ANYONE can do.

NOTE: THIS POST INCLUDES AFFILIATE LINKS TO PRODUCTS I HAVE USED AND LOVED. SEE MY DISCLOSURE TO LEARN MORE.

It’s almost Halloween!…Which means I’m up to my eyeballs in costume preparations around here. Halloween is NOT my favorite holiday (I just don’t like scary things), but I do love creating costumes for my kids….

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How to make classical music fun for kids

Too often kids think that classical music is BORING, but you can change that! With a few creative activities and the ultimate playlist of kid-friendly classical music, your kids will be rocking out to Beethoven in no time!close-up of piano keyboard

NOTE: THIS POST INCLUDES AFFILIATE LINKS TO PRODUCTS I HAVE USED AND LOVED, BUT AS ALWAYS FEEL FREE TO SHOP AROUND FOR THE BEST DEALS. SEE MY DISCLOSURE TO LEARN MORE.

I love classical music–and it didn’t happen by accident. It was a part of our family’s culture, woven into our weekly routine. You see, every Sunday of my childhood, after we got home from church, we would load up our 5-disc CD player (remember the days before digital music?) with the best of Vivaldi, Tchaikovsky, and Chopin.

For the rest of the afternoon, the sounds of famous orchestral arrangements floated on the air. As I perused the Sunday comics and clipped coupons from the weekly ads (my frugal streak started young), I hummed along to Vivaldi’s Four Seasons and Tchaikovsky’s Nutcraker Suite.

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How to throw a Lego Star Wars birthday party: a real mom’s guide

This Lego Star Wars birthday party guide is full of low-effort, budget-friendly ideas to create a super-stellar celebration for the young padawan in your life. May the force be with you!This Lego Star Wars birthday party guide is full of low-effort, budget-friendly ideas to create a super-stellar celebration for the young padawan in your life. May the force be with you!

NOTE: THIS POST INCLUDES AFFILIATE LINKS TO PRODUCTS I HAVE USED AND LOVED, BUT AS ALWAYS FEEL FREE TO SHOP AROUND FOR THE BEST DEALS. SEE MY DISCLOSURE TO LEARN MORE.

Little Brother turned five this month! Ever since his big brother’s birthday in May, we’ve been tossing around ideas for his fifth birthday. After many ideas (and many times of changing his mind), he settled on a Lego Star Wars birthday party–a perfect marriage of the two things he loves most in the world….

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Library scavenger hunt for kids Part 2: BINGO version

Turn a normal library trip into a treasure hunt adventure your kids will love using this free printable library scavenger hunt BINGO game. Turn a normal library trip into a treasure hunt adventure your kids will love using this free printable library scavenger hunt BINGO game.  It’s official. Summer is here. The last bell has rung, and we are FREE until August. I have big plans for the summer…hopefully not too big. I’m trying to balance the desire to make it a summer of fun adventures with the reality that normal life STUFF has to happen, too. 

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Library scavenger hunt for kids…make library trips an adventure!

Do your kids ever get bored with going to the library? Make summer reading into an adventure this year with these free printable library scavenger hunt bookmarks.Do your kids ever get bored with going to the library? Make summer reading into an adventure this year with these free printable library scavenger hunt bookmarks. Are your kids out of school for the summer, or do you still have a few weeks left? For us, this week is the END of the school year. CRAZY!…

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How to throw a Hot Wheels birthday party: A real mom’s guide

This guide has everything you need for an awesome (and totally doable) Hot Wheels birthday party your little racer will love!This guide will give you everything you need to know to throw an awesome–and totally doable–Hot Wheels birthday party. Simple ideas that give you maximum bang for your buck to create a party your little racer will love!

NOTE: THIS POST INCLUDES AFFILIATE LINKS TO PRODUCTS I HAVE USED AND LOVED, BUT AS ALWAYS FEEL FREE TO SHOP AROUND FOR THE BEST DEALS. SEE MY DISCLOSURE TO LEARN MORE.

It’s birthday season at our house right now. All three of my boys have summer birthdays (May, July, and August), so we do a lot of celebrating this time of year. This year, my seven-year-old asked for a Hot Wheels birthday party, and today I’m sharing how we pulled off a super fun party for under $100 dollars.

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My absolute favorite children’s picture books of all time

If you love kid lit, these 16 favorite children’s picture books are absolute must-haves. They are the ones I could (and have) read hundreds of times and never get tired of them. If you love kid lit, these 16 favorite children's picture books are absolute must-haves. They are the ones I could (and have) read hundreds of times and never get tired of them. 

NOTE: THIS POST INCLUDES AFFILIATE LINKS. AS ALWAYS FEEL FREE TO SHOP AROUND FOR THE BEST DEALS. SEE MY DISCLOSURE TO LEARN MORE.

I’m pretty sure I came out of the womb reading a book…which worked out well because I was born into a family where bookcases decorated every room of the house. As a child, I spent countless hours poring over the pages of gorgeous books. So many worlds waited to be discovered every time I opened the cover of a new book. My version of heaven. 

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