It’s hard to believe it, but we are only two weeks out from back to school! We didn’t quite finish everything on our summer bucket list, but I’m trying to remind myself that that is okay. There are still weekends and theres lots of time to spend together and do fun things during the school year. Back to school was always one of my favorite times of the year as a kid. I loved meeting my new teacher and being with my friends again AND I loved getting new clothes and going to the store to get my list and pick out school supplies. Taking Emmet back to school shopping has been so fun and so nostalgic, I can’t wait to go this year. While I love letting him pick things out, there are a few things that I picked out for him because I like to create systems that work for our family and also, ideally, these things will last! Here are a few of our favorite picks for back to school shopping this year: First Day Pennant - We got this before Emmet's first year of Elementary School from Eventide Pennant Co. We have and love their name pennants and loved the idea of having a First Day pennant for our yearly Back to School pictures.
Backpack - This is by far our favorite brand! Our Mini has lasted through two kids and five years of use and still looks exactly the same as when we bought it! Plus it comes in a ton of cute colors. Mini backpack - We used this size for preschool and it worked great! Lunch Bag - This brand is new to us this year - but I love the design AND that it is machine washable (Emmet’s was so gross by the end of the year last year) Stainless Steel Food Storage Containers - I used a bento box last year and loved it, but I have a sandwich and chips kid and the compartments never quite fit his food correctly. (Round, Square) Thermos - For packing hot foods Water Bottle - I don't remember carrying a water bottle as a kid, but my kids don't seem to want to go anywhere without theirs. We have and love these water bottles. Dresses- This will be Eleanors first year of Preschool! She almost exclusively wears the short sleeve ballet dresses from Alice & Ames - I loved their back to school collection this year! Mario Shirt - I only felt it fitting to include a Mario t-shirt, since Emmet wore a Mario t-shirt to school every single day of the school year last year (with the exception of two days in which he as dressed as Mario). Slip on shoes - We haven't tackled tying shoes yet.... these have been our favorite, kid friendly shoes so far (other than rain boots). Vintage inspired socks - I'm not sure where all of our socks have gone, but stocking up on new socks seems like a good idea before the school year starts. Rainbow socks - Need I say more? Books: Butterflies on the First Day of School - Annie Silvestro Time for School Little Blue Truck - Alice Schertle All Are Welcome - Alexandra Penfold and Suzanne Kaufman One Boy Watching - Grant Snider
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As I finished up my Little Blue Dollhouse, my sister and I started talking about my next project - making a dollhouse for her & my niece. We went back and forth on a few different ideas, not really sure what we wanted to do before the idea popped in my head to do a “Goodnight Moon” Theme. When my first son was born my sister gave us the book AND it matches her vibrant maximalist decor style - so it felt like the perfect fit! We looked on Facebook marketplace for a dollhouse for a few months before deciding to start with a kit instead. We chose this one from Hobby Lobby. It was fairly easy to follow the directions to assemble the kit and it made it so much easier to paint the siding and trim with the pieces not assembled! Some people also prefer to wallpaper/paint the inside of the dollhouse before assembling, but I chose to wait so I could decide where to place the interior walls with the furniture placed inside - plus the last two dollhouses I did started assembled and I didn’t mind the process! The dollhouse itself has a “Goodnight Moon” Bedroom, and we loosely based the rest of the rooms off of the book “My World” written and illustrated by the same Author and Illustrator, Margaret Wise Brown and Clement C. Hurd. We also took some inspiration from their other book, “The Runaway Bunny.” The Outside We wanted the outside of the dollhouse to look similar to the one in the book “My World” but for it also to be a nod to the dollhouse pictured in the “Goodnight Moon” room. We went with orange paint on the exterior to match the dollhouse in “Goodnight Moon” but otherwise tried to get pretty close to the house in “My World.” We added two little green rocking chairs to the porch for extra fun and I painted little flowers on the bottom of the porch using leftover paint. Vermont Farmhouse Jr. Dollhouse Kit Paint Colors - Benjamin Moore Super White, Benjamin Moore Jupiter Glow, Benjamin Moore Glen Ridge Gold Rocking Chairs The Kitchen For the kitchen we loved the blue walls with red and yellow accents. We decided to add checkerboard floors (to coordinate with the checkered bathroom floors). We also threw in a few pink accents, the curtains and the mixer to pull some of the pink down to the first floor of the house. My sister also insisted upon having the dogs from the book included in the kitchen, I have to agree that they are a nice touch. Paint Colors - Benjamin Moore Super White, Benjamin Moore Blue Suede Shoes, Clark & Kensington By the Shore, Benjamin Moore Glen Ridge Gold Floors (swatch - prepasted removable smooth) Kitchen Cabinets Refrigerator White Bowls Mixer Toaster Flowers Glass Vase Red Canister Set Pots and Pans Red Kettle/Mugs Light Dogs The Dining Room For the dining room we decided to stay pretty close to the book! We left the floors unpainted (the dollhouse kit came with prefinished wood floors), but we added a dark blue rug to match the floors in the book. I found a cute little set of fruits and vegetables for the rabbits to eat. It added a nice splash of color on the table. And obviously we had to add the birdcage. Paint Colors - Benjamin Moore Super White, Clark & Kensington Iceland Greens, Benjamin Moore Glen Ridge Gold Table Chairs (painted - Magnolia Vine Ripened Tomato) Vegetables Large Bowl (similar) white bowls Bird Cage Mirror Picture Frames Light The Goodnight Moon Room The Goodnight Moon room was so fun to bring to life! We wanted it to be as close to the book as possible, but left out a few small details, like the fireplace accessories and the dollhouse so that it could all fit in the space that we had for the room, and so that it wasn’t super crowded compared to the other rooms. We also moved the drying rack with socks and mittens and the rocking chair up to the third floor bedroom. I used a screenshot of the fireplace illustration for the fire in the fireplace, made the bookcase out of scrap wood, and made the books out of scrabble tiles. Paint colors - Clark & Kensington Iceland Greens, Benjamin Moore Jupiter Glow Ceiling Wallpaper (swatch - Prepasted Removable Smooth) Curtain Fabric (swatch - petal signature cotton) Bed (painted - Magnolia Vine Ripened Tomato) Night Stand (painted - Benjamin Moore Glen Ridge Gold) Round table (painted - Benjamin Moore Glen Ridge Gold) Comb and Brush White bowl Pink Blanket (came with this set) Balloon (similar) Lamp Telephone Gold Clock Blue Clock (thrifted - similar - painted Clark & Kensington By the Shore Fireplace (painted with custom grey mix) Frame Frames Kittens Mouse (thrifted) Bookshelves & Books (handmade - painted Benjamin Moore Glen Ridge Gold) The Living Room The Living room is based on the living room from My World and the living room in The Runaway Bunny. We went with Red trim, green wallpapered walls, and dark blue curtains. There isn’t a ton of white in the book, but we decided to leave the chair white to balance out the white kitchen cabinets and stairs from the first floor and the bathroom on the third floor. I thrifted this grandfather clock, blocks, and the book and thought they’d work perfect in this space! Paint Colors - Magnolia Vine Ripened Tomato Wallpaper (two swatches - prepasted removable smooth) Fireplace (painted - Magnolia Vine Ripened Tomato) White Chair Rocking Chair (painted - Benjamin Moore Glen Ridge Gold) Blocks (thrifted) Grandfather Clock (similar - painted Benjamin Moore Blue Suede Shoes) Frame Lamp Book (thrifted) Mirror The Bathroom The bathroom in “My World” has to be one of the wildest and coolest rooms in the house. I love yellow and black checkerboard floors paired with the pink walls and green and yellow accents. We decided to opt for a blue rug rather than a red because it fit better in the actual space and so that we could add some blue accents to the third floor! Paint Colors - Magnolia Cabbage Rose Wallpaper Floors (swatch - Prepasted Removable Smooth) Bathroom Set Side Table (thrifted - painted Clark and Kensington Iceland Greens) Hair dryer + Accessories Mirror Glass Vase Flowers (thrifted) Mirror Tray (thrifted) Towel bar + toilet paper The Third Floor Bedroom This room is featured a few times in “My World” and it is so sweet and charming. I love the striped walls and the contrast of the orange and green. We decided to leave the floors unpainted in this room and add a large green rug - just like in the dining room. Paint Colors - Magnolia Vine Ripened Tomato, Benjamin Moore Jupiter Glow Wallpaper Bed (spray painted) Dresser (painted - Magnolia Vine Ripened Tomato) Rocking Chair (painted - Benjamin Moore Glen Ridge Gold) Rocking Horse Drying Rack Train (thrifted) car (thrifted) Lamp Frame The Rabbits The rabbits are Maileg rabbits that I made custom outfits for using thrifted fabric. I based the patterns off of full sized coat and dress pattern pieces that I have made before - just tiny! This project was so much fun to take on! Thanks to all of you who followed along over on Instagram. If you are interested in seeing more of the process of fixing up a dollhouse I created a full archive of blog posts over on substack for my Little Blue Dollhouse for paid subscribers. Every step - wallpapering, shelves, rugs, artwork, etc - was documented through video and blogpost! Other details -
-I thrifted all of the fabric other than the Goodnight Moon room curtains. -The artwork for the rooms was found via Etsy. Spring is my favorite season. There is so much magic about the world starting to turn green again, flowers starting to bloom, a good rain storm, and of course, rainbows! Not to mention, the long wait through cold weather and so much brown, makes it all that much sweeter. We’ve started to get a little taste of spring weather, so even though it technically isn’t until the end of the month we got out our favorite spring titles on our bookshelf! I’ve included some board books and some picture books for my kids, age 2-6. Books about spring, gardening, seeds, rainbows, waiting, rain, rabbits, eggs, and caterpillars. Waiting - Kevin Henkes - An adorable book about little animal figurines waiting on the shelf for rain, snow, and rainbows. Kevin Henkes illustrations are the epitome of springtime whimsy.
Chirri & Chirra - Yukon Kaneko - Two friends bike through the woods stopping for tasty treats with lots of woodland creatures. We Are the Gardeners - Joanna Gaines - A book about Joanna Gaine’s family starting their family garden. It touches on how to care for a garden and about problem solving! Backyard Fairies - Phoebe Wahl - A young girl searches for fairies in her backyard. I love Phoebe Wahl’s illustrations so much and I love the touch of whimsy that searching for fairies brings. You Are a Beautiful Beginning - Nina Laden - A cute inspirational story about the important things in life with super cute illustrations of kids setting up a treehouse together. Look It’s Raining - Mathieu Pierloot - A young girl ventures out into her backyard on a rainy day and finds all sorts of creatures out and about waiting for "the big show,"a butterfly about to emerge from it's Chrysalis. I love this one because it encourages kids to get out and explore and look for the little things in nature. Hello, Rain - Kyo Maclear + Chris Turnham - A story about a little girl experiencing the rain written in poetic form; it describes the sounds, touch, smell of the rain as she explores. From Tiny Seeds: The Amazing Story of How Plants Travel - Emilie Vast - I LOVE this one. It’s an informative book about how plants form new plants: seeds blowing in the wind, pollinators, animals, etc. The illustrations are really beautiful and it is explained so beautifully. The Hidden Rainbow - Christie Matheson - Watch a bee travel through a rainbow of flowers as they bloom. A lightly interactive book, like some other great interactive books by Christie Matheson. And Then It’s Spring - Julie Fogliano - This book has illustrations by one of my favorite illustrators, Erin E. Stead, the same illustrator as "A Sick Day for Amos McGee." In this book a child watches and patiently waits for their brown, wintery backyard to start turning green. Busy Spring: Nature Wakes Up - Sean Taylor and Alex Morss - A book about a father and his daughters exploring their backyard once spring has arrived as the begin their yard work. The end of the book has some informative text that explains what spring is, and what animals/plants do in the spring. Spring - Gerda Muller (from the Seasons Gift Collection) - A wordless book, but the illustrations are gorgeous! All images of children and the different things they do in the spring. It takes a little more imagination to narrate, but I love that you can customize it for each kid. The Seedling that Didn’t Want to Grow - Brittany Teckentrup - A group of animals follow a little seedling as it grows. The story touches on the value in being different/yourself, and encouraging/supporting others. The Little Rabbit - Nicola Killen - I love The Little Rabbit Books! In this story The little girl's rabbit comes to life and hops off with the other bunnies. The little girl chases her and together they experience magic and whimsy on their way back home. I love how Nicola Killen's books are full of magic and wonder, and the cutouts on each page are fun too! Eggs Are Everywhere - Wednesday Kirwan - One of Eleanor’s current favorites. On each page you turn the wheel to see which egg to find and then peek behind the lift the flaps to find the egg! The Runaway Rabbit - Margaret Wise Brown - We love Margaret Wise Brown/ Clement C. Moore so much! I tend to simplify the words a bit when reading to my youngest, but we love the story of unconditional love all the same. The Hungry Caterpillar - Eric Carle - A forever classic about a caterpillar eating a wide selection of foods until it turns into a butterfly. My kids always loved poking the cut outs on the food pages. Plant the Tiny Seed - Christie Matheson - Another very cute interactive book from Christie Matheson! In this book the reader helps plant and care for flower seeds in the spring and watches them grow. Up in the Garden, Down in the Dirt - Kate Messner - A girl and her grandmother explore their garden through the seasons and discuss what is happening above and below the soil. There is a ton of information in the book, written in such a beautiful way. Spring is by far my favorite season- to me it’s full of hope, beauty, and a fresh start. Buds start to form on the branches outside, flowers poke up through the ground after a long winter rest, the sun shines for a little bit longer each day, and the world begins to turn a magnificent green again. The tree outside our living room window fills up with beautiful pink flowers and we pack up our winter coats for another year - and not having to argue about coats anymore is a glorious thing. Spring is when we venture back out into the world after hibernating in our cozy little home all winter. We load up our bikes for a walk in the neighborhood, pull all of the leaves and sticks out of the sandbox, add furniture back into our little tree house, and start our garden again. I’m always so grateful for the extra sunshine. I’ve rounded up our favorite toys, kids clothing and accessories, and homewares for spring below. Clothing & Accessories - for exploring out in the world again! -Skunk Bonnet - Briar Baby - Save 10% with code LEAH10 -Picket Bucket Hat - Brair Baby - Save 10% with code LEAH10 -Knit Dress, Orchid - Fin & Vince -Heritage Bottom, Dew - Fin & Vince -Poppy Combo Clip Pack - Wunderkin Co -Herbal Study Dress - Alice & Ames -Silk Rabbit Ears - Bella Luna Toys -Mini Chari Rattan Bag - Olli Ella -Blossom Silk Cape - Sarah's Silks - Save 10% with Code LEAHG10 -Raincoat - Primary Playtime - butterfly wings, eggs, baby animals, oh my! Our favorite spring toys for indoor and outdoor play. -Ostheimer Animals Wooden - Bella Luna Toys -Butterfly Wings Matching Game - Bella Luna Toys -Rosewood Cottage Mini Doll House - Bella Luna Toys -Wooden Egg - Sarah's Silks -Bird Eggs in a Basket - The 6 Bells -Huckleberry Compass - Bella Luna Toys -Wooden Magnifying Glass - Bella Luna Toys -Far Out Bubbles - Giant Bubble Kit - Bella Luna Toys -Northern Coast Playsilks - Bella Luna Toys -Puff Pink Playsilk - Sarah's Silks - Save 10% with Code LEAHG10 -Duck Ornament - Craftspring -Daisies - Craftspring Home - The windows are open, and so is that door! Freshening up house, organizing, and eating meals outside, here are some of our favorite spring home items this season.
-Anemone Art Print - Carleigh Courey Design -Dried Wreath - Homesong -Watering Can - Homesong -Beeswax Candles - Homesong -Small Rattan Basket - Target -Large Rattan Basket - Target -Waffle Duvet Cover Set - Parachute Home -Wood Tray - Schoolhouse -Green Grid Towel - Schoolhouse -Glass Carafe - Schoolhouse -Glassware - Schoolhouse -Floral Quilt - Schoolhouse I remember when my oldest was a baby posting something on Facebook desperately searching for board book recommendations because if you don’t know where to look it’s hard to find the good ones! We love board books and have been collecting them ever since. Kids can be tougher with them and the pages won’t rip. Eleanor goes to bed every night with at least two. Here is a list of our favorites: some vintage titles, some newer titles, all super cute reads. 🍄 I am a Bunny - Richard Scarry
🍄 Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What do you See? - Bill Martin Jr/Eric Carle 🍄 Yum Yummy Yuck - Cree lane + Amanda Jane Jones 🍄 Where’s Spot - Eric Hill 🍄 Goodnight Moon - Margaret Wise Brown/Clement Hurd 🍄 Kitten’s First Full Moon - Kevin Henkes 🍄 Little Blue Truck - Alice Shertle (the whole series really) 🍄 Big Red Barn - Margaret Wise Brown/Felicia Bond 🍄 Dear Zoo - Rod Campbell 🍄 The Rooster Struts - Richard Scarry 🍄 Your Baby’s First Word will Be Dada - Jimmy Fallon 🍄 Little Owl’s Night - Divya Srinivasan 🍄 Where is Everyone? - Tom Schamp 🍄 The Runaway Bunny - Margaret Wise Brown/Clement Hurd 🍄I am A Mouse - Ole Risom/John P. Miller 🍄 Corduroy - Don Freeman 🍄The Hair Book - Latonya Yvette & Amanda Jane Jones 🍄 The Watermelon Seed - Greg Pizzoli 🍄 Little Pea - Amy Kroger Rosenthal/Jen Corace 🍄 Everything is Mama - Jimmy Fallon 🍄 An Alphabet of Animals - Harriet Evans 🍄 The Very Hungry Caterpillar - Eric Carle 🍄Cars and Trucks from A to Z - Richard Scarry |
mama of three
in the midwest creating a home that's full of magic Follow on Instagram
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