20 Creative Writing Ideas for Kids of All Ages

20 Creative Writing Ideas for Kids of All Ages

Just because summer is here doesn’t mean the kids need to stop learning!  I wanted to make learning fun this summer so with the help of some friends I put together a list of 20 Creative Writing Ideas for Kids of All Ages.  My kids are all very creative, and...
Cincinnati Chili Spaghetti Pie

Cincinnati Chili Spaghetti Pie

Growing up in the Greater Cincinnati area makes it hard not to love “Cincinnati Style” Chili.  It’s not like your traditional hearty chili recipes, Cincinnati chili has a bit of sweetness to it and it’s perfect atop noodles and smothered with cheese.  We have our local preference on where to...
Sandusky:  Cedar Point and Hotel Breakers

Sandusky: Cedar Point and Hotel Breakers

Recently we made our first visit to Sandusky, Ohio for a long weekend spent at the Hotel Breakers.  While much of my time was spent learning great things at the Bloggy Conference, we also spent many hours exploring Cedar Point (known as the Roller Coaster Capitol of the World) getting...
Rowe Woods Cincinnati Nature Center

Rowe Woods Cincinnati Nature Center

The Rowe Woods Cincinnati Nature Center is one of my favorite places in the Greater Cincinnati area to spend a day in the woods exploring nature.  There are over sixteen miles of trails in Rowe Woods and they meander past a lake, over bridges, along boardwalks, over hills and through the...
Pesto Cream Cheese Dip

Pesto Cream Cheese Dip

You must know by now how much I love easy appetizer recipes.  Well here’s something you might not know about me, I cannot go to a party empty handed.  That’s where all of my easy appetizers come in…I have a collection of easy appetizers that I can throw together in no...
Spend a Day in Hamilton Ohio

Spend a Day in Hamilton Ohio

Edit:  June 2023 – I have come to realize that this post has some outdated information so I have deleted places that have since closed in Hamilton and will endeavor to make a day trip to Hamilton to make some updates this summer!  That being said, there’s still some good...
Our Chicago Vacation

Our Chicago Vacation

For Spring Break 2014 we took the kids on a mini-vacation to Chicago for three nights and four days. We crammed as much fun as we could into those four days and had adventures all over the Windy City. For our next trip, we may even take a trip to...
Five Easy Appetizers

Five Easy Appetizers

I have lots of favorite easy appetizer recipes, because I love making Hors d’oeuvres for any occasion.  Over the Thanksgiving weekend we had five different events going on!  So I had lots of easy appetizers to make.  I put together five of my favorite easy appetizers this weekend and thought...
Our Favorite Slow Cooker Recipes

Our Favorite Slow Cooker Recipes

My slow cooker is my best friend during a busy school week. I really don’t know what I’d do without it. If you don’t have one, I really recommend buying one! You can browse the best ones at somewhere like https://buyersimpact.co.uk/ to see if there are any that take your...
Cheap Date Nights in Cincinnati & Northern Kentucky

Cheap Date Nights in Cincinnati & Northern Kentucky

My husband and I value our date nights.  We have four children, we love said children, but we also cherish our alone time.  Sometimes we will jump at any chance to have a date night.  While we enjoy having nice dinners in swanky restaurants from time to time, we also...
Family Fun in Siesta Key & Sarasota

Family Fun in Siesta Key & Sarasota

Last year we took our family of six to Siesta Key for a long vacation.  We had so much fun exploring Siesta Key and the surrounding area, that I wanted to share my ideas for family fun in Siesta Key with you.  Our focus was mostly on beach lounging, so...
Getting Organized :: Children & Chores

Getting Organized :: Children & Chores

I am a stay at home mother of four children. I hate housework, but I also hate a messy house. It’s a frustrating way to live. And with five other people in this house with me, keeping up with the housework is a never ending task. My husband and I...
Walt Disney World with Kids :: Tips for a Fun Trip

Walt Disney World with Kids :: Tips for a Fun Trip

For Spring Break last year we took the family to Florida and spent three days at Walt Disney World. It was a blast! I was so thankful to have the tips & advice from friends and family before we went…I felt somewhat prepared for the special kind of chaos that...
Our Favorite Homemade Pizza Recipes

Our Favorite Homemade Pizza Recipes

Homemade Pizza with Salad is a favorite dinner around our house. I would venture to say we have homemade pizza on the menu almost every week. Homemade Pizza When Michael and I were first married he would make the dough and I would make the sauce, and we made some...
LEGO Birthday Party

LEGO Birthday Party

Last summer we had a big birthday celebration for all four kids at a local Civic Club. I wanted to find a common theme that they were all interested in, and settled upon a LEGO Birthday Party! They all love their LEGO blocks and especially their Minifigures. When I told...
Thirteen Ways to De-Stress

Thirteen Ways to De-Stress

I have days where I feel stressed & overwhelmed all day. There’s a huge amount of reasons, one is that I’ve just found out that I can get cheaper broadband deals with the help of someone like Usave, but there are many other things that are stressing me out. I’m...
Create Your Own Chihuly Sculpture

Create Your Own Chihuly Sculpture

Our family loves the arts, and we also love creating our own works of art. A few months back I read about a very cool art project for kids on the blog Mary Making and it inspired me to do a similar project with my children. The project was to...
Homemade Spaghetti & Meatballs

Homemade Spaghetti & Meatballs

Spaghetti and Meatballs is a quintessential comfort food, and a favorite at our house.  I found this recipe years and years ago and have tinkered with it over the years until I deemed it perfectly delicious.   This recipe is written for making mass amounts of sauce and meatballs…because I...
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Cambria Hotel & Suites in Noblesville, Indiana

Cambria Hotel & Suites in Noblesville, Indiana

I love a family vacation that we can make happen over a weekend an on a single tank of gas.  I also love exploring new to us small towns.  Last summer we had an opportunity to stay overnight in Hamilton County, Indiana and we were given lodging at the Cambria Hotel and Suites in Noblesville....
Crafty Fun for Hot Summer Days {GIVEAWAY}

Crafty Fun for Hot Summer Days {GIVEAWAY}

This summer we had a chance to review some awesome craft books from The Quarto Group which is “a family of creative small publishers who specialize in beautifully illustrated books on, doing, makings, and learning”.  My kids (and myself) have had so much fun with these four books! These crafty books have given me an...
Wooden Cask Brewing Company & The Farmstand Cafe

Wooden Cask Brewing Company & The Farmstand Cafe

We have found another fantastic brewery to love, the Wooden Cask Brewing Company on York Street in Newport.  Northern Kentucky is starting to catch up with Cincinnati in terms of craft beer and local breweries.  Just a year ago our options were limited on the south side of the Ohio River.  Now more craft breweries...
Tiffany Glass at the Cincinnati Museum Center

Tiffany Glass at the Cincinnati Museum Center

There is an impressive collection of Tiffany Glass at the Cincinnati Art Museum.  The exhibition displays many different samples of Tiffany Glass, both windows and lamps.  The exhibition tells about the history of Tiffany Glass, displays some samples of glass that were used to create the masterpieces, and even shows guests a few “faux” Tiffany...
Ice Cream Parlor Dramatic Play Center

Ice Cream Parlor Dramatic Play Center

My preschool classroom has a “Dramatic Play” corner where children can use their imaginations to pretend they are playing or working in different jobs, homes or scenarios.  While our class was learning about the Five Senses I thought it would be fun to put together an Ice Cream Parlor Dramatic Play Center.  It only took a...
Hands on Fun & Learning at COSI in Columbus

Hands on Fun & Learning at COSI in Columbus

Over Spring Break this year we visited one of our favorite museums for a day of hands on fun and learning.  COSI (Center of Science & Industry) in Columbus is not your run of the mill museum, it is more like a warehouse of wonders.  And the great thing is that kids just think that they...

A Day at A.J. Jolly Park

We spent a sunny afternoon at A.J. Jolly Park today. It was our first time visiting A.J. Jolly Park with the family, it seemed like a good place to try out our brand new kayaks. We all had a splendid afternoon, there was bike riding, reading, fishing, kayaking, canoeing, and even a little cat-napping happening...
Coppins Restaurant at Hotel Covington

Coppins Restaurant at Hotel Covington

Coppins Restaurant in Covington is a fabulous restaurant that just so happens to have a boutique hotel attached to it.  The Hotel Covington opened it’s doors in 2016 to great acclaim, and there was a great amount of buzz over the hotel’s restaurant, Coppins,  named after the Coppins Department Store which is what the historic...

Cirque du Soleil’s OVO {REVIEW}

Cirque du Soleil has brought one of my favorite shows back to town!  Cirque du Soleil’s OVO  is only in town through the weekend and I simply cannot say it enough – you should see this masterpiece!  We caught the show tonight, and I can tell you it is phenomenal.   You will be entertained...
Cincinnati Preservation Association’s 2017 Spring House Tour

Cincinnati Preservation Association’s 2017 Spring House Tour

The Cincinnati Preservation Association’s 2017 Spring House Tour is coming up very soon!  My dad and I have attended this tour for several years now and we always have a memorable time. Even the years that it has rained we still enjoyed our tour.  Every year the Preservation Association spotlights a different Cincinnati neighborhood and...
The REC: Rosenthal Education Center at the Cincinnati Art Museum

The REC: Rosenthal Education Center at the Cincinnati Art Museum

The Cincinnati Art Museum is a treasure in our area for art lovers and those who want to learn more about art.  Thanks to a very special space within the museum, The REC: Rosenthal Education Center, not only can you look at art and learn about works of art, you can actually experiment with art...

Fiesta Bridal Shower

My baby sister is all grown up and getting married.  To celebrate her upcoming nuptials my Aunt Rita and I threw an epic Fiesta Bridal Shower complete with margaritas, sangria, salsa and tacos.  We went all out with food and decorations, and even a few party games.  A fun time was had by all! This...