Leanne, Author at Rave & Review

Sealed By Santa brings the magic of the season right to your mailbox

From really young ages my kids have been obsessed with Santa. From the first day they see him at local stores, they start asking when they will get to talk with him.

And, it’s not about getting their wishlists in, because they seemed rather confused about Santa in connection with presents until this year when it finally clicked. For years they would come up with random Santa lists or reply that they didn’t know what Santa would want for Christmas and we just thought it was cute. For my daughter, her love of Santa is about the tradition of it, but for my son, it’s about having one on one attention so he can study Santa and ask any questions.

DIY: The grow-with-me chore board and behavior chart solution

Sometimes, this parenting gig can be rough. Lately, there’s been more questioning our decision-making, a lot of talking in rude tones to each other, and a whole lot of days where I fall into bed wondering what kind of craziness I’m in for come January with a new baby.

I was so sick of it, and something needed to be done to avoid all the reprimanding, all the asking over and over again, and all the mornings that end in tears. We needed a system. A system that didn’t involve me having to say the same thing over and over again.

That being said, I’ve tried chore charts in the past and they ended up not working that well for us. Every chore chart I tried ended up needing me to run them more than I would have liked, didn’t work quite right in terms of chores and behavior, and I ended up giving up just to get the big huge board off my wall. Mostly, it was me.

Our royal Disney Kids Playdate

I received free products in order to host the Disney Kids Preschool Playdate. However, the opinions expressed are my own. Sometimes I think preschool playdates are more about moms getting together than they are about kids playing. Sure, we usually go to the park or some other kid-friendly zone for our meet ups, but I think the parents get just as much from these get togethers as the kids do, maybe even more. For this reason, we try to have a playdate at least a few times a year as a great way for kids, and their parents to connect.

This time, though, it was all about the kids. Instead of just a casual get together that left us freezing at the park, we decided to have a Disney Preschool Princess Playdate with a Sofia the First theme to celebrate some fall birthdays as well as have a good excuse to get together.

Celebrating #GivingTuesday with kids

Since my last post was about giving thanks for all the wonderful things in our lives, I thought it fitting to also feature #GivingTuesday, a day dedicated to giving back. The idea of Giving Tuesday is a simple one: you simply find a cause and find a way to give. Whether it be time, energy, money, supplies, donations, just give whatever you can.

For us, we like to give back numerous times a year, not just this one day every year, but I never turn down a good opportunity to teach the kids about helping our neighbors, our community, and making the world a better place, so Giving Tuesday seemed like the perfect opportunity. And, this time of year there are so many ways you can involve the kids, so in honor of #GivingTuesday, I thought I would share ideas to get kids involved in giving.

Continue the tradition with the new BeForever line from American Girl

Have you checked out American Girl recently? They just debuted their BeForever line this fall in stores nationwide as well as online and it has girls everywhere excited. We were at the Seattle store the day BeForever was announced to check the line out in person and do one of their many in-store crafts thanks to a recommendation from our personal shopper. I honestly had no idea what to expect and was just going for the craft and event aspect, but I was thrilled when I realized what exactly the new line included.

It’s no secret that we love American Girl and I always talk about how we end up at the Seattle store whenever my daughter gets to choose what we do for the day. But what you don’t know is that we spend most of our time checking out the historical collection and looking at anything and everything that’s new for each of their historical girls.

This time we were met at the store by one of our favorite American Girl employees and told that the line was replaced, and I’m sure I didn’t hide my disappointment very well. She quickly went on to explain that the BeForever line still had many of the dolls we adore as well as a new addition she knew we would be thrilled about.

Friends, welcome back Samantha Parkington.

I’m thankful for…

It's been quite a few years since I've done a thankful post, so I thought I would write another in honor of the Thanksgiving holiday. Sometimes it's more important to rave about the wonderful people and things in my life instead of a product or service I love, so I thought a new updated post was in order.

Getting ready for the holidays? Don’t forget the batteries! {with printable coupons}

You know what's a big bummer? Opening presents Christmas day and realizing that the amazing toy your kiddo has been waiting for all.year.long needs batteries you don't have on hand. Also a bummer: Realizing that there is absolutely no stores open on Christmas day to go get those batteries. So, here's a mom tip for you: Buy those batteries now, instead of waiting.

Pick up a few packages of Rayovac batteries when you're out Christmas shopping and either put them in the stockings or in the gift packages themselves. It may not be the most exciting thing they receive that morning, but a stocking stuffed with batteries is certainly better then possibly forgetting to pick up any at all and seeing disappointed faces come Christmas morning.

Travel buddies: Corolle Dolls on the go

There hasn’t been one single vacation we have taken in the past 4 years that we didn’t take with us a Corolle doll {or 6}. Even when space is most precious and we’re confined to just carryons, we always manage to make room for Corolle. While the reasons behind this are many {comfort of home, favorite toys, open-ended toy, etc}, the main reason is that the kids travel better with them. It started when my daughter was little because she wanted her own baby just like brother that she could cradle, tuck in, and babywear, but then it turned into much more than that. We realized quickly that the kids slept better with their special babies, played better with each other, and had more fun on long plane, train and car rides with Corolle in tow.

Thank goodness for HoneyBaked Ham this Thanksgiving

By now you probably know how much I love HoneyBaked Ham and how it made me into a ham-lover after 3 decades of turning the stuff away. These days I’m always looking for another reason to visit the store near me and load up on their ham and turkey, and the fact that Thanksgiving is … Read more

Corolle 2014 Holiday Gift Guide

Do you have a doll-loving little one like I do? If so, you are going to want to bookmark this page filled with my favorite holiday picks from Corolle Dolls. With prices from $20 on up and for every age and stage, you are bound to find the perfect gift for the holidays.