Kids Archives - Dine and Dish

The Summer of Yes {In 1 Second Everyday}

Kristen — Wed, 26 Aug 2015 17:08:53 +0000

Our summer is officially over and the kids have been in school now for a whole week. It was so hard for me to let summer go this year because it was one of our best, yet. I intentionally didn’t do my typical Summer Bucket List, but instead deemed the summer of 2015 “The Summer of Yes”.

I vowed that this summer, I was going to say yes as much as I could. If the kids asked to do something or had an idea, even a far out there idea, I said yes (naturally within reason). We had so much fun!

It was the summer of lots of swimming, beaches, pink hair, reading, ice cream for breakfast, sno cones for lunch, sleeping in, staying up late, friends, family, baseball, bike rides, travel and more. I loved absolutely every last second of our summer! (Well I could have done without my mom being so sick and hospitalized for most of it, but even that brought some fun adventures for our family). …

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Hallmark – Replaying Childhood Friendships

Kristen — Wed, 21 Jan 2015 21:35:53 +0000

Thoughts of my own childhood friends seep out through the layers of memories as I watch my own kids and their best friends. This is a Hallmark Life is a Special Occasion blog post.

How many of you have mini-me’s in your children? You know, maybe not a payback child, per se, but one where you seem to know their every move before it happens because you pretty much were the same person as a child.

Kelly is that kid for me. It’s crazy how much my life as a child and her life now are alike. I have always noticed it, but notice it more now that she is entering the age I was when I moved to the town where I met my best and oldest childhood friends. Watching her grow is like getting to replay my own childhood all over again.

One of my best friends from childhood and I had a special language we spoke. Kelly and one of her best friends speak a special language, with an accent and everything. One of my best friends from childhood and I used to dance with the vacuum, and play school or house every chance we could get… Kelly and one of her best friends are the same.

I love re-living these memories through her and her friends. And each time I do, I want nothing more than to reach out to my friends and reminisce. “Remember that time…?” “Hey, do you remember how we used to…” and on and on.

…

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Santa and Holiday Magic

Kristen — Wed, 10 Dec 2014 04:04:45 +0000

Let’s talk about the magic of the holiday season and life as the baby of the family…this is a Hallmark Life is a Special Occasion Post.

I am the youngest of 5 kids, which I thought until recently made me a little more sensitive to Leah’s plight as the baby of the family. Let’s face it…we all know that many times the family baby is the one treated a tad more special and given a little more leniency.

I’m here to tell you that it’s because by the time the baby of the family comes around, the parents are simply tired and worn out. So yes, I say yes to Leah way more often than I may have Jacob because it’s just easier. I would have freaked out if Jacob didn’t have 3 healthy square meals a day… and may or may not turn a blind eye when Leah grabs a bag of chips out of the pantry for breakfast. Sometimes it’s just easier.

The hard part about being the baby of the family is that often times, traditions, celebrations, and more are way less than they were for the first or even subsequent children. For example, we went every single year to breakfast with Santa when Jacob was younger. Leah, in her precious 5 years, has had breakfast with Santa one time. All together now…”poor baby of the family”….

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Hallmark: When The Neighborhood Grows Up

Kristen — Mon, 27 Oct 2014 02:35:35 +0000

Watching our neighborhood grow up… a Hallmark Life is a Special Occasion Post.

Maybe it’s because the oldest “kid” on our block left us for college this year…

Or that my son no longer wants to dress up for Halloween…

Or that our group of “kids” at our annual Halloween “Boo in the Bubble” neighborhood party is dwindling more and more each year…

But I’m feeling so wistful lately.

The neighborhood is growing up.

I see our neighborhood changing form…

In the lower voices that emit from our basement where the kids hangout.

In the increase in number of cars in the driveways, because those babies we once knew are driving now!

In the homecoming dresses, the dates being had, in the fewer bubbles being blown and driveways being covered with chalk, replaced by makeup, sports and cell phones….

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Our Summer Breakfast Project

Kristen — Mon, 10 Jun 2013 04:14:18 +0000

This is the first in a series of posts on National Dairy Month written in partnership with Got Milk and The Breakfast Project.

Did you know that the month of June is National Dairy Month? As big fans of all things dairy, the Dine & Dish family has a few things up our 2013 Summer Bucket List sleeves to celebrate National Dairy Month.

But first, you know what we’ve got to do? We’ve got to get on the ball with getting into a little bit of a routine. Not a big one, but moving past sleeping in, skipping breakfast and having random meals at random times of the day.

I’ve hinted around before that feeding my kids 3 square meals a day when they are home for the summer is hard for me… it’s a challenge to be creative enough to figure out what to feed them all during the summer! I know that might sound silly, but it takes a lot of thought and energy to come up with meals that everyone will like when I’d/we’d rather be outside soaking up the sun. …

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The Dine and Dish Family 2013 Summer Bucket List

Kristen — Fri, 31 May 2013 04:54:46 +0000

It’s Summer Bucket List time again!

Our family had such a great summer last year as we worked through our first ever official list of things we wanted to do over the summer. Of course, after doing the first one we knew we’d want to do another one for 2013. So, here you have it… the Dine & Dish 2013 Summer of Fun Bucket List!

Like last year, I pinned all of our plans on to a Pinterest board. You can find our 2012 board here and now our new 2013 Pinterest board full of summer plans is here….

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5 Ways to Make Staying Healthy Fun

Kristen — Sun, 31 Mar 2013 02:39:35 +0000

I have a skill I think most moms have… I can tell when my kids are coming down with something simply by the way they behave. Things like extra cranky moods, taking a nap in the middle of the day when they don’t normally nap, and coming around for extra snuggles are sure fire signs to me that one of my kiddos doesn’t feel well. Kids like to be happy and are supposed to be happy… and when they are healthy they are happy!

The folks at Pediacare recently asked me to share some tips on how we make staying healthy fun around our house. As I type this, I have two sick kids at home with me, so… well, I’m no expert, but I do know that if we want our kids to be healthy, we’ve got to make being healthy fun….

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You Are a Star!

Kristen — Wed, 27 Feb 2013 19:08:38 +0000

I just recently watched a heart touching video that reminds me of how hard kids have it. Sometimes I forget that among all the great moments of being a kid, there are quite a few hard moments. Moments, that I’d soon forget.

I send my kids off to school each day and hope and pray that they are treated kindly, are surrounded by friends, and they aren’t bullied. I hope they shine like the stars they are and have the confidence to get past anything tough they come across. …

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