Kids + Family Archives - Page 3 of 7 - Good Cheer

A Supportive Dad Blogger Network Gift Exchange to Celebrate Modern Fatherhood

When I was a little girl, a homemade note hung by our back door for as long as I can remember. It was a note written by my dad and directed at my siblings and [read more]

The Best Gift Exchange Ideas for Big Families Hosting Summer Reunions

Courtney S

I’ll never forget the very first family reunion I went to when I was a kid. My brother, my parents, and I all piled into our red station wagon and road tripped to Wisconsin where [read more]

Personalized Graduation Gift Registry Ideas for Your College-Bound Grad

Justina H

In the basement, there was a towering stack of boxes perpetually threatening to topple over whenever I would squeeze past them on the way to get Christmas decorations or pool supplies out a couple times [read more]

16 Creative Sweet Sixteen Birthday Gift Ideas

Courtney S

While most of my teenage years are now nothing but a blur, I distinctly remember my sixteenth birthday. I didn’t receive any material gifts from my parents that year. Instead, my mom took me on [read more]

DIY Summer Boredom Busters for Tweens

Bay E

My sister Kelsey and I are 8 years apart; when she was heading into her pre-teen tween years, I was still a toddler. My parents did an amazing job of keeping us (and our brother [read more]

decorating a neighborhood block party for summer

How to Plan a Neighborhood Block Party This Summer

Bay E

When I was growing up, we’d pack into my mom’s car and venture from our home in the countryside exactly one hour north to my auntie’s house in the suburbs. We’d arrive at her cul-de-sac [read more]

Celebrating National Sugar Cookie Day With Recipes That Kids Can Make

Bay E

Comedian Gary Gulman said it best when he said, “Every cookie is a sugar cookie. A cookie without sugar is a cracker.” Sugar cookies have a reputation for being a bit basic in the baking [read more]

Fun Things for an Only Child to Do Outside This Summer

Justina H

I’ll be the first to admit that when I was a kid, my favorite part of summer vacation was holing up in the den, shades drawn, so I could watch cartoons all day while eating [read more]

DIY Father’s Day Gifts from Daughter: Easy Last Minute Homemade Gift Basket Ideas

Bay E

“My father gave me the greatest gift anyone could give another person — he believed in me.” – Jim Valvano When I think of my father, there are poignant and particular things that come to [read more]

End of Year Teacher Survival Kit: An Online Teacher Appreciation Gift Exchange

Meghan L

(Originally posted 5/22/17) Believe it or not, another busy, hectic school year will soon be coming to a close. Students are already buzzing with plans for bidding farewell to the classroom in exchange for the [read more]

Pet Lovers Gift Basket Ideas for Dog and Owner to Dig Into Bonding and Adventure

Bay E

Growing up, we had a good-natured yellow labrador named Woody who happily traipsed through the trees and rolling hills of the neighborhood with us as if it was all his backyard. Being the youngest in [read more]

Tech Gifts for Teenage Guys: The Benefits of Social Media on Interpersonal Relationships

Bay E

When I was about 10, technology began to infiltrate my childhood when we got our first computer. We’d already been venturing to my grandma’s, who had a slow giant of a desktop stationed in her [read more]

Teaching Generosity to Kids: The Giving Tree Party Ideas for a Fun Lesson on Kindness

Bay E

“Once there was a tree, and she loved a little boy.” ― Shel Silverstein, The Giving Tree Over 50 years ago, The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein took root in the world. It’s a small, [read more]

Mother’s Day Party Game Ideas and Family Activities That Are as Unique as Mom

Bay E

“Mama was my greatest teacher, a teacher of compassion, love and fearlessness. If love is sweet as a flower, then my mother is that sweet flower of love.” —Stevie Wonder On Sunday May 14th, we [read more]

Last Minute DIY Mother’s Day Gifts: Elegant Breakfast in Bed Ideas for Mom

Bay E

The smell of coffee, morning sun streaming in through the window, the tang of freshly squeezed orange juice—there’s nothing quite as special as a thoughtfully prepared breakfast in bed to fill a soul up with [read more]

Artful Just-In-Case Gifts to Keep around the House for Creative Birthday Gift Ideas

Justina H

I’m in elementary school and opening the hallway closet in my childhood home, which can mean only one thing—it’s time for a birthday party! The hallway closet is a magical place, stuffed to the brim [read more]

Wondrously Woodsy Birthday Party Favor Gift Bag Ideas for Nature Obsessed Kids

Justina H

My sister and I never loved the hot weather that comes with summer, so making tree forts in the cool shade of the forest was always our first project over long school vacations. But once [read more]

A Hopping Good Time: Easter Party Ideas for Toddlers, Kids, and the Young at Heart

Brian B

When we grow up, Easter tends to get unfairly short shrift. For one thing, it isn’t fixed in place like Christmas or always on the same weekend like Thanksgiving. Landing anywhere from late March to [read more]

Egg-cellent Easter Basket Ideas for Tweens (Because the Easter Bunny Loves Hip Hop)

Justina H

I still don’t know how the Easter Bunny managed to disappear without a trace every year before my sister and I could spot him. As girls, we would eagerly wait for him to ring our [read more]

Make Ahead Meals for Busy Moms: National Nutrition Month Activities for Adults

Justina H

I know that goldfish crackers aren’t an appropriate breakfast food, but try telling that to my preschooler. They’re also not meant to replace all three meals in a given day, but battling a 3-year-old’s logic [read more]

A Sorbet Soirée: National Nutrition Month Party Ideas for Creative Ways to Serve Fruit

Bay E

Growing up on an avocado farm in rural San Diego, fresh fruit was almost always in season. Our property was filled with pomegranates, blood oranges, apples, bananas, lemons, limes, cherimoyas, and, of course, our beloved, [read more]

National Read Across America Day Ideas for an Alice in Wonderland Mad Tea Party

Brian B

“Dear dear, how queer everything is today. And yesterday things went on just as usual!” Have you ever had a Mad Tea Party? To do so, one has to be warned, is to abdicate any [read more]

Never Grow Up: A Peter Pan Inspired Read Across America Day Book Club Pajama Party

Justina H

“Think of the happiest things; it’s the same as having wings,” sings the television. I’m five years old, watching my absolute favorite movie, Peter Pan. From the first time I saw Pan loop up into [read more]

A Wondrously Wordy “Good Morning, Dr. Seuss” Read Across America Gift Exchange

Bay E

“The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go!” – Dr. Seuss As a toddler, my mom would drop me at my grandma’s [read more]