Parent Hacks

Free, fun paper toys

Speaking of fun with paper, here's a selection of lovely, printable paper toys, perfect for a rainy spring afternoon (which happen to be in abundance here in Portland). A tooth fairy gazebo, a popup card, and more. Thanks for the tip, Kristen! Tags: Art projects

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Kids bored? Chain 'em up!

Baby chain links, paper chains, paper clip chains, gum wrapper chains! Momready has a fun "Boredom Buster" up on making chains of all shapes and sizes. (Be sure to have a nice look around Momready. Lots of quick, practical tips and ideas, and ipod-ercise -- playlists for your exercise routine!)...

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Link roundup: baby gear, Zunafish, homemade baby wipes, Dropshots

Welcome back from your holiday festivities! (I meant to welcome you back this morning, but it's been a rather tumultuous day in the Dornfest household. I'm sure you understand.) It was quiet in the blogosphere over the Memorial Day weekend (evidence that bloggers do, indeed, have lives), but everyone's back...

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Elf reminds you when library books are due

Joel leans on tech to avoid library overdue fines: Elf is a free service that works much better than taking out sets of five. Assuming your library is on the list (and they have several hundred of the largest libraries and library networks), you enter your library card number and...

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Homemade Pedialyte-type rehydration solution

Awhile back I passed along a Blogging Baby link on making your own rehydration solution for flu-ridden kids. Laryen commented that sugar (not Splenda, as in the BB recipe) is an important ingredient. Here's another option, from my (well-spoken) friend Mike: I got this from a pediatrician and he uses...

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Parenting in the TiVo age

As I scanned my Technorati "parenting" tag feed, this post caught my eye. Frazzled Parent (I wish I knew her name) talks about how her son attempted to "pause" her (a la TiVo) so he could go back to watching TV. She goes on to discuss the effects of on-demand...

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Great read-alound book for space lovers

Kate Haas is a kindred writer-spirit and the author of the lovely mama zine Miranda. Here's her book suggestion for aspiring astronauts: "If You Decide to Go to the Moon" by Faith McNulty is the perfect read-aloud book for the space-obsessed kid whose parent is...shall we say...not all that thrilled...

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How to make a rubber band helicopter

Check out David Williamson's hand-drawn plans for building a rubber band helicopter! And this is only one of his nifty gizmos. Tags: DIY, Toys

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Parent Hacks admin: A veritable smorgasbord of kid music!

THANK YOU for all of your fantastic music recommendations! I've entered a whole new world of excellent kid music! I'll be highlighting my favorites in upcoming Parent Hacks posts and in the "What we're listening to" sidebar -- and, as always, feel free to email me your faves any time....

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Foodmomiac's Daily Dinners

After I posted my 20 minute dinner (which, methinks, will become a regular feature; stay tuned), it occurred to me that other people are already doing the quick-easy-recipe thing. That won't stop me from sharing my own, but still. You probably know I'm a fan of Danielle's blog, Foodmomiac. As...

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Make your own photo blocks

At Daddy Types, Greg passed along a pointer to a Photojojo video tutorial for creating your own photo blocks. A better gift than toy, I think, but cool all the same. While you're at Photojojo, have a look around the archives -- wonderful ideas there! Tags: Art projects

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Light:night: a gentle, portable nightlight

Debra raves about light:night: I *love* this new nightlight and just wanted to share with the group. It's not glaring or too bright like other nightlights, but gives a cozy colored glow or a brighter light when needed. Plus, it is portable, so my son can put it where he...

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Cohousing: the modern equivalent of a "village"

Old Berkeley pal Aditya passed along this glimpse into to cohousing -- something I never knew existed. Amazing stuff, especially given how many of us struggle with the pressures of modern parenting in relative isolation, far away from extended family, or in neighborhoods that aren't conducive to distributing the childcare...

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Talk amongst yourselves: Bugs in the sandbox

Kirsten wonders: How do I keep the bugs out of the sandbox? I put the lid on after each use and it keeps the water and cats out, but there continue to be small bugs in there. Does everyone have this or is there something I should do to keep...

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20 minute dinner: Pasta with roasted pepper tomato sauce, steamed sugar snap peas

I'm usually pretty good about planning our meals for the week, but tonight I was scouring the pantry at 5pm trying to figure out what to cook. Surprise: the result pleased everybody, took hardly any time to prepare, and looked nice on the plate. Certainly better than our usual standby:...

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