The K Man started high school this year and — like many 14 year olds — thought about the possibility of bringing a girl home. And with it, the horror of one seeing his bedroom, decorated the same way for the 12 years we’ve lived in this home. From Scrabble-themed artwork to a bookshelf covered…
All-inclusive family resorts: best resorts for kids
There’s nothing like a tropical family vacation to escape winter and spend some much-needed, device-free time reconnecting with your kids. And having done our fair share of travel at some of the best resorts for kids in North America and the Caribbean, both piecing together our own holidays — booking flights, accommodations and managing activities…
8 reasons the Apple iPhone SE is the best cell phone for kids
Whether you’re here because you’re looking for the best phones for 10 year olds or phones for teenagers that won’t eat up all of their birthday or holiday money, we’re about to give you eight reasons to take a closer look at the Apple iPhone SE. And since it’s my kids who have been testing…
2022 Holiday Gift Guide
It’s usually that time… time for me to roll out a bigger, better Holiday Gift Guide than I did year before and watch y’all go nutso with excitement, which always brought me more joy than you can even imagine. This would have been my 11th year. Change is hard, but often necessary. After clocking 485…
10th annual holiday gift guide
It’s 2021 and this is my 10th Holiday Gift Guide. (And I’m giving away $13,000+ in holiday gifts, too!) Can you even believe that this holiday gift guide is in its 10th year? It has grown from pretty humble beginnings before I’d even been blogging for a full year into one of the most robust…
A (virtual) list of extracurricular activities
This list of extracurricular activities was updated on September 7, 2021. Ten months into what I hesitate to call any kind of “new normal,” we’ve gotten into a decent groove doing just about everything virtually — and not just work and school. So I wanted to create a post with a running list of extracurricular…
2020 Holiday Gift Guide
It’s my 9th-annual holiday gift guide, y’all! I’m not gonna lie, friends: my holiday gift guide almost didn’t happen this year. As you’ve heard me say for years, this little labour of love takes many hundreds of hours to put together. And, well, 2020 just hasn’t blessed me with a lot of free time. Like…
Exploring the Apple Ecosystem & its DSLR-quality camera phone
[This Apple Ecosystem post was updated on May 2, 2023.] I bought into the beginnings of the Apple Ecosystem back in 2002 when I purchased my first desktop computer — an iMac, discounted thanks to Apple Education Pricing — and an iPod. I loved how they operated synergistically and, more important, that I didn’t have…
How are you managing your child’s RESP contribution?
My parents started a Registered Education Savings Plan (RESP) for me on a pretty bare-bones working-class income. They were by no means even upper-middle class and yet with exceptionally strong budgeting and saving skills, they made their first RESP contribution when my brother and I were young, and used those savings to help send us…
Our virtual classroom: homeschool room ideas
It’s a sad, confusing, frustrating time for educators, parents and students alike across the country who are about to navigate distance learning or some kind of in-class model that feels much too experimental for many of us. Whatever decision you’ve made, or are about to make, if it’s the right one for your family’s needs,…