The Gaithersburg Book Festival is a celebration of the written word and its power to enrich the human experience. Our mission is to foster an interest in reading, writing and literary conversation. Since its inception in 2010, the Festival has quickly become one of the nation’s top literary events, attracting hundreds of award-winning and best-selling [...]
Back Yard Science: 17 Year Cicadas
If you happen to be blessedly unfamiliar with the 17 year cicadas, let me enlighten you. They are a species of cicada (yes, those big googly-eyed bugs that make that only exist in order to make that annoying sound so you know it’s hot all summer long) that has evolved to emerge from the ground in force on a 17 year cycle. Unfortunately for us, that doesn’t mean they only come once every 17 years. Each brood comes every seventeen years, but there are overlapping swarms of these things.
Lower Carb Italian Sausage Casserole
OR how to salvage your eMeals recipe after a well-known, popular grocery delivery service brings you such badly damaged zucchini that you can’t make grilled stuffed zucchini boats after all. (Yes, we have huge, giant, first world problems. It weighs heavily on us.) This was not Plan A, but it was delicious and we’ll be [...]
There is nothing wrong with you!
Perhaps you saw or heard some of the furor surrounding the statement given by A&F CEO Mike Jeffries regarding why they don’t make their clothing in larger sizes. A great many people seem to be of the opinion that the biggest indictment against this statement is that it reflects a desire to make women feel [...]
I needed a quick, easy, and food coloring-free frosting recipe for a birthday playdate, and this one really came through! It works up fast in the microwave, and, as a bonus, you dirty exactly one bowl and a set of mixer beaters. (Which my guys wouldn’t lick. Because they are WEIRDOS.) To turn these into [...]
Give us what we want, what we really, really want!
Some dads I know have confided (not very confidentially) that they think the expectations for Mother’s Day are confusing, hard, and guaranteed to make sure they are always wrong. And a whole lot of moms of my acquaintance have confided (fairly confidentially, as the “insult to injury” part of the program is the need to [...]
Here it comes- the stomach bug is making its way around your kid’s school, and the school nurse just called to ask you to pick your child up. There’s only one thing you can do. Well, two things. You can either keep your sense of humor, or go under for the third time. Brace for [...]
Today I was on the mom side of the “your kid is sick” call from the school for the very first time. It made me remember how the time between when they called your mom and she came to get you was an eternity, no matter how long it actually took. We are fortunate enough [...]
Jack and the Beanstalk (plus lesson resources)
Jack and the Beanstalk simply couldn’t be a more perfect foil for hands on storytelling. First of all, Good Ol’ Jack doesn’t listen to his mother and mass chaos ensues. If you can’t make that work for you, then you just aren’t trying very hard. Secondly, he grows a giant beanstalk that turns out to [...]
The Storyteller Discussion Questions
Below are six discussion questions for the Storyteller. You may answer them all, or you may pick and choose the ones that interest you. I would recommend reading the story first before beginning to answer the questions. To answer the questions, you must click on “You are Next…Click Here to Enter”. (If you do not [...]
Kid’s Garden (plus lesson resources)
Margaret Atwood said: “In the spring, at the end of the day, you should smell like dirt.” Well, we’ve certainly got that down. This starting new plants thing goes like gangbusters around here. The “getting them to maturity and harvesting a crop” part is touch and go. We have a big yard and easily have [...]
If you happen to be blessedly unfamiliar with the 17 year cicadas, let me enlighten you. They are a species of cicada (yes, those big googly-eyed bugs that make that only exist in order to make that annoying sound so you know it’s hot all summer long) that has evolved to emerge from the ground in force on a 17 year cycle. Unfortunately for us, that doesn’t mean they only come once every 17 years. Each brood comes every seventeen years, but there are overlapping swarms of these things.
Jack and the Beanstalk simply couldn’t be a more perfect foil for hands on storytelling. First of all, Good Ol’ Jack doesn’t listen to his mother and mass chaos ensues. If you can’t make that work for you, then you just aren’t trying very hard. Secondly, he grows a giant beanstalk that turns out to [...]
If you enjoyed our review of Make Way for Ducklings, you will no doubt enjoy this live stream, courtesy of the Coralville Public Library. Mrs. Mallard has apparently decided that the library is an excellent nesting spot! Free desktop streaming application by Ustream MeghanI like blues, punk, crime drama, mysteries, knitting, science fiction, having boys, [...]
Margaret Atwood said: “In the spring, at the end of the day, you should smell like dirt.” Well, we’ve certainly got that down. This starting new plants thing goes like gangbusters around here. The “getting them to maturity and harvesting a crop” part is touch and go. We have a big yard and easily have [...]
eMeals has provided me with a subscription to their service so I can put it through its paces and tell you all about it. I’m wrapping up my first week of eMeals, which I’ll tell you more about tomorrow. Today I’m going to give you some overall thoughts on how eMeals works for us so [...]
In my defense, bath time is usually at the end of the day when my circuits are fried. But today we had one of those diapers where you open it up and say, “This Is Not A Job For Wipes,” so I was comparatively mentally sharp at bath time.
So, if you’ve been paying attention at all- or ever- it will not surprise you to hear that nature is not always beautiful. In fact, it’s pretty darn brutal. (I have a theory that this is part of why all the world’s major religions keep having to tell us the same things over and over, [...]
Whether you love Classic Pooh or Disney Pooh, you would have to hunt far and wide to find someone who doesn’t enjoy Pooh Bear. And why not? The stories are full of themes about friendship and helping one another and understanding those who are different. Have a 100 Acre Wood party and celebrate your love of Pooh!
Updated: Now that I’ve seen the mother bird, I know this is actually a Northern Cardinal’s nest! See more posts about her at Back Yard Science. Our back yard is a bastion of kid-friendly landscaping. By which I mean… it’s full of holes the kids have dug, the hedges are pruned for ideal hiding spots [...]
This week’s installment of Mom’s Night In ideas brings you some ideas for gatherings that challenge your wits. Kids keep us on our toes, but it’s more in a brute force, whack-a-mole kind of way, so challenge the subtler, clever side of your mind for a change with these ideas. Bridge/Bunco/Penny Poker Night: Any of [...]
Am I the only one who remembers spending hours and hours chanting about Miss Mary Mack and her ilk while I tried to mimic increasingly complicated hand clapping patterns with another kid? I seem to remember that I wasn’t very good at this, but that a lot of kids were patient enough to play with [...]
Here is my recipe for home made, DEET free bug spray. (This is the kind that is safe for babies.) This will fill two 3 oz pump spray bottles. You can get them at Target for a dollar. I got my essential oils at Whole Foods, but you can also order them online. (I feel [...]