Children's Day & Summer Book Review - The Most Magnificent Team

We all want the children we love to learn how to get along with and work with others - this is a skill they absolutely need in their life. The Most Magnificent Team by Ashley Spires from Kids Can Press is a wonderful story which brilliantly illustrates this truth.

Today is Devil's Food Chocolate Cake Day

 

Nationaltoday.com says, "Devil’s food cake is not your ordinary chocolate cake. It’s a unique mix of ingredients that brings out the chocolate. Recipes often call for boiling water, instead of milk, and some even add coffee to bring out the chocolate flavor! Mixing science with desserts, the cake gets its darker color from its higher pH levels due to the added baking soda. The cake uses cocoa instead of chocolate squares, making it even fluffier! Some say the cake gets its name to distinctly contrast from the Angel’s food cake, which is much lighter in comparison. As more and more types of cakes have been created over the years, “devil’s food cake” is often used as a catch all name for a super-choclatety cake that doesn’t have nuts."

Children's Day & Summer Book Review - The Bigfoot Field Guide to Campers (And Other Mysterious Creatures)

I love it when an author "turns" the story around and writes a fun, but unexpected story. This is exactly what I. M. Furry (with help from Jami Gigot) did in the delightful book, The Bigfoot Field Guide to Campers (And Other Mysterious Creatures) from Kids Can Press! While any story which combines campers and Big Foot has the potential to be a fun and surprising story, this one delivers on this potential in a way which is sure to make it a favorite book of the children you love!

grandma's cookbook - Father's Day Truffles!

Father's Day is June 15th, and if the dads in your life are like the dads in my life, it is usually difficult to find a perfect gift for them! So, when I was browsing on  Pinterest yesterday and saw a recipe for M&M Cookie Dough Truffles . . . well, they looked to me like Father's Day Truffles! (I know my hubby LOVES M&M's and cookie dough!) 

Children's Day & Summer Book Review - Sleep, Sheep!

Sleep, Sheep! by Kerry Lyn Sparrow and Guillaume Perreault is a book which I am SO happy and thankful to be able to include in this year's Children's Day & Summer Book Review as it is an absolutely delightful and surprisingly fun story from Kids Can Press! If ever there were a book which needed to be included in my review, this is certainly it!

Summer Fun at Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park

If you live in or near West Michigan, you not only know what Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park are, but have likely visited them; more than once. If you do not live in this area of the country, you may not be familiar with them, but today I'm very happy to share with you about this amazing and beautiful place where you and your grandchildren will be able to explore, discover and have tremendous fun together!

I'll start with sharing how they describe themselves and then what my family thinks of them; Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park says . . . 

Children's Day & Summer Book Review - Ramon Fellini the Cat DOG Detective

I greatly enjoy books with humor and Ramon Fellini the Cat DOG Detective is one such highly enjoyable book for sure! Written/ illustrated by Guillherme Karsten and published by Eerdman's Books for Young Readers, this is a book the children you love are sure to want to have read to them - or read for themselves - over and over again!

A Fun Gift Idea

Father's Day is June 15th this year, so I thought I'd share a fun idea for a gift you could help the children you love make for their dad. Several years ago when my grands were younger, they spent a Friday night and Saturday at my house, so while they were here they made a gift for their dad . . . it is a really fun item to make with your grandchildren for their dad, mom, or for you as it makes a great birthday gift, anniversary gift, or Christmas gift as well - so I'm sharing a photo and info if you want to help the children you love make one!

Children's Day & Summer Book Review - Trouble Dog

I love books for children. Some of the very best stories are found in books for children. When I find a book with a wonderful, engaging, fun story AND which teachings me something new and interesting, well, I am most likely to be VE RY happy to share this book with others. Today's book from Eerdman's Books for Young Readers is once such book. Trouble Dog, written by Carol A. Foote and illustrated by Larry Day is absolutely a book you will want to give the children you love - and one they will enjoy, no matter their age!

crafting with grandma - Summer Fun for Children's Day - Ice Chalk!

Children's Day is on June 8, 2025 . . . so, if you would like to get a "jump start" on making some fun gifts which your grandchildren will enjoy, check this idea I found on Pinterest  for Ice Chalk!!! Follow this link  (which is where I got this photo) and you'll find seven different recipes for making Ice Chalk - it would be fun to make with your grandchildren, or to surprise them with on Children's Day or throughout the Summer for some cool fun!

Fun Idea for Children's Day

Children's Day is June 8th this year - it is always the second Sunday of June. So, if you are looking for a fun idea you could try for a gift with meaning, consider making handprint blankets. Just gather the supplies and wrap them up. Then, when your grandchildren open their gifts, you all will be able to make the blankets, put their and your handprints on them, let them dry, and then they will have a special blanket which will remind them of your love for them throughout the coming years.

Pair Eyewear Topper - the Olive Shimmer

As you may have noticed, I really love my Pair Eyewear glasses and toppers. I have the Ruby Sparkle and Navy Sparkle, so when they released a new set of colorful toppers which "shimmer", I thought it would be nice to get the Olive Shimmer - and I am SO happy I did!

Children's Day & Summer Book Review - Imagine

One of the things we want to help the children we love with as they grow up, is how they might imagine or see their own future. In Imagine, a beautiful book from Candlewick Press written by Juan Felipe Herrera and illustrated by Lauren Castillo, we are able to do exactly this!

Pair Eyewear Lavender Splatter Limited Edition Topper

From time to time since January I have posted about my new Pair Eyewear glasses. I really LOVE these glasses! They are so comfortable and are in a shape I really like (the Wanda). But the thing I LOVE the most about glasses from Pair Eyewear, is the magnetic toppers - yes, magnetic toppers! The designs and color options are extensive and pretty much every week they release more new toppers! Now, most of these new releases are limited editions - sometimes connected with a holiday, or season, or last week they released some wonderful Star Wars toppers, and while I like Star Wars, and think they have some wonderful toppers, I'm not getting any as I can not get new toppers every week.