The day will come sooner or later—it really can't be avoided: your child will ask for a pet. Then he'll ask again. And again. Then the siblings will chime in. All of a sudden, everyone wants a pet, and that's all anyone talks about. Pretty soon, the requests will be comin.... read more
As we think, this week, about all of the things small children can learn and experience just by hanging around at home, visions of cats and dogs, fish and guinea pigs, turtles and bunnies dance in our heads. In a word, pets.Many experts say, and we have to agree, that having a.... read more
Children and adventure go together like eggs and bacon, or peanut butter and jelly, or chocolate and well, anything. Every new development in those first few years are adventures unto their own but as children grow their ideas of adventure grow too. They follow the adventures .... read more
In Portland, the summer is a beautiful yet fleeting time. All too often, the brilliant sunny days turn to drizzle and gloom. Oregonians like to take advantage of every walking hour of sun, and during the longest days of summer, we all are usually found outside up until 9:45 or.... read more
Blame Madison Avenue, but something about Father's Day can seem a little odd. Retro, maybe—but more out-of-touch retro than tongue-in-cheek retro. The ads, the cards, the endless gift guides—they are all themed very "Father Knows Best," complete with push lawnmowers and m.... read more
Before children learn how to draw figures, they love to fingerpaint, and especially to make handprints. If you let them, they'll spend hours slapping their paint covered hands down onto paper, filling pages and pages with smeary imprints of themselves. They never seem to tire .... read more
"Mom, I like my independence...kind of like America from Great Britain." These are the words my seven-year-old daughter said to me swimming in the wave pool last weekend when she wanted me to let go of her. The waves seemed pretty high to me, and I wanted to make sure she was .... read more
Our preschoolers are fascinated with themselves and, as parents, we delight in their fascination. From making up songs and stories about themselves to making faces in the mirror, preschoolers find themselves infinitely entertaining. Today, we want to help your little one mak.... read more
I've always known that reading to my children is important. In fact, I don't think a day has gone by that I haven't read to my seven-year-old. Of course, I can't say the same for my second and third born (oh, the guilt!). But it wasn't until my oldest daughter, Phoebe, sta.... read more
Young children are curious about themselves, maybe even more so than the world around them—from making faces in the mirror to inspecting their belly buttons that tickle them at just one glance. In a playgroup, they may notice their differences: eye and hair color, or how.... read more
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