Kids Gift Guide

Black Friday is nearly open us, which means that the Christmas shopping season is about to kick off! We try to focus on more "experience" or learning based gifts, so I thought I would create a gift guide along those lines. 

The nice thing about the majority of these gifts is that they are truly gender neutral, so any child in your life will delight in receiving them! 

Kits & Crates

These first few gifts are involved projects that provoke thought and creativity. 

Yellow Scope Foundation Chemistry Kit

Little Bits offers a variety of inventor kits, including this Droid Inventor Kit. 

Next up is Kiwi Crate. We actually blogged about this a few years ago, as Katie got the Mini Fashionista a subscription for Christmas. These STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) subscription boxes come once a month, can be selected by age and chosen in a variety of durations. 

For the little chef in your life, Raddish Kids is a great way to engage the entire family in cooking. Raddish is a cooking club, culinary lesson, and mealtime solution all-in-one.

Magazines
For the young reader in your life, there are all sorts of great options. Here are a few of my favorites. 

Ranger Rick has been around since I was a kid, so it's pretty amazing that this kid's wildlife magazine is still around. It's now offered in three age ranges, so there's an option for all the little animal lovers in your life. 

My mom got the Mini a subscription to Highlights Magazine about a year ago, and she eagerly awaits its arrival each month. We enjoy reading it together and doing the interactive activities. I also remember enjoying this as a child!  

For the older children in your life, here are two great magazines. 

Kazoo is a new kind of quarterly print magazine for girls, ages 5 to 10—one that celebrates them for being strong, smart, fierce and, above all, true to themselves. We had a subscription to it last year, and it was a little too old for the Mini. I think this definitely leans towards the 8+ age range. 

Almost Fearless magazine is actually for Parents, but I thought I would include it anyway. I just recently subscribed and can't wait for our first issue to arrive.

Books

We are big fans of the author Andrea Beaty and her books. The characters are fun, they encourage interest in STEM and the illustrations are fantastic.

If you already have the books, the new Project Books are a great option to add to a child's library. The project books inspire young readers will all sorts of fun activities. 

Wonderbly creates gorgeous customized books with beautiful illustrations, fun characters and thoughtful story lines. I've already order a few for my favorite little people. 

Back to Blogging

I have to admit that when we stopped writing the blog nearly a year ago, I knew we would be back. I knew, at least, I would be back. I didn't say that because I didn't know if I would be back to blogging here on C&C or if maybe I would start another blog, with a different title, on a different platform.

I have reservations about coming back because I know the blog isn't fancy. It's not on the most user friendly platform. The graphics are outdated. The layout is terrible. I could go on and on... C&C was created 8.5 years ago, back when Blogger was one of the only platforms, when blogging wasn't really a profession and when there weren't thousands of bloggers talking about many of the same things. So why bring this up? Despite all the perceived short comings of this blog, I know we have a unique voice that resonates with people. I know we have a solid group of loyal followers, and I'd like to hope that many of you have been positively impacted by our posts. I'd like to think you don't care about all the shortcomings, and that you will continue reading and loving the blog just as it is.

So, here we are, nearly a year later, and we're back to blogging. Don't expect posts five days a week, that's just not realistic for our lives right now, but I can promise we will post at least once a week. Katie can't commit to a regular blogging schedule, but she will definitely be dropping in.

For my first post back I thought I would give you a quick list of some of the things I'm "loving lately"...food, podcasts, kids clothes...think of this as making up for all our lost time in one post!

Loving Lately
1. Rockets of Awesome- This kids subscription clothing box is AWESOME! If you haven't tried it, you must!

2. How to Raise an Adult- One of the best "parenting" books I've ever read. If you have children in your life, as a coach, teacher, aunt, uncle or as a parent...you should check this book out. 

3. Thai Sweet Potato and Carrot Soup- This recipe is on repeat in our house. It's easy and delicious. 

4. Podcasts- I've become obsessed with podcasts. I listen while cleaning the house, driving and exercising. Here are a few of my favorites. 

- How I Built This 

- The Feel Good Effect- the podcast by Robyn Conley Downs of the blog, Real Food Whole Life. 

- Hidden Brain

- Brains On and Wow in the World- both for kids

5. Beauty Counter Shampoo and Conditioner- I've been using Beauty Counter products for nearly 3, and I now use their products almost exclusively (I can't quit my Blinc Mascara). Recently I added the shampoo and conditioner to my arsenal, and I LOVE it. A small amount goes a LONG way so it lasts a long time and somewhat justifies the high price point. 

6. Icarus- This is one of the best documentaries I've ever seen. When filmmaker Bryan Fogel sets out to uncover the truth about doping in sports, a chance meeting with a Russian scientist transforms his story from a personal experiment into a geopolitical thriller. Dirty urine, unexplained death and Olympic gold are all part of the exposure of the biggest scandal in sports history.

Reading Rainbow

Anyone recognize this?



If you're a child of the 80s, you'll be humming this little ditty all day long. You're welcome. Well, Levar Burton would be so proud of me. I've been on a reading binge and it's awesome! It's like I'm back in Mrs. Larson's 4th grade, furiously devouring the Baby Sitter's Club and Sweet Valley Twins to win the prized award for student that read the most books in a school year. Dr. B got me a Kindle for Christmas and I've read more books in the last 5 months than I read all of 2013 and 2014 combined. All of the books have been based on recommendations from friends. And since I consider all our readers friends, it was only fitting that I pass along the reading love. Here goes.

If you're looking for a fast-paced thrilling page turner, I am Pilgrim is for you. I was a huge fan of Vince Flynn (RIP) and his character Mitch Rapp, and this book is in that same vein.

If you have any interest in sports or history, The Boys in the Boat is a true story about athleticism, triumph and coming together and beating the odds during some incredibly tough times.

All the Light We Cannot See is about a blind French girl and a German boy who are brought together under rare circumstances by the sad perils of World War II.

And finally, a little "chick lit." If you have any interest in England's modern-day monarchy, this fun read from the girls who write Go Fug Yourself should be on your reading list. American girl meets British prince-to-be in The Royal We.

What else should I be reading? 

Keeping it Real: Feeling Ugly

I've had this post "topic" in my queue for a while now, and have debated about whether I should even write it. Well, last night as I realized I didn't have a post for today and was short on new ideas, I decided it was time to just do it.

You know that I like to "keep it real", and keeping it real means sharing raw and honest content, even if it means putting myself out there in a vulnerable way.

So here goes. Lately, I have been feeling ugly. Now, please realize that in writing this post I am not looking for everyone to comment and tell me "that I'm crazy and that I am not ugly". That's not the point.

Let me backtrack a bit. It started at the beginning of March when I pulled the back hatch of the car down directly into the bridge of my nose. The blow was hard. It knocked me to my knees. I was lucky not to have broken my nose, but it did leave a big gash and a large scar. Here it is all taped up shortly after the incident.

Since then I've tried to cover up the scar with makeup, but it's nearly impossible. It's the first thing I notice every time I look in the mirror. There it is right between my eyes. And it makes me feel ugly. 

Then, a few weeks ago the Mini Fashionista and her little friend were helping me pump up the stroller tires. Once the tires were filled I bent over to remove the valve, and her little friend pulled the pump right up into the corner of my eye. Blow 2! 

What I see when I look in the mirror are scars, dark circles, a big freckle on my nose that people always mistake for "something on my nose", greasy hair and every little flaw I can come up with.

My mom will surely read this post, and mom, I want to assure you that you did a great job nurturing our self esteem, teaching us what is important and giving us the skills necessary to succeed in a tough world, so don't call me after reading this because you are worried. I promise. I'm good.

So my question...

Why is it that we mostly see the worst in ourselves, the ugly, yet others see the best?
I am a confident person. I'd call my self-esteem, pretty good, but sometimes, I find it hard to see the good, and all I can focus on is the bad.

I'm working on it.

Since you learned earlier this week that I love self-help books, I thought I would share one that is closely related to the topic of this post. This book will soon be making it's way to my bedside table.

100 Tips for Parents and Teachers, Raising Confident Girls

It's never too late to boost my own confidence and self esteem. I hope that by working harder to see the good in myself, that I can teach my daughter to do the same.

C&C in the Library

If you read our blog with any frequency, you know I love self-help books. I like personal improvement books, parenting books, etc (posts here and here). 

The Mini Fashionista and I have spent the last 5 days in DC visiting Katie (post to come), and with a 5 hour flight, I finally had time to finish this book that has been sitting on my bedside table for months. 

The Opposite of Spoiled: Raising Kids who are Grounded, Generous and Smart About Money

If you want great insights on how to talk to your kids about money, then I highly recommend this book. It addresses things like homelessness, allowance, chores and many other topics. I have marked many a page and passage from this book and plan to be referring back to it for years to come. 

I also recently picked up two other books, the first I hope to read on the return flight to Portland. These came recommended by a marriage and family therapist that lead a "communication" seminar at a recent Board retreat I attended for my position with the Junior League of Portland. 

The Whole-Brain Child 

The Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work: A Practical Guide from the Country's Foremost Relationship Expert 

I will be sure to report back on these books! 

C&C on the Move

This past weekend we packed up the car for a weekend of camping in Central Oregon. We knew that there were forest fires in the area, but we were hopeful that the winds would be in our favor.

Mt. Hood

Unfortunately, we drove over Mt. Hood and quickly realized that the winds WERE NOT in fact blowing in our favor. It was a tough decision, but after two hours in the car we decided to turn around.

This is the plume of smoke. We were still to the North of it. 

I mean, who wants to camp in an ash tray?

So, we decided to stay North of the smoke and camp on Mt. Hood. Well, that idea was good, in theory, but at 5:00 p.m. we found that campsite after campsite was full. Ughh!

So, nearly 5 hours after leaving the house we made the call....to head back home. What? Crazy, I know.

Thank goodness for popcorn and a movie

First we made a quick stop in Hood River to refuel and stretch our legs. It was by far the highlight of our day.

We dined right along the Columbia River at a great restaurant called Solstice, and right next door there happened to be the most amazing gelato stand called Cicci. I had the "Gorge Berry" and it was phenomenal. I could have gone back for seconds and thirds.

The Mini Fashionista enjoyed playing at the river park playground, and then we hit the road again.

Rock Climbing, her next sport

Eight hours and nearly a tank of gas later, we found ourselves back at home. Fear not, we still got our camping in. We pitched the tent in the backyard, made a fire, roasted some marshmallows and then went to bed. All three of us lasted the entire night in the tent!

We had to laugh at the whole thing....especially given that one of the Mini's favorite books, A Camping Spree with Mr. Magee, ends just as our camping adventure did.

For anyone with kids, I highly recommend this book as well as others by Chris Van Dusen. The Circus Ship is also one of our favorites.

Keeping it Real

Today's post focuses on the challenges of parenting. It's not an easy gig, but there are definitely tools to make it easier.

The Mini Fashionista is getting older and starting to ask a lot of questions, on challenging subjects. For these most challenging of topics,  I like to have a strategy. Sometimes my strategies come from blogs, like AHA Parenting.  I receive their daily email and find the articles extremely helpful. 

Recently, the book NurtureShock was recommended to me through the barre3 book club. I am not quite finished with it, but have devoured every chapter so far. The nice thing about this book is that each chapter addresses one single subject such as sibling rivalry, praise, race and intelligence. I highly recommend it 

I truly believe that the best way to address challenging subjects is by educating myself and then educating my child. In some cases that means books to read to her as well. Here are a few books I have purchased recently. 

"I Said No!" covers a variety of topics, including: what's appropriate and with whom and how to deal with inappropriate behavior, bribes and threats.

This book, A Rainbow of Friends, reminds children to celebrate their differences because that is what makes each of us so special.

Lastly, "Shades of People", explores of one of our most noticeable physical traits using vibrant photographs of children and a short text to inspire young children both to take notice and to look beyond the obvious.

For the Little People

Last week for her Birthday, the Mini Fashionista received a number of new books, including these two by author Andrea Beaty.

Rosie Revere Engineer

And, Iggy Peck Architect 

I thought I would share them for any of you with kids and also for anyone looking for a great present for a child! While the Mini Fashionista loves books about princesses and fairies and other make-believe characters (which is totally fine), I also like to expose her to jobs that real people do in the real world. 

These books are awesome. They promote imagination, teach children to follow their passions and are educational in that they have little history lessons interspersed.

Get the Gimmies

As children Katie and I were big readers of the Berenstain Bears….cute books, good life lessons and nice illustrations.

If you too were a fan, do you remember the book "Berenstain Bears Get the Gimmies"? Well, right now I feel like I have a major case of the gimmies. During the holidays we are constantly bombarded with gift guides, sales, and special shopping events and it's impossible not to want EVERYTHING!

Everything..including this "coatigan" from ASOS.

Checked Wrap Coatigan $145.19 (sale price $101.63)

ASOS has been giving me the gimmies a lot lately. They are killing it right now…on trend, quick shipping, free returns and the prices are awesome! I find it oh so hard to say "no", but I will have to….just like Brother and Sister bear. I can't have everything I want. Why is that such a hard lesson to learn? 

Gift Guide- The Green Thumb

Over the next month we will be posting holiday gift guides for all the special people in your life. This week C&C is featuring gifts for the gardener.

The first item for the "green thumb" in your life is the book Grow Cook Eat: A Food Lover's Guide to Vegetable Gardening, Including 50 Recipes, Plus Harvesting and Storage Tips. 

This book is written by my college friend, and fellow Portland resident, Willi Galloway. It is filled with all sorts of great information and photographs and is the perfect gift for anyone who likes to use fresh produce straight from their own garden to cook delicious means!

No garden look is complete without a cute pair of rain boots. These Tretorn "Skerry Vinter" rain boots are a fun bright color and only $75. 

And to top it off, a bright orange and fuschia watering can for the gardening fashionista! 

Let us know if you need gift suggestions for someone special in your life! 

Going Deeper

I will begin this post with an apology...for those of you expecting a post on fashion, I am sorry, not today! I promise tomorrow we will be back with our usual content, but today I thought I would get a little deeper...(For fashion, check out Katie's guest post on Twirling Clare).

For some reason I have been on a "self-help" kick lately. I'm not sure why, but for whatever reason I have this feeling that I want to be better...a better wife, a better mother, a better sister, friend...you get the picture.

Anyway, my self-help kick started with our latest book club pick, The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin. This book is her one year quest to be happier and addresses her marriage, kids, friends, work, etc. In one chapter of the book Rubin describes how having too many choices (i.e. too many clothes) can actually result in less happiness. I know, you are thinking, "that's crazy...the more I have, the better I feel," but I have to agree with her. Now that I don't "dress" everyday, I find choosing my outfit to be challenging and sometimes quite miserable because I have too much to chose from and not enough opportunities to wear what I have. I suppose there are worse problems to have. Anyway, if you are looking for a good, quick read. Check it out!

On to the next area of self-help...Parenting! The Mini Fashionista is quickly approaching her 1st birthday. And while I feel that I have a good grasp of proper parenting techniques (many, many years of babysitting), I still am the kind of parent that likes to have a strategy for every situation. So I recently picked up three parenting books.

1) How to Talk So Kids Will Listen & Listen So Kids Will Talk. This one I won't be able to "apply" for a few years since the Mini Fashionista hasn't begun talking yet, but I can already tell it will be extremely useful. The book gives parents techniques to cope with a child's negative feelings, to express anger without being hurtful, and to set limits and still maintain goodwill. Honestly, I think some of the strategies can even be used with adults!

2) Raising a Happy Unspoiled Child, The focus of this book is on children age zero to 3 and teaches you how to bring up an independent, socially secure, and delightful child. I have already used many of the strategies in this book and find them extremely helpful for situations such as biting, crying and diapering. Any mom with a 7+ month old knows that getting your child to be still while getting changed is a challenge...and this book offers great strategies.

3) Bringing Up Bebe: One American Mother Discovers the Wisdom of French Parenting. I am sure many of you saw the recent WSJ article titled Why French Parents Are Superior. This article really resonated with my husband and I, so I thought I would pick up the book (same author). I haven't started it yet, but a friend is reading it and so far thinks it is fantastic...her husband is also French, so she may be a bit biased.

And while we are on the subject of babies/parenting, for any of you new or soon to be moms, may I suggest Baby Wise.  I used this book to guide The Mini Fashionista's eating and sleeping schedule in the first months of life, and it is fantastic! She was sleeping 8 hours at 6 weeks old and has been sleeping 12 hours a night since about 3 months. It is broken down by age category and is quick and easy to read and use as a reference at each step along the way.

So, thanks for letting me digress a bit. I promise tomorrow we will be back with more on style and fashion, most importantly a recap of the H&M Marni launch from here in Portland!