DIY Beanie Baby Halloween Costume For Babies & Dogs - Grab My Super Cute Free Printable!

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone.

 #GigglesandWiggles #CollectiveBias

Because of my partnership with Gerber, my little one is ineligible to win the Gerber Photo Search or a weekly prize, but you may be eligible so make sure you submit a photo of your baby and/or pet!

Friends, I can't even handle the cuteness of this DIY Beanie Baby Halloween costume for babies and dogs! I designed this super cute free printable Beanie Baby tag for our baby and our 7 year old Bichon, and I'm completely smitten. Just look at these two! Seriously, too cute for words.

If you're a long-time reader, you most likely know that we take our annual family Halloween theme costumes pretty seriously around here. We generally have everything set to go weeks in advance, and this year was no different. My entire crew has their own animal inspired hooded sweatshirts and a cute little printable Beanie Baby tag to complete each costume, and our beloved fur baby is no exception! She's the sweetest pup ever, and she's our little one's best friend and greatest protector. Wherever the toddlers go, she's always close by; trick-or-treating included! I can't wait to hit the pavement with these cuties, on Halloween.

Read on to grab your free DIY Beanie Baby printable Halloween costume for babies and dogs, and for my simple tutorial on how to assemble your DIY Beanie Baby Halloween costumes (+ how to assemble special treat bags for all of the baby and pup trick-or-treaters ++ how to enter and WIN BIG in the #GerberPhotoSearch2017 and #GigglesandWiggles contest!)

One-Pot Dublin Coddle #WhatsCookingWednesday

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Klement’s Sausage. All opinions are 100% mine.

"Cooking is love made visible." - Unknown

I love this quote. How very, very true. Cooking is indeed, love made visible.  This one-pot Dublin Coddle is such a simple and delicious meal. It's the perfect recipe to gather everyone together around the table, to show and share some love this season. It's comfort food at it's finest, friends! My mom used to make this every year in the fall; Dublin Coddle was a bit of a tradition in our home.  Though she is no longer with us, her tradition lives on each year, in my own home.

Hi friends, how have you been? I hope you've all fared well through the back-to-school frenzy! This summer was enlightening in many ways.  Lately, I've been mindfully trying to take in the little moments with my family. Being fully present is hard in today's world. With all of the technology and distractions at-the-ready, it's important to put it all in it's place from time to time and focus on what's really important; each other. For us, family dinner time and family gatherings have become a mecca of unplugged togetherness. No phones, no computers, just good conversation over great food. This past weekend, I pulled out my dutch oven, and my electric smoker, and made this one-pot Dublin Coddle for my family (you can easily make it in the oven as well). The recipe is easy to assemble, and only requires a few simple ingredients (Klement's Fully Cooked Smoked Cheddar Bratwurst, bacon, potatoes, onions, butter, apple cider, and some simple seasonings)- definitely my kind of recipe! When this deliciousness was ready, we all headed to the backyard to enjoy a few friendly games of checkers while we chatted and ate. It was the perfect traditional unplugged start to our Fall season.

Read on for my full recipe for one-pot Dublin Coddle, below.

DIY Pumpkin Pie Slime - Borax-Free Safe 4 Ingredient Recipe

The kids and I are diving headfirst into the Fall fun around here! We had a blast in the kitchen last weekend making this Pumpkin Pie inspired slime recipe, and these adorable DIY Jack-O-Lantern slime containers to store it in. The recipe that we concocted is borax-free, and safe for little hands to touch, plus it smells DELICIOUS! It's the perfect DIY craft to make with younger children at Fall / Halloween themed parties, or for using as fun candy-free party favors / to hand out to trick-or-treater's on Halloween.

Though we used larger jars from Maddie Rae's collection, we also found these adorable mini-containers at Dollar Tree ( they came in packs of 10 for just $1!).

Grab our simple 4 ingredient (borax-free) safe recipe for Pumpkin Pie Slime, below.

Easy Dollar Tree Foam Pumpkin Makeover - Super Cute Owl Pumpkins Kids Craft Tutorial {Just $2 to Make!}

Next up, Halloween! This Easy Dollar Tree Foam Pumpkin Makeover Owl Pumpkins Kids Craft, comes together quickly with Dollar Tree Foam Pumpkins and a handful of simple supplies. Such a fun Fall themed pumpkin craft to do with the kids! They would also make a great craft idea for Fall birthday parties or Halloween parties.

Hi, friends! While I know that Halloween is still a ways off, the seasonal items {such as these foam craft  pumpkins} tend to fly off the shelves at Dollar Tree far before you're ready to start thinking about Halloween! So, while I was browsing the seasonal section with my daughter last week, I decided to grab up a few while they still had them, to do a fun kids craft project. These little DIY owl pumpkins are super cute, and only cost about $2 each to make!

Read on for our Easy Dollar Tree Foam Pumpkin Makeover Owl Pumpkins Kids Craft tutorial, below.

Fall Family Bucket List Craft - Plan For A Fun-Filled Season With The Kids!

This Fall Family Bucket List Craft is a great way to plan for a fun filled season with the kids, and it's so incredibly simple to put together.

Hi there, friends! Although the summer is quickly coming to a close, that doesn't mean that the fun has to end. We are gearing up for a season full of memory making with the kids, and we started with this Fall Family Bucket List Craft. It only cost $2 to assemble, and the kids had so much fun tossing their ideas into the bucket! I can't wait to start pulling out a few ideas each week to do with the kids. This year, I've been working on mindfulness; being fully present in the moment, without distraction. This is such a good way to be mindful and planful moving into a new season, with plenty of unplugged family time on the schedule.

Read on for my simple tutorial, and a few idea starters to add to your Family Fall Bucket List, below.

Stuffed Peppers Casserole Recipe

This stuffed peppers casserole recipe was a super happy accident, friends. All of my kids absolutely love green peppers, which is pretty amazing considering how picky they all are with their food choices. They also have an affinity for traditional stuffed peppers. Each time I would make them though, they would complain about how hard they were to eat. Hard to cut, hard to contain once they did managed to cut them etc. So I stopped making them for a while. After a friend gifted us with a ton of green peppers from their garden last week, I decided to try my hand at a fun new twist on stuffed peppers; a casserole that combines all of the ingredients of traditional stuffed peppers in a one-dish meal. The results were a big hit! All of the kids cleared their plates and asked for more, which is a complement in itself, coming from my group picky eaters. Give it a whirl for dinner this week and I'm sure you'll like it just as much as my crew - it's delicious and so SO easy to put together!

Grab my recipe for stuffed peppers casserole, below. 

The Best NYC Teen Birthday Party Ideas

This is a sponsored guest post by Party Bus NYC

Planning a birthday party seems like something that should get easier as your child gets older, but unfortunately that's rarely the case! When kids are as young as toddlers, it's easy to pick an activity that can entertain the entire crowd. When they start reaching the tween and adolescent age, it becomes quite apparent that you're not up to date on all of the latest trends and interests of the cool crowd. This can make it a lot harder to plan a celebration that everybody can enjoy, however, it's definitely not an impossible task.

Read on for more on how to plan the perfect party for your teen, in NYC.

Taste-Safe Banana Pudding Minions Play Dough Recipe - Just Two Simple Ingredients + It Smells AMAZING!

This taste-safe banana pudding Minions play dough recipe smells AMAZING. My two little ones absolutely adore playing and creating with it, and the DIY Minions storage containers only add to the fun! It only requires two simple ingredients, and for those of you who have curious toddlers - it's completely taste-test safe.

Hi friends, how have you been? The summer seems to have gone by in a blink! As we wind down, and get ready for a new school year, I'm reaching into my bag of tricks to keep everyone busy and occupied during these last few lazy days. We hit the movie theater with the kids a few times this summer. While we loved all 3 movies that we saw this summer, I think it's safe to say that my kids all went completely crazy for Despicable Me 3! OK,truth? I kinda did too. We all completely agree that it was the very best movie in the Despicable Me movie trilogy! In celebration of our favorite summer movie, I put together this simple Taste-Safe Banana Pudding Minions Play Dough Recipe (because what do Minions love more than bananas?!)

Make your own Taste-Safe Banana Pudding Minions Play Dough with my recipe, below.

The Best Coding Programs For Kids + Special Discount Code!

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Generation Code. All opinions are 100% mine.

Coding. It's the way of the future, friends. Whether you're a tech aficionado or a novice, knowing how to program and navigate code is becoming all-the-more necessary these days; especially for our children. With all of the advancements in the tech world, job requirements are rapidly changing. Teaching your kids to code NOW, will definitely help them gain an upper hand in school, and in years to come in the job marketplace.

Coding is something that my oldest son really enjoys. He was introduced to Scratch in school, and he ran with it! It's become a bit more than a hobby at this point; he absolutely loves to code! Every child should start with Scratch (an MIT based online coding program that is FREE for kids). This program allows children to navigate simple coding concepts in a fun relatable way through animation and design. As children get a little older, teaching more advanced concepts in web development using HTML, JavaScript, and CSS, will be made easier when they've gleaned some of the fundamental basics with Scratch.

Generation Code is paving the way for kids that have an interest in computer coding and robotics, with their summer camps and year-round kids classes/programs. So, if you're in the NYC area (or in another select area of the country where they offer camps and classes ), you should definitely consider sending your kids for a week (or more!) this summer.

Read on for our exclusive 40% off discount code off 2017 NYC based Generation Code Summer Camp sessions, and more!

Top Family Friendly Spots To Stay, Play, and Dine In Daytona Beach, Florida

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of DaytonaBeach.com. All opinions are 100% mine.

This photo was taken almost 12 years ago. It's pretty surreal that it's been that long, friends! This is my oldest son, romping on the beautiful beach in Daytona, during his very first family vacation. I will never forget this vacation. It was low key, laid back, and lovely. Just lovely.  We slept late, played in the sand, dipped our toes in the beautiful ocean, and splashed in the pool. All day long, for 4 days straight. There was no pressure to navigate jam packed theme parks and attractions. Though when we did choose to venture out from our ocean front resort, there was an abundance of family friendly attractions to explore all around us.  This trip will forever stand out in my mind as fun and relaxation, in it's purest form.

This year, we're heading back to Daytona Beach, to recreate some of that magic and fun that we experienced all of those years ago, on our very first family vacation. Sure, our family may have changed and expanded over the years; we are a family of 6 now. But my friends, Daytona is still Daytona, and we can't wait!

Does a low key, laid back family vacation sound heavenly to you right about now? Check out our carefully curated list of  family friendly spots to stay, play and explore in Daytona Beach, below.

10 Months Strong #SisterhoodUnite

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Similac . All opinions are 100% mine.

This little cutie is 10 months old! Seriously, where does the time go, friends? 

Her pleasant easy going demeanor, gives way to giant belly laughs and frequent squeals of joy as she experience's all of the new things around her, each day. She alo babbles at us in length, complete with animated hand gestures (just liker her mama!)  At thi point, I think it's safe to say that she has each one of us securely wrapped around her pretty little finger; she knows it too!

Read on for the full article.