Kid project: Snowman

With over 15" of snow (in a single blizzard!), you learn to make the most of wintertime in Wisconsin. Our snowmen do double duty by feeding the birds with a popcorn string and birdseed in a bucket!

Celebrations: Decorating the tree

Let's face it: We all want special Christmas memories, but at the same time, the holiday can get overwhelming (especially for busy moms). My strategy? Make the most of the stuff you've got to do anyway, like decorating the tree.

Instead of decorating it myself, we have gotten into the (lovely!) habit of inviting Grandma and Grandpa over to help. We have a simple dinner or some snacks, put on some holiday music, and trim the tree together. (I have the lights already done, of course!) I think the kids like feeling a part of making the tree beautiful, and it puts everyone in a good mood. Plus, I don't get stuck doing all the holiday decorating by myself.

This year, our tree is quite plain, because I'm keeping all my breakable ornaments safe from Nik. Instead, Annabelle hung some ornaments she'd made, I got out all my unbreakable things, and we strung popcorn. (A fun project for me and Anna one afternoon! We made an extra string to hang outside for the birds!) Nik thinks the popcorn strings are the best - - he caught on right away that they were edible.

Find! Affordable holiday gifts

A reminder that "Annabelle's Garden" is ready for the holidays! The Red Rooster in Milton has beautiful home decor and gifts, and the booths in the basement feature very nice antiques and secondhand steals.

Celebration: 1st birthday

You're never too young for a theme party, right? Nik looked exactly the part in his Charlie Brown shirt and eyeliner hair squiggle. He didn't mind looking a bit silly, as long as there were snoopy cupcakes!

Celebrations: Halloween fun!

I got out the sewing machine this year, since Annabelle wanted a "red princess dress" and I wasn't impressed with the overpriced, cheaply-made disney knock-offs in the stores. (Of course I later found a quite nice, affordable dress at Target that would have been perfect.) This dress photographed beautifully, but honestly, it is cobbled together in a most amateur fashion. I can sew, and I actually enjoy it. But I am not truly good at it.

Because his sister decided on "princess," (and because he's too little to object!), Nikolas got to be a frog this year. I found this adorable, warm costume at my favorite kids consignment shop. I swear, they had a more charming selection (and much better prices!) than firsthand retailers!

Kid project: Googly eyes

Don't underestimate the power of googly eyes!

No matter what the craft project, or the time of year, I've found a $1.29 bag of these little craft supplies will keep my daughter occupied like nothing else. Our latest project was pumpkins. I bought some pre-cut pumpkin shapes (out of foamies) and some pink glitter glue that she really wanted. When we got home, I got out the googly eyes, some markers and a few other supplies. She happily decorated pumpkins for over an hour. I even had to cut more circles for her when she ran out of the pre-cut ones!