DIY Projects to Make Life Happier Archives

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DIY Gift: Cookie Jar

December 21, 2022

A previous version of this post for DIY Cookie Jar was published in February 2013. We took new photos and adjusted the recipe. Valentine’s Day (and the week leading up to it) gives us a sweet excuse to make delicious treats. This DIY cookie jar is a perfect gift to hand out to your friends and loved ones. Although Fatima and I would love to hand out jars of MarquisRitas, we…

December 21, 2022 By Brian

Celebrations/ Christmas/ DIY/ Side Dishes

Chalkboard Ornament

December 5, 2022

A previous version of this post for DIY Chalkboard Ornament was published in December 2013. We took new photos and updated some of the written content. Here’s a thought, let’s make a chalkboard ornament! Take all that chalkboard paint you bought earlier this year and spray your ornaments. We got these ceramic ornaments from Michaels for about $1. Let them dry and write a message or draw a picture! This…

December 5, 2022 By Brian

Celebrations/ Christmas/ DIY/ Side Dishes

DIY Faux Gingerbread Houses

November 30, 2022

A few weeks ago, an Etsy ad jumped into my Pinterest feed pushing a faux gingerbread house to me. These weren’t just any old gingerbread houses. These were dollhouse-sized replicas of historical homes. They were gorgeous and way out of my price range. But they gave me an idea. Can I make these in real life? And then I saw a video of someone making faux gingerbread houses on Pinterest.…

November 30, 2022 By Brian

Celebrations/ DIY/ Family Fun/ Halloween/ Parenting/ Side Dishes

Boo Baskets

October 29, 2022

What are Boo Baskets, you ask? They’re like Easter Baskets. Instead of a ‘bunny’ delivering them, a ‘ghost’ delivers these baskets. Boo Baskets are just another excuse to fill something up with candy and goodies to give to kids. This year, I was feeling extra festive and wanted to send my nephews and niece some goodies for Halloween. Target’s Halloween pails were only $1 and we found a lot of…

October 29, 2022 By Brian

DIY/ Family Fun/ Halloween/ Parenting/ Side Dishes

Fall Crafts for Kids

October 21, 2022

After the success of our summer crafts for kids, I needed to continue arts and crafts for Liam, but themed for the fall and Halloween. Our son has been loving the arts and crafts sessions we do on weekends, school holidays, and rainy days. We get to practice cutting, gluing, taping, and working our imaginations. But my main goal is for these projects to be fun. Here are some of…

October 21, 2022 By Brian

DIY/ Family Fun/ Parenting/ Side Dishes

Six Summer Crafts for Kids

September 14, 2022

Liam loves arts and crafts. Throughout last year’s school year, he brought home so many crafts. We didn’t know what to do with all of them. So when camp ended a few weeks ago, we wanted his days between camp and the start of the new school year to remain structured. So in addition to reading his favorite books, writing in his workbooks, and three-thirty p.m. movies, I held art…

September 14, 2022 By Brian

DIY/ Family Fun/ Millennial and Parents/ Parenting/ Side Dishes

Gallery Wall for Preschool Artwork

September 7, 2022

We are a family who celebrates everything. The first time using the potty. The first time sleeping in your own bed all night. The first time sleeping in your own bed consistently at night. Your first art project. Fatima and I want our kids to be proud of themselves; to find that inner motivation to keep going. When Liam brought home his first art project from school, we hung it…

September 7, 2022 By Brian

Birthday/ DIY/ Family Fun/ Parenting/ Side Dishes

Liam’s Fourth Birthday: Spider-Man

June 28, 2022

When we asked Liam what he wanted to do for his birthday, he said he wanted to dress up as Spider-Man. Not just any Spider-Man, he wanted to be Miles Morales, aka ‘Spin’ from Spidey and His Amazing Friends. I loved that idea, so Fatima and I dove right into it. Lilies and Loafers has affiliate relationships, so we may get a small share of revenue from your purchases. Items…

June 28, 2022 By Brian

Birthday/ DIY/ Family Fun/ Parenting/ Side Dishes

Spider-Man Cake Toppers

June 18, 2022

For Liam’s fourth birthday, he wanted to be Spider-Man. Specifically calling out he wanted to be ‘Spin’ (aka Miles Morales) and that “daddy would be Spidey (aka Peter Parker). I told him that was a great idea, so we went all out. To theme the cake, I made these Spider-Man cake toppers. For his cake, I kept it basic. Liam wanted a vanilla cake with vanilla frosting. Boxed cake mix…

June 18, 2022 By Brian

DIY/ Parenting/ Side Dishes

DIY Pacifier Clips

February 23, 2022

Some of the most useful things for a parent with a baby are pacifier clips. With our first son, paci clips seemed to be everywhere. With our second kid, I can’t find them anywhere. A new season of our podcast, Millennial and Pregnant, just launched! That can only mean one thing…we had another baby! With the second kid, it’s not quite like riding a bike, but I was definitely mentally…

February 23, 2022 By Brian

Celebrations/ Christmas/ DIY

DIY Maui Map Ornament

December 24, 2021

It only took four years, but I finally got around to making a Maui map ornament! In 2017, my entire family flew out to Maui to celebrate my cousins’ wedding. It was the best two-week vacation we’ve had so far. Well, Cabo was also great… Around Christmas 2017, I started to work on the ornament. The original map I brought back with me was waterproof! It made sense for the…

December 24, 2021 By Brian

DIY/ Family Fun/ Millennial and Parents/ Our Home/ Parenting/ Side Dishes

DIY Play Kitchen Makeover

November 24, 2021

One of the bigger toys we gave to Liam is his play kitchen. It’s a cute model from Ikea; very Scandinavian and simple. He loves to make us food and especially loves to make me coffee in the morning. French vanilla, with milk and ice (although sometimes he surprises me with a dash of protein powder and corn). The setup is very simple and I love that the stove lights…

November 24, 2021 By Brian

DIY/ Side Dishes

DIY Kitchen Stool Helper

November 5, 2021

Our son has always been fascinated with how we make food. His favorite book, Stir Crack Whisk Bake, gets him involved in making cupcakes. From measuring to pouring to setting the timer, the book is very interactive. When he’s in the kitchen with us, Liam loves to help measure and then sets up the timer via Alexa. I love that he loves to participate, but he needed a more stable set…

November 5, 2021 By Brian

All Recipes/ Celebrations/ DIY/ Family Fun/ Halloween/ Parenting/ Side Dishes

Halloween 2021

October 31, 2021

I blinked and now it’s Halloween. This year’s Halloween costume goes underwater and focused on something that’s both mystical and haunting. The leaves are a little underwhelming this year, but there have been some great pockets of color in and around the city and the Hudson Valley. Last weekend, we hiked upstate to a farm we visted last year, DuBois Farms. They have THE BEST apple cider donuts. Yes, more…

October 31, 2021 By Brian

All Recipes/ Autumn/ DIY/ Family Fun/ Parenting/ Side Dishes

DIY Pumpkin Pillows

October 6, 2021

It would not be a proper fall on the blog unless there were two new posts: a fall dessert and a DIY project. The fall dessert is on the way, but here’s the DIY project. These DIY pumpkin pillows are inspired by Pottery Barn’s Halloween 2021 collection. Over the summer, Pottery Barn released their Halloween collection. Two pillows caught my eye: a ghost pillow and a jack-o-lantern pillow. I wavered…

October 6, 2021 By Brian

DIY/ Halloween/ Side Dishes

Corduroy: Halloween Costumes 2020

October 28, 2020

While Halloween this year will look a little different, we were not going to let it getaway. This year, we transformed our son into Corduroy and took some photos. Corduroy is a bear who once lived in the toy department of a big store. Day after day he waited with all the other animals and dolls for someone to come along and take him home. Corduroy, 1968 Fatima’s favorite book…

October 28, 2020 By Brian

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