Places to Go - Christmas in Washington D.C. - Trains at the Botanic Gardens & "Wondering" through Smithsonian's Renwick Gallery of Art

WONDER

I'm probably the last DC blogger to post on this, but F, T, and I FINALLY made it to the Smithsonian's Renwick Gallery to check out Wonder and we all were in complete awe. T literally gasped each time we entered a room, then exclaimed, "wow, look at this!" Let's keep in mind that T is 6. And a boy. And he didn't want to leave an ART MUSEUM. That alone is crazy impressive.

The FREE!! exhibit runs through July and is (literally) amazing. Click here for more info.





Bugs = Art, T was enthralled.









After the exhibit, we ran into a demonstration about the persecution of Ethiopia's Oromo people. Sad stuff, but also great to be in a city where you can educate yourself about the world's problems just by walking down the street.
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TRAINS AT THE BOTANIC GARDENS

Last week, the kids had an early release day from school, so I decided to take seven children to the Botanic Gardens to check out this year's seasonal train exhibit. I like to think that I'm capable of great feats, but seven children might have been overplaying my hand. Oh well, each and every child loved the trains and had fun collecting the scavenger hunt stamps located throughout the building. Perhaps a little too much fun as they ran from room to room. But oh well, its hard to stay home when this crazy warm weather begs one to explore.

How about everyone else? How have you been holiday-ing lately?

Things to Do - Cherish This Day & Random Links

We're still having a crazy warm almost-winter; it's supposed to be 69 degrees this Saturday. Have a great weekend everyone, whatever the weather! And don't forget to check out this week's awesome on Cherish This Day.

RANDOM LINKS:

* The 18 best books of 2015.

* I became a famous artist at the age of 94. I love this story.

* The 50 best albums of 2015. I love the Chvrches and Sufjan Stevens' albums, can't wait to peruse the rest.

* Simon Stalengag. Wow.

* 10 famous films (and film series) that fail the Bechdel test.

* 48 things that women hear in a lifetime (that men just don't). So this made me cry. (I seem to be on a feminist kick lately, I think it's the girls getting older and thinking to myself, "um, there has to be a better world coming, there just has to.").

* If I was rich, this is how I'd dress (though who am I kidding? I'd probably just buy more pajamas).

* Fundamentally awesome frames. I really want one of these.

* A cause worth donating to.

Things to Do - No Monsters 2015 "Sort-of" Toy Gift Guide (And A Give Away!!!! - NOW CLOSED!)

I've never done a gift guide before, as I have a love/hate relationship with the whole concept. On one hand, gift guides are such an in-you-face celebration of consumerism and the need to find new things to buy that you didn't even know you wanted (really, is it necessary to buy things you didn't even know you wanted?). On the other hand, well, they're fun. And pretty.

Now that the kids are growing past the toy stage, it's sort of fun and look back at which toys really stood the test of time and which were forgotten almost as soon as the wrapping paper came off.

So if you're looking for some ideas for you kid/niece/neighbor/etc. here are things that we've loved through the years and that, on cold boring days, I'll still find older kids re-exploring.



T's Favorite Toys; ages 3.5-6

1. Everything but the Dalmation Firehouse. Every time I suggest that (after 2 years) we finally move this out of the living room, T says no.

2. Magformers XL Cruisers Car Set (Colors may vary). For two years, T couldn't stop playing with these. So. many. cars.

3. Army Men Action Figures -soldiers of WWII- Big Bucket of Army Soldiers - Over 200 Piece Set. We take these on vacation with us, within seconds any hotel room can become a combat zone.

4. Wooden Play Cutlass - Made in USA We have a house full of toy weapons (yes, I'm THAT mom), I think this one is my favorite because it's tough enough for little boys but cute enough for sappy moms.

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The Girls' Favorite Toys; ages 6-10

5. Pogo Stick. They continue to bounce. All of them. Year after year.

6. All Natural Spa Lab The spa lab was a huge Xmas success two years ago, since then we've mostly moved onto our own recipes (love the book - Homemade Beauty: 150 Simple Beauty Recipes Made from All-Natural Ingredients), but it all started with this kit.

7. Flip Fashion I love this book, everyone loves this book. It's pretty. And fun. And good for any age who is old enough not to try to eat the pages.

8. Spalding NBA Street Basketball Give a girl (even a girly girl) a basketball and she'll love you for life. Skateboards work too.



Everyone's Favorite Toys; ages 3-10

9. MagnaTiles. We've had these for 8 or so years now and the kids still play with them.

10. Just Dance 2016. I think everyone is sick of Just Dance, but if you have a house of bored kids, it works. Year after year.

11. Gravity Maze. We've played with this often since last Christmas, the challenges are fun to solve as a team. And it's crazy to see all the different ways you can put the parts together.

12. Toroflux - Kinetic Spring Toy. It is impossible not to love this toy/gadget/doodad. Plus it feels like a massage on your arm.

13. LED Foam Stick Baton Supreme. Cheap. Easy. Fun. for these long winter days. So much better than glowsticks.

14. Blutrack 25' Track Set. T received this as a birthday present 3 (4?) years ago and it is still going strong. The kids like to loop it over chairs, tables, stairs, boxes, etc. to make different racetracks. We've even brought it on vacation a few times. It's seriously one of those gifts that just keeps giving.

AS AN EXTRA HOLIDAY TREAT, THINKFUN WILL GIVEAWAY ONE GRAVITY MAZE GAME TO A NO MONSTERS READER!! (US addresses only). To enter please comment on this post, with your name and email address. Don't forget to write your email in the text of the message (so I can find you). A random winner will be chosen next Monday (December 14).

THE GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED AND A RANDOM WINNER HAS BEEN CHOSEN! THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO ENTERED!!!

Things to Eat - 5 Week Meal Plan

I have to say, making these meal plans (sometimes weeks in advance) has made life so much easier. I used to spend every Monday going through cookbooks and blogs, trying to find something new and interesting; whereas now I plan when I feel like planning. Or whenever a good recipe pops up on my facebook feed. All that being said, I am not a food photographer, my photos of salads are somewhat unappetizing. So this month, I'm switching to a photo of family dinner because I'm better at photographing people than food. HAPPY MONDAY EVERYONE!

WEEK 1

MONDAY - Bimibap bowls (via Clean Eating). We all love these (even the-impossible to-please T).

TUESDAY - Leftovers from the weekend.

WEDNESDAY - Middle eastern spiced squash and bean stew (via Sprouted Kitchen). This was shockingly good. Everyone loved it, which is somewhat miraculous considering the lack of meat and the addition of squash. Even Dan called it a keeper recipe.

THURSDAY - Dinner at Tupelo Honey with Alison. The kids have perogies and peas.

FRIDAY - Pizza at laser tag for P's birthday party.

WEEK 2

MONDAY - Cabbage in apple cider with meatballs (via Tracy Anderson) with kale chips. The meatballs were good (and super healthy) but something was missing; they need a flavor burst of some sort.

TUESDAY - Slow cooker curry pork (via the kitchn). Good but greasy, I have to become better at trimming the fat.

WEDNESDAY - Dan makes a venison roast for P's birthday dinner; with mashed potatoes. So so good.

THURSDAY - Red pepper and cauliflower chowder (via Food 52) with mac and cheese for the kids. Tomato/lentil/mustard salad on the side. The soup tasted sort of like velveeta cheese. Um, yeah. The tomato and lentil salad (as always) was completely addictive.

FRIDAY - Leftovers with brussels sprouts/bacon/apples.

SATURDAY - Lyon Hall for dinner with friends.

SUNDAY - Dan roasts a chicken; with rice and peas as sides.

WEEK 3

MONDAY - 3 day juice cleanse. Dan and the kids eat pizza.

TUESDAY - 3 day juice cleanse. Dan and the kids eat perogies and peas.

WEDNESDAY - 3 day juice cleanse. Dan and the kids eat spaghetti.

THURSDAY - Friends for dinner - Flank steak with chimichuri sauce; brussels sprouts with bacon and apples; roasted red potatoes. The perfect fall meal.

FRIDAY - Warm squash and chickpea salad with tahini (via Food 52) and left over steak. This salad was good but a little bland, though since it was super easy to make I still consider the dish a success.

SATURDAY - Rose's Luxury for Shannon's b-day.

SUNDAY - Leftovers from Saturday night; the girls have ramen.

WEEK 4

MONDAY - Slow cooker choucroute (via Food 52) with cannelli beans with bacon and spinach as a side (via The Splendid Table). Everyone liked this meal, but I need a better source for smoked sausage, because I sort of felt like we were eating hot dogs with cabbage.

TUESDAY - Taco Tuesday (we used venison instead of ground beef, which was yummy and lean).

WEDNESDAY - Just me (the kids and Dan already left for Thanksgiving), so an easy salad.

THURSDAY - Thanksgiving at Dan's parent's house.

FRIDAY - Richmond with Dan's parents.

SATURDAY - Taylor Gourment take out.

SUNDAY - Dan makes venison and sausage spaghetti.

WEEK 5

MONDAY - Sausage, cannellini bean, and tomato ragout(via Cooking Light). I sort of cheated on this one, using the leftover spaghetti sauce and adding beans (I love beans).

TUESDAY - Slow cooker chicken burrito bowls (via the kitchn). I overcooked the rice, but still I love this recipe, super easy and everyone likes it.

WEDNESDAY - Kale and brussels slaw with quinoa (via Sprouted Kitchen). Sprouted Kitchen has the best salad recipes, this one was so good I couldn't stop eating it.

THURSDAY- Papa Johns pizza for school fundraiser. I almost forgot how awful Papa John's pizza is. Now I remember.

FRIDAY - Playgroup at Kelly's house; she makes wonderful chicken soup for dinner.

SATURDAY - Atila's take out as we're cleaning the house for Game Night!.

SUNDAY - Perogies and left over hummus with veggies.

Things to Do - Cherish This Day & Random Links

It's crazy, but the weather continues to be warm into December. No snow in sight, which makes it hard to believe Christmas is just around the corner.

HAPPY WEEKEND EVERYONE!! Don't forget to check out this week's awesome over at Cherish This Day.

RANDOM LINKS:

* The 25 best inventions of 2015.

* One jar of kimchi, five dinners.

* Native American inspired Thanksgiving dishes. YUM!!!

* I might get one of these posters for T. Aren't they perfect for kids who love superheroes? Such a great idea (and they're pretty too).

* "I will continue to shoo because I love them. And because I can’t stand the thought of my kids growing up without a sense of freedom, without a sense of being in their bodies as they clamber over rock forts and fall out of trees and make good and bad choices that have nothing to do with me. . . . I lived a whole life that my mother didn’t even know about, and I want that for them. A life. And some scars."(read the whole article here).

* 10 shows to catch up on over the holiday season.

* Read a book from every country in the world.

* I really want these pants.

* A dream house for photographers? I would live here.

* The most popular baby names of 2015.

* Seriously, how pretty are these soaps?

* The double standard of YA lit. Read this and think about it. Then think about adult lit too. Get angry.

* The best salted caramel popcorn recipe ever. I'm intrigued.

* Crunchy thai salad in a jar. Yum. (scroll down the recipe is at the bottom of the post).

* I'm completely enamored with KidFriendly DC's gift guide. So many great ideas!

* 27 inspiring portraits of artists in their creative zone.

* Meet the 46 U.S. Senators who voted against common sense gun control.