Mike Adamick is a San Francisco Dad that we’ve known since his first grader was a baby. We featured her doing normal baby stuff for a day, and I still love that post. In addition to thoughtful essays, his blog is stuffed full of creative adventures, crafty projects, and homemade clothing that he makes for and with his daughter. So it is no surprise that he wrote a wicked cool book with more of the same (minus the fondness for Broadway shows).
I was lucky to receive an early copy of Dad’s Book of Awesome Projects: From Stilts and Super-Hero Capes to Tinker Boxes and Seesaws, 25+ Fun Do-It-Yourself Projects for Families, and it is all that and a bag of chips.
My husband and older sons took it away from me and flipped through the book before I could get started. Milo was the first to ask if we could make everything in it THIS WEEKEND. And so we started a few projects.
He had his eye on this balance board project (the second in the book) and took it upon himself to make it without help!
The results of his efforts were adorable but flawed since he used only cardboard.
Within 24 hours, RookieDad Alec had obtained the proper materials and made a real rolling wooden balance board and started the second project on our family wishlist, the Hidden Book Stash.
I can’t say enough good things about this book but I will try. Dad’s Book of Awesome Projects is a terrific collection of projects both realistic and ridiculous (with a strong leaning toward the realistic) that kids and parents will enjoy together. It would make a fun Father’s Day gift or just a “let’s see how much stuff we can do with this Summer Vacation” present. Buy it for someone you love along with the materials for circus stilts or a bow and arrow.
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I received a free copy of this book that my boys are working their way through. This review/love letter was not sponsored. (This post contains affiliate links.) Mike Adamick kicks ass in the best possible way.
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This is the second post in our series sponsored by Annie’s Homegrown.
When Julian started playing soccer, I suddenly understood why fast food is so dang popular with families in America. Working parents and afterschool activities combine in a way that makes the dinner production incredibly challenging. Now Scarlett is in gymnastics and Julian has a baseball schedule that makes walking in the door at 6 pm a frequent occurrence for us. Hence, I have my eyes wide open for fast and easy dinners that don’t include a side of fries. My kids won’t eat burgers anyway, so even if I drove by an In N Out on the way home from one of their sporting events, I’d be the only one who ordered something. (Seriously, what did I do wrong?)
Enter Pizza Night.
We do enjoy pizza as a family at many of our local, fancy pizza restaurants. Plain for the kids; potato, pesto, and pancetta for the adults. Something like that. But more often than not, we just want to get home, get them in the bath, and ready for bed. Often, I feel I deserve take out and don’t want to worry about how to make Indian or Thai food work for my picky eater. That’s when I look to the freezer.
It’s not June Cleaver-approved, but it makes me totally happy to have grown up take-out for the adults and Annie’s Frozen Pizza for the kids. That’s right, June. I make two separate meals. Actually I don’t even make them: I order one and heat up the other. It’s called modern family life. Get to know it.
This rising crust pizza bakes up in my beloved supersized toaster oven while I get out drinks and utensils and yell at people who need to take their cleats off before they come in the house. The crust is whole wheat and the cheese is made from milk that’s 100% hormone free. That is to say, it’s quality ingredients without any work on my part. Raw carrots and apple slices on the side and I’m done.
I’m a barbecue chicken pizza lover myself, but no one in my house will agree to that, so it’s Four Cheese for them.
Don’t miss Heather’s great lessons on easy roasted vegetables and other sides that make Pizza Night even healthier.
Thanks to Annie’s Homegrown for sponsoring this post — and if you’re hot to stock your freezer for easy dinners, click over to download a $1.50 coupon from them.
