The Cottage on the Hill

I've mentioned before that my daughter is a VERY picky eater. She refuses fruits and vegetables 99% of the time to the point of rather going hungry than being subjected to eat them. It boggles my mind because when she was an older infant, she ate it all! I have a chart made for her hanging in the kitchen where she gets a sticker every time she eats something listed on it. It's a slow process. I also sneak fruits and veg in where I can, though she can usually tell. On top of it, I limit her intake of junk foods since she isn't getting the good foods. I'm trying to get her to ingest more vitamin-rich plant-based foods. She also needs to drink more water. She prefers milk and will refuse water. She'll drink juice, but commercial juices aren't exactly healthful. (I'm looking into a juicer.) My next idea is herbal teas. Of course, I'll make sure she only drinks teas that are suitable for children. She has recently become fond of tea parties, and...

Vintage Finnish Paper Dolls Paper dolls were one of my favorite toys as a child. I had a grocery bag filled with them! It was such a treat to go to the bookstore or department store and browse through the books of paper dolls. It was an even greater treat to go home with one and spend hours carefully cutting out every little garments and accessory. I love when the books included a nifty little pocket to keep everything in. Now that I have a daughter, the store shelves are devoid of paper doll books. Melissa and Doug toys have replaced them with their magnetic dress-up dolls, of which my daughter has one and likes it well enough. But, it is just not the same nostalgia. I search on Amazon.com comes up with paper dolls, though. If money is tight, or you just want to get your daughter started on paper dolls, you can print many out online. A google image search comes up with many paper doll sets you can print out. Some you can even color! Just as an aside, I know Mary Engelbreit...