Sparkle Stories Blog

Build your own play tent, inspired by the Martin & Sylvia: Saturdays! story “The Tiny House.”

Prepare yourself for a classic s'more with a holiday twist. I've subbed the traditional graham crackers for gingerbread cookies and the usual plain chocolate for seasonal peppermint bark. When the warm gingerbread spices and the cool peppermint chocolate combine with the marshmallows, it tastes like Christmas is exploding in your mouth.

This week's craft project—a “bird nest” basket—is a lovely way to weave a basket out of materials you may find on your summer travels, whether around the world or just around your neighborhood. It's a family craft project, a useful object, and a souvenir—all in one!

Sending snacks to school can be so hard. I absolutely want to be supportive of my children's friends who have allergies, but that can get complicated fast when you're trying to provide a snack for 20 kids — many of whom have different sets of concerns. This snack mix is my answer to that problem!

This week's snack is a spring-themed riff on traditional s'mores — it's roasted strawberries covered with marshmallow fluff. When you cook the strawberries over a fire, the marshmallow caramelizes and the strawberry warms into a perfect balance of sweet, tart, gooeyness. You may like them more than traditional roasted marshmallows.

These DIY Explorer bags are quick to put together and you might just have most of the items hanging around your house already.