Author

Brittany Baron

Brittany Baron

Gift Guides, Lifestyle

Essential Guide for Creating a Multi-Store Baby Registry

Congratulations! On the journey of preparing for parenthood setting up your baby registry is one of the incredibly fun milestone events. And lucky you, the days of multiple registries or committing to one big box children’s store are over. Here are the days where expecting parents can use a one-stop multi-store baby registry that pulls from large box stores AND support small and local businesses and makers (like us!).

Keep reading for our quick guide on how to choose a platform for your baby registry. If you are looking for a more detailed guide on what to add you your registry, check back for our soon to be published “Complete Baby Registry Guide”.

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Child Development, Education

The Importance of Developing Language Skills in a One-Year-Old

As parents, we want to give our children the best possible start in life. One of the most important ways to do this is by helping them develop strong language skills. Children who have strong language and communication skills are more likely to succeed in school, have better relationships with others, and have better job prospects later in life. And you don’t need to be a language expert, child development pro, or find magical extra hours in the day to make a lasting impact. Parenting is hard we are here to help make it feel a little so with practical tips, advice, and mom-of-four-tested best practices and research for your real life.

So, how can we help a one-year-old develop strong language skills? In this post, we will go over the practical and easy-to-apply tips to get you started.

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Child Development, Education, Gift Guides

Share your love of books this Valentine’s Day

Celebrating a day of love by sharing your love of books with the little ones in your life? Absolutely! Books are an easy answer to filling in your love-themed gift basket, an alternative to plastic toys and candy, and won’t end up in the trash in a week. Just a few reasons we love books as gifts.

As a former early literacy program director and mom of four, I’ve hand-picked our absolute favorite board books and picture books for celebrating love and kindness with babies, toddlers, and little kids. Check them out below!

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Child Development, Education, Lifestyle

Kid-friendly and Low-Mess DIY Christmas Ornaments

If you are looking to ditch the glitter and ideas that require a PhD in crafting, we’ve got you covered with these quick and easy, DIY holiday Christmas ornaments. And a big bonus, they just so happen to have mostly eco-friendly materials and are super affordable.

As a former toddler and preschool teacher and current mom to four, I have a tree filled with dozens of handmade ornaments, and the trip down memory lane unpacking the handmade ornaments is just such a calming parenting treat amid the holiday chaos. So let’s get busy!

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boy playing with trains
Child Development, Education

Understanding and Encouraging Open-Ended Play for Young Children 

There is no shortage of buzzword lingo for identifying the best way for young children to learn and play. Sensory play, creative play, and cooperative play are all important but here we are bringing it back to basics, open ended-play. Breaking down what exactly is open-ended play, what toys can be called open-ended, and clear actionable strategies to encourage open ended-play for young children.

And before I dive in, it’s no secret play, and hanging with my crew of kids is absolutely my jam. I often say my #1 parenting hack is simply finding a short window of time each day to connect and play with each one of them. It isn’t going to happen every day but I 100% see a MAJOR change in their moods and mine when we haven’t been prioritizing play together.

This wasn’t always the case, play didn’t come naturally to me as a mom despite years of formal training, working with hundreds of kids as a teacher and literacy program coordinator and teacher trainer. But we found our groove and here are my best tips and tricks!

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Rosa Parks
Supporting Women

13 amazing women who changed the world

Part of the Marley & Moose mission is about women empowering women. We also strongly believe in educating our own children, three boys, and a baby girl, about the important contributions of women in the world we live in, as well as the possibilities of the women of our future. As part of this, we want to acknowledge and celebrate the accomplishments of women throughout history. These 13 amazing women are just a small sample of the powerful females that have forever changed our world for the better.

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Lifestyle

6 Woman-Owned Children’s Brands To Support

Marley & Moose woman owned seal

At Marley & Moose, we understand the hustle and the incredible sense of community that comes from being a woman-owned business. We put that passion and commitment into action with brands and products that we have in our own home. While we stock a variety of heirloom-quality, eco-friendly clothing and toy brands that adhere to our early childhood development philosophies, we prioritize and strive to empower fellow woman-owned companies both in what we stock and in our community beyond the store. Currently, 70% of our brands are woman-owned and we are continually working to identify and partner with more women-owned companies. Below are just a few of our favorite woman-owned children’s brands doing amazing work.

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