The next time your family is making a beeline toward the video game department of a toy store, try taking a detour into the board game section. You’ll find plenty of old favorites and new variations. Along with the simpler luck-of-the-dice racing games for younger children, there are complex scenario strategy games for older kids and teens.
Holiday gift lists grow as our families do, thanks to the teachers, coaches, choir directors, dance instructors, bus drivers and others who enrich our children’s lives. What do they really want?
Great costume ideas for those parents who want to put their own touch on a special outfit.
If Johnny Appleseed would love North Carolina! Our state has an abundance of fresh farm apples to pick this fall, so take advantage of it. Try any of these fun activities or recipes to make the most of the season.
It’s fun to find creative ways to show our kids we love them. Here are some ideas for sharing the love on Feb. 14 — and all through the year.
Our resident dad shares why he loves Halloween and how parents can help get everyone in the spirit.
Did you know? Halloween is the most dangerous day of the year for children under 14 to walk? Children are four times more likely to be killed while walking on Halloween than any other night of the year.
Even if you can only spare a weekend away or a simple dinner-and-a-movie night out, a brief parental "time out" might be just the thing to clear your mind and revitalize your relationship, which is good for the entire family.
Special costumes can be made at home with a little elbow grease and ingenuity. Read about how it can be done and find resources brimming with great ideas.
Whether it’s super scary or just plain silly, your Halloween Haunt will be a hit with these quick and easy party tips.
If you haven’t introduced your child to celebrating the global day that is set aside for appreciating the environment, there is no better time than the present to start.
My father, a dentist, refused to give candy on Halloween night. He suggested apples; my mother managed to talk him down to popcorn. Still our house was only slightly more popular than that of the missionary family that dropped Bible tracts into the outstretched hands of costumed kids.
Farmers’ market outings are fun (and educational) for kids
Our Diva Mom lets dads know what it is moms really want for Mother's Day.
My sons, ages 3 and 5 years, have 57 dinosaurs, 24 action heroes and 214 army men. They also have an amazing collection of 47 ketchup packets, just to prove it’s not the cost that counts. Before you convict me of attempted-spoiling, I’ll ask you to count up your children’s favorite toys. After that, consider that all these items (never mind the ketchup) were purchased by well-meaning aunts, uncles, friends and grandmas.
A step-by-step guide for dads and kids to make the perfect breakfast in bed for Mom on Mother's Day.
Crisp mountain air, luminaries, carolers performing on the street corner and the whistle of a steam locomotive set the stage for an memorable holiday weekend in Dillsboro, N.C. Just down the road, the Balsam Inn welcomes you with a blazing fire, hot cider and comfortable rooms. Only 2.5 hours from Charlotte, you’ll feel a thousand miles away and decades in the past.
Learn about cooking outdoors over the campfire and try out these two new recipes.
Great recipes and ideas for fun in the kitchen during the Thanksgiving holiday.
To spend the holidays at the Biltmore Estate in Asheville is to step back in time. The sights, the sounds, the smells all are reminiscent of the Gilded Age at the turn of the century. Each year, the Biltmore House is richly decorated in the holiday traditions set by George W. Vanderbilt, who first welcomed friends and family to his country retreat on Christmas Eve 1895. The bright tapestry of Christmas colors complement the rich oak paneling and European furnishings of the home.
A list of fun, family ideas and activities in the month of June for $10 and under.
Holidays can be tough on any family, but especially a blended family. Learn how to make it a happy one for everyone involved.
A look at this year's best books, toys, videos and kids games, courtesy of NAPPA.
From late November through the Christmas season, visitors to Blowing Rock, N.C. and Chetola Resort will feel as if they have stepped into a fairy tale.
