Our first batch of birdhouse nightlights will soon be on Etsy, but first, we’re giving away three of ’em—an $85-100 value (each). (Since the prototypes for these prizes adorn my precious daughter’s walls, I consider “priceless” a more accurate valuation.) Here’s the thing about this sweepstakes: Hammer & Moxie is new. Our families read it. Unfortunately for […]
We were going to send you all a gift. It was on our list. But life got busy, and time got away. So a hammer with some pipe cleaners is all we could muster: Merry Christmas to you and yours. We hope it’s filled with much joy!
I made a Christmas wreath. In October. (I didn’t say it was a good idea.) We were prepping our rental house for sale a couple months ago and had to trim yews and holly trees away from the house. I hated for all those beautiful greens to go to waste, and I didn’t have a project in the works, […]
Pregnancy is not my jam. I’ve never been pregnant, but I once spent ten months with a pregnant woman. Pregnancy was most definitely not Leslie’s jam, but by some biological/psychological miracle, her enthusiasm swelled along with her ankles. She read aloud each Baby Center update: “It’s the size of a poppy seed!” “A kumquat!” And […]
It’s harder than you might think to name a child. We had plenty of time—9 months to be exact—to name Hannah, but it wasn’t until about four hours after her birth that we chose her name. A name defines a person, and it sticks with them for the rest of their life. You don’t yet know this […]
A few years ago Leslie asked if we could replace the stodgy-looking brass chandelier in our dining room. Lucky for her (me?), she filed her request during my Christmas break. I’d never made a chandelier, so I exhausted an entire day researching and hunting down lamp parts online. When Leslie returned from work, she found […]
Each fall, our neighborhood hosts a mass, coordinated garage sale. For one day, fifty-plus families throw their garbage in the yard instead of the dumpster, and people pay them for the opportunity to haul it away. We’ve become garage sale connoisseurs since Hannah came along, because children’s toys a) cost a fortune and b) should […]
It was a year ago today that this happened: Being a parent is the craziest thing. Never have I loved/hated something so much in my life. Having a baby absolutely ruins your life (your freedom, your spontaneity, your sleep, your showers, your meals, your everything), and there is no option to take it back. And here’s […]
We love October in Missouri. The air is crisp, but not too cold. The trees are turning the most beautiful browns, reds and golds. It’s the perfect time to be outdoors. We do our best to be outside as much as possible in October. It. Is. Wonderful. One of the best weekends in October is Applebutter Weekend. Every […]
There’s never enough money. Our dreams are fatter than our wallets. It’s easy to overextend—to throw a few extra bucks on the credit card—when embarking on a project. Here are a few quick tips that help us keep our budget in check: 1. Make automatic transfers to a home improvement savings account We have a savings account designated for […]
