We’ve always loved a dramatic before-and-after, and our recent renovations of century-old beach houses have only increased our appreciation for restoring old homes. There’s something thrilling about uncovering what’s hidden behind walls. When Mandy shared photos of the house she and her husband Joe renovated in Charlottesville, VA, we were instantly smitten. They named the … Read more

Last Tuesday we opened up a little bit about ourselves in this post about the real $herdog (yes, I’m still holding out hope that the nickname catches on) and John’s J-Boom version. The response was amazing: more than 1,200 supportive, funny, and encouraging comments, plus dozens of emails asking how we handle criticism and negative … Read more

Since our daughter started elementary school a few years ago, spring break has become a treasured chance to escape, spend quality time together, and enjoy some much-needed warm weather. Last year’s spring break in Cape Canaveral checked many boxes, and we almost repeated that trip this year. Instead, we challenged ourselves to explore a new … Read more

HEADS UP! Since our baby boy is due tomorrow, we’re spending some special family time with Clara today. Because of that, we’re sharing this week’s giveaway a little early and hope to check back in later this week (possibly Thursday) to introduce our little guy. Back to the giveaway: this week we’re sending $500 Target … Read more

I was surprised by how many questions I got about the little dollhouse sneak peeks I shared on Instagram Stories over the past few weeks while renovating these with the kids. After I polled you and 91% voted for a post, here it is. These two dollhouses came from Facebook Marketplace after the kids asked … Read more

First of all, thank you so much for the incredible outpouring of congratulations on our announcement yesterday. It was wonderful to share the news with you. We’ve been trying to keep up with the 3,000+ comments (seriously — thank you), so our afternoon post slipped a little. Sherry is copying questions from yesterday’s thread for … Read more

Our previous guides on Charleston with kids and Palm Springs with kids generated requests for more family-friendly travel ideas, so here’s a recap of our three-night trip to New Orleans. It was our first time visiting The Big Easy and we were pleasantly surprised by how welcoming and accessible the city felt for families. New … Read more

Q: Can you post about how you store all of your Christmas decorations? Since you rotate the ornaments on your tree each year and have a large tree and a smaller tabletop one as well as exterior decor and mantel stuff I wondered how much space it all takes up. I have an attic like … Read more

Have you ever been stuck in the bathroom? We have—more times than we care to count. Every spring and summer, higher humidity caused the door to swell slightly in the top left corner, making it difficult to open on the first pull. Or the second. Or the third. Usually it took some serious “door flapping”—grabbing … Read more

Ok, so I naively thought this day would never come, but I’ve been caught. I foolishly believed I could go through adulthood without this resurfacing 13 years later, but people remember and the internet is vast. After more than a few “Who, me? I don’t know what you’re talking about, haha” denials, I’m coming clean. … Read more