Top 3 Mountain Hikes With Kids

While hikes with tykes require more work, strength, and determination, the reward outweighs it all!

Ka-Boom! The Science of Fireworks

Because fireworks are so common, it might be easy to overlook the hours upon hours of detailed, behind-the-scenes work needed to launch a dazzling display.

It’s More Than Just Hair Dye

Food for thought: When your kid wants to color their hair some shade of the rainbow, remember it's only hair, but it might be a whole lot more than just hair dye.

Connecting the Dots of Elderly Care

Born and raised in Montana, Avanlee developed the nationally available Avanlee app to fill a void that once existed in the world of caregiving.

#GirlDad

We're taking a deep dive into the importance of the father-daughter relationship. What does being a #girldad mean to you?

Bonding Through Babysitting

A dual perspective by a mom and teen babysitter on creating healthy, trusting, and lasting relationships between babysitter and family.

Discovering Laura’s “Little Town on the Prairie”

Far across the windswept plains and prairies of eastern Montana and South Dakota lies the tiny town of De Smet, the setting of the second half of Laura Ingalls Wilder’s “Little House” books.

The Growth Process

You can't always see progress while it's in process. My brain works by creating word pictures, analogies, and metaphors. I can find a theme in everything, and everything becomes a teaching topic. Bota...

Walt Disney World: Where Dreams Come True

When planning a trip to the most magical place on Earth, who better to take advice from than Walt Disney himself? “First, think. Second, dream. Third, believe. And finally, dare.” ~Walt Disney

2021 Simply Amazing Teen: Sophia Bohl

Meet 2021's Simply Amazing Teen, Sophia Bohl. Competitive, determined, hard-working and extremely deserving.

Life After High School: What's Next?

There is more than one path to take after high school, what's next for you?

Scents of Spring

The next time you decide to stop and smell the roses, you'll know the hows and whys of a flower's scent!

Rediscovering Wise Wonders

In April 2021 Wise Wonders Science and Discovery Museum reopened its doors for the first time since the pandemic-caused shutdown in 2020. The museum used the year for expansion, growth, and new ideas!...

Mountain Biking: The Hottest Growing Outdoor Adventure

The popularity of mountain biking has been growing across the country in recent years, and so too has its prominence in Billings.

A Stellar Camp Experience

Exploring all that Montana Learning Center has to offer your camper this summer!

2021 Summer Camps & Activities Guide

It's here! It's time to start planning for your Best Summer Ever!

No Party? No Problem

We're looking beyond the party with these non-party celebration ideas!

Ask the Author: 'What’s Missing Is You'

Chelsie Kerns, author of 'What’s Missing is You: A Creatively Happy Place to Journal and Document One of the Worst Times of Your Life' has created a guided workbook to help children in the aftermath o...

Showcasing the Treasure State’s Young Scientists

The MSU-B Science Expo's connecting of young scientists with scientific professionals in the community is one of the event's highlights, says Dr. Daniel Willems.

Social & Emotional Preparation for Preschoolers

Filling our littles' social and emotional toolbox.

Breaking the Non-Verbal Barrier with Baby Sign

When our littles are pre-verbal or are operating at the beginning stages of their vocabulary, frustration can easily set in as little and parent struggle to communicate. Enter baby sign language as an...

Preschoolers: Honest, Innocent, and Oh-So-Curious

Musings of Billings-area 2020-'21 preschoolers. (They are as precious as you might have imagined).

3 Powerful Components to Healthy Relationships

"What does love look like in a healthy relationship?" Therapist, Gwen Felten, explores that question in this piece.

Circling Up Over Math

Go behind the scenes with MSUB's Math Circle - a place that helps students to see math from a different angle while being creative and seeing how it connects with different games and puzzles.

Life Below the Freezing Point

Ever wonder what's happening beneath the frozen surfaces during winter? Like, where did everybody go? Turns out, not far.

The Gift of Community

Motherhood can be lonely, even though moms are almost never alone. The camaraderie of other moms is the perfect medicine to make it through the hard days.

Four O Six Nannies: Connecting Montana Families with the Care they Need

How does a Montana parent locate a passionate, reliable, honest, carefully-vetted person to watch their kids? This is where your Big Sky neighbor, Karissa Erickson of Four O Six Nannies, comes into pl...

Hindsight is 2020

Though 2020 might have come through like a wrecking ball, there were some changes that were ultimately for the better; hindsight is 20/20, after all.

Essential Life Skills at Every Age & Stage

There are lessons to be learned in every age and stage, skills to be taught that will ultimately prepare our precious beings for life out in the world. Along the way, before they leave the nest, these...

Filling the Emotional Toolbox

Model >>> Engage >>> Exercise Independence

Christmas Wreath Lane Celebrates 60 Years

Though neighbors have come and gone, Christmas Wreath Lane has managed to shine bright for 60 years.

Ask the Author: 'Jelly Bean Dean'

When Tracy Stanaway's mother Jerrine (nicknamed Jelly Bean Dean) passed away in 2019, she was inspired to write a book centered on her mother's beloved nickname.

Advent Traditions

Imagine a December filled with slow. With heart-awakening activity. A December whose gentle, beckoning winds invite us to beauty and majesty that enrich our days.
Consider a long-observed Christmas...

10 Ways to Celebrate the Holidays Old School

As if you were stepping right out of a Hallmark movie, check out these ideas for celebrating the holidays old school!

Creating Christmas at Every Stage

Let’s journey our way through a few of life’s stages and look at how to create – not perfect – but memorable, perfectly imperfect Christmas experiences at every stage along the way.

Our Brains on Nature

Taking care of your mental health, particularly when this season might feel less than merry, is critical. Scientists, physicians, and therapists know that repeated stress can...

Science at Home

As record numbers of families turn to home school and distance learning this year, many parents and caregivers are working their way up the steep learning curve of teaching around the kitchen table. S...

The Comfort of Care Close to Home

A look at how having a pediatric orthopedic surgeon in our community has made a difference to one local family.

Youth Empowerment Program

With resources of all kinds seeking to fill the gaps in times of difficulty, the Youth Empowerment Program strives to help young people participate in the things that they love most.

Keeping Schools Safe

During the pandemic it's become glaringly apparent that schools are not just a place for academics. Schools provide students a place that supports mental, physical, and emotional health, which is at t...

The Loneliness Epidemic: 3 Ways to Stay Connected

"Social isolation is as deadly as smoking 15 cigarettes a day." As coined by researchers, this "Loneliness Epidemic" can be even more deadly than the pandemic that continues to dominate our lives, 8 m...

Once Upon a Dream: Boxdrop Billings

Once upon a dream...Let Boxdrop Billings help you find the mattress that will deliver you to the sweetest of dreams!

Taking the Creepy Out of the Crawlies

Around this time of year, spiders start making their often unwelcome appearance inside as the weather turns cooler. But before you reach for the shoe, it’s important to know how beneficial these anima...

5 Halloween Celebration Ideas

Here are 5 ideas to make this the BEST Halloween yet, pandemic and all!

Family Themed Costumes

Fun family-themed costume ideas for Halloween!

Bittersweet

Allowing "sweet" to coexist in the face of "bitter."

Teens and their BIG Emotions

The teen years are brimming with ALL the emotions, so let's talk tips for helping parents understand them AND help their teen handle all of the BIG emotions.

Can You Be-Leaf these Colors?

It’s arguably one of the best offerings of fall: tree branches exploding with color in the delightfully crisp air. But why do leaves change color this time of year? We all know that it happens, but wh...

My Baby and a Backpack

A mom's thoughts on sending her "baby" to school.

Grace Drenched Words

Our words have more power than that little sticks and stones rhyme gives credit. Words can be world wreckers or healing balm.

Making Room for ALL the Emotions

2020 has been a dumpster fire rolling down a hill towards a cliff with a lake of acid at the bottom. If you are tired all the time, feeling more physical pain, crying more easily, or finding yourself...

21st Century Play at the Billings YMCA

The Billings Family YMCA, one of the largest youth programming providers in Yellowstone County, recently completed an extensive renovation project on the Mary Alice Fortin Youth Center

The Truth About Transitions

As another school year begins and many young children (and their parents or guardians) face significant transitions, here are some tools and resources that may help you and your little navigate what c...

5 Expert Tips for a Safe Return to School

As plans are finalized (in flux) for the return to school, there are things families can be doing to ensure a safe return to school.

Adapting Education Amid a Pandemic

The last three months of the 2019-’20 school year were like none other that we’ve experienced before, and Billings Catholic Schools adapted well amid the upheaval.

Transformation Traction

Here are 5 D's to help you get Transformation Traction in reaching goals!

The Truth About Free-Range Parenting

When you hear the term "free-range parenting," perhaps images of children running around sans rules, boundaries, and discipline run through your head. The truth is, it's more of a middle ground, find...

Camping with Littles

Camping with littles? Don't do it. Ha! I'm just kidding...
All jokes aside, camping with toddlers is work. Without a game plan, they will take your cake, eat it, and throw the crumbs in your face.

What the Devil? The Secret Behind Devils Tower

Established as the nation's first national monument in 1906, Devils Tower's origins have long intrigued geologists, Native Americans, and casual visitors alike. To this day, despite so much study and...

STEAM Spotlight: Ringing Rocks

Up a rough and rocky road off I-90 about 18 miles east of Butte, a fascinating discovery awaits those willing to make the often-treacherous drive. Rising from a small dusty parking lot is a roughly 12...

Born to Move

We are born to move, let's talk ways to not only encourage that natural inclination in our children, but to reignite it across our whole family.

Adventure in the Magic City

Adventure awaits in our own backyard! Discover Billings' best trails.

Labor, Delivery & COVID-19

Labor, Delivery & COVID-19: Giving birth during a global pandemic

Grief and All Its Friends

While we're collectively sharing in the experience of living through this global pandemic, there are variations to everyone's experience and the things and the ways they are grieving.

Love Stays

LOVE STAYS.
What is love? And stay where? In what?

The Class of 2020

The parent/student perspective about what it's like to be the class of 2020.

Grace and Growth Through Distance Learning

Our kids have been thrown into an unexpected way of schooling as a result of this global pandemic, so allow for some grace as we all continue to adapt to distance learning.

What Your Teenage Daughter Needs Most from You

Perspective: what your teen-aged daughter needs from you during these tumultuous years.

Adopting a Rabbit? Things to Consider

With Easter just around the corner, Billings Animal Family Hospital knows that families might be considering adding a certain long-eared, fluffy pet to their broods. Before committing to adding a rabb...

Emotional Prep for Summer Camp

Tips for emotionally preparing your camper for their first sleepaway camp adventure.

STEAM Spotlight: A Snowflake’s Journey

We all know that a snowflake is as unique as a fingerprint, but did you ever wonder what happens along the way to make it so?

DIY: Birds Nest Photo Holder

A little birdie told me you absolutely need to add this DIY to your to-do list this spring!

Birthday Celebration Trend: Fiver Parties

Fiver Parties are a growing trend in the kids' birthday party scene. Is it right for your kiddo? Let's find out!

The Little Things: Let’s Celebrate ‘em

In life there are the bankable celebrations - the things we will celebrate Every Single Time - but what about the everyday? Here's to the little things, let's celebrate 'em.

Preschool Guide | 2020

Don't miss out on finding the right preschool for your child. It is already time to register for next school year!

Best Beginnings of Yellowstone County

The early days of parenting can feel fairly isolating and overwhelming, and Best Beginnings partners aim to build a bridge to expecting and new parents.

Date Your Mate

When it comes to dating your mate, it’s not about how much money you spend or how fancy it is. It’s about the time, attention, reconnection; the little things like holding the doors and holding hands....

Lovestruck Valentine Earrings

Nothing says “I Love You” like super cute jewelry! This is the perfect DIY for yourself, your daughter, friend, or significant other this Valentine’s Day.

More than a Stage

There is a view of mental health and emotions as being completely separate from our physical experience of the world. NONE of the newest research and treatment backs up that view. Our emotional and ph...

Behind the Social Media Smokescreen

Behind every #blessed there is a life being lived that goes far beyond what is shared on social media.
And that's okay.

Delicious Delivery

Life is busy, find out for yourself why it might just be worth it to hire local grocery and food delivery services.

Battling the Busy

The phrase "culture of busyness" turns up dozens of results on a Google search, with most articles explaining why none of us are really happy with our harried lifestyles. Like a hamster on a wheel, we...