Wee Society

In honor of Talk Like a Pirate Day coming up on Sept. 19, we're channeling our inner buccaneers and finding a few ways to celebrate.

From the Wee Workshop this week, a free activity sheet encourages kids to add their own pirate-y words or pictures. Our advice? Think beyond "aaargh." Try "Avast, me beauty" or "Gleamin' gold booty" instead.

Dress the part, with a little help from Handmade Charlotte.

Plan a pirate party, with decorations like these washi tape pirate ships and a fun craft activity like these DIY hooks. Aye, aye, Cap'n.

Follow Wee Society on Pinterest for more pirate and non-pirate inspiration.

Wee Society is adding three new costumes to its DIY mask menagerie – just in time for Halloween parties and parades. 

This year, a dinosaur, unicorn and koala are joining last year's wildly popular fox, gorilla, owl and lion. The cute costumes are all super-easy and inexpensive to make. 

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If you haven't heard, it's Save the Koala month. So in honor of this furry friend, we've rounded up a few of our very favorite pins this week.

We're fascinated by paper art. And this origami koala is something we'd love to tackle. 

For your walls, a koala wearing a sweater, by Depeapa.

What's cuter than a kiwi koala? We probably won't make this, but we sure like to look at it.

We can't resist classic Charley Harper.

Koalas communicate with their own distinct "bellow," which sounds like a loud snore followed by a belch. Your kiddos will love trying it – and learn more marsupial factoids here. 

Download the latest free activity sheet from the Wee Workshop, featuring Kind Koala Kate. Your kids can illustrate just how she's really helpful – and talk about how they want to help out too.

Koala Kate also makes a pretty cute wall decal. And there are dozens more at art.com.

For more inspiration, follow Wee Society on Pinterest.

Head over to Gilt today through Sunday for never-before-offered deals on Wee Society art prints and wood blocks. The sale includes a selection of Wee Society art prints from art.com, our special Wee Alphas Limited Edition Screen Print, and the Wee You-Things Blocks (a Parent's Choice Gold Award winner). It's the perfect chance to stock up on gifts for all the babies and kids (or their design-minded parents) on your list.

In honor of Save the Koala Month (and of our very own Kind Koala Kate), we wanted to share five of our fave facts about these lovable marsupials.

1. That's right. Koala "bears" aren't bears at all. They're marsupials (meaning they carry their young in a pouch).

2. Koalas eat so much eucalyptus (about two and a half pounds of leaves a day), that they often smell like cough drops.

3. Koalas communicate with their own distinct "bellow," which sounds like a loud snore followed by a belch. (Your kids will love trying it.)

4. Like another familiar Aussie animal (the kangaroo), Koala young are called "joeys."

5. Koalas are mostly nocturnal – sleeping up to 18 hours at a time nestled in the nooks of trees.

Sources: National Geographic and Wild Travel Magazine

As parents of preschoolers, we're regularly reminding them to take turns, say "please" and "thank you," be good listeners, help each other, clean up their toys, don't bite … and so on.

We're pretty relentless. Because it's all related to what we consider one of our most important jobs as parents: How do we raise kind kids?

Considerate, generous people make the world better, of course. And studies show that people are happier and healthier when they're kind. Parents Magazine wrote that kids have an innate desire to help others – we just need to guide it, so that doing good becomes a lifelong habit.

Here are a few things we're trying at our house. 

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The Please and Thank You Book by Barbara Shook Hazen and Emilie Chollat

This classic Little Golden Book has been the best (and most fun) way to teach our preschoolers about kindness and good manners. "When Wanda Warthog comes over, beware! She leaves a trail everywhere ..." It's a collection of silly poems – featuring sharing bears, a helpful raccoon, rabbits who happily try new foods, and more. Yes, please!

We're planning a crafty weekend, inspired by some creative pins this week – starting with this DIY paper bear puppet. Check out a few more projects on our list.

A gorgeous DIY teepee makes the perfect reading spot.

This happy activity sheet helps kids show (instead of tell) what made them smile today.

After a coloring session, turn the kids' artwork into magnets.

A so-true statement about art. Our thoughts exactly.