A box train got made over the holidays with all the packaging and cardboard boxes! It made for some seriously fun indoor toddler play. This year I did almost all (probably 98%!) of my Christmas shopping online, so boxes were in plenty this year. I didn't let the boys play with them until all the Christmas wrapping was finished to make sure I had enough boxes to put everything ...
Archives for 2012
My Favorite Activities from 2012
2012... What's been your favorite part? I've been looking back on the year, and looking through my old posts and activities that I've shared here on the blog (and I apologize for a lot of the formatting issues in the older posts!). Looking through them all brings a memory to mind with each one and they each make me smile (or cringe!). I hope I have helped you create some of ...
Wrapping Paper Snowflakes
Henry and I made some cool snowflakes from wrapping paper! See how we did it over on Kiwi Crate's The Studio! Cutting snowflakes are great cutting practice for a preschooler and work their fine motor skills. Coffee filters are a great medium to start with for the youngest, that's what Henry cut snowflakes from last year. This year, we stepped it up a notch and made them oh-so-pretty ...
Yarn Wrapped Ornaments for Window
Ever since I shared my favorite 30 homemade ornaments for kids, I've been eyeing those adorable yarn wrapped ornaments by The Crafty Crow! I decided I wanted them big to hang in the window at Christmastime. I tried it with some cardboard boxes, but I never had any that were big enough for what I was thinking. It wasn't until I realized that I'm a cake decorator and I have multiple ...
DIY Wrapping Paper: 10 Designs
Homemade wrapping paper designs: (above from top-left) Simple sticker art with office dots! By Red Ted Art Sponge and scooter art turned into gift wrap! By Taming the Goblin Tape resist scribble art the name of the gift's receiver! By What Do We Do All Day Stenciled snowflakes for a shimmery design! Because of Madalene. More DIY gift wrap designs: Pom poms on crumpled ...
Toddler Craft: Wrapping Paper Stocking
This is another activity that I did a couple of years ago with Henry after Christmas with wrapping paper scraps. The idea for the activity came from No Time For Flash Cards, once again. After the holidays, I always have a ton of wrapping paper scraps just lying around. Either from wrapping presents, or from unwrapping them on Christmas day. Take advantage of those scraps ...
Tape Resist Candy Cane Painting
The boys made gorgeous candy canes together. Each taking a part in the creating process. I'm not sure if its good to have one of my boys do one part of a project, and the other one finish it... but it seems to work well for my boys, and I like that I end up with one item that both boys worked together on. George started by making these candy canes while Henry was at ...
Decorate a Snowscape Window
As part of the Creative Christmas Countdown, I'm sharing a way to decorate a window for the holidays! There's many ways to decorate windows, in fact, I even started a Pinterest board for that very thing... Its fun to do and brightens up the room when the sun shines through it (See our leaf garland window, and get a window paint recipe)! For the holidays, the boys and I brought in ...
What I Wish Moms Would Say: Parenting Is…
If you could go back to when you had your first baby, what would you tell yourself? Summing it all up and quoting my husband, I'd tell myself to... Read everything you can on being a parent... and then adjust to fit 'shop conditions'. I'll elaborate on my husband's quote from my "mom" point of view. You're a mom for the first time. Relax and breathe. Trust yourself as a ...
Christmas Tree Window Decorations!
Foam sheets can be so versatile. They can be cut down to any shape or size that you'd like to make whatever you like! However, I have had these sticky foam sheets (affiliate link) forever and I wasn't really sure what to do with them. Last year, I used them to make our snowman fridge. But other than that, I don't think I've touched them. Until now. We decorated Christmas trees ...
Countdown to Christmas: Wrapping Paper Chain
The boys are super excited for Christmas this year. So to keep their excitement contained and still keep them excited... we created one of the most timeless, old-fashioned, activity countdowns that there is... the paper chain. Instead of the usual paper or card stock, we used leftover wrapping paper from last year. I love using things we have on hand, and especially reusing ...
5 Outdoor Activities on It’s Playtime!
With a newborn in the house now it's hard for us to get outside and play regularly. I dug up these five outdoor activities from last week's It's Playtime to inspire us with some ideas to get outside get this fall before it gets too cold later on this winter. When that snow does fall I also shared my winter, or snow, bucket list with 10 activities to do outside in the snow with ...
Q-Tip Snowflake Craft
Welcome Maggy from Red Ted Art as she shares a lovely winter craft! Last year, she shared her gingerbread house Christmas cards, this year, Maggy is sharing a snowflake craft! Well, it is wonderful to be here, whilst the lovely Jamie cuddles her new baby. Thank you for letting me visit Jamie! I would love to share this preschooler friendly Snowflake. It is so simple and easy, ...
5 Cars & Trucks Activities
http://jennifischer.blogspot.com/2012/11/ten-for-tuesday-things-that-go-series_13.htmlMy boys like things with wheels. So its often the center of many of our activities. Its just easier to include them then try to get the boys interested in a completely different theme. By including them in our activities, it often does get them interested in a completely different theme that they ...
10 Top Toys for Builders
The boys have been building and construction fanatics lately. And I've come to realize that instead of more and more toys to add to our collection of toys that never get played with. I'd rather have a toy that can be added onto to make it bigger and better in the years to come. Blocks are perfect to add onto year after year. And kids don't really grow out of blocks. They just start ...
Just Play on It’s Playtime!
I'm on baby break! Can you blame me with these three cuties? So, I'm going to let you all just browse and play this week! (Meet Louis, the littlest brother, if you haven't met him yet!) ...
Meet Louis! The Littlest Brother!
Meet the littlest brother of them all. Louis. We are now a family of five, with three boys! I'm excited and a little scared out of my mind... Louis arrived on Saturday, November 3rd. Weighed right in the middle of what the other boys did... 7 pounds, 1 ounce. And he's 20 inches long. The boys came to meet him on Sunday and I'm so thrilled that Henry is as excited as he is ...
8 Intentional Learning Activities
We mostly like to incorporate learning into our every day play. But there are occasions that I create intentional learning activities for the boys to do. And Henry really does enjoy doing them. He's kind of my smarty pants and likes to prove it. Last week was parent teacher conferences at Henry's school. So we got a nice little evaluation of what Henry's doing well on, and some ...
Gingerbread Mummy Halloween Treats
As you may already know, we own a bakery. The boys spend a lot of time there with Dad and I. Dad does the baking, I decorate cakes. It wasn't too long ago that someone passed along a photo to me of these mummified gingerbread men from Betty Crocker and we decided to start making them at the bakery. We already make gingerbread men cookies, we just needed to 'dress' them (and give ...
Foam Monster Treat Bags
Monsters come in all shapes and sizes! That's what's awesome about them. They can be absolutely anything. (Perfect for little kids to make!) A square could be a face, or a flower can! It doesn't matter at all. We made these foam monsters at Grandma's using Creatology's Foam Platters. And added in googly eyes and feathers or pipe cleaners, and the monsters are kicked up a notch! ...
6 Fall Fine Motor Activities
Since I shared a few gross motor activities to do last week on It's Playtime, I thought I'd turn it around and focus on the little things, like a few fine motor activities. To have lots of inspiration for fine motor activities, check out our 30 activities and materials that promote fine motor skills. (above, from top, left to right) Making Boys Men makes DIY scratch art (on ...
How to Make Kid Size Scarecrows
Let the kids take part this Autumn and make their very own scarecrows, kid size! Sugarsnips shows us how to make these easy scarecrows for the season! So a few weeks ago we had multiple plumbing "issues" which resulted in not 1 or 2 or even 3 visits from the plumber but the inevitable getting the city involved, not my favorite time, best day ever for the kids. Why? Because we had an ...
12 Things I Gotta Do Before the Baby Arrives!
I'm finally to the point of counting down the weeks left in this third pregnancy. 5 weeks and counting. (Take a stab at guessing when the baby will get here!) And reality kind of hit over the weekend that I'm not at all prepared for the baby to actually be here. My husband was diligently working on getting George's new big boy bedroom ready for the most part of my pregnancy. Now ...
Sticky Foam: A Birthday Cake in the Window
To celebrate the week before George's birthday, Henry made a birthday cake right on the front window. We received these foam platters from Michael's Creatology line, that come in a brightly colored shapes one, as well as a sports edition with balls, trophies and so on. These Foamies are perfect for sticking to the window! They are not self adhesive foams, they're just foam. (The ...
8 Leaf Activities for Kids on It’s Playtime!
It's almost that time of year. The time that the seasons are changing. And the time that the leaves are changing, and falling to the ground. What can the kids do with all these leaves? Of course, you gotta rake them up in a pile and jump in them and throw them in the air! But there's so much more you can do with leaves! My It's Playtime pals from last week shared lots of leaf ...
Happy Birthday Sensory Bin
It was George's Birthday over the weekend! George turned 2! This Happy Birthday Sensory Bin, that No Twiddle Twaddle is sharing today, would have been a perfect activity during the party, and may just be something we do for the fun of it this week to extend his birthday! Hi! I'm Bethany from the kid lit and play blog No Twiddle Twaddle, and I'm excited that Jamie is letting me ...
6 Sensory Activities for Toddlers to Explore with All 5 Senses
I often associate sensory activities to toddlers because it's all about exploring with your senses and not following direction or learning a specific curriculum. When I think of sensory activities, I can't help but think of ooey, gooey, slimy stuff to put through your fingers. But there's more to the senses then just touch. Sight, smell, taste, touch and sound. While most sensory ...
Large Tube Gravity Experiment
While fixing up George's new big boy room, we got new carpet for the room and ended up with this large carpet tube. This was such a treat for the boys! And I think you could go to any carpet store and they'd be happy to give you any tubes that they have. Or this experiment could be done on a much smaller scale too using wrapping paper tubes, or even a paper towel tube. Of ...
Halloween Craft: Spooky Treat Holders (A Candy Bag Alternative)
Please welcome Dusti, my sister-in-law. She's posted here before (remember the awesome DIY Yarn Wrapped Wreath?), but now she has her own blog too! Check out Antidotes for Mom. She's a real stay at home mom, with real struggles, and she's going to change that by counteracting the poison, one day at a time! Dusti's volunteering her own craftiness to share with you today. She's ...
Make A Towel Fort!
Welcome back to Carolyn of The Pleasantest Thing! Carolyn recently guest posted an awesome Alphabet Ball Learning Activity. Today she's sharing a fun fort activity to have the kids make! After cooling off at my mom's pool one day, we wrapped up in towels and sat in the sun to dry off. Seeing the kids' towels draped on the patio chairs made me think: fort! I asked my 4 year old ...
A Clean Up Method: Blocks Transport
Does this look familiar to you? A tub of blocks, dumped out all over the floor? This constantly happens in our house. Any tub of toys gets dumped out in its entirety. Blocks are very common to be strewn about the floor. And this time it happened while I was trying to get dinner on the table and it was right in the middle of our foyer. To entice the boys to pick them up, as ...
A Busy Play Activity: Styrofoam Destruction
Who knew Styrofoam packaging from a ceiling fan could provide such entertainment to two little boys? Add some tools (real tools!) to some good old Styrofoam and let the boys have a blast destructing it. Or is that all they're doing? At one point Henry was scooping soup Styrofoam pieces and at another time he was shaking it up, making popcorn with it! Oh, the imagination on ...
6 Creative Painting Ideas on It’s Playtime!
We haven't been having too many creative activities around here lately! I've been a little preoccupied with the bakery lately and haven't had the time I'd like to do art and crafty projects with the kids. I know, its a classic excuse to not be hands on with the kids. Anyway, I don't want to deprive you of getting creative with the kids just because we haven't been. So I found 6 ...
Fine Motor Activity with Drawer Knobs & Screws
Another toddler busy play activity! I've been after my husband for some nuts and bolts. I know he has a bunch somewhere (he saves absolutely everything, I'm sure he has a stash!). I decided to take a look for some myself and while doing so, George happened to find these drawer knobs with their screws! That would work just the same as the nuts and bolts! This was great ...
First Day of Preschool: Picnic Lunch
Henry headed off to his first day of 4 year old preschool on Monday. New building. New teacher. New experience! Henry was excited for school to start [thanks to our back-to-school countdown with books!] and to keep up the excitement, we planned a special picnic with the whole family for after school [he goes just for the morning, five days a week]. While Henry was at school, ...
Learning Shapes on It’s Playtime!
Henry's first week of school and they're already learning shapes! Henry knows the basic shapes, but drawing them, or making them might be a different story. He's getting much more into it though and I'm loving that he's trying! I found some learning activities for shapes on It's Playtime: (above, clockwise from top-left) Timeless Adventures works on fine motor ...
Entertained with Dominoes!
Dominoes! I think there's a lot of potential that could be done for activities with Dominoes, but for now, I just let the boys explore them and see what they thought of them. Henry immediately began to make a road with them, and George followed suit. I just happily watched to see what they'd use the Dominoes as. My mind turning with the possibilities for learning ...
Toddler Busy Play: Measuring Cups & Pots
I was trying to get some bars in the oven to bake, and the boys were not getting along for the life of them the other day and I needed to separate them. To keep George in the kitchen with me, but also to allow me to accomplish something, I simply handed him my set of measuring cups and a pot with a lid. It worked. A simple busy play set up perfect for a toddler. He loved ...
Games to Play! It’s Playtime!
Its game time! Of course there are board games that we love and are tried and true (this list contains affiliate links): Memory Candy Land Chutes and Ladders Ants in the Pants Games Don't Break the Ice But there's also games to really get the whole child involved! I love these homemade games that I found on It's Playtime last week and I cant wait to give them a ...
Drawing & Mark Making on It’s Playtime!
Since I'm so beyond proud and excited about Henry making his first real drawing with sidewalk chalk, I'm going to keep celebrating it with some drawings I found on It's Playtime last week. A few ways to get the kids excited to draw and even write stories! I love these ideas from these creative bloggers! (above, clockwise from top-left) Draw yourself as your favorite ...
Time for Shoes with Shoelaces
This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of Famous Footwear. All opinions are 100% mine. I swear sometimes all I do is shop for shoes for the boys. George, I think, has grown through three pairs this summer alone. He's has monstruous feet! And Henry has actually been wearing through his shoes this summer! I can't believe how much he wears them ...
Preschool Class on It’s Playtime
Since I'm sort of celebrating getting back into the groove of school, and refreshing the Henry's memory of things he has learned, this week, I'm going to pretend today's a day of preschool on It's Playtime! This week I've already shared 50 Ways to Learn the ABCs and 40 Math Activities for Preschoolers. Tomorrow will be another learning day too! In one short day, we're going to ...
Olympic Crafts on It’s Playtime!
It's the Olympics! I love the Olympics. The competitiveness, the strength, and athletes achieving their dreams. It's really amazing to see what they can do! The boys had a little race with fabric scraps and straws, which gave us a chance to discuss the meaning of words behind winning and losing. It seems that there's Olympic crafts and activities for the kids to do of all ...
Who’s Fastest? Blowing Fabric Race Activity
Thanks to Kitchen Counter Chronicles for passing on the Olympic torch to me in the Kid Bloggers Go Olympics. I now have a chance to race to the finish line and WIN! Or not, as part of a group effort, we'll all win in celebrating the Olympics with our kids, together. I mentioned winning because winning is obviously a huge part of the Olympics. Who doesn't want a gold medal? Do you ...
Drawing Activity: Chalkboard Connect the Dots
I found a simple way to have Henry work on writing (fine motor skills) as well as refreshing his counting skills. I also wanted to give him confidence that he could create drawings with just simple lines. Using a chalk board and chalk (or you could use your sidewalk or driveway if you don't have a chalkboard), I made some simple connect the dots in basic shapes. I've also done ...
Learning Activity: Shape Sorting for Preschoolers
Shape sorting. A good review for Henry before school starts! This was one of those non-planned activities though. The boys had been playing with the ABC and square foam mats (affiliate link) and I was sorting through some of my crafty items in my cupboard. I came across these poster shapes that I got from CraftProjectIdeas. I hadn't come up with any cool activity to do with them ...
Cultural Activities for Kids on It’s Playtime
Let's explore the world! Do you travel? We do, but it has always been in just the states. I have yet to jump an ocean to explore a faraway land myself, so my kids haven't had the chance at all. But there's way to help the kids (as well as myself) be globally aware and learn about different cultures, right from home: (above, from top, left to right:) Se7en takes us on a trip ...
Family Vacation Spot: Omaha, NE
This year for our family vacation we ventured a trip to Omaha, Nebraska. I was in contact with the Omaha Convention & Visitors Bureau and got lots of great tips on where to go, what to see and where to eat. Something I will definitely be doing with every city we visit in the upcoming years! Not only were they super helpful with pointing me to places to go, but also handy with ...
Toddler Sensory Activity: Treasure Box
A quick treasure box made for George with recycled material and real coins. I received a package and absolutely love this crinkle paper stuff so I had to use it and knew George would love feeling it. I threw in some real coins and mixed it up a little bit (most of the coins just fell to the bottom) and put a couple coins on top to entice George into the sensory ...
It’s Playtime! Love the Earth
Upcycling isn't new to us in this house at all. We save almost anything that comes through this door in the hopes to somehow use it in an upcoming activity (even though it drives my husband insane). But a lot has come in handy and plus it shows the boys how to reuse many common objects for more than its original intention. (Be inspired to save your recyclables for upcyling with ...
Push Pin Geoboard: Made by Child!
A geoboard has been on my list of things to make for the kids for a long, long time. They've always seemed like such a great means to work on fine motor skills but yet letting the kids be creative. I've had the perfect board for it, and have been waiting (ever-so-patiently) for my husband to drill the holes precisely... Maybe I should have just bought my own, and I think I might ...
Fabric Painted Pillowcase
Remember our tie dyed pillowcase gift wrap? I added to it for a special little girl's birthday gift! I used this rather cool fabric paint called DecoArt Ink Effects that irons on whatever you paint! I'll show you the simple how-to [though, its pretty easy, so there's not really much to show you!]. And the best part is that its not all crunchy and crisp like most iron-ons that you ...
It’s Playtime is Full of Imagination!
What is a tool that you think best sparks a child's imagination? The cardboard box? Paint? How about dress up clothes? or reading books? This week's theme on the Readathon is Imagination and I've found so many brilliant ideas and resources to help encourage your child's imagination! For example, Fun with Mama has 7 simple ways to encourage imagination that's a must read. And ...
Fly a Homemade and Recycled Kite!
Fly a kite today! Run in the backyard or take it to the park. All you need it some string, a plastic grocery bag (one preferably without holes, which may or may not be hard to find), and a rubber band for extra assurance that it won't fly away. I tied string to both handles of the bag. One long for the string of the kite and one short, just to reach to the other ...
A Positive Look at It’s Playtime!
Building character with positive behavior is what Week 3 of the Readathon is all about. Check out the books that are available this week for free: Ditto the Butterfly StickFiggy & the Piggy Monkey Good Habits to Have Just like with learning anything, there's opportunities to teach positive behavior to your child in almost any circumstance. Here are a few fun ways that I ...
Making Friends on It’s Playtime!
Henry and Blue Dog are best friends. They have been for quite some time now. It makes me wonder how long he'll keep his stuffed animal friend... Even though Blue is just a stuffed animal, he gets treated like a real friend. Blue is sad if I don't say goodnight to him. Blue gets excited and angry. Henry tells us what Blue thinks on a regular basis. Henry even puts out dog food for ...
‘Make A Rainbow’ Hunt! with BabbaBox Giveaway!
We got a BabbaBox! (And you can get one too! Check out the giveaway for a 3 month membership below!) I just want to quickly tell you what BabbaCo< is all about. They send you some awesome crafty/activity ideas with all the stuff right in a box, right to your front door. Can't get much easier than that. No thinking. No shopping. No leftovers. Just easy. This is their BabbaBox! You ...
Play Dough with Tees, Straws & Pipe Cleaners
A simple play prompt. Play dough. Tees. Straws. And pipe cleaners added later. The boys and I made play dough and I simply added these items to it. Here's my favorite recipe for how to make homemade play dough. It was a great sensory activity because the play dough was still even warm from making it. Play dough normally is a wonderful sensory activity in itself, but the added ...
Tie Dyed Pillowcase Gift Wrap
Make a fun tie dyed pillowcase the totally doubles as a homemade gift bag! It's an easy way to get creative with your kids and share your art with others. The boys (okay mainly Henry) and I received this rad (had to break that out) Tulip Tie Dye Kit in the mail and got to do some tie dying! Totally! DIY Gift Wrap with a Tie Dyed Pillowcase We came up with a plan to dye ...
Simple Straw-Threaded Shoestring Necklace
I don't think is can get much more basic than threading with straws, can it? That's what I'm all about lately. Getting back to the basics. The simple activities. That are easy to whip up and stuff I have (and you probably do too). What's awesome about this is that you can use dry pasta noodles instead if you don't have straws. Anyhow. I had some of these shoelaces from a ...
The Best from It’s Playtime!
I haven't looked at the stats of It's Playtime in a while, so I thought it might be time for a selection of the best of last week's It's Playtime link up party. You guys always bring brilliant ideas and the ones that always stand out always get lots of love from readers clicking through, so I want to showcase them even more because they really do stand out and need the ...
DIY Yarn Wrapped Wreath
Please welcome Dusti, my sister-in-law. She has volunteered her own craftiness to share with you today. A super cute wreath for you to make for your own front door. And I bet if you have some preschoolers [or maybe a tad older] that would love to help in some of this process! I am a stay at home mom to a two year-old and a one year-old. Free time doesn't come that often for me, ...
“Things that Go” on It’s Playtime!
So, it turns out you guys are vehicle lovers too! We are in this house! And I collected 35 Activities for Things that Go, just so I'd have something handy to go to when I really need an activity the boys will really like and keep busy with. These are four brilliant vehicle activities that would be sure to be hits with the vehicle lovers! Above, clockwise from ...
Dinosaurs & Cars: Together!
This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of VTechKids. All opinions are 100% mine. The boys received these cool toys from VTech the other day. They couldn't (and still can't) put them down. I'm so thrilled with this. Why? Because its something other than tractors for once! Yes, it's still another 'thing that goes'... but it's also a dinosaur! Something completely new to the ...
Pretend Play: Tractor Driving
Henry's imagination has been in full gear lately. His stories at bedtime are unbelievable. Along with unending... He often sets up the couch as a tractor for some pretend play and drives along and does his work for the day. (Seriously, this kid works all day in his mind.) This would be a great addition to the 35 Activities for Things that Go! A way to create your own ...
6 Water Activities on It’s Playtime!
This week we've gotten into water a little bit since its been nicer weather here again. George played with water and soap and made lots and lots of bubbles. And the boys both got into painting the driveway with water. Both activities were big hits, but then again, water always is. Since water is always a hit, I thought I'd share a six water activities I found on It's Playtime last ...
Learning Colors on It’s Playtime!
Need fun ways to learn some colors with the kids? We've done a few color learning activities... A colorful rainbow hunt for toys Sorting crayons by color Color sorting paper collage (guest post at Mama Pea Pod) Here's a few more ideas from It's Playtime! Above, clockwise from top-left: Carrots are Orange marked some clothespins with a color and matched them, ...
Match Tupperware Fine Motor Strengthening Activity
My Tupperware drawer needed cleaned out. I wasn't finding matching tubs and lids for the life of me. So I let the kids have at my drawer. Wiped it clean and started sorting and finding matches of lids and tubs... George just got a kick out of digging through my drawer. I don't think he found a single match, but did give it a shot. Henry joined us and absolutely loved ...
Children’s Books Activities on It’s Playtime!
Since this week is Children's Book Week, I thought I'd share a few book inspired activities that were shared on It's Playtime! We are book lovers in this house, I'm just no good at putting activities together with the book. So, hopefully these will inspire me a little, too. First, I just wanted to mention that No Twiddle Twaddle has a great list of books that are great for ...
How to Cope with Night Terrors
Night Terrors. Phew. Just saying it exhausts me. Seriously. I cannot explain what a night terror is. And I'm (this) close to videoing George when he has one. But can't bring myself to publish that for the whole world to see. A night terror is not a nightmare. I can only explain it as something that is so uncontrolled by the child. And there's nothing a parent can do to ...
Go on a Scavenger Hunt!
As I mentioned earlier this week in the Letter and Number Scavenger Hunt, we do hunts quite frequently around here. There's so many ways to do it that they never get old. Just to name a few ways that we've done them: Indoor String Scavenger Hunt Toy hunt by Colors Outdoor Scavenger Hunt But that's not all you can do! Check out what I found on It's Playtime to hunt ...
Busy Play: Play Dough Construction Site
Henry's on another play dough kick since his birthday. He got all these little construction machines, and cones and people as a gift and it turned out to be a great addition to play dough that entertained them for hours. Yes, them. George and Henry played side by side for a long time. George was in and out a lot, but always came back to play with Henry. Henry was just engrossed ...
Paint a Cardboard Town
Start upcycling some cardboard boxes, or just your cereal boxes, to make a whole town! This is a wonderfully arty post written by Justine of The Lone Home Ranger. I was not the crafting sort before I had kids. Even after my first daughter came along, I admittedly looked at art projects as a necessary evil. I would remind myself of the connection between art and high brain ...
Poppin’ Balloons!
Balloon Poppin'! A little after birthday party fun! This was a great laugh for everyone! I was hysterically laughing, as were the boys! And it reminded me how much I loved doing activities with balloons. They're so much fun, no matter what you do! I still have quite a few blown up, so maybe we'll come up with something, or be inspired by the 30 Ways to Play with Balloons ...
Tree Handprint & Symmetry Art
Hey hey hey! We all have firsts, right? Well, around here... it was handprints! Can you believe it? We have never done handprints in this house yet... until now! And Henry was so excited to do it. It was actually his idea. I asked if he wanted to paint something and he said he wanted to do handprints! (Must be doing some of those at school, I guess!) Henry jumped right ...
Busy Play on It’s Playtime!
After listing a bunch of toddler activities yesterday, I realized busy play is really good for them. Where it just opens up the door to exploration of materials or a new concept for them. Plus busy play has its advantages for the parent! It keeps them occupied while you can get something done [like laundry or put dinner on the table], or can keep them quiet in much needed spaces ...
Henry’s Semi Truck 4th Birthday Party
Happy Birthday Henry! Henry turned four over the weekend and had a great birthday party. I usually try to set out some sort of activity for the kids (mostly boys) to do on their own throughout the party. In the past, I've had play dough and markers. This time, I tried going with Henry's "Semi" theme and had them haul loads to the 'river' (just like Grandpa does). I taped ...
Energetic Activity: Letter Sound Punch Game
I laugh when I think of this game we did. It was on a whim, and of course, it was made for George, but ended up making it for Henry because he was more interested in it. (It always seems to go that way...) This is an activity that takes some movement (Yay! Gross Motor activity! We like energetic activities!) and they get to learn in the process. And guess, what? The learning can ...
ABCs and Beyond on It’s Playtime!
Learning the ABCs are such a gigantic step for a preschooler! At least it was for me when Henry first recognized the letter M. After that, they fell into place really quickly! First there's upper case letters, then lower case letters.... then its onto sounds (or sometimes sounds come before recognizing the letters). And then of course putting them all together to spell words. ...
Toddler Activity: Pipe Cleaner Sprinkles
We have these little containers from the bakery that hold glitter. When I empty them, I just can't throw them away. They seem so useful for something. They're like a giant spice container with huge holes. If you don't have anything like this (which doesn't surprise me, not everyone has access to bakery ingredients), a container could easier be made from an oatmeal container or ...
What Can We Use Egg Cartons For? Make a Train
I'm not crunchy. I'm not green. At least I don't go completely out of my way to be. But I do every day basic things like recycling, shutting off the lights, and so on... (I've listed out my 9 ways to be Earth Friendly with the Kids.) But my best green living tip? And also my favorite is to reuse and upcycle items for play with the boys. Items such as... cardboard ...
3 Types of Resist for Easter Egg Decorating
After trying some new ways to decorate eggs with Henry last year, I thought it would be nice to try a couple other new ways this year. My thoughts on what kind of decorated eggs I'd like to try? Trying sticker resist eggs, like I saw at Le Papier Studio. Hot glue resist decorated eggs, as I saw at Creative Connections for Kids As my mom and I were looking for our ...
It’s Playtime! Its time for Eggs!
It's Easter time, so eggs are on the mind this week. In fact, we decorated our Easter eggs today, tomorrow you'll get a peek at those! (Until then, you can check out last year's eggs that we decorated, as well as 26 other ideas for decorating, so you're good to go for this weekend!) So, what else can we do with eggs besides decorate them? Well, Tinkerlab put together a massive ...
Family Challenge: Get Outside as a Family
The Family Network is bringing you a monthly Family Challenge, in hopes to challenge you to do the same. April's Family Challenge is to Get Outside as a Family. I've been saying over and over that this weather has been incredible this year. (We mowed the lawn in March, when has that ever happened before?) Anyhow. April is a pretty busy month for us with Easter and Henry's ...
It’s Playtime! A Creative Easter
I'm finally getting into Easter mode. After making a collage cross with the boys, and working on the weeds outside. It's made me realize that Easter is just around the corner. Easter has a lot of craftiness to it for some reason. So I thought I'd share a few ways to get really creative and focus on the process of the art when creating something for Easter. I found a few ideas on ...
Proud Moments: The unRecognized Firsts
We all keep track of the major milestones (or at least have the intention of doing so)... I've noticed with George's baby book its missing a lot of the details compared to Henry's, though. We always think of the major milestones. The first time they crawl, first steps, first tooth, and of course the first time they sleep through the night. It seems though that after 2 years ...
It’s Playtime! Outdoor Activities
We're outside all the time all of a sudden, and I feel so unprepared! I don't have any activities in my mind yet for outdoors! Gotta start making a list I guess. So today I'll start with some from It's Playtime! Its crazy that this March weather has let us play outside everyday, and without coats! Crazy! But I'll take it. The Artful Child shared 10 ways to play outdoors in the ...
Say Cheese! Share a Smile!
Okay, these are more spontaneous smiles than saying "Cheese!" and they're for an incredible cause too! Elizabeth, of Broken Treasures, has asked a few of her blogger friends to help spread the word about these smiles. These smiles are Spontaneous Smileys! And these spontaneous smileys are from people like me and you. They help fix smiles of children that need it (kids that have a ...
Getting to Sleep after Daylight Savings Time
The start of Daylight Savings Time in the Spring is usually never a big deal in this house. In fact, I actually look forward to it. It brings me (at most) two days of sleeping in until 7am instead of the usual 6am. Yay! Henry's really good about the time change. We put him to bed at the regular time (we don't adjust anything because of Daylight Savings Time, its 8pm, its ...
It’s Playtime! St. Patrick’s Day Shamrocks
I think St. Patrick's Day is Henry's favorite holiday. Why? Because everything's green! Its his favorite color! He's always super excited to make any shamrocks that we do. And I love the hanging shamrock craft we came up with this year too! Last year's shamrock window decor craft was more toddler friendly, and I think I'll try a version of it with George for an upcoming holiday! ...
9 Hands on Ways to be Earth-Friendly
"Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It’s not." We've been reading The Lorax by Dr. Seuss (affiliate link). This book is actually new to me, but I love the message for the boys (and myself!). Its about how a business comes into a 'forest' of Truffala Trees and uses them to make his new product. He ends up cutting down every last ...
It’s Playtime! Colorful Rainbows
We had a lot of fun going on a hunt for toys in the colors of the rainbow. Henry knows the colors at time, usually he needs a little bit of reminding though. The rainbow sponge art had a lot of repetitiveness with applying the colors over and over, so that was a great way for him to learn them. Whether he knows the colors of the rainbow or not, they're still so much fun to ...
Preschool Craft: Shamrocks for St. Patrick’s Day
Make a string of shamrocks for St. Patrick's Day! It's a perfect fine motor activity for preschoolers, too. We liked our Strings of Hearts in our dining room so well during Valentine's Day! We were talking about them one night at dinner, thinking that we should take them down. Henry didn't want to. So Dad suggested we make a craft for St. Patrick's Day coming up. My wheels ...
It’s Playtime is Learning Time!
I love to find fun ways to teach new concepts to the boys.Henry's been really into counting lately, so we've been doing a lot of things with numbers. (He's even adding and subtracting, and even sometimes dividing without even knowing it!) Here's 4 learning activities for the kids from last week's It's Playtime! Above, clockwise from top-left: Mama's Little Muse had fun mixing ...
Kid Activity: Crayon Color Sorting
The kids and I were out shopping, actually doing it to waste time to pick up Dad. And I came across these crayon shaped paint sample cards. I had no plan for them, but I've been seeing a million ideas for sample cards lately, and thought there must be something I could do with them. It seems I'm starting to hoard things without a plan lately. Yesterday's activity was with ...
Painting, Activities, Experiments & Learning
Some edible yogurt finger paint, let George participate in a painting activity with us! Another way to get George involved in painting? Put it in a baggy! Add something to roll around and let him have at it. A super fun, messy (but yet clean) sensory activity for both the boys! Making foam from dish soap! Some tape as roads and add blocks to build a city! Have fun! Paint a ...
I’m Proud: Writing his Name
Trying to get Henry focused on writing, or really anything fine-motor related, has been a struggle. He was always about movement, full of energy. Too much energy to sit still and take time to learn such a thing as writing. Yes, it worried me. He didn't seem to be 'up to par' in this area. But I let it go. He's 3 and I know writing isn't something they should be able to do, it was ...
It’s Playtime! Time to Recycle!
I've been on the lookout for some fun ways to get some use out of our recycling. The 34 Recyclables to Upcycle is only the beginning of what can be done with recyclables! Its so fun to see what everyone comes up with to do with stuff that most find as trash! Above, clockwise from top-left: Picklebums had fun with a box and created a tunnel for the kids! Learning to tie shoes ...
Kids Experiment: How Much Water Does it Hold?
Henry wanted to do an experiment. He said he'd come up with one for us to do after nap. So, after nap, Henry collected his things for his experiment. He brought a tractor and his wagons. He told me his experiment was to pour water into them. So I grabbed some cookie sheets in case of spillage. I got him a cup of water and let him do his experiment. He found out soon ...