If you are like me you wonder how to develop your kids typing skills. I know, I'm weird but these are a list of amazing sites to help your school age kid (and even some for you) hone in on those skills and shock their teachers with their skills come September! http://typingadventure.com Here you will attempt to save your scuba diver from shark infested waters. Type the words that appear on the sharks bodies before they reach the diver and you will advance to the next round. You have four levels to choose from, this makes it fun even for adults. http://www.nitrotype.com This site is great because you can challenge your kid by creating competitions with people all over the world! You get to race other "drivers" to the finish line by typing a sentence. This is fun because it creates a little added pressure because you're watching your car race across the screen as others are doing the same thing. http://www.tvokids.com/games What is fantastic about this site is that it is geared … [Read more...]
Easy DIY Giant Slip and Slide
My neighborhood has a block party every summer (more to come on that later). Last summer we decided to save a little money and do something other than a dunk tank for water fun. My neighbor has a nice sized hill in their back yard so we decided to do a giant slip and slide! Let me tell you, the adults enjoyed it as much as the kids did!! To make your own giant slip and slide you'll need: A roll of heavy duty plastic such as plastic sheeting Some type of steaks such as tent stakes or garden steaks A sprinkler A decent sized hill Simply steak down the plastic, set up the sprinkler so that the water lands on the plastic, wait for it to get wet, then slide down! If you want it to be slightly more slippery, you can add some Dawn dish soap along the plastic. In all fairness, I do have to give some warnings about this giant slip and slide... Once the slip and slide has been used a couple of hundred of times and the ground is patted down, it gets SUPER slippery! … [Read more...]
We KNOW you’ll love Despicable Me 2!
We interrupt our normal posting schedule to bring you news about Despicable Me 2! Did your family love the original Despicable Me? Then we guarantee you'll love the second as well! More Minions and just as much humor as the first is less than 48 hours from hitting theaters! A few days ago my family was given the chance to see an advanced screening of Despicable Me 2. I'm not sure who was more thrilled, Hubby, the kids, or me. We all loved Despicable Me (the first one) because the minions were cute and the humor was great, but not crass or overly adult-ish. We had high hopes for Despicable Me 2 and we were not disappointed! Minions, definitely more Minions! And, let me tell you, yellow is not the only color they are in this movie! That's all I'm going to say about that. The plot? Predictable, but who cares? We didn't want to see it for the mystery. We wanted the humor and cuteness. Be prepared to bust a gut at the beginning and the end of the movie. It's going to … [Read more...]
Disney Countdown Ring
Now I am not taking credit for creating this...although I tried to make my own...after a few hours I tossed in my hat and called it a day. I emailed the creator of this awesome paper ring countdown and I never heard back about it but since it was all over the internet I figured it was fair game. Either way, I'm happy to share it with you! Print each sheet on thick card stock paper at your local copy store (or at home if you want to spend the money on the ink). Cut them out and begin tearing off a ring each day (there are 128 days in this ring counter) and have fun! See if you can name each character or the movie...I bet you can't! … [Read more...]
Minnie Mouse Nails
Our Cinderella Nails post caught the eye of a great deal of people and we love that! We love that so much that we thought we'd share another EASY and fun way to make your nails festive for your Disney trip! Minnie Mouse nails!!!!!!!!!!!!! Yup, that adorable mouse can be captured on your or your daughters fingernails! It's really easy to do. Here is what you will need: Apply the red polish to the entire nail bed and let dry completely before moving on to the next step. Next use your dotting tool (I use a plastic knitting needle) and create dots on your red fingernails. Once the white dots have dried you can begin on the black bow. Make a little bit larger dot with the black polish near the tip of your nail. The "draw in" a triangle on each side of the black dot you've just created. Apply a clear top coat to protect the design and keep it looking great for days to come. I hope you will give this a try and let us know how you did! … [Read more...]
Melting Beads Craft
Last week my daughter and I were having some special girl time and we made some Shrinky Dinks...the princess pack. It was a lot of fun to see her face when her creations came out of the oven a fraction of the size that they once were. So I got to thinking "hmmm, I wonder what would happen if I put some of those plastic craft beads in the oven." I tested it out and after a few tries I finally figured out the correct temperature to melt the beads...and they were SO pretty! For about $5 you can get one of those big buckets of beads at your local craft store (many of you likely already have some in your home). -Preheat your oven to 425 degrees F Lay out the beads in the shape you wish them to be. Make sure that they are really close together so that when they melt they stick together. Set them on some parchment paper and then pop them in the oven for around 10-12 minutes. When they come out they will be melted and stuck together. I even tried it with those glassy/glittery … [Read more...]
