For Easter this year my mom scored on some AWESOME card games for my kids at the dollar store! I was looking through them and it got me to thinking about all the fun, and easy, card games I used to play when I was a kid. Go Fish- Go Fish is best for 2-5 players. A regular deck of card may be used, or you can purchase fun kid-friendly cards as well.. The dealer deals 5 cards to each player All of the remaining cards are placed face down to create a pond (or stock). The player to dealer's left starts. The first player may start by asking for a specific persons cards, for example- "Johnnie, may I please have your 5's?" The player who asks must already hold at least one card of the requested. If the player who was asked has cards of the named (5's in this case), he must give all her cards of this rank to the player who asked for them. That player then gets another turn and may again ask any player for any rank already held by the asker. If the person asked does not have any cards … [Read more...]
Creating a special reading place- on a budget
With four kids I don't have a lot of extra cash floating around (who does these days?). My daughter asked me to create a Book Nook for her. I have to admit, I giggled, because I thought "um, you're 5 what do you know about a Book Nook?" While on bed rest from my surgery (coming soon in another post) I got to work and did some pinning on Pinterest. Apparently Book Nooks are where it's at these days! I was able to create a special place for my princess with less than $50. Sweet!!!!!! We had several extra crib mattresses laying around (which may not sound normal to you but at one point we had three cribs in use at our house). I knew I could make a custom cover for the mattress and add some special flare to it as well. I found these stick on letters at Target in the clearance section for only $3.46. I thought they were perfect for the wall. They didn't have enough "R's" so I had to get creative and make an extra "r" out of a "p" (can you tell which "R" is made by me?) I Google … [Read more...]
Things for the kids to do when mom or dad are sick
Mom is sick....uh oh....here are 15 things for the kids to do when mommy or daddy are sick 1.Have a Dance Party- turn up the radio and let them boogie on down 2. Educational games on your smart phone-this keeps my boys entertained for hours, or until the battery dies 3. Indoor bowling- yup, you read that right! 4. Create some crazy shapes out of exploding soap 5. Dot to Dot, brain quiz or workbooks- I have a stash of these just for the days when I am under the weather, they love them! 6. Make rainbows and prisms on the wall 7. Popsicle Stick puzzles out of old photographs of your kids 8. Scratch pads. Seriously these things are genius! Let us show you how to make them. 9. Have your kids run an obstacle course while you rest 10. Paint with marbles- it's easy and so much fun 11. Stickers- let's be real all kids love stickers! 12. Play with shaving cream- I know it sounds messy but it will clean your table and it smells SO good! 13.Make a paper … [Read more...]
Insects Made From Cereal
So as I am scheduling our posts for this week I realize that ALL of them are tasty treat related but we're still sticking to our regular schedule. Today's post is both a craft and a tasty treat. We're making insects from cereal. Ok, sounds gross, I know, but they're actually super cute! I told you they were cute. To make them (and then eat them) with your kids, you'll need: Froot Loops, Fruity Cheerios, or the generic of either Pipe cleaners Large gum drops Candy sprinkles (optional) Frosting (optional) Scissors Toothpicks 1) The inch worm is super easy and is good for younger kids. Just curl a pipe cleaner slightly on one end and start stringing the cereal. 2) Press a gum drop drop at the other end of the stringed pipe cleaner. We found it easier to poke a hole in the gum drop with a tooth pick before trying to press it onto the pipe cleaner. 3) Use a small amount of frosting and candy sprinkles to make a face on the gum drop. 4) Use another … [Read more...]
11 Last Minute April Fools Activities For Kids
Today is April 1st which means it's April Fools Day. I really wanted to play some kind of trick on you guys, our readers, by announcing we were quitting this blog, or by putting up a 404 NOT FOUND page in it's place for the day. Lindsi convinced me it probably wasn't a good idea as people might take it seriously if they weren't paying attention. So, instead of a joke on you, I'm letting you in on a few awesome, last minute tricks you can play on your family... 1) Upside down/backwards house While your kids are at school today, turn everything that you can (photos, knick-knacks, whatever you can) upside down and/or backwards. When your kids ask what happened, act like you have no clue that things are different. If your kids are on spring break and are home today, slowly change things when they aren't in the room. 2) Blue toothbrush Put a small drop of blue food coloring in the middle of your child's toothbrush sometime today. When they go to brush their teeth tonight, … [Read more...]
Paint With Kool-Aid
Today, Toys In The Dryer is excited to bring you a guest post from Becky of Your Modern Family: With four kids ages six and under, I am always looking for a great activity to do with them. I taught elementary school before our oldest son was born and I know how every thing that you do with your children will teach them. Let them explore and learn and you will be amazed by them! Today we will learn how to make paint with kool-aid. This is a fun, easy activity to do with your children! It makes your house smell great and it is so much fun to do with your kids. It is a wonderful activity for creativity and working on fine motor skills. Add in a great story (read about rainbows and paint one) and you have just done a great learning lesson with your kids! Make paint with kool-aid: I bought a few packets of the off-brand (cheapest you can find) Kool-aid mix. To make this, you will want to start by getting out as many bowls as you have kids (or if you are separating by … [Read more...]
