When I was younger my mom used to surprise my sister and me with treasure maps. We would get so excited when she would pull them out and we would have to gallivant all over the yard to find the hidden treasure. As we got older, my sister and I made maps for each other, our mom, and our friends. It was just as much fun to make the maps as it was to follow them! Obviously this activity with your kids requires some planning ahead on your part. You'll need to make the map and hide the treasure without your kids knowing. As far as the map goes, you can get as simple or as complicated as you want. It somewhat depends on the age of your kids. In the above map I made my girls walk, skip, run, or hop during different sections. You could simply count the steps or combine counting with skipping and hopping...it's totally up to you! Make it colored or just draw in pen. It makes no difference. As an added touch to your map, crinkle up the paper then burn the edges and some holes … [Read more...]
Glurch or Slime
Messy fingers? No way! Not with this recipe! Glurch, a.k.a. slime, is a HUUUUUGE favorite in our home for the kids AND for the mom. Here's why my kids love it: it feels really cool it's is easy to make it makes great "farting" noises (yes, my son made me promise to share that one) Here's why I love it: it's easy to make it's cheap it is sticky, slimy and ooey gooey (oops...the kids should be saying that) it does NOT stick to things (no messes on hands, no messes on tables and it washes right out of clothes) it is the perfect combination of slime and goop but no matter how hard you try it won't leave a mess Here is what you need: 1 bottle of white glue (4oz) 1/2 tsp Borax ("20 mule team")- found in the laundry detergent aisle water Directions: In one plastic bowl mix the glue and 3oz water, stir well. In another bowl mix Borax and 1/4 cup of hot water (add a drop or two of food coloring here to give it a color of your choice). Pour glue and water mixture into the … [Read more...]
Coloring inside the cracks
So we have had this odd family tradition that dates back to when I was a little girl...some 15 oops I mean 17, 20+ years ago. One thing my grandma was known for was making something out of nothing much. She always had a HUGE bucket of chalk waiting for the grand kids to use up whenever we came over. She had this cement driveway that was broken and cracked in numerous places. One day we all sat on the driveway and started to fill in the cracked pieces of driveway with shapes. After just a little bit of time we came to find that what we were doing turned out to be kinda neat. Here is a fun activity for you to try out (oh yeah, include the kids too). Here is what you will need: A bucket of sidewalk chalk Cement walkway, driveway or step A little bit of time What's fun about this is that each person does their own design and it turns out really neat when you do a large area. Try it out with your family and share some photos with us too! Have fun! and just for … [Read more...]
Cloud Watching– An Easy, Free Activity!
"It's a turtle!" "No it's not, it's a elephant!" "You're both right, it looked like a turtle before it turned into an elephant." Do you need a super fun activity to do when you are tired but your kids are bored? Try cloud watching! It keeps the kids occupied, gets the imagination going, is free, and best of all, doesn't require a lot of activity from the adult supervising! It's a win/win situation! You'll need a partly cloudy day (preferably when the clouds are moving a little). If your kids don't mind getting dirty and up close with the bugs in the grass, you can simply lay down and start watching. If your kids are like my girls and squeal at the site of a bug, you may want to put a blanket on the grass before laying down. Now simply relax, look up at the sky, and let your imaginations run wild! What shapes, animals, or objects can you find in the clouds? How many clouds can you count? What other stuff do you see in the sky (i.e. planes, birds...)? Use cloud … [Read more...]
Acorn Races
We have the most amazing oak tree in our back yard. (Seriously, it is amazing!) It is the "central meeting point" for the kids in our neighborhood (well OK, if I am being honest the kids only love the tree because we have a mean tree swing hanging from it). Anyway, the other evening my oldest son and I were sitting on the hill under our tree and we started talking about fun things I did as a kid. I began to tell him the story of how my grandma and I used to go for walks in the neighborhood and collect bags and bags and bags of acorns. So I grabbed my sons hand and said "Hey! Let's do it too!" So off we went collecting acorns (ones with the top, ones without, ones half chewed by the squirrel, etc) and we had quite the fun conversation along the way as well. After about a half a bag full he stopped and looked at me and said "what do we do now mama?" I thought "oh yay! I get to teach him how to have acorn races just like my grandma and I did!" Here's what you will need: a little free … [Read more...]
Corn Starch and Water–fun for all ages!
Corn starch and water is a favorite activity of mine my girls. It's one of those super easy, quick, get the kids out of your hair things to do. It can also be educational if you're into that kind of stuff. Why is it so fun you ask? It's a Non-Newtonian fluid! Ok, ok, it's both a liquid and a solid! Try to put your finger in it super fast or pick it up, and it acts like a solid; put your finger in it slow or actually pick it up, and it acts like a liquid. Super fun! If you want to get all educational with it, check out this website. It's got a really good explanation of why it acts the way it does. You'll need cornstarch and water (obviously) along with a container and some food coloring (optional). Something like newspaper to cover the table and the floor might be nice too if you don't want to clean up a huge mess. I never really measure out the cornstarch and water amounts. I simply put some cornstarch in a shallow container and add water until I get the right … [Read more...]
