We are officially in the "dog days of summer". Not only is this traditionally the hottest part of the year, it's also the time when parents are anxious for their kids to go back to school. After all, it's been about two months since school got out and the kids are getting "bored" with the same old summer activities. Rest assured, you've only got about a month left to go! In the mean time, here are 12 ideas you may not have thought of this summer... 1. Explore your city Or the closest big city to you. Take an expedition to some place that you haven't been yet. 2. Volunteer somewhere Check out Doing Good Together for ways to volunteer with your kids. 3. Make movies Have your kids write a script, recruit their friends as actors, rehearse, and make a movie. Not only is it time consuming, it is also fun and something that you will enjoy watching when your kids get older! 4. Car wash Sure everyone does lemonade stands but what about a car wash for the neighbors? A great … [Read more...]
Popsicle Stick Puzzles
I had some extra craft sticks, a.k.a. Popsicle sticks, left over from another craft so I thought I'd put them to some good use. So I grabbed a bottle of Mod Podge (but school glue would work too) and a photo. Here is what you will need: craft sticks a photo (or a colored picture) mod podge (school glue) scissors Carefully attach the photo of your choosing to the craft sticks (line them up all nice and neat). Glob on a good layer of glue or mod podge and let it dry over night. After they are completely dry you can use a scissors or a blade to cut them apart. Then let your child see if they can put the puzzle back together again. My 5 year old son loved this...the only correction he gave me (ha ha ha) was that he wanted a photo of himself rather than his brother and sister. … [Read more...]
101 answers to "I’m bored!"
How often do you hear your kids say "I'm bored!" We hear it all too often around our houses. That's why we came up with 101 answers to "I'm bored!" Just for you! 1. Print off a new coloring page and color with them 2. Visit your local library and pick out 5 new books 3. Corn starch + water = Fun 4. Learn 3 new words in sign language 5. Play "circus" by performing your own acts together 6. Make your own trail mix 7. Finger paint together 8. Have a date with your kids- movies, pajamas, and popcorn 9. Put on a puppet show with stuffed animals 10. Read a story together but replace the characters with your child's names 11. Cloud Watching 12. Freeze some toys in water and "go on an archeology dig" 13. Build a fort together 14. Put glow sticks in the bathtub, turn off the lights, and have a glow in the dark bath 15. Play music with glasses, water, and a spoon 16. Make S'more cookies 17. Make binoculars with toilet paper rolls and go bird watching 18. Make puppets out … [Read more...]
Ten things to do in the winter with your kids
Since today is our "Hodge podge" day where we post pretty much whatever we like (ha ha ha) I thought it might be a good time to post some ideas of fun things to do with your kids during the winter months, especially since we're in the thick of it right now. Hope you find some great tips from this list! 1. Explore tracks- take time to go outside and explore the different shaped animal tracks in the snow (or dirt) and see if you can figure out what they are. This adventure offers a few great things: a little science learning, quality time, and creative thinking. Photo courtesy of Five Elements Arts 2. Make a trail hunt- Go outside during their nap time (or a time when they can't see you) and make a trail throughout the yard, twisting and turning and jumping between steps. Have them go outside and follow the trail. Photo Courtesy of Log Like 3. Make a "headless snowman". We all know snowmen have three circles...well this snowman has only … [Read more...]
Make an indoor obstacle course
We live in the "frozen tundra" and winters here can be really long, especially when it's TOO cold to go outside and burn off a little extra energy. The other day my kids were telling me how bored they were bouncing off the walls with energy. So I made them all sit on the step (ha!!!) while I made a special surprise for them. What did we do? We did an indoor obstacle course. It was filled with items we already had in our house (making it FREE) and it was some really good fun! The kids were getting along great and helping and encouraging each other along the course. Here is how I laid out the course for them. Click on the photo to make it larger It was great to see them burning off the energy! Then a few minutes later the decided to get more creative! Here's what THEY decided the course was. click on the photo to make it larger Then even later the moved things around and redesigned the whole thing. I would say all in all it was a success! We … [Read more...]
Shaving cream and glue
My kids LOVE playing with shaving cream! (I mean let's be real...you know you do too.) When they came home from preschool with these great puffy snowmen I had to investigate what they were made out of. Sure enough----shaving cream (and a little glue). Here is what you will need: Shaving cream (cheap Barbarsol works perfectly) School glue (ya know Elmer's) Construction paper Glitter, beads, buttons, or gems (optional) A bowl A paint brush (also optional) Squirt half (or all if you are having a blast) of the shaving cream into a plastic bowl. Next add the glue and mix. (There is no real recipe to this but half a can of shaving cream and a whole bottle of glue worked perfect for us) Have your child scoop out the shaving cream mixture and "paint" with it all over the paper. A little tip for you- the thicker they lay it on the better and the more puffy it will dry in the end. Paintbrushes work great....but hands are even better!!! (P.S. see that shirt my daughter is … [Read more...]
