For some reason, I tend to associate fish with dads. I think it’s because of Mark’s fish tank, and also my own father’s love of fishing. Emily and I had so much fun with this simple and frugal project — fish magnets! They are made using handles of old paintbrushes. In mind was this cute […]
World Cup Soccer Snack
In honor of World Cup 2010, we made soccer ball tortilla snacks! Emily LOVED making them, and especially eating them!! Start by adding some ranch dressing to a whole wheat tortilla. Spread out the dressing evenly with the back of a spoon. Add some sliced black olives to make a soccer ball design! Eat and […]
Pretend Play on a Dime — Donut Shop
It rained all day today, so while Clara was napping, Emily and I had a nice pocket of time for some crafting. She worked on some adorable paper dolls, and I put this together — A Mini Pretend Donut Shop! I used tan felt to sew the donuts (and batting to stuff them), then cut […]
Father’s Day Gifts Kids Can Make — Fish Card
This Father’s Day card was inspired by Mark’s fish tank! To make your own, fold a sheet of construction paper in half as shown. I cut some blue construction paper and made waves for water on the top edge. Emily used some masking tape to adhere it to the paper. Lookin’ good! Next, we used […]
Father’s Day Gifts Kids Can Make — Colorful Coaster Set
Emily and I had a great time making these colorful coasters for a Father’s Day gift for Mark — and they are super-frugal to make!! We used plain bathroom tiles from the hardware store, some Mod Podge, and tissue paper to make the set. I found the tiles at Home Depot for just $0.16 each, […]
Hurray for Playgrounds!
After driving to nearby Lewisburg, PA — We are all suffering from a serious case of playground envy! Seriously. My skull still hurts from trying to wrap my brain around the size of this GINORMOUS playground. The girls wasted no time! When Mark wasn’t looking, I had a go at the climbing wall, swings, slides, […]
Sunday Snapshot — Flying Fun
Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!! Wishing everyone a safe and fun holiday weekend!!
Beautiful City Silhouette Painting
Now that Emily is finished with her school work for the Summer, we’ve been taking advantage of these pockets of time during Clara’s nap for some one-on-one crafting fun. This project is very easy (and frugal) to make! Begin by folding a sheet of paper in half as shown. We used kitchen sponges (pack of […]
Cheap Thrills — Airplane Racers
For a fun time, make up some paper airplanes (Emily has a slight obsession with making these lately), attach some bent paper clips and tie a long piece of string. Race your airplanes!!! Emily thought this was so much fun, and Clara was quick to pick up on the racing fun too! Since Clara isn’t […]
Rainbow Slides
On the drive back from the Pancreatic Cancer Symposium last weekend, we were so lucky to spot a fantastic rainbow!! (A sign I took as a good omen!) Emily remarked that she wished she could slide down the rainbow, and I thought that was a great idea! First, take some photos of the kids pretending […]
Sunday Snapshot — On Your Mark, Get Set…
……Go!!! Wishing everyone a fun weekend! I’m still trying to catch my breath from all these races!! Please help send me to Vermont for the Stonyfield Barnstorming Tour by voting for me here! As an added bonus, if I make the top 3, Stonyfield will make a $5000 donation to the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network. […]
Giveaway — Kid Travel Kit (Super Cute!!)
Like many families around this time of year, ours is gearing up for a few road trips this Summer. I thought it would be fun to make a little travel kit for Emily — this one has a Roadside Scavenger Hunt Game! I sewed up a fun looking wallet to store everything. (Special thanks to […]
Cheap Thrills — Simple Bean Bag Game
For a fun time, sew up a few easy bean bags. Then take them to your driveway for a test run with some targets drawn with sidewalk chalk! It’s so much fun, and a great way to practice addition by keeping score! It’s not solely about the execution…. bonus points for style! Extra bonus points […]
Sunset Silhouette
I have been playing around with the idea of a tree silhouette at sunset painting for some time now, but I was struggling to find an easy way for Emily to do this and get good results. Then I had a “eureka” moment this afternoon while playing with some rubber bands. Let me explain… First, […]
Photo Puppets
These photo puppets were so much fun to make, and I think the girls will enjoy making scenery to act out plays with them. What little girl doesn’t like to imagine herself as a flying fairy? For boys, try this same technique, but turn them into superheroes instead. Not that there’s anything wrong with boys […]
Pretend Play on a Dime — Garden Center
Emily loves to pretend that she works at a garden center. She can spend hours arranging and re-arranging the flowers (as seen here), planting pretend seeds, and caring for her pretend plants. So Mark and I put together a little store front for her about a year ago, and she has been playing with it […]
Ladybug Cuteness
This fun ladybug picture was inspired by a recent ladybug sighting at the playground a few days ago. In our household, we are all about celebrating the little things in life! The best part — this project is very low cost!! Did you know that Home Depot has paint chips in the shape of leaves? […]
Finger Painted Strawberry Prints
For a colorful and fun project, roll out a long piece of freezer paper, and dip your child’s thumb into some red paint. We used Crayola Washable paint. Make two thumb prints next to each other to make a heart shape. Have your child dip their pinkie finger into some green paint and write a […]