Mark and I took the girls to a local park for a fun “fossil” dig! Since there are no beaches near us, we settled for the park’s outdoor sand volleyball court. The girls love to dig in the sand! Our “fossils” were made up of small toys (i.e. Happy Meal toys, game pieces, toys from […]
12 Ways to Boost Happiness (for FREE!)
April 8, 2010 by
In need of a little pick-me-up? To help prove the old adage that the best things in life are free, here are a dozen quick and easy happiness boosters that our family has enjoyed — and they won’t cost a penny! From Left to Right: 1. Make a card for someone you love using paint […]
Cheap Thrills — Mud Pie Edition
April 7, 2010 by
For a fun time, go outside and set up some sand or dirt on a table with some old baking tins. Add a pitcher of water, and some spoons. Make mud pies!! I can remember spending entire afternoons making mud pies when I was a kid. I think mine were decorated with sticks for birthday […]
Easy Kid-Made Stamp Wheels
April 6, 2010 by
Emily was so happy to make her own stamp wheel so she could create this fun rainy day picture! The stamp wheels were easy to make and made good use of recyclables. We used some foam stickers we had on-hand, in this case, clouds and raindrops. Emily started by sticking the cloud stickers around an […]
Blossoming Cherry Tree
April 5, 2010 by
With just a bit of help from her big sister Emily, Clara was able to enjoy some crafting fun with this blossoming cherry tree craft! To make your own, you will need brown, white, and green paper (we recycled some leftover scrap paper), pink tissue paper (again, recycled from a gift bag), and some glue. […]
Weekend Rewind — Make Kites, Not Friends
April 3, 2010 by
It’s time for another fun post from the archives. Here’s an activity we plan to do again this weekend! The kites were A LOT of fun! The snooty moms at the playground, not so much, but it made for an interesting story. Wishing you and your family a wonderful Easter weekend! Today’s post was going […]
Zoo Journal
April 2, 2010 by
For Emily’s birthday, we splurged on a family membership to our local zoo. Since we plan to make many trips there throughout the year, I thought it would be fun for her to keep a zoo journal filled with sketches of all the animals she sees! It was a beautiful day, so most of the […]
Cheap Thrills — Poolside Edition
April 1, 2010 by
It was such a sunny and warm day, Emily decided to take a dip in the pool. Ahhhh… refreshing! Happy April Fool’s Day!!
Quick Craft — Bunny Handprints
March 31, 2010 by
Emily loved making this adorable bunny handprint this afternoon, and I think Clara will want to do one when she wakes up from her nap too! It was a super quick and easy project. I’ll be making color copies of them to turn them into Easter greeting cards! To make your own, you will need […]
Felted Easter Eggs
March 30, 2010 by
The girls and I had so much fun making these CUTE felted Easter eggs! To make your own, you will need some wool roving. If you have trouble finding wool roving, you can purchase it online here. Start by filling a pitcher with some very warm water, and add a few tablespoons of dish soap. […]
Easy Spring Mural
March 29, 2010 by
A few days ago, I bought a package of flower-shaped Post-Its. We couldn’t resist making an inexpensive no-mess Spring mural with them! While Clara was napping this afternoon, Emily helped me take down the four leaf clovers in the sewing room and replace them with colorful flowers! One pack of Post-Its comes with three different […]
Frugal Family Craft Fail: This is awful, and you should feel bad for doing it
March 26, 2010 by
Mark here. With this project, Valerie and the girls were not repurposing all of my stuff but… Things don’t always go according to plan, even at the Frugal Family Fun house. Sometimes crafts don’t turn out like they were supposed to. You might call them “awful”, if you are being nice. Valerie and Emily were […]
Flowers as Canvas
March 25, 2010 by
Our Star Magnolia tree is just starting to bloom with beautiful white blossoms. We trimmed some of the branches, and placed them in a vase. The girls LOVED coloring on the white petals with bright markers! Art and nature ….combined! Clara took this coloring job very seriously. It’s hard work, being a crafty toddler, and […]
We’re Featured for Work of Art Wednesday!
March 24, 2010 by
Today we were featured at Mommy Moment, where we shared this fun Spring craft project for “Work of Art Wednesdays”! You can see how we made it here! Thanks for featuring us, Jody!
Flower Prints from Soda Bottles
March 23, 2010 by
Another rainy day here, and the girls were starting to go through a bit of “messy art withdrawl”. We made flower prints using empty soda bottles! In our case, they were empty seltzer water bottles, but you get the idea. Clara really got into the painting today! She could hardly contain her excitement! To make […]
Crazy Weather Pictures
March 22, 2010 by
We’ve had a lot of crazy weather here lately. One day it’s warm and sunny, and the next (like today) is cold and rainy. So we made some crazy weather pictures! To make your own, you will need a clear sheet protector (very inexpensive), some wipe off markers, two binder clips, and some markers or […]
Story Stones and Sidewalk Scenes
March 19, 2010 by
For some cheap creative fun, draw on some rocks with a fine point permanent marker to make your own story stones. Once your characters and props are all made up, take them out to your driveway and….. ….with a little chalk, draw up some scenery for your imaginative story! Emily loves to make up stories, […]
Quick Craft — Spring Tree Sculpture
March 18, 2010 by
It happened right before my very eyes — Emily turned 6 years old!!! We had a fun time at the zoo, and went out for lunch to celebrate. When we got home, Clara crashed for a nap, so Emily and I snuck in this super-quick Spring craft project. For this Spring tree sculpture, make a […]
