It's billed as a once in a lifetime experience-- a total solar eclipse that will cross the United States on August 21st this year. My family lives in the mid-west, and we're expected to have a spectacular view of the celestial event including two and a half minutes of "darkness" in the middle of the afternoon. My children can't wait to see what it will be like so we're using the weeks leading up to the eclipse to learn more about it. Whether you live in the path of the eclipse or not, you can also shed some light on the sun and celebrate its amazing power! Eclipse Primer: What is a solar eclipse anyway? The moon will pass directly Continue Reading
Thunderstorm Activities to Help Ease Fear
When my family moved from South Carolina to the Mid-West, we expected things to be a bit different. One of the biggest changes—the weather! During the winter, I cringed the first time I saw a forecast high temperature in the single digits (How can the high be 9 degrees?)! Then as spring turned into summer, a new pattern developed. My son started feeling more and more anxious about thunderstorms. He’d certainly seen lightning and heard the rumble of thunder before, but severe weather is a bit more intense, and more frequent, in our new home. Based on the idea that knowledge is power, I set out to find some kid-friendly thunderstorm Continue Reading
Ride and Play Scooter Activity
When M and M were younger I loved creating pretend play areas for them. Taking the pretend play outside was always a special treat! I'll admit that stretching my creative muscle in that way is something I miss about having preschool age kids. Teaming up with Radio Flyer to celebrate 100 days of Summer gave me the perfect reason to invite over a friend and her 4 year old for some pretend play fun! Radio Flyer is the world’s leading builder of wagons, tricycles, pre-school scooters and other ride-ons. For this activity we used a Radio Flyer Build-a-Scooter. Radio Flyer has been inspiring imagination for 100 years! Check out this Continue Reading
7 Fun ways to Get Kids Reading this Summer
It's summer! Yay! Time to relax, play and have tons of summer fun. It's also time to enjoy some serious summer reading. I've rounded up some really fun ways to get the kids excited about reading. Browse the list and then add your favorite way to inspire reading in the comments. You might also want to learn how to help your little reader choose the right books and start a book wish list of your own! Most of these summer reading ideas will work for kids from preschool to tween. Pick your favorite or try a combination of two! 7 Fun ways to Get Kids Reading this Summer I loved the idea of a Punch-card Bookmark (Over the Big Continue Reading
Easy Easter Egg Craft for Preschool and Toddlers
We start celebrating Easter at our house weeks before the actual holiday arrives. We especially love Easter activities and the chance to decorate our house in bright spring colors. I came up with this easy Easter egg craft when my son was a preschooler, and we still enjoy it each year because we always get a different result - and you can, too! Start by cutting out simple egg shapes from brightly-colored pieces of paper. Any kind would work; we use construction paper so it’s a bit thicker. We also make our eggs large, nearly the size of the whole page. Once you have lots of “eggs,” bring out the art supplies so your kids can Continue Reading
Easy Snowy Winter Craft for Kids of All Ages
Brrr! We had some unexpected snow and ice recently so I needed some quick ideas to entertain my little ones indoors. That’s when I remembered one of our favorite snowy winter crafts. The best part—it requires little to no prep work. You just need some of your usual arts and crafts supplies, coupled with some imagination! You might also want to check out winter Sudoku for kids and winter break activities for playing and learning. This winter craft lets your kids create their own indoor blizzard, at least on paper. What you need: blue construction paper,white construction paper, glue and paint brushes. (affiliate links) Continue Reading
Christmas Charades for Kids (free printable)
Christmas is all about spending time with family and having fun. This past weekend our schedule was far more crazy than it usually is (I think I need to reread what I wrote about reducing holiday stress). In an attempt to connect as a family without adding one more thing to the list, I created a quick game of Christmas Charades for kids (and adults). It was last minute, easy to prepare and a ton of fun to execute. We played for about 15 minutes the first time around and the kids loved it so much we've played it again and again through the week. Grandma was kind enough to write out Christmas Charade cards for us, so that I wouldn't know Continue Reading