March 22, 2013

What is a fun gift I can get for my boys that is a little bit unique and not a killing action figure?

With the upcoming Easter season everyone is looking for gifts for their kids. If you have boys I’m sure you are well aware that most of their toys seem to be based around violence. It can be hard to find gifts that aren’t violence related that are still “cool”. Well, one of the best ideas I have found are Hexbugs. (Just so you know, I have included affiliate links here but everything I tell you is absolutely my own opinion and I’m writing this post because I really like Hexbugs Nanos!)

To give you a little background…My parents always try to find a fun family toy or game for us to play with on Christmas morning. A couple years ago they bought Hexbugs. At first it seemed like a silly thing for adults (all of my family is now over 18) to play with, but we loved them! We built a couple different tracks and then had races to see which person’s bug could get to a certain point first.

These “bugs” vibrate which makes them move. They wiggle along a track and look just like a bug. Like I said above, it’s fun to create a race track and have races to see who’s bug gets to the end first. You can also have “wars” with the bugs and see who’s will be knocked over first or fall off the track first. We’ve even tried adding obstacles to the course to see what they do.

A few months ago my husband and I were babysitting my nephews (from his side of the family) at my parents house and we got the Hexbugs out for them to play with. They spent hours playing with them! We had to change up the batteries in most of the bugs before they were through playing with them, but it was well worth it for the amount of time they were entertained.

A few weeks before Christmas my sister-in-law (who’s boys we were babysitting) and I were talking. She mentioned to me she was trying to come up with a gift idea for one of the boys. I told her how much fun he had playing with the Hexbugs when we were babysitting. She thought that was a great idea and got those for him. He and his brother were both very excited for that Christmas gift. As it turns out, another nephew also got them for Christmas this year!

From personal experience I can honestly say that these little bugs, silly as they seem, are a really fun thing for young boys, girls and even adults! From my experience all of the bugs have worked really well. Some are a little speedier than others, and they slow down a little when the batteries are almost dead, but we’ve had a great experience with them. Just be sure to have extra batteries on hand!

You can buy individual bugs as well as a fun set. This particular set comes with a couple bugs and track pieces. It would be a great starter set. You can also buy just the bridges (also curved) and hex pieces. We have the Elevation 3D set which has a lot of options for creating tracks.

So, if you are stumped trying to find the perfect gift for your son, nephew, grandson, or kids, consider getting Hexbugs!

We've found some fun people with great linky parties. You might just see this post linked up on one of these amazing sites! Link and Learn from No Time for Flashcards Sunday Showcase from Train Up a Child Share it Saturday from Teach Beside Me Tot School Gathering Place from 1+1+1=1 Montessori Monday from Living Montessori Now Tuesday Tots from In Lieu of Preschool Show and Tell from ABC & 123 For the Kids Fridays from Sun Scholars Finished Friday from All Our Days Weekly Kids Co-op from Frogs and Snails and Puppy Dog Tails Preschool & Kindergarten Corner from Homeschool Creations TGIF Linky Party from 123 Homeschool 4 Me

March 20, 2013

How can I put together an Easter basket for under $10? What are some inexpensive gift baskets I can give my kids on Easter?

I was recently doing some Easter basket shopping and I was a little overwhelmed by all of the possibilities available. I decided to go home and do a little research before buying anything for my kids’ Easter gifts. I gave most of that research yesterday when I posted 125 Easter Basket Gift Ideas. If you need some help thinking of inexpensive Easter gifts for kids, then check out that post. It’ll save you the few hours of research that I spent. :)

Once my research was done, I was determined to put together nice, inexpensive Easter baskets that weren’t filled with too much candy. (Let’s just say that Halloween brought a little bit more candy than I was expecting and I am not eager to repeat that experience.) So, I put together these gift baskets that are not too overdone, have very little candy, and are very inexpensive. I will actually be adding a few religious things to the baskets (it is Easter after all), but I haven’t bought them yet so they are not included in this post.

I set a budget of $10 for each child. We will be having a separate Easter egg hunt on the Saturday before Easter which will include dyed Easter eggs as well as Easter eggs filled with a bit of candy. I did not include the cost of those in these Easter baskets. Also, I bought a pack of 48 Easter eggs for $2, but since I only used ¼ of the bag for each Easter basket, I counted $ .50 for the Easter eggs. Also, I bought of package of peeps that had two cardboard rows in it, but I split it between Little Bear and Smiley Man.

I wanted the Easter basket eggs to be filled with something other than candy, so I filled them with water balloons and small toys. Check out my Easter Gift Ideas post for lots of non-candy items to fill Easter eggs with. Last of all, I used shredded paper as Easter grass. I had the shredded paper leftover from a St. Patrick’s Day Sensory Bin we did a few weeks ago. The shredded paper as Easter grass was definitely my favorite idea for these baskets. ;) And now, here are the two Easter baskets for under $10!

Easter Basket for Under $10

• Basket: $1
• Easter Eggs: $ .50
• Peeps: $ .50
• Chocolate Bunny: $1
• Spider Man Activity Book: $1
• Crayon Water Squirter: $1
• Water Guns: $3
• Water Balloons (to fill Easter Eggs): $ .50
• Army Guys (to fill Easter Eggs): $1
• Green, Yellow, and White Shredded Paper used as Easter grass: FREE

Total: $9.50

 

Another Easter Basket for Under $10

• Basket: $1
• Easter Eggs: $ .50
• Peeps: $ .50
• Chocolate Bunny: $1
• SpongeBob Activity Book: $1
• Plastic Watering Can: $1
• Sand Toys: $3
• Water Balloons (to fill Easter Eggs): $ .50
• Dinosaurs (to fill Easter Eggs): $1
• Green, Yellow, and White Shredded Paper used as Easter grass: FREE

Total: $9.50

We've found some fun people with great linky parties. You might just see this post linked up on one of these amazing sites! Link and Learn from No Time for Flashcards Sunday Showcase from Train Up a Child Share it Saturday from Teach Beside Me Tot School Gathering Place from 1+1+1=1 Montessori Monday from Living Montessori Now Tuesday Tots from In Lieu of Preschool Show and Tell from ABC & 123 For the Kids Fridays from Sun Scholars Finished Friday from All Our Days Weekly Kids Co-op from Frogs and Snails and Puppy Dog Tails Preschool & Kindergarten Corner from Homeschool Creations TGIF Linky Party from 123 Homeschool 4 Me

March 19, 2013

What are some inexpensive items I can use to fill a gift basket for my kids and teenagers?

Easter time is coming which means grocery stores filled to the brim with tempting items to fill your kids’ Easter basket. It’s easy to get hooked and want to buy every single kind of Easter egg fillers, but that certainly costs a lot of money. If you want to save some money on the Easter gifts for your kids, be sure to start by setting a budget. Next, look for lots of Easter basket gift ideas (like the ones in this post). Buy a few things and then have fun putting your cheap Easter gift baskets together.

Also, never underestimate the trick of putting items in an Easter basket that you will be buying anyway (sunscreen, swim goggles,toothbrush or toothpaste, etc.). Kids might even take better care of those things since they got them in their Easter basket. ;) This post has ideas for kids’ Easter basket gifts and fillers, Easter egg fillers with mostly non-candy ideas, alternatives for Easter grass, and Teenager Gift Basket Ideas. If you have a great idea you’d like to add, be sure to leave it in the comments!

 Kids Basket Gifts and Fillers

• Bathtub crayons
• Fun shaped crayons (homemade) or (buy from etsy)
• Jump rope
• Chalk
• Bubbles
• Crayons
• Pencils – you can also usually always find holiday themed pencils at the dollar store
• Printable mazes
• Dry erase crayons
• Churchy pictures
• Watercolors
• Stickers
• Yo-yo
• Squirt guns – also check the dollar store for these
• Water balloons
• Blow up beach ball or water toy
• Frisbee
• Card game
• Books
• CDs/DVDs
• Stuffed animals
• Swim goggles
• Flip flops
• Toothbrush/paste
• Sand toys
• Coloring books
• Kite
• Ball
• Watch
• Cape/tiara/scepter/bunny ears, dress ups
• Puzzles
• Seeds for planting in the garden
• Bath toys
• Legos
• Nerf gun
• Water bottle/sippy cup
• Calculator
• Socks/underwear
• Sunscreen
• Squirt bottle
• Chopsticks/Tongs for fine motor
• Comb
• Yarn balls
• Photo album (pictures of family or churchy pics)
• Flashlight
• Keychain with fake or extra keys from keysmith
• Umbrella
• Rattle
• Silly putty
• Bubble bath
• Sunglasses
• Coin purse/piggy bank
• Crazy Straw
• Cookie Cutters
• Crazy shoelaces
• Foam shapes or stickers
• Glitter Glue
• Magnifying glass
• Applesauce pouches/fruit cups
• Pudding cups
• Frosting bag filled with goldfish/cheesy popcorn and tied with green string – carrot

 Easter Egg Fillers (Mostly Non-Candy Ideas)

• M&Ms, mini M&Ms
• Bite size candy bars
• Smarties
• Mini Marshmallows
• Stickers
• Finger puppets
• Cars
• Barretts/bows
• Magnets
• Erasers
• Animal crackers
• Teddy grahams
• Goldfish
• Popcorn
• Colored/Character Bandaids
• Small Plastic animals/bugs
• Pennies and Nickels
• Small bouncy balls
• Lipgloss/chapstick
• Scripture verses
• Notes from Mom and Dad
• Kid Jewelry
• Nail Polish
• Glass gems (Flat Marble Alphabet)
• Nuts
• Raisins
• Water beads
• Trail Mix
• Grapes
• Cheese cubes
• Pretzels
• Puzzle pieces
• Magic grow capsules
• Marbles
• Balloons (before they’ve been blown up)
• Fruit Leather rolled up
• Dried yogurt drops

Teenager Gift Basket Ideas

• Candles
• Makeup
• Lotion
• Hair Product
• $5 gift cards
• Shaving Cream
• Razor
• Perfume/Cologne
• Wallet
• Jewelry
• Sunglasses
• Nail Polish
• Movie tickets
• Journal
• Magazine
• Book
• CD/DVD
• Frisbee
• Snacks
• Scriptures
• Pictures in a frame
• Headphones
• Hair gel
• Loofah
• Water bottle
• Apron
• Bookmark
• Travel Size Hand Sanitizer

Alternatives for Easter Grass

• Tissue paper
• Beach Towel
• Baby blanket
• Shredded paper

We've found some fun people with great linky parties. You might just see this post linked up on one of these amazing sites! Link and Learn from No Time for Flashcards Sunday Showcase from Train Up a Child Share it Saturday from Teach Beside Me Tot School Gathering Place from 1+1+1=1 Montessori Monday from Living Montessori Now Tuesday Tots from In Lieu of Preschool Show and Tell from ABC & 123 For the Kids Fridays from Sun Scholars Finished Friday from All Our Days Weekly Kids Co-op from Frogs and Snails and Puppy Dog Tails Preschool & Kindergarten Corner from Homeschool Creations TGIF Linky Party from 123 Homeschool 4 Me

March 18, 2013

What are some Easter themed tot trays for my toddler’s school?

Smiley Man is 22 months old.

With Easter so early this year, March is full of holiday stuff. I usually only do holiday-themed tot trays once a month (I change the tot trays every two weeks), but with Easter coming up so soon, I had to do the Easter trays right after the St. Patrick’s Day trays. That means that there will be no holiday trays in April, but I’m sure Smiley Man won’t mind. He loves doing tot school and I am constantly amazed by what he can accomplish. I usually think a tot tray will be too hard for my young toddler, but then he’ll impress me and be able to do it. Plus, he really likes having his own “school” to do. I think it makes him feel very important.

Erasers on counting Sheet

This tray had a math sticker sheet and some Easter erasers. I got the sticker sheet from Confessions of a Homeschooler. It’s on her Math Printables page and it’s called 1-10 sticker sheet. I printed it at 130% so that the squares would be big enough for the erasers that I bought from the dollar store. To complete this activity, Smiley Man simply puts one eraser on each square. He only did numbers 1-4.

Markers to Color Easter Egg Coloring Sheet

This tot tray had markers and an Easter egg coloring sheet. The main activity is opening and closing the markers (it’s a great fine motor skill), but Smiley Man doesn’t know that. :) He just likes coloring with markers.

Easter Magnets

I found a pack of these awesome Easter magnets from the dollar store and knew they would be perfect for tot school. I opened the package, put a few magnets on a metal cookie sheet and Smiley Man enjoyed the magnets immensely.

Spoon Jellybeans into an Egg Carton

This tot tray was supposed to be very simple. Smiley Man was supposed to spoon jelly beans into an empty egg carton. He did well with it until he wanted to eat a jellybean (which was basically right away). Eventually I just replaced the jellybeans with regular beans and the activity went much better.

Stickers

This tray has some Easter stickers from the dollar store and a blank piece of paper. I did have to help Smiley Man get the backing off some of the stickers, but he still really liked this tray.

Color Game 11

(Each color game is only on the tray for one week. The rest of the activities are on the trays for two weeks. That means I go through two color games, but only one of all the other activities.)

Bubble Painting

 

Color Game 12

Rainbow Puzzle Color Game

Easter Tot Book

I read this book at least once during the time that these trays are out. If Smiley Man uses this tray while I am working with Little Bear, he can color the pictures or just look at the pictures as he turns the pages. I do not in any way expect Smiley Man to learn how to read by looking at this book. This book is simply for exposure to words and letters and concepts of print.

Printables

Easter Egg 2 part puzzles (Easter tot pack page 5), Matching Puzzle (Easter tot pack page 13).

Featured Toy

Playdough. Smiley Man always wants to play with playdough so I thought putting it on a tot tray would be a perfect excuse to play with it more. Smiley Man asks to play with this tray a lot. It may be his favorite tray which is nice because it was the easiest to put together. I just put two playdough containers on the tray!

Themed Books

• Easter Bugs by: David A. Carter
• Max’s Easter Surprise by: Rosemary Wells
• Bright Baby Touch and Feel Easter Board Book by: Roger Priddy
• Duck & Goose, Here Comes the Easter Bunny! by Tad Hills
• Zin! Zin! Zin! A Violin by: Lloyd Moss (this one isn’t Easter themed, but it is one of Smiley’s favorites)

Popsicle Stick Easter Puzzle

This tot tray has a popsicle stick Easter puzzle. Here is a great tutorial for making one. I found the image by searching Easter eggs on Google images and I used my homemade mod podge to make the puzzle.This puzzle was definitely too hard for Smiley to do on his own, but he loves playing with popsicle sticks so this tray was still a hit.

Decorate Post-It Note Eggs

I drew a bunch of egg outlines on post-it notes and stuck them to Smiley Man’s tot tray. I also included crayons and stickers on the tray. This was another fun way for Smiley to decorate Easter eggs. I also like it because it took some fine motor skills and extra concentration to color on the post-it notes.

We've found some fun people with great linky parties. You might just see this post linked up on one of these amazing sites! Link and Learn from No Time for Flashcards Sunday Showcase from Train Up a Child Share it Saturday from Teach Beside Me Tot School Gathering Place from 1+1+1=1 Montessori Monday from Living Montessori Now Tuesday Tots from In Lieu of Preschool Show and Tell from ABC & 123 For the Kids Fridays from Sun Scholars Finished Friday from All Our Days Weekly Kids Co-op from Frogs and Snails and Puppy Dog Tails Preschool & Kindergarten Corner from Homeschool Creations TGIF Linky Party from 123 Homeschool 4 Me

March 11, 2013

What is an Easter craft or project for kids that will help with pre-writing skills?

I’ve wanted to do a contact paper activity with my kids for a long time, but I didn’t ever get around to it until recently. First I took a trip to the dollar store and got some supplies (pastel pipe cleaners, pastel pompoms, pastel beads, Easter stickers, craft foam, etc.)

Next, I set up an invitation to play. I got this ready while Smiley Man was down for a nap and Little Bear was in his room for quiet time. I wanted it to be a surprise for them when they got up. At the end of nap/quiet time, I gathered my two boys and told them that they were going to do a fun Easter project for kids. Smiley Man just smiled, but Little Bear was pretty excited to see this Easter project.

I brought the boys over to the set up and the excitement in their eyes was obvious. On the wall there were two large egg shapes made from contact paper. I put some construction paper on the edge of the contact paper just so they knew where the border was. To the side of the wall was a little table covered in things they could use to decorate their “Easter eggs.”

Smiley Man doesn’t remember decorating Easter eggs from last Easter, but Little Bear does. He got right to work and started covering his “egg” with all kinds of things. Smiley Man followed Little Bear’s lead and got right to work with some pompoms.

The boys loved making their own creation and not having to share eggs. Maybe I make them share too many things? ;) By the time they were finished decorating, the boys were SO proud of their creations.

I loved that they got to do a fun Easter craft that kept them occupied while I got some cleaning done. Also, vertical surface work is a very important pre-writing activity. To be honest, I don’t know, but I’ve read it so many times that it must be true, right. ;) I do know that doing vertical surface work strengthens the fingers in ways that simply writing doesn’t. Last of all, this fun activity got my kids excited for the Easter egg dying we’ll be doing soon! That is one mess that I can’t wait to make. :)

We've found some fun people with great linky parties. You might just see this post linked up on one of these amazing sites! Link and Learn from No Time for Flashcards Sunday Showcase from Train Up a Child Share it Saturday from Teach Beside Me Tot School Gathering Place from 1+1+1=1 Montessori Monday from Living Montessori Now Tuesday Tots from In Lieu of Preschool Show and Tell from ABC & 123 For the Kids Fridays from Sun Scholars Finished Friday from All Our Days Weekly Kids Co-op from Frogs and Snails and Puppy Dog Tails Preschool & Kindergarten Corner from Homeschool Creations TGIF Linky Party from 123 Homeschool 4 Me