Genius Snack Hack Ideas!

Thanks to our friends at Kids Activities, we discovered this holy grail of Snack Hacks! These fun, simple and creative ideas will guarantee a smile at snack time! 

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Get Organized

Have a bin of snacks ready and waiting in the fridge.  This is great for portion control and encourages diversity.  Kids have to eat the whole bin before it’s replenished.  via – Iheartorganizing

Don’t search for your kids cups.  Glue magnets to the sides of their cups and your kids can stick cups onto the fridge.  When they want a drink they can use the fridge dispenser and put the cup back on the fridge. via – Dayna Made It.

Have your fridge organized so you don’t spend time looking for food or forgetting about a veggie or snack. via – Glamorous Housewife.

Cut up apples ahead of time and then wrap a rubber band around the slices.  This will keep them from turning brown. via -  A helicopter mom

Enjoy drip-free popsicles.  Fill the popsicle molds with jello.  Tastes great and are less messy!

Play Date Tips

Give your kids cups of dip along with their veggies.  This is a great make-ahead tip that works well for playdates and parties.  No double dipping!  via – Floor 24

Cut slivers of oranges in a jiffy – no more peeling and picking off the white of the orange!

Layer a cake evenly with the help of dental floss.  You can also use this tip to cut blocks of cheese or rolls of dough.  via – wiki how

Create double decker snack cups with the help of a cupcake liner.  These were a huge hit at a recent slumber party!  via- I can teach my child

Freeze sponges to create a safe, drip-free icepack alternative in a lunchbox.  The kids can even use the sponge to clean up their table before and after they are finished eating.

Transform a regular water bottle into a sippy cup by punching a hole through the lid and inserting a straw. Perfect for a picnic.  Best part, you can dispose of it when you are done.

Portion control snacks with the help of a set of old Easter eggs.  You can even use an egg carton to transport the food.  “Egg” lunches are my kids favorite park treat.  via – Kailo Chic

Quick and Easy Treat Tips

Use a cupcake liner to contain drips when your kids are eating popscicles.   Your kids won’t be as sticky!

Create ice-cream sandwiches quick and easily with mini-icecream containers.  Heat your knife to make cutting them easier.  Then peel the carton away before eating.

Make a single serving of cake in a mere 3 minuets with only 3 ingredients.  This recipe tastes just like a mug of hot chocolate.

Happy snacking!! 

Soft, Stretchy Play Dough With Only 2 Ingredients!

Some of my favorite crafts as a child were painting, baking and PLAY DOUGH! Holy moly this stuff never gets old. I stumbled upon this recipe earlier this week thanks to Laughing Kids Learn and I am about to go run to the grocery store to try it out! This looks like the easiest, simplest (and yummy smelling) play dough recipe I have ever seen! I would recommend this for ages 2 and up and always with an adult watchful eye. I love crafts that can be done simply by using ingredients we already have in the house! Talk about convenience! 

All you need is:

• 1 cup cheap-0 conditioner (any brand works!) 
• 2  cups cornflour/cornstarch
• Make it colorful with food coloring or glitter! (optional)

Just grab a big mixing bowl and add the cornstarch to the conditioner. You may need to tweak the recipe depending on the brands used, but just keep adding until you get the desired consistency. 

And voila!! You have just created the silkiest, softest and stretchiest play dough ever! Congrats :) 

How To Encourage Creativity Through Play

I just came across this post that I believe is SUPER important and relevant in today's day and age. We always urge parents to encourage their children to expand their creative minds and imaginations. Because the days of make-believe and role play seem to be a distant memory, we have to create and enhance other fun ways to promote mind development. 

The Creative Child illustrates 5 ways to encourage creativity through play and we felt it was worth posting about. 

Each of us can make a positive difference in reversing this disturbing trend by providing free play and encouraging creativity. Here are 5 ways you can encourage creativity in the children in your life.

1.    Provide free, unstructured, child-directed play on a regular basis. Directed play, such as sports, isn't nearly as beneficial as when adults step back and let children take the lead. Allowing outdoor play as much as possible with other children will help them learn social, cognitive, creative, and physical skills that will be highly beneficial throughout their lives.

2.    Make creative spaces in your home. An art corner, a reading or writing nook, and a block station are a few ideas that will invite your child to be freely creative.

3.    Set up play invitations. Invitations to play can be as simple or elaborate as you want to make them, but the trick is to invite – not force – the child to engage in the activity. Allow the child to explore the materials freely and to create without adult direction. An example of a play invitation is play dough, googly eyes, craft sticks, pipe cleaners, and gems laid out attractively for easy access. 

4.    Encourage safe exploration and provide a myriad of objects and places to explore which engage all of your child's senses. Allow them to take reasonable risks and make discoveries. Say “yes” more. Invite children to dance in the rain, jump in puddles, play in the mud, and paint with their hands. The mess is worth the benefits. 

5.    Dramatic play lets children express their feelings. This often occurs naturally as children imitate adults, animals, and things around them. This helps them understand their world and how to deal with situations and problems. Stimulate their natural need for dramatic play with costumes and simple props.

Happy playing!! 

xox

Sensory Play - A MUST For A Developing Child

Developing sensory & motor skills is imperative for a growing child. Discovering new and unique ways to incorporate as many of the 5 senses during play is something that is not only fun but educational as well! 

Here are a few creative crafts & activities we suggest for little ones looking to explore! 

Enjoy!! 

xox

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From HubPages: 

I-SPY Bottle

All you need is:

1 bag of un-cooked rice

Water bottles, coke bottles, or VOSS bottles

Hot glue gun

Several small items you would like to go in your bottle (beads, charms, buttons, marbles)

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Sensory Bins - One of our FAVS!

Thanks to Growing a Jeweled Rose: 

All you need is:

Mashed potato flakes!

Food coloring to dye the mix if you want

Add water for even more fun dough-making!

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More Sensory Bin Ideas from Growing a Jeweled Rose: 

All you need is:

Cooked pasta noodles

Food coloring

Bowls or containers

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Color in a bag!

All you need is:

1 cup cornstarch

1/2 cup sugar

4 cups cold water

Food coloring

2 gallon-size ziplock bags

Duct tape

 -This photo originally appeared in FamilyFun Magazine-

31 Ideas for Summer Fun!

With the holiday weekend behind us, there is only about a month of summer left.  But a month can seem like fooooorever when the kids are home all day in this hot San Diego weather we have been having.  It is so important to keep the kids entertained with crafts, outdoor play, neighborhood friends but most of all keep their minds engaged and BUSY!

Here is a simple list of '31 days of summer fun' thanks to "Let Me Start By Saying" to use as a basic guide for ideas!  We love these creative projects and ideas for kids of any age and they truly are a great way to get the family up and moving together!

Day 1
Start summer scrapbooks! Prepare to cherish these memories forever! Celebrate by treating your kids to whatever they want at the ice cream truck!

Day 2
Neighborhood scavenger huuuuunt!

Day 3
Handmade apology notes to neighbors whose gardens were trampled/gnomes toppled by your kids during neighborhood scavenger hunt!

Day 4
Recycle everything kids collected during neighborhood scavenger hunt as punishment for fighting over who actually won the scavenger hunt because everything has to be a contest to them!

Day 5
Visit local farm for berry picking! Make your own juice and ice pops from fruit you picked! Calmly tell the kids "No" when they hear the ice cream truck, because you just made cold treats!

Day 6
Make your own stain-remover to save the clothes worn while working with the fresh fruit! Teach the art of folding and putting away clean laundry!

Day 7
Break out the stickers, markers and glitter to add the first week's activities to the scrapbook!

Day 8
Remove/black out all incriminating evidence the kids put in the first week's entries in their scrapbooks!

Day 9
Nature walk! Forget to bring enough water, so agree to buy stuff at ice cream truck even though you're a little surprised to see one out there in nature!

Day 10
Pajama day while you all recover from poison ivy contracted during nature walk!

Day 11
Look up at-home science experiments & try some at home! Turn up the radio when you hear the ice cream truck approaching!

Day 12
Look up Sew-Your-Own Eye Patch online and everyone can make one for the kid whose eye was damaged during the "At-Home Volcano" incident yesterday!

Day 13
Make your own chalk, then decorate driveway, then calm crying kids when passing summer rainstorm washes it all off the driveway before dinner!

Day 14
Use remaining homemade sidewalk chalk to decorate this week's page in scrapbooks!

Day 15
Make tie-dye shirts for the whole family. Let them use their own money at the ice cream truck when it comes by as you bring the shirts outside to dry.

Day 16
Field trip to the mall to buy everyone in the house new white underwear and T-shirts because the tie-dye stuff turned everything you washed last night a blotchy pink.

Day 17
Open summer care packages from Grandma filled with toys, books and other activities.

Day 18
Dump bins full of toys into garbage bags and bring them to a donation center since the kids prefer to play with empty boxes rather than the toys, books and other activities inside them.

Day 19
Beach day! Of course there's no way to avoid the ice cream truck out there!

Day 20
Spend the day cleaning sand out of car, garage, mudroom, hallway, kitchen, laundry room, 10 towels, six swimsuits, three changes of clothes per kid, the closet, living room and bedrooms.

Day 21
Break out the scrapbooks again for updating. Search house for a couple pencils and a sticker you got at the grocery store yesterday, since the art supplies have gone missing.

Day 22
Print out kid-friendly recipes, then go to Farmer's Market for ingredients. Spend the day in the AC teaching them to cook.

Day 23
Order in pizza while the kids clean out the fridge: at least two of them woke with a snotty summer cold, and you just know all the food they made yesterday is seasoned with infectious boogers.

Day 24
Go to Target with gift cards your kids have collected from birthdays. Let them buy whatever shutuppery they want. Discreetly flip off the ice cream truck as you pass it on the highway (IS IT STALKING YOU???).

Day 25
Take the kids to the park. Leave park after 400 rounds of "It's too hot," "I don't like my sandals" and "I want snack -- no, not THAT snack," and toss them all into the playroom while you hide, rocking in a corner.

Day 26
Turn on sprinklers. Drink while kids ruin the lawn. Stare at ice cream truck with the burning hellfire of eternal hate when it stops at the edge of your lawn, causing your kids to freak the freak out until you give in.

Day 27
Spend the day at the movie theater. Feed your pain over how long this month has been with Junior Mints and popcorn.

Day 28
Remember it's scrapbook day. Go back to bed while kids do... whatever. I just don't care anymore.

Day 29
Watch TV all day. On separate TVs. Egg the ice cream truck when it dares drive down your street again.

Day 30
Dig out all the iPads you hid four weeks ago. As long as the game is free, allow kids to "buy" as many as they want as long as they stay quiet.

Day 31
Pay whatever it takes to get all your kids in camp until the first day of school.

Cutest Easter Egg Chickens!

Easter is coming up and I was looking for little creative ideas to do with the little ones and you just can’t go wrong with Martha Stewart’s little creatures! These are just the cutest little chickens, check out other awesome creative ideas on her webpage!

http://www.marthastewart.com/270102/egg-creatures?czone=holiday%2Feaster-center%2Feaster-crafts-and-decor&gallery=274333&slide=270102&center=276968