Tag: kid activities

Valentines Day Activities for Kids

I’m always looking for new Valentines Day activities to do with my kids. It’s fun to try something new and there are tons of great ideas out there! This is what I’ve found for this year:

We are big fans of food at our house. (Who isn’t?) One of my favorite things to do is make fun food around the holidays. This looks so simple, and I am always happy to find something fun and easy to do with my kids.

I found this idea from one of my favorite blogs redtedart.com. You can find the tutorial here.

Another fun idea is this adorable paper heart. I know my older two will love making these.

Here’s the video on paper quilling. SO fun!

We hope you enjoy these Valentines Day activities with your kids!

Holiday Movie Night

Having a Holiday Movie Night in only takes a small amount of preparation to have an enjoyable evening that you can turn into a yearly tradition. Movie theaters are open on Christmas Day every year with some kind of a holiday show for families. But that also requires getting dressed, getting in the car and spending astronomical prices for popcorn. Besides, who wants to get out of their Christmas pajamas anyway? Why not stay in, stay warm and enjoy your vacation at home? I thought you might agree.

Needs:

-Favorite Christmas show (Polar Express is always a good one because of the hot chocolate dance)

-Sleeping bags, blankets and pillows. Enough to fill the floor.

-Hot chocolate bar on the counter with ingredients like: marshmallows, chocolate chips in several flavors, cinnamon sticks, peppermint sticks, flavored coffee creamer, whipped cream and sprinkles.

Bring out some cute containers to put everything in and put on the pajamas! Send invitations out to family and friends you make with the kids. When everyone is over, let all of them sit on the pillows and blankets and cuddle up together. Turn out the lights and have just the Christmas tree on and it will feel magical. If the kids fall asleep there on the floor, leave them! What could be more fun than that? (Just not on Christmas Eve, you don’t want to trip on them while delivering gifts under the tree)

Traditions are part of what we look forward to during the holidays. Being able to share those things we cherish with those we love is a great way to give a gift that has no monetary value. It also shows your children what is so important this time of year, being together and growing as a family, extending the hand of friendship and making bonds. Happy movie night!

Family Time: Month Long Thankful Wall

During the craziness that is this time of year, it’s easy to rush through our Thanksgiving plans and into preparing for Christmas–it can be hard to really stop and breathe for a moment to reflect. Last year one of my favorite blogs, Our Happiness Tour, was featured on her local news channel for a “craft” she did with her family of four. I loved it! I immediately put it to work in my home. I couldn’t believe the difference it made for me. {Lindsey’s Blog Post , Lindsey’s Video Interview about the Banner}

We had to think hard about what we were thankful for each day. Closer to the end of the month it was getting a little difficult, but that is the point. You have to truly decide and speak out loud what you can’t see yourself being without. Below you can see the start to ours in our entry way. Because we are proud of the things we write down, we want everyone that comes into our home to see them.

My kids enjoy it because they can participate and help hang them up. But it’s a daily activity that will build a memory over time. Although mine isn’t as fancy as Lindsey’s, I hope to add some fun touches over the month.

{Tip: you can find cute paper cut outs at your local craft/scrapbooking store}

Holiday Fun: Family Fourth of July Activities Pinterest Roundup

Are you looking forward to all the Independence Day celebrations as much as I am this year? It’s always fun to get together with family. My family loves to play games, do crafts and watch the fun firework displays. It’s a time that we can all get together and catch up with each other.

I have been in charge of my family party on the Fourth of July for several years now, and I needed a few new Fourth of July activities for all the kids this year. I have to entertain every age from toddler to teen, which can be challenging! Not to mention I’m short on time to prepare, and I really don’t want to break the bank. So I went searching on Pinterest and found some great ideas for kids of all ages. (Are you following us on Pinterest?) Most are very inexpensive and simple to prepare. I wanted to include a craft, at least one thinking activity and a couple ‘get up and move’ activities for each age group. Here’s what I came up with:

Fourth of July Activities for Toddlers

Let’s start with the little ones: I picked a straw fireworks paint activity for their craft from ArtsyMomma.com. For their thinking activity, I chose a simple felt build-a-flag activity from LittleFamilyFun.com. The get up and move activities are water bottle bowling from RootsandWingsCo.blogspot.com and an awesome hand and foot-print flag from ParentMap.com. (Wouldn’t this be fun to involve all the kids and compare the flags as they grow each year?)

Fourth of July Activities for Kids

Next up is the kiddos. I chose a fun can wind catcher for their craft from MamaOlie.blogspot.com. I scored with this free printable patriotic bingo from Makoodle.com for their thinking game. And for their get up and move activities, I chose a simple water bottle ring toss from RootsandWingsCo.blogspot.com and fun can-do stilts from Spoonful.com. (To simplify decorating the cans, I may have construction paper to wrap the cans, and use star stickers instead of trying to let the kids paint the metal and let it dry, etc. Crepe paper would also be a less expensive alternative to ribbons for the wind-catcher.)

Fourth of July Activities for Pre-teens and Teens

Now for the older kids. I’ve planned on all these activities at least entertaining the pre-teen kids, and I’m hoping the teens will jump in and enjoy them as well. I chose ribbon dancers for their craft (A little juvenile for a teen, I know. But their “not into crafts” anyway, yeah?) from theGoldJellyBean.com. I’ll use crepe paper for these as well. Their thinking activity is a word search from FourthofJuly2013.com. (I might also do a Declaration of Independence matching game I saw briefly on theRedHeadedHostess.com that would be more challenging for the older kids.) Their get up and move activities are a balloon dart game from RootsandWingsCo.blogspot.com and a fun scavenger hunt from PartyGamesNow.com. Whew! Glad that’s all figured out!

The Challenge

Okay, here’s the monkey wrench. There is a very large, very fun fireworks display that is about 45 minutes away from our small town. After a day of food and fun activities, it’s always fun to go watch this particular firework display. However, we need to show up to claim our spot on the nice soft grass reasonably early. Otherwise we will end up with sleepy kids laying on asphalt or a big tree blocking our view. So, I need a few Fourth of July activities to take along, so the kids are entertained while we wait for the big firework show. Can I just say, Pinterest is a lifesaver? I saw this awesome pin from SugarBeeCrafts.com that is perfect! These games don’t take up a lot of travel space, and they’re very inexpensive. It’s nice that you don’t have to worry about something getting broken or left behind when packing away all the sleepy kids. (Honestly, I’ll probably end up tossing them in the trash on the way out.)

I’m excited to try out all these fun Fourth of July activities this year! I’d love your input! Have you tried any of them? Do you have any other fun Independence Day games or tips?