Levi's Room - Part 2

I loved how my DIY workbench turned out for my little guys and was a perfect gift for our youngest birthday.  My inspiration came from The Frugal Granny.  I knew that would make a perfect addition to the Levi's room and/or playroom, because let's face it the toys end up everywhere! (Currently it is in our dining room) There isn't much to to say in how I made it, I guess if you have questions let me know. 

Materials:

unused night stand  (Goodwill) - $10

pedboard - on hand

paint - on hand

polyethylene - on hand

spraypaint - on hand

zip ties (to hold tools) - on hand

Melissa and Doug tool set - 10.00

total: $20. and some change

I added a little measuring tape to the top.

A Week With Preschoolers

With preschoolers the day goes fast but not only would a normal day go fast having preschool only 3 mornings a week for 2.5 hours each day...that flies by.  Now I am not complaining I love my job but as you can see from my personal Pinterest board, and my office files crammed with templates, ideas and who know what else.  There is TONS to ideas out there.
Each week we do a Theme, Number, Letter and Bible Story.  I do really well with the letters, and numbers and pretty good with the theme the bible stories are a little difficult for me sometimes.  I really like when the children can make something, you know a reminder, a momento.  Well anyway, our week:

Theme: Shapes

Letter: Pp

Number: 15

Bible: The Nobleman's son

Here are a few of the things we did:

Shape Cutting:  I traced basic shapes onto construction paper and let the children practice their cutting skills.  I found going ahead and making each shape onto a smaller piece of paper was way easier for them to handle..less frustrating.  I will be keeping these cutting samples for conferences coming up.

Shape Painting/Stamping:  I used shape blocks that came with my sons Little People Boat and Dump Truck.  They are a good size for children to hold onto and plastic (easy cleanup).  Put a variety of colors on plates and let the children stamp away, some even made simple ABAB patterns.  (Which could also be a project with shapes, if you wanted it to be more than free art.)

Shape Book: Printable found at: Ready. Set. Read!    Depending on level of child with some I had to help 'draw' the shape with the glue.  After the fact I thought I could have made a dotted line shape for them to follow with the glue bottle, others had no problem.  Could go ahead a make a couple more pages too.

Sensory Table:  Insta Snow, TOOB artic animals (penguins), some cups and sand shovels.

Sticky Easel:  Great fun.  We have a tub of shape buttons.  We are doing shapes for two weeks so the first week I just let the children explore with the sticky easel and shape buttons.  This week I sectioned it off for sorting like shown here at Learning 4 Kids

Penguins:  Trace one foot of each child (shoe on) onto black paper.  Add circle eyes, triangle nose/beak, oval belly, heart 'webbed' feet.

Number Movement: During our circle time we decided to do different movements for whatever number we are working on.  Example: 15 jump, 15 claps, etc.

Color/Shape/Graphing Page:  I found this great page for the children to do...it almost has it all, even a Pig for P!  I can't find the link right now, I think I got it from TeachersPayTeachers.  If you sign up for their e-mail you get free downloads about every other week, plus it is a great site to find things for your classroom at a decent price.

This post is also related to my Challenge: Pinterest!

And Along Came a Spider

Okay so all the cute trash bags for Halloween are sold out...they always are by the time I get to buying them.  Anyway Noah and I decided we were going to make ourselves a spider.  

All we needed was:

black trash bags (we used 3)

duck tape

scissors

and lots of leaves...if you don't have leaves you can come get some of ours!

It's pretty simple and I am sure you guys can figure it out.  I will tell you for the legs we cut a trash bag into three parts, duck taped up the sides of each of those sections and turned it inside out making a sleeve, so you can't see the silver duck tape. Here he is:

Sensory Bins

Going through our pics I found some sensory bins that I have put out for the boys.

Dad got involved in this one, pulling icicles off our roof line.

Colored rice, toy trucks, containers, scoops.

Corn kernels, plastic eggs.  Not sure what the two have to do with each other but we had fun none the less.  The eggs did turn into some nice shakers. :-)

On the Cheap

While searching Pinterest I always come across great and simple ideas to do with the boys during our days at home.  Some of them I have seen before and even done and completely forgotten about.  Yesterday Big Brother and I sat down and did some salt painting.  Find the post here.  Yes, it is a bit messy BUT it is cheap and fun way to make some art.

All you need:

cardstock or cardboard

glue (liquid NOT a glue stick)

food coloring

salt

a container (we used baby food jars, I will get to that in a minute)

box lid or cookie sheet

1) Put maybe a 1/4 to a 1/2 cup of salt in each jar, add a couple drops of food coloring and mix.

2) Let your kiddo doodle a design, write their name or practice letters and/or numbers onto the cardstock. 

3) Now let your kiddo sprinkle/pour/dump the colored salt onto their glue masterpiece.

4) Pour off the excess and set aside to dry.

What I did:

For the containers I used Little Brother's cleaned out baby food jars that I had been hoarding (see honey I do have a use for all these little jars :-).  Using a hammer and a small nail I hammered holes into the tops of the baby jar lids making them into 'salt shakers'.

Do you know how much a spent on this little activity...? NOT A PENNY because I already had everything on hand, love it!  Plus it gave Big Brother and me a new activity to do.

Advent Calendar

Last year I saw this post for an advent calendar and I have slowly been working on one of our own since then, yes one whole year!!  But moving on.  This whole project cost me a whole $2 and some odd cents because I had everything else.

Materials:

25 small match boxes (purchased at Dollar Store two packages $1/package)

scrapbook paper

number stickers

tags

I used brads but aren't required

tape/adhesive

address labels

Of course you need to empty out all the little boxes and wrap each box with a strip of scrapbook paper.  The strips I cut were 4 inches long by 2 inches wide.  I made star tags with my cricket but a punch would work or nothing at all.  I attached the tags with mini brads, a few of the boxes have a little ribbon wrapped around them just for a little something extra.

In each box the hubby and I sat down and came up with 25 family oriented activities.  Activities that encourage time spent together and giving to others.  Here is what we came up with (I am lacking a couple so if you have suggestions please comment).

• Decorate Christmas Tree
• Make A Homemade Ornament
• Shop For Non Perishable Foods To Donate To The Local Food Bank (our church collects these)
• Host A Holiday Playdate
• Make Cookies
• Deliver Hot Chocolate and Cookies To College Class (my husband is a professor)
• Watch A Christmas Movie
• Shop For Angel Tree Gifts (our church collects these as well and we try and find kiddos the same age as our kiddos)
• Write Letters To Great Grandparents
• Invite Friends To Share Dinner
• Make Cookies And Deliver To The Fire Department
• Build Lego Nativity (my boys *husband* are really into Legos)
• Shovel Neighbors Sidewalks
• Decorate Gingerbread Houses
• Take A Drive And Look At Lights
• Redeem Cans/Bottles And Donate Money To Salvation Army Kettles/Ringers
• Build Snowman/Go Sledding
• Sleep In The Living Room With The Christmas Lights On
• Record A Holiday Greeting For Aunts and Uncle (all of our siblings live a pretty good distance)
• Read The Christmas Story/Make Hot Chocolate

Flubber

Don't you just love Pinterest!?!?  But I get a little addicted to 'pinning' things and ideas that I don't ever get around to the making and doing part!  ;-)  Well I am happy to say that this is my second 'making/doing' after 'pinning' the idea on Pinterest.  Noah and I made FLUBBER!!  It has offered us hours of entertainment and has lasted well over a couple of weeks (I wasn't sure if it would dry up or what).  Here is where I 'pinned' it/got the recipe: FLUBBER RECIPE

Here is our HOURS of entertainment!  Levi (6 months) even got to squish it.  Remember ALWAYS SUPERVISE little ones, Levi wanted to put it in his mouth of course but I just guided his hand away.

Pumpkins and Painters Tape

I am not ready to give Noah a knife for carving his own pumpkin so we used painters tape and I cut out some shapes, he arranged them and after he was done painting and it had dried we pulled off the paint.

I made one too!

Some New Kids Ideas

Crayola makes these Window Crayons.  They are pretty neat and we have also used them in the car on a long road trip and recently I wrote a reminder to our 3 year old on the bathroom mirror about what needs to be done before bedtime...no more fussing about brushing teeth before bed!  I bought them at Target I don't exactly remember the cost but I know it wasn't more than $5.

Glow sticks, bracelets and necklaces (idea from playathomemom3.blogspot.com).  I found a pack of 15 glow stick bracelets at Michael's for $1 (I bought a couple).  So far we've only used them in the tub and turned off the lights, with lots of bubbles...pretty neat!  A friend also mentioned giving them to the kiddos while camping.

Or letting your kiddo fill up glasses with water to make music.  Use food coloring and do some color mixing.  Add a glow stick and turn off the lights.  playathomemom3.blogspot.com

Mary over at The Yellow Door gave me this idea for dress up clothes.  I think her daughter made it at VBS.  Anyway take an old t-shirt cut up the sides taking off the sleeves BUT don't cut the neck, keep that intact.  I also suggest using a bigger t-shirt than the size your kiddo wears.  Let the kiddos decorate, I used fabric markers but permanent markers work too and instant super hero cape with NO sewing.  I am always looking for dress up clothes for my boys!

Easter Treats

Here are some super simple treats to take along to an Easter egg hunt or put at the kiddie table for Easter.  Make rice crispies as the recipe on the cereal box directs you.  The little guy added some fun sprinkles to our mix too.  After you get all your ingredients together take a clean plastic Easter egg and stuff the mix inside, close it tight and open it up to find a yummy egg treat.  Enjoy!

Activity: Hammering

An easy activity to do with little ones and great practice for hand-eye coordination.

block of Styrofoam (the white kind doesn't crumble as easily but I already had this one on hand)

plastic/toy hammer

large head nails or golf tees (I would have normally used gold tees but couldn't find them)

Noah hammered away for quite awhile and there was very little mess or prep.  Pretty easy activity.  If you have older ones let them use a scrap of wood, nails and a small hammer.  Just watch out for those little fingers and you might not want them hammering on your dining room table.

If your little one has their own tool belt that would be a fun addition to role play a carpenter/handy man!

Family Night

Recently a friend posted on her blog a fun idea to shake off those winter blues and do something a little out of the ordinary for the kids and let's face it for us parents too!  So I decided to make/compile a list of ideas for a Family Evening together.

• Beach Night (check out Young Ones)

• Camping
• The whole family can camp out on the living/family room floor: pillows, sleeping bags, we have even pitched our tent in our living room, don't forget you flashlights and pj's
• String some white Christmas lights around the ceiling fan for star gazing.
• Serve hot dogs, make s'mores in the oven (place graham crackers on a cookie sheet, add chocolate chips and mini marshmellows cook until melted)
• Tell/read stories and/or play a board game
• Go on a bear hunt around the house. (Have you read the book?  Check out this Youtube video with the song)  Hide a child's stuffed bear, pack a flashlight and don't forget your camera and lead the way as you imagine going through a field or tall grass, swimming across a river, stomping through the mud and then finding a dark cave.  

• Night at the Drive In Movies (I saw this idea  for custom cars in a Family Fun magazine about a year ago, and I thought it was way cute - but we haven't made any...YET)

• Family Potluck
• Let each member of the family choose a food/dish to bring to the 'potluck' (dinner) before hand and get the groceries you need for the night.  Younger kiddos will need help in the kitchen preparing their dishes.  Don't worry if the kiddos just decide to make sweets you and your hubby can pick up the nutritional slack.

• American Idol
• Compete with song and/or dance, each members votes for their favorite.  
• You may have a Wii with Glee or other music/dance games, or maybe you have a karaoke machine, if not let each member of the family make their own microphone.
• If this family night is a favorite and the kiddos want to have a rematch you could also, as a family, create a trophy or medal for the winner.
• Don't forget to dress up like a STAR!!

If I think of anymore I will be sure to post them!!  Have fun spending time together.

Snow Fun

Noah and I did this last week and I forgot to post the idea.  It was way too cold to be outside (at least I thought so) so I brought a little of the outside in.  Super easy activity for little ones.  

All you need is:

a tub

towels

bath toys

scoops/shovels

I also gave Noah a spray bottle with colored water in it - he really liked that.

Oh! and your little one might want to wear their gloves.

Paper Bag Pumpkins

Easy afternoon craft for kids.

Materials:

brown lunch sack

newspaper

orange paint

paint brush

green curling ribbon or green pipe stem cleaners

Optional:

black paint or black construction paper

Have the kids ball up the newspaper and stuff the bag (1/2 to 3/4 full) tape up the top to make your pumpkin stem.  Let the kids paint.  When the paint dries tie your ribbon or wrap the pipe stem cleaner around the stem to make a vine.  Easy.  If you want to go a step further cut black shapes out of construction paper or what for the paint to dry and give the kids black paint to make their pumpkins into jack-o-lanterns. 

Pipe Stem Cleaners

So probably not a new thing to many of you but in the middle of the summer ideas are hard to think of when children are at your feet wanting something to do even though there is a play room, bedroom and let's face it every part of your house littered with toys.

Pipe stem cleaners, comes in tons of colors, and you can make just about anything with them.  Noah is sporting some fabulous bunny ears made by momma!  I also made him some glasses (just like mom and dad wear) but he didn't want to wear them.  Figures, I don't want to wear mine either.  So anyway: fun, easy, inexpensive.  Make a:

chain

string beads or cereal (great hand/eye, small motor dev. and the pipe cleaner stays in place unlike yarn or string for those little ones that are just getting the hang of it)

twist them together make bracelets and necklaces

let the creative juices flow

This is also a staple in our 'esturant bag.

Cooking With Kids

There are lots of great things to do with kids in the kitchen.  Noah (our 2 year old) has been helping me with this and that in the kitchen.  Here are some things we have been cooking up.

Noah helps tear biscuits (sometimes he will actually use the pizza cutter I give him) for Garlic Monkey Bread.

Helps spread shredded cheeses on pizza and quesadillas.

Layering the ingrediants for lasagna

Putting cupcake liners in the tin.

Helping role out pie crust.

Using cookie cutters for sugar cookies

Stirring juice (we have a quick stir pitcher from Pampered Chef)

Always helpful when it comes to stirring and pouring (usually dry ingrediants but he is getting better at the wet ingrediants not to spill).

Getting plates and silverware to the table.

He is a great taste tester!

Shaving Cream Wonders

Okay not really a war but a great texture experience for your little ones! Simply squirt some shaving cream onto a washable surface and let you little one draw with their fingers. It is basically finger painting! It is easy to clean up and smells good! Any age loves to doodle and then erase. I didn't get any pictures because my hands were covered! Perhaps next time! Enjoy life exploring with your little one!

Little Picasso

This is a fun, and not an extremely messy way to let you child(ren) to express themselves and have lots of fun. We put down on old shower curtain on our kitchen floor (we have also done it on our balcony) then squirted non-toxic, washable paint on the shower curtain, take all of the little ones clothes off but the diaper, or you can put them in a swimming suit and let them discover the feel of paint, mixing the paint and just letting loose. You better make sure you have paint clothes on too. Please be careful to supervise, if your child is walking it is very slippery. If you would like to save their masterpiece when your child is done press a blank piece of paper on top of the spot they you or they like and make a print of it. Another fun thing to do is after Noah has walked around in all the colors of paint we have him walk on a piece of paper it is a really great footprint keepsake for you or grandparents!

Hitchin' A Ride

This is a fun activity I caught on to when Noah and I were in a Kindermusik class. This activity can be done with infants until 2 yrs. atleast. By 2 yrs. for sure kids can throw their teddy bears in and take them for a ride. All you need is a laundry basket, a belt, put a pillow in the bottom of the basket and tell your little one 'ALL ABOARD, THIS TRAIN IS LEAVING THE STATION'. Oh I suppose I should mention clear the floor of all other toys, blankets or what not. Anyway, Noah loves it and any time he sees the laundry basket he climbs right in. And trust me moms and dads it is a great workout.