I'm working on two new items for the site and I'm rather excited to share them with you.The first I actually finished last night. It's an Amazon shop filled with my favorite things. Most of the items are tools for stimulating creative play (would you expect anything less from me) but there's also a few things I think every modern family could use.I had a lot of fun putting this together, it was like shopping without having to spend any money. My goal is to add more items and categories as our … [Read more...]
DIY Silly Putty Carrot + An Easter Recap
I promised I would hook you up with a Silly Putty Carrot DIY today. I try to be a woman of my word, so here it is - just head over to momtastic for all the details. Note: because borax can be toxic if ingested, this recipe is only for bigger kids - to be made with adult supervision. For younger kids, simply mix up some orange oobleck instead. Just combine 1 cup of water with 1/2 cup of cornstarch and food coloring. And speaking of Easter, I can't believe how much fun I've had … [Read more...]
Anatomy of a “Creative Play Easter Basket”
I hinted about this post last week, so here it is - C's "Creative Play Easter Basket". I had 3 goals for this basket: No candy allowed Absolutely every part of the basket has to be usable for play Inexpensive to make (and by that I mean CHEAP!) Thanks to a lot of clever bloggers and the dollar section at Target, I was able to meet all three of my goals. I'm really happy with how it turned out and I think C will be thrilled. Click through and I'll share all my resources so … [Read more...]
Weekend Look Book
Candy-Free Easter Basket Goodies
Dunck from Skip Hop. Sunny Bunny Wooden Teething Toy at Buddy and JoJo. Animal Ear Headbands at Hart + Sew. I'm putting the finishing touches on the kids' "all play, all the time" Easter baskets this weekend. (For a sneak peek, see here and here). In the meantime, I thought I'd give you a few basket ideas of the non-DIY variety. Check out the candy-free finds above (OK, so one of them is a DIY - I couldn't resist). Then click through for lots more items. Set of Six Rainbow … [Read more...]
Free Printable: Easter Memory Game
When I rolled out the Easter toy I made for S's basket, I also mentioned I had a few more projects up my sleeve. So today I'm sharing a memory game I made for C's basket. To make these patterned bunnies, I used Photoshop and a few of the awesome (and free!) patterns over at Sprik Space. If you haven't been there yet, be sure to stop by and check out the whole series. There are 13 different patterns in 25 colorways, which is enough for all kinds of cool projects. To make your own set … [Read more...]
Easter Style: Sew vs. Shop
Easter will be here before we know it. Which means it's time to think about suiting the family up to look good in all those pics. Whether you want to make or buy your duds this year, you have lots of great options. Today I have for you a round up I'm calling "sew vs. shop" with a little bit of something for everyone. First up is this super sweet girl's skirt at Aesthetic Nest vs. fun flowy layers at J.Crew. Click through for the rest of goods. Of course, mama needs a cute … [Read more...]
Having Fun with Science and Nature
Trying out simple experiments at home is a great way to introduce science to young children and I've got a classic nature-based experiment to share with you today. Wondering where that pic above is leading? You're gonna have to head over to momtastic to find out. And speaking of nature, have you picked up your e-copy of Action Pack, volume 2 Seeds and Beads over at Whip Up yet? The folks over there were kind enough to send me a copy and let me tell you, it … [Read more...]
A Simple Handmade Toy For Baby’s Easter Basket
What would you get if you combined Made by Joel's latest super simple toy and Craft Jr.'s free Easter printables? Click through to find out. It's the perfect handmade toy for baby's first Easter Basket! I'm putting an MPMK twist on S and C's Easter baskets this year and this is your sneak peek at what's to come. For this project (which I also refer to as the "Which Came First?" toy), I simply printed out Craft Jr.'s Easter chick and egg graphics in a small, medium … [Read more...]
Weekend Look Book
I don't usually do a lot of writing for the weekend look book (even bloggers deserve a weekend right?) but I'm making an exception today to send out a big THANK YOU! to all of you who have shared my paint chip Easter garland. It's been so exciting to watch the word spread and so nice to read all of your lovely comments.And now the amazing Amy Atlas is even hosting a contest based on my little DIY. Check it out here and then come back and click through for your weekend eye candy. As always, … [Read more...]
Mini-Tutorial: Super Simple Baby Blanket
I've been meaning to share a mini-tutorial on these easy-peasy baby blankets for a while now. But then things got a little crazy and I thought I missed my window - cotton flannel blankets don't exactly scream spring time. But now it seems that someone forgot to tell Mother Nature about Spring (it's down-right nippy in Seattle today). Maybe I didn't miss my window after all? Plus, even spring and summer babies love to be swaddled and these can easily be made with a lighter … [Read more...]
Welcoming Spring: Flower Crafts
photos via Made By Joel, Frugal Family Fun Blog, Sycamore Corner Crafts, Morgan Made It, and Meet the Dubiens I'm over at momtastic today sharing a collection of flower art projects for the kiddos. Check it out for lots of fun ways to inject a little Spring into your home. And when you're done over there, click through for some grown-up floral crafts like these lovely paper wall flowers at Scrapbooks etc. When it comes to fabric flowers, Sara over at Craft Snob is … [Read more...]
Paper Crane Tutorial to Help Your Children & Those in Japan
As I watched the disastrous events in Japan continue to unfold last week, I became grateful that my children are still young enough to carry on blissfully unaware of the tragedies occurring there. But I know someday soon that will not be the case. So I've been doing some research on how to help kids cope with these types of events. Here are four concrete steps parents can take to help: Talk to them about what they're seeing and hearing. Not sure where to start? See Not Just Cute … [Read more...]
Fun Ways to Make Tracks
bottom left photo via Tokketok, left photo via ohdeedoh. My little man loves pretty much anything that goes vrooom - cars, trucks, trains, etc. He has an extensive collection of them all that he plays with daily. So for a while now I've had a few special road and track projects stowed away for a quiet afternoon. Well, it seems I'm not the only one with trucks and tracks on the brain. While browsing the web over the past week I've found a couple more ideas to add to my stash. And just … [Read more...]