FunThingsToDoWithUrKidz

We had so much fun building things using legos this morning.  After we built something we liked and thought would hold water we ran our garden hose threw it and tested it out.  <We quickly realized holding the hose took away from the fun play time so we had to find a way to hold it in place.  It was very fun tested out our ideas and finding new things to do, like building the ramp below. We even built some dams and a big pool for a panda. So next time you have some legos out, add some water and let you'r little engineers play!

This is our "how to be a friend craft", teaching and helping support kids on good manners. To start fold a piece of paper into 3rd's, like below Then draw a big person on one side Make sure the feet and hands go off the edges of the paper Then cut out the person (good chance for cutting practiced if needed!) Lastly ask you'r kid/kids to come up with things that a good friends do and write them down. Keep and go over as a reminder if needed. 

need~ 1 cup of flax seed 2 cups of water Add both to a pot and bring to a boil Once the mix comes to a boil lower heat and let simmer. You will notice it starts to become like goop. For me it took about 10 mins. Once done let it cool before giving to kids to play with.  Note~ this is a messy play item but has a great feeling!! I herd of people adding food coloring to theirs and taking out the seeds, leaving just the goop...Personally I couldn't imagine how long that would really take, plus the seed give a nice texture. The brown color is also a color we don't play with much so I let it be.  Best part is this sensory play is all edible!  Have fun~

Staying organized for school with little storage bins for clothes(one for each day of the week) and a hook for book bags. will add labels once I find some

I love helping my kids realize they can both ask for help and do things on their own. This was just one more step in helping them become more independent. In our house the cups stay up high, out of reach of kids, and when they want a drink they need help getting a cup. To solve this and help them feel more independent I hot glued two magnets to two cups. (one for each kids)  Let dry and then explained to my kids they have their own cups now and instead of asking they can use one of the cups and get a drink. When done they are to dump the cup, and place it back on the refrigerator. (They do not even come close to reaching the sink yet, so it will still be mommy's job to clean) Note~ only use for kids who you know wont mess with the magnets(of course it could be a choking hazard for little kids/toddlers), and kids who all ready know how to pour a drink. 

Today we got to play with a giant sponge. (it was really a bath sponge for babies) First we put it in our water table and add just water. My daughter added her dog and started playing. I asked her to describe the sponge when it was dry and wet. We did not add a lot of water but if you do remember the sponge will float witch could make for more of a fun time mess.  Then I let her add some hand soap.  This is another teaching point. Show how to squeeze, poke, punch, and press on the sponge to create more bubbles. The more you do the more bubbles you will get! My daughter thought this was the best thing ever and worked really hard to make as many as she could.  In the end we took out the sponge and there was plenty of foam bubbles to play with.  Other things you can try on the sponge~ Different shaped containers (as they press on the soapy sponge they make different shapes.) Spoons (to scoop up the soap) add more kids (invite you'r kids frien...

First we did the activity to the right. For this activity you draw  a person and write both good and bad words on the person.  Then go threw each words and have you'r little one cover with a bandit the hurtful words. Talk about how you can not take back words once they are said and how hurtful words can hurt someones feelings. Teach them to have respect for everyone and to never put someone down.  This brought us to the other paper. It was the "Think before you  speak" poster  T - is it True? H - is it Helpful? I - is it Inspiring? N - is it Necessary? K - is it Kind? Go threw each and talk about what each means. This is a poster we will hang up and let it be as a reminder to my own kids. We also talked about how we may not always agree with everyone about everything but we do need to give respect for others and let them be in their own decisions.