Bath Time Fun

Tired of the old bath time routine? Me too! If you need a couple of quick and easy ways to spice of the watery experience, look no further. Here are several exciting ways you can make tub time more enjoyable and memorable tonight! Take a handful of those simple tea light candles, you know, the ones in those handy round little silver nests that IKEA, Pier 1 and other stores sell by the bag full, and position them safely around the bathroom. Only set the candles in places where they can be seen but not touched by your little bundles … Continue reading →

Make Believe Stories and Tall Tales

Do you make up stories, tell tall tales, or sing silly songs to your kids? If so, you may already know that inventing a character and crafting a story or song off the cuff can be a hilarious adventure for you and your family. One of your tales may turn into your child’s favorite bedtime or dinnertime story, as is the case in my home. I usually try to incorporate a few real life details or events to make a story more familiar and to help prevent certain memories from evaporating. In my willy-nilly rambling one day, while on vacation … Continue reading →

Surprise! Here’s Your New Room

Okay, this was a really fun surprise I gave my oldest daughter a few year’s back, and the whole family was in on the secret. Keeping a family secret can be fun all by itself. My daughter had been asking to have her room redecorated and asking to have friends over for her birthday. She wanted them to spend the night and do the whole slumber party thing, but her room was rather plain at the time, since we had recently moved here and didn’t really have the resources to do much with it. So, Mom got inspired. I decided … Continue reading →

Tracing Fun

Wow, does my daughter love to trace! She, at a little over 2 1/2 years old, is getting so good at writing her name and other simple words like cat (which we have) and dog (which we do not). She is also enjoying drawing snowmen, hearts and other assorted creatures and symbols and writing her favorite numbers 2 (her age), 5 (no idea) and 8 (because it looks like a snowman!) You can get all fancy and purchase a tracing table which may illuminate the writing surface and provide for very easy viewing of the lines, shapes, letters and numbers … Continue reading →

Indoor Playtime

Let’s say you and your family are thinking about purchasing an outdoor, wooden play set next spring or summer. Why not take your family out and visit the local showroom of a play set provider and builder? You will discover that they will likely have a handful of sample play sets for your kids to take for a test drive. The way this writer sees it, there is absolutely no need to make a decision in a hurry. In fact, I recommend several 1/2 hour trips to the showroom(s). You want your kids to try every piece of equipment, standard … Continue reading →

Costumes and Clothes – Extending the Life of a Child’s Wardrobe

Don’t pack up or give away those Halloween costumes, infant onesies or adorable overalls just yet. These articles of clothing from a prior holiday or previous year can be recycled in numerous creative and fun ways. This idea will also help out the pocketbook and wallet! When it comes to those old Halloween costumes, consider keeping them in the drawer or closet to be used during future dress-up playtime. Many young kids, especially girls it seems, love to play dress up with their friends and/or dollies. All the old witch, ballerina and princess outfits should be put to work post-October … Continue reading →

Looking Ahead for Holiday Shopping

We’ve got a huge shopping season coming and there’s going to be lots of toys, games and more that your kids are interested in. I’m going to start a new series here in the Family Fun forum in late September, most likely. Two to three times a week, I’ll be going through catalogs, websites and even stores to look for the latest and greatest in toys, games and more for gift ideas. I’ll review what I can to give you as parents a better idea of what might be good for your kids and what might not. We’ll grade them … Continue reading →

Having Fun When Plans Go Awry

Our 4th of July did not go exactly as planned, but we still had a great day. It’s amazing how even though plans don’t always work out as long as you are together as a family you can have a good time. We started by having a picnic at a local park with my brother, sister-in-law, and their one-year-old daughter. They are in Boise for the summer doing an internship before my brother goes back east to law school. It’s nice to have family close to celebrate holidays with (the rest of our family lives five hours away). My kids … Continue reading →

Crochet Bead Friendship Bracelet

Friendship bracelets are probably one of the world’s most popular crafts. This version is one of the quickest to make, and also has the added novelty of beads woven right into the bracelet. With knitting and crochet all the rage right now, your kids will be excited to learn this simple chain crochet stitch. Even if you don’t know how to knit or crochet, you’ll be able to learn this yourself and teach it to your kids with no problem. It’s that easy. You will need some yarn of any thickness or fiber, a crochet hook (don’t get too hung … Continue reading →

New Life for Paper Bag Puppets

The Fandango movie ticket ads have breathed new life into the old paper bag puppet. I love it when some creative genius takes a mundane thing that’s been around for ages and makes me sit up and take notice of it again. The beauty of the puppets is that they are engaging, and yet are entirely low-tech. There is nothing more humble than a paper bag puppet. When I see one of these ads, I want to run right home after the movie and make a funny puppet with pasta hair and real jewelry. I’ve never done it, but after … Continue reading →