Spelling with Easter Eggs

My kids LOVE to hunt for Easter eggs! And, while they love the candy inside, they REALLY love the 'hunt'!

So, with Easter over I decided to repurpose those plastic eggs for a spelling game.

First, I picked short, easy words like; fish, bed, dog, ring, etc. and spelled them using letter magnets. *scrabble pieces, or pieces of paper with the letters written on them would also work.

Next, I put together a sheet with photos of each word and colored spaces for each letter depending on the egg color.  *CLICK HERE to download my spelling sheet.

Then I put each word in a different color of Easter egg. i.e. For 'fish' I used pink eggs and put an 'f' in one, an 'i' in another, an 's' in another and an 'h' in another. Then, for 'hat', I used green eggs and put each letter in a green egg. etc.

After that, I hid the eggs all over the house.

When AJ and Si woke up from their naps, they used their Halloween pumpkins to collect the Easter eggs (my kids are going to be so confused)!

Then we sat down on the floor and I asked Si to hand me all the 'pink' eggs. After she handed me all the pink eggs I passed them to AJ who opened them up and used them to spell the 'pink' word. While he was working on the word I asked Si to hand me the yellow eggs, etc.

They loved it! You could put anything in the eggs; words, parts of a bible verse, math equations, presidents to be organized... etc

Once all the eggs were open, and all the words spelled, I let the kids hide the eggs for me to find. There were some pretty good hiding spots too! I'll have to remember them for next Easter!

Springtime Caterpillars

To me, caterpillars and egg cartons are synonymous. In fact, whenever I look at an egg carton I see two caterpillars waiting to be created! It was so common to me to make a caterpillar out of an egg carton that it never occurred to me to share our caterpillars with anyone! Then, a friend came over today and said "Oh, how cute! I never thought of that!"

So, today's post is for all those egg eaters out there who are looking for a way to recycle their cartons: Springtime Caterpillars.

We painted the caterpillars one day and then put the decorations on the next. For the back, we glued on sea shells- collected at the beach, and then squeezed more paint on top of them. You could also use sequins, sparkles, stickers or pom poms.

For the antenna, I poked two holes on top and threaded the pipe cleaner through one hole into the next so they wouldn't fall off!

Supplies:
-Egg cartons, cut lengthwise
-Paint
-Pipe cleaners
-Google eyes
-Glue
-Decorations

Cleaning Pennies

While searching the Internet, I visited the 'Kids of Integrity' website and found this activity in their lesson on Obedience.

We have a great, big jar filled with dirty pennies, so I knew that this activity was for us!

Take:

1 tsp salt

1/4 cup vinegar

1 cup water

Mix together in a bowl and add dirty pennies! Watch the results!

We also used cotton swabs to stir the pennies in the bowl.

On the 'Kids of Interity' site they recommend leaving the salt out and seeing that the pennies aren't clean, and then adding the salt and showing that we can try to be obedient on our own but it's too hard, we cannot do it on our own strength. It can be done by asking God for help.

I tried explaining this to Aj and Si, but I think that it went a bit over their heads. Either way, they both LOVED washing pennies! This is definitely a keeper in our household!

And, now all of our pennies are shiny and clean!

Library Rules

My ideal library would have their children's section in a separate, soundproofed building, with shelves of reinforced steel and soft pillowly floors that the children could bounce around on without getting hurt.

If that is too much to ask, perhaps there could be a drive-thru library that senses when I'm coming, chooses a bunch of books my kids would LOVE, checks them all out and has them waiting for me at a convenient, drive up window so that all I have to do it put them in my car.

Unfortunately, these libraries do not exist and I'm forced to visit quiet, adult oriented libraries with two loud, busy children!

I went on hiatus from the library a couple of months ago when my children decided to run away from me, in opposite directions, through rows of books all the while screaming and laughing at the top of their lungs. Then, when I successfully scooped Si up under my arm she persisted in screaming, kicking and flailing, while her brother crawled across the floor after me screaming 'i don't want to leave' !

Needless to say, we didn't visit the library for a LONG time after that experience.

Finally, after reading the same books 100 times, I realized that it wasn't their fault we had a bad library experience, it was mine. I failed to set clear expectations for what was acceptable in a library. For all they knew the library was sound proofed and the shelves were made of reinforced steel!

So, I sat AJ and Si down and explained to them that running, yelling and climbing are not acceptable in a library. If they run, climb or yell, they will receive a punishment. Also, I explained that in a library we talk, walk and keep our feet on the floor.  Then, we loaded ourselves into the car and headed to the library. Before getting out I re-explained what I expected of them and what the consequences would be if they did not act appropriately.

After a few climbing and running experiences the kids realized that I was serious about the consequences and our experiences have been MUCH better.

Si still has a hard time keeping her voice low, but she is two, so i understand that a little bit of excitement won't hurt.

Now, we are happily visiting the library every couple of weeks and mama isn't reading the same Dr. Seuess book over and over and over again! :)

Still Life

About once a week I pull out an old beach towel, throw down some paper and let the kids paint. Usually it lasts for about 10 minutes, they fill up five sheets of paper, get bored and start painting themselves!

Yesterday, I decided to do things differently.

AJ received an art easel for his first birthday that has been sitting in the back of the closet for three years. I pulled it out and clipped a piece of paper to each side.

Then, I took some old egg cartons, cut them each in half and filled each 'cup' with a different paint color.

Then, put an apple on the counter and asked the kids to paint an apple!

They LOVED it!

I put out Easter eggs, apples, flowers, boxes, everything I could think of that was an easy shape! It was so great! They had SOMETHING to strive for in their painting! It was a blast and worth about 45 minutes of fun!

Yah for still life!

AJ's Apple

Si's Apple

Simply Elaborate Cash Register

I have wanted to make a cash register for the kids for a long time. Around Christmas time,  I saved a couple of boxes to use for this project, but it never happened.

Yesterday, I planned on playing store with the kids so I decided to pull out one of the boxes and use it for the money. I decided NOT to decorate it. After all, they're kids, they can use their imaginations, right? I just wanted a simple box for a simple cash register!

Then I decided that I should AT LEAST put buttons on the register. And, you can't put buttons over a logo, so I decided to cover the top with blank paper to make it look fresh and clean.

For the keys, I cut up a sponge that I bought from the dollar store. (This picture shows the 'big' keys. After the box was complete I ended up pulling all the 'keys' off and cutting them width wise, because they stuck up too much and kept falling off).

Then  I decided that I had to have a screen, so I took another box, cut the lid off of it and slipped it into a slit I made in the first box.

Then I decided that it didn't look like a screen and I needed to make it look metallic... so, I wrapped the screen in aluminium foil.

Then, it was kind of floppy, so I reinforced it with a piece of cardboard and some tape.

There, I was done!

But.... as I was cleaning up the supplies, I noticed that the bottom of the box that I cut up for the screen would fit really well in the big box. So, I cut a rectangle in the big box just large enough for the tray to slide into.

Then I decided that money would flop around a lot in the tray, so I needed partitions (I used the scraps from all the box cutting and a lot of tape).

Then I stopped! (I had no choice, Si woke up).

It really was quite easy! The kids really enjoyed opening the drawer and pushing the buttons!

Supplies:

Two boxes

Sponge

Tape (lots of tape)

Paper (to cover the top of the box)

Glue (to glue the keys down and the paper down)

Aluminum foil

Scissors/knife for cutting

Play money

AJ's General Store

This afternoon the kids and I played 'store'.  It is a fun game to play for the fun of it, or to teach your little one about money. You can make the counting more or less elaborate depending on the age of your children.

I have learned how to stretch this game out to encompass the most time and fun possible.

Step 1- Arranging the store.
AJ, Si and I clean up his room and get all the tables and toy bins out and ready. Then, AJ and Si set up all the products (I always include food and buckets, spoons, etc). *You could also create a sign for the store to stretch out the fun even further.

Step 2 - Preparing the Customers
AJ, Si and I rummage through the dress up clothes and pick out hats, shoes, purses, glasses, etc Then we pick dolls to ride in the cart and stroller and ensure that they are dressed up too.

Step 3 - Shopping
We take turns manning the cash register and buying supplies. I ensure that we make many trips through the store and play with all the items on display.

Step 4 - Party
AJ and Si take all the newly bought food, bowls and goods and prepare a party in the next room where we get to enjoy all of our newly purchased goods.

Happy Shopping!

Supplies:
Toys
Dress up Cloths
Pretend money (monopoly, real coins (with older kids), poker chips
Imagination
Cash register (optional)
Shopping cart, stroller, or just big bags to fill with goods

Shaving Cream Toy Wash

I found this idea online and thought it sounded like so much fun!

Truthfully, AJ enjoyed the wash station more than his sister. She was not interested in washing toys. She got bored and decided to wash her shoes, some leaves, rocks, and finally stood in the pan herself!

AJ did take time to clean his cars and toys and then made a LARGE rinse station and played in the water. I would consider it was a moderate success... worth about 30 of playing time!

I got all the supplies from around the house and the Dollar Store, so it was cheap to create and not overly messy (when done outside). I think we might just do this one again!

Supplies:
Aluminium Foil Pans
Water
Shaving Cream
Brushes
Cloths
Toys to wash

Coffee Talk

I LOVE coffee. I have a special, Hazelnut cream that I buy at Wholefoods and mix it with my Fair Trade coffee and a little raw sugar. It is my special treat every day! I look forward to it. I don't let anyone else make it. I LOVE my coffee.

But, even more than my coffee, I love my family. And MOST days I prepare my special cup around 8am only to find a 3/4 cup of cold coffee on my counter around 3:30 in the afternoon. While I take great care in making my coffee, I rarely find a good time to actually drink my coffee!

Then, at Christmas I received a metal travel mug for taking coffee on the go. I used it for going out a couple times before I realized that I am ALWAYS going somewhere! Now, I prepare my special cup of Hazelnut, Fair trade, raw sugar coffee at 8am in my 'to go' cup, and go around the house all morning with a warm cup of coffee following me from room to room and activity to activity. I usually complete my coffee around 11, and it's still warm!

Just a tip for my fellow, busy morning coffee lovers!

Learning Shapes

Si learns a little differently than AJ. She is like her mama... kind of stubborn and likes to do things her own way! :) Consequently, she still has not learned her shapes! Aj learned his in two days, and Si has still not learned them and it's been MONTHS! To her, everything is a circle or triangle! I called a friend for some advise and she offered up a great game.

I cut out a bunch of shapes on card stock and outlined them with a felt marker -just to make them look pretty. I kept them all white, so that we would not get confused with color vs shape.

Then I took envelopes, cut the tops off and drew each shape on it's own envelope. I cut out four of each shape and used the following shapes:
-Star            -Heart
-Circle          -Square
-Rectangle    -Triangle
-Oval            -Diamond

Then I mixed all the shapes up and AJ and Si took turns putting them into the correct envelope. BONUS: This also worked on fine motor skills!

It was great! She still doesn't get all of her shapes, but this is certainly more fun than flash cards! Plus, it taught AJ self control because he loves to blurt out the shapes without giving her a chance to guess!


Happy Shape Sorting!

Supplies:
-A couple sheets of card stock
-Scissors
-Marker
-Envelopes

Categories and Measuring

I'm busy planning my week ahead (for once) and I wanted to start a unit on measuring with AJ. I was busy putting together a worksheet, when I had a brainstorm.

We are going to grab daddy's tape measure and head to AJ's stuffed animal bin. Then we will carefully (hopefully) measure each animal and have Si place them into buckets based on their size (i.e. 1 - 3inches, 4-6 inches, 6-8inches, etc). That way we all have a hand in the fun!

And, after all the measuring fun, we can teach Si her colors by changing the categories from size to color!

I'll let you know how it works out!

Supplies:
Stuffed animals
Tape Measuring
Buckets with sign on front showing sizes, colors, etc

Flour Power

Match box cars have been a staple in my home since Aj was just over a year old. And, on days when we were indoors with nothing to do, I would pull out the flour and let him drive his cars through it.

I would put a LARGE beach towel on the kitchen floor, put different sized  plastic lids, bowls, cooking sheets and measuring spoons out and put a cup or so of flour into each vessel. Then, he would load flour onto the dump trucks with the spoons and take it from one bowl to the other! It was great fun for about 30 minutes.

Then I would clean all the flour back into one big tuperware continer (to save for next time) and let him stand at the sink with the water running slowly and wash all of his cars, spoons and bowls. The washing was great for another 30 minutes of fun!

I speak of all of this in the past tense, because once my little barbarian, Si, came along the flour was inevidably EVERYWHERE and while it was probably more fun for them, it was a LOT more clean up for mommy!

Leaf People

I live in a condo, so any time that we can get out and get some fresh air, we take advantage of it. We load Si into the wagon and Aj pulls her around the complex looking at ducks and golfers (we live on a golf course).

The other day we went out for a walk and Aj started picking up leaves and handing them to Si and I like they were presents.  We ended up with a stack of leaves to throw back into the grass (because leaves are NOT allowed in my house) when I had a craft idea... leaf people.

I told Aj and Si that they could each pick one leaf to take home to make a special surprise.

When we got home, we rushed to the table where I pulled out glue, goggle eyes, crayons, pipe cleaners and paper. We glued our leaves, drew arms and legs and then glued on the eyes and mouth. Afterwards I cut them out and glued them onto strips of cardboard (I didn't have Popsicle sticks). Voila! Leaf people!

Craft Supplies:
Leaves
Paper
Crayons
Glue
Goggle eyes
Pipe-cleaners
Cardboard strips or Popsicle sticks

Learning About the USA

Memorizing the 50 States
Being a traveller at heart, it is important to me that my children understand the world, and seek to explore it. I've started by teaching my son about the USA and once we've completed the USA, I plan to move on to Canada (my home country) and then on to the rest of the world.

I started by posting a map of the USA in a learning corner. Next, was an attempt to teach him, and me, all 50 states. Thankfully, I stumbled upon the 50 States that Rhyme Song:

This was a GREAT, easy tool that helped AJ and I learn our states. We went stanza by stanza and in about a week we had it memorized. Now, we go over it about once a week so that he doesn't forget it. When we review it, we usually sing it together, very loud, and dance around. Si joins in and now she is learning her states too!

Here are the lyrics to help you learn it as well:

Alabama and Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas
California, Colorado and Connecticut and more
Delaware, Florida Georgia and Hawaii, Idaho
Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, still 35 to go

Kansas and Kentucky
Louisiana, Maine
Maryland, Massachusetts and there's good old Michigan
Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri and Montana
Then Nebraska's 27, number 28's Nevada

Next, New Hampshire and New Jersey
And way down New Mexico
There's New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio...
Oklahoma, Oregon
Pennsylvania, now let's see
Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee

Texas and there's Utah
Vermont, I'm almost through
Virginia and there's Washington
And West Virginia, too
Could Wisconsin be the last one?
Or is that 49?
No, Wyoming is the last state
In the 50 states that rhyme!