Well, school is back in session. Am I the only one feeling those pangs of regret that we didn’t do all we wanted to with our kiddos over the break? We get 18 summers with our children before they go off to college. It seems like a lot. But when I realize that I’ve only …
Have you heard of The Kindness Rocks Project? It’s an amazing new movement designed to inspire and share joy with random strangers. As a new contributor to the amazing website, No Time for Flashcards, I’ve shared an amazing synopsis of the project as well as how you and your kiddos can participate. Check it out …
Barnes and Noble has a great summer reading program that allows kids in grades 1-6 to earn free books! Here’s how kids can earn a free book: Download a summer reading journal from Barnes and Noble. Encourage your child to read any 8 books over the summer and journal about them. Take the completed journal to any Barnes …
It’s about to be summer vacation and I’ll be honest in that I’m panicking a little bit. This is the first summer that both kiddos have been old enough to do activities pretty much all day long. I’m starting prep early, using a hard copy calendar to plan activities for each month. See below for …
Bear is at that age (7.5 yrs) where he is into collecting things. And by “collecting”, I mean that I’m constantly struggling to keep his dresser and shelves free from piles of acorns, leaves and sticks shaped like random objects, bottlecaps, and anything else you can imagine. We’ve got quite a busy summer going on, and …
Whew! It’s been a busy, busy summer for us. I’m quite excited to finally go on our family vacation to the Iowa State Fair in a couple weeks. I dream of more exciting family vacations once Sunny (2) is a bit older. I made a list of some of the places I’d like to visit …
Summertime is the primetime for road trips. As a kid, I remember vacations to see Mt. Rushmore, the South Padre beach, and the St. Louis Arch. Riding in the car and seeing the sights our country had to offer was novel and exciting. We played road trip bingo and the license plate game, read books, …
It’s summertime! Time to go swimming, have barbecues, and go on vacation. But how to keep the kids busy in between all the running around? I know that there are schools of thought on both sides of the worksheet debate. But I tend to not count word searches as worksheets. Maybe it’s because of all those …
Sidewalk chalk is one of those staples of childhood. It can be used to set the scene for simple games like hopscotch and four square or to create drawings inspired by imagination. It’s one of those must-have items… especially in the summer. Here are some great activities that you can do with children and sidewalk …
The 4th of July holiday celebrations are a big event in our country. Some families stay close to home at this time. Others travel to visit family out of town or even in another state. If your family is anything like ours, you can sympathize with the fact that it’s tough to keep the kiddos …
