Easter Ideas

Like most moms the weeks leading up to a holiday I like to have lots of relevant activities.  For Easter we have been doing the Resurrection Eggs.  I am doing it in 6 days so each kid can open one egg.  My 4 year old loves hearing the story of Jesus sacrifice for us!  I re-cap each day of what we have learned already and they always want to know what is going to happen next!

Another thing we did last night for dessert is yummy Resurrection rolls.  They were so delicious but what was fun was to have the kids help make them. 

{You take 8 large marshmallows (Jesus)

Dip them in melted butter (the oils)

roll them in cinnamon sugar (the spices)

wrap them in a crescent roll (the burial clothes or the tomb)

****make sure to seal them VERY well because I thought I did and the marshmallow still came out of most of them!

You dip the top of the roll in the butter and the cinnamon sugar

and then place on a baking sheet and cook at 350 for about 10 min.

When you take them out Jesus is gone!

(You can use the oven as the tomb symbolism but my kids didn't seem to understand that) }

This last thing is fun for your kids Easter baskets....Play dough carrots!

I used my favorite play dough recipe for these and I just doubled it.  It made 5 carrots.  I put the dough in sandwich bags and tied with some green ribbon!  These will be great fun for my nieces and nephews (and my kids too!)

{Just in case you want the recipe for the dough here it is:

1 cup flour

1 cup water

2 tsp cream of tarter

1/4 salt

1 TBS oil

food coloring

Mix everything together in a pan and then cook over medium heat until it forms a solid (it takes a while...keep stirring so it doesn't burn!)

When it is done take it out...kneed a little and let cool.  You end up with a nice soft dough that is oh so fun to play with!!!}

Ingredients mixed together

It starts to get lumpy

Final product!



stained glass crosses

It's Thursday!!!!  Yeah for Thursdays with Janell! 

Today we did an Easter project with the kids.  Here is what we did:

I cut crosses out of construction paper (you can use any kind).  I cut up a bunch of tissue paper and then put the crosses onto clear contact paper that I got at Target.  The kids went to work placing the tissue paper onto the sticky side of the contact paper!

After that was done I put another piece of contact paper on top and then we hung them in the window!  We also did eggs!

Now most of you would probably want to cut around the cross but my kiddos put the tissue paper all over and did not want any cut off!

This is a great project for kids of all ages.  The older ones can cut their own tissue paper and make designs.  It has NO GLUE so is pretty much mess free! Good fine moter and creativity!

Now don't forget to talk about the importance of the cross with your kids while doing the project!  Always a time to share the gospel!

Roasted peeps = YUM

Roasted peeps are a favorite around here.  I stock up on them when they go on clearance after Easter.  You can throw them in your freezer to keep longer, and pull them out whenever you have a bonfire.  When you get them just right...the outside forms a crunchy, sugary shell and the inside is melty and gooey.  YUM.

Teaching kids about where they live

Help kids to understand where they live by doing this project that talks about their house, town, state, country and earth (you could also do more or less depending on the age). Because of the young age of my kids I helped them draw the pictures and cut the circles out. For their ages (4 and 2) it mostly got us talking about what the name of the town is that they live in, the state and the united states. The different size circles help them to see that each thing gets bigger! I love simple things like this. You could do it each year to see how their understanding changes also!  I got the idea from HERE.

The Easter Story

I found this GREAT idea from The Frugal Girls on how to talk to your kids about Easter....no NOT about bunnies and candy and eggs   BUT about JESUS!   Take an empty egg carton and 12 plastic eggs.  


Here’s what you’ll put inside each egg:

• {Egg #1} Put a picture of the world, a cross, and a heart in this egg and the following….on a piece of paper, write or type: World and heart ~ For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son… {John 3:16} God loved us so much that He sent His one and only son to die for our sins.

• {Egg #2} Put a small leaf or branch in this egg and the following….on a piece of paper, write or type: Palm Leaf ~ On Palm Sunday, they put palm branches and coats on the ground and waved palm branches at Jesus, shouting “Hosanna!”

• {Egg #3} Put half of a ritz cracker or other small broken cracker piece in this egg and the following… on a piece of paper, write or type: Bread ~ Jesus was having Passover, and it was called the Last Supper. He said, This is my body that was broken for you.

• {Egg #4} Put one hershey’s kiss in this egg and the following… on a piece of paper, write or type: Kiss ~ Judas told the soldiers who Jesus was by giving Jesus a kiss.

• {Egg #5} Put one nickel in this egg and the following… on a piece of paper, write or type: Judas got paid 30 pieces of silver for being bad and betraying Jesus.

• {Egg #6} Put one toothpick in this egg and the following… on a piece of paper, write or type: Thorns ~ They put a crown made out of thorns on Jesus’s head.

• {Egg #7} Put one nail in this egg and the following… on a piece of paper, write or type: Nail ~ They nailed Jesus to the cross.

• {Egg #8} Cut a small piece off of a sponge and put it in this egg with the following… on a piece of paper, write or type: Sponge ~ They gave Jesus “pickle juice” {vinegar} to drink in a sponge.

• {Egg #9} Cut a small piece of tissue, toilet paper or paper towel and put it in this egg with the following… on a piece of paper, write or type: Wrapping ~ They wrapped Jesus up in cloth and buried him. When he came back alive, the wrapping was left behind.

• {Egg #10} Put a small rock in this egg and the following… on a piece of paper, write or type: Rock ~ The stone was rolled away on Easter morning because Jesus rose from the dead.

• {Egg #11} All that goes in this egg is the following… on a piece of paper, write or type: Empty ~ He is not here. He has risen!

• {Egg #12} Put a penny or a gold dollar {if you have one} in this egg and the following… on a piece of paper, write or type: Gold Coin ~ Because of what Jesus did on the cross, if we believe in him, ask him to forgive us of our sins, and ask him into our hearts, we get to be with Him in heaven some day! Heaven will be so fun, and will even have streets made of gold!!

Once you’re done… every day leading up to Easter, open 1 egg and read that part of the story!

20 USES FOR DOLLAR STORE GLOW STICKS: KID ACTIVITIES

Glow sticks from the Dollar Store have kept my kids BUSY and HAPPY for many many hours over the years.  In fact, they are one of my favorite, go-to items for so many reasons, and the kids NEVER seem to get tired of them.  If you read this post, please leave a comment on your favorite glow stick uses.

1.  Glow Sticks In The Bathtub:  My kids love to get in a dark bathroom (turn all lights off, the glow sticks will give more than enough light) and let them play in the water (supervised, of course).  My kids sometimes play that they are electric eels in the ocean.  Sometimes they play that they are ships, and sometimes they just play with them.

2.Glow sticks in pool, lake or ocean:  If you ever have a chance to swim outside in the evenings when it is dark, my older kids love to throw the glow sticks around the pool and then dive for them.  They sink.  We throw out maybe 10 of them, and then everyone races to see who can get the most the soonest. (again, supervision!)

3.Glow sticks in the van for long car rides:  We head to WI every few months which is a long car ride of about 5 hours, and by hour 3 it is DARK out.  This is also about the time the kids are DONE being in the car.  This is when we pull out the glow sticks and the kids happily wave them around and play with them for the last 2 hours.

4. Hide and Search Glow Sticks:  My youngest two LOVE to take turns hiding glow sticks in a dark room and letting the other one search.  This seems to be something they could play forever.

5. Hide and Seek WITH Glow Sticks:  Play hide and seek in the dark, like the basement in the evening, and keep all lights off but everyone holds a glow stick.  Makes it a little spooky and a little more fun than normal hide and seek.  OR, after dark TAG with glow sticks! 

6. Glow Sticks inside blown up balloons, and glitter too!:  Blow up a balloon, and insert a glow stick before tying.  If you want you can use a funnel to pour some glitter in too.  Then go to a dark room, or play outside in your backyard and play keep the balloons in the air with a group of people.  Or just have fun throwing and kicking around glowing balloons.

7. Glow sticks for sleepovers or camp-outs:  This is simple, but often when there is a special occasion like a birthday party, sleepover, or camp out, each kid gets a couple of glow sticks when they get in bed.  Makes a great night light for each kid, and is great incentive for them to get IN bed!  Also, anytime we camp out, each kid gets a glow stick in the evenings while the adults sit around the camp fire.  Not only fun for kids, but we can keep better track of them in the dark!

8.Bring glow sticks to any event where they might be selling them to save money: Disney on Ice, Sporting Events, parades, 4th of July celebrations, etc, all have vendors walking around selling glowing things!  These are very expensive, but if you have a stash in your purse from the dollar store, your kids will be happy and you will save lots of money.

10. Follow the Glow Sticks Pathway:  We live in the woods, but you could do this anywhere:  make a pathway of glow sticks around your driveway and backyard, and have kids follow it.  Put out obstacles such as traffic cones, and play follow-the-leader. 

11. Big Backyard Glow Stick Hunt:  This is like an Easter Egg hunt, but at night, and with glow sticks.  Trust me, your kids will think it is the greatest!  Have a prize for the one that finds the most.  Or not :)

12.  Make Crafts with Glow Sticks:  Using tape, make necklaces or headbands, or goofy masks or  costumes. Then have everyone wear their creation outside in the evening.  Think glowing aliens and monsters.  Make a giant snake. This would be a great boy birthday party idea.

13. Create a huge driveway picture:  Using the driveway or lawn as your canvas, make a huge picture on the ground!  Everyone can work together or create their own.  Think RAINBOWS, or even better, OUTER SPACE...with shooting stars, comets, and planets, all glowing.  SO NEAT!

14.Write a huge message in Glow Sticks:  The possibilities of this are endless.  Write a message on your childs' wall (taped) for him to see when he goes to bed.  Expecting dad home late?  You and your kids can spell out a message on the porch or driveway with glow sticks.  Expecting special company late in the evening?  Write a welcome message on the guest bed or wall.

15. Practice letters and words with glow sticks: This works best with the small ones, but have your child practice her letters in a dark room using glow sticks.  Trust me, this is much more fun that paper and pencil.

16. Bury glow sticks in sand or snow~ treasure hunt:  Anytime you and your kids are outside in the evening, you can use glow sticks in your play.  In winter, bury glow sticks (shallow) give your kids a shovel and let them dig for treasure.  In summer, do the same with sand.

17. Use as a night light in unfamiliar places:  Staying at a relatives house or motel?  Set a glow stick by the bedroom door and the bathroom door so if someone gets up in the night they can find their way to the bathroom.

18: Bedtime incentive: read by glow stick: Help get your kids to bed without a fuss...Let them take a couple of glow sticks to bed with them and use as a night light to read books by.  Set a timer or give them a certain number of books (such as 5) before they must stop reading and go to sleep.  Or for a child scared of the dark, simply let them have a glow stick by them in bed each night.  For this, use the fatter glow sticks in the single pack from the dollar store.

19: Glowing Jar Fairy Dust:  Carefully cut open glow sticks (adult only) and pour the inside stuff into a jar.  Put on the cover and shake.  Let your child pretend she has caught lightning bugs or fairies.  Or tell her it is magic fairy dust.  This would be awesome for a little girls' fairy birthday party!

20. Make Roads or Runways:  Make them on a small scale and let your child drive his trucks or airplanes between them for roads or runways.  Or make them LARGE and you and your child can BE the airplane or the trucks.  You can 'crash' into them, knock them over, make bridges and tunnels, etc.  Or have your child pretend to be a policeman and direct 'traffic' using toy cars, or an air traffic controller directing toy airplanes on where to land.

Chores for toddlers...they can help out too!

I don't want to sound like a 'slave driver' but we have started to do chores each day in our house.  We have a Chore Jar that the kids pick a stick out of.  These are some of the things that are on the sticks and I have two of each because there are not a lot of things a 4 year old and 2 year can do.

Dust

Clean kitchen floor

Help clean bathroom

Make Bed

Kids choice

Mom's choice

Day off

I got the great Printable from HERE but decided that most of the chores listed were not toddler friendly and just printed the blank ones and made my own!

The kids actually love helping out and it gets me to clean everyday!  Also they each have their own laundry basket (name written in the bottom) and help to sort the laundry.  This again gets them helping and makes folding/putting the laundry away go faster for me! 

Kids Play: Puddles, Cars, Washable Markers, and MORE

This is so simple but for some reason it really holds Parker's attention when I am working in the kitchen.  Just pour little puddles of water here and there on the counter and let them drive cars and trucks around...making tracks and splashing through puddles.

This is, of course, if you live in the Midwest and it is too cold to go do this on the driveway for months on end!

Take it a step further and let them color on them with washable markers, like brown for mud, and then let them give it a car wash.

Then if you are REALLY brave you can put some piles of 'snow' out, using foam soap or shaving cream.  Foam soap really works good, and hey, you are getting a clean countertop out of it, right?

Or, on second though, do all of the above in the bathtub :)  Parker has spent many hours playing in the bathtub with a bin of shaving cream and trucks.  Avalanches and blizzards and snow everywhere!
Speaking of snow...You can also set a bin of real snow next to the bathtub.  Again, the possibilities,,,!

Anyway, back to the counter-top.  You MIGHT even get a whole meal cooked while your child is occupied. At least until your husband comes in and puts an end to all the fun :)

Farm play sets

Along with the construction site below, we also created a farm set for Parker.  Like the construction site, it is just a piece of plywood with 2x4's for the sides, then we used mainly dollar store stuff and toys we had on hand to create the rest of it.  Parker was very into John Deere when he was younger, so we have quite a collection.  He likes to plow the fields and take care of the animals.  Also pictured below is a farm play set mat, which ABBY made.  It has fields, a stream a pond, and more.  I couldn't find all the pieces for it right now, but again, we looked for cheap clearance finds, took apart plants to harvest, and animals from the dollar store.

We used PVC pipe for the silos, and Lincoln logs for the animal pens:

And here, we used a peg board and poked zip ties up through the holes from the bottom:

This was all in much better shape a few years ago.  We bought real dried corn and real hay for him to play with on it, and 2 years later after a lot of play, it is showing it's age! 

Boys Room Play Construction Site Under Bunk Bed

Jeremy made this for Parker when several years ago and it has gotten more use than anything else.  We bought a used bunk bed from IKEA with the open area underneath.  Using a piece of plywood and 2x8's, we made an enclosed area which we filled with used scrap building pieces like pvc pipe, gutters, cardboard, etc, and filled it up with bags of rocks from the dollar store, and lots of construction vehicles, like diggers, loaders, skid steers, dump trucks, etc.  Occasionally we switch things up, like putting in sticks for logs, and then he uses his skidder and logging vehicles.  The possibilities are ENDLESS.  Also, you can't see it in the picture, but there is a garage with hinged doors for Parker to store his vehicles in!

Painting with Sweetened condensed milk

While doing DIY decorative balls today we had the kids doing some painting. I took a can of sweetened condensed and put it into ice cube trays and then added food coloring. The paint is sticky and thick. It was fun for the kids because it was a different texture and because it was shiney. Some of the pictures got a bit thick and are still drying (8 hours later). But the ones that have dried are really cool. Here is the PIN where the idea came from!

 

 

'Mess' free painting

OK, we wanted to get a nice picture of all of our kids sitting and doing one of the wonderful activities that we found to put on the blog...so  Here is the project!

The bags before they started to play with them

The fun begins!

We did not use paint, but we did plastic bags with shaving cream and food coloring.  We put two colors in each bag so they could see what color it became.  We of course did not tape ours down and would strongly recommend, especially if you have little ones, to Tape the bag DOWN!  We had a bit of shaving cream and food coloring spilling out as they got squished around but they still had fun!

Weather

Learning about why it rains.....glass of water with shaving cream on top of it.  The shaving cream is the cloud.  Put food coloring on top and watching it rain!

Valentines day Fun!

This Valentines day we had fun making lots of homemade cards for family and friends.  There are so many ideas out there to do with paints (hands forming a heart, heart tree, hand and foot print flowers)
Here are just a few of the things we did.  Enjoy!

My baby boys hands to form a heart (His chubby little hands didn't work as well)