Win a $20 Gift Card from the new VeryJane!

***Giveaway Now Closed***

I know you love a good deal as much as I do.

Today I want to tell you about the newest deal a day site!

VERY JANE

There you will find homemade and boutique items at incredible prices.

And now through the end of the month they will be offering a free deal each day!

*shipping still applies

Giveaway!!!

Very Jane has offered to give away a $20 Target gift card to one of our lucky readers!

Here's how you can win:

1. Head over to Very Jane and subscribe to get their fabulous daily deals.
2. Become a fan of Very Jane on Facebook.

Leave a separate comment for each entry.

Good Luck!

[Giveaway ends Thursday May 5th]

Melt the Ice Cube

My boys absolutely loved this game!  This would be a great game for outdoors in the summertime . . . although we played indoors in the spring and it was just as fun!

I first saw this game posted on The Activity Mom and knew my boys would have a blast.  The best part is that you probably have everything you need lying around at home!

You will need:

A bowl of water

salt

die

printable chart

ice cubes (one for each player)

bowl (one for each player)

Every player gets their own ice cube (or you could share an ice cube to melt).  Players take turns rolling the die and the numbers tell you what to do to melt your ice.  Sometimes you hold it for 10 seconds.

Another number may tell you to blow on your ice for 10 seconds.

And be careful if you roll a two!  Because then you stick it down your shirt!  Brrr!

This was a great combination of sensory activity and science experiment--a definite keeper!

Scrap Fabric Paper Dolls

If you're like me and have a million scraps of fabric that you have no idea what to do with then you'll want to do this activity with your kids.  I saw this great little idea over at Skip to my Lou to make scrap fabric paper dolls and knew it was a must.
You can find the paper dolls over there all ready to print out.

Then gather up all those scraps and your ready for some fun fashion designing.

Cut . . . Paste . . . Color . . .

I don't think we'll ever get tired of this activity!

Felt Books

I'm always looking for quiet activities to keep my kids reverent during church.  More importantly I try to find things that are religious and quiet.  I mean, if they're not going to be listening to the speaker then at least they can be coloring a picture of Noah and the ark or looking at pictures of Jesus instead of playing with a Cinderella doll, right?

Several years ago I came across these felt play books:

I think they're so much fun.  The front cover contains a pocket that holds all the felt pieces and then each page of the book contains a large felt area where you can place the different pieces to create the story.  A couple of years ago I decided that I wanted to get them for my kids.  I found them at a Christian bookstore but they were $20 each!  I needed one for each kid and $40 seemed liked a bit too much to spend on two quiet books.  I haven't been able to get them off my mind lately and finally thought to look on amazon.com.  Of course I found them there and they were only $12 each.  That's more like it.  I bought a couple and am going to be placing them in my kids Easter baskets this year.  I can't wait to have them to bring to church with us.

Don't forget to check out some of our past Easter projects too:

The Easter Story

Bird Nest Treats

Jelly Bean Bracelet

Easter Rolls

Bunny Banner

Gifts Kids Can Make: Stuffed giraffe

In case you missed my post on Bloom I thought I'd re-post it here for our readers!

This past Christmas I had my older boys (ages 6 and 3 1/2) make the gifts that they were going to give to each other (see them HERE and HERE). I was having a hard time coming up with something for them to make for the one-year-old. Then I remembered this adorable giraffe tutorial I had seen forever ago on Make It and Love It but had never gotten around to making. My youngest is always carrying around a stuffed animal of some sort so this was just perfect!

I had the boys look through my scrap fabric and ribbons to find something they thought their brother would like. They decided on some fuzzy blue fleece and a scrap of Dad's worn out dress shirt.

After I cut out the fabric and pinned it together I let them each have a go at hand stitching the pieces together. They did awesome! Their attention waned after a bit and I ended up stitching the rest but they still felt pride in working on this gift together, choosing something they thought their brother would like, actually making something pretty cool and useful. For me, I loved seeing that my boys were excited to give something instead of just listing off the things that they wanted to get.


Find our template to make your own giraffe here.

Grocery Store Games

I am really lucky.  Nearly every week my mother-in-law volunteers to come over for the morning and play with my two smaller boys so that I can go shopping alone.  I get so  much more done without having to load everyone in and out of the car and keep them happy at the store!  Of course on those days that I do need to bring my boys along they are usually pretty good.  Occasionally, I remember to do something beforehand to keep them busy while we're there.

 I try to make a quick list of things from my list . . . things that I can draw (I am not an artist).  The boys love having their own list and it keeps them busy looking for items instead of bugging their brothers.

If I do forget to make a list (which is usually the case) I have them look anyway.  We play the "can-you-help-me-find-the-______" game.  It keeps them distracted from how long the shopping is taking.

And if you have kiddos that know their letters you could always have them go on an alphabet hunt--either looking things that begin with a certain letter (ie: find something that starts with 'b'--banana, beans, bacon, etc) or you could have them play the alphabet game finding every letter of the alphabet on signs, labels, etc.

These games have kept some of our shopping trips a little more sane!  What tricks do you have up your sleeve for shopping trips that get a little hairy?

Card Table Playhouses

My boys love forts and they'll use anything to make a little hideout for themselves.  Sometimes it's couch cushions, sometimes they use our fort kit and the kitchen chairs, and other times it's their bunkbeds and blankets.  There is just something about having a little secret place of your own!  And that's why I just love these playhouses from Miss Pretty Pretty!  You just slip them over your card table and you are good to go!

I know my boys would be in heaven with this Pirate's Hideout:

And I love Sunshine Garden Playhouse!

I just love that you can pick the veggies out of the garden!  Even better?  She sells patterns if you want to make your own!

And can I let you in on a little secret?  Head on over to She Wears Flowers for a chance to win a playhouse of your choice!  Seriously, what are you waiting for?!  I'm going to enter right now!  Good luck!

Bunny Banner

I'm starting to get excited for Easter.  I don't really decorate for any holiday except Christmas but I love to make holiday crafts with my kids, especially things to hang and display in their play room.

My daughter and I made this fun bunny banner last week to hang up in the play room.

I first drew up some of these cute little bunny outlines.

We then set to work cutting them out.   It was no easy task for a four year old, but she's great with the scissors and we worked together.

Next was the fun part.  We went through my scrapbook paper and made our bunny tails using my 2 inch scalloped punch.  This punch is the only scrapbook toy I have and it was worth every penny.  I use it for so many things.

We then taped those bunny tails on and used a hole punch to punch the holes in the ears so we could string them together.

. . . And my daughter thought it would be funny if she had a bunny tail too . . .

All strung together, looking bright and springy!

Cute bunny tails . . .

What do you do to make Easter fun in your home?

I'm linking to these parties.