Pool Playdate

Entertaining Little Ones

# empty water bottle, put in some coins, close very tightly, and voilà -- a brand-new rattle. (Just don't leave her alone with it!)

# Create instant bathtime fun: Hand over your turkey baster as a squirt toy; add plastic funnels for scoop-and-pour games.

# Shake, rattle, and roll. Fill a few small plastic bottles half full of water and put the caps on tightly. While you check e-mail, let your child shake 'em up -- she'll love all the splashing.

# Go for color: Give your child a medicine dropper and an ice-cube tray filled with water. Add food coloring. Let him squeeze, squirt, and mix!

# A good high-chair activity while you're cooking: Take an empty tissue box, throw in a few small objects -- a washcloth, a leaf, a toy car -- and let your child reach in and feel them. Then dump them out and put in a few different things.

Toddlers on up


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# Start a pickup game: Put crayons or markers in a small pile. Kids can try to remove one at a time without disturbing the others.

# Jazz up coloring: Print out Keith Haring's imaginative artwork

# Boost ABC fun: Print out adorable alphabet coloring pages

Toddlers on up


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# Decorate balloons. Rub one until it has a static charge. Supply your child with pieces of tissue or string to put on it, and let him see what else sticks. (Just be sure to watch him.)

# Sew fun! Punch holes in an egg carton with a pen, tape on a string of yarn, and let your child thread it through the openings.

# Stay cool with ice hockey. Tip over a small wastebasket in your driveway, toss some ice cubes on the ground, and use broomsticks to see who can score the most before the ice melts

# Leaf-peep from home. Gather fall leaves from your yard, put a piece of double-sided tape on each, and let your kid stick them on the windows.

# Start a nature scrapbook. Grab a small photo album or notebook where your child can store finds like leaves and feathers.

# Grab cookie cutters and...
- Use them for stencils
- Turn melon into stars
- Cut play dough into cool shapes.

# Stamp it. Give your child things from around the house -- blocks, a wire strainer, doll's feet -- to make impressions on play dough.

# Celebrate Easter: Lay a basket on its side, line up some plastic eggs, hand your child a broom, and play huevos hockey.

# Do 3-D painting. Save up the foam blocks from your packages for your child to paint. Kids love the odd shapes.

# Make a splash! Show your child how to soak up water from one bowl with a sponge and squeeze it into another -- silly fun in the kitchen or the backyard.

# Create a love map. Draw a big heart on paper, and ask your child what's in her heart. Jot down what she says for a great Father's Day gift.

# Toss a ball in running water -- from the hose, in a shallow stream, in the ocean. Show your child how to use a small net or strainer to catch it, then throw it back and start again!

# Make a perfect valentine stamp. Slice an apple in half, then cut a "V" shape at the bottom of one of the pieces. Have your child paint the flat surface red and stamp it onto cards.

# A quick hide-and-seek game: Stick rows of Post-it notes on a piece of paper, put a sticker under one, and let your child guess where the sticker is. Then hide another!

# Declare your floors "hot lava." Your child can move around the house only by hopping on "islands" (paper taped to the floor).

# Liven up a springtime walk. Give your child a colorful lightweight scarf to hold out of the stroller and fly like a streamer in the wind.

# Make pizza cookies. Give your child lumps of cold pizza dough so she can flatten them with a potato masher. Sprinkle cinnamon and sugar on top, bake, and serve.

# Play mix and match. Give him a few empty plastic bottles or jars and their caps, and let him figure out which go together (just keep an eye on him)

# Have a race: Use chalk to draw a curvy course on your sidewalk for an instant trike path.

# Play laundry basketball. While you sort, hand your kids rolled-up socks and an empty trash can, and promise a kiss for every "point" they make.

# Make "movies." Create a flip book

Preschoolers and up


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# Launch far-out fun. Let your child play Shuttle Tac Toe, Space Bounce, and other games at NASA Kids' Club

# Keep car trips fun:
- How high can your kids count before the next traffic light?
- Decide who'll listen for the words "new" and "old" on the radio. Whoever counts ten of her word first wins!

# Test her memory. While you do laundry, log your child on to Playkidsgames.com -- she'll have a blast clicking on lights on the turtle's shell as they come up.

# Get in the St. Paddy's Day spirit: Cover a piece of shamrock-shaped cardboard with double-sided tape. Have your child stick on green paper, leaves, and other stuff.

# Print out a Dr. Seuss game from Seussville.com

# Kick off a buggy summer! Your child can design a cool virtual insect with wings and antennae at Build-a-Bug

# Engage in fowl play. Turn an orange into a turkey: Use toothpicks to attach a cherry tomato head, raisin eyes, a baby-carrot beak, and lettuce feathers.

Ice Cream

Who says it has to be summertime to enjoy ice cream? Not your kids, that's for sure! Everyone loves ice cream, and what better way to beat the cold weather blues than with some cold treats?

Gather your kids around, get out the ingredients and have some fun. Don't forget to pull out all your favorite toppings. You can use anything from sprinkles to crushed candy bars to cookies.

Fresh fruit is an excellent topper for a fresh bowl of homemade vanilla ice cream. Try bananas or strawberries sliced and thrown on top. Or add them to the blender with a splash of milk for a fabulous shake.

Anything is possible. Have fun with it! Let the kids help pick the toppings and make it a fun day for everyone!
Ingredients:

* 1 cup sugar
* 3 tablespoons all purpose flour
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 2 1/2 cups milk
* 3 eggs
* 2 cups heavy or whipping cream
* 5 teaspooons vanilla extract

Directions:
In heavy, 3-quart saucepan with spoon, combine sugar, flour, and salt. In medium bowl with hand beater or wire wisk, beat eggs and milk and eggs together until well blended; stir into sugar mixture until smooth. Cook for about 15 minutes over low heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens and coats the spoon, being sure that the custard does not boil or it will curdle; allow to cool (at room temperature).

Stir in 2 cups heavy or whipping cream and 5 teaspoons vanilla extract.

Freeze until desired consistency is reached.

CARS!

We made our FIRST and last (for awhile anyway) trip to the Drive-In Movies in Southington. It was nice, reasonably priced and kid friendly... in that there was room to run and play and playground equipment. BUT, we needed to be there early to get a spot, since the crowd comes quick... so we waited almost 4 hours before the movie started, NOT good for a two-year-old!

What's in a FOOD label?

ALWAYS READ THE LABELS ON THE FOODS YOU BUY--NO MATTER WHAT THE FRONT OF THE BOX OR PACKAGE SAYS, TURN IT OVER AND READ THE BACK---CAREFULLY! With all the food and pet products now coming from China, it is best to make sure you read label at the supermarket and especially Walmart (ASDA - US owned) when buying food products.

• Many products no longer show where they were made, only give where the distributor is located.
• The whole world is concerned about China-made goods.
• The world is also concerned about GM (Genetically Modified) foods; steroid fed animals etc in USA.
It is important to read the bar code to track its origin.
• If the first 3 digits of the barcode are 690 691 or 692, the product is MADE IN CHINA.
• 471 is Made in Taiwan .
• If the first 3 digits of the barcode are 00 - 09 then it's made or sourced in USA
• 690-692 ... then it is MADE IN CHINA
• 00 - 09 ... USA & CANADA
• 30 - 37 FRANCE
• 40 - 44 GERMANY
• 471 ... Taiwan
• 49 ... JAPAN
• 50 ... UK

Summer learning programs

I tried to cram every activity I could into the summer, since our paper and pencil work would be limited... I took great advantage of the local libraries and the free programs they offered. I occasionally double booked, like today... Star-Lab in Beacon Falls AND Farmer & Piggy in Prospect. I was running like a mad woman, but we hit them both! The StarLab, which I have seen before when I was teaching was disappointing to me... But, BUG liked it...

Petit Road Race

We all took the trip to Plainville to run in the Petit 5k Road Race. It was definitely the nicest race I have ever seen (other than a Disney race of course). There were TONS of neighbors surrounding all the streets, cheering us on, putting their sprinklers into the road which was burning, and it concluded with a nice little party with lots of freebies... We didn't stick around long, because we went to breakfast at Leo's instead...

Comedy Show...

No fail...

EVERY time I venture out, for a reason other than work or house-hold chores... SOMETHING happens... Tonight was no different...

Summer Reading Kick Off Party

Day with Gia

Is the grass ALWAYS greenier?

Do you ever look at your ex's and their current life status' and think, "Woah, I dodged a bullet there!"?

Not that any of them are in a 'bad' place, just different than where I am or where I would choose to be at thirty. I'd definately not be happy single & dating, married withOUT children, traveling the world on exotic adventures, living with my parents to save a ton & do nothing but have fun or living in a big empty house with my spouse and spending money on spas and fancy things. NONE of those things are bad or a bad idea or a place I wouldn't or haven't seen myself ten years ago or ten years from now, but right now...right NOW, I am in the BEST place for me.

I love hearing "momma," from a tiny voice down the hall, washing dishes and laundry and floors nearly constantly, making dinner, packing lunches and refilling sippy cups, waking up early to 'play', and I don't even mind steping on the occassional lego or washing some mysterious 'goo' off my hands, coaxing a monster out of the closet or waiting in line for a water slide that I cannot even ride.Yup, when I look out my window every morning, my grass is pretty darn green...its got some patches of slightly different shades of green - but green never-the-less.

I never planned on staying home for more han three years and making ends meet with odd jobs of babysitting, tutoring or curriculum writing. I never imagined my night's out would be demonstrating and consulting for Pampered Chef... I never thought I would become a good, quick cook who never seems to follow a recipe... I certainly never thought I would be making my own soaps, laundry detergent or diapers. I could have never guessed that at thirty I would be the happy mother of two, expecting number three, cleaning and teaching by day and framing an addition by night. I never thought I'd have a handsome, smart husband working (unnessacarily) 50+ hours of overtime a week because the company he works for trusts no one else...I never imagined waking semi-rested after less than 4 hours of sleep to do it all again would make me smile. But, it does. Everyday I smile. I smile because I wouldn't have it any other way....

Macaroni Art

BUTTERFLY ART

What You Need:

* card-stock paper
* smallest shell noodles
* curly noodles
* medium shell noodles
* bow-tie pasta
* glue

What You Do:
The children will learn about butterflies with this lesson.
The smallest noodle is the egg of the caterpillar.
The curly noodle is the caterpillar.
The medium shell noodle is the cocoon and the bow-tie pasta is the butterfly.

Carribbean Day

Drums are an important part of life and ceremony in many cultures. Here is a simple method for you and your students to create a fun sounding drum as you celebrate the cultures of the world.

What You Need:

* An empty coffee can with a plastic lid (small, large, whatever you have).
* Construction paper, glue & scissors.
* Paint or markers.
* Paintbrushes & water.
* Dowels or sticks from trees in the park.
* String, leather, feathers, beads ... any bits of scrap material you might have.

What You Do:

1. You have two options here. Either paint the coffee can with paint or cover the can with construction paper. Leave the plastic lid on the coffee can ... this will be your drum head.
2. If you cover the coffee can with construction paper, you can paint or draw designs and creatures on the coffee can. Have a look at pictures of different kinds of drums and the images found on them. (Try covering the can with aluminum foil for a neat effect.)
3. After the paint is dry, you can glue all sorts of wonderful things to your drum.
4. Using wooden dowels or simply wooden sticks, drum away on your new coffee can drum.

Let's talk diapers

For most moms, its a grab what you have a coupon for, whatever is on sale, given to you or comes in the best bang for your buck ratio.

But, for some moms it is a bigger decision than that.

To cloth or not to cloth? Will I dispose or reuse? What brand works best? How do you clean them? What detergent do you use? How often do I wash them? Wear should I wash them? How many do I need? Which materials are the most absorbent? Which fabrics are the most comfortable? Does cute-ness really matter to me? How many styles are there? The most scary part is, every baby is different. Their legs, and behinds are contoured a bit different. They 'go' at different intervals and in different amounts. Their skin may be sensitive to different materials.

You can buy a million diapers before the baby arrives and see that none of them work, once the baby is in them.

Will I be wasting money or saving it? Is it more of a hassle than it is really worth?

Am I becoming a bit too 'crunchy'?

And what if I made my own?

Vacation Bible Camp

When I was looking to register Jack's for school, I thought good introduction to the environment would be Saint John's week-long Vacation Bible Camp. He LOVED it, he came home everyday with a hand-made craft, a story about the day and a smile on his face... I am certain it was a GREAT CHOICE!