Colorful ForrestThis craft uses scrap paper to make a wonderfully colorful tree. Whether you punch all the holes now or save them up over time the results are awesome .Gather your materials. You will need a piece of white paper, one full piece of construction paper of your choice, a whole bunch of scrap coloured paper, a brown marker, glue and a hole punch.Start by punching out tons of holes, keep them all. You can do this over a week , allowing your child to work out their little hands wit... Read Full Story

Fuzzy Monster This craft did not start well. Easter grass is messy on good days but answering an email, after I got the grass out ( oops) I found my son trying to clean it up in the family room. The grass was everywhere and all I could do was laugh. Here's a pic of the carnage. That said, we had so much fun doing this monster craft which was inspired by the books below and my son's newest pjs - which will debut once the weather cools.Gather your materials. If you are brave( and crazy like me ... Read Full Story

Playroom Addition !Writing on a vertical surface is very important for fine motor development. It works out the developing muscles in the arm and wrist that are used for writing. Your child's hands/wrists naturally go into the proper position when writing vertically so easels , white boards and chalkboards like this one are invaluable! I have been wanting to make my son one for ages, and I finally bit the bullet. It was insanely easy and inexpensive too!Gather your materials. I used Benjam... Read Full Story

apple a ! Welcome to the new letter of the week- it's all lower case from now on! Don't worry though I will link the uppercase letter at the bottom of each post . I know we just did an apple but I have to practice what I preach and let my child's interests lead - and the little dude wanted to make an apple a, which I was happy to since it's a cinch to turn a lowercase a into an apple. I am not starting with a to go in alphabetical order, and in many teaching circles you keep the vowels for la... Read Full Story

The Spotlight is on ...Do you ever find a blog and think - more people need to know about this! That blog for me it the domestic NOTEBOOK . Especially wonderful for moms ( she has a great baby puree and hooded towel tutorials) , and others who aren't quite up to the unrealistic expectations of Martha Stewart. I need to read it before I cook because when I read it after I've already eaten I just get hungry all over again. If you want to know why, just look at her post from Friday! This blog ... Read Full Story

A devoted reader and fellow mom asked me to write out my favorite authors for different ages and stages. I hope this list is useful to both her and you! I've tested them out in classroom, with children I have nannied and my own son. The pictures of the books link to reviews , click to read. Also It's hard to divide these authors by age, it's not definitive, most of these authors have books for all ages so check them all out.BabiesSandra BoyntonKaren Katz Bill Martin Jr.Margaret Wise BrownTo... Read Full Story

When I talk about "free art" what I mean is giving your child the opportunity to play with colors, make what they want and explore. Now I believe in this but am also aware that novelty is a big deal to small people who very easily declare "I don't know what to paint" and "I'm bored". Below you will find a long list of fun painting activities that can't be done wrong, have no long list of materials and use fun tools to paint , like painting with trains and trucks in the picture above. Click o... Read Full Story

Blast Off !This craft was not planned at all, we finished our favorite apple juice at lunch and while sitting there eating we brainstormed what we could make with the bottle. This is the first time my son and I have really brainstormed together, with a concrete focus. First of all I am taken aback by how old he is getting and 2nd he had great ideas. We thought of a garbage can, a bird feeder, a worm house and then settled on this rocket! So my challenge was what could we use to make it a ro... Read Full Story

I will be chatting about crafts and kids tonight on The Hula Shake with Ohana Mama on Mom Tv tonight at 8:30 pm EST ! There is a super cool Crayon Apron giveaway tonight too ! Now let's hope a certain someone ( who you may see doing crafts here) cooperates ! See you there!Click Here to Watch ! Read Full Story

Leaf ButterflyThe book Leaf Man inspired this craft. I had a different leaf craft planned, which we will do later but as we were leaving the park today I picked two leaves up and put them together, asked my son what they looked like and after he said "Butterfly" I knew we'd be doing this instead.Gather your materials. You will need 2 large leaves with stems, some cardboard, markers, tape, glue and googly eyes.Start by drawing a butterfly body on the cardboard.Have your child color it - red wa... Read Full Story