One of my boys has an affinity for hats. He always has a hat on his head - sometimes even when he sleeps! His favorite hat is a black driving cap he bought with his own money. He wears this hat everywhere. And it was starting to show some wear. The hat had gotten dirty (he is a boy, after all) and despite a label that said "Spot Clean Only," I had washed it a few times. So now it had a few spots and it was really faded. In fact, it almost looked brown. He wanted a new hat. But … [Read more...]
Sidewalk chalk is a thrifty way to have fun outdoors. You can make your own chalk or make chalk paint. Kids think it is a lot of fun to make things like chalk that they could buy in a store. But if you're not going to make your own, I personally like the Crayola 48-Count Sidewalk Chalk. It includes a variety of colors so that you are able to have several shades from the same color family. You can really get creative with a big color palette. Sidewalk chalk can be both fun and educational … [Read more...]
Essential oils are very popular right now. They can also be expensive, but if you can find find multiple ways to use them, they are actually a great value. These five DIY natural health and beauty products using essential oils will help you ditch the store bought products with harsh chemicals in favor of these greener alternatives. … [Read more...]
I don't normally do much for decorating for Easter, but this year I thought it might be fun to decorate a few things. I wanted my decorating to blend with colors in my home and not be so Easter-y, which is how I chose the colors. … [Read more...]
I may have mentioned that my family enjoys puzzles and games. One of the problems with puzzles is that they take up a lot of space when you're working on them. Sometimes you need your table space for things like dinner. You can buy special puzzle mats that allow you to store your puzzle while you're working on it, but they can cost $15 or more. You can make your own puzzle mat in just a few minutes that will cost you less anywhere from $2 to $6. And making your own puzzle mat is even … [Read more...]
Making your own glycerin soap is very easy to do. So easy, in fact, that all of this soap was made by my 8 year old with minimal assistance from me. … [Read more...]
When you have toddlers and preschoolers, play dough is often a playtime staple and offers some good tactile and sensory play for children. Even my 3rd grader still loves to play with play dough. Sure, it only costs a couple dollars to buy a 3-pack of those little tubs, but you can make 3 times as much play dough for a fraction of the cost with a few pantry items that you probably already have. This is my all-time favorite play dough recipe because I have all the ingredients and it smells … [Read more...]