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Super Simple {and really fun} Nature Craft

May 13, 2011 | 3 Comments

Leaf for nature craft

curtesy of FreeFoto.com

Yes, it’s me again — the reluctant crafter. If you have been reading this blog for awhile, then you know I have publicly admitted that I am not one of those wonderfully crafty mommies. I do my best — and my kids seem okay with my limited ability, in this area of Mommy-hood. However, they really do love crafts (even the really simple kind), so I often peruse crafting websites trying to find easy – and not terribly messy – things to do with the kids.

One Saturday morning, I was watching TV and there was a craft show on. It was all centered around fun things to do with the kids. The host of the show, is like the Macgyver of making toys for kids, by re-purposing just about anything (milk cartons, egg cartons, cans, butter containers, broken wooden handles, etc.). Some of the things she made — the boys would have broken faster than it took to actually make. However, she also had some annoyingly creative ideas as well. There was one thing she made that stuck with me and I just tried it the other day.

Nature Walk Craft

I am always looking for fun things to do with the kids — and ways to provide opportunities, to help them learn about the world around them. Admittedly, some days I am better at this than others. On this particular day, I was running out of things to do with the kids, they were wanting to do a craft (I couldn’t talk them into doing watercolors again) and we all really needed to get out for a walk. It was almost lunch/nap time though, so I didn’t have a lot of time to put anything together but I knew I had to think of something — and fast.

That is when this craft came to mind. It’s simple:

What you need:

  • Sandwich bags
  • Yarn
  • A hole punch
  • Construction paper
  • Glue
  1. Take the sandwich bag and punch a hole at the top on either side
  2. Cut a piece of yarn and tie each end into a hole — this makes a collection bag. (The boys wore their collection bags during the walk)
  3. Go on a nature walk. This can be as simple as walking through your own backyard, neighborhood, local park, or taking a hike.
  4. Let the kids look at discover all the things they see. They will stop and examine items and put things their bags. I honestly thought the boys would stuff anything they could see in their bags, but they were pretty selective.
  5. After you are done with your walk — get the construction paper out. You can either let the kids glue their items on their paper, or (this is my favorite method) squeeze out a bunch of Elmer’s glue onto the paper and let the kids glue their items on. They did this while I was making lunch.
  6. Let Dry the picture dry.

This was such an easy thing to do, and I really had no idea how much the kids would love it. The whole time we were on our walk A. was singing “We are going on a nature walk. We’re going on a nature walk.” It was so cute. It was also, the first thing the boys told their Dad about when he got home. They had a blast, got some fresh air, good exercise, and made a craft like they wanted to.

It’s the simple things that make life so sweet. My kids have definitely taught me that! 🙂

Do you use crafts to make everyday experiences memorable? What other nature crafts can you recommend?

Brian
Brian

Brian is the founder of Kids Ain’t Cheap and is now sharing his journey through parenthood.

 
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Filed Under: Family Time Tagged With: Crafts, Nature, Nature Walks, Outdoors

Fun and Inexpensive Outings with the Kids

November 4, 2010 | Leave a Comment

Enjoying the outdoors is a great free family activity

Found on Pixabay

Fun and inexpensive outings with the kids are not hard to find if you know where to look. With the prices of pretty much everything on the rise an outing can become very expensive if we are not careful. Of course doing new things with the kids that will not break the bank can be just as fun.

Using your imagination and being creative can find a lot of fun. Many times at the end of the most inexpensive outings the family will have spent quality time together and probably learned a few new things along the way.

Enjoy the Outdoors

Enjoying the outdoors is one of the things that many families enjoy and the wonders that can be found by a child’s eyes are endless. Nature walks can be a very rewarding outing. Enjoying the trails with the family and actually getting away from the rush of everyday life can be relaxing. Watching the little ones marvel at things they find along the trail can sometimes make us adults see things like they are new again. A child picking up a leaves and actually studying it is amazing. As adults we are often so busy that we miss a lot.

Visit the Library

The local library is also a great place to bring our children. Many libraries hold classes for the kids that are free of charge. Although the class may be once a week and only last an hour it is worth it. If your child is older the class is done without the parent. Again, it may only be an hour but an hour of free time at the library can be worth it for Mom and Dad!

To the Beach!

For those families that live near beaches but do not want to pay the parking or costs to enter the best time to go is at dusk. The beach is nearly empty and there is no charge to get in. Pack sandwiches and snacks and you are ready for a beach almost all to yourself.

Bus Station

Little boys (and some girls) love buses and trucks or pretty much any type of transportation for that matter. Imagine the little ones face when you roll into a bus station and go to see the buses. Pure delight, cost free.

Build Something Fun

Anyone have a builder on his or her hands? Many of the home improvement stores have free classes for the tikes and for the parents too (hate to have Dad feel left out). The classes may be held mainly on the weekends but again the cost can’t be beat.

Quality time with our families does not have to be expensive. The things that cost the least can be the best and smiles are flowing freely. How we spend our time with our children is not how much money we spend to have fun with them. Childhood memories are not made of how much money parents spent occupying us. Childhood memories consist of loving moments that were spent together knowing we were and are cherished.

What free and cheap family activities do you do with your family?

Brian
Brian

Brian is the founder of Kids Ain’t Cheap and is now sharing his journey through parenthood.

 
Email • Google + • Facebook • Twitter

Filed Under: Family Time, Stuff to Do Tagged With: Activities, Beach, Build, Bus Station, Cheap, Library, Nature Walks, Outdoors, outings

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Basic Principles Of Good Parenting

Here some basic principles for good parenting:

  1. What You Do Matters: Your kids are watching you. So, be purposeful about what you want to accomplish.
  2. You Can’t be Too Loving: Don’t replace love with material possessions, lowered expectations or leniency.
  3. Be Involved Your Kids Life: Arrange your priorities to focus on what your kid’s needs. Be there mentally and physically.
  4. Adapt Your Parenting: Children grow quickly, so keep pace with your child’s development.
  5. Establish and Set Rules: The rules you set for children will establish the rules they set for themselves later.  Avoid harsh discipline and be consistent.
  6. Explain Your Decisions: What is obvious to you may not be evident to your child. They don’t have the experience you do.
  7. Be Respectful To Your Child: How you treat your child is how they will treat others.  Be polite, respectful and make an effort to pay attention.
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