We headed out this weekend for a few hours to fly a kite - a spur of the moment idea to enjoy some outdoor time on a windy day.

Have you ever gone kite flying with the kids?

 

Spring is here and summer is right around the corner.  Before you know it, school will be out and the kids will be home looking for things to do. 

Last week, I gave you 3 great reasons to shop kids consignment sales/stores -- this week, I thought I'd share a list of what to look for as you prepare for a fun (and low-cost) summer. 

 

Many of these items can be found at garage sales and consignment sales/stores which can save you money for that summer vacation you're planning.

Welcome to the new Discover & Explore linky! 

The linky is hosted by Edventures with Kids and Fantastic Fun & Learning.  Each week, we will feature a different theme and ask you to link up your kids activities, crafts, recipes, outings, booklists and family-friendly posts.

This week, we will Discover & Explore Butterflies!

I'm very excited to introduce a new series to the blog beginning next week! 

I will be co-hosting Discover & Explore, a weekly themed linky with Shaunna from Fantastic Fun & Learning.

I'm so excited that we are finally seeing some spring weather!  We are so past due - and it's cutting into our gardening schedule. 

I'll admit, I am not one of those amazing Martha Stewart-type gardeners, but I really do enjoy having a small backyard garden each summer.  The kids and I choose a few favorite plants along with some new items to try each year and then we get dirty, watch the plants grow and reap the harvest (literally!)

I love getting kids excited about books!  I've also learned that Children's Book Publishers also love to get kids excited about reading. 

So this week's edition of our 5 Fun Finds features some of the top Children's Publishing websites and the amazing games & activities they offer -- all linked to great kids books.

Note: This post contains affiliate links for your convenience.

March 22^nd is World Water Day

It's a day for all of us to remember that water is an important resource in our life and clean water is a limited resource for many around the world. 

Everyone can make a difference in preserving this natural resource, even the youngest among us!  In fact, the kids might even teach us adults a thing or two.

In honor of Spring this week (yea!!), I thought I'd begin a new weekly series: 5 Fun Finds!

Every week, I find TONS of great things as I'm curating new content or writing posts. I need a way to share these with YOU!

Do you know today is?

March 14th...

3/14...

3.14

Ring a bell at all?

I so hope Spring is coming soon!  We are really in the mood for more outdoor time without all the snow boots and heavy coats. 

To celebrate Spring, we're participating in a Spring Bloghop!  You can visit more than 40 blogs each with a wonderful spring activity!

In hopes of warmer temperatures, we've put together an early spring scavenger hunt list for kids to encourage them to get out and discover what nature looks like as spring approaches. 

 

 

We are HUGE fans of LeapFrog items in our home. 

My kids have used them for years - and for very good reasons. 

First, they are high quality, well-made toys.  They last a long time and can really take the wear-and-tear that kids dish out. 

Second (and I'll admit, more important to me than the kids) they encourage learning and enhance skill-building for kids.

 

In our house, the Easter Bunny is a really cool Dude!  He doesn't just bring jelly beans and chocolate bunnies but also some great fun & educational items that the kids just LOVE! 

Really - they spend more time with these items than they do asking me if they can eat just one more jelly bean.

Kids love to hear stories - ask any child and I'll bet they tell you that one of their favorite parts of their day is read-aloud and storytime! 

Listening to a book helps kids to develop better concentration and listening skills, engages their imagination, increases their vocabulary and enhances their desire to be a reader as they grow.

Today we are one of 50+ blogs hosting a fantastic 'Booking Across the USA' blog project! 

Together, we will each feature a kids' book and activity for all of the 50 States -- you can travel across the country right from your own couch :-)  This amazing idea was the creation of Growing Book by Book, a wonderful blog with great ideas for sharing books with kids. 

Read and learn along with us as we criss-cross the country!

I'm not sure what it is about February -- one day it's sunny and springlike and the next we're knee deep in snow! 

Like so many others, we are having a 'snow day' this week (to the delight of my kids, we're actually having 2 snow days).

Welcome to our February Online Book Club for Kids where we're enjoying the wonderful stories of Dr. Seuss! 

If this if the first time you're joing us, welcome!  You can learn more about the Online Book Club and join us on our facebook page to keep up with all the books & activities this year.

This is the final post in our 5-part series of The ABC's of Family Field Trips. 

If you missed the first posts in our series, you can review the tips, resources and ideas that were shared for family outings:

{Part 1}  Getting Ready, Using Books & Exploring

{Part 2}  Fun, Inspiriation & Hands-on Ideas

{Part 3}  Learning, New Places & Outdoor Fun

{Part 4}  Pretend Play, Reading, Science & Tours

Since we're covering topics from A to Z, our final post will highlight tips for U - Z.

 

Welcome back! 

Today is Day 2 in our week-long series:  The ABC's of Family Field Trips.

During the first day, we shared tips for getting ready, ways to use books, exploring on your visit and 24 ideas of places to take the kids. 

Today we'll focus on topics and outings for F - J.

 

 

I'm so excited to introduce a new series this week --

The ABC's of Family Field Trips!

 

This will be a 5 day series covering all kinds of tips and ideas for those fun family outings you want to plan this year. 

I really want to help you get prepared for some great family trips this year by offering resources to help get you ready, along with new ideas for some cool places to visit!

 

Happy 2013!!

 

I'd like to welcome the New Year by telling all of our readers "Thank You" for visiting us, leaving comments, & helping me to make this a better site each day -- you guys are great! 

 

To bring in the New Year, I thought I would share the Top 12 posts from 2012 -- the ideas and articles that were most loved by our readers.