kids activity Archives - Page 2 of 3

Celebrate Summer Party for only $20

June 25, 2014 By Michelle Barneck 1 Comment

Summer = hot = water fun. It’s a must really. When temperatures go up the swimsuits go on and water equals fun. My kiddos have birthdays in the colder months so they miss out on fun outdoor party options. We decided who needs a birthday to celebrate? It’s summer. Isn’t that reason enough?! So we gathered a few of our friends and threw a fun afternoon Celebrate Summer party. Did I mention it only cost $20? Oh ya, I guess it’s right there in the title.

Looks fun right?! The key is your friendly Dollar Tree store. No I am not being paid for this. I just think they have awesome summer options for a buck! I gathered a few of each of the following:

Water Guns 3 pack for $1
Slingshot with ball $1
KoolPops 20 pops for $1
Sponges 2 for $1
Cable Tie pack $1
Sidewalk Chalk 20 pieces for $1

Check out the nitty gritty details on my receipt. See, truly $20.

The water guns and slingshots are all ready for water play, but put together the sponges and cable ties and your kiddos are in for a splashy surprise. Sponge bombs are super easy for little ones to wrangle, but also soaking enough for the big kids.

To put the sponge bombs together:

Cut each sponge in three long strips. Hold together nine of the sponge strips and secure the middle together with a cable tie. Tighten the cable tie as far as it will go and snip off the end being sure not to leave a sharp end.

I purchased six sponge packs which made four sponge bombs. Put them by a big bucket of water and you are ready to rock.

We just let the kids play and soak each other for the most part, but after about an hour gave them suggestions like a slingshot contest to see who could fling the furthest. We also have a trampoline so they had fun throwing the sponge bombs at each other on that.

Kids love popsicles and at 20 for a $1 we let them have their fill. We held our party right before dinner time so we did not need to worry about additional snacks. We didn’t want to spoil their dinner.

Once the party was over we sent them each home with a five pack of sidewalk chalk to play with at home this summer.

Overall, it was great fun and cost less than a trip to the pool!

Buzzing Bee Balloons

June 9, 2014 By Michelle Barneck 3 Comments

Today we’re sharing a quick and easy activity to keep the kids busy this summer using things you probably already have around the house. We learned this clever idea during a trip to the Thanksgiving Point Children’s Garden and thought it would be great to share. We’re making buzzing bee balloons. Buzzing? Yes! Give them a spin and they make a sound. You’ll see.

The supplies are simple. All you need is a hex nut, a yellow balloon and a black permanant marker to create this cute little guy!

Place the hex nut inside the balloon, blow it up, and tie it closed. Don’t blow the balloon up too big or it will pop easily. Use the marker to draw wings, stripes, and a friendly face. Older kids can easily draw the face and personalize themselves, but littler kids will need some help.

How do you make it buzz? We’ll let my little guy show you how simple it is. Just shake the balloon so the hex nut rotates inside.

Even my toddler can make it buzz on his own with a little shakety shake. They had tons of fun buzzing around and flying them in the yard!

15 LDS General Conference Activities for Kids

March 24, 2013 By Michelle Barneck 4 Comments

General Conference is two weeks away and I need some tricks up my sleeve to keep the kiddos at bay. I searched around and rounded up 15 of my favorite General Conference Activities to share with you. Half are printables and the other half are a bit more prep, but all of them are great ways to get the kids involved. Take a look around and pick your favorites!

General Conference Printables:

The perfect way to be prepared with General Conference activities even at the last minute! Easy as pie!

Apostle Do-a-dot pages from Moms Have Questions Too
General Conference Workbook from The Idea Door
Friend Coloring Pages from A Year of FHE
Conference Packets from Fluffy Bunny Feet Designs
General Conference Paper Dolls from The Creativity Room
Follow the Prophet Coloring Page from Melonheadz
50 Free LDS Word Searches from LDSResources.net

General Conference Activities:

Great for those kiddos that are a little more hands on. A little something for everyone!

8. Dry Erase Quiet Books from iCandy Handmade
9. General Conference Train from Little Family Fun
10. Conference Jenga from Little LDS Ideas
11. General Conference Treat Buckets from Simply Kierste
12. General Conference Poster Collage Board Game from Blissful and Domestic
13. 12 Apostles Activity from We Love Being Moms
14. Plans for Lego Temple from Cornelia’s Kids
15. Craft Stick Puzzles from Bits of Everything

What General Conference Activities are your favorite? Do you have a go to tradition for General Conference? I would love to hear your activity ideas! With three little kiddos of my own I can use all the ideas I can get!

To see a round up of our A Little Tipsy General Conference Activities visit our 10 LDS Conference Activities for Kids! Here are just a couple of fun activity ideas you will find there:

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10 LDS Conference Activities for Kids

March 17, 2012 By Michelle Barneck 10 Comments

With three little ones of my own, I know it can be hard to be able to sit down and peacefully listen to General Conference. I am all for having a bag of tricks to keep the kiddos interested and/or even quiet so here are a few LDS Conference Activities I have come up with and used through the years.

1. Conference Bracelets
Pick a topic for each color of bead and create jewelry based on what things people speak on. Then have something colorful and fun to wear.

3. Conference Blocks

Talk about building on a firm foundation and use masking tape to label building blocks with topics. Build something using the building blocks of our faith by adding block each time you hear one of the keywords.

4. Pitch Your Tent
Make a tent with blankets with the door facing toward the television. Read the article and do the color by number of King Benjamin from the August 2001 Friend p. 18-19. What kid doesn’t love a good fort?

2. Conference Sundae
Earn a new ingredient (banana, ice cream scoop(s), hot fudge, caramel, nuts, whipped cream, etc) for every talk they listen to or take notes about. Treats are always a big motivator at our house.
5. General Conference Easter Egg Hunt

Print the eggs from the link to the post above and fill your basket as you listen to the talks. This is especially great for the spring conferences that fall near or on Easter!