Shaving Cream Fun!

Kids LOVE making a mess and getting their hands into something gooey.  I still remember how fun it was to squeeze mud in my hands and feel it squish between my fingers as a child.  This activity can simply be for fun or educational - depending on what you want to make out of it.  We did both.

What you need:
A pan of some sort (I used a 9x13 casserole dish)
Shaving Cream (or if you have a child that likes to put things in their mouth, whip cream in a spray can)
Spatula
Letter flashcards (optional)

I sprayed the shaving cream into the pan and smoothed it out with a spatula.  Then I took out her letter flashcards (or you could write some letters on a piece of paper) and had her write them with her finger in the shaving cream.  *I would suggest making a thin layer on the bottom of the pan to practice letters, we had a little too much shaving cream, which was great for playing but a little hard for writing letters.

 She got really messy and had so much fun getting the shaving cream all over her hands and arms.

She played for quite a while in the shaving cream and loved every minute of it.  This is great if you can't get outside and your kids are wanting to play in the sandbox, mud, or water...it gives them a fun sensory outlet indoors.

Of course, I don't take credit for this idea, I've heard the idea from many different people/places - especially in the homeschool circle.  

Obstacle Course

Do you ever feel like your kids are about to climb the walls with energy on a day when the weather isn't permitting any outdoor fun?  If so, you'll like this activity as it allows the kids to get some energy out while working on their coordination.

I got the idea from my daughter's gymnastics class where they set up an obstacle course for part of the class and the kids love it.  We all build tents or forts with our kids, why not set up an obstacle course?  It takes about the same amount of time, and depending on their personality, can keep them entertained for much longer than a fort.

We started the course with a balance beam made out of painter's tape.  On the balance beam, they can practice walking forward, backward, sideways, hopping, or whatever you can come up with.

Next obstacle was to climb over the ottoman/coffee table.  Use what you have,but try to find things for the kids to climb over and crawl under.

After climbing over the ottoman/coffee table, they had to crawl through the tunnel (blankets draped over the kitchen table).

From there, they went back toward the start and had to jump in the boxes (again, made of painter's tape), two feet where there are two boxes and one foot where there is one box.  After the boxes, I simply put a start line and a finish line for the kids to see how far they can jump.  

Then they were back at the beginning and could start all over again.  I recommend doing this with at least 2 kids as they seem to be better entertained by this in a group.  Also, playing some music makes it more fun :) 

I hope you enjoy trying this with your kids.

Happy playing!

Molly 

I'm Back!

I first want to sincerely apologize for the delay in my blog.  It's been an exciting and somewhat hectic few months.  About a week after my last post I found out I was pregnant with our second daughter.  Shortly after that, morning sickness kicked in.  And, a few weeks later, my dear sister and her family, who live overseas came for a visit.  About a week after they left, we found out we were moving - just around the block, but a move none-the-less.

I'm sure some of you are much more of a super women than I am, but for me, having morning sickness, chasing a 4 year old, and moving at the same time was a bit daunting.  So, in my effort to keep a little sanity, I decided to put my blog on hold.  Being that it's so new and I have one follower, who is as sweet and patient as can be, I thought it would not cause too much trouble to take a break...figured most people wouldn't even notice.  Since we waited until I was 18 weeks to tell everyone, I couldn't mention it on the blog until recently.

September brought an end to my morning sickness (praise God!) and a start to homeschooling - which has been fun and slightly challenging at times.  Now that we are unpacked and in the groove of home school, I think it's time to start blogging again.

I have several projects/activities in mind and can't wait to share them all with you!  I've also discovered a website that is a great source for all kinds of ideas from: what to make for dinner, home decor, diy projects, kid's crafts, fashion, photography, etc. I think I'm in love :)  the website is www.pinterest.com and I highly recommend you check it out (here).

Look for a new project/activity this week!

Molly