Activities

loose parts display of grimms and grapat and myers natrual toys

Earth Day — How do you Teach your Kids?

  • Emily 

Each year as earth day rolls around the kids and I talk about changes we can make to live more responsibly. Sometimes it means using less of things, sometimes using different things, sometimes it means looking for ways to use things longer, and other times it means making new choices next time you shop. Here are a few of our favorites.

Grimm's wooden toys color rally charts

Domino Rally: What Sets Should You Look For?

  • Emily 

There’s nothing quite like a domino run–and one made with wood blocks comes with a particularly fine sound–but which blocks are best, and flexible in other builds?

ostheimer daughter 2 painted orange and green

Repainting Figures

  • Emily 

I’ve had a little bit of fun repainting figures–a tree that arrived in a color that didn’t suit us and a couple of Ostheimer friends. I’ve linked the Materials we used at the end of the post (click on the product images).

orriginal nancy drew and hardy boys books on a shelf

The Book Nook

  • Emily 

What do you do in your home to make reading feel available, accessible and inviting to your kids? In our house, its all about the spaces.

freshly harvested hard neck garlic

Garlic: Scapes, Pesto–YUM!

  • Emily 

Does your family enjoy a lot of garlic? We eat a lot around here, so we were excited to learn how easy it is to grow. In cooler climates, you can plant it in mid-to-late fall when you’re cleaning up the garden; in warmer regions you can plant just after the new year. Then in the spring its so delightful to have something fresh and green already growing and looking promising for the coming year!

easy lemonade popsicle

Low-Mess, Kid-Friendly Frozen Fruit Pops

  • Emily 

Everyone loves a frozen fruit pop, but at the rate my kids would like to eat them in the summer, they could easily make our grocery bill spike! Last summer we picked up some silicone molds, and now one of E5’s favorite activities is making them. I love having control over the ingredients and cost, she love doing it, and the clean-up is easy.

red tomten next to a rock

Can’t Resist a Rock

You know how kids just can’t help picking up a stick, they bring it home and want to bring it inside? We’ve started a “stash it” corner by the front door for these kid treasures, but lately the kids have started pointing out that I do a bit of the same myself—I just can’t help myself when it comes to rocks.

prime climb board game review

Prime Climb

  • Emily 

What are you doing to keep the math brains rolling over summer break? For the multiplication-aged crew (whether learning or comfortable), we’re loving Prime Climb. Younger kids? Stick with me—this one is good for the addition-subtraction crew too—the whole thing age-adjusts perfectly if you play with addition and subtraction only.