Let's Explore - Creative Activities for Preschoolers

New Year's Interviews

This is our third year "interviewing" the girls at the start of a new year.  One of the questions we ask the girls is, "If you could change your name, what would you choose?"  Delaney chose Milk and Frosting the last two years, but strayed away from food names with Mulan this year -- so cute!  You can check out our whole list of questions, and how we're documenting them this year, over at Blissful Kids.  :)

Also, speaking of traditions, I really enjoyed a post at The Wondershop blog on creating rituals that nurture family connection.  Enjoy!

Have a lovely evening! :)

Crayon Rocks - On Sale Today!

Today's Deal of the Day is the perfect stocking stuffer - Crayon Rocks!  These are one of my favorite and best-selling items in the Let's Explore Shop.  

Today only (Monday, 12/8/08), Crayon Rocks are on sale for $5.00!  You save 33%!

Spread the word to your friends and family!

{Just in case you aren't familiar with Crayon Rocks, I'm reposting my original post earlier this year, with all the reasons I love this product.  My girls continue to enjoy working with them and every child (and adult!) that sees them immediately wants to start coloring!}

A while back, I came across a really fun drawing tool -- Crayon Rocks!  My girls were immediately drawn to the bright colors and fun shape.  I was impressed with their creamy texture, as well, thanks to the fact that they are made from soy wax (made in the USA too!), not petroleum-based wax like traditional crayons.

Another thing that drew me to them was the way the shape is designed to encourage the tripod grip, strengthening the hand and finger muscles for all that writing coming up!  I recently went to a Kindergarten Orientation for Natalie's upcoming school year, and there was talk of having the "right" grip and how much easier it makes writing for the little ones -- less frustration and less hand-fatigue.  These rocks were developed by an occupational therapist, so you know she is thinking about those things too.

My nieces were equally excited about these and couldn't wait to try them out.  I'm thinking a set of Crayon Rocks and a nice sketch pad would make great birthday gifts for all the little friends this year too!

They are great for making rubbings too -- I noticed especially for my 3-year-old, she didn't have the frustration of trying to lay the crayon on it's side and try to rub with it.  These rocks are meant for that kind of drawing!

If you couldn't tell, I just love the Crayon Rocks!  I am very excited to be offering them over in the Let's Explore shop - a set of 16 colors, packaged in your choice of a burgundy, green, or purple velvet bag.

Remember, the $5.00 special price is only good today, Monday 12/08/08!  Happy creating!

Turkey Pet Rocks and Thankful Poems

Good morning!  I am actually quite eager to jump into Christmas decorating, but I'm trying to hold out and savor these few days leading up to Thanksgiving.  Today we are going to write Thankful Poems - basically just a fill-in-the-blank outline.  This is the outline we'll use:

I'm thankful for _____ and ______ and ______.

I'm really thankful for __________.

I'm thankful for ________.

I'm thankful for ________.

But most of all, thankful for __________.

Natalie can fill in her own, and I'll write down Delaney's words.  I'll probably type up the finished poems and the girls can illustrate them (maybe with leaf prints?).  I'll share our finished product!

If you are up for one more turkey craft, we made Turkey Pet Rocks for our centerpiece.  Check them out over at Blissful Kids!

Happy Playing!

Rainbow Writing

My five-year-old loves to do Rainbow Writing. I simply write something for her in pencil, and she traces over the letters or numbers, using the colors in rainbow order, of course! Great entertainment for that crazy time of day when I'm trying to get dinner ready. This is fun with watercolors, too!

Happy playing!

All About Daddy

Father's Day is almost here! One of our favorite types of homemade cards to make are ones with mini-interviews, where I ask the girls to tell me about Daddy's favorite things or what they love about him. It's always fun to hear the silly and sweet things they say. Plus, these are quick and easy for last-minute gift-making.

When Natalie was around 2 1/2, we made this simple paper bag book together. We wrote sentences about what she liked and what Daddy liked, such as "I like macaroni and cheese. Daddy likes Cheerios." and "I like to swing. Daddy likes to push me." Really easy and fun - you could also glue on some photos.

We made a 30 Things We Love About You accordian book for Daddy's birthday a few years ago, but this would make a great Father's Day gift too. The girls were little, so I did most of the actual creating, with some words from me, and some quotes from Natalie too.

The girls made interview cards at preschool this year too. Delaney dictated answers to fill-in-the-blank questions:

• My dad loves to cook _______________.
• If he could go on a trip, he would go ___________.
• When my dad shops, he loves to buy ____________.
• I really love it when my dad _____________.
• His favorite chore is ___________.
• Daddy always tells me ____________.
• My dad loves to relax by ___________.
• It makes him happy when I ___________.

My favorite answer from these questions is "Daddy always tells me to clean the floor." :)

• Natalie's card had 6 questions:
• What is a father?
• What does he do?
• What does he look like?
• What are his favorite things?
• What is the best thing he does? (Natalie said "Hug me and love me.")
• What makes him happy?

Kids' words are so precious! Hope you have fun making something special for Dad or Grandpa.

Happy Father's Day!

Color Poems: Red & Orange

Hi everyone! Hope all you mommies enjoyed a relaxing Mother's Day yesterday. I have been having crazy allergies, but I am hoping the worst is over! As promised, here are two more color poems we worked on last week. In case you missed it, you can check out our first color poem (green) here. The next two we worked on were Red and Orange.

For Red, we used the pattern "Red as a _________."

Red by Natalie

Red as a rose
Red as a ladybug
Red as a flower
Red as a tomato
Red as a ripe apple
Red as a ripe pepper
Red as a yummy strawberry
Red as a ripe, ripe cherry
Red as a lovey Valentine card
Red as me!

She has red hair, so she thought the "Red as me!" line was quite hilarious! :) While writing this, we were talking about using describing words, which is why there are lots of "ripe" things in her poem.

For Orange, we did a five senses poem -- one line for each sense.

Orange by Natalie

I feel a ripe orange on my orange tree.
I hear a little orange bird singing on my fence.
I taste sweet, fresh orange juice.
I smell an orange flower that is just growing from a seed.
I see a pretty, orange butterfly fluttering in the sky.

Love this one -- such sweet words! We are all very eager to write more and get them into a book. My 3-year-old hasn't written any more, but I am hoping to sit down with her and work on some soon. I love preserving their views of the world in this way.

Happy Writing!