crayonfreckles

DIY Wood Planter turned Transportation Book Bin #summerofjoann

2013-06-18T00:01:00.000-05:00

I was so excited when we were invited by Jo-Ann Fabric and Craft Stores to participate in a craft challenge based on the 72 kid-friendly crafts in the Cape Discovery catalog. After looking through all of the great crafts, we decided to create our own version of their Jungle Window Box. After we got our $25 gift card from them, we set to shopping and picked up our supplies {below}.

Confession: If it's green and in dirt, I'll kill it. I am a certified, self-proclaimed black thumb. I loved the idea of decorating a planter, but wanted to make it something that we could use everyday, since our crazy Midwest weather goes through so many extremes.

So we decided to turn the planter box into a book box for our favorite, everyday reads.

To start out, Bear painted the inside and outside of the box with lime green acrylic paint. It took two coats, plus some spot touch-ups by me. I used frog tape to mark out the lines for the gray paint to create roads. The hardest part for Bear was deciding which of the wooden vehicle decorations we bought to use on the side of the box. He laid them out and rearranged them several times until he got them just right. I also used some black paint and buttons from Jo-Ann's button selection to create a stoplight for the working trucks to stop at.

It might not grow plants, but it will grow literacy skills, right?

And if you sign up for the Jo-Ann Crafts newsletter, they'll give you a 20% off coupon.

You can also find Jo-Ann Crafts on Pinterest.

Keep in touch with Crayon Freckles on Facebook to get daily post previews and hear about other great activities! You can also follow Crayon Freckles on Pinterest and Twitter.
Check out Why Does My Teen?, which is an informational site for the parents teens.

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Jo-Ann Fabric and Crafts Stores. All opinions are mine. The only compensation I received was a $25 gift card for supplies.

Kids Spell It Out: 3 Words that Describe My Dad

2013-06-17T00:03:00.000-05:00

welcome to the Kids Spell It Out series! every monday will be a post filled with funny and adorable answers that kidlets give to questions. this week's question is:

What are 3 words that describe your dad?

He's stinky and he's healthy and he's taking me to the horses.
Bear {4.5} Crayon Freckles

Strong, smart, drives Lady. {Lady is a VW Bug}
Micah {8}

Fun, handsome, loves me to bits.
Tessa {4.5} Creative World of Varya

Like an airplane pilot, like a Star Wars goner guy, and like an angry bird because he has an angry bird phone that he plays Star Wars Angry Birds on with us.
John {5} Mama Smiles

Strong, loyal, AWESOME!
Savannah {8}

Soft, player, silly. {when asked what a player was he said, "someone that plays with you"}

Linden {4.5}

Funny sometimes, he's a good fixer, and he likes movies.

Baloo {6} Royal Baloo

Funny, fun, silly.
Emma {7} Mama Smiles

Smelly, fun, and play.
Cakes {2.5} Learning to Play and Playing to Learn

Kisses, and hugs, and winks.
Tristan {5} Crystal's Tiny Treasures

Silly, strong, sometimes he stinks.
Aiden {4}

Likes pizza, he's strong, handsome.
Carter {6}

if you'd like to participate in this series, leave a comment below and i'll get in touch!

Keep in touch with Crayon Freckles on Facebook to get daily post previews and hear about other great activities! You can also follow Crayon Freckles on Pinterest and Twitter.

Ann Voscamp One Thousand Gifts review & giveaway

2013-06-15T00:01:00.000-05:00

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of One Thousand Gifts via Shelton Interactive.

As a mom that home-preschools, takes college classes, keeps house, creates art, and writes this blog, I often find myself short time to do things that I enjoy doing just for the sake of doing them. So when my beautiful friend Kerry from my life (his mission) gifted me Ann Voscamp's book One Thousand Gifts: A Dare to Live Fully Right Where You Are, I read page 44 (my standard test for book interest). What I briefly read on that page, made me dive into the book later on that night.

Not even halfway through the book, I was moved to begin my own list. And what I found was amazing. Things like being thankful for dirty clothes to wash when others have none, enjoying time with my children when there are thousands of orphans in the world, and seeing a simple smile on my son's face when so many have lost their children put things in perspective for me.

Ann's words are eloquently phrased. This is not a simple, easy read. Through her prose, she gives brilliant mental images of experiences, which challenges readers to delve deep into her words. She offers a biblical outlook on how to maintain a Christ-like life as we tally up the gifts that are bestowed upon us by God. She not only inspires, but provides an indepth look at how we can overcome our thoughts and emotions in the face of tragedy, personal struggles, and the general darkness of life.

In the book, Ann challenges readers to chronicle God's grace in their lives, to literally list each one as we experience them... both big and small.

So, here's this: I would like to give away a copy of Ann's One Thousand Gifts book to one of you. In addition to the book, I'm adding in a lovely journal for you to get started exploring the 1000 gifts in your life.

Enter through the rafflecopter form below to win the book One Thousand Gifts and this beautiful Tree of Life journal.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Keep in touch with Crayon Freckles on Facebook to get daily post previews and hear about other great activities! You can also follow Crayon Freckles on Pinterest and Twitter.
Check out Why Does My Teen?, which is an informational site for the parents teens.

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of One Thousand Gifts via Shelton Interactive. All opinions are mine. The only compensation I received was the One Thousand Gifts book to giveaway to a reader. Other giveaway items were purchased by myself.

delivery truck words: milk cap phonics

2013-06-14T00:01:00.000-05:00

Bear {4.5} can sometimes be hard to get involved in learning activities. to meet this challenge, i have to create activities that center around his favorite things: anything with wheels. we have used our alphabet milk caps and simple word flashcards to practice the alphabet and spelling words in our Little Blue Truck and Garbage Truck phonics activities. however, using just the milk caps alone has become boring to him. a few months ago, he made a moving truck at The Home Depot's free Kids Build It seminar. his joy over his creation inspired me to create an invitation to play and learn utilizing the truck.

i pulled out some of our simple word flash cards and set I out the milk caps that corresponded to each card on a baking sheet.

for the activity, our dining room table bench seat was used as a delivery route for the truck to follow and "deliver" the letters to each card. i placed the cookie sheet at one end and the flash card at the opposite end. this allowed Bear to chose a card, "drive" the truck down the the milk caps on the cookies sheet and fill the delivery truck with the letters corresponding to each word on. due to his age, he went from the word's beginning to the end, choosing one letter at a time.

then he "drove" the caps to the cards and spelled out the word. he really seemed to enjoy this activity and completed about fifteen cards. we have also repeated this activity a few times since then.

because i used my son's current interests to introduce a learning activity, he was able to enjoy imaginative play while practicing literacy skills. it's a win-win situation.

Kitchen Science BabbaBox Kit and $10 Off Code

2013-06-13T01:39:00.000-05:00

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of BabbaBox.

I was so very excited when BabbaBox offered to send us their Kitchen Science kits to explore and share with you. Awhile back, we had the opportunity to check out their Sun, Moon and Stars activity box. Knowing how amazing that box was, we were excited to explore all of these materials.

Magic Mud

The Magic Mud aka Ooblek was a great experience for Bear. The preparation only took 5 minutes and yielded a super fun result.

Initially, he was hesitant to touch it. So I stuck my hands in and dug around. Curiosity eventually got the best of him. So he dropped in some of his favorite vehicles and began some imaginative play.

You'll notice that around the 17 second mark, he makes a reference to Joey McIntyre, one of the New Kids on the Block {my favorite music group}. The fact that he incorporated something about me in his imaginative play totally cracked me up.

We ended up making a second batch after the first one had dried up. I left it out overnight and ended up with a cracked pan, as all the water had evaporated. I was curious and broke it up. It turned into gravel similar to what is put in the bottom of fish tanks. The new found gravel turned out to be a great sensory bin for imaginative play with construction vehicles.

DIY Bouncy Ball

Making our own bouncy ball was yet another activity that I've been wanting us to try. The directions were straightforward. The toughest part was getting the right amount of water added. A tip if you make this, you have to let it set for a minute for some of the water to do...whatever it does. After that, we were able to form it into a ball and bounce away!

DIY Lava Lamp

Now this was cool! Using simple household items, we created something that just amazed Bear. Am thinking that we need to get a real one for the play room. I foresee lots of quiet time watching it.

Baking Soda & Vinegar Volcanoes- Slow vs. Fast

This had to be the most mesmerizing activity in the box. Though it focused on an activity that we've all done, it also suggested adding another household item and looking at the difference in the end reaction. It provided a wonderful opportunity for Bear to practice his prediction and observation skills.

The great thing about BabbaBox is that each box comes with activity cards. After you receive a new box and complete the activities, you can add the cards onto one ring to create a great "toolbox" of fun activities that you can draw on in the future.

You can go to the BabbaBox site and use the coupon code BABBACO10 to get $10 off New Monthly or Annual Membership.

Keep in touch with Crayon Freckles on Facebook to get daily post previews and hear about other great activities! You can also follow Crayon Freckles on Pinterest and Twitter.
Check out Why Does My Teen?, which is an informational site for the parents teens.

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of BabbaBox. All opinions are mine. The only compensation I received was the free product.

car bocce ball: 100 days of play

2013-06-11T01:27:00.000-05:00

i'm so excited to be participating with 99 other bloggers to bring you the 100 Days of Play series hosted by Sun Scholars and Life at the Zoo. you can find the links to the posts that have been shared so far at the bottom of this post.

_______________________________________________________________________

i don't remember how exactly this game came about. it was an uneventful day when Bear {4.5} was bored beyond belief and not at all interested in playing with any of his toys. at the time, we were playing with Matchbox/Hot Wheels cars and our Fisher-Price Little People Garage. then the idea popped into my head....we could play bocce ball with the cars.

we set up the Little People Garage so that the ramp was pointed towards a shelf. we each picked out 6 cars to use.

here are the rules for car bocce ball:

set up a ramp approximately 3 feet from the end mark. (ours was a shelf, but you could also use a piece of masking tape)
players take turns sending their cars down the ramp, with the end mark being where their car must pass.
when the player's car reaches the end mark, they receive one point.
player's cars may bump into the other's car, sending it forward
if a player #1's car bumps and moves the other player #2's car (or vice versa) across the end mark, the player's car that crossed the mark gets a point.
if a player's car makes the end mark in one move, they get 2 points.
whoever has the most points after all cars have been played, wins that round.

100 Days of Play Blog Hop
Sharing simple ideas on how to connect with your children through play!
New ideas shared each day from 4/1 - 7/20.

Help us spread the word!

Grab a Button to Share on your Blog!

100 Days of Play is brought to you by these wonderful bloggers

SunScholars . Frogs, Snails & Puppy Dog Tails . Playful Learners . Train Up a Child . Fantastic Fun & Learning . Scribble, Doodle & Draw . Learn. Create. Love. . Mom to 2 Posh Lil Divas . Nothing if Not Intentional . My Little 3 & Me . Buggy & Buddy . Sun Hats & Wellie Boots . Twodaloo . True Aim . The Educators' Spin On It . Blog Me Mom . Life At The Zoo . Putti's World . Kitchen Counter Chronicles . Triple T Mum . Busy Kids Happy Mom . Crystal's Tiny Treasures . Rainy Day Mum . Momma's Fun World . My Little Bookcase . Craftulate . One Perfect Day . MumCentral . Artchoo! . Creative World Of Varya . Simple. Home. Blessings. . JDaniel4's Mom . NurtureStore . Me & Marie Learning . Child Central Station . Mamas Like Me . Mama Miss . Making Boys Men . Powerful Mothering . Craft to Art . 3 Dinosaurs . Domestic Goddesque . Lessons Learnt Journal . Royal Baloo . Smiling Like Sunshine . Adventures at Home with Mum . B-Inspired Mama . PragmaticMom . Eazy Peazy Mealz . Gluesticks . TheBoy&Me . Learning is Messy . My Nearest & Dearest . Growing Book by Book . How to Run a Home Daycare . Here Come the Girls . Think Magnet . Dandelions Picked . 123 Homeschool 4 Me . Our Ordinary Life . Parenting with Professor Poppins . 2 Little Hooligans . Fun-a-Day! . The Non-Martha Mamma . Angelique Felix . My Very Educated Mother . Creative Playhouse . Go Explore Nature . Zing Zing Tree . Sense of Wonder . Childhood 101 . Crayon Freckles . KZ & Me . Serenity You . This Mumma's Life . Leapfrog & Ladybugs . Blue Bear Wood . Growing Together . KC EDventures . Mommy Lessons 101 . Nature & Play . Like Mama Like Daughter . Mums Make Lists . From Wine to Whine . Messy Kids . Babble Dabble Do . Sugar Aunts . Teaching @ Home . Preschool Powol Packets . Clothed in Love . Curiosity Creates . The Magnolia Barn . Strong Start . Stay-at-Home Mom Survival Guide . Learn with Play at Home . Mummy... Mummy... MUM! . Science Sparks . Toddler Approved . Thrive 360 Living . Rockabye Butterfly . Mud Hut Mama . Coffee Cups & Crayons . Playing with Words 365 . My Lil Love Bugs . Creative Connections for Kids . LalyMom . Love, Play, Learn . Kindergarten & Preschool for Parents & Teachers . The Pleasantest Thing . Teach Beside Me

Kids Spell It Out: What is a Friend?

2013-06-10T00:03:00.000-05:00

welcome to the Kids Spell It Out series! every monday will be a post filled with funny and adorable answers that kidlets give to questions. this week's question is:

What is a friend?

Someone who plays with me.
Cakes {2.5} Learning to Play and Playing to Learn

I don't know. What is a friend, Mommy?
Big Brother {4} Frogs and Snails and Puppy Dog Tails {FSPDT}

It's someone who is nice.
Emma {7} Mama Smiles

A person who is loyal, kind, nice...that's all.
Savannah {8}

A friend is someone that likes you, and appreciates you, and that isn't rude to you.
Elizabeth {6} Enchanted Homeschooling

Somebody that knows you, but not in your family.

Baloo {6} Royal Baloo

Someone you play with.
Micah {8}

I play with her.
Tristan {5} Crystal's Tiny Treasures

Owen!
Aiden {4}

When you meet someone you don't know, and you talk to them, and you ask them if they want to be your friend. If they say "yes" then you play with them.
Cam {4} My Little Bookcase

Someone who's nice.
John {5} Mama Smiles

A friend is someone that will always help you when you need them.

Beck {8} Enchanted Homeschooling

A person that you like.

Carter {6}

Someone who comes over to sleep with you and eat with you.
Linden {4.5}

A friend is someone you meet and become friends. Sometimes people fall down and you help them; they are friends.

Tessa {4} Creative World of Varya

They play nicely.

Royal {3} Royal Baloo

if you'd like to participate in this series, leave a comment below and i'll get in touch!

Keep in touch with Crayon Freckles on Facebook to get daily post previews and hear about other great activities! You can also follow Crayon Freckles on Pinterest and Twitter.

parenting party: letting my kids make mistakes

2013-06-09T00:02:00.000-05:00

goof-up. misstep. biff. snafu. oopsie. accident. blooper. slip up. blunder. error.

mistakes happen, right?

i think that one of the hardest challenges we face as parents is to watch our children make mistakes. it's only natural that we want to guide them down the right path, to set them up for success, to make the right choices. but if we constantly shelter our children from the negative and the consequences that ensue, we are doing them a disservice. we're preventing them from learning to cope with failure, and to deal with one of life's happenings.

i want them to make as many mistakes now as they can, when the consequences are lesser and i can guide them through remedying it. when i can help them to step back, view their actions, their consequences, and help them to figure out what to do next time to avoid the same mistakes.

you can also read a post on I Can Teach My Child that reflects this similar belief.

now, i'd love to see all of your parenting-related posts. but first, here are a few that really spoke to me from last week's party.

10 Things That Make You Go ‘*%$#@*!’ As a Mom from Seeking Shade
Discipline for Young Children: 12 Alternatives to Time Outs from Positive Parenting Connection
Mom-on-Mom Hate: Are We Raising Mean Girls? from Mompson

Keep in touch with Crayon Freckles on Facebook to get daily post previews and hear about other great activities! You can also follow Crayon Freckles on Pinterest and Twitter.

Check out Why Does My Teen?, which is an informational site for the parents teens.

firefighter sensory bin

2013-06-08T01:20:00.002-05:00

Bear (4.5) is and has been obsessed with firetrucks and emergency vehicles for several years now. i'm not sure why we haven't done a firefighter sensory bin yet. i actually haven't put a new one together in a while as other activities have taken up our time.

when Bear saw the new bin, he was ecstatic. for an invitation to play, i set up the bin to be visually appealing. i didn't, however, expect it to stay that way. i wanted him to have free reign for what his imagination could come up with.

the materials i used were:

popcorn kernels (base/filler)
package of plastic firefighters
Children's Fireman Hat
red and yellow/gold glitter craft pom poms
black flat glass gems
miniature cones

you can see below how i set it up. the black gems and glitter pom poms represent a fire. the extra large safety cone and hat were not necessarily part of the sensory bin, but something for him to use for himself during play.

Fire Chief Bear was so excited, he dove right into play rescuing people and putting out fires.

for more amazing sensory bins you can go to my recent post with lots of sensory bin ideas or Sensory Bin Pinterest Board.

Amazon.com Widgets

videos from Crayon Freckles

2013-06-07T01:26:00.003-05:00

i've done a few videos so far on the blog. thought i would share them with you as some of them are from last year.

meet me, andie jaye

view full post here

thoughts on children and play

view full post here

garbage truck picture slideshow for kids

view complete post here

the wormies

view full post here

explore with Bear: magic mud from BabbaBox

full post to come

so what do you think?

would you like to see more of these?

Verdi: book activities for kids

2013-06-06T01:54:00.000-05:00

we love the book Verdiby Janell Cannon. Verdi is a little yellow python who didn't want to grow older and turn green like the other elder snakes. they turned green and lazy and Verdi does all he can to try and escape the inevitable. his daredevil antics end up getting him hurt. that's when he learns that it is "easy being green".

here are a few of the learning activities we did to extend the book.

Verdi vocabulary words and writing practice

to practice writing, i used the words: big, mud, tree, green, and hiss, from the Verdi book. one the handwriting page, i wrote the words in green marker first. before i wrote them, i told Bear (4.5) the words and had him help me sound them out as i wrote them. then i wrote each one in yellow marker for him to trace over. after that, he was able to try to write them on his own.

word recognition with snakes

we took the work with the vocabulary words one step further with some plastic snakes. i used the word cards from our Little Blue Truck activities post. i put the words into sentences for Bear to slither the plastic snakes to. i stressed the card word in my sentence. example: "The snake went swimming and got wet."

other Verdi activities for children are:

ask children to list the differences between children and adults
read other books based on growing up and changing
look at old photos of the kiddos when they were "green" (young)
if you're a teacher, make a classroom snake. each child has a piece to decorate, then pieces are put together to create a long snake on the wall.
explore different types of snakes by reading books, doing internet searching, or going to your local zoo

Amazon.com Widgets

measuring birthdays with cars: birthday traditions

2013-06-05T01:43:00.001-05:00

Bear fell in love with Matchbox and Hot Wheels cars when he was almost three years old. so for his 3 year old birthday, i dug through bins and hangers in several stores to find 3 vehicles with the number 3 on them. he got these as a present. i did the same thing for his 4th birthday. once i decided that this would be a fun birthday tradition to carry on, i searched for one #1 and 2 #2 vehicles.

to give him these cars, i hide them. Bear gets such a kick out of looking for them. i figure a tradition like this can be carried on for about the next 4-6 years. the only thing is that as he gets older, i will have to find more cars. that'll mean some pre-planning for me to have time to search and get them all.

What are some birthday traditions in your house?

Kids Spell It Out: What's your favorite memory?

2013-06-03T00:41:00.000-05:00

welcome to the Kids Spell It Out series! every monday will be a post filled with funny and adorable answers that kidlets give to questions.

this week's question is:

What's your favorite memory?

Snuggling with you.
Bear {4.5} Crayon Freckles

I would probably say going to Legoland.
Beck {8} Enchanted Homeschooling

Getting the coins after the Jake and the Neverland Pirates show at DisneyLand.
Linden {4.5}

When my baby brothers were born.
Savannah {8}

When we went to the Winter Carnival and saw the ice sculptures.
Audrey {5} True Aim Education

Piper the dog when she was nice.
Micah {8}

Playing with my friends.
Monkey {3} All Done Monkey

That I remember stuff.
Aiden {4}

Riding on a tractor with Daddy because that was cool.
Big Brother {4} Frogs and Snails and Puppy Dog Tails {FSPDT}

Going to apple orchard and throwing a worm on Brother.
Elizabeth {6} Enchanted Homeschooling

When Dad plays Wii boxing with me.
Aiden{5} True Aim Education

You!
Priscilla{4} B-Inspired Mama

Math.
Mom asks: Really? Math is better than Disneyland?
Yep! I REALLY like math!
Carter {6}

Thinking about toy snakes.
Sawyer {6} B-Inspired Mama

Playing with Madison.

Baloo {6} Royal Baloo

Dinosaurs.
Dino Boy {4} Happy Whimsical Hearts

Going to Canada to see Nana and Papa because Mommy missed them.
Tristan {5} Crystal's Tiny Treasures

Keep in touch with Crayon Freckles on Facebook to get daily post previews and hear about other great activities! You can also follow Crayon Freckles on Pinterest and Twitter.

The Sunday Parenting Party: momma needs privacy

2013-06-02T00:04:00.000-05:00

privacy.

it's one of the things

that moms lose when

they have kids.

from the moment of conception,

our bodies no longer are

just

ours.

instead, we share them with

a little being

for all those months.

and when he was finally
separate from me,

there was a loneliness,

an empty space.

though it was filled

by this little person

who watched my movements

was nourished from my body

longed for my reassuring touch.

nursing lasted longer than

most deem normal.

but to us, it was a way to

con

nect

to keep that bond.

and then it ceased

and with that "release"

came a longing for

that closeness again.

but time goes by

and his increased independence

only served to widen the gap

times

others were filled with

the hugs, the kisses, the

to me as if i was preparing to

go a way for a

long time.

even now, almost 5 years

since his birth,

he still

reaches for me

in the middle of the night...

to comfort him back to sleep.

guilty as i feel, i sometimes feel

trapped,

overwhelmed,

anxious

in need of a few moments

to just be alone.

but even going to the

bathroom

is not a solo project.

if there aren't

knocks on the door

there are

little hands trying to

open the door

or, 4 plastic cars

staring at me

these are the things

one

tells you.

but i wouldn't change it for the world.

now, i'd love to see all of your parenting-related posts. but first, here are a few that really spoke to me from last week's party.

My Feminist Parenting from Our Feminist {Play}School

Fifty Shades of No from The Tao of Poop

Freedom and Discipline from Home Grown Montessori

Keep in touch with Crayon Freckles on Facebook to get daily post previews and hear about other great activities! You can also follow Crayon Freckles on Pinterest and Twitter.

Check out Why Does My Teen?, which is an informational site for the parents teens.

Home Depot Kid's Workshops

2013-05-30T21:00:00.000-05:00

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of The Home Depot.

We've been going to The Home Depot Kid's Workshops for over a year now. Bear {4.5 years} looks forward to them every month and diligently reminds them that they are coming up. Here are all of Bear's projects and pins so far:

I'm always on the look-out for free kid's activities. That's what makes the Kid's Workshops so great. They're free and offer a great chance for kiddos to have hands-on experiences and bond with the family at the same time. They teach kids how to follow directions, practice safety skills, and implement their creativity.

The workshop we went to had a double plant holder. We don't have much of a green thumb and tend to forget to water plants. But, no worries! We found an awesome way to use it for another purpose! Using the hanging hole on the back, we secured it to the wall to hold our paintbrushes and dry erase markers next to the easel.

Here are some The Home Depot Kid's Workshop Basics:

Free. Free. Free
Held the 1st Saturday of each month from 9-12.
Kids get their build it kit, a Home Depot Apron, certificate of achievement, and project pin.

This Saturday's Kid's Workshop at The Home Depot is to build a Lawn Mover Pencil Holder. Bear is super excited about this because he loves to watch our lawn guys each week. He's even talked about giving it to them as a thank you gift. Since the event is sponsored by Merlin Entertainments Group, there are some other great freebies offered!

A Kids Go Free ticket offer to any of their LEGOLAND Theme Parks or Discovery Centers, Madam Tussuads, and Sea Life Aquariums.

You can also enter their Building Dreams Sweepstakes to win a trip for 4 to LEGOLAND Florida or LEGOLAND California, plus a $100 Home Depot card or 4 tickets to one of the 13 Merlin Entertainments U.S. attractions, plus a $50 Home Depot Card {your choice of the two options}.

On Saturday, you can participate in one at your local Home Depot, too! It's free, it's fun, and it provides a great opportunity to bond with your kids.

Get more info on The Home Depot Kid's Workshops here.

You can also see more great DIY projects at The Apron Blog.

Keep in touch with Crayon Freckles on Facebook to get daily post previews and hear about other great activities! You can also follow Crayon Freckles on Pinterest and Twitter.

Check out Why Does My Teen?, which is an informational site for the parents teens.

It’s home improvement time, and The Home Depot has everything you need to #DigIn for Spring. No matter what projects you want to tackle, they have great values on all you need. They’re ready to help you with renovation ideas and expert advice, too.

Get over $300 in email exclusive savings each year, sneak peeks on new products, monthly lawn & garden ideas for your region and access to The Home Depot’s gardening experts. Click here to join the world’s largest garden community today! Or go to homedepot.com/gardenclub to see some of the many benefits of membership.

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of The Home Depot.

Plans for a DIY Compost Bin with Kids

2013-05-29T01:51:00.000-05:00

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of The Home Depot.

I was wanting to do this project as expediently as possible. So, after I had drawn up my plans and made a supply list, I went to The Home Depot store that's 5 minutes from our house. Once I was there, an amazing associate, Greg, helped me to find everything that I was looking for. Again, because I wanted a quick prep time, I had him do the cuts for me. Home Depot offers three free cuts; any additional are 50 cents apiece. I didn't mind that charge, because it was well worth it to keep me from having to haul 12 foot pieces home, set up the sawhorses, get out the saw, measure the lengths and cut. With the lumber, cuts, and deck screws, this project ended up costing a little under $150!

The Home Depot has compost bin plans that you can use to create a 4x4x4 foot compost bin. Because I wanted to create a larger space that was open on the side so that Bear and I could get in to turn the compost, I created our own plans to complete our DIY compost bin. These were probably the biggest challenge I faced in the whole project, as I wanted to make sure that they were correct and easy to read. You can find them farther down in the post.

From start to finish, our homemade compost bin took about 6 hours to build. At times, I did have a little helper, so it was slowed down a tad. Bear {4.5 years} helped me lay out the boards and line them up so that they were flush with the deck posts. While he did this, he did have on rubber-coated gloves to prevent him from getting splinters. I also wore gloves. {Splinters from treated wood can get a irritated with a possible infection if not cared for right away.} He got a kick out of being able to push the button on the electric drill while I held it in place.

To create a bin the size that best suited us, I created my own plans.

You can get my free kid-friendly compost bin plans here. Click the link, then right click the image and choose "Save As".

left side right side back side top view

Because of the large size of our bin and our variety of weather in the Midwest, I chose to get pressure-treated lumber to help it withstand the elements. At some point, I think I'll let Bear paint it.

My Compost Bin Supply List

4" x 4" x 4.5 ft deck posts: Quantity 4
1" x 6" x 6 ft planks: Quantity 9
1" x 6" x 4 ft planks: Quantity 18
2" x 4" x 4.5 ft plank: Quantity 1
Deck Screws
Electric Drill with screwdriver bit

I assembled the back portion before the sides. It was fairly simple. To attach the sides to the back, I propped up the back with chairs behind it and a 2x4 leaning diagonally on the other side. When attaching the sides, I stood them up and lined up the 2x6s with the deck post. The first screws that I put in were those on the top and bottom boards of each side. This ensured that the edges were flush and not crooked. I was then able to go down the side and add two screws per board. And voila! We were done.

After the bin was completed, Bear dug right in and started turning up the soil so that we could add some yard clippings to create the base. When our lawn company comes later in the week, I'll ask them to empty their bags in the bin. After that we'll add coffee grounds, wet newspaper, fruit/veggie scraps and some of the worms from our Indoor Compost Bin. Then it'll be ready for us to start the composting process!

So, what do you think? Are you inspired to tackle this project?

Please feel free to comment below or email me for any additional info on our project.

Keep in touch with Crayon Freckles on Facebook to get daily post previews and hear about other great activities! You can also follow Crayon Freckles on Pinterest and Twitter.

Check out Why Does My Teen?, which is an informational site for the parents teens.

It’s home improvement time, and The Home Depot has everything you need to #DigIn for Spring. No matter what projects you want to tackle, they have great values on all you need. They’re ready to help you with renovation ideas and expert advice, too.

Get over $300 in email exclusive savings each year, sneak peeks on new products, monthly lawn & garden ideas for your region and access to The Home Depot’s gardening experts. Click here to join the world’s largest garden community today! Or go to homedepot.com/gardenclub to see some of the many benefits of membership.

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of The Home Depot.

Homemade Hammering Fun from Marie and Me

2013-05-28T01:10:00.000-05:00

Ashley from Me & Marie Learning has so many great resources on her site. Right now, she's got a great Summer Bucket List that gives fun ideas on how to stay busy this summer. In addition to that, her Kindergarten Readiness series has given me some great points to think of during Bear's last year of preschool.

Do your kids love to bang things, make noise and pretend to do grown up things? Most do! Therefore, the activity that I am sharing today will most likely be a hit with your little ones!

Homemade Hammering Fun Materials:

Piece of Styrofoam (as large or small as you want it)
Piece of fabric big enough to cover the Styrofoam
Straight pins (with no head) or glue gun
Golf tees
Child sized hammer

Start by covering the Styrofoam with the fabric. I wrapped mine like a present, to make it neat and easy to handle. I used straight pins to adhere the fabric to the Styrofoam block. I did not use the pins with the large balls on top, but rather the flat headed pins that I could wedge deep into the Styrofoam to prevent little ones from getting them out. But, if you would feel more comfortable, glue the fabric to the block using a glue gun (note that the fabric will not be reusable after gluing). Covering the Styrofoam helps keep it from breaking apart into little pieces all over your carpet J

Using golf tees and a child sized hammer, model how to hammer in the ‘nails’. This activity is a great way to practice hand/eye coordination. You may need to start some of the ‘nails’ into the Styrofoam for beginners. Once one side of the block is well used, turn it over to start playing all over again!

My son (2 years old) and I had lots of fun hammering together. We had different colored golf tees, so we also practiced color recognition too! It is a simple and easy to piece together activity. Give it a try!

Ashley is the owner of Me & Marie Learning, a blog all about early learning. She has taken some time off teaching in a traditional setting to be at home with her young children. Ashley is now an in-home childcare provider, teaching her own and other children in her preschool room. Ashley has a degree in Elementary Education and Early Childhood Education with a Master’s Degree in Reading and Literacy. You can find her here:

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The Sunday Parenting Party: momma guilt on yelling

2013-05-26T00:02:00.000-05:00

we had a rough day in our house
about a month ago.

and i do mean

a. rough. day.

worse than colic and acid reflux.

worse than having a baby that won't sleep.

worse than any day i think

we've ever had in Bear's whole life.

it was

tantrum

after

screaming fit

after

blatant and intentional rule-breaking

after

stomping and growling

after

running away from me

after

another tantrum

after

crying

and

screaming

and shrieking

i thought i was going to lose my mind.

he was out of control.

and i couldn't help.

i am angry at myself for...

i am ashamed of...

yelling.

it goes against my parenting beliefs...

it goes against my gentle mommy heart.

but i just couldn't get through to him...

and nothing.

nothing.

nothing i tried worked.

i used every tool that i've ever learned

as a preschool teacher and as a mom.

it was a long day.

i couldn't wait for a hot shower.

and i said as much.

and then he said...

i can't wait either because then i get a break from you.

speaking of a break

that's what cracked through my heart.

he didn't mean it facetiously.

he wasn't trying to be hurtful.

it just was what it was.

and it hurt like hell....

stung me to the core of my very being.

and then i realized

what it must have felt like

to be him

for the day.

to feel so out of control.

to be so angry and frustrated.

and to have a momma

who didn't do

what she was supposed to do.

and i don't blame him

for saying what he said...

not at all.

from 3.26.13

and now onto the link party...

Weekly Kid's Co-op: Wood and Composting

2013-05-24T00:01:00.000-05:00

Welcome to the Kid's Weekly Co-Op!

in preparation for our DIY compost bin that we're building {post soon}, i thought i'd share our latest composting post and some of the wood and composting activities from last week's Kid's Co-op.

Our Indoor Compost Bin with Worms

1. Montessori and Composting with Kids from Confessions of a Montessori Mom
2. Sawdust Clay from Seedlings Nursery School
3. Homemade Nature book from B-Inspired Mama

if you're featured, feel free to grab a featured button from Crayon Freckles and a Co-Op one below.

lessons learned while building our own dollhouse

2013-05-23T00:06:00.000-05:00

i've had this dollhouse kit in the garage since we lived at our apartment before The Sergeant and i got married. i think i bought in...2004ish {??} marked down from $130 to $87. i've always thought about building it, but never really got up the motivation. Bear has seen it and asked about building it for the longest time. there was one afternoon that i decided we'd just go for it.

and so...

we built our own dollhouse!

i tried to add some hidden learning into our building by

encouraging dramatic play

we pretended that we were building an actual house. of course, this meant that Bear wore his construction helmet.

practicing math and writing skills

we needed all of the pieces to be numbered so that we used the right ones. using the diagram, i told Bear which pieces corresponded to each number. then he wrote the number on the piece using a pencil.

encouraging critical thinking

because we have the dollhouse sitting on the floor, it's often hard to see the bottom level rooms in the evening. so we created simple and cheap dollhouse lighting. when we were at Dollar Tree, we saw these pop lights. i asked Bear if he thought of anything we could use these for. he followed my train of thought and said we could put them on the ceiling of the dollhouse. i think that they're pretty awesome because they remind me of these lightsa bit.

it isn't totally finished, so i'm not going to share the whole thing yet. but that's coming soon!

Amazon.com Widgets

Keep in touch with Crayon Freckles on Facebook to get daily post previews and hear about other great activities! You can also follow Crayon Freckles on Pinterest and Twitter.

dollar store compassion: teaching children to help others and how you can help NOW!

2013-05-22T01:32:00.001-05:00

i'm not bragging about what my family and i do to try and help those in need. in fact, i'm downright uncomfortable writing this post for this reason:

But when you give to someone in need,

don't let your left hand know what your right hand is doing.

Give your gifts in private, and your Father,

who sees everything, will reward you.

-Matthew 6:3-4

i admit to having chosen unnecessary comforts in my life many times over the basic needs of others. but when Bear was born, so was my need to have a service-oriented heart. i couldn't imagine not being able to feed, diaper, or clothe him. that thought dug deep inside of me, giving birth in me, the heart of a Servant of God. as he's gotten older, i'm doing all i can to foster this same calling in him. i shared a few ways we do this in the Moms With a Mission Series at Cheap Crafty Mama.

part of fostering a sense of servitude in my children is by doing projects as a family that make us sacrifice. the items pictured below (same as above) were all purchased at the dollar store for a total of $30. this was done instead of a family pizza night.

another way is by serving others myself and sharing with them what the experience has taught me with my family. last week, i volunteered for a few hours with some friends from church at a food bank in my old hometown. i walked in feeling a bit awkward and walked out feeling more moved to serve a cause then i have in a long time...quite possibly ever.

the Heartland Hope Mission is the largest food pantry in Nebraska. their mission statement says it all:

Our mission is to provide food, clothing and promote self-sufficiency for people in need. We provide a weeks' supply of groceries, along with hygiene products, clothing items, and household goods to the working poor. In addition, we assist clients with other needs by providing eligibility screening and referrals.

in 2012, the Heartland Hope Mission served 34,084 people and provided over 520,000 meals! how much of a blessing is that? for the few hours i was there, we served almost 100 families, helping them pick food off the shelf to get them through a rough patch. every single one said thank you. some were choked up. one cried when she was leaving because she hadn't expected to get so much.

And the King will say, "I tell you the truth,

when you did it to one of the least of these

my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me."

-Matthew 25:40

and now there's this....

right now The Omaha Gives 24 hour Charitable Challenge is happening to raise money for non-profit organizations in the city. you can help the very same people that i did last week at Heartland Hope Mission. a $10 donation provides 30 meals.

~and~

if you donate to help Heartland Hope Mission and send me a copy of your email donation receipt or a screenshot of your confirmation screen, i'll send you a 8x10 print from The Freckled Crayon etsy shop as a thank you.

click the image to donate

Find them on Facebook

Building a Lego Birdhouse

2013-05-21T00:42:00.000-05:00

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of The Home Depot.

We love birds. We have quite a variety of feathered friends that visit our deck daily for a snack. We've been wanting to build them some new digs to hang on the porch for quite some time now. Especially since our other birdhouses have seen better days. So we ordered a DIY Kid's Bird House Kit-94503 from The Home Depot website. It was under $10 and ordering online was easy and I got free shipping to the store. Once it arrived, I got an email that it was ready for pickup.

This week's project is building a birdhouse using the birdhouse kit that Home Depot sells. The kit was inexpensive and the birdhouse plans were simple enough that Bear {4.5} was able to do it by himself, except for starting and holding the nails. It took about half an hour to build and he was so proud of his handiwork.

The original plan was for the birdhouse to look like a fire station. But after Bear had gotten the whole thing painted red, I couldn't find any clip art for him to add to it that passed his approval. And since it was his project, we explored another idea.

Legos are big in our house, so he decided to make a Lego birdhouse using big Lego stickers we got with some folders last year. So, he repainted the birdhouse using some standard lego colors: red, blue, and green. He wanted to use yellow, but it wouldn't cover the deep maroon from the firehouse fail.

After the paint had dried, Bear was able to add his stickers whereever he chose. To make the birdhouse weatherproof, Bear painted over the whole outside with Outdoor Mod Podge to seal it up.

Bear is so proud and excited to have built his own birdhouse using The Home Depot's birdhouse kit. This weekend, we'll be hanging it up in the backyard. I'll be interested to see just what feathered friend takes up roost in it.

What types of environments have you created for birds in your backyard?

Keep in touch with Crayon Freckles on Facebook to get daily post previews and hear about other great activities! You can also follow Crayon Freckles on Pinterest and Twitter.

Check out Why Does My Teen?, which is an informational site for the parents teens.

It’s home improvement time, and The Home Depot has everything you need to #DigIn for Spring. No matter what projects you want to tackle, they have great values on all you need. They’re ready to help you with renovation ideas and expert advice, too.

Get over $300 in email exclusive savings each year, sneak peeks on new products, monthly lawn & garden ideas for your region and access to The Home Depot’s gardening experts. Click here to join the world’s largest garden community today! Or go to homedepot.com/gardenclub to see some of the many benefits of membership.

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of The Home Depot.

Kids Spell It Out: Do you have a boyfriend/girlfriend?

2013-05-20T00:26:00.000-05:00

welcome to the Kids Spell It Out series! every monday will be a post filled with funny and adorable answers that kidlets give to questions. this week's question is:

Do you have a boyfriend/girlfriend?

Uhh...no. {laughs}
Bear {4.5} Crayon Freckles

Well, I just have a boyfriend. His name is Benjamin, and I like him, and he's my friend.
Priscilla{4} B-Inspired Mama

Alexis. She has beautiful eyes and beautiful hair and that's pretty much it!
Sawyer {6} B-Inspired Mama

Lexi.
Audrey {5} True Aim Education

Yes, Orlando Bloom! He doesn't know it yet, but one day I am going to marry him.
Elizabeth {6} Enchanted Homeschooling

No! I am way too young for that!
Beck {8} Enchanted Homeschooling

No. But guess what? Lauren's in love with Daniel!
Carter {6}

No.
Aiden {5} True Aim Education

Yeah! Me!
Kallista {2} Crystal's Tiny Treasures

Um...at Kroger...and there were two of them. Two of them.
Big Brother {4} Frogs and Snails and Puppy Dog Tails {FSPDT}

I have lots of friends, lots of girls and boys.
Dino Boy {4} Happy Whimsical Hearts

Girlfriend. Madison.
Baloo {6} Royal Baloo

Uh... I used to in Kindergarten. His name was Corbyn.
Savannah {8}

Colton.

Emma {2} True Aim Education

Yes, you!
Aiden {4}

I have a no.
Tristan {5} Crystal's Tiny Treasures

A boyfriend- Marshall and Logan. Logan is my baby friend.

Royal {3} Royal Baloo

Keep in touch with Crayon Freckles on Facebook to get daily post previews and hear about other great activities! You can also follow Crayon Freckles on Pinterest and Twitter.

The Sunday Parenting Party: arguing with my spouse in front of the kids

2013-05-19T00:06:00.000-05:00

relationships with our significant others can be tough. we don't always get agree on things or remember to use our nice voices. we have bad days and let words slip out before we think them through.

last night was one of those nights.

we'd just gotten back from visiting my in-laws. it was late and i couldn't find my contact solution. such a silly thing. i was frustrated and muttering under my breath. in the processing of me venting my frustrations to my husband, it was perceived that i was snapping at him. though i didn't mean it that way, i can see how he felt i was crabbing at him.

and he called me out on it. in front of Bear (4.5 yrs}. we weren't yelling or screaming, but our voices weren't as gentle and loving as they usually are.

it got me to thinking...

is it okay to argue with my spouse in front of the kids?

my answer is yes, on these conditions:

differences in opinions are bound to happen. as long as we handle them respectfully, in ways that don't put each other down, it teaches our children how to listen to and respect other's views on issues.

it's not okay to use abusive language or actions. this isn't an issue with us as we've never laid a hand on each other in anger. but it's a fact that there are many dear children who live in abusive homes and witness violence between their parents or parents and their partners.

the disagreement has to be a child-appropriate topic. obviously, we wouldn't argue about money or marital problems in front of the kids. i'd say 98% of our "arguments" are based on misunderstandings or misconceptions of the other's intentions, which makes them things that are okay for the kids to hear.

we have to try to use nice voices. this is a tough one for me. our disagreements are few and far between, yet when they happen, i get defensive immediately. we don't yell at each other, but i will admit that our voices last night weren't as gentle as they should've been.

and lastly....we have to make sure that our kids see the resolution to the disagreement. i generally give my husband space afterward. when we apologize to each other, i try and make sure that the kids see and hear us apologize. i think it's important that we teach them that a heartfelt apology can mend fences. a hug and a kiss between us, shows them that just because Momma and Daddy disagree, it doesn't mean that we don't love each other.

in short, i think that airing disagreements in front of children can be beneficial to the development of their relationship ideals. arguing doesn't mean that two people don't love each other, just that they have opposing views on issues. likewise, it also teaches them how and how not to handle confrontations with others.

what do you think?

do you and your significant other air your differences

with each other in front of your children?

and now onto the link party...

Weekly Kid's Co-op: leaf the fun to these tree activities

2013-05-17T00:01:00.000-05:00

Welcome to the Kid's Weekly Co-Op!

in preparation for our birdhouse post that's coming tomorrow, i thought i'd share some of the great bird and tree activities that have been done so far on this site. click the image to go to the post.

Here are the 5 featured tree activity posts from last week's kids co-op.

don't leaf without checking them out!

1. Books about Trees from Fantastic Fun and Learning

2. Acorn Buddies from Learn with Play at Home

3. Handprint Family Tree from Toddling in the Fast Lane

4. Popcorn Tree from Raise a Boy

5. Easy Tree Snack from Fantastic Fun and Learning

if you're featured, feel free to grab a featured button from Crayon Freckles and a Co-Op one below.