Elementary: 5-9 years

I come from a long, line of bakers.  My great grandmother invented the gum paste flower technique now used to adorn wedding cakes with candy clay flowers around the country.  And Christmas is prime baking season.  My personal favorite family recipe is for Gingerbread Cookies! And since after baking cookies for over…

What Nutcracker party is complete without tutus and dancing?!? Motivate your tiny dancer party-goers to dance with these festive DIY Party Favors… today, we are sharing the how-to for snowflake wands to go with the Waltz of the Snowflake. Wednesday I’ll be back with the how-to for the jingle bell…

Our Nutcracker party planning continues… and no party is complete without themed decor.  This week we created a simple burlap holiday banner featuring Nutcracker silhouettes for less than $10, with great Pottery Barn-esque effect! DIY Nutcracker Silhouette Holiday Banner For Day 3 of our Nutcracker series, I created this simple holiday…

This project took some bravery on my part.  You may have noticed most of our activity posts feature Big M, with Lil’ M along for the ride.  Big M (age 4) is my rule stickler, takes direction well, and since birth, has possessed an incredible attention span.  Lil’ M (age…

The Nutcracker is more than just ballerinas and tutus!  The battle scene features the Nutcracker and his army of toy soldiers versus the Rat King and his minions.  Today, I’ve recreated this battle with a fun Nutcracker game on a cinnamon stick tic tac toe board! The Nutcracker Series Welcome…

People thought I was crazy when I took Big M, then age 3, to see The Nutcracker last holiday season.  She was captivated from the opening curtain to the final curtsies.  She still watches it almost daily, narrates the scenes, requests to listen to the soundtrack in the car, and re-enacts…

Over the past few Fridays, I have been sharing ways to save money this season, while the rest of the world breaks the bank!  Today’s Financially Savvy holiday savings tip? Bake It, Don’t Buy It.  For many people on your holiday list, baked goods make an excellent Christmas gift.  And…

Andy Warhol was a leading figure in the Pop Art movement.  His artistic exploration of pop culture produced mixed media series featuring icons of the day, from Marilyn Monroe to Campbell’s Soup cans.  For our latest project in the Art History for Preschool series, the girls (ages 4 and 2) were easily…

Along with the cheer of the holiday season comes the drear of colder and wetter weather, making for long dark days stuck indoors.  We cheered things up with some holiday games, including this fun Christmas twist on the traditional cup-and-ball favorite, Cup and Jingle Bell! Cup & Jingle Bell, A…

Growing up, I always looked forward to December 1st, and my Mom’s reveal of our annual Advent Calendar.  On a recent trip through Target, I saw an adorable 3D Christmas tree version… for $30.  And it still needed gifts to go inside.  I knew I could create my own version…

Black Friday pandemonium looms just one week away.  I, personally, have never been one to join in the shopping at midnight insanity.  I prefer to stay home, enjoy my family and let my turkey digest.  I am, however, all in favor of getting a jump start on preparing for Christmas.…

It was not that long ago that artistic techniques were as prescribed as scientific processes or mathematical equations.  Critics and instructors frowned upon artists who looked to create outside the confinements of traditional methods. Kandinsky was one such artist, and fortunately for all of us, ignored his critics.  He wanted art to…

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #SnackPackMixins #CollectiveBias The best part about being a parent is sharing all the things you loved about your own childhood with your children.  I love all things Christmas, and one of my favorite holiday traditions…

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #BakeInTheFun #CollectiveBias Every year, my husband groans and makes himself scarce when I drag out my KitchenAid mixer for my weekend of Christmas cookie baking. He knows the kitchen is about to be inundated for…

Georges Seurat is famous for creating his own painting technique.  Using hundreds of tiny spots of color, he created great masterpieces, with a technique now known as pointillism.  While applying spots of paint to create an image may be a bit advanced for preschoolers, painting a picture with spots provides great…

 This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #PotPiePlease #CollectiveBias I knew my husband was the one the first time I came home with him for Thanksgiving.  It was my first major holiday away from home.  For a taste of home, I had committed…

The Peanuts Holiday movies are one of my favorite holiday traditions.  I remember watching It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown, A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving and A Charlie Brown Christmas each October, November and December for as long as I can remember.  And I have loved passing this tradition on to my kids… albeit when…

Henri Rousseau got his start painting professionally late in life.  He once said he had “no teacher other than nature”.  Taking a page from his book and the beauty that is New England fall, Big M (age 4), Lil’ M (age 2), and I decided to engage in a little…

Big M is on her journey to reading!  It is so exciting to watch and her enthusiasm for letters, sounds and recognizing words is contagious.  At preschool, they have a letter of the week each week – last week was ‘C week’.  She has to bring in a picture that…