Crafts and Projects

At the zoo today my friend was telling me how her daughter is already having anxiety about Christmas being over. She said they were even thinking of celebrating Chanukah this year just to spread it out a little and avoid the whole ONE BIG DAY thing. It made me think about the genius of advent calendars for spreading out the fun of the Holidays over a longer period of time.

Whether you celebrate Christmas or not, the advent calendar is really a perfect thing. They are beautiful, creative and hold tiny little treats in them that get to be opened one-a-day, working up to Christmas. What could be better than that? Some people put candies or small presents in their advent calendars, but the really great thing about them is you can create your own advent calendar tradition. You can also make an advent calendar out of just about anything. I've seen some really beautiful and cool home-made advent calendars.

Here are my best ideas both for advent calendars you can make and what to put inside them: Read more »

All kids love science. At least they do until someone teaches them it's not fun. So grab the opportunity by the horns and get your kid some of these cool science kits for the holidays this year. It may not be what they are asking for, but they will have an amazing time and you will too.

Me and my crack team of toy reviewers (aged 4-10) set about working our way through no less than fourteen of the coolest science kits that we could find. In this post I will be writing about the best ones for little kids, aged 4 and up.

The thing we found when trying out all these science kits is that there are three kinds of science kits:

1. Project kits. I call it a project kit when a science kit is really about the packaging and has one or a couple of activities with a thinly veiled connection to science. It might be fun to make rainbow crystals, but it's not really a science kit, it's a project kit, in my opinion.

2. Bad Science Kits. The second category of kits are ones that are either not fun or the science is not made relevant to the kids so they don't really learn anything from this. I have coined the term "bad science kits" for these ones (trademark pending).

3. Great Science Kits. The third type of kit we found were the winners. To be a great science kit for kids, there had to be enough different experiments to make it fun to come back to again and again and the science had to be fun and made relevant to the kids so they really could learn the basic principles involved.

It seems like too much to ask, but we did find some great science kits, perfect for preschoolers, and we want to share them with you. Read more »

I admit it, I got to a point where I actually felt like I needed an iphone. The rationale went like this: with an iphone I could stay in e-mail touch even when I was at the playground or waiting at school or during those times when my daughter falls asleep in the stroller. It would make me more productive and also a better mom cause if I could work at those times then maybe I wouldn't have to work when we were home and instead just focus on playing. So when our cell phone contracts were up we rushed over to the Mac store. Of course, my husband had also worked out a completely different but just as "valid" rationale as to why he needed one as well.

But while we were at the store, I realized I had a problem. My previous cell phone was such a piece of junk that I had gotten into the habit of letting my 2 year old play with it but I knew there was no way I was going to let her touch my new iphone. I needed one for her. Read more »

Due to my need to organize, I usually have three or four things lined up for us to do as a family between Friday and Sunday. I’m not going to lie - these are three or four really amazingly fun things. Still, my husband will sometimes lose interest in what we’re doing which makes me more than a little crazy. Then our son will detect the tension, and before even one passive-aggressive word is muttered between the adults, he will declare “you guys are gonna fight!” Of course this means defeat for me and I then turn into that lady who walks around with her family in a really amazingly fun place, not having fun at all. So after we have essentially washed, rinsed and repeated this cycle over and over, I believe I’ve come up with the solution.

I have named my husband The Chancellor of Saturdays. He is the new organizer; I am along for the ride. He decides when and where to eat, when or if we’re going to leave the house, and when and if our son needs to do anything besides play Super Mario Sunshine all day. This is tricky because I have some very definite ideas about these “when” and “if” moments. But it has ended up being wildly entertaining as well. Our son has been more than a little puzzled when I defer to his father about everything. And my husband has looked more than a little frightened about possibly doling out the wrong answers when deferred to. Read more »

I am terrible at planning in advance for Halloween.   Alright, I admit it, I'm terrible at planning in advance for everything, but in some very rare cases this can be a good thing. Halloween, is all about getting creative. Sometimes being a slacker-mom on Halloween forces you and your kids to be more creative and have more fun since you are left with putting together a costume that you can make with what you already have or what is easy to get.

Keep reading to find out some great toddler and kid Halloween costume ideas that almost entirely use stuff you either already have or can find in a stationary store.  Plus, the best last minute costume ideas on the interweb. Read more »

Summer is closing in on us so make the most of it with this weekend's line-up of FREE events! 

Photo Credit: Theodora Ravago

RiverFlicks for Kids - if you still haven't caught any outdoor movies this summer, here is your chance. Head over to Hudson River Park to catch the original Willie Wonka and munch on some free popcorn. Check out our Free Outdoor Movies for Kids post for a full line up of other outdoor movie festivals. Friday, movie starts at 8:30pm. FREE

Summer Streets - enjoy the 6.9 miles of car free route Read more »

There is a lot going on this summer at the sometimes forgotten Queens Museum  of Art nestled in Flushing Meadows-Corona Park and well worth the trip if you havn't been. This summer's events at the museum include an international film, dance and music series, free archery, scavenger hunts and lots of art making and viewing opportunities with the family.

The Queens Museum  of Art focuses on 20th-century works and is located right next to the Unisphere which is that awesome retro steel globe sculpture that was made for the 1964 World's Fair, check out Forgotten NY for some cool vintage photos and info on the Fair. And since school groups are the largest single community that visit the museum each year, they really appreciate and cater to kids and their staff is uniquely qualified to work with children.

As for getting there, while it is a bit of a trek, you can get there on the 7 train and the trade off is that once you are there its usually not too crowded and all their summer activities are free with admission ( $5 for adults, $2,50 for kids. Kids under 5 are free). Read more »

In honor of Earth Day, Spring, and that theoretical thing people call Global Warming, this month we're focusing on everything Green. We've got a whole roster of fun events and information to inspire you to make your life greener with your kids in New York City. Plus we've got some big green giveaways and craft ideas.

Of course we'll still have our regular free fun fridays, linkin' blogs and other great content sprinkled in, like our Mommy Poppins Do-It-Yourself Spring Break Camp and some really cool activity ideas.

Tonight since I went out drinkin' with the girls from SK*RT and my favorite NYC parent bloggers (if you don't know these sites, you should), I'm giving you some of the best green posts from our archive.

Best Environmental Websites for Kids

Zipcar: Drive to the greener side of the street

It's Time to Give Up the Water Bottle

Recycled Materials and Nature Crafts Read more »

We're all itching to get outside, but the weather is still unpredictable enough that it's worth doing one more indoor activities post. every once in a while we like to update you with more free indoor activities like story times. You can see all our previous posts on free indoor activities, story times, and art classes in the Winter Fun Guide. Read more »

We've got a long weekend and I'm in the mood to get crafty. Preparing for holidays is always a fun time in our house when we can slow down and do some craft activities together. My kids love this and the crafts don't have to be complicated.

Making Easter Eggs is a great craft to do with kids because it can be tailored to be as simple or as complicated as you want it to be for different ages, abilities and crafty proclivities ??” meaning I can really get into it with my own creations.

Below I've rounded up a bunch of links to great Easter egg craft ideas, but this first link is to a delicious looking recipe for some Purim Hamantaschen. If you don't know about the Jewish holiday Purim, you can read about it on the 92nd St. Y site which tells the story. Purim is one of the few Jewish holidays that's really a kids' holiday.

Easter Egg Making Tips and Craft Ideas: Read more »