There are tons of coloring pages out there – Easter eggs, bunnies, religious images even your kids favorite cartoon stars celebrating the holiday – now you just need to find them!

While we don’t have printable coloring pages here, we’ve done our research and found some great links online where you can find printable worksheets and coloring pages for kids! Another great way to find them is to check out Google Images and choose the coloring pages you like best!

ColoringPagesforKids.info – This site has some great coloring pages of easter eggs, baskets and easter bunnies perfect for your kids!

Kidscutecoloringpages.com – A really cute Dora the Explorer coloring page perfect for any little fan!

Coloring-pages-kids.com – Here are some religious coloring pages that can be used as an educational tool or just some fun!

TheStir.Cafemom.com – 8 Easy & Fun Easter crafts for your kids if you want to delve beyond the coloring pages!

Do you have any more you’d like to add? Comment below and let us know!

Fans of the popular author have been waiting all week to celebrate the day that the creator of the amazing Dr. Seuss books was born. The day is finally here and we have some great quotes that will help teach your kids (or students) about one of the most creative and memorable children’s authors in history!

* Learn more about Dr. Seuss – and play fun games and activities – at Seussville.com or check out his Wikipedia page for more information.

So let’s get started!

Here are some of the best quotes from Dr. Seuss’ most popular books. We suggest making these quotes into coloring pages (click here for printable Dr. Suess coloring pages), worksheets (click here for printable Dr. Seuss worksheets) or workbooks (combine the coloring pages and work sheets to make great workborks) that you and your kids can keep forever and pass along to their kids (because we all know that Dr. Seuss will still be popular when that time comes).

“And will you succeed? Yes indeed, yes indeed! Ninety-eight and three-quarters percent guaranteed.” –Oh the Places You’ll Go

“From there to here, and here to there, funny things are everywhere.” –  One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish

“We looked! Then we saw him, step in on the mat! We looked! And we saw him! The Cat in the Hat!” – The Cat in the Hat

“Maybe Christmas’, he thought, ‘doesn’t come from a store. ‘Maybe Christmas… perhaps… means a little bit more!’” – How the Grinch Stole Christmas

“I meant what I said and I said what I meant. An elephant’s faithful one hundred percent.” – Horton Hears a Who!

“Think left and think right and think low and think high. Oh, the things you can think up if only you try!” – Oh The Thinks You Can Think

Old bags, shopping, grocery or even potato chip, can make great gift wrapping.  Cut paper bags along their seams, turn them inside out and use anything you like to decorate them.  Rubber stamps are always fun, but MarthStewart.com suggests taking an old wine bottle cork, dipping it in ink or dark fruit juice and using it to create patterns.  You can turn holiday wrapping into a family affair if you grab the kids, their favorite coloring gear and set them to work decorating your former shopping bags turned future wrapping paper.  Not only will relatives love the works of art their presents will become, you’ll be happy to have something to keep kids on holiday busy!

If you want to be even cleverer, collect old snack bags, cut them open and clean the insides thoroughly.  The insides of these bags are usually shiny silver or shiny white — perfect colors for holiday wrapping.  If you cut the bags carefully, you can recreate the look of expensive foil wrapping paper and recycle at the same time!

Instead of Styrofoam packing peanuts, try using actual popcorn or real peanuts to pack your gifts.  It’s biodegradable, cheaper to buy and make and easier for your friends and family to get rid of.  Plus, the kids will love snacking on the packaging as they help you with your shipping chores!

Try this inspired Thanksgiving idea from Holidash – its both a fun project and a great way to protect your table from being permanently scarred by doing “kid’s table” duty.

You’ll need:

-One roll of brown paper – you can get this at Target, or most craft shops.  Make sure it’s heavy enough to do table cloth duty.

-Sharpie marker

-double sided tape

-small dinner plate

-colored pencils, markers, or crayons

-small containers for the above – find something fun and festive (and not breakable).

-scissors

First, use the paper and the double stick tape to cover your table completely.  Make sure you’ve got it firmly anchored, slipping and sliding paper is a recipe for disaster once the table is covered with your holiday meal.

Then use the plate as a template and draw a circle at each place at the table.  If you’re feeling creative you can trace glasses and silverware too, creating a “table setting” that’s pre-drawn and both looks cool and helps little fingers figure out where to place their tableware.

Fill your containers with coloring supplies, set them out where you would your centerpieces and voila, a table that looks good, and will keep your munchkins entertained for hours.

A great way to teach kids about the importance of this holiday is through games, worksheets and activities.

I’ve scoured the web for the best printable games and worksheets for kids. Whether you’re a school teacher looking for lesson plans or a stay-at-home mom looking to teach your preschoolers the value of giving thanks, these activities should help make it easy and fun to learn about the holiday.

Printable Worksheets:

Turkey Maze  – A fun and challenging turkey-shaped maze where kids have to find their way from one end of the turkey to the other.

Thanksgiving Secret Message Worksheet -  Fill in the blanks with the letter that matches each picture to decode the secret message!

Thanksgiving Words in Alphabetical Order - Look at the Thanksgiving words on the left side of the page and place all 8 in alphabetical order in the spaces provided! 

Printable Word Search Activities

American Thanksgiving Word Search - A great way to practice the meaning of Thanksgiving-related words while making it fun for kids to learn.

Star-Shaped Thanksgiving Word Search - Spice up an ordinary word search and make it a little more challenging for your kids by printing off this star-shaped activity and making it a contest to see who can finish first.

Thanksgiving Word Search - Another great choice if you’re looking to make learning about Thanksgiving fun and creative for your kids.

Printable Coloring Pages:

Want to give your kids a fun, Thanksgiving inspired coloring page to keep them occupied? Why not try this mom holding a turkey  or this pilgrim  or this elaborate turkey  or this “Happy Thanksgiving” page  or this other fun “Happy Thanksgiving” page. Alternatively, you can print off all of the coloring pages listed above and make a great coloring book for your kids (or students)!

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!

Whether you’re a teacher looking for lesson plans and activities or a stay-at-home mom looking for coloring pages, we’ve got everything you need to help teach your kids about this important day in a fun and creative way.

Here are some of the best places online to find Veteran’s Day coloring pages, activities and lesson plans:

Printable Coloring Pages – TheColor.com (just click on one of the photo thumbnails and a printable picture will appear).

Veteran’s Day Lesson Plans: LessonPlansPage.com (history of Veteran’s Day plus activities you can try in the class – also a printable version available for your convenience).

Printable Veterans Day Wordsearch – TheTeachersCorner.net. You can create a word search of your own for your students (or children if you’re a stay-at-home mom).

Veteran’s Day Lesson Plan – What is Veteran’s Day – TeacherVision.com. A printable lesson plan outlining activities and information to teach your students about the history of this day.

We hope our information has helped. If you have any other great activities for kids, please leave your link in the comments section below!

Luckily, I’m here to help. While searching for my own ideas (and I’m no pumpkin carving expert, that’s for sure) I found some fun and easy (and unique) pumpkin carving design ideas to share with you!

Here are the top 5:

*Click Images to Enlarge

The Ghost – the ghost is an easy and creative way to make your pumpkin stand out from the rest. You don’t have too many intricate shapes to cut out, which makes this perfect for the novice carver.

The Spider – This design is a little trickier but still simple enough if you follow the photo. If you’re hesitant to try something too difficult too fast simple carve straight edges instead of spikes. Either way, this pumpkin is going to look incredible when lit.

The Tree -  A spooky tree is a fun and unique idea for your pumpkin carving expedition this year. You can get as detailed (or un-detailed) as you like but the overall appearance will be spooky regardless.

The Goblin – This pumpkin actually looks harder than it is to create. The important part is finding your materials beforehand. Once you have the materials, it’s as easy as creating a normal pumpkin face but adding the accessories afterwards. Advanced carvers can attempt the tongue but it’s not essential to make this look work.

Super Mario – I have to admit, I probably wouldn’t be able to pull this one off (nor will I waste my pumpkin attempting to find out) but the simplicity of the design seems easy enough for intermediate carvers. Just remember to draw the design on in either pen or marker beforehand.

Good luck!

Feel free to post a link to a photo of your pumpkin or your favorite pumpkin carving design!

Happy Halloween Everyone!

Seven year old Max Geissbuhler and his father manager to send their homemade spacecraft nearly 19 miles high, bringing back what is perhaps the most impressive amateur space footage ever.

Check out their video below:

Max and his Dad spent about 8 months perfecting their spacecraft in hopes of filming, “the blackness beyond out earth,” Yahoo writes.

The pair used a specially designed insulated casing to protect their camera, iPhone, and GPS equipment, along with a note from Max requesting the spacecraft’s safe return from whoever may find it once it returned to solid ground.

In August, they finally deemed their spacecraft ready for travel, launching it at a nearby park and watching as it disappeared into the sky.  A little over an hour later, they found it stuck in a tree, 25 miles from where they let it go.

Though their craft didn’t technically make it to the boundaries of space, Max and his Dad are of course extremely proud of their accomplishment.

Tuaw reports that the iPad is becoming “a natural tool for many artists to use, and the public is now starting to see the fruits of the relationship in the form of some startling and beautiful digital art.”

England’s Kyle Lambert is a great example of this.  The portrait artist recently spend a total of 6 hours painting an amazingly life like portrait of Beyonce Knowles.  His tools?  An iPad, his finger, and a brushes application that is available for the device.

Best of all he creates time-lapse films of his portrait creations.  It’s really fascinating to see the picture come to life!  Check it out, below:

On his website, Lambert writes, “My artwork combines traditional painting techniques with cutting edge technology to produce rich, realistic portraits and character based concepts and designs. The iPad expands the possibilities for artists like myself to take digital artwork creation away from the computer and out into the world.”

Visit KyleLambert.co.uk to see more of his amazing artwork!

Transforming your home into an exotic local is easier than you might think.  First pick a place dad loves, or a place he’s always wanted to go.  Then do a little research.  The internet makes this kind of project easy.  Restaurants and cafe’s offer virtual walking tours and post their menus.  Famous landmarks have websites full of details about the location.  Cities have walking maps you can access online and of course, Google Maps satellite function allows you to actually see what a certain restaurant or tourist location actually looks right at this moment.

Start by setting the scene.  Have the kids draw appropriate “views” from a famous Venetian restaurant and tape them over the windows.  Or make cut outs of the statues in a Central Park and hang them from the trees in the back yard.  String up some Christmas lights, put on some location appropriate music and dress the kids up as waiters, sherpa guides, gondoliers or whatever the location demands.

Now it’s time to think of a menu.  Check out www.epicurious.com and find some location appropriate food – hot dogs for Central Park, Italian for Venice, Italy and so on – and have the kids help you decorate menus for dinner.  Can’t decide on one location? You can turn your house into a full blown trip around the world if you want to.  Dad will feel just as loved and appreciated as he would if you took him out, and he won’t ever have to even think the words, “If you don’t stop teasing your sister I WILL turn this car around.”

Even if you’ve got no budget at all, there are lots of ways to show dad (or the person who does the “dadding” in your life) that you care.  Try organizing the family to reenact a scene from their favorite television show or film.  You can tape it, if you’ve got a video camera, or you can put it on live for dad’s enjoyment.  The memory of your six-year-old reenacting the training sequence from “Rocky” will keep dad entertained for weeks and years to come.

Also, you can never go wrong making your own cards. Hallmark type Father’s Day cards are notoriously weak anyway, and there’s no reason why crayons and construction paper should be restricted to the elementary school set.  The kids can make cards for dad, and so can you.  He’ll hold on to them a lot longer than he will the store bought variety.

No eating out budget? Making dad’s favorite dinner can be fun for the entire family, in some ways a lot more fun than eating in a stuffy restaurant where you have to spend the whole evening keeping the kids in their seats and quiet.

If you’ve got a present buying budget, think about ways that you can allow dad to splurge on himself.  A lot of fathers, and father figures, out there are giving things up right now so their families can have more.  On Father’s Day, give them a little extra luxury.  Movie passes so that the film loving father, who has been spending his movie budget on things like “Shrek” and “Toy Story 3,” won’t think twice about seeing  ”The Expendables” or “Inception” without the kids.   Sushi making classes for the dad who loves sushi, but has been skipping grown up dinners out so the kids can go to Disneyland.  Day passes on the golf course, tickets to a baseball game, even a set of poker chips and a promise to have the house to himself for a night with the guys.

Most of all, remember to take the time to tell the person in your life that most deserves the title of  ”dad” how much you appreciate what they do.  There’s nothing like a dad.

What you’ll need:

Squares of paper – you can cut out squares from ordinary printer paper, or origami paper makes a fun, bright alternative if you feel like picking up special supplies.

Push pins.

Eraser topped pencils.

Scissors.

How to start:

Start by decorating the squares of paper.  While origami paper is already pretty, creating designs and coloring them in is half the fun of this project so we recommend starting with a blank page.  Plus, if your kids have to decorate their own paper the project will take longer, and thus give you more quiet time.

Once your squares have been decorated, fold the paper in half diagonally, then in half again to form two diagonal folds from corner to corner.  Then, starting at each corner, cut about two thirds of the way up the fold, leaving about an inch from the center of the page intact.

This leaves you with a square that has been divided into four triangles, all connected by the uncut middle section.  Take one corner of each triangle and gently bend it towards the middle (don’t fold).  Do not bend the second corner of each triangle in – these unbent corners become the spokes of your pinwheel.

You’ll probably have to help your kids hold the bent corners together.  Once you’ve created the pinwheel shape, secure the bent in corners with the push pin and then press the sharp end of the pin into the eraser of one of your pencils.

Now you’ve got a pinwheel!

It is often far too easy to forget the roots of this particular three day weekend – the fallen service men and women of our armed forces we’re supposed to be remembering are all too easily forgotten in the rush of swim suits, burgers and sales.  But for too many families this year, those loses are all too fresh.  So it’s important to remember what we’re celebrating and, even if we’re lucky enough not to have any personal losses, teach our kids about the meaning of the day.

Today is Earth Day and there are many ways to incorporate the meaning of the day into fun activities for your children.

We don’t necessarily have any printable coloring pages, word searches or worksheets for your kids but we can recommend great places to find them online.

Here are some great places to find fun Earth Day activities for your children:

http://printables.kaboose.com/take-care-of-the-earth.html – A printable take care of the Earth coloring page.

http://printables.kaboose.com/holidays/earth-day/word-searches/earthday-word.html – A series or word searches from beginner levels to medium and hard. Scroll down to the links after the green image.

http://www.teachervision.fen.com/earth-day/printable/37360.html – Earth day word search from students grades 3-5

http://www.dltk-kids.com/crafts/earth/mearthposter.htm – A whole bunch of Earth Day coloring pages, printable (just click on the “B&W” links under the photos and print them off)!

http://www.coloring.ws/earth.htm – A wide variety of Earth Day coloring pages for kids of all ages.

http://www.abcteach.com/free/n/nr_coloringworksheet_water.pdf – Coloring page and worksheet for kids to list products for which each resource is used.

We hope our links have helped. If you have any other ideas, please leave them in the comments area below!

Materials:

• Egg shells broken into small pieces
• Several food coloring colors
• White vinegar
• Paper towels
• Construction paper or card stock
• Craft glue
• Clear spray lacquer

Directions:

1. Prepare egg dye by adding a few drops of food coloring to a small amount of hot water.  Add a drop of vinegar to the water to help set the color.  Dye eggshells by immersing them in the colored water.  Leave the shells in the dye for varying lengths of time to create different shades of color.  Remove shells from dyes and spread them out on paper towels to dry. You can skip this step if you already have brightly colored Easter egg shells.
2. Gather the different colors into separate containers.  Arrange a basic mosaic pattern on your paper.  When you are satisfied with the way it looks, glue the shells in place.
3. For better preservation, use a clear spray lacquer to coat the entire mosaic.

Being the younger of two siblings raised by a single mother putting herself through school, I’ve been forced to wear quite a few hand-me-downs over the years.

Being in the unfortunate position of having someone born before you can cramp your style, especially if your family is on a budget. With a little work, however, hand-me-downs can be the most fashionable pieces in your daughter’s wardrobe.

I know- you are probably having visions of that geeky girl that everyone made fun of in school whose well intentioned mom sewed designer patches on generic label clothes because they couldn’t afford the real thing.  Luckily, most of the hottest fashions right now are easy to duplicate at home and no one will know the difference.

Over the years, I picked up a few tricks of the trade that I actually still use to this day which can turn your daughter’s newly acquired hand-me-downs into one of a kind pieces her friends will hate her for.  (That’s a good thing in girl world.)

Fitted t-shirts:

Logos are big, so turn those old, baggy, ill-fitting t-shirts into vintage and pricey looking tops.  My sister was always quite a bit bigger than I was, so instead of swimming in her old t-shirts, I would just remove a few inches from the sides and sew them up.  Everyone thought they were designer and fit me like a dream.  Measure around the bust and waist, and divide by two.  Turn the t-shirt inside out, and mark the bust and sides with the divided circumference.  Cut up to the arm pit seam on either side, and close up with a simple hand stitch, or sewing machine if you have it.  That baggy old sports t-shirt is now a perfectly tailored fitted top.

Tie-Dye:

Yes, it’s back, and thankfully, it’s cheap.  When I was younger, I wasn’t allowed to get white clothing because I would ruin it in 3 wears, tops.  To this day, it still holds true, but I’ve found a way to not let white drain my wallet.  When those white pieces start to get dingy, it’s time to change the color.  Grab some RIT dye, rubber bands and rubber gloves and bring back the eighties.  White and light colored cotton fabrics work best, but just last weekend I tie-dyed some light grey jeans with black dye and they tuned out great.  Follow the directions on the dye, and remember to always wash them separately or you can ruin a whole load of clothes.

Destroy Those Jeans.

Jeans are always changing, and right now, destroyed is in.  While most parents cringe at the holes in the hottest brands, and wonder why they are paying for already ruined clothes, you can breathe a sigh of relief that they didn’t cost you a penny.  Instead of using scissors, give your daughter a square of sandpaper and tell her to go to town.  Wearing through the fabric will give the jeans a more designer, intentional feel that just shredding them.  Go for the knees and below, but leave the thighs and pockets in tact.  You don’t want any calls home from the principal.

Add some glitz.

Any t-shirt design can be livened up by adding a few rhinestones.  Just a little dab of fabric glue and some strategically placed sparkle can do wonders for updating an old piece.  This works great on jeans, too.

Shorten it up.

Billowy mini skirts with busy patterns are the it-thing for spring.  Long, floor-length skirts with elastic bands (which my friends and I refer to as ‘elementary school teacher skirts’) can easily be cut and hemmed into cute minis.  Depending on the age between your children, you may not have any of these skirts, but I often go to thrift stores and find long skirts with patterns I like to shorten up for just pennies.  For older girls, you can also wear these skirts as dresses, pulling the waist up to the arm pits and cinching it around the waist with a cute belt.

Saving money doesn’t have to look cheap.  Personalized pieces are always more fun, and your daughter won’t ever have to worry about showing up to school in the same outfit as a friend.

1. Wear green. No, that small stripe in your shirt doesn’t count!  You need enough green for you to see a few feet away, maybe even something with some clovers on it.
2. Take a journey in you kitchen. Eat like the Irish all day long.  Start with a “full Irish breakfast”.  Items on this menu include bacon, sausage, fried eggs, black pudding, white pudding, fried tomatoes, sauteed mushrooms and potatoes, brown soda bread and a strong Irish breakfast tea.  Or keep it simple with steel cut oatmeal.  For lunch try a traditional Irish stew.  For dinner you can prepare the very popular corned beef and cabbage.  And perhaps some potato pie for dessert.
3. Play some music. Ireland has a long history with music, and many incredible styles have emerged.  Celtic, folk and traditional Irish songs might just get you in the St. Patrick’s Day spirit.  And they are super fun to dance to.
4. Get crafty. Common themes for St. Patty’s projects include rainbows, shamrocks and leprechauns.
5. Host a treasure hunt. Fill a pot or chest with kiddie treasure like candy, toys and games.  Hide it in a secure place.  Then leave trails and clues for kids to find it.  Once they hunt it down, they can all split the booty.

Materials:

• Large piece of cardboard
• Razor cutter or scissors
• A shoebox with a lid
• Craft glue
• Green paint
• Stickers, pre-made rainbows and other decoration
• Gold paint and/or glitter
• sticks, craft sticks or wooden skewers cut to these lengths, (2) 6-inch pieces and (8) 1-inch pieces
• small pot or container
• Shiny coins, jewelry, treasure or even Lucky Charms cereal
• Small pillow(s) or soft fabric to line the inside of your box

Instructions:

1. Cut a large shamrock shape out of the cardboard.  Make sure that it is big enough to house your shoebox with at least a 3-inch buffer all the way around.
2. Put shoebox lid in place on top of the shoebox.  Draw a 2×2 inch square on the lid next to the front edge.  Cut 3 sides of the square, leaving one edge in tact.
3. Center your hat or shoebox in the middle of the shamrock cutout.  Glue it down to the cardboard.
4. Paint shamrock, shoebox and lid green.  Decorate with gold paint, glitter, stickers and other decorations.
5. Fill your pot or container with coins, treasure, Lucky Charms or other goodies.  Reserve a few goodies to use as bait.  Place your pot on top of the shoebox lid.  Glue it in place if you are going to be moving your trap around.
6. Glue sticks or skewers together to assemble a ladder.  Lean the ladder against the shoebox, making sure that the top of the ladder lines up with the trap door.  Glue the top the ladder to the shoebox and the bottom of the ladder to your shamrock cut out.
7. Glue down a trail of goodies or coins that lead to your pot.
8. When a leprechaun follows your trail to the goody pot, he will climb up the ladder and fall through the trap door when he reaches the top!  Be sure to put something soft inside to cushion his fall.

1-Lion Book/Magazine Holder

Have a roaring good time making this cute and handy box with your kids.  This is a great way to contain smaller books on a large bookshelf or wall shelf.

Piggy Bank

Teach your child creativity and the value of a dollar with one fun craft.  You can wrap the box and lid together to ensure that the savings stay in there or you can wrap them separately for easy access and counting.

Puppet Theater

Let your kids role play for hours with this homemade theater box.  They can make puppets of their favorite characters or even themselves using photographs.

Play Mailbox

Kids love to get mail.  Make this little box and slip all of you junk mail in there like a real mailman.  Maybe once in a while you can even slip a sweet note int there.

Practice Shoe

This is a great craft to help your child practice their shoe tying skills.  It is easier for little hands to practice bigger, more handy laces.

(Image via Steve Polyak)

Valentine’s Day

1. Cupid’s Heart- This adorable heart-shaped card has a straw arrow going through it.  Classmates can open it up to read your child’s heartfelt message.
2. Hanging Heart Mobile- This valentine doubles as a design accent.  If you are a room mom, you could hang these on the wall or chalkboard as a decoration and the kids can grab them when the party starts.  After the party, students can hang this in their bedroom and think of your cool kid every time they see it.
3. Love Bug- Most Valentine stuff caters to girls.  These are great because they are valentines that little boy can get into.  Who knows more about bugs than little boys?
4. Love Scroll-Kids will feel like they are passing around mystic secrets with these fun scroll valentines.
5. Lollipop Flower- These valentines are sweeter than roses.  And they include a hidden treat.

Chloe Moretz,

“When I saw the photos from Haiti, I was so heartbroken, I cried,” she told JSYK.com. “It devastated me so much to think of these poor people that had their life and then it all just crumbled in front of them, literally.”

Moretz started Crochet for Haiti! with her brother Colin. They took their average everyday talent and turned it into a way to raise money for the Haitian relief efforts. The Moretz’s crochet creations include a crocheted heart necklace, little ducks and other animals, are available to order on their Facebook page. Every penny earned will benefit Haitian relief.

Take some time to click through what they have to offer: they are actually some really talented little kids.

A lot of help has been pouring in to help the citizens of Haiti, but much more is needed. Kids can often feel powerless in these situations because they don’t feel they have enough money to make a difference. Fund raising is always an option, and often kids can raise thousands, if not tens of thousands of dollars if they really put their mind to it.

If your kids want to help, but just aren’t sure how, it’s as easy as finding something they are good at, or a service to provide, and asking people to donate. Kids can sell lemonade, mow lawns, walk dogs, make lanyards, make key chains or friendship bracelets, anything that other people can buy or donate for. It’s as easy as making a Facebook page, or even just making signs and posting up in the front yard, and get fund raising!

My luck ran out, though, when Special Agent Oso recently had a “secret mission” in which he helped the precocious “Brianna” construct a bird feeder by combining a snack and ground debris.  Someone should have done a better job at keeping this mission “secret” from my kids, because ever since they watched the episode, there has been a burning desire, and loud insistence that they too spread the bird love…and the peanut butter.  Here’s how you can do it too!

Materials

• Pine cone (preferably dry and not too dirty)
• Peanut butter (creamy works best, though crunchy is unarguably the tastiest)
• Bird seed
• Ribbon, twine or fishing line
• Butter knife for spreading

Pry the peanut butter jar from your hungry toddlers’ hands.  Spread the pine cone with peanut butter.  Sprinkle bird seed all over the pine cone, with a plate underneath to catch the extra seeds.  When the pine cone is adequately covered, roll the cone in the remaining seeds on the plate.  Tie the twine or fishing line around the top of the cone and hang it from a tree.

This is a family tradition you can do every year, and the best time to start is this New Years, with the end of a decade. Gather your family’s memories and make a time capsule each New Years Day to bury in your yard, and open them when your children are grown for a great family memory.

What you’ll need:

* A large empty coffee can with a lid
* A piece of construction paper
* Glue
* Packing Tape
* Scissors
* A piece of notebook paper
* Pen or Marker
* Memorabilia from the year

1. Wash and dry the can thoroughly. Wrap the construction paper around the outside, and secure with glue.
2. Let then kids go nuts decorating the outside of the can. Be sure to remind them to write the year on the can, so you can see which time capsule it is before you open it in the future.
3. When ready, have each family member place a small item that represents an important memory from the past year to them inside the can.
4. Write a list of everything in the can on the piece of paper, and what it represents. Let each family member write their own item’s description.
5. Place the list inside the can with the other items and seal the lid. Reinforce with tape so no moisture gets through the can over the years.
6. Pick a date to open all of the cans when your children are grown. It will be a day to remember when you dig up all of your time capsules and share your memories.

What do you include?

• Make sure your children don’t put anything inside of the box they will regret.
• If you are worried about preservation of important things, like ribbons or documents, make a copy of them to put in the time capsule to not risk it.
• Ideas of things to include: awards, newspaper clippings, photos, trinkets, toys, jewelry, letters, ticket stubs, report cards, hand prints, drawings, cards, school assignments.

If I were smart and cold-hearted, I would caution relatives and friends to just give us gift cards for Christmas.  Those I can neatly organize in my pocketbook.  But now that all the new “stuff” of Christmas is here, I brew a pot of extra strong coffee and get to work.  Here are some helpful guidelines to get you started too.

• Out with the old: The first step to making room for all of your new loot is to get rid of the old toys from last year or before.  My rule of thumb is that if my child hasn’t played with a toy in six months, they certainly aren’t going to play with it again.  I’ll unearth it, away from little grab hands that will suddenly decided it is their “most favoritest toy ever!” and put it in a pile to donate.
• Remember the season: Your child’s summer wardrobe may just be in their drawers still, like mine.  Use this as an excuse to store the warm weather clothes for the next in line for the spaghetti strapped sundress or to again get a box together of clothes to donate.  There’s no use in shoving the new velor track suit on top of the tank tops and shorts.  Believe me, I’ve tried.
• Enlist help: You’d be surprised at what your kids can help with, and they might be happy to be involved.  Assign each child a task, like finding space on the bookshelf for new books or just making a stack of the empty boxes under the tree.  Ask your spouse to take over a chore, like cleaning out the toy box while watching a Bowl Game.  Misery loves company and it also makes your load a little lighter.

Overall, try to remember that this chore only comes once a year, and the longer you put it off, the worse it is going to be.  Somehow opened Christmas presents in the hallway just aren’t as bearable in March.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
• 3/4 cup mayonnaise
• 1/2 cup diced red onion
• 1 package of cocktail bread, I prefer rye

Directions:

1. Preheat your broiler to med (about 450 degrees)
2. Mix cheese, mayo and onions together in a bowl.
3. Spoon about 2 teaspoons of the cheese mixture onto each slice of cocktail bread.
4. Place bread onto a cookie sheet and broil for 2-4 minutes.  Watch them carefully because they cook fast.
5. Remove from the broiler, cool slightly and enjoy!

When I became a teenager, my friends’ parents would gush about what a responsible and gracious young girl I was.  My extended family would rave to my cousins how loving I was to keep the lines of communication open, and what a polite young adult I was turning into.  Now, into my twenties, I realize on my own how nice it is to feel appreciated when you have gone out of your way to do something nice for someone, and to recognize it with that extra personal touch of a thank you card is a great way to make, keep and deepen relationships.

Aside from just being the right thing to do, it’s a valuable tool to teach your children when and how to say thank you.

If you don’t already have your children write thank you cards, this holiday is the best place to start.

The actual writing of the Thank You card will depend widely on how old your child is:

If they can only sign their name, or something close to it, it is best to write the thank you for them and have them sign the card.  It’s always sweet to write it as if you were them, saying, “Thank you so much for the toy truck this Christmas, Grandma.  I love playing with it!” and have your little boy sign underneath.  You can also have them draw a picture to include for more of their own personal touch.

For kids old enough to write, dictate to them a nice message to write in the card in their own handwriting, or if they want, let them go at it themselves. Tell them not to seal the envelope, however, because sometimes even in Thank You cards, your child will forget to write the words ‘thank you.’

Teens can be a bit more adult about it, so encourage them to elaborate.  Have them include how their holiday was, anything interesting that happened, and offer a well wish to the recipient hoping they had a great holiday, too.

A few thoughts:

Before writing the cards, first make a list of everyone that gave anything this year- even if it was ‘just’ a card.  This way no one is forgotten and everyone is recognized.

It’s also nice to follow up with a phone call to say thanks to relatives and close friends.  Let your child dial and thank the giver in person, so your child can hear how happy it makes them feel that they have been thoughtful enough to say thanks.  That warm feeling they get will have them saying ‘please’ and ‘thank you’ without prodding for the next few weeks.

My mother always taught me to never thank for ‘money’ always thank for the ‘the gift.’  It’s a personal decision, but gift makes it sound as if it had more value than just the dollar amount.