Milkshake Giveaway!!

Sorry, it's not a real milkshake! If you are anything like me, you adore a creamy chocolate milkshake with whipped cream on top. With a cherry, of course!

Another thing that I adore is fun music and this is what Brimful Curiosities is giving away! Milkshake is actually the name of a creative band. You may have seen them on PBS Kids, Discovery, or Noggin.


"The videos have a groovy feel that matches the band's laid back, fun style. With creative lyrics and catchy, happy songs it is hard not to dance and sing along. Plus, the band promotes reading! Highly recommended for ages 1 - 8+! Don't forget to check out their CDs as well: Happy Songs, Bottle of Sunshine and Play!"




To learn more about Milkshake and to enter the contest, visit Brimful Curiosities. Hurry on over- ends March 2nd.


Enjoy your day!

Jen

Wordless Wednesday: Barbies in the Bath

I said, "Sure, you can play with Barbies in the bathtub." Little did I know they meant all of their barbies and a Baby Doll, Strawberry Shortcake Doll, and a Tinkerbell Doll. Geez! How did they even fit in the tub??

Happy W.W.!
You can find more Wordless Wednesday at 5 minutes for Mom, Keeper of the Cheerios, and Go Graham Go

Jen

Gone Fishin'

We had fun fishin' for facts this week! Sunshine's Cyber-teacher gave me this idea. She suggested putting facts on index cards with paper clips attached. I just adapted it to make it more kid friendly by putting the facts on colorful fishies. We had so much fun playing this and my daughter didn't even realize after awhile that she was practicing her math facts. In order to keep the fish, she had to solve the problem correctly. If she did it wrong, she had to toss the fish back in the "pond". A lot more fun than just doing flash cards, huh? So if you are having a hard time getting your child to learn their facts, you might just want to go fishin', too!


Well, of course being we were having so much fun, Peanut wanted to get in on the action. She begged me to make fishies for her to catch. She got a set of alphabet fish! In order to keep her fish, she had to say a word that started with the letter that was on the fish that she caught.
This can be adapted for any level from number recognition to practicing sight words. The only materials you need are construction paper, paper clips, and a magnet and string.

Have a great day!

Jen

Yeah! A Blog Party!

Keeper of the Cheerios, written by one of my favorite Mommy bloggers- Miranda, will be celebrating her one year blogoversary soon! And she wants you to join in the fun!
Below are just a few of her awesome sponsors that will be giving prizes away prizes:


To learn more about Miranda's celebration, be sure to go and visit her over at Keeper of the Cheerios!

Take Care!

Jen

Whew! That was Close!

It's quite difficult to get Peanut to go anywhere without Bun, Bun. As she gets older, I have been limiting her time with her fluffy friend.

"Leave him in the car, so he doesn't get lost" or
"Leave Bun, Bun in your bed."


Sometimes though, she sneaks him out without me even realizing it. He's been around so long, so Bun, Bun just seems like part of the family.

Well, our tragedy occurred last Friday. We took a short walk by Sunshine's old Elementary School. When we arrived home, Bun Bun was nowhere to be found. Bun Bun was MISSING! Peanut searched every room of our house!

Friday night- no Bun, Bun.
Saturday- No Bun, Bun.
Sunday- No Bun, Bun.
Monday Morning- Still no Bun, Bun!

I thought for sure this was it. He was a goner!

You'd think I'd be happy about this, but I actually felt a little sad. I passed on my childhood bear to Sunshine, so why shouldn't Peanut be able to keep Bun, Bun forever??




Monday afternoon, I was taking a nap when I heard a loud screech. Then the patter of little feet running up the steps. It was Peanut with good news- "Bun, Bun!!" Luckily, he was recovered by her cousin who found him lying on the ground near the school! Woo, Hoo!

He was home, but boy did he stink. Smelling like he had been lying in mud- in the rain for days, the girls decided to give him a well needed bath. That's all he needed after his horrible experience- a little tender lovin' care!





Bun Bun having fun in the dryer!!






























At last clean and reunited. This was our real-life Knuffle Bunny!



We just love the above "Knuffle Bunny" books by Mo Willems! Be sure to check out the fabulous review over at

Make and Takes: What's Your Child's "Knuffle Bunny"?

I'm really proud of Peanut and how she handled the long weekend without Bun, Bun. If she was two, there wouldn't of been a soul asleep in our home. Trust me, I've been there! She must be maturing.

Awwwww! My peanut is growing up!

Have a great day- read a book and snuggle your child's Knuffle Bunny! :)

Jen

An Elmo Analysis

"Elmo's parents must be in England."

"Oh, yeah. Why do you think that?"

"Well, they are never around and Elmo is home by himself. And there is a picture on the wall of this parents."

"Oh, interesting. They could be in England."

"Or they're dead."

Well, after having the above conversation with my 4 year old, I decided to research Elmo's folks and boy are they a mysterious pair!

Hmmm. I wonder why?

Wikipedia states that "As a tribute, Elmo's parents were named George and Gladys in an Elmo's World segment; their names have since changed." (named after the parents of Elmo's puppeteer Kevin Clash).

Elmo as a baby with Dad



I researched some more and I found out that Elmo's father (new name Louie) is away helping people.

From Muppet Wiki:
"Elmo's Mom helps Elmo cope with missing his father in Talk, Listen, Connect, a direct-to-video special released in the summer of 2006 to help military families cope with a loved one being far away."

The mother looks very different than what Dorothy imagined!! But hey, Dorothy is just a goldfish.

Elmo's Mom in Dorothy's Imagination


Elmo's Mom Emailing Father


Okay, so Dad is away, so that leaves us with Mom. Why do we never see Elmo's Mom? Is she in England?
Is she dead?
Naah! She's just busy blogging!! He, He!

Hope you enjoyed the post!

Jen

Wordless Wednesday: Cow Milking in the City

Poor Peanut got squirted in the eye by Sunshine!! Luckily, it was just water. (A fun day at our History Center)
(Thanks 5 Minutes for Mom- Happy W.W!)

Take Care!
Jen

Noblesse Oblige Award

Recently, I received this unique and wonderful award. Thank you, Preschool Playbook! I am honored that you nominated Creative and Curious Kids.





This Award is presented to bloggers who display consistency in any one or a combination of these conditions:


1. The Blogger manifests exemplary attitude, respecting the nuances that pervades amongst different cultures and beliefs.
2. The Blog contents inspire; strives to encourage and offers solutions.
3. There is a clear purpose at the Blog; one that fosters a better understanding on Social, Political, Economic, the Arts, Culture and Sciences and Beliefs.
4. The Blog is refreshing and creative.
5. The Blogger promotes friendship and positive thinking.

The Blogger who receives this award will need to perform the following steps:

1. Create a Post with a mention and link to the person who presented the Noblesse Oblige Award.
2. The Award Conditions must be displayed at the Post.
3. Write a short article about what the Blog has thus far achieved – preferably citing one or more older Post to support.
4. The Blogger must present the Noblesse Oblige Award in concurrence with the Award conditions.
5. The Blogger must display the Award at any location at the Blog.

I nominate the following bloggers who I feel demonstrate the characteristics listed above:

Tara at Kidz- I read just a few posts on her blog Too Much Information and was inspired by the love that Tara shares with her family and friends. On her new blog, Kidz,she is an encouragement to others.

Masked Mommy- This is a new blog that I came across that is inspirational in a very creative way. She isn't afraid to share her weaknesses to help others. I can relate to her posts and am inspired by her honesty! The Masked Mommy will motivate you to get organized, too!

My honest answer to #3-
Before created Curious and Creative Kids!, I didn't know much about blogging. (I actually still have a lot to learn!) I came across the opportunity one day while I was researching opportunities for Stay-at-Home moms. I ordered an e-book titled Make Money Blogging. Yes, I was hoping that if I had something valuable to share, I could make money doing something that I thought I'd enjoy. For greed- no. To be home with my children more- yes.

Well, I haven't made much money blogging, but here I am with over 100 posts. I've come across some opportunities, but I wanted to stay true to my blog- if it didn't relate to my overall purpose,I didn't want to write about it. To my surprise, I found a love for writing, a desire to share ideas with others, a network of amazing Moms who support each other, and so much more. Oh yeah, and I've won a few great prizes on blogs, too!

I'm still learning about blogging and who knows if this will turn into an opportunity for me, but if not, it's okay- I'm rich in other ways and I'm still finding ways to be home with my kids! And the best part is, I'm journaling our creative adventures for us to keep forever and being inspired by others on the way.

Have a wonderful day!

Jen

A President's Day Tribute!

What do you do on President's Day with two rambunctious, extremely noisy girls? You build log cabin's for President Lincoln, silly!! They enjoyed this activity this morning and it actually gave me a moment of peace while I drank my coffee. I found the cutest little Popsicle sticks. I'm all into the cuteness! Can't help myself!






Simple, huh? Popsicle Sticks, Markers, Construction Paper, Glue = Peace of Mind!

For more President's Day fun, check out Kaboose! I might just have to make these little finger puppets. Again, the cuteness factor!

Have a wonderful President's Day!

Jen

Happy Valentine's Day from our Home to Yours!

My family has had a lot of fun this week celebrating Valentine's Day. Below, you can come on over and see some of the Creative happenings in my home!







Valentine Pencils- from Family Fun Magazine
(I'm so proud of Peanut! She wrote the names of all of her Preschool friends on the back of each pencil flag. It was a lot of work for her little fingers.)

The next idea is also from Family Fun! Peanut made this for her Preschool teacher.

Photo and Idea from Family Fun

Mmmmm! Candy conversation hearts. There is so much you can do with this delicious little Valentine treat. Counting, Patterns, Addition and Subtraction and the list goes on. We had fun doing a measurement activity that I found in Mailbox Magazine. I also made a home-made memory game from paper candy hearts.







Conversation Heart Template



The creativity came out during our Valentine Box festivities!


Valentine Box- Peanut, age 4


Valentine Box- Sunshine, age 6

I also wrote bible verses relating to love on pink and red hearts for us to share and talk about at dinner time. Click her to read more about this idea: God's Shining Stars.


Have fun loving your family and friends!


Jen

Wordless Wednesday: 100 Posts!

Today happens to be Wordless Wednesday and my 100th post- Woo Hoo! To celebrate, I thought that I'd take a trip down memory lane and post some of my favorite photos from my blog. Happy Wordless Wednesday!

Foot Fun!


Marshmallows Structures!


Help: Body Piercings!


Recycled Materials


Charades- Kangaroo and Joey


Summer Fun- Camping


Fall Fun- At the Mountains


More Fall Fun


Science Experiment: Sense of Smell


Glitter Spider Webs


Turkey Fashion Show


Christmas Fun


And Finally....
Our Snow Princess


Be sure to join Creative and Curious Kids for 100 more posts!

Have a great day!
Jen