Art class is a favorite of most kids, especially little girls.  (Boys tend to like recess) At I recent kindergarten graduation I attended, twelve out of sixteen girls said they wanted to be an artist when they grew up.

Well what’s not to like about expressing your creativity?  In my son’s school, they do a lot of crafty things, and the kids enjoy it tremendously. So, as I was looking for a gift to buy for a for a little girl’s eighth birthday party, I kept this theory in mind.

I thought this Friendship Bracelets By Alex would make a great present and a fun activity to do at the party.  This is an Oppenheimer Award Winner Toy and is a new way to make some fashionable accessories for the “diva “ in them.

This kit comes with ten wheels, ten colors of floss, finishing beads and easy instructions so Mom or Dad can get them started.  Once the initial pattern is in place, kids can simply turn the wheel and watch their creations take place. This would make a great party favor too, if you were the one hosting the party.

As an add-on gift you might want to include a refill pack (Alex Toys Friendship Wheel Singles) for the birthday girl so she can enjoy making additional bracelets for herself or as gifts for others. (You know you’ll be wearing one, Mom!)

I hate to think about getting ready for school, but it is right around the corner.  As usual, I am a little bit behind in this unhappy (happy?) task, but it will all come together (I hope!)

One thing I need to do is get my son’s bedroom organized so he has a clutter-free area to do his schoolwork.  This is very important, as I don’t want him to be distracted by any “shifty” Legos laying around, begging him to stop and play. If this sounds familiar, invest in some cute storage bins.

This Prep School Blue 3-Piece Storage Bin By Trend Lab will do the job. Use the large bin for storing bigger toys or even dirty clothes.  The medium for all of the tiny toy pieces he or she will have scattered around, and the small for whatever is left.  The colorful fabric inserts are removable so they can easily be washed if he (she) chooses to store, say a paint set in them!  Let your kids decide and get involved in keeping their important stuff neat and organized.

Granted, you can use clear plastic storage bins, or old Tupperware, but this looks so much better. There is even a clear plastic label area so they can easily identify what’s in each bin. Little girls may be more interested in this room improvement project than boys (Trend Lab Hula Baby 3-Piece Storage Bin Set) and getting them to actually put the “stuff” in them will depend on your child’s interest, but why not give it the “Old College Try?”  (Sorry, I couldn’t resist, but they are perfect for college students too!)

As I was strolling around a music festival the other day, I happened upon some very artsy vendor’s selling beautiful handmade clothing, jewelry, etc.

Over in one little corner of one of the artist’s booth was a very whimsical display of her handmade finger puppets, each one cuter than the next.  This is not a toy you’ll see around much these days I thought to myself and I promptly picked out a half dozen to take home with me. I checked Pricegrabber to see if they offered any puppets, and here are the ones that I loved.

The Cirque Du Soliel Finger Puppiezes from Manhattan Toy is a set of finger puppets based on the very popular musical and includes four puppiezes for little fingers to enjoy.  They can stand on their head like real acrobats or walk down the stairs with the help of some little fingers!

Make a stage out of a shoebox, and have your kids put on their very own show.  They can decorate the stage and even add a tightrope for their new friends with a bit of string and some glue. Add some music to the production and watch their personalities shine!

Manhattan Toy  makes some other great toys for babies too. ( Biggles Ball.)

eeBoo’s website promises to offer only “ beautiful, useful and well-made gifts for children”, and uses only the original art work of well- known, well- loved children’s book illustrators to create vibrant and original toys and gifts.”  I’m very excited about the wonderful products they have to offer, and I would like to share with you a few of my favorites.

eeBoo Spanish Bingo: A fun way to expose children as young as three to another language!

eeBoo Good Manner Flash Cards: Well, we could probably all use some of these.

eeBoo Fairies Of The Field Lacing Cards: Oppenheim Gold Award Winner, this is an old fashioned toy that has been updated with gorgeous illustrations and is a simple way to teach hand eye coordination to youngsters.

eeBoo Castle Sketchbook: For the princess in your life.

eeBoo Santa’s Flight Advent Calendar: It’s never too early to start shopping for Christmas.

eeBoo Poet and Astronomer Paper Doll Set: You can be anything you want to be.

I could go on and on, but you’ll just have to check out PriceGrabber for their extensive collection of fabulous eeBoo products.  Wrap one of these lovely items up in some pretty tissue or even some recycled newspaper and you will be giving the gift of creativity, knowledge and fun, all in one beautiful package.

I am just getting around to developing my pictures and assembling some sort of album for my son to remember this year’s family vacation. It seems like months ago we played and strolled on the boardwalk, yet it was only a few short weeks ago.

Memories that were so fresh in our minds are starting to fade as the summer months fly by. I found this Travel Notebook by eeBoo and thought this was a neat thing to take along on our next vacation. This 128-page book is designed to let kids create their own special account of their travels.   After your day’s activities, ask your child to write or sketch what they saw that was interesting or fun for them in the daily log. Or encourage them to send a note to their favorite friend or relative on the stationary that is included.

Be sure and check the itinerary for the next day’s plans.  Even a packing list comes with, so they can make sure they have everything they brought with them (we hope) before they depart.  Attach some of your favorite vacation photos to the journal pages once you’re home, and they have a scrapbook to show off to their friends!

This is an excellent way to teach organizational skills to children, and it offers a really great reward at the end.

Also from eeBoo, Scientific Notebook for the outdoor adventurer!

Going on a family vacation is a much-anticipated event for everyone .The car is packed the kids are buckled in and off they go.

Since I personally experienced this situation a few weeks ago, I thought I would share with you a game we played to entertain our own kids on our way to the beach. The version we played was a little less sophisticated than the one I am presenting since all we did was call out the capitals of each state and then dispute over who answered first, which one of us was right and who had the most points (My son the scorekeeper gave them all to his beloved cousin!)

Fast Track Learning U.S. State And Capitals by Learning Resources has a lot more to offer and I think I’ll pick this up for next year’s trip. This terrific game offers a map to let you know if you have answered the question correctly, (Important!) and self-checking activity cards as well as fun facts about the people, places and geography of each state.

The set contains over 100 laminated cards (I love this as you can take them to the beach with no fear of them getting ruined!) designed to test a kid’s state knowledge and   presented in a way that’s and fun and easy to play. Since my child has not yet been taught this in school, I was pleased he was introduced to something he will most likely be learning in the near future.

An educational toy that’s enjoyable for all ages and can be played just about anywhere.

That sounds good to me. (Tuck these in to your Beach Towel In A Bag )

Most kids like to color and draw.  That’s why nearly all the places you’ll have to drag them to will have the standard coloring book and crayons waiting for them.

That’s fine, but I find after a while kids tend to lose interest in this activity and with the exception of any handheld electronic games they may have smuggled in with them, you now have to figure out some way to entertain them.

That’s why I like these Chronicle Books by Scribbles.  A delightful way to exercise your kid’s imagination and encourage their creative side.

What is so great about these “really giant” books is that there is no right or wrong when it comes to making art. (They say art is subjective, right?) Each page contains a partially completed picture, and it’s up to them to decide how to finish it.

There are a variety of different activities from drawing the passengers on the bus (maybe sketching one that looks like them!) to deciding if a fire-breathing dragon should wear a smile. Of course coloring them when they are completed is also fun but really it’s up to them. They can even use their Smencils when they color for even more of a sensory experience!

Children as young as three will enjoy this entertaining book and who knows, you might be raising the next Van Gogh.

How cool is this?

I never heard of Smencils until I saw them in my local art supply store one day.  I love to find clever and unique items and as you can probably tell from my posts, preferably ones that are eco-friendly.  These Smencils Gourmet Scented Colored Pencils fit the bill.

Smencils are made by winding recycled newspapers around graphite, and then dipping them into yummy gourmet fragrances such as green apple, strawberry, bubble gum and more!  They’re labeled by smell so children can choose which flavor they want to use.

The fragrances are authentic and guaranteed to last for two years. (Best to store them in the freshness tube that’s included – Ha! – OK, best to TRY to have your child remember to not lose the freshness tube or feed it to the dog so you can store the Smencils in it. )

Imagine your pre-schoolers’delight in writing his ABCs with a juicy watermelon pencil.  This is great for pre-teens as well, especially girls.  They’re always looking for the newest thing and what better way to make a friend then to let them borrow a delicious smelling Smencil?  (Incidentally, these are made from No.2 graphite so they are acceptable for school).

Wow, I just thought about what a great teacher’s gift this would make!

Every kid should have a map. Actually, I believe that every kid should have several maps and a globe, perhaps a map puzzle and a place mat. As you can see, I think the world (ha!) of maps!

Since I’ve found that just having things around me helps me to remember them, I find maps a great way to introduce a child to the greater world. Our house is filled with them. And every time we mention grandma in another country or our old friend in another state, my son walks over to the wall and looks for the place about which we are talking.

Maps help a child understand from where penguins come and from where his or her family emoigrated. It helps him understand where exactly that war we are fighting is taking place and where Santa is supposed to live. It helps her to follow the trail to the Little House in The Big Woods and helps her figure out where the space shuttle lands.

Maps are easy to hang – a bit of tape will do to display this US Map and the compact size means an empty wall in a child’s room or in the hallway will do just fine.

With a trip to Build-a-Bear not in my budget anywhere near often enough to please my son, we’ve taken to trying to create stuffed animals at home. I must admit, we’ve had limited success. While they certainly are lovable, they tend to miss that professional touch.

So, I stopped in my keyboard tracks when I saw this Build-A-Bear activity kit. Oh boy, we can make a Build-Bear at home! Well, no. Actually this is a paper doll Build-Bear-kit with paper bears on stands and fashion cling clothes. Plus stickers and stencils.

So, while I was disappointed that it wasn’t what I thought it was, I am delighted actually to see this product. When I was 9 or 10, I spent hours with my paper fashion dolls dressing them in grown up clothes. Now, of course, little girls do that on the computer and miss both the tactile pleasure of paper dolls AND tend to have way to many sexy, inappropriate fashion choices.

So, I like the idea of a paper dress up bear. It provides the old fashioned fun of playing with paper dolls. And because it is a bear, the clothing choices don’t make you cringe! Plus the stencils and stickers add a layer of creativity that, quite frankly the computer doesn’t.