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Big Kid Big kid fun Family Activities For the Home Home How To Kindergarten Age Outside Fun Parenting Sensory Play Spring Summer Toddler and Preschool Age Fun

5 Easy Ways to Get Your Kids Outside in the Yard

Spending time outside is very beneficial for people of all ages. Sometimes children may lack interest in going outside, however, and be more into electronics and indoor games. If you’re finding it challenging to get the kids away from those screens and out in the fresh air, there are plenty of ways to get your kids outside.

Spring is the best time of year to plant a few vegetables or even welcome wildlife. You can create a sensory, exciting space outside that will entice even the most indoorsy children. Here are five easy ways to get kids out in the yard.

***This post contains affiliate links. It costs you nothing extra, but I may receive a small commission.***

How to Get Your Kids Outside

1. Yard Games

Invest in a couple of yard games. You can play these together as a family, or your children can invite friends over. Add a personal touch with these custom cornhole bags, for example, https://www.cornholeworldwide.com/products/cornhole-bags/custom-cornhole-bags/. You can have them personalized with the name or message of your choice. They make great gifts and just might incentivize kids to play more outside.

2. Grow Your Own

Growing your own vegetables is a fun way to get children interested in gardening as well as healthy eating. There are plenty of easy vegetables to grow with kids, such as carrots and potatoes, so you don’t need to be expertly green-thumbed. It’s one of the best ways to encourage kids to be productive and happy.

3. Start Seeds Inside

If you want to gauge your child’s interest beforehand, you could start seeds off inside. Plant seeds in glass jars so they can see the roots growing, which will engage their curiosity. You can then move the plants outside.

If you don’t have much yard space but would still like to get your kids interested in gardening, here are some low-maintenance indoor plants. You could even set up window boxes or a small balcony garden.

4. Welcome Wildlife

With a few quick upgrades, you can turn your yard into a wildlife habitat. The children will enjoy spotting and naming the wild visitors that come your way.

Create zones in your yard for critters to forage and hide. Let your lawn grow wilder, or build a rock garden. Add a water source and a bit of food and you’ll easily attract a variety of wildlife.

You could make your own bird feeders from recycled materials, or for a bigger project, build a bee hotel from old wood and bamboo. Another idea is to simply drill a few holes into some untreated wood for a basic home for insects.

5. Create a Sensory Space

Turn your garden into a treat for all the senses by adding plenty of textures, sights, and smells for your children to explore. Create a sensory garden by adding colorful and fragrant flowers which will also attract butterflies, bees, and other pollinators.

An amazing sensory space can be from a swimming pool that is specifically designed with little ones in mind. There is nothing more exciting than splashing in the water on a hot summer’s day. Work with a reputable company like CaliforniaPools.com, so you get the best pool for little water explorers. 

You could even consider a water feature such as a pond or fountain. The sound of the water is incredibly relaxing and it will make a nice home for fish and amphibians. With sensory stimulation and fun activities, your children will love being out in the yard.

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Get Your Kids Outside

It is so important to get your kids outside, and it doesn’t have to be a struggle. By setting your yard up specifically for the kids, your kids will be eager to get outside every day.

What have you done to your yard to get your kids outside? Leave a comment and let me know!

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Big Kid Big kid fun Parenting Sensory Play Summer Toddler and Preschool Age Fun Toddler and Preschool Age Learning

Easy Sensory Play With Sharks

Do you want to know my favorite thing about summer? It’s how easy it is to throw together a fun, last minute summer activity. Chances are if there’s water involved, then the kids are having a blast. This is why easy sensory play ideas are so awesome.

Every single day when we go outside, we are filling the water table up and grabbing the dinosaurs to play. When they get bored with the dinos (which takes a while but does happen), they start splashing each other and fighting. Since I love their easy outside sensory play so much and didn’t want it to be spoiled, I had to get creative and come up with some fun and easy sensory table ideas. One of our favorite easy sensory table ideas is the shark sensory play.

Lots of times, my 2-year-old uses sharks with dinosaurs, which is pretty exciting for him. I love watching him use the two together and make the dinosaurs and sharks interact. He really gets to use his imagination.

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***This post contains affiliate links. It costs you nothing extra, but I may receive a small commission.***

Our Water Table

Our water table (I also refer to it as a sensory table, so please forgive me if I switch back and forth) has two sides; one is intended for sand and the other for water. I have to replace the sand about once a week, and if they run out too soon they just get water. I’m a mean mom, I know, but they really don’t mind.

I love our sensory table because of the two separate sides and a lid to keep sand clean and dry. Another perk is that it fits my 3 littles without a problem and they have plenty of space to play. It also comes with some dinosaurs, a cup with a handle, and a cup with holes in the bottom. Oh, and it comes with a shovel and a rake, too.

Dino Dig Sand & Water Table, sensory table, water table, sand table, dinosaur sensory table, dinosaur water and sand table, sensory play
Click here for the link

Now I know this is a dinosaur table, but there are so many fun sensory ideas out there that we sometimes have to just ignore the dino effects. 😉 It works out great, and I’m so happy this is the one we chose.

It’s lightweight and easy to clean, which is always a plus for me because I hate when their toys start getting yucky and are a hassle to clean. My toddlers help me with the cleaning, if that says anything.

Other Material For Easy Sensory Play With Sharks

Using sharks in the water table is so easy, as you can simply hand over some sharks and let them get to it, or you can make it a little more exciting by using color changing tablets to make blue water for the sharks to swim around in. I like to use the Crayola bath fizzies, which makes the water fizzy at first but eventually just changes the color of the water.

crayola bath fizzies, bath color changing, water color changing

This time, however, I used blue bath paint. It’s actually soap but it’s all I had at the moment, so we went with it. My littles LOVED it. Plus, their toys got a little scrub down, too. 😉

We went to dollar tree to buy sharks for the kids, but Liam chose a whale instead. See what I mean when I say easy sensory idea? It’s no big deal if your kid wants to change it up a bit, just go with it. Whales, Sharks, whatever little man wants. 😉

Putting It All Together – Sharks in the Sensory Table

So, once I have all of my material ready, I put it all together. I filled the sensory table with water and then let the kids add the stuff to change the color of the water. They really enjoy that part, so I always let them do it.

That’s it! Give your kids the sharks (and whale in my case), and let them play with their sharks in the sensory table. Sometimes I sit with them and we talk about sharks (shark facts, stories, etc.). Other times I just read a book nearby and let them play together. I’m telling you, easy sensory play can be a blast.

Easy and fun sensory activity, sharks in the sensory table, sensory ideas, easy sensory

What easy sensory activities do your kids love? I’d love to get some more ideas!

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Holiday How To Sensory Play Summer

How to Make an Easy 4th of July Sensory Bottle

Sensory bottles are one of my favorite ways to make a holiday more exciting, and this 4th of July sensory bottle was a hit with my kids. This sensory activity keeps the kids busy as they make the sensory bottle and watch the glitter and small objects swirl together and settle back into the bottom.

Making a sensory bottle is easier than it sounds, and you don’t need many materials. You can also substitute the materials I recommend for something else you have on hand already.

*this post contains affiliate links*

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Benefits of Sensory Bottles for Kids

Research shows that sensory activities benefit children in many ways. It promotes their mental health, encouraging emotional regulation, relaxation, and tension relief. Sensory activities stimulate interest, promoting curiosity and encouraging a child to learn and explore.

Sensory bottles help build sensory skills by stimulating the senses. The differing colors, objects, sounds, and materials help. Additionally, when the child touches the bottle to turn, twist, shake, or squeeze, it furthers the sensory experience.

Sensory bottles stimulate fine and gross motor coordination. They also help a child focus as their eyes follow the movements. It encourages them to be present and set aside distractions.

How to Make a 4th of July Sensory Bottle

Materials:

  • A clear bottle (recyclable water bottle, tea bottle, or a glass jar – I used an empty vinegar bottle)
  • Water (from the tap is fine)
  • Glitter glue (I used the silver from this one, I probably should have used 2 of them)
  • 4th of July necklaces (or confetti)
  • Hot glue gun
glitter glue, sensory bottles, glitter for sensory bottle, craft glitter glue

Directions:

  1. Empty and clean a clear bottle.
  2. Fill the bottle 3/4 of the way up with water. You will fill it more after you add the rest of the materials.
  3. Add 1- 2 bottles of glitter glue, depending on the look you are going for. I used 1, but I wish I would have used 2. My bottle is larger than a regular water bottle, however, because I used a vinegar bottle.
  4. Cut 4th of July beaded necklaces into small pieces and put them into the bottle of water and glitter, or use 4th of July confetti instead of the necklace pieces.
  5. Fill the bottle the rest of the way with water.
  6. Replace the lid, and hot glue it shut.
4th of july, sensory bottle, july 4th, july 4, independence day, america, patriotic

Final Thoughts on 4th of July Sensory Bottle

Sensory bottles are easy, fun, and so much fun. This 4th of July sensory bottle was a great way to kick start our July 4th celebrations. What fun activities do you have planned for Independence Day?

For more sensory fun, click here. Or, you can read other 4th of July ideas in a separate post by clicking here.

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Adulting Big Kid Big kid fun Family Activities Holiday How To Parenting Summer Teenager Toddler and Preschool Age Fun

4 Simple Ways to Celebrate the 4th of July at Home

Independence Day is one of my favorite holidays, and in my eyes, it’s the highlight of summer. On the 4th of July, my family normally celebrates by going to a barbeque, playing in the water, spending time relaxing outside and watching fireworks. I also try to do something fun to teach my kids about the meaning of the day.

This year, we will be celebrating at home and I want to make sure we have a good time. I also want to have a simple and relaxing day, so I had to come up with a plan to make the 4th of July simple and exciting.

Fun fact: I love learning new facts, so it wouldn’t be me if I didn’t research things we don’t know about the 4th of July. Another fun fact, I also like to share my random information, so:

things you didn't know about the 4th of july, 4th of july fun facts, Independence Day, July 4

4 Things You Didn’t Know About the 4th of July (but now you do)

Although I teach my kids about the reason for celebrating Independence Day there is still quite a bit we didn’t know, and I wanted to change that this year. I mean, are we really even American if we don’t know a few fun facts about Independence Day?!

1. While the Declaration of Independence was formally adopted by Congress on July 4th, it was actually voted for on July 2nd. Because of this, John Adams celebrated the 2nd of July as Independence day and reportedly turned down celebration invitations on the 4th of July.

2. John Adams and Thomas Jefferson both died on July 4, 1826. They are also the only two who signed the Declaration of Independence who then went on to become President of the United States.

3. The tradition of lighting off fireworks began on the one year anniversary of America’s independence.

4. Americans consume around 150 million hotdogs on the 4th of July.

This post contains affiliate links. It costs you nothing extra, but I may receive a small commission.

Simple Ways to Celebrate the 4th of July at Home

1. Have a barbecue.

It isn’t July 4th if there is no 4th of July barbeque. The traditional meal of hamburgers and hotdogs with delicious side dishes is a popular way to go, or you can spice it up and offer steak instead. We’ll probably be doing the hotdog/hamburger method since my kids don’t tend to appreciate a good steak.

For 4th of July barbeque ideas click on the image:

4th of July barbeque ideas, ideas for the 4th of July

2. Wear 4th of July themed clothing.

It’s more fun to dress up for special days, and it’s easy to dress up for the 4th of July! Your kids will always remember that part of the tradition, and you’ll get some great pictures out of it!

4th of july outfit, daddy and me 4th of july, july 4th outfit
Matching 4th of July t-shirts (click)

3. Plan fun 4th of July activities.

You can do crafts, sensory activities, games, or even go on a scavenger hunt. Whatever fun activities you plan, your kids will love it, especially if it’s Independence Day themed. For some ideas, check out my post 6 4th of July Crafts and Activities.

If you want to create an easy sensory bottle to celebrate, check out this post:

4. Watch fireworks.

No matter where you celebrate from or what you plan to do, you have to watch fireworks! If you or your kids don’t like loud noises, try sparklers instead. Fireworks (or something similar) are a must when it comes to simple ways to celebrate the 4th of July at Home. They are actually on our Summer Bucket List, and I can’t wait to cross that one off!

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Final Thoughts On Simple Ways to Celebrate the 4th of July at Home

The 4th of July doesn’t have to be crazy, expensive, or stressful in order to have a good time. A low key and relaxing event can make the day more special to you and your family.

What are some of the ways you plan to celebrate July 4th this year? Tell me about it in the comments!

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Big Kid Big kid fun Family Activities Holiday Our Family Parenting Printables Summer Teenager Toddler and Preschool Age Fun

19 Things to Do In Summer 2019 – A Summer Bucket List

We get 18 delicious summers with our children. This is one of your 18. If that’s not perspective, I don’t know what is.”

-Jessica Scott

Believe it or not, summer will be here before we know it. My big kids only have one week of school left, and my preschooler has been done for almost two weeks now. Our summer shenanigans are so close to starting that I can already feel it, hence the need for a summer bucket list.

This is the first summer in 3 years that I haven’t been a stay at home mom, but that isn’t going to stop us from having all the same fun as usual. I just have to plan a little more strategically to get in all of the same activities. One bonus, though, is that since I’m working this year, we’ll have a little extra money to do stuff we’ve had to miss out on in the past.

Since my littles are getting older and are able to express what they want, I’m excited to get their input for our Summer Bucket List. If you have been following my blog already, you know that I love printables, so, of course, I have a printable for my kids to fill in their own bucket list.

I created these printables last year, and my littles were still too small to understand the concept of filling in their own. My big kids loved it, though, so we are just using the same one again this year. I’m hoping my littles (ages 5, 3, and 2, BTW) will love it just as much this time around.

things to do this summer bucket list printable, summer 2019

Summer Bucket List Ideas

  1. Go to the beach
  2. Go to the zoo
  3. Make lemonade
  4. Have a water fight
  5. Have a bonfire, roast hot dogs, and make s’ mores
  6. See a dollar movie
  7. Go to a splash pad
  8. Have a cookout
  9. Visit a nature center
  10. Watch fireworks
  11. Watch a parade
  12. Catch fireflies
  13. Visit a library
  14. Go to a garage sale
  15. Play soccer
  16. Play mini-golf
  17. Go camping
  18. Make homemade pizza
  19. Go on a trip
things to do this summer bucket list printable, summer 2019

Summer Bucket List Printables

To start, I know these printables have more than 19 activities on them. I made them last year, and we loved them so much that I didn’t want to recreate a new one.

All 19 activities are on the list, so you can think of the rest of them as bonus activities. 😉 If you’d prefer to only do the 19, however, you can print a blank template and just write in the 19 activities to do this summer.

How to Plan The Summer

Since I have to plan a little more effectively this year, I created and printed some blank calendars for the summer months. I then looked at my summer bucket list and picked a date for each activity. I spread the activities out throughout the entire summer so that the fun can last the entire three months.

things to do this summer bucket list printable, summer 2019

Final Thoughts On Things to Do This Summer – A Summer Bucket List

Summer may seem like it will go on forever, but it’ll be over before you know it. You only have three short months to make memories with your kids before they go back to school, start a new grade, and grow a year older. Make the most of it this year so that you can look back with no regrets.
What activities do you make sure to do every summer with your kids?

things to do this summer bucket list printable, summer 2019