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A to Z Advent Calendar for Kids

November 26, 2018 by Stacy Craft Leave a Comment

Advent calendar ideas have been at the top of my Google searches lately. We already have a tradition of a Christmas book countdown but I wanted to add one more countdown activity this year. Then I remembered a mom that I met in my Houston MOPS group that does an A to Z advent calendar for kids every year. It looked like such fun that I wanted to try it as one of our family Christmas activities this year.

Admittedly, it seemed a little overwhelming at first. 26 days of themed Christmas activities for kids sounded like a lot of glitter and messes and planning. But it also seemed like a great way to connect with the kids, get them excited for the upcoming season and to pass those long Christmas break days away from school.

Since this is our first year to do this A to Z advent calendar for kids activity, I will be adding pictures and updates after we complete each day. I hope you will follow along with us! If you decide to follow along use #AtoZAdventCalendar to show us the fun ya’ll have!

(Affiliate Links are used in this post. A small commission may be paid to me at no extra cost to you and that helps to support this page. Please see my disclosures page for additional information.)

A to Z Advent Calendar for Kids

Here are the things that we are planning to do during our 26 days of Christmas from A to Z. We will have easy Christmas crafts for kids to make, sing Christmas songs for kids and make simple Christmas treats that preschoolers can help with.

I am so excited to introduce this to my kids and start a fun and new Christmas tradition.

Christmas Countdown by Letter Ideas

Come hang out with us as we move through the alphabet with Christmas crafts and activities.

A is for Angel Footprints, Advent Calendar, Angel Snack and Angel Worksheets

My 4 year old was pretty confused starting out. I explained the process as best as I could and we just jumped into opening the first bag. Since the contents of her “gift” were not what I am sure she was expecting even more confusion set in but we ended up having lots of fun.

I even dressed her in an angel top that morning. Completely unintentional but I guess I was ready to get this theme going! (I assure you that there will not be a coordinating outfit for each day but that would be so much fun!).

I love her face in that picture. It looks like she is thinking “what in the world has my mom thought up now?”

Here is a glimpse of what was included in the “A” Bag. Angel worksheet and coloring printables, a baggy with 2 pretzels, a marshmallow and a gummy lifesaver, and a bottle of paint were in the bag. At this point, she thinks I am crazy.

Decorate an Angel Snack

We started off with our Angel Snack. It was simple to make with cinnamon toast and she used the decorations included in the bag to make the pretzel wings, marshmallow head and lifesaver gummy halo.

The extra toast after you cut the triangle would make great wings too. Just search your pantry for things that will work. I found the lifesaver gummy in the leftover Halloween candy and the marshmallows were leftover from our Smores obsession a few weeks back.

Angel Worksheets

After snack, I had some work to do so she moved on to her angel printables that were in the bag. She is really into connect the dots right now so I used a free printable that I found at Surfnetkids. I also printed off a couple of free angel coloring pages. This was a nice quiet time activity.

Angel Footprint Craft

The last thing that we did was an angel hand and footprint craft. We did this one after dinner because I knew it would be a little messy and take a bit more time. The pictures on this are limited because she giggled so much that I honestly just forgot about taking pictures. It tickled, painting your feet is funny, you know typical 4 year old stuff.

It did turn out pretty cute. Our Christmas angel is pink because that is her favorite color and she wouldn’t have it any other way. This was my favorite activity of the day just because it cracked her up so much.

Total Out of Pocket Cost: $0 – We had everything that I used on hand.

B is for Bow stamp painting, Singing jingle bells with Bells for Noise makers, Baby Jesus fingerprint nativity and Butterfinger Bells

By today, she was a bit more excited about this A to Z Advent Calendar! We started off by opening the bag and finding 2 jingle bells, two gift bows, a small stuffed baby Jesus (from our nativity set) and 2 Butterfinger chocolate bells.

Eating Butterfinger Bells

First the kids ate their chocolate bells for a quick snack. The baby was particularly excited that he got included on this part.

After snack, we got the bells out and sang jingle bells while ringing our bells. I was surprised at how fun they thought this was. After a few rounds (when I was done), I heard them still ringing the bells and the 4 year old singing away. They were going so crazy (maybe from the candy) that it was almost impossible to get a clear picture because they would not sit still!

Bow Stamping a Gift Bag

We used a paper lunch bag to do the bow stamping on and she plans to use this to present a gift to her grandmother. She had fun with this craft but it didn’t last long.

Baby Jesus and the Manger Finger Painting

The last thing that we did was saved for after dinner. We talked about baby Jesus. We talked about why we celebrate Christmas and then started our fingerprint nativity scene. I just drew out a basic manger and let her stamp away.

She ended up wanting to add Mary and Joseph to the picture so that baby Jesus would not be alone in the manager. Too cute!

Total Out of Pocket Cost: Technically $2.98 for the Butterfinger but they only ate 2 so that bag of candy will be used for some other upcoming things soon!

“C” is for Candy Cane Hunt, Christmas Carols Medley, Christmas tree snack, Candy Cane bath paint and Candy Cane do a dot art (& Coronation Day)

She added the Coronation day to our C day by dressing up like Anna for our “C” day A to Z Advent Calendar Countdown.

Christmas Carol Medley

I just kept adding to “C” day and it kept us pretty busy! We started the “C” bag on our way home from school by introducing the Christmas carol medley tradition. I remember riding in the car with my Dad and sister as a kid and him starting a Christmas carol medley. The rules were simple. The song had to be a Christmas song and you could interrupt at anytime with a new song and everyone had to start singing that song.

I remember having so much fun being silly and singing in the car with Dad and my sis. So I explained the rules and we jumped right into a beautiful medley. I love listening to her interpretation of some of the songs (& I refuse to correct her. She will be five in just a few days and I am savoring every moment of “baby” that I have left.)

Christmas Tree Snack

A quick, DIY Christmas tree snack was next. We went back to the trusty old cinnamon toast and I provided topping for her to decorate with. The baby didn’t get to decorate but he does love to eat our creations.

Candy Cane Hunt

After dinner, the candy cane hunt was on. I hid 12 candy canes around the living room. She ran around the room squealing with delight every time that she found one. This was definitely a winner activity.

Of course after she found them all, a candy cane dessert was in order.

Candy Cane Bath Paint

We got a lesson in listening to go with our fun on this little project. She was not listening to my instructions and got her a big handful of shaving cream to eat (she thought it was whipped cream). It was a nice time to discuss how listening and obeying your parents is expected and helpful.

But we quickly got to our candy cane fun. She mixed the ingredients (shaving cream, a couple drops of red washable paint or food coloring and some optional peppermint extract). She swirled it to get a candy cane effect and took it to the bath to play.

I heard “this is so much fun” at least 100 times. The fact that the paint turned the water pink was an added bonus for her.

We also did a quick Do A Dot candy cane printable while I was cooking dinner. It is a simple activity but helps to give me those few minutes to get dinner done.

Total Out of Pocket Cost: $1 for the shaving cream

“D” is for Dear Santa

We kept it ultra simple after having a big day yesterday! We thought about 5 things that she really wants and made a list for Santa.

It was fun and simple. And a bonus, she got to practice writing.

“E” is for Elf Crafts and Elf Hats

We used a free elf printable to create our own little elf (because we don’t have enough Elf On The Shelf going on already!).

Our afternoon snack was “Elf Hats” which are known to others as Bugles.

“F” is for Fizzing Candy Canes, Friends and Family

This was actually the day of my daughter’s birthday party so it was perfect that it was “F” day because she was surrounded by family and friends.

And because she was not letting me off that easy, we also made fizzing candy canes. This was so easy and she had fun for 10 minutes or so working on the activity.

To create the fizzing candy cane project, fill a couple of containers with white vinegar and a drop or two of food coloring. Arrange candy canes on a tray and sprinkle with baking soda.

The child can use a dropper (we used the syringe that comes with baby Tylenol) or even a teaspoon to drop the colored vinegar on the tray. They will have fun watching the white baking soda change colors and fizz up.

Stocking Stuffers for 1 Year Old

November 25, 2018 by Stacy Craft 7 Comments

12 stocking stuffers for 1 year old to include this Christmas season. All items are under $5 and fun for babies age 12 months to 24 months.

Finding stocking stuffers for 1 year old babies should be easy. They can only say a few words. He/she doesn’t care about the hot new toy this year. They are mostly interested in boxes and tearing up wrapping paper. Yet it seems easy and hard all at the same time.

This list gives 12 stocking stuffers for 1 year old toddlers that will be useful, entertaining and budget friendly. All of these toys and baby items are less than $5 and can be purchased online. So now you have your toddler stocking filled easily and without any junk.

(Affiliate Links are used in this post. A small commission may be paid to me at no extra cost to you and that helps to support this page. Please see my disclosures page for additional information.)

12 Stocking Stuffers for 1 year old Toddlers Under $5

Here is the list of stocking stuffers for 1 year old babies this Christmas season.

Munchkin Baby Bath Ball – Bath toys are a favorite of mine to buy as gifts because bath toys seem to have a shorter life span in our house (if you are not diligent about cleaning, which I am not). This is a great price point and my little boy would love this!

Winter Baby Touch & Feel Book – Touch and feel are our favorite books for little ones (& my 5 year old still touches too. If we are being honest, I do too!).

Goldfish Crackers – My one year old’s stomach is probably 50% full of Goldfish crackers at all times. He would be delighted to see “fish” in his stocking! You can find these at the grocery store for a couple of dollars or buy in bulk on Amazon.

Munchkin 360 Cup – this is the best sippy cup ever. I switched my daughter to this when she was a little older but my 13 month old is already using these. I like them because they can’t bite through the spout like other sippy cups & these are better for their developing teeth. This is a 2 pack that makes each one just over $5 each. I love practical stocking stuffers.

Kids Divided Plates – Ok, so maybe your 1 year old may not be thrilled over a plate, sometime soon they will like it. I like buying things that will be useful in the coming year, especially since they don’t care about this year’s hot toy.

Kiddy Forks – We have a ton of tiny baby spoons but pretty soon our baby will be looking to use a fork like his big sis! Stock up now for the coming year.

Hair Bows – Bows are stocking stuffers for 1 year old or 5 year old! Bows have been in her stocking every year for 5 years! They are inexpensive and cute!

Toddler Snack Bars – a fun snack is a great treat to add to a stocking for a 1 year old without having to add candy. Although I will likely put in a pack of M&M’s because my little one loves them!

Duplo My First Bus – How cute is this first Lego set? Perfect for little hands.

Munchkin Bath Letters – These are a great way to discuss letters, numbers and even colors with your child.

Cookie Jar Mega Bloks – This is the cutest thing ever! It is on sale right now for just over $5.

Character 10″ Ball – Toddlers love chasing balls around! This one would fit perfectly at the top of the stocking.

Hopefully this list of stocking stuffers for 1 year old toddler helps you get your shopping done. If you have a 3-5 year old little girl, be sure to check out this list of stocking stuffers for her under $5.

What do you plan to use for stocking stuffers for 1 year old toddler?

Delivery Driver Christmas Gift

November 24, 2018 by Stacy Craft 5 Comments

An easy delivery driver Christmas gift for the hard working UPS, USPS & FedEx employees that bring your presents to the door. Be sure to download the free printable!

A lot of packages come to my door all through out the year. It seems like I buy everything online these days! Even our toilet paper is dropped off by one of the delivery services. But at Christmas, the amount of packages arriving at my door increase a ton. With two young kids, shopping online just makes my life so much easier. So I wanted to find a way to give a fun delivery driver Christmas gift to those that help me during the season.

(Affiliate Links are used in this post. A small commission may be paid to me at no extra cost to you and that helps to support this page. Please see my disclosures page for additional information.)

Delivery Driver Christmas Gift for UPS, FedEx & USPS

These delivery drivers work so hard all year but in particular at Christmas time. We get everything from stocking stuffers to the Hot LOL Surprise Doll toys delivered to our house.

In the summer they are in the sweltering heat without air hauling packages to your door. And in November and December, they are often braving cold temperatures and bad weather to get your gifts to you on time.

These drivers work long hours and often have to skip meals to make sure they get everything done. And even though I think lots of us are thankful for their service, it is often a thankless job. They drop the packages at the door, most of the time never even interacting with the recipient in a rush to get to their next delivery.

Yes, it is their job and they get paid for this service. However, I wanted a fun way to give a delivery driver Christmas gift this year to show our appreciation. Since I planned to do 3 of these (one for UPS, FedEx & USPS), I wanted it to be inexpensive yet cute and meaningful.

Free Delivery Driver Christmas Gift Printable

If you would like to give a delivery driver Christmas gift this year, be sure to download the free PDF file Here!

Then head over to Amazon and grab a $5 printable gift card. Some other fun ideas would be a $5 gift card to Starbucks for a cup of coffee to warm them up or a gift card to a fast food lunch spot.

You can make this a free way to give by redeeming your Swagbucks points for a gift card! If you are not using Swagbucks, you should be! You earn points by doing small tasks or just by searching the internet. I have personally redeemed points several times for gift cards valued between $5 and $25. Follow this link to sign up!

Creating the Gift

The gift is super simple to put together. Simply print the printable file. It is going to print just slightly smaller than a standard size of printer paper.

Trim the edges if you wish and then affix your gift card. I used an Amazon printable and just trimmed it up to fit. It will also fit a standard plastic gift card that you might purchase from a retail store. Use double sided tape to affix the card.

Sign the bottom & remember to add a “To” section, so that the driver knows to take the gift. I just taped the card to my window. You could also use some cute ribbon to tie it to the door knob.

Do you love to reward the service workers in your life?

4 Ways to Save Money On A Chuck E. Cheese Birthday Party

October 30, 2018 by Stacy Craft Leave a Comment

We love birthdays in our home and are known for celebrating birthday month instead of just one single day. See how I am going to save money on a Chuck E. Cheese birthday party and how you can too!

(Affiliate Links are used in this post. A small commission may be paid to me at no extra cost to you and that helps to support this page. Please see my disclosures page for additional information.)

Birthday parties for kids at an establishment can get expensive very quickly. What happened to the days of having cake and ice cream at your house and just playing? Geez. I mean I get it. The big and elaborate, Pinterest worthy parties at lovely venues make for great pictures and are super fun. But many of us want to find ways to please our children and not spend a fortune at the same time.

My daughter chose to have her 5th birthday party at Chuck E. Cheese so I went on a mission to see how we could do that in the most economical way possible. I wanted to save money on a Chuck E. Cheese birthday party and still have the magical experience that my daughter desired.

Save Money on a Chuck E. Cheese Birthday Party

Book the Star Package

The Star package is the least expensive package that you can purchase. When you choose this package, it will automatically prompt you to upgrade. It is “only $5” per kid and may seem tempting because it shows you that you get a lot more stuff. If you upgrade, you receive 15 more tokens per child, a souvenir cup per child, 250 extra tickets for birthday kid and some extra balloons.

I have been to what feels like 100 birthday parties at Chuck E. Cheese’s and I can honestly say that I have never noticed rather a table has 3 balloons (included with the Star package) or 6. I don’t think your kid will either.

The souvenir cup is not something that I personally think is worth it. The kids already get unlimited drinks in the regular paper cups that are provided with your party. To me, the magic is in playing the games and riding the rides not a cup that may or may not get taken home.

If you move to the next package, you receive an additional 250 bonus tickets for the birthday child. You get 250 with the Star package (so you would get a total of 500 with the upgrade). Again, to me this is not worth it because my child is going to get birthday presents at the party. I don’t feel the need to upgrade the party for additional tickets to get extra stuff at the toy counter.

You also get 15 more tokens per child if you upgrade. To me, this would be the most legitimate reason for upgrading. If you have 10 kids coming, that is an extra 150 tokens that you are paying $50 for (if you agree with me that the other extras that you get are not really worth it). If you keep reading, I will show you how to get 120 additional tokens for free. So you can save money on a Chuck E. Cheese birthday party and go with the Star package.

Book the Party Online

Book your party online to get 20 free play points. It is that easy. The online process is easy to use and you can see available dates and times. You can also set up your deposit payment online and avoid having to make a trip up to the location (which I would probably never remember to do).

Book Friday, Sunday or Saturday Morning at 10

If you book a party anytime on a Friday or a Sunday or Saturday morning during the 10:00 time slot, you get 100 free play points. I love that they offer this for the early morning Saturday party. Friday or Sunday parties are not usually possible for us but the Saturday morning time works awesome!

We can get to Chuck E. Cheese, party all morning, eat lunch and still be home for nap time. And get extra play points for free just for booking that early time. Use them at the party for unexpected guests or if you don’t need them, save them for a rainy day. If you are feeling generous, bless someone walking in the door that is bringing their kids in to play. I think that would be such a fun thing to do.

Use Coupons for Extras

On the Chuck E. Cheese website, they always have great coupons that you can print or save to your phone. There are two ways to save money on a Chuck E. Cheese birthday party using these coupons.

When we have parties, I am always worried that a sibling or someone that I had not planned for might show up and need tokens (maybe someone forgot to RSVP). Or there may be a kid or two that use all their tokens up in 30 minutes and have nothing to do for the next hour. You can buy extra play points using a coupon that is a pretty good deal.

I often see a coupon for 100 points for $20. Every time that I have used this coupon, the staff has been good about breaking the amount up over a few cards for me so that you don’t have to give 1 child a card with 100 tokens on it.

There are usually food coupons online as well. The pizza prices are usually the same that you are offered during the birthday party online booking. But you will find good deals on drinks using a coupon. For example, there is a coupon currently for 2 large pizzas for just over $30. That is the same price you will get during birthday booking. The kicker is that with the coupon, you also get 4 drinks. The drinks are $2.49 for adults so that is right at a $10 savings using the coupon. That is great if you want to have food and drinks for your adult guests.

I am not sure if they will let you use the coupon at the actual birthday party (I will find out at our party booked in a few weeks for sure). Worst case, I will send my husband or Dad to order and just pay for it separately from the party.

Chuck E. Cheese Birthday Party Value

Last year I started searching different kid focused venues for birthday parties when it was nearing our birthday season. Several different places that I searched for had parties that started out at $250 or $300 before you even added food. In addition, many of these large dollar amount parties included a very limited number of kids. In order to get the number of kids included that we needed, some of these places would end up costing $450-$500.

I just couldn’t justify spending that type of money on a birthday party. The Chuck E. Cheese facility really offers a nice middle ground. It offers an indoor space (which we need for a December birthday) and the kids love it. Overall, I feel like the money spent is a good value for the experience that your kids receive. Especially if you follow these tips to save money on a Chuck E. Cheese birthday party.

Do you have any money saving tips for a Chuck E. Cheese experience? I hope this list helps you save money on a Chuck E. Cheese birthday party for your child.

Easy Set Up Edible Infant Sensory Play Activity

June 9, 2018 by Stacy Craft Leave a Comment

Edible Infant Sensory Play Activity

Affiliate Links are used in this post. A small commission may be paid to me at no extra cost to you and that helps to support this page. Please see my disclosures page for additional information.

Finding an edible infant sensory play activity can be a challenge. The attention span of your 6-24 month old is typically very short so you want something that is not going to take you forever to set up. The sensory activity also needs to be something that can go in those little mouths because let’s face it, everything they see goes in.

My son has attempted to eat a photo, many leaves, a raw carrot end and the good Lord only knows what else, and that was just this week! I have to watch him like a hawk. That is another reason why I loved this activity, it is literally meant to be eaten!

Easiest Edible Infant Sensory Play Activity Ever

Creating a stimulating environment for your baby is so simple to do. I was literally trying to figure out how to make a meal for my family and keep a fussy baby happy and it hit me. The most inexpensive, low set up edible infant sensory play activity formed in my mind. You seriously need only things that I bet as a parent of an infant that you have on hand!

What Do I Need For the Sensory Fun?

Highchair – this is a similar space saver seat like we use.

Baby Food Puree

Wipes or rag for after play clean up! It is a bit messy.

Baby Food Painting – Sensory Style

We are going to throw that old adage of “don’t play with your food” right out the window with this fun and messy activity that will delight your baby’s senses.

Place your baby in his or her highchair. I highly recommend that you do this in nothing but a diaper. We headed straight to the tub after this and I was glad there were no dirty clothes to deal with.

Squeeze some baby food onto a clean highchair tray.

I used about half of two different pouches to offer different visual colors and flavors. Since this edible infant sensory play activity will likely go straight into your sweet little ones mouth, it is fun to give them a variety of tastes to sample.

Once you squirt the baby food on the tray, your little one will likely start “painting” right away. It took my little guy about 2.5 seconds to start making a big finger painting mess.

Why I Loved This Sensory Mess

I love this project for so many reasons! I am a busy mom (who isn’t!?) so I need things that set up quickly. There is not much quicker than popping the top to a baby food pouch! Providing sensory play activities, even in infancy, is so important for baby development. Being able to make an educational activity so quickly and for less than $1 makes me happy.

He literally played and ate on this little project for almost 25 minutes before he got tired of it. While he did that, I was able to interact with him. Once he had the hang of painting with purees, I was able to grab my sack of potatoes and peel them for dinner while he played. WIN!

What To Do Different Next Time

You can learn from my mistakes! I really liked this playtime because it gave me time to prep dinner, entertained my baby and provided a stimulating experience for him. However, I did learn a couple of things. I probably should have known but you live and learn!

Put baby in only a diaper – I actually did this one but it is a must. The baby will be covered in baby food.
If your highchair cover is cloth, cover it with a towel. I had to wash ours because I didn’t do this.
Plan to do this activity when you have time for a bath immediately afterwards. It is definitely a messy sensory activity but I felt like it cleaned up quickly.

And if you are needing some activities for your bigger toddlers or preschoolers this summer check out this awesome slip n slide hack and 2 free activities that you should sign up for now!

Do you have a favorite easy edible infant sensory play activity that you love?