Easter Basket Ideas

Easter baskets could cost a fortune! If you have more than one child, you can really rack up the costs. We try to do a variety of things in our baskets, less candy, more of other things. This year, they will have a stuffed dog with bunny ears, side walk chalk, a book, some special candy, and bubbles.

Here are more ideas for frugal Easter baskets.

And remember, it is not about the Easter basket, it is about the resurrection. We do the Easter baskets for the joy of the celebration, but we know the true reason is the Jesus rose again on the third day!

Matthew 28:2-5
2 Suddenly there was a violent earthquake, because an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and approached [the tomb]. He rolled back the stone and was sitting on it. 3 His appearance was like lightning, and his robe was as white as snow. 4 The guards were so shaken from fear of him that they became like dead men.
5 But the angel told the women, "Don't be afraid, because I know you are looking for Jesus who was crucified.

Check here for Christian related activities for Easter.

Take A Walk

Now that the time has changed and the weather is improving in most places for outdoor activities, try taking a walk with your kids. Not only are you getting great exercise, you are spending quality time with your children and experiencing nature. Take the opportunity of this spring weather and get out of the house!

It is Never Too Early to Think About College

Kettering University has an interesting concept for recruiting people into their #1 ranked university in the nation for Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering. As one of U.S. News Best Colleges, it has a unique way of introducing students to all the information they would need to help them decide to arrange a campus visit.

Of all the webisodes, I selected this one because of the advice given- visit the campus to get an idea of what the college is really like. You cannot choose a college based on a website. You have to make a campus visit, no matter where a college ranks on any given lists. Kettering is a great choice if you are looking for a mechanical engineering program, but the only way to choose if this college is right for you is to visit.

As parents of preschoolers, you may not be thinking about college yet. But as college admissions get tougher, you will have to think about them sooner than you would think! Visit Kettering's site and browse around to get an idea of all the things they have to offer. View more of the webisodes of Stickman and view an ingenious idea for publicizing a website and a college.

Homemade Chalk

I just received this email from Wondertime for Homemade Chalk. I love this idea. Not only do you get to do a great science project with kitchen fun, you are recycling the toilet paper rolls and get to go outside and do some great art work!

This is an all in one type of project your children will love!

Recycling With Kids

We set as our New Year's goal is start recycling plastic, paper, and aluminum in our household. We knew we were throwing away a lot of paper, since we get the newspaper everyday, but we cannot believe how much plastic we use. No wonder oil prices are so high.

Not only do we take bottled water to work every day, the kids each yogurt, drink milk, drink juice, and eat strawberries, all housed in plastic. Just yesterday morning, I recycled the yogurt cup and lid, the vitamins container, a empty bottle of juice, and the strawberries container. I can also recycle my plastic egg container, the cans from the soda my husband and I take to work, and almost every plastic container that food comes in, not to mention the shampoo bottles and liquid soap containers.

It is simply amazing what we were throwing away.

And now my son is in on it too. He gets to take the stuff out to the bins. We are also collecting the aluminum for him to turn in for cash. It takes a lot of cans to get $1, but $1 is a lot for a four year old. And it is so much fun squishing the cans.

And when you are recycling, don't forget to recycle the grocery bags- paper or plastic, or just buy reusable. I keep forgetting to take mine to the store, but every time I remember, it is one less piece of plastic that is used.

Vote for Fav Fabric

Designer Diva Fabrics takes great pride in offering the most unusual and hard to find decorator fabrics and trims. The collections include discount Kravet fabric, Ralph Lauren, Donghia, and many more excellent brands. And they get them for a fraction of the price.

Designer Diva Fabrics is now offering a fun new addition to their site called "Vote Up, Count Down." With a free accuont, you can vote up any fabric on the site. The more votes the fabric gets, the fabric then goes into "count down" mode until it is purchased. You will even get an email alert when a fabric you have voted for goes into count down mode!

If you love fabric, choose your favorite and start voting. It may become the deal of a lifetime!

Back to Basics- Become a Superhero!

My daughter just brought a blanket to me and told me she wanted to be a superhero! I tied it around her neck and off she went, "flying" around the room.

So often we forget the kids just like to play, to pretend, and that it does not take fancy toys to make them happy. Make sure to give your child the opportunity to just play with unsuspecting items. Even if it is not a toy, it can become a superhero cape, a wand, or another spectacular new creation. Give them the opportunity to have some fun, without batteries!