Tag Archives: toddler activity

From Preschoolers to Princesses: Atwood’s Princess in the Park

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This weekend, Mila and her friends were transformed from their fabulous, preschool selves to beautiful princesses. Atwood Lake Park hosted Princess in the Park for area girls and it was a fairytale for everyone involved.

Naturally, Mila took the afternoon napping and getting ready for the event.

There were two sessions for it, but we went to the later one at 5:30. Thankfully that nap came in handy. To get her ready, she got her hair curled, put a little bit of makeup one, and was dressed in her favorite princess dress.

She was too excited to take pictures before we left, even though she made me and my parents dress up for the occasion.

It only made sense since we were going to be in the presence of a ton of princesses!

When we got there, the girls were divided into four groups: red, purple, silver, and blue (or maybe pink, we weren’t in that group). You could tell their group by the necklaces they gave them when they were registered. Mila was in the purple group, so that’s the timeline of the night I’ll be following.

There were four different princess activity stations: craft, carriage ride, story and snack time, and nail and hand painting.

The first station Mila went to was the crafting one. Here, all the princesses decorated a frame and a princess wand. Mila absolutely LOVED the wand and it turned out so cute. She held it most of the night and pretended to have magic powers too.

They had all the craft supplies ready for us. There were wooden skewers, stickers, ribbons, stars, and the frame. I think Mila tried to put everything on her wand. It turned out adorable.

It seemed like all the other princesses enjoyed their craft too!

After craft time was the carriage ride.

Cinderella brought her magical carriage with her beautiful horses for all the little princesses to ride. Of course she joined in too! They had six girls at a time join Cinderella and they took a carriage ride around the Atwood Lake Park. It took about fifteen minutes, but it probably seemed a lot quicker for the little ones.

Honestly, this part was just as magical for the parents as it was the kids. The carriage was breathtaking and I hope it made Mila feel so special. Her smile was radiating.

When the carriage ride was over, the other half of the group of kids went on and Mila’s got to meet Mrs. Ohio from 2011. Her name is Mrs. Melanie Miller and she did amazing with the little ones. Mila was so happy to meet another real life princess for the night!

She instantly wanted to give her a hug and sit and talk with her. I think Mila was a little awe-struck because she didn’t say a lot, but kept looking at Mrs. Miller and her crowns. I think she loved her sparkly dress too. They discussed how their favorite letter was “M” and how Mila should always follow her dreams. It was so adorable. Mrs. Miller also gave Mila an autographed picture that she talked about and showed us on the way home.

Mrs. Ohio, if you are reading this, thank you so much for being patient and so caring. It truly made an impact on our girls. I know Mila enjoyed meeting and talking with you.

Next it was story and snack time!

They had cupcakes there for the kids to ice and decorate. Although they didn’t have tea, they had apple juice that were perfect for princesses.

As the kids decorated their cupcakes and ate them, a man (whose name I didn’t catch) read a story to the kids. He let them name the princess and unicorn. Mila came up with the name Aveena for the princess and another girl names the unicorn Sedine. They really gave him tricky names to remember. It was pretty comical.

It was a really cute story and gave the kids time to calm down after all the carriage and Mrs. Ohio excitement.

I love watching Mila decorate her cupcake too! She gets better at it every time.

The next and last station was the nail and hand painting. Although a lot of girls sat and got theirs done, Mila had other plans. She’s not the “let’s get our nails painted” princess. Instead, she decided to play.

Since my parents went with us, she had my dad play on the playground with her. They had so much fun on the equipment and the swings.

It also was nice that she got to get really tired before we left!

I love watching her play and interact with other kids and her grandpa. I swear every time I look at her it looks like she’s grown up more. It’s one of the most bittersweet feelings that all parents (I think) feel.

After the last station, we could leave. Instead though, Mila got to meet up with her friends. They, again, went to see Mrs. Ohio and took pictures with her. It was so cute watching them listen to her and wanting to see her crowns. I swear us parents looked like the paparazzi taking a ton of pictures. It was just so exciting.

The princesses took more pictures and played for some time after too. I loved seeing them all dressed up. They’re usually beautiful, but they looked extra cute all dressed up.

I am so thankful for everyone at Atwood Lake Park and the princesses that made this happen. Mila and the rest of their kids really enjoyed themselves. I know she will be talking about this event for days, especially when we go and print pictures out!

Since we live in such a small, tight community, it’s amazing to get our kids together and interacting. It’s truly special and amazing.

If you live local, what are some events you’re looking forward to this fall? If you don’t live local, what are some fall events that you think Mila and I should do? Let me know in the comments.

Preschool Activity: Halloween Activity Box.

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October is right around the corner and we’re gettin really excited for Halloween! To prepare Mila and to give her some activities to do when she’s not at preschool, I made this Halloween Activity Box.

It’s full of fun, but I’m saving a lot of activities we’re doing for the month of October. You’ll have to keep coming back for more.

I actually love Halloweven! It’s probably my favorite holiday besides Christmas. You get tk dress up and just feel magical for the month. Plus I love all the outdoor activities and the yummy treats.

This year seems just a little extra special because Mila is so excited and knows what’s going on.

I know she’ll be happy to see this box too!

Halloween Books

There are a TON of cute Halloween books out there, but I love these three! By the way, if you have any Halloween book recommendations, please let me know in the comments.

My two favorite classics are The Nightmare Before a Christmas by Tim Burton and Room on the Broom by Julia Donaldson. Yeah, I know The Nightmare Before Christmas is a controversial book on whether is Halloween or Christmas, but we read and watch it during both holidays!

Tim Burton is one of my favorite creative minds. So, we have some activities around this particular book and I want to introduce Mila to some of his movies this season too. Room on the Broom is fun for Mila at this age because she tries to follow along and does a great job! I have an activity for this too!

Our newest Halloween book is All Hallows’ Eve in Salem by Kristian James. I found it on Instagram and knew I needed to get it for Mila. The characters are adorable and I already want to plan a trip to Salem for Mila and I!

I promise, you’ll want to get this book for your kids too!

Play Doh Monsters with Eyes

Mila loves to play with play doh in her activity boxes, that’s why I include them!

This time, I added craft eyes for her to make monsters and to practice counting. It’s really cute to see all the creations she comes up with!

It’s such a simple activity, but she literally plays with it for a while. When there’s multiple ‘monsters,’ she pretends to do different voices and have conversations. It’s so much fun.

Plus, we use these craft eyes all the time! They make projects cuter and they’re perfect for Halloween!

Spooky Worksheets and Stickers

For this activity box, I didn’t use worksheets from Mila’s normal preschool workbooks. There’s none quite that spooky. I did find some cute worksheets that are perfect for the preschool and toddler level, coloring pages, and stickers!

I found the foam stickers and sticker book at Joann’s Fabrics, but this pack is cute from Amazon.

Stickers can be used for telling stories, counting, or making collages. Your child will lead you.

The little coloring page was also from Joann’s!

I found two printables that will have multiple uses. They’re both so cute and Mila really liked how they both looked.

The monster letters are from The Letter Vee. They’re so adorable and I’ll have Mila color them in first, then practice letter recognition with her resin letters.

I also had to print out this Halloween Countdown from Celebration Stylist! They have SO many cute Halloween printables. The Boo Banner hanging over the activity box is from them too! Plus a few other things that you’ll see in October posts.

Anyways, this countdown can be used as a countdown or to practice counting in general. I’m sure Mila will be using her stickers to do the countdown!

Potion Kit and Ghost Friends

You’ve definitely seen this fizzy ball before! They’re seriously such a hit with Mila. This month, we’ll be using them to make a witch’s potion. She loves using her ladle with our new bowl, so I’m excited for her.

I’m doing a post about a different witch’s potion next month too.

Mila and I also made these little stuffed ghosts out of an old sweatshirt. We had a lot of fun with them and Mila liked drawing their faces (not pictured). It was so easy to do! I’ll post a video or blog about how to do this too!

These are just some fun ways for Mila to play and pretend. It’s always nice to have a little brain break.

Miscellaneous Tricks

As always, we love using resin letters in all of our activity boxes. I cannot wait to show you my new set from Beags and Bubs. It’s in the mail right now, but they’re ADORABLE!

Not pictured in this post were face masks. I decided to add them in there because masks are associated with Halloween snd the characters on the packaging are our Halloween costumes. Plus, anytime I can make time for Mila to practice self care, I do!

There were also crayons, markers, and some other tools to play with the play doh too.

This is probably my favorite activity box so far. I love letting her discover different holidays. This can easily be converted and customized to more boy themed too. All of the elements are perfect for both boys and girls though!

I can’t wait to start doing more spooky crafts and activities and share them all with you.

What are some of your favorite Halloween activities to do? Or what are your favorite Halloween books you enjoy reading this time of year? Let me know both in the comments.

Pirate Sensory Treasure Hunt.

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Ahoy there mateys! If you’re looking to celebrate pirates or how they talk, your toddler or young child love this Pirate Sensory Treasure Hunt.

Recently, Mila has been watching Jake and the Neverland Pirates. She loves all the adventure and when they find treasure. What little kid wouldn’t want to live on a boat and find coins buried in the sand?

I think she is still obsessed with mermaids too and the ocean reminds her of them!

Anyways, I thought it would be fun to bring the buried treasure to Mila… with some sensory elements mixed in too. Let’s just say this little activity was a hit.

Here’s all you’ll need:

  • Rice
  • Kinetic sand
  • Sensory bin
  • Seashells
  • ‘Pearls’
  • Coins
  • Other little pirate/ocean toys or stickers

I actually used my resin seek and find from Beags and Bubs as Mila’s treasure map. So, some of the items in the seek and find, I put in the bin. It was another cute way to use it!

To assemble this bin you’ll first need to put the items in the bin.

I probably could have added more coins and probably will next time. It just depends on how long you want this play to last. By the way, the ‘pearls’ were under the seashell!

Then, add rice for the sand and blue kinetic sand as water. I put the fish and mermaid under the ‘water.’

Personally, I put the kinetic sand down first. It helped me cover the fish first. BUT, the rice is way easier to spread than the kinetic sand, so it was just easier to do it this way.

After it was set up, I got out some pirate accessories and resin letters to set it up for her.

She had fun finding all of the treasure. It was so cute to watch her just dive in there. I think the hardest thing to find were the coins. They moved around in the rice.

After she did find everything, she prepped it for me to find things!

It was fun to play along with her.

Then, she used the bin for some pretend play while she warched Jake! Anytime she extends play makes the work behind it well worth it!

I personally love this bin and can see us doing more treasure hunts in the future. Mila’s down every time she gets to put money in her piggy bank.

Do your kids like pirates? What are some ways you’ve used them in your play? Let me know in the comments.

DIY Pumpkin Spice Play Dough Recipe

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It’s almost fall, so that means it’s time for autumn themed play. This week, we made pumpkin spice play dough.

Not only does it smell amazing, it’s a ton of fun to play with… for kids and adults!

One BIG thing about this recipe is that it makes a lot of play dough. I was actually really surprised with how much there was after I made it. Honestly, I would suggest cutting this recipe in half. Unless you want to gift some to others!

The best part of this DIY play dough is that it’s only four ingredients and you don’t even need to cook it like other recipes.

  • 2 cups of flour
  • 1/2 cup of vegetable oil
  • 1/2 cup canned pumpkin
  • Dash of pumpkin spice

It’s crazy that you can make good smelling play dough with only four ingredients… really only three main ones if you don’t want it to smell like pumpkin spice.

Mila helped make everything! We measured out all of the ingredients and she helped pour everything in. At first we started stirring it with a fork, then it got too thick and we had to start mixing it with our hands.

For the pumpkin spice, we poured a lot more than a dash. We poured it in until we could smell it!

She ended up playing with it for a long time. I think play dough really calms her. It’s also fun to watch her do pretend play with play dough. Another way you can challenge your toddler or preschooler to play with play dough is to have them make different shapes. It’s fun to watch them try to figure out how to make the shape with their hands.

To store this play dough, just keep it in an air tight container in the refrigerator. Mines in a ziplock baggie with all the air pushed out.

Before Mila plays with it, I just have it on the counter to warm up a little bit.

I’ve been trying to take more videos, but I’m forgetting to take pictures… oops. Thankfully I can share them on here.

It’s fun to watch the memories live instead of just pictures. I’ll try to do both!

I can’t wait to see all the times Mila plays with the play dough throughout the season. If we think of more fun ways to play, I’ll share them here with you.

Have you ever made play dough before? What’s your favorite type to make?

I definitely want to try different scented ones!

Leaf Cutting Sensory Bin.

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Fall is quickly approaching and that means leaves will be changing. A great way for kids to learn about leaves and fall is through sensory play. This Leaf Cutting Sensory Bin is a fun activity to welcome fall and practice important skills.

Mila and I try to go on a walk every day; with Max and Toby too. This past weekend, there were so many leaves on the ground. Since she was in awe of them, Mila started picking them up.

My pockets were full when we got home!

Even though I had planned this activity for September, it sort of just happened naturally.

Once we got home, I emptied the leaves in our sensory bin, set out her resin letters, and hoped the child safe scissors would work!

That’s actually best part of this sensory bin… you probably have everything right on hand!

  • Leaves
  • Child safe scissors
  • Bin

All I did was do the steps above and let Mila explore the leaves. I did have to remind her how to safely use the scissors a few times though.

Without prompting, she talked about the different colors of the leaves, their texture, and if they are crunchy or not. It brought up a lot of different conversations that I really enjoyed having with her. It’s so amazing to see her mind work.

If you have scissors that cut different shapes, I’d suggest using them. Mila loved seeing the different patterns.

I also love that there isn’t a ton of creativity or prep for this activity. She actually took her time and played with the leaves. It was great for me to clean up while she played.

Another huge suggest is to get resin letters!

She’s been playing with them during our activities for the last few months and is recognizing more letters. I really believe they’re helping her become more comfortable with them. She’s actually remembering what letters are in her name and her cousin, Isla’s name.

Again, check out Beags and Bubs, Danielle makes amazing custom sets. I actually have another on the way!

Do you think your child would like this activity? What activities do you use to talk about fall or the leaves changing with your young child? Let me know in the comments.

5 Disney Movies to Talk About Mental Health with Kids.

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Mental health matters and talking about it at an early age is a great way to let kids know what’s going on in their head is important. Disney movies are a great way to talk about mental health with kids.

Just like every toddler household, Mila and I watch a lot of Disney. When we’re driving or talking at dinner, we talk about the message behind each movie.

No matter if it’s about grief, anxiety, or perseverance, Disney movies talk about it all.

Watching movies is also a fun way to practice self care. We usually watch a movie before bed to unwind. With any self care nights, there’s Disney movies playing too.

Disney movies and mental health just work.

Here are five of Mila’s favorite Disney movies with mental health messages I love.

1. Luca

Luca came out this past summer and Mila watched it repeatedly for days. The biggest message in this movie is “Silenzio Bruno.” She’s wearing that in the picture in the beginning of the post.

Luca seems to have a lot of anxiety in the movie. His friend, Alberto, helps him push through this anxiety by saying “Silenzio Bruno.”

The way I’ve explained it is it means for the little voice in your head to be quiet. You shouldn’t doubt yourself or think you’re not going to succeed. Silence those negative voices and conquer your goals.

Mila and I say this to each other now. We’ve talked about big emotions and feeling worried. Whenever Mila is scared I tell her this and she usually tries whatever.

The movie also talks about friendship, being yourself, and loss. It’s a great movie for those big topics, but it’s also really good too.

2. Frozen

I’m pretty sure Frozen is Mila’s favorite movie of all time. It’s one she can always watch and never get bored of.

Since we’ve watched it so many times, there’s a few themes that I talk about with Mila.

First, we talk about how people manage grief… of course in an age appropriate way. Elsa and Anna’s parents die early in the movie. Elsa has already shut herself off from the world (conceal, don’t feel) and Anna wanted to outwards process her grief.

We’ve talked about healthy actions to do when we feel sad and mention both of her favorite characters.

The second thing we talk about is her favorite song, “Let It Go.”

Anytime Mila is having big emotions at home, we sing “Let It Go.” Mostly because dancing and singing always makes her feel better, but I also love the words to it.

I don’t want Mila to ever feel held back by her emotions. If she can let them go and not let them hold her back, she can conquer the world.

3. Moana

Admittedly, I think Moana moves me more than it does Mila, but she loves the island life.

I love the part where Te Kā turns back to Te Fiti. It makes me cry every single time. For me, it shows how anger, grief, and disappointment can change a person. It gives them a tough exterior, but they’re always a person underneath it all.

Mila might not grasp all of that now, but we talk a lot about Moana and her Dad’s relationship.

Moana wants to leave the island and voyage, but her dad wants her to stay safe on the island. By the end of the movie, he lets her go, but it was a struggle.

With this, I tell Mila she can be anything she wants to be. I will never try to pressure her or hold her back.

Of course she tries to be funny and bring me her whole snack drawer to eat after these talks…

4. Onward

If you ever have a conversation about Mila and ask about Jensen, she will let you know that he’s her brother and that he died. It can come off as a little creepy, but I’ve always talked about Jensen and grief with her.

When we watched Onward, she understood that their dad died and he couldn’t ever fully come back. Even when his legs came back, he could never stay or be the person that the boys needed.

It, again, shows how Ian and Barley both handle their grief. There’s no right way to grieve, but it seems they both have grieved in healthy ways.

As she gets older, I’m also going to point out that grief is a journey. Ian and Barley literally take a road trip to help process their grief, but that’s what we do when we’re really grieving too. There’s bumps in the roads and roads you take that you shouldn’t. It’s all a part of grieving.

I hope Mila will continue loving this movie and learn more lessons the older she gets.

5. Inside Out

If you’re looking to talk about emotions, Inside Out is a perfect way to introduce kids to emotions personified.

We love Joy and Sadness. Their journey through the movie let’s us know it’s okay to feel however we need. You can’t always be happy or sad, there’s a good mix in it all.

The other journey in the movie is Riley’s. Riley and her parents have moved and it’s hard on her. Her story is perfect for talking to kids about big life changed and the emotions felt afterwards. Again, it shows that it’s okay to miss something and have those feelings attached. It’s also okay to let yourself make room for new memories and emotions as well.

Like I stated before, I just love how this movie gives each emotion a personality. It helps kids visualize their emotions and how they could handle them too.

This is just a short list of Disney movies that talk about mental health. There are so many more that we love and can have great talks about too.

Others include:

  • Tangled
  • The Princess and the Frog
  • Soul
  • Frozen 2
  • Raya

I hope that you enjoy this list and can talk about these things with your child too. It’s an easy way to bring those talks up and dig deeper in what your little is thinking about.

What movies would you have added to this list? Or what are some ways you talk about mental health with your child?

Apple Popsicle Stick Frame.

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Mila’s first day of preschool was yesterday and she LOVED it. She had so much fun making new friends and playing. So, we had to make a craft to always remember this day.

Since she’ll be learning all about the letter ‘A’ soon, we did an Apple Popsicle Stick Frame.

Let’s hope she remembers apple starts with A!

Here’s all you’ll need for this apple-solutely cute craft:

Before letting Mila go crazy with painting, I hot glued the frame. Even though she helped me get the craft sticks out, I still thought I should take over the hot glue gun.

I used six popsicle sticks to lay down flat. Then three on the back to hold them together.

Once the hot glue dried, it was time to paint!

I actually mixed water in the paint to make it more like a stain instead of thick paint. For me, it looks a little better for this particular craft and it was easier for her to paint too.

She ended up painting three Apple Popsicle Stick Frames: one red, one green, one mixed.

After the paint was dried, I used twine to make a stem. Then I hot glued it to the frame.

Next, I made leaves out of left over scrapbook paper. I wanted to make sure I put the year on there somewhere. The stickers worked perfectly, although they overlapped a little bit.

Then, I tapped an Instax picture I took before she went to school. You can use whatever picture works best for you and your child.

I love how simple this DIY was to make and how many memories it will hold.

Mila told a ton of funny stories about her first day of school. At the end of the week I’ll write a few down and share with all of you.

It’s crazy to think how quick she’s growing up!

Let me know in the comments what your favorite way to remember your child’s first day of school. I can’t wait to hear everyone’s ideas!

Mom Tip of the Week: DIY Chalkboard Paint Door

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When you have a little artist, walls and flat services are prone to getting drawn on. Since life is all about compromise, we transformed our front door into a DIY Chalkboard Paint Door.

It’s a really simple and fun switch. Plus, you’ll get the cutest drawings constantly.

So if you can remember, I posted a mom tip about how to get crayons off of walls and cabinets. There was also a permanent marker incident that took some time to get off.

The best solution for our family was giving Mila a space to create.

Since I wanted to paint my door black for a long time, it was the perfect reason to buy chalkboard paint!

You can buy chalkboard paint at any hardware store. There’s different colored chalkboard paint, I just preferred black. I know there’s a TON of different ways to make chalkboard paint all over the Internet too.

One suggestion I would make is to paint a base coat in whatever color you want your door.

Chalkboard paint is more expensive than regular paint. So, if you have a base color coat, you won’t need as much blackboard paint.

Always trying to save money!

I love that I’m able to celebrate Mila’s creativeness without losing my sanity with cleaning all the time.

If you don’t want to paint a whole door, you can easily frame off a piece of a wall to create the same effect too!

Would you create a blackboard space for your child? Or what’s your favorite way to encourage your child to be creative… minus the mess.

Looking for other ways to making parenting easy? Check out these mom hacks!

Preschool Activity: Back to School Activity Box

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Back to school is an intense time for students of all ages. For children going to school for the first time they might be a little nervous. To help ease them into going their first year or just back to school in general, I created a Back to School Activity Box.

Mila will be starting preschool next week and I wanted her to realize how much she knows already. This box will hopefully give her that confidence she needs to succeed.

I made sure to add different activities that would hit all content areas that are tons of fun!

Even though the theme of this box is back to school, it’s mainly centered around the alphabet, colors, and shapes! Everything Mila needs for preschool. As always, these are just suggestions and if you do a Back to School Activity

Books

As always, I’m always encouraging Mila to read and explore different books. This set of books goes from a beginner level to a little more advanced for her. The A to Z by Sandra Boynton is a great way to get kids saying their ABC’s and just introduced to the alphabet. How to Bake a Book is adorable. I love how it talks about the components of a book and what makes a story… well, a story.

The hardest book in the bunch is I’m Allergic to School! It’s definitely targeted to elementary school kids, but I think it’s fun to read Mila the poems. She likes to listen and it has higher vocabulary that helps her learn more.

There’s a ton of different back to school books, but these are what we have on hand. As always, I’d love more recommendations in the comments.

Puzzles

Mila LOVES puzzles and putting them together. We have a ton at home that she does all the time. Even though these are more educational, she also enjoys floor puzzles too. I really love these three puzzles (even though she has hidden the black piece in both her color puzzles). They’re very educational and get her used to letters, words, and colors. The alphabet puzzle is a great way for her to understand that every word has a letter, since there’s pictures under each one.

Her name puzzle was off of Etsy and was totally worth it. She already knows how to spell her name and I’m pretty sure these helped the process! Plus, it’s adorable.

Fizzy Bomb

I had to add a little science in her box. I try to do a few science experiments a week for her. She likes seeing reactions. This fizzy bomb reminds me of a bath bomb, but it has a little charm in it for her to get. It’s so important to introduce science and get kids interested in the subject as early as possible! I also have different science experiments posted on the blog that have really interested Mila too!

Play-Doh and Mats

No surprise that I added play-doh to this activity box too. It was such a hit in both the Dino and Mermaid box. Play-doh is open ended and can help kids create with their hands. Plus, it’s a great for sensory play too!

To help her work with shapes, I added these mats with the page protectors from Target. In the box is a roller and kid safe knife to help her cut our shapes if she pleases.

You can also use play-doh to talk about colors and have them roll out different shapes too!

Coloring/Activity Books, Flashcards, and Sticker Activities

I love educational play! Mila has been so interested in workbooks, coloring books, and flashcards for a little while now. You can find these on Amazon, Target, or Walmart. I actually found a lot of things at the Target dollar spot.

Instead of ripping out pages in her alphabet booklet, I just let her explore the whole thing this week. Of course you can use whatever letters or workbook activities you’d like.

My favorite alphabet coloring book is A B to Jay Z, which name has changed. It has a ton of different pop starts that correlates to the particulate letter in the alphabet. It’s such a fun way to learn. You can purchase the new coloring book here.

I also gave Mila more stickers to play with this week. Like I mentioned above with the play-doh, you can have kids sort the stickers by color OR give them a pattern to follow. Mila does this for a little while, then loves to give herself tattoos. BUT stickers are always a hit in our house.

Another pop-it has made an appearance too. If your kiddo doesn’t have one, try it with them. It’s so relaxing for them and I want to make a post about different activities you can do with them too!

Resin Letters Match

You all know how much I love resin letters. I think they’re so valuable in learning them. Anything that Mila can pick up and inspect really helps her grasp what she’s learning. I also printed out an alphabet mat and used the page protectors for her to match them on their.

The opportunities are endless when it comes to using these letters. You can have your child organize them however you’d like. You can use them with sight words or really anything.

Again, if you’re looking to buy resin letters, I’ll always shout out Beags & Bubs. She makes amazing sets that you can personalize!

Other Activities

Here’s a list of other activities we’ve done in the past that could be easily incorporated in the box. I’ll also be posting some extra things this weekend and next week that you could use too. Stay tuned!

If you’d like to give me some back to school tips to help students transition to the new routine or being ready, let me know in the comments.

Want to see the other activity boxes we’ve done? Check them out:

Preschool Activity: Mermaid Activity Box.

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Another week, another activity box for Mila to explore. This week is a Mermaid Activity Box. Since summer is still here and she loves the beach, I thought it was a perfect time to do this theme. It’s fun, education, and a hit with Mila.

Although I over-themed it for mermaids, this could easily be altered to be more about sharks, fish, or any other ocean creature too.

Like the Dinosaur Activity Box, the Mermaid Activity Box is filled with sensory items, toys, books, and educational activities for toddlers and preschoolers. All of this fits inside a book box from Target so it can easily travel from place to place.

These boxes are such an easy way to help promote learning for you little ones with multiple family members and friends.

Every time Mila sees me start to take items out of the box and put new ones in, she gets so excited to see what she’ll be working with. I think by just getting her to sit down with the sensory toys, books, and activity worksheets, it’ll help her prepare for preschool. it can be a huge adjustment to start learning how to sit down for crafts and activities the first time they go to preschool.

Anyways… here’s what’s all in the Mermaid Activity Box.

Mermaid Books

I’m a big supporter of Mila reading books every single day. Even if she’s making her own words up with the pictures. Books help kids understand concepts, worlds, and places they don’t have the opportunity or option to explore.

These four books are amazing. I’ve definitely showcased three of them on past posts before. They’re just that good!

In all of these books, we love the stories, but the illustrations are just gorgeous. I think they really capture the ocean vibes with all the blues. Mila’s favorite for a long time have been the That’s Not My… series. She loves finding the mouse and learning new words that describe what the books about.

Here’s our musts for the Mermaid Activity Box:

I’m always on the look out for more books too. If you have fun ocean, sea, or mermaid inspired books you think we’d love, let me know in the comments.

Sensory Play Items

We love sensory play. There’s SO many options for kids to learn by feeling and exploring.

The beautiful resin letters are from Beags and Bubs. I shouted Danielle out last week for her letters and knew I had to showcase them for this activity box. She also created the seek and find activity too (the clear circle in the top left) and the sand play-doh. I would 100% recommend her to anyone. Her Instagram feed is beautiful and she can make custom letters that will be perfect for you child.

I also added her mermaid pop-it. Mila is just amazed by pop-its. Whenever she gets overwhelmed, i’ll give her one and it calms her. This one is adorable, but can easily be carried around too.

She also always loves slime and I gave her blue play-doh too. The seashells were included so she can make impressions in the play-doh. This will allow her to extend her play and be imaginative with the toys too.

Coloring and Sticker Books

I have a ton of different sticker and coloring books for Mila. She loves them both. For her sticker books, I usually have another page or cardboard for her to put them on too.

The two pictured above were found at Joann’s for cheap! The marker page was actually 70% off. Mila likes the way the black feels and I love that it’ll help her stay in the lines. I also have other coloring pages from older coloring books that she loves to color in.

Activity Pages

Like with the Dinosaur Activity Box, I flipped through Mila’s workbooks and found mermaid and ocean themed pages for her to use. Usually preschool workbooks will have a huge range of themes they use in their books, which is awesome for using different themes!

Again, I love preparing her for preschool by giving her these pages now. It helps let her know that learning can be fun!

There’s also a ton of printables on Pinterest you can find for activity pages too!

Mermaid Play Ideas and Ocean Crafts

All ready to be picked up in the morning!

The cute mermaid flag is from Celebration Stylist! They have so many cute printables.

Although they’re not added in this picture of the activity box, you can add so many other crafts and activities too. We’ve done so many ocean and mermaid themed sensory play and crafts that Mila has asked to do over and over again.

These crafts and sensory components can be put in bags or Tupperware containers to help organize them.

Wondering what crafts and sensory ideas you can do, check out this list:

Overall, this activity bin is so much fun and perfect for summer. Mila loved the girly-ness of it, but I love how it can easily be adapted for sharks or ocean play in general.

I can’t wait to share next week’s theme!

Again, if you have any suggestions about a theme or have something you’d like to see, let me know in the comments.