Taking a Vacation... without leaving the house

Yesterday, my family was scheduled to travel to Florida on vacation, but our trip was cancelled due to Covid 19 restrictions. We were all looking forward to our vacation and to spending time with my extended family. Because we were all a little sad, we decided to plan a "fake vacation" at home. We put up some decorations, decided on a fun menu and planned a special activity. It was a simple celebration, but we ended up having a wonderful evening.

We started by putting up some decorations to transform our house into "fake Florida".

I draped the chairs and table with beach towels and hung some dollar store leis from the light fixture.

We also dug out photos and photo albums from past trips. Reminiscing about past vacations is always a lot of fun.

We had this foam core shark head from a past birthday party, so we dug it out and put it to use.

We also decorated with a pool noodle palm tree, a cardstock yellow sun, and some pictures (of oranges, flamingos, and alligators) coloured by my kids.

Once our decor was in place, we planned our special menu and activities. 

We had milkshakes in Disney mugs with cocktail umbrellas.

I also made snack packs for the kids. (These are the treat boxes the boys traditionally pack in their carry on bags when we go on special trips, so they seemed like fitting snacks to serve.)

Then, we hung a bed sheet in our living room, set up our projector, and gathered to watch a movie and a YouTube video of Disney fireworks. It wasn't the same as being there, but we still enjoyed it. (You can find the video we watched here.) 

We are hoping to go on a real vacation soon, but for now, we are making the best of our current situation. Taking a vacation without leaving the house really is a fun way to spend an evening as a family. I wonder where we should go next! 

♥
Gina (aka East Coast Mommy)

Check out the little video we made to show you a bit more about what we did...

 

20+ SIMPLE Earth Day Activities for Kids and Families

Earth Day (on April 22) provides a wonderful opportunity to teach children about recycling, respecting our planet, and enjoying nature. It is also a wonderful excuse to get outside. Today I am sharing a fantastic collection of 20+ {easy and inexpensive} Earth Day crafts and activities that are fun for children of all ages.

Here is a list of some of my favourite Earth Day crafts and activities. Click on the links / titles for more information and full tutorials.

1)  Make a cereal box notebook.

2)  Recycle an old jar into an earth day tealight.

3)  Decorate with a DIY earth day banner.

4)  Transform an old box into a beautiful tree full of butterflies.

5)  Read The Lorax, and enjoy a "tree-themed" snack.

6)  Use an empty egg carton to learn about how caterpillars turn into butterflies.

7)  Use empty jars and cans to create some adorable "grass-haired" friends.

8)  Enjoy some backyard bird-watching.

9)  Raid the recycling bin, and try creating some homemade toy boats.

10)  Craft some paper bag kites and head outside.

11) Make a matching game by recycling milk jug lids.

12) Make a tooth taxi out of an old film canister... or another amsll container.

13) Plant something.

14) Make something out of a cardboard box. You can find 5 ideas here.

15) Make homemade birdfeeders.

16) Make a bird house from a milk carton.

17) Craft a bucket from recycled materials to take on a nature walk.

18) Make a nature collage.

19) Build an outdoor obstacle course.

20) Make (and play with) eco-friendly sidewalk paint.

21) Go on an outdoor scavenger hunt.

How are you planning on celebrating Earth Day with your little ones?  I hope you take some time to craft, play, and get outside with kids to enjoy everything that nature has to offer. Happy Earth Day!!!

♥ 

Gina Bell (aka East Coast Mommy)

10 Fantastic Crafts for Tweens and Teens

The last couple of weeks, my family and I have been social distancing because of Covid-19. In order to keep everyone happy and entertained, I have been doing a different craft and activity with my boys every day. I am trying really hard to find crafts that appeal to my older kids, and today I am sharing 10 of the crafts and activities we have been doing together. I hope you enjoy them!

Click on the links (below) for more details and "how to" videos.

1) We made pom poms... and we used them to make other fun crafts... including these adorable pom pom chicks and pom pom flowers.

Find the full video tutorial for making pom poms here.

2) We made made felt finger puppets, and we learned how to sew on buttons.

Find the full "how to" hand sewing video here.

3) We made no-sew bags using old t-shirts and jerseys. It's a simple craft and a great way to recycle old pieces of clothing.

Find the full DIY recycled t-shirt bags video here.

4) We did two Simple science experiments. We made rainbows with Skittles and we used vinegar to make a bouncy egg. 

Find our science experiments video here.

5) We did weaving using a toilet roll and popsicle sticks. My boys LOVED this craft, and spent hours making long scarves and snakes.

 Find our toilet roll weaving video here. 

6) We made tassel bookmarks. My boys designed their own bookmarks, and we used yarn to add homemade yarn tassels to the tops.

Find our tassel bookmark video here. 

7) We made God's eyes... a classic camp craft. We used popsicle sticks and yarn to make this super-cute and colourful ornaments.

You can find our God's eye video here. 

8) Painting rocks is a wonderful creative endeavor. It's a perfect easy and inexpensive activity that kids and adults can do together. It's also a fantastic way to add colour and kindness to the world. I have tips for painting rocks and painted rock inspiration here.

9) We made nest brownies. Using a few shortcuts, we crafted up some tasty treats.

Find the full brownie tutorial here.

10) We made 3D handprints. We used paper and markers to create simple drawings. My kids thought the 3D effect was pretty cool.

You can find our 3D handprint video here.

If you are looking for simple crafts and activities to entertain your kids, I highly recommend giving one of these a try. It is often hard to find crafts that aren't to "babyish" for tweens and teens... and these ten are sure to please kids of all ages.

If you give them a try, let me know how it goes. I'd love to hear your favourites!

♥
Gina (aka East Coast Mommy)

Don't miss out on any of the fun... follow me on social media here.

     

You might also like the ideas you can find here.