The Ultimate DIY Spy Party

When my middle son turned 7, he requested a "Spy Party", and I knew right away that it was going to be a fun party theme... and I was right.  Today I am sharing all the awesome easy and inexpensive details of our DIY Spy Party.

To set the mood, I designed a "Top Secret" invite using a photo of my son and photo-editing software (Picmonkey.com).

I also made some fun, personalized spy shirts for my boys to wear to the party.  You can check out the full tutorial for the t-shirts here.

As the guests arrived, I had the "Mission Impossible" theme playing, and the guests had to scan their hands in order to enter.

Once inside, the kids were given their spy folders.  They made their own spy IDs, filled out some identity information and a surveillance worksheet, and read through their mission.

The party mission was:

1) Learn to Handle Dynamite (aka play hot potato with dynamite)
2) Target Practice (aka practice hitting a target using pom pom shooters)
3) Mind Training (aka sharpen recollection skills by identifying missing pieces of spy equipment)
4) Speed Training (aka increase speed by taking part in a spy relay race)
5) Sensory Training (aka sharpen senses when one is taken away... play pin the disguise on the spy while blindfolded)

You can find all the tutorials and details for the spy party games here.

Of course, we also had a super-fun (and easy to make) spy cake, and you can find the full tutorial for our spy cake here.

Finally, at the end of the party, all the guests received their spy kit loot bags.  You can read all about the contents of the loot bags and download the free printable tags here.

It was a fantastic party, and all the DIY elements made it very special for our little "spy" party guests.  Have you ever hosted a DIY Spy Party?  I'd love to hear about it!

♥
Gina Bell (aka East Coast Mommy)

Number Crafts (Number EIGHT}... Eight-legged Friends

I teach a weekly class for preschoolers called "123 Learn with Me".  Each week, we learn about numbers through a variety of activities and crafts. This week, we had some fun learning about the number eight.

During our class, we did a number eight search, practiced printing the number eight, decorated a number eight, made an octopus with eight legs, and crafted a spider puppet. (You can download the full lesson plan for free at the bottom of this post.)*

To make a spider puppet:

1) Download the spider template (that you can find at the bottom of this post)*.

2) Color and cut out the spider.

3) Add googly eyes and a craft stick.

You can also make a climbing spider by taping two pieces of a straw to the back of the spider, threading a string through the straw pieces, and adding buttons or coins for weights.

To make an eight-legged Octopus:

1) Glue a circle to a piece of cardstock.
2) Draw a face on the octopus, and add googly eyes.
3) Use white glue to add eight legs made of Cheerios.

Isn't this a cute way to learn about the number eight?  I'll be sharing our crafts and activities for the number nine soon, so don't forget to come back and check them out.

♥
Gina Bell (aka East Coast Mommy)

*You can download the entire number 8 lesson plan here.  

Please note: East Coast Mommy printables are free for personal, non-commercial use only.  If you are pinning or sharing this post, please share from this page only and not the direct download. Thank you!

PS - You can grab a copy of my 40+ page "Numbers" WORKBOOK here.

You might also be interested in the video I made here:

The Ultimate DIY Hockey Party

My boys eat, sleep, and breathe hockey... so when it came time for my oldest son to choose a theme for his 9th birthday party, his choice came as no surprise.  Today, I am sharing all the easy and inexpensive DIY details of my son's hockey party.

We started with a fun invitation that I created at Picmonkey.com (for free) using a photo of my son playing hockey.  I made the invite 4X6 so that I could easily have it printed for $0.15 an invite.

Then, we had to make sure we had lots of fun things for the kids to do.  The highlight was the big game of floor hockey with a homemade scoreboard, but I also had a "pin the puck on the rink" game and a "prize punch".  You can get all the hockey party game details here.

Of course, we had a canteen full of hockey party food too.  We had pizza and lots of hockey-themed snacks.  You can get all the hockey party food details here.

And no party would be complete without a cool cake... am I right?  You can find the tutorial for our simple hockey cakes here.

This fun jersey cake would be fantastic too!

Then, when all the games were over and all the food was eaten, our guests left with an adorable and unique loot bag.  Each hockey player received a personalized hockey card holder and one of the birthday boy's homemade hockey cards.  You can find all the DIY details for our hockey card loot bags here.

It was a fantastic birthday party.  I loved that it was easy and inexpensive to put together, but all the DIY details made it fun and special.  Do you have a hockey fan that would like a hockey party like this one?

♥
Gina Bell (aka East Coast Mommy)

Father's Day Treat {with free printable tags}

Looking for a simple Father's Day treat that a child can make for his/her dad?  This s'more kit is totally adorable and easy to make... and I today I am sharing the free printable tag.

Cute right?  I put a few graham crackers, marshmallows, and some chocolate in a clear bag, and then I attached the tag with ribbon.

To download the tags (which print three to a page), right-click on one of the pictures below, save it to your computer, and print it like a regular 4X6 photo.

Do you have a special dad in your life that would enjoy this simple Father's Day treat?  I think it would be fun to do with a classroom of little ones too, don't you?

♥
Gina Bell (aka East Coast Mommy)

Stuck on You {Review and $100 Giveaway} - CLOSED

winner - Lila Jefferson - sweet and lovely crafts31 May 2015 at 10:40

Those labels are all adorable! I love the name dot labels. All school supplies need to be labeled and these ones are so cute!

I have three boys that have lots of "stuff", and it is becoming increasingly difficult to keep track of everything.  For me, name labels are key.  If my boys leave a sweater on the playground or a hockey glove in the dressing room, it is much more likely to find it's way home if it has a name label on it.

Summer is a perfect time to get organized. I put labels on summer hats, sweaters, soccer gear, beach towels and every piece of clothing that might get left behind by my active boys.

Labels are also perfect for camp... when kids suddenly become responsible for all of their own belongings. In fact, Stuck on You has a new range of Write On Labels that are perfect for camp – they're as simple as write, peel and label! They are available as Write On Name Labels and Write On Clothing Labels, so they are great to label all of their gear before camp and ensure it returns home.

Want to win 2 - $50 gift cards, so that you can order some awesome labels for your little ones? All you need to do is leave a comment below (before June 5) letting me know which product you would buy with your gift card. (You can find all the fantastic products here.)  Easy peasy... just make sure you log in or leave your email address so that I can contact you if you win!

While you are there, you'll also want to check out all the fun designs available from Stuck on You. My boys are in love with the hockey stick and puck design, but there are tons of other fantastic options.

This contest is open to all my US and Canadian readers, so don't forget to enter.

Good luck!

♥
Gina Bell (aka East Coast Mommy)

Disclosure: I received free products in association with this review and giveaway.... however (as always) the opinions on this blog are my own.

Contest Rules:
1) The winner of the contest will be chosen by the Random Number Generator.
2) To enter the contest, you must leave a comment on this post. Contest is open to US and Canada.
3) This contest is not being hosted or sanctioned in any way by Facebook.
4) Contest closes on June 4, 2015 at 11:59pm.
5) Prize will be accepted as awarded.
6) Winner will be contacted via email and will have 48 hours to respond. After 48 hours the prize will be forfeited, and another winner will be selected.

Number Crafts {Number SEVEN}... Lovely Love Bug

I teach a weekly class for preschoolers called "123 Learn with Me".  Each week, we learn about numbers through a variety of activities and crafts. This week, we had some fun learning about the number seven.

During our class, we did a number seven search, practiced printing the number seven, decorated a number seven, made a love bug with seven spots, and crafted a number seven headband.  You can download the full lesson plan {for free} here.

The highlight of our class was the "Love Bug" with SEVEN spots. To make your own love bug:

1) Print the template that you can find here.
2) Color the love bug.
3) Use glue to attach 7 heart-shaped spots to the wings.
4) Use glue to attach a circle-shaped head and a picture of the child.
5) Draw antennae, and attach two buttons with glue.

Cute, right?  We also made a simple number 7 headband out of card stock.  The headband is made of two inch strips of card stock taped together.  The number 7 is a circle of card stock with tissue paper squares "scrunched up" and attached with glue.

I think all of these number seven crafts and activities are adorable... but the love bug is definitely my favorite.  I am a sucker for kid crafts with pictures and/or handprints.

You could also make a simple "counting tree". It's a great way to practice cutting, gluing, and fine motor skills (placing the stickers on). It would be fun for Christmas... but wonderful all year around!

Isn't this a cute way to learn about the number seven? I'll be sharing our crafts and activities for the number eight soon, so don't forget to come back and check them out.


♥
Gina Bell (aka East Coast Mommy)

PS - You can grab a copy of my 40+ page "Numbers" WORKBOOK here.

You might also be interested in the crafts here:

DIY Teacher Gifts (he or she will love!)

The end of the school year is just around the corner, so now is the time to start planning a special "end of year" teacher gift for the special educator in your life.  Homemade cards, heartfelt notes, and gift cards are always excellent choices, but if your little one wants to see their teacher unwrap something (as my boys do), these options are pretty fun!

With a little help, kids can make a pencil holder for their teachers that is sure to brighten their day.  You can find the tutorial for this inexpensive gift here.

A tote bag is a pretty and practical gift... and extra fun if you add a "Have a 'tote'ally awesome summer!" gift tag.  You can download the tag for free here. 

Every teacher uses pens, and these DIY flower pens are sure to brighten his/her day.  You can find the step-by-step tutorial for making them here. 

This DIY candy bouquet is made from dollar store supplies and is filled with chocolatey goodness.  (This is a great alternative to flowers if your kids have a male teacher.)  You can find the step by step instructions for this tasty gift here.

Flowers are always a cheerful gift, but they are even nicer when you add a clever tag that says, "I couldn't have picked a better teacher!"  You can download this cute tag (for free) here.

A child's drawing is always a special gift.  My son used a sharpie to draw a picture of him and his teacher onto a canvas bag.  I then stitched over the design to make it permanent.  Using fabric markers instead of the sharpie and stitching would be a fantastic (and easier) alternative.  

Aren't these DIY teacher gifts adorable?  They make meaningful end of year teacher gifts, but they would work other times of year too. Do you have a favorite teacher gift to give or receive? I'm always looking for new ideas.

♥
Gina Bell (aka East Coast Mommy)

PS (Here's a fun idea for the FIRST day of school!)