Holidays

Name: The Best Play Dough
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 5 min
Total time: 12 min
Ingredients: 1 cup flour; 1/4 cup salt; 2 tablespoons cream of tartar; 1 cup water; 1 tablespoon vegetable oil; Food coloring if desired; 1 Tablespoon extract (peppermint, vanilla, coconut, lemon, etc.) (OR about 5 drops, ¼ teaspoon, if using essential oils)

Daddy Shark Father’s Day Cricut Card & Gift

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June 20, 2020 by Stacy Leave a Comment

My preschoolers are all about Baby Shark so a “daddy shark” themed Father’s Day gift was the perfect idea for this year’s Father’s Day projects. I used a Cricut Maker for our Daddy Shark Father’s Day Cricut Card & Gift. We made a “Shark Bait” snack mix that the dads are sure to love to go along with the shark-shaped card.

Daddy Shark Father’s Day Cricut Card & Gift

I created the “Daddy, you’re jawsome!” shark card using my Cricut Maker. If you have a Cricut, you can use the project file here: Daddy You’re Jawsome! Shark Father’s Day card

Daddy Shark Father's Day Card Cricut Project front of card

It’s a draw and cut file so the lettering was written with a marker and cut by the Cricut Maker out of cardstock.

Daddy Shark Father's Day Card Cricut Project group of cards

The kids loved the shark shaped card! They colored them and wrote their names inside.

Daddy Shark Father's Day Card Cricut Project front of card vertical

Daddy Shark Father's Day Card Cricut Project

Inside the Daddy Shark card it says “You’re jawsome!”, written with a silver metallic marker.

You're Jawsome Shark Card made on Cricut

There’s plenty of room for coloring, name writing or a personal message.

Jawsome Father's Day Shark Card Daddy Shark Father's Day Card Cricut Project

Shark Bait Snack Mix Pail

Snack Mixes are one of my favorite things to make for dad gifts. What dad doesn’t like snacks? Plus the kids love to make them!

Our Shark Bait Snack Mix ingredients include:

Dot’s Pretzels
Kettle Corn
Honey Roast Peanuts
White chocolate covered pretzels
Gummy Sharks
Cheese It’s

Of course you can use whatever snacks you’d like to in your snack mix.

We put them in quart-sized “paint pails” from Michael’s. You can also find them on Amazon. Using removable vinyl and my Cricut Maker I made a label with “Daddy Shark, doo, doo, doo, doo” on the lid.

“Shark Bait” was also created with removable vinyl.

Shark Bait Father's Day Snack Mix for Daddy Shark

I think the dads will love these gifts! They’re definitely going to have some help eating these yummy snacks!

Cricut Project Links

If you use a Cricut, you can use the links below to customize and make these projects.

I hope you found some inspiration from our Daddy Shark Father’s Day Cricut Card & Gift or check out some of the ideas listed below.

More Father’s Day Ideas

These Hands Handprint Father’s Day Printable

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June 20, 2020 by Stacy Leave a Comment

Parents love handprint keepsakes so here’s one especially for dads to commemorate Father’s Day. We know how little hands hold their daddy’s heart! Somehow those little hands grow so quickly and it’s special to have these keepsakes to look back on and remember how small they once were. Use the These Hands Handprint Father’s Day Printable to make a quick gift just in time for Father’s Day.

These Hands Hold My Daddy's Heart Father's day Printable Handprint Art

These Hands Handprint Father’s Day Printable

Simply print on cardstock, add handprints with tempera or acrylic and add the child’s name and date if desired.

I like to use acrylic paint because it makes a cleaner print. Tempera tends to make the child’s hand slide and smear on the paper more. Acrylic paint also dries faster. I always let the child choose the color of paint they desire to use.

>>>Download the printable These Hands Hold My Daddy’s Heart Father’s Day here.

More Father’s Day Ideas

Candy Cane Play Dough Gift Jars

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December 28, 2019 by Stacy Leave a Comment

It’s not easy to come up with gift ideas for my child care group, but play dough is always a good idea. They love having their own container of play dough. Candy cane play dough gift jars are the perfect filler for Christmas stockings or gift bags. Print the free snowman label to put on top.

Candy Cane Play Dough Gift Jars

Here’s the play dough recipe I used. It’s the same play dough my mom made for my siblings and me when we were kids. The best play dough, I think! This play dough recipe contains Cream of Tartar so make sure you have that on hand. I made two batches. One is plain white and the other red. You can add peppermint if you want it scented.

The Best Play Dough

Soft and long lasting play dough for hours of fun!

Prep Time 5 minutes

Cook Time 5 minutes

Additional Time 2 minutes

Total Time 12 minutes

Ingredients

1 cup flour
1/4 cup salt
2 tablespoons cream of tartar
1 cup water
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
Food coloring if desired
1 Tablespoon extract (peppermint, vanilla, coconut, lemon, etc.) (OR about 5 drops, ¼ teaspoon, if using essential oils)

Instructions

Mix flour, salt, & cream of tartar in a medium cooking pot.
Add water, oil, and if desired, food coloring and extract/oil.
Stir over medium heat 3 to 5 minutes stirring constantly.
When mixture forms a ball in a pot, remove.
When cool enough to touch, knead until smooth.
Let cool, put in a plastic bag, and refrigerate to store.

Notes

You may want to make a double batch if making play dough for more than one child.

Recommended Products

As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Nutrition Information

Yield

Serving Size

1
Amount Per ServingCalories 621Total Fat 15gSaturated Fat 1gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 13gCholesterol 0mgSodium 28315mgCarbohydrates 106gFiber 3gSugar 0gProtein 13g

Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.

I also added glitter to the white play dough making it glittery or like my husband said, “like snow from Frozen”. After making the play dough, layer it in the jar as desired. I layered it red/white/red. I used plastic jars like these from Michael’s.

Candy Cane Play Dough Gift Jars with printable label

These adorable labels add just the needed element to make them look extra special. The free printable label is available at the end of this post.

Then I used ric rac trim to decorate the side of the jar. The foam snowflake sticker holds it on.

Kids will love this little jar of play dough made especially for them! A perfect activity for those holiday breaks.

Download the Snowman Labels

Printable Snowman Labels

Print the labels on Avery Round Glossy Labels. Please print a test page first and adjust the alignment of images as needed.
Here’s the link to the Word Document:

Snowman-Play-Dough-LabelsDownload

Light Table Christmas Tree Activity

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December 23, 2019 by Stacy Leave a Comment

When changing up my room for a new theme or month of learning, the light table seems to be the most challenging to come up with ideas for. I was inspired by others on Instagram to make this light table Christmas tree activity.

Light Table Christmas Tree Activity

This light table idea comes together in just minutes with simple supplies: green masking tape and manipulatives.

I love that this light table idea makes use of items I already have. Light table materials and toys can be so expensive!

Simply use green masking tape to make a tree shape on the table. If you have a large light table, you could make more than one tree shape.

Then provide small items to “decorate” the tree with. We used colored marble gems, translucent tangram shapes, large buttons and strands of beads.

These translucent shapes would also be good.

One tip I have is to use acrylic trays from the Dollar Tree to hold and sort small pieces on the light table. My group added bells from our loose part collection.

What a beautiful Christmas tree made with loose parts!

More Christmas Light Table Ideas

Christmas Tree Numbers for the Light Table |Kitchen Floor Crafts
Christmas Lights on the Light Table | Still Playing School
Snowflakes on the Light Table | AndNextComesL

Please be careful with small parts with little ones. This activity should be for 3 years and older but even older children can pop things into their mouth or otherwise use them inappropriately.

More Christmas Activities for Kids

My Year in Review Printable for New Years

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December 9, 2019 by Stacy Leave a Comment

Reflect on the past year with your children using the My Year in Review Printable for New Years page. Print in color or use it as a coloring page. Children can list things about themselves in the About Me section (we know it changes quickly!) and highlights of the year.

Fun doodles to color or print a color version.

My Year in Review Printable for New Years

Sections on the year in review page include:

About Me
Highlights from the year
A section for the next year

Younger children might have a hard time filling it all in but as a parent or caregiver, you may know what to put in those areas. Older children will enjoy thinking about their favorite memory or best idea they had.

These printables are great for the classroom, child’s memory book or for New Year’s eve parties. Make a kids table with fun activities for a memorable night! These are perfect for club parties too, such as 4-H or Scouts.

Year in Review Black and White printable coloring page

Need more New Year Celebration activities for kids? Check out these ideas on Pre-K Pages. There are 10 more New Year’s Eve Activities on Happiness is Homemade.

Enjoy this free printable.

Download the Year in Review Page

You can find the Year in Review New Years Page here:
Full Color Page
Black & White Coloring Page

Daddy Shark Father’s Day Cricut Card & Gift

Daddy Shark Father’s Day Cricut Card & Gift

Shark Bait Snack Mix Pail

Cricut Project Links

More Father’s Day Ideas

These Hands Handprint Father’s Day Printable

These Hands Handprint Father’s Day Printable

>>>Download the printable These Hands Hold My Daddy’s Heart Father’s Day here.

More Father’s Day Ideas

Candy Cane Play Dough Gift Jars

Candy Cane Play Dough Gift Jars

The Best Play Dough

Ingredients

Instructions

Notes