Preschool Friends Magazine Deal – Only $12.74 per year!

May 17, 2013 By Sarah Leave a Comment

Preschool Friends MagazinePreschool Friends Magazine is only $14.99 today only at Best Deal Magazines!

 

Plus, you can use code MINDFULLYFRUGAL at checkout to knock another 15% off, making your final price only $12.74 for 6 bi-monthly issues.

I’m thinking of getting this for my kids becase it has a huge workbook in every issue — for only $2.00 an issue that is a good deal. Plus, it has Curious George. :)

About Preschool Friends Magazine:

Preschool Friends magazine combines learning, laughter, playtime, and fun in one kid-friendly package! With each issue of Preschool Friends you can join Curious George, Scooby Doo, Clifford Puppy Days, Super Why, Wow! Wow! Wubbzy, and other favorite friends for early-learning fun in this great magazine! Each issue contains stories, a collectible poster and a workbook full of fun educational activities that are designed to encourage the skills needed to succeed in school while having fun with their favorite characters. Preschool Friends is designed for children aged 3 to 8.

I’ve never seen a deal on Preschool Friends Magazine before, so make sure to snap it up now because it will be gone tomorrow.

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Summer Reading 2013 | Free Programs

April 29, 2013 By Sarah Leave a Comment

Summer REading Programs

Lots of companies, organizations, and libraries have summer reading incentives for kids. Make sure to bookmark this page as it will be updated regularly.

New Updates, 5/15/13:

Half Price Books: Kids should read (or be read to) for at least 15 minutes a day during June and July. Once they read 300 minutes, they can turn in their log and earn $5 in Half Price Books Bookworm bucks. They will also award one reader in each age group a $20 Half Price Books giftcard.

TD Bank: When kids read 10 books, they can get $10 in a new or Young Saver account!!!

Sylvan’s Book Adventure Program: This program is for children in grades K-8. The search online for books and then find them in the library (or bookstore) and read them. Then, they come back and take quiz about the book and are rewarded with prizes for their reading success!

H.E.B. Summer Reading Club: When your kids read 10 or more books, they can submit a form and end up getting a cool prize (which includes a T-Shirt). Just fill out the form including the books your child has read (if your kids can’t read, you can just list the books you read to them) and mail to the address on the form! The form must be postmarked by October 1, 2013.

Showcase Cinemas Bookworm Wednesdays (select locations): Each Wednesday from July 10 – August 7, kids can bring in a book report (unless you are six and under and then admission will be free) – which will be cost of admission! The films in include:

  • July 10th – Yogi Bear
  • July 17th – Ice Age: Continental Drift
  • July 24th – Madagascar 3
  • July 31st – The Lorax
  • August 7th – Hotel Transylvania

 

Scholastic’s Summer Challenge: Kids can keep track of their reading minutes by logging in. In return, they can win digital prizes. Plus, they will be able to enter a sweepstakes for gifts like Klutz books and other fun rewards. Mom and Dad can also register in conjunction with their children to track progress. This event starts on May 6th for everyone, but teachers can register their classes right now.

Pottery Barn Kids’ Summer Reading Challenge: Kids 10 and under will need to read the books listed on an age-appropriate list. Once they finish the list, they take their reading list to a PBK store and will get a free book. This event kicks off on May 16th and runs through August 26th. and more details will be available at that time.

Barnes & Noble’s Summer Reading: This one requires kids to read eight books an then make a short recommendation on each one. They can then turn in their completed Summer Reading form at a store and choose a free book from this list! This even starts May 21st and runs through September 3rd.

Pizza Hut Book-It Program. This program is offered to schools – including home schooling parents. Starting this Wednesday, March 1st, homeschoolers can sign up to get in on the program. You can watch their Facebook page for more details.

Chuck E Cheese: Your child can keep track of their reading thruogh one of the rewards calendars. Once they have completed two weeks of reading he or she can submit the completed Chuck E Cheese calendar for 10 free tokens!

Local Libraries: Be sure to check with your local library to see what sort of summer reading program is offered. Rochester locals, you can check out the Monroe County Library System’s program, Dream Big READ! here. It’s not updated for 2013 yet, but keep checking back.

 

If you’re looking for books and activities, here are some of my favorites that I do with my kids:

What are some of your favorite summer reading resources?

Thanks, Penny Pinchin Mom!

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Easter Egg Coloring – My Experiment using Natural Dyes

March 22, 2013 By Sarah 2 Comments

Naturally Dyed Easter Eggs

 

To be honest, I’ve never been into the crafty aspect of many holidays. The food? Absolutely. But when it comes to anything remotely artsy, I usually drop the ball.  This year, I thought, I’d finally experiment with some natural Easter Egg Dyes.  My kids have both been sick for weeks, and they (and I!) needed a little pick me up. So we spent a morning seeing what colors we could make our eggs  with what natural ingredients we had on hand.

First, you need some hard-boiled eggs. I like to use my favorite hardboiled egg technique here.

Next, mix up some coloring. We used:

  • Beet Juice (2 cups) + 2 tbsp vinegar
  • Curry Powder (1 tsp) + 2 cups water + 2 tsp vinegar
  • Turmeric (1 1/2 tsp) + 2 cups water + 2 tsp vinegar
  • Red Onion Skin, boiled in water, + splash vinegar

Natural Egg Dye

It’s really easy to use natural ingredients.  We soaked our eggs for about 30 minutes in each mixture then laid them on a towel to dry. The turmeric definitely gave the most vibrant results.

Natural Easter Eggs

Overall, I think our results were good, not great. I wish I had tried blueberries to get a stronger purple or blue color. I’m lucky though, that my kids are young enough that they didn’t mind the lack of variety in colors we created. In fact, my son kept opening the refrigerator door “just to check” on his eggs.

Natural Dyed Easter Egg

What kind of natural dyes do you want to try with your eggs?

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Potty Training: My Top Four Tips and Tricks

February 28, 2013 By Sarah 41 Comments

Potty TrainingHave you seen that commercial? The one where a little boy, after struggling to accomplish his goal of going pee-pee in the potty, runs outside to a parade complete with clowns, a band, and adult men dressed as toilets.

I hate that commercial.  Mostly because the other day my daughter finally went #2 on the potty, and then ran to the window and asked, “Where’s my parade?”

I gave her a chocolate chip, which thankfully she was happy with.

Potty Training is not easy.  Judging from the sheer number of items that come up in an Amazon search for “potty training” (5,299), it’ a pretty hot topic with the preschool set. Everyone has war stories, ranging from most inappropriate place to have an accident (in church), to stories of the sheer obstinacy of toddlers who sit on the potty for 20 minutes, then pee on the floor next to the toilet.

I am by no means an expert on potty training. Heck, my youngest (3) still wears her “special underwear” (ie. training pants) at night.  But here are a few tips that worked for me – and none of them involve the “iPotty” – a device that encourages children to bring an iPad to the bathroom with them.:

1.  Don’t be afraid to do the “no-pants-dance.”  When were were on Day 1 of potty training both our kids, we let them run around the house pantsless, and that way they (and we!) knew exactly when something was about to happen (or more often, already in progress).

2. Bite the bullet and set aside a few days to really work on potty training. I know this strategy doesn’t work for all families, but it really worked for us.  With both kids, we chose a long weekend when both my husband and I would be home, and stayed at home for all three days. We went cold turkey on the diapers and had the kids wear new, cute underwear for all three days. By honing in our focus and not getting distracted by outings, both kids were really able to focus on the task at hand.

3.  Let the child choose his or her own underwear. Having ownership and responsibility in the situation goes a long way toward helping children feel in control of the process.

seventh generation

4. Don’t throw out those wet wipes. Just because you’re not changing diapers anymore doesn’t mean you won’t need baby wipes next to the toilet and in the car. I really like the Seventh Generation Baby Free & Clear Wipes, especially for when we’re on the go. They’re made from renewable resources and free of fragrances, parabens, and pthalates.  They make clean up MUCH easier and the Seventh Generation wipes are super-soft on little tushes. Trust me — kids will be more likely to wipe with something soft and comfortable than with rough toilet paper.

Would you like to win a box of Seventh Generation Baby Free & Clear Wipes?  Enter below!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Fine Motor Skills Activity: Make a Game Using Common Household Materials

February 20, 2013 By Sarah 1 Comment

Fine Motor Activity

I am walking into my son’s preschool classroom for the first parent-teacher conference of the year. I am ecstatic to hear that my son plays with everyone, is friendly and fun, and identifies letters. Then comes the bombshell.

“We think he needs to be evaluated.”

Come again?

Because of what is noted as a “poor pencil grip,” my son’s teachers recommended that I have him evaluated for Occupational Therapy services to remedy a delay in his fine motor skills.

It’s not like I don’t KNOW that his pencil grip is “poor” and that he prefers running and wrestling to coloring and art. Would I call that “delayed?”

Maybe. Then again, maybe not.

In any case, I know he could use some fine motor practice, so I did what I usually do, and scrounged around the house for materials to make a fun fine motor game.

Turns out, he LOVES playing with my impromptu activity, and he is getting the practice he needs.

Materials:

  • Shoe Box
  • Colored Markers
  • Clothes Pins

Picture 9

A shoe box is perfect because you can store the clothespins inside and put the top on when not in use.

Here’s what to do:

1. On each of 3 sides of the shoe box, use different colored markers to draw shapes, letters, or numbers.  For example, one side of my box has: diamond, square, circle, rectangle, and oval.

2. Draw or write matching objects on the clothespins.  For more advanced children, you could write upper case letters on the box and their lower case equivalents on the clothes pins.

3. The child should match the pins with the objects on the shoe box. To make it harder, they can sit on their non-dominant hand to force the hand they need for writing to work harder.

4. When done, put the clothespins in the box and shake it up to play again. The shaking is my son’s favorite part.

Picture 10

What are your favorite ways to work on fine motor skills?

 

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This is HUGE! 60% off Select American Girl Dolls Tomorrow – Doll + Accessory Sets just $67

December 4, 2012 By Sarah Leave a Comment

Update: the code is JILLOFFER! Let me know if you get it!

Heads up to all the American Girl fans! Tomorrow morning during the  9 am EST hour, watch the Today Show! As part of Jill’s Deals and Steals feature, they will be announcing a code for 61% off a few select items!

Here are two items that will be included:

Marie-Grace + Accessories bundle — The price after the discount should be $50.31 plus $16.95 shipping, total price $67.26. (this is currently $129)

Cecile + Accessories Bundle - The price after the discount should be $50.31 plus $16.95 shipping, total price $67.26.

I was actually at the American Girl store in NYC last week and overheard a customer ask the salesgirl if there were any sales. She just kind of laughed. So this is HUGE that there is going to be a 61% off code offered tomorrow. I’m sure these will sell out fast so be ready and watching during the 9 am hour.

Again, watch the Today Show (NBC) at 9 am EST on 12/5 for this code.

Don’t want to wait around for the code? You can get the Mini American Girl Dolls for as low as $16 on Amazon:

Thanks, Wheel N Deal mama!

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