Your guide to activities and fun things to do with your preschoolers, toddlers and kids in saint louis, MO

Summer Bubble Fun

July 13, 2009

Kids love to play with bubbles but they get spilled and wasted so often that store bought bottles of bubbles can add up. An easy alternative is making your own bubbles at home.

Easy Home-made Bubble Solution:

Mix one part liquid soap to three parts water and add a small amount of glycerin (available at drug stores). If you don't have glycerin, you can add 2 teaspoons of sugar to the mixture. You can also add a few drops of food coloring for colored bubbles or a drop of essential oil for scented bubbles.

Use florist wire (available at craft stores) to make circular wands to blow bubbles.

Store bubbles in an air-tight container and avoid shaking too much. 

Home-made Giant Bubble Solution:

1 cup no-tear baby shampoo
1 cup corn syrup
3 cups of water

Home-made Bubble Blowers

Bend a wire coat hanger into a circle (the rounder the better). Twist the hook into a handle. For big bubbles, wrap the wire with cotton string. Pour soap solution into a shallow pan and dip large bubble wands. Enjoy!

Another tip for preventing bubble spilling is to cut a hole in the bottom of a plastic container and set the bubble bottle inside. This makes it easier for young children to dip their wands without spilling the bottle. You can also set the bubble container in a foam can holder to give it a more stable base. I have also used putty to stick the bottles to a glass-topped outdoor table to keep the bottles from falling over. Of course, if you make your own affordable bubbles, it isn't a big deal if it gets spilled! 

Smart Summers on a Budget

June 22, 2009

There is a television commercial that shows a boy drying off from swimming, shaking his head to get the water out of his ears and watching all of the numbers and facts he learned during the school year fall out as he moves. I don't remember who the commercial is for but the message sticks with me and I worry that my kids, especially my 9 year old, will forget the lessons they learned over summer break.

I want to teach my kids over summer break without making lessons boring or "school like" and I'm on a budget. I could send them to expensive camps or tutoring sessions but it doesn't fit in with our spending plan so I have been looking for low cost alternatives to reinforce their learning but also have fun. Luckily, the St. Louis area has many free museums which is a great place to start. I have already taken the kids to the newly expanded Magic House (which is not free but there are coupons available online) and the St. Louis Zoo. The Zoo is always free but The Children's Zoo is not unless you arrive before 9:00 in the morning. By getting there early, you save money and miss the hottest part of the day! I also plan on taking my oldest son to the Art Museum again (I find it hard to appreciate in one visit so we have been seeing small sections at each trip) which is also free. 

To prepare for our summer activities at home, I visited our local craft store and re-stocked our construction paper and other art supplies. I'm not a crafter so we usually play with foam stick-on's, watercolor and finger paints, markers and crayons. The kids and I have made our own stories and cards for loved ones which is fun and reinforces their writing and cutting skills. 

Outside, we also practice our letters, numbers and shapes. I buy massive amounts of sidewalk chalk to encourage outdoor art projects. With our three year old triplets, I often draw hopscotch squares and let the kids fill in the numbers to reinforce the little ones' writing skills. I also write part of the alphabet or numbers on the driveway and let them finish. I encourage them to write their entire names and have recently been trying to teach them to write their address. Our driveway is always covered in my poorly drawn pictures with labels and arrows showing the kids the word for the drawings. By doing this, I've taught them sight words and they are beginning to write words like "car" and "dog" on their own.

I want to keep the kids' bodies healthy as well as their minds and encourage the physical coordination they practiced during the school year. The triplets learned outdoor games like "Red Rover" during preschool which we continue to play outside in our yard. We've also been running, jumping, swinging and slip and sliding all over our backyard. We also visit our many local (and free!) parks where the kids balance along equipment and try to cross the monkey bars. Late summer afternoons are also wonderful times to walk the neighborhood and learn about our surroundings while getting exercise.

Summer can be an easy time to have fun and learn with kids without breaking the bank. Longer daytime hours, good weather, family get-togethers and holidays all provide opportunities to learn with children (and if you do it right, they won't even know they were learning).

Old Time Fun at The Old Tyme Picnic & Circus Flora

June 16, 2009

The Old Tyme Picnic in St. Peters begins this Friday, June 19th and continues through Sunday, June 21st. 2009 marks the 40th year the summer picnic has been held but the annual event has grown substantially (as has the area) since its humble beginnings. It was originally started as an "old timey" picnic but has grown into an event with a large parade, carnival rides, a barbeque cook-off, tractor pull, live music and vendors.  There will be fireworks at 9:45 pm on both Friday and Saturday nights.

 Carnival Ride at the The Old Tyme Picnic

The parade will feature approximately 60 floats and is always a big hit with kids. It begins on Saturday morning at 9:00 am from the Mid-Rivers Mall parking lot and continues along Main Street, St. Peters. 

The picnic takes place in the Old Town and Lone Wolf Parks and a shuttle is available from Mid-Rivers Mall. A complete schedule is on the Picnic's Web site.

Also, this is the last weekend of the current Circus Flora's current show at Grand Center.  The air-conditioned big top is located next to Powell Symphony Hall and will be showing the last matinee and evening shows of 2009 Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Tickets are available through Metro Tix or at the show.

Must Do Summer Activities in the St. Louis Area

June 01, 2009

Visit Raging Rivers Water Park to float along lazy rivers and down water slides. Itty Bitty Surf City is perfect for young children under 42" tall. Bring lunch and eat a picnic lunch or buy in the park.

Feed the baby goats and admire the famous Clydesdales at Grant's Farm

Celebrate the Missouri Botanical Garden's 150th birthday at Garden Party Nights

Watch fireworks at Fair St. Louis or catch a show Live on the Levee

Pet Stingrays at the St. Louis Zoo's Caribbean Cove then cool off at Penguin and Puffin Coast before riding the zoo-line express.