Just a Box

You hear it all the time, "My kids didn't care about the toy, but they loved playing with the box." This is just as true for my kids as anyone else's. Wonderful husband and I both have stories about how much fun we had playing with empty cardboard boxes when we were kids. So, we bought our kids their own boxes.

Here you can see the boxes shaped to be houses. They both have double doors, a window, a roof (with an opening to let light in), and a chimney. We told them they cannot go in the other's house. It was their own special place. Shortly thereafter we had to tell Sweet Daughter she's not allowed to take ALL of the toys into her house just to avoid sharing.

We decided the houses could look a bit nicer. So I would let the kids paint one side at a time with any colors they selected. This was a big project, but everyone was happy. It gave the boxes some more personality and let our kids paint on something other than paper.






I'm sure there will be more photos of these boxes in the months to come. They lasted for a long time and were quite possibly the best toy for the price that we have ever bought our kids.

Raking Leaves

My kids regularly do chores inside the house. Autumn is the perfect time to do chores outside as well!

Not the best rake holding technique, but she's working hard and slowly making a pile of leaves.

He has better form, but missed the idea of the pile.

In the end, they picked up the leaves with their hands and our yard looked great for about 3 minutes until the wind blew again. Thus is life.

Educents Deals

There are times I go months without buying (or even being tempted) by things on Educents, however this week there are a few things I have my eyes on and I wanted to share with my readers. (That is an affiliate link.)

Today

Health Pack includes:

1 Handwashing Kit

• Includes germ detection powder and gel, and a UV light key chain to demonstrate how germs are spread and how following the hand washing tips in the Activity & Instruction booklet (also included) can help cut down on the spread of germs and keep you healthy!

• Also includes GIANTmicrobes Character Stickers, a Sniffles Mirror Cling to remind kids to wash their hands often, and a GIANTmicrobes Common Cold Key Chain.

1 Soap Dispenser

• Microbe shaped soap dispenser is a fun reminder to wash away germs.

1 Cold Plush

• Billions of people a year catch the cold. Now you can get one too! Learn all about the Common Cold with this cuddly companion. Each 5 to 7 inch doll is accompanied by an image of the real microbe it represents, as well as information about the microbe.

1 Flu Plush

• This guy may not look too tough, but don't let his cute looks fool you! Once he and his friends show up you're in for a pretty lousy time. Learn about his weaknesses so you can avoid unwanted encounters.

Monday (4th)

I have purchased this deal before and LOVED it. 

1 year subscription includes 12 Young Scientists Kits

Each kit includes:

• Activities and projects exploring the exciting world of science with topics such as magnets, weather, minerals, batteries, planets, stars, senses, acids and bases, forces, tornadoes, human body, volcanoes, and more (36 topics in all). 
• Special instructions given by Celsius the Science Bug to explore each topic. Easy to follow adult instructions are also included. 
• Manuals are between 8 - 16 pages.
• Filled with materials such as chromatography paper, owl pellet, minerals, magnets, mirrors, thermometers, rulers, pH paper, brine shrimp and much more!

Tuesday (5th)

Forever Passport to Grammaropolis includes

• Unlimited access to every part of speech for up to 5 students
• 8 different parts of speech
• 20 animated shorts
• 9 animated music videos
• 28 different quiz categories
• 9 illustrated books
• 5 student accounts

Wednesday (6th)

Each set includes:

• Reusable wall decals
• Printed with Permanent Ink that won’t run, fade, or peel
• Can be stuck and unstuck over and over again with no damage to walls, paint, or wallpaper! (They will even stick on textured walls)
• Each set is 24” by 40”
• Choices include: Thanksgiving, Christmas Tree, Gingerbread House, Holiday Wreath, Nativity Set, Snowmen

There are more deals than just these, but these are the ones I'm looking at this week. If you use my affiliate link I will get credit, which I use to buy more curriculum for my kids. I promise to review all of the curriculum on here. Have you tried any of these? We love the Science kits, but I would love to hear your opinion on the others.

After Halloween

Before kids, November 1st was the day for cheap chocolate. Now we have kids who strangely don't like candy or chocolate and so we have plenty by November 1st. So instead of getting a good deal on chocolate, we buy discounted costumes for next year.

She was terrified of people dressed as skeletons when trick-or-treating and this is what she selected. 

He was very excited about the ninja costume.

(She went as a ninja when they were two and he will be a ninja when they are four.)