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DIY Holidays Kids

Jack-o-Lantern Apple Stamps

It’s Friday, which means we’re another week closer to Halloween! To keep you and your little ones busy while you wait, we have a super fun DIY that you can make with materials already in your home (and kitchen!).Jack-o-Lantern Apple Stamps | Vicky Barone

These sweet little jack-o-lanterns are made from apples! Similar to our St. Patrick’s Day Shamrock Pepper Stamps, we used produce to create the perfect pumpkin shape.

Jack-o-Lantern Apple Stamps | Vicky Barone

Supplies: apples, a knife, a cutting board, acrylic paint (in orange, black, and green), a paint brush, a paper plate, and a Sharpie (optional).

Directions:
1. Cut an apple in half and remove any seeds that look like they could fall out during the painting process.
2. Pour some orange paint onto a paper plate and dip an apple half into it.
3. Dab off some of the paint and give the apple stamp a few test runs to see how thick you’d like the paint. We had an extra piece of paper to test on.
4. Press the paint-covered apple half onto your work surface as many times as you’d like! You can create a pumpkin patch, or just a hodge podge of floating jack-o-lanterns.
5. When the orange paint has dried completely, use a paint brush and some black paint to create the jack-o-lantern faces and green paint to create leaves and curly vines.
6. I wrote a Happy Halloween message with a black Sharpie, but you can use more black paint if you’re feeling brave!

Jack-o-Lantern Apple Stamps | Vicky Barone

Have fun with it! This is a great project for kids — they will love using fruit as a stamp (just don’t let them take a paint covered bite!).

Jack-o-Lantern Apple Stamps | Vicky Barone

Looking for even more Halloween ideas? Check out my Instagram and Pinterest for tons of fun and festive ideas.

Categories
Kids Recipes Things I Love

Healthy Halloween Snacks

Halloween is around the corner, which means lots of fun and lots of sweets! We’ve compiled some healthier snacking options that are still deliciously spooky. These treats are festive, fun to make, and kids are sure to love them. Click the links below for recipes and info on each! Happy snacking 🙂

Healthy Halloween Snacks | Vicky Barone

1. Roasted Pumpkin Seeds | 2. Pumpkin Eggs | 3. “Boo”nana Pops
4. Sweet Potato Fries | 5. Clementine Jack-o-Lanterns | 6. Cheese Eyeballs
7. Strawberry Ghosts | 8. Witch Brooms | 9. Spider Web Fruit Plate

Categories
Kids Recipes

Pancake Pops

What’s more exciting than pancakes on a Saturday morning?

Pancake Pops | Vicky Barone

Mini pancakes on a stick!

Pancake Pops | Vicky Barone

All you need to make these cute little breakfast bites is pancake mix and cake pop sticks!

Pancake Pops | Vicky Barone

Ingredients: pancake mix, milk, and eggs.

Directions:
1. Combine ingredients according to pancake mix package.
2. For pans that are NOT non-stick, grease with spray oil.
3. One at a time, spoon pancake batter into the pan to create a small circle (ours were about 2-2.5 inches in diameter).
4. Immediately place a cake pop stick into the center of the pancake and roll the stick to cover it in batter.
5. Flip the pancake when bubbles begin to form and cook until done.

Pancake Pops | Vicky Barone

You can even make them into little heart pops! These would be perfect for Valentine’s Day!

Pancake Pops | Vicky Barone

Pancake Pops | Vicky Barone

Pancake pops are so much fun to dip in syrup and eat, your kids will LOVE them. Try making different shapes or letters to spell our your kiddos name!

Categories
Kids Recipes

Simple Smoothies for Kids

Looking for that perfect after-school snack that will tide your kiddos over until dinner? These three smoothie recipes are healthy and filling, while still satiating your little one’s sweet tooth. Mix and match the ingredients to make them your own and go ahead and sneak a sip for yourself (you deserve it!).

Simple Smoothies for Kids | Vicky Barone

Strawberry Banana Smoothie
Serves 1
In a blender, combine the following:
5 strawberries
1/2 a banana
2 scoops yogurt
1/2 cup milk (regular or almond milk)
1 handful of ice

*skip the ice and use a frozen banana and frozen strawberries

Simple Smoothies for Kids | Vicky Barone

Chocolate Peanut Butter Smoothie
Serves 1
In a blender, combine the following:
1 scoop chocolate Ovaltine powder
2 scoops of creamy peanut butter
2 scoops yogurt
1/2 cup milk (regular or almond milk)
1 handful of ice

Simple Smoothies for Kids | Vicky Barone

Peanut Butter Banana Smoothie
Serves 1
In a blender, combine the following:
1/2 a banana
2 scoops peanut butter
2 scoops yogurt
1/2 cup milk (regular or almond milk)
1 handful of ice

*skip the ice and use 1 whole frozen banana.

Simple Smoothies for Kids | Vicky BaroneEach smoothie uses the same core ingredients (yogurt, milk, and ice) but the possibilities of flavor combinations are endless! Which one is your favorite?

 

Categories
Kids Lifestyle Things I Love

Back to School Lunch Box Ideas

This post contains affiliate links. If purchased, I will receive a commission, but the price stays the same for you!

We can’t believe that Summer is over and the boys are headed back to school for the Fall! Now we’re back to packing lunches and chasing the school bus. In honor of the first day of school, we’re sharing four yummy packed lunch ideas for when you’re stumped on what to send your kiddo to school with. These lunch combinations have fruits, veggies, and protein to give your little ones the nutrition and energy to tackle the day without sacrificing taste.

Back to School Packed Lunch Ideas | Vicky BaroneDoes your little one like hard boiled eggs? Add packets of salt and pepper to spice it up, or chop it up into egg salad with a little mayo. These zucchini mini muffins are made with bananas instead of sugar, and have some chia seeds thrown in!

Back to School Packed Lunch Ideas | Vicky BaroneBite-sized turkey and cheese roll ups with some sneaky spinach are sure to be a hit. We love this popcorn for a healthier option. Add some hummus for cucumber dipping!

Back to School Packed Lunch Ideas | Vicky BaroneQuick quesadillas are a great way to make a packed lunch more exciting. Add some salsa or sour cream for dipping! Chopped avocado and a lime wedge makes a DIY guacamole!

Back to School Packed Lunch Ideas | Vicky BaroneMy boys LOVE peas, so it’s no problem getting them to scarf this lunch down. How cute are these little club sandwiches? We just made a triple-decker turkey and cheese sandwich and cut it into squares. Colorful toothpicks add some flair and an apple with almond butter is almost dessert-like to round out the meal.

Here are the lunch boxes I use, pictured above. They make packing lunches SO easy, especially the night before! They help keep all the food separate and fresh and they’re dishwasher safe.

If you liked this post, we have a whole new set of lunch box ideas right here!

Happy First Day of School!!

The above includes affiliate links. If purchased, I will receive a commission.

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Family Kids Lifestyle Products Things I Love

Beach Accessories for Kids

We’re rounding out our week of Summer travel tips on the blog with a list of our favorite beach accessories for the boys!

Here are some of my must-haves for a day at the beach with my kids:

Beach Accessories for Kids | Vicky Barone

1. Sunscreen
After some research into the sunscreen I’d been using on my kids for years, I found some not-so-pleasant results (it’s on this list! Yikes!). I found this Alba Botanica sunscreen in a search for a safer option and I love it. It’s made with 100% vegetarian ingredients and it’s aerosol free while still working as a super convenient spray.

2. Bucket Hats
To further protect my kiddos skin from the sun, I like to bring along some floppy beach hats for them! This Tuga Sunwear hat is made from quick-drying fabric to wear in and out of the water, and it has UV protection for their faces, ears, and necks. They come in a few different colors AND they’re reversible!

3. Hooded Towel
Pottery Barn Kids has the cutest hooded towels for both the bath and the beach. They are also rated UPF 50+ for UV Protection and they can be personalized with your little one’s name.

4. Sand Toys
Of course we can’t make a beach trip without some fun stuff to play with! Melissa and Doug make awesome pool toys that we love to bring to the beach with us for sand play. This lobster claw game is fun for the beach, the pool, and even the bath tub!

What are your must-have beach accessories when vacationing with kiddos?

Categories
Family Kids Products Things I Love

Road Trip Essentials for Kids

We take a lot of road trips during the Summers and too much time in the car can be tough with two energetic little boys. To make all of our experiences more enjoyable, we’ve worked on a formula for our must-haves. If you’re looking for some ideas to spice up your trips, or you’re about to take your first long road trip with your little ones, take a look at our list and see if it inspires you!

Here are my Top 10 Road Trip Essentials for traveling with kids:

1. First Aid Kit
Having a first aid kit in the car no matter how long your drive is, is always incredibly important.

2. Water
Yes, this essential causes more frequent bathroom breaks, but hydration is all too necessary.

3. Snacks
I like to pack nuts, applesauce in pouches, and other healthy on-the-go snacks that don’t make too much of a mess.

4. Snack Cups
For all those unruly snacks, these snack cups have been a lifesaver.

5. Refrigerator Bag
This amazing bag fits right between the boys in the back seat. They can easily reach into it (without me having to stop the car to help them) and get fresh fruit and other chilled snacks.

6. Car Seat Trays
Trays like this one are perfect for holding snacks, coloring books, and anything else that might keep little ones busy during the ride.

7. Sunscreen
Whether we’re driving to the beach or to the grocery store, I always like to have sunscreen in the car for the boys. You never know when you might pass an epic park that you just have to play in along the way!

8. Toys
Of course we can’t leave home without handfuls of cars. Other activities like travel coloring books and magnet boxes are perfect for the car and keep them busy for at least five minutes. 😉

9. Books
Packing our favorite books is our go-to, but some of these road trip-inspired books look fun too!

10. Dual Screen TV
This last essential is not every parent’s favorite, but for us it’s a real game changer. When we’re stuck in traffic on the way home from visiting my parents and our trips turns into a 9 hour ordeal, popping in a movie for the boys is life changing. This Dual Screen TV from Panasonic attaches to the back of the headrests so the boys can both watch the same movie without having the fight over the angle of the singular portable DVD player. They’re also hands free, which means movie time sometimes turns into nap time.

I’d love to hear, what are your favorite road trip essentials?

Categories
DIY Kids Things I Love

Tooth Fairy Ideas for Kids

Is there anything more thrilling than the look of delight on your child’s face when they find a crisp dollar bill under their pillow where they once laid a tooth? Today we’re sharing six clever ideas to help the Tooth Fairy step up her game. Not that she is slacking by any means, but we just love some of these cute ideas so much we wanted to share. My very own tooth fairy pillow is on the list, and I have to say the Tooth Fairy so appreciates not having to dig her way under a pillow to find my kids’ teeth. Click the links below to see more!

Tooth Fairy Ideas for Kids | Vicky Barone

1. Tiny Door | 2. Pillow Door Hanger
3. Printable Tooth Fairy Notes | 4. Origami Money
5. Glitter Money | 6. Message in a Bottle