From Spring Break to Easter, it’s the season of new beginnings and joy! We love that the weather is getting warmer, it stays lighter longer and creativity can flow. Here are wats to get your family outdoors, entertained (and educated) on breaks and unique ways celebrate springtime.
TILES THAT TEACH: HANDS ON MATH AND ART
Our family loves Magna-Tiles. We’ve loved building with all the vibrant color tiles since the kids were toddlers, and then we found CreateOn and we were smitten! We absolutely love the extension of the Magna-Tile brand to structures and personalized photos, and especially the CreateOn Craft Magna-Tile Sets. As our kids have gotten a little older, now they can have tons of fun creating works of art and developing STEAM and problem-solving skills as they play.
The double-sided tiles introduce a new style of play using Magna-Tiles®. We love The Crayola Creativity Bus because the structured side you can build the bus; then flip the tiles over to engage in hands-on learning with their Doodle Tiles® feature. Our kids can practice writing and counting numbers, coloring, or even solving math equations. Then they just wipe away the colors with a damp cloth and start all over again! We pair them with the Doodle Tiles™ so not only do they learn through colorful hands-on play, they can also develop essential skills in math, language arts and science.
We recently just found the PaintOn® Magna-Tiles® collections too. With Sesame Street Outdoors! PaintOn our kids paint their favorite Sesame Street® characters and bring them to life with Crayola® paints… they love that all the characters are playing sports. And it’s fun to bring books to life like Eric Carle’s The Very Hungry Caterpillar PaintOn, plus they have Dr. Seuss, and a brand new Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood collection too.
LONGER DAYS: BRING ON THE OUTDOOR ADVENTURES
The days are getting longer, and warmer, so spending more time outdoors is a must. But as much as we love being outside, it was pretty shocking for us to learn that one in five Americans will develop skin cancer over the course of a lifetime, and there is a 300% increase in skin cancer incidences over the past 40 years! So sun protection tops our list as we play.
Whether they are playing sports or just hanging at the park, it can be challenging to get sunscreen on the kids. Our families love the sun protective clothing from Coolibar. With UPF 50+ built into the fabric, we know we are staying safe while also looking stylish. Tested more than any other brand, endorsed by experts worldwide and recommended by dermatologists, Coolibar industry-leading fabrics block 98% of UVA/UVB rays to provide you with ultimate UPF 50+ protection guaranteed for the life of the garment as set by ASTM/AATCC standards.
Plus we love the feel of the fabrics and the ease at which we can still do everything from play soccer to chase bubbles, ride bikes and build sand castles. Coolibar isn’t just for kids. We love that they have styles to takes us from being active with the kids to the pool and brunch with friends, all while protecting our skin.
PRACTICAL SCIENCE: HOW THINGS WORK
Our kids are always asking how things work! A lot of times, we’re just as curious and it provides for such a great teaching moment. We can always find a creative way to help them better understand from the toy shop at Macy’s. We’re especially fond of the Discovery #Mindblown series because it does such a great job of tackling different aspects of life.
Take for instance the Career Doctor Play 32-Piece Activity Playset, this STEM kit introduces kids to the human body through an anatomy model, and helps them conducting tests, problem solve and even think of caring for patients as a potential career. The Discovery Kids DIY Model Engine Kit! gives kids a hands-on opportunity to build a mini replica of a classic four cycle internal combustion gasoline car engine. It allows them to play around with the valves, cylinders, cranks, and pistons all in one captivating toy. It’s a great way for anyone to expand their critical thinking skills, and dive into the world of mechanical engineering.
Plus, with the Discovery #Mindblown Suspension Marble Run Kit kids can learn the basics of physics and engineering as they watch the marble tumble down from the force of gravity and take loops without falling off the track. And we love the Discovery #Mindblown Tornado Lab 5-Speed Cyclone Controller because it’s such a fun way to learn about meteorology and atmospheric physics!
SPRING SPORTS TO CAMPS: PERSONALIZE YOUR GEAR
Spring sports are here and summer camp sign ups have begun. With every sport and activity comes lots of gear. From the jerseys to cleats, we want to make sure that everything that we start the season with comes home with us! That is why we love Mabel’s Labels. We especially love that the kids enjoy picking out a style and color and putting it on their items. The sleep away and activities sets have all that you need for sports and activities. We put a bag tag on our baseball backpack, shoe labels on our cleats, label on our bat, and mini (clothing label) on inside of our glove, jersey and hat.
We also love these water bottle bands.It may seem excessive, but we put a label and the band on our water bottle. Because when a whole team brings their water bottles to the game, it can be helpful to add the band so that your child can recognize their bottle. The labels on the hats are especially helpful when everyone takes their hats off in the dugout and throws them in a pile while they bat. Because Mabel’s Labels are fully customizable, you can add your player’s number, use team colors and use fun fonts.
