How much fun can you have for $2.52?

Time and time again I tell people, it doesn't take a lot of money to have fun. It really doesn't! And to prove my point, I am going to show you what we did this past Saturday and it cost us a just $2.52.!!!

Our first stop for fun was at Lowe's Build and Grow Clinic. I have mentioned this before (like a million times) but I will say it again because this is a great program. The clinics are FREE and run about every two week on Saturdays at 10am. Children get to build great things like this Monster Box the oldest Fun Tester made this week. Children get an apron and for each thing they build, a patch to put on the apron. They also receive a certificate and get to take home their project at NO COST. How can you beat it!?!?

 Our second stop of the day was at Michael's craft store for their Make It, Take It event. This event cost us 52 cents to purchase a pail (which was on sale.) The children cut out designs from duct tape with the help of stencils to create their own trick or treat bucket! How neat is that? The Fun Tester made a face on one side and a bat on the other. These events are either free or with a purchase which always seems to be a low cost item.

Our final stop of the day was at an event called Spooky Science Saturday. It was being held jointly at the Children's Garden and the Kingman Museum. They had all sorts of education (science) activities set up. The Fun Tester had a wonderful time learning about surface tension, making animal tracks, learning about the technology that led to modern films and much more! It was all hands on and he had a wonderful time. The cost of this event was free but they were asking for a $1 donation per person. $2 for all that fun and learning was a steal. Not to mention, the next day in the paper was the Fun Tester's photo!!! Now there is a memory he will have forever.

See, having fun does NOT have to cost a lot. And finding events doesn't have to be impossible either. Check out our Cruise Directing 101 to learn how to find events. Now get out there and find some fun!!

Cruise Directing 101 - Be prepared!!!

Summer is almost here. Many preschoolers have graduated or will be doing so this week. Older kids will be out for the summer soon enough. What to do with them!?!?! BE PREPARED!!! In my other cruise directing posts I have mentioned how to get a calender going, how to find events and so on. So today I want to talk about being prepared.

Now I know you can not plan every minute of every day, and who would want to. But what you can do is have a general idea of what to do so your not caught with a child who wants to do something and your left scrambling. Like at our house this summer, each day of the week will be different, like math Monday, science Tuesday, etc. Now I am not going to plan like I am a school teacher but lets say on Monday my son wants an activity, well I will do something with math. Maybe take a walk and count flowers or make cookies (recipes are a great way to learn fractions.)

Another way to be prepared is to keep an activity bag in the trunk of your car. Have some snacks, a blanket, a few toys (like kites.) This is great for when your out and about and see an awesome park to play at.

Get a membership somewhere. We have one at our local zoo. It makes it nice when we just need a break from the backyard fun. Not only does it keep cost down in the long run, but special events at the zoo help break up the everyday grind.

Summer is almost here, so do a few things now to be prepared so your not pulling your hair out in a few weeks with children who are claiming to be bored!!

Summer is coming, be a super mom!

Are you a super mom? Me either! LOL But I try to be. With summer on the horizen it is never to early to prepare. Those children will be out of school and in out hair all too soon. So what do we do with them? Anything and everything we can find! But where do we find things to do with them???

Here are you "getting started", summer planning tips......

1.) Check your local library. Many libraries have summer reading programs. Some libraries have special events. Ours has a library in the park program once a week that is free. So call your library and ask.

2.) Summer sports. Your local rec department usually handles this type of thing and it isn't always expensive. We got our son into a summer t-ball program for just $15.

3.) Zoos. Many zoos have special events all summer long, like arbor day and animal enrichment days. Don't forget to check out if zoo camps are available. These can be very expensive depending on the zoo. We are lucky and our zoo offers 3 hrs a day for a week for $50. Getting a membership at a zoo makes visiting often easier and usually discounts on things like camps. Also check to see if they have scholarship programs.

4.) Museums and Nature Centers. Check websites for free days, special events and camps.

Now I know this is not the end all be all of things to do this summer, but it is a good jumping off point. I know when I sat down and started putting together my son's summer activities, these were some of the main things that are already on the calendar.

So start looking now. Things fill up fast. Remember you don't have to spend a ton of money to have fun. Free things are just as good. So start planning your low coast, no coast summer of fun!

Make sure you hide your stash very well!

I keep what I call a “stash” at my house. A bag full of things I pick up on discount, at the dollar store, or wherever. I have everything from books, craft supplies, and little toys, to games, building kits, and a million other things. Why might you ask do I hoard stuff? Cause you never know when you might need something. For example, a long car trip, bad day at school, or a dreaded snow day. It was on a recent snow day that I hit my “stash” and pulled foam swords and pirate eye patches for a pirate day.

Now that you know what a “stash” is (and I hope you make your own “stash”) I want to warn you on hiding your “stash.” My kid is 4 and knows mommy can make cool stuff appear without going to the store. He has taken to looking in my room, often, and he found my “stash.” He took liberty with 4 building kits I had picked up at Michael’s for a buck a piece, and decided to not only build them in the middle of the night but to PAINT them too!

While he had a great time and was very proud of himself, I was disappointed. He only destroyed $4 worth of kits, but mommy clean paint out of the carpet for over an hour. He taught me a very valuable lesson that day, HIDE YOUR STASH WELL. My words of advice are this, have a “stash” and hide it VERY well or you never know what you might wake up to. LOL

Cruise Directing 101 - Keep your eyes open

One of the ways I find fun stuff to do is by simply keeping my eyes open. What I mean by that is being aware of what’s around me. An example: I was at a pet store and at the check out they had a stack of free Equine Times publications. Now I don’t have a horse, but I picked one up anyway. Why? Because it listed shows and expos. I figured there might be something interesting to check out.

Often I find out about events through free publications like these, signs on windows, and even billboards! I once saw a billboard for a “Dino Dash.“ I went to the web site and checked it out. My son age 4 participated in a run at a local university for very cheap. Not only did he get a medal and a shirt, but they had kid activities and we got to visit the museum there to see dinos!

So keep your eyes open!

Have you been checking your newspapers?

Remember a long time ago (about 2 weeks ago) I told you to get your calender and start checking your local paper for fun stuff to do? Well have you? I did and scored with a wonderful event that cost $1 for parking. Now I will admit, I did drive 45 minutes to get there but for a dollar it was wonderful.

It was a Baby and Family Expo. They had a bounce house, children's gym equipment, crafts, magicians, music, story time and so much more. My son walked out with 2 new stuffed animals, enough crayons to keep him busy a few days, and more stickers, tattoos, candy and trinkets then you could shake a stick at. All for the $1 it cost me to park! Not to mention mommy got a free message....aahhh I was so relaxed. I also got a lot of info on up coming summer camps and fun places to visit.

And this is the most awesome part (at least for me). My baby broke a board at the martial arts booth! Tell me that wasn't worth the dollar to park! LOL So grab those local news papers and start looking for those fun things to do in your area.

Cruise Directing 101 - The craft box

How many times have you seen a craft and thought “oh let’s do that” but then you realize you need to pick up a few supplies. How many times have you ACTUALLY gone out and got the supplies and done the craft? This is the reason every house should have a craft box. A box of supplies, on hand, so the next time you see a craft to do, you can! But what to put in it? Well here are the basics of my craft box….



1.) Glue - Stick AND Elmer’s type, because while glue sticks are great for less mess, they don’t always stick what you need!
2.) Paper - Both white and construction
3.) Tape
4.) Scissors
5.) Markers, crayons and paints (with brushes)
6.) Popsicle sticks
7.) Pipe cleaners
8.) Stapler
9.) Hole punch
10.) Paper clips
11.) Rubber bands
12.) Wiggles eyes
13.) Brown paper lunch sacks
14.) Stickers
15.) Yarn

I have added many other things to it over time, like cotton balls, ribbon, glitter, empty baby food jars, etc. But to get started I suggest the list above, after that, use you imagination! I have put in things like old Christmas cards we get to use the pictures off the fronts.

I know, now your saying, “but I don’t want to spend a ton of money!” Well then DON’T!!! I will share a secret with you, Dollar Tree is an awesome store for family fun. Everything is a dollar or less and you can find almost everything on the list there. Heck, you can even find a nice container there to store all the supplies in. So get that craft box together, because I am going to start posting some fun crafts to do!

Cruise Directing 101 - Check your local paper

Having a hard time knowing where to look for fun events? There are a few sources to find the fun. First is your local paper. Not the big USA Today paper but your local little paper. Penny Savers, Shoppers, Advisor type papers. The smaller community papers tend to cover more “human interest” stuff. I get up to 3 a week (and they are FREE) from various communities around us. I look for festivals, classes and the like. Just as an example, this week I found in my local papers:

Free art exhibit at a local college
Free day at an area children’s museum
$35 basketball program for 3-7 yr old at a rec. dept.
Free Good Life Nutrition Program with kid activities like a “veggie hunt”
Free PJ story time at a local library
Free Ice sculpting festival with kid activities
Free Beekeeping program at a local library
Free “Tip Up” festival with kid activities. (For those of you who don’t come from the frozen north, a tip up is a type of fishing equipment used to ice fish! LOL)

Now I will not be doing all of these, but I will be doing a few of them for sure. So get your hands on your local papers! You never know what you will find!

Cruise Directing 101 - Let's get organized

As I said in my intro, I am the cruise director for my family. I am the one who seeks out the fun! Do you want to be your family’s cruise director? Of course you do! Trust me, it is not hard, and I will walk you through it.

For today’s lesson, we will focus on getting organized. The first thing you need is a calendar. Paper is fine, but I use my computer’s built in calendar program that way I always know where it is and it makes it easy to add things I find online. The second thing you will need are events to put on your calendar. But where do I find the fun events and activities to add?

There are a few sources to use to "find the fun." The first is friends and family. Get talking! The best way to find out what is going on is to talk to others. Word of mouth is wonderful. Second, check your local papers. You never know what you might find. The third is the Internet, it is also a great place to look. I know I could go on and on about sources of fun, but I don’t want to overwhelm you! Today is about getting organized!

Now for your homework. Oh yes, there is homework! Go get a calendar or set one up on your computer. Find 1 Family Fun thing to put on it! You are now on your way to being a cruise director!