by Kathy Sena
Editor's Note: Remember to maintain physical distancing guidelines!
After a long, chilly winter, kids and parents alike are ready to get silly, muddy and creative as they celebrate Spring!
Put out the welcome mat for Mother Nature with these tips:
Make mud pies.
There’s no better time than Spring to get gloriously, head-to-toe muddy. (And it makes for great family photos!) “Don’t worry about the extra bath your kids will need when they’re done,” says Lisbeth Sanders, a mother of two mud-pie experts. “They’ll remember this day for years to come.”
Plant a special tree or flowers.
“Every Spring, we pick a day, put on our ‘grubbies’ and work in the garden as a family,” says Julie Caravaggio. “One year, we removed a section of grass and planted flowers. Now, when I look at that area, I still remember how we all worked on it together.”
Snuggle up with a Spring-themed book.
Kathy Mazur originally wrote her book,
It’s Springtime In My Backyard
as part of a project she created with her young daughter, Lauren. The book, about a girl and her relationship with two wild ducks who nest in her backyard at the first signs of Spring, includes a charming, professionally recorded CD of then-seven-year-old Lauren reading the story. Record your little one reading their favorite story and send it to family and friends!
Throw a Spring cleaning party
. Clean your yard together as a family, or spend a few hours helping a loved one or a neighbor who could use a little extra help weeding or scrubbing the outside of their home or yard. Afterward, order pizza and celebrate a job well done – and the satisfaction of helping someone else.
Delight a neighbor with a Spring basket.
Help the kids create the basket out of construction paper, suggests Nancy Franklin. Cut the paper into a triangle shape, then roll it into a cone-shaped basket, gluing or taping the edge. Create a handle from a paper strip. Add tissue paper followed by flowers, candies or other goodies and leave the basket on the lucky recipient’s doorknob.
