Livin My Best Mom Life

First off, how is it already going to be the New Year? 2021 was surely different than anyone could have ever imagined. I think we can all agree that 2021 was a year filled with obstacles, a lot of unknowns, stress, and a ton of masks! We are still trying to figure out our new norm, but it has also given us time to be able to refocus and realize what matters the most in our lives.

Since we have had both girls during this pandemic, we will be staying in! I will most likely miss the ball drop and go to bed around my normal time, 8:30- 9:00 PM. Mom life.

Are you ringing in the New Year with kids too? Here is a NYE kid friendly toast along with some fun activities they will enjoy!

New Years Eve Shirts

To get the day started, make some festive shirts! I am only a year into my cricut journey, but I can honestly say I have made so much stuff with it. If you love crafting, want to design shirts, or wood hangers, the cricut maker is the way to go!

I bought this Happy New Years SVG on etsy. It is so adorable especially when paired with a glittery HTV! I love making fun t-shirts for every holiday.

Kid Friendly Toast

For the NYE kid friendly toast, I made a vanilla pudding milkshake! It’s consistency is a little bit thicker than milk. If you want it thicker, I would add ice or more ice cream.

instant jell-o pudding
vanilla ice cream

Once the jell-o has set, grab your blender and add in 1 cup milk, 3 scoops vanilla ice cream, and 3 tbsp of the instant jell-o. Add some chocolate syrup and sprinkles to the rim for fun.

Keep the Kids Entertained

Create two easy sensory activities to keep them busy! Playdoh and rice is always a huge hit in my house.

Rice Sensory Bin

dyed black rice
star die-cuts
pipe cleaners
gold and black pom poms
NYE noise maker

Playdoh

dollar store tray
playdoh
pipe cleaners
pony beads
glitter bowl filler

My daughter used the pony beads and pipe cleaners to make a bracelet. Great way to practice those fine motor skills!

Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links. This means that at no cost to you, we may earn a small commission for qualifying purchases

What ever you choose to do for NYE, remember to have fun, enjoy the celebrations and stay safe!

How is it already October? Time really does fly by even quicker once you have kids. I’ve never been one to decorate or make Halloween goodies. But, here we are!

Below are some fun Halloween activities and ideas to do with your toddler to get you feeling spooky! You can shop all the materials here.

Food Ideas

Breakfast

Check out dashes line of mini waffle makers. They practically have one for each holiday and are the perfect portion size. I went with the spider web for Halloween!

Instead of making waffles, I used cinnamon buns inside! My daughter was so excited when she saw them cooling on the rack. We then iced and decorated with sprinkles.

If you don’t have time to make a big breakfast, try store bought powdered donuts. I called these “spider eggs.”

Desert/ Snack

1. Make a BOO mix! You need cinnamon chex, peanut butter M&M’s, caramel popcorn, pretzels, and yogurt covered raisins.

2. Use vanilla wafers, peanut butter or yogurt, and sprinkles! Place a dollop of either spread on the vanilla wafer then dip it in sprinkles. Super easy and quick!

3. Make some smores! Grab your graham crackers, pumpkin pie marshmallows, chocolate, and sprinkles for a bonfire! I added some white chocolate to the graham crackers to give it more of a Halloween vibe.

Play Ideas

I setup a few different Halloween theme sensory bins. Each one with different filler. You can find all of these materials linked below

1. Water beads
Grab orange, white, and black sensory beads. The colors were already separated when I bought them, but you could easily mix them together, which my daughter ended up doing once she started playing.
I added a few bats, mini jack-o-lanterns, pretend spiders,and a scooper. You can find most of these materials from the dollar store

2. Kinetic Sand
Use Halloween colored Kinetic sand and cookie cutters!

3. Pom poms and Beans
Find the eyeballs, count them and put them into the ten frame/ ice cube tray!

4. Playroom makeover

Decorate your child’s playroom for the spooky season! I added some ghost, pumpkin, pretend spider webs, and bat lights.

5. DIY Halloween Tablecloth
Let your child be creative with this DIY coloring tablecloth. You can use crayons, colored pencils, paint, etc. I had my daughter use crayons and paint sticks. If you haven’t seen these paint sticks before, they are wonderful and so much easier than using a brush and water! The best part is it dries in 90 seconds. My daughter loves them and has no trouble opening and closing them herself.

What are you looking forward to doing this fall season?