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*Make sure to get the kids involved and help encourage taking care of our planet for years to come! 50 crafts to make with kids to recycle for Earth Day: I’ve gathered all the fun crafts we’ve made here at Make and Takes that include recycled materials. Add a little glue or paint and you’re set for an earth-friendly craft day! Kids will love this Egg Carton Art idea! Always carry reusable grocery bags: I try to carry a scrunched up reusable bag in my purse at all times....

Pumpkin Crafts Pumpkin Man Halloween Countdown 2. Gilded Pumpkin Display 3. Jack-0-Lantern Cookie Pops 4. Mix and Match Pumpkins 5. Thumbprint Pumpkin Stamps Spooky Spiders 6. Pipe Cleaner Pom Pom Spider 7. Glittered Plastic Rings 8. Embroidery Hoop Spider Web 9. Spider Snow Hat 10. Spooky Spider Foam Hat Wicked Witches Pipe Cleaner Mini Witch Brooms 12. Candy Pretzel Witch Brooms 13. Witch Hair Halloween Countdown 14. Halloween Paper Bag Puppets 15....

9 Now Banana Recipes Chewy Banana Oatmeal Cookies: I love a cookie that has oatmeal in it. It makes it chewy and soft and amazing. Throw the flavor of banana in there and you’ve got one perfect cookie. (via Simply Home Cooked) Peanut Butter Banana Bread: There’s something so comforting about fresh baked banana bread! Plus, we’re putting a fun little twist on the classic banana bread by adding in some peanut butter....

I’m always looking for a healthy option for snack time with my kids. Especially when they come home from school and are famished – sometimes they act like I never feed them, they’re so hungry after-school! So these ABC smoothies are just the thing for something to sip while they work. I’ve partnered with Workman Publishing and their new Big Fat Notebook study series once again to help us all have a super successful school year....

Bagels from Benny is the story of a young man who helps his grandfather in his bakery every day. His grandfather makes the best bagels in the world, and he teaches Benny that all that they have comes from God. Benny decides that he wants to show gratitude by sharing his Grandfather’s bagels with God, so he sneaks into the synagogue on a weekly basis and places the bagels there....

I also wanted to share a few quick tips for cookie making: If you find that your cookies are spreading too much, like the cookie on the left in the picture below, add more flour to the dough. Both cookies were made with the same exact amount of dough. If you prefer thinner, crispier cookies. Then use a little less flour. Cookies will also spread more if the butter is too soft when you begin mixing the dough, or if your kitchen is too hot....

When my son was a baby he loved butternut squash. In fact, he liked it so much that during one check-up our doctor was all: “Does he eat a lot of squash? Because he’s starting to turn orange.” Flash forward 16 months and do you think he still adores squash? Nope. The baby who ate everything is now a proud member of the picky eaters club. Luckily, I’ve come up with a few ways to get him to eat his veggies....

(SCROLL DOWN TO PRINT RECIPE for Enchilada Pie) Instead of ground beef, I’m being resourceful and using up leftover chicken and getting some help from a few canned ingredients to help me get dinner on the table quickly, and without much effort. Feel free to substitute your favorite ingredients or leftovers. Using prepared enchilada sauce saves a bunch of time. If you want to make a vegetarian version, use all beans or substitute some chopped veggies for the chicken....

Cereal treats are such a great treat to make because they’re easy to make, don’t require you to turn on the oven, and can be customized exactly to your liking. They’re great little indulgences to bring along to work or pack in a your little one’s lunch box. I thought chocolate cereal would be a great combination with the peanut butter and marshmallow filling, but you can switch out for whichever cereal you like best....

(SCROLL DOWN TO PRINT RECIPE) Supplies for Chocolate Dipped Pretzel Hearts: tiny twist pretzels melted chocolate melted candy melts, found in the baking or cake decorating isle. I used white almond bark then added red food coloring, but they do have red and pink candy melts available. wax paper toothpicks/skewers Melt your chocolate and candy melts each in separate bowls, in the microwave for 30 seconds at a time, stirring in between....

Whenever Saturday morning rolls around, I always have an urge to slow down, watch cartoons and eat a sweet breakfast of pancakes, waffles, or french toast! I have fond memories of Saturday morning pancakes, (my parents made pancakes for us in the shape of our initials, or Mickey mouse), and I want to make sure my kids have some good pancake memories, too. I’m thinking of starting a new Christmas pancake tradition; wouldn’t these fun holiday pancakes bring cheer to your Christmas breakfast?...

Supplies for Patchwork Pumpkins: Blank card stock or construction paper Orange paper, fabric, junk mail, magazine pages, etc. Green paper or felt for stem Yarn or ribbon for vines Glue To get ready for this project, we went on a hunt for all the orange paper scraps, fabric pieces, catalog pieces, and junk mail we could find. We included some yellows, too. Cut your paper and fabric into pieces – no need to be perfect here, the more variation the better!...

A fun summer journal starts with a bright and sunny cover! Create a paper collage sunshine using a variety of warm-colored patterned papers. This is a perfect project for using up paper scraps or recycling magazine pages. Supplies: 2 sheets of colored construction paper (9×12″) assorted paper scraps in oranges, yellows, reds, and pinks scissors glue stick letter stickers or stamps a stack of plain copy paper (for the journal pages) stapler...

As a family, we always enjoy making a wish list of things to do, treats to eat, and places to go during the summer. This year, my girls made some unique and colorful painted paper flip-flops for their own summer wish-list posters. These posters are such fun to make and have us dreaming about summer for sure! Supplies for Flip-Flop Posters: heavy paper (such as watercolor paper) your choice of decorating supplies – paints, markers, crayons, etc....

The day before we made the brownies, I told Cate about our project. She started planning immediately and, of course, went through a lot of paper. Here is her final blueprint for a flower, a heart and a star. She really enjoyed planning ahead for the designs. Creating Art with Stenciled Brownies I picked a simple brownie recipe so it would be easy to have Cate participate in the cooking process....

This pretty fall wall decor using children’s art is a fun collaborative project for parents and teachers to hang in the home or classroom. As a preschool teacher, I quite often have leftover art that the kids have made during free choice time that they put on the drying rack without bringing to me first to put their name on. At the end of the day when I ask who created the work, nobody can seem to remember....

Mandala watercolor art Take your watercolor art to the next level by making a watercolor mandala. This is a great project for kids of all ages. The older the child, the more intricate design they can make. Start little ones off with a very basic design, even if you draw it for them, and then have them paint it. Traditionally, mandalas are a circular design, but you can make yours in another geometric design if you like, but begin it with a circle....

Edible Playdough You Will WANT to Eat! Seriously, making Peanut Butter Playdough with the girls was a lot of fun! And, unlike other recipes (ahem, Mr. Kool-Aid), these recipes are ones that you not only CAN eat but will WANT to eat. Not that the whole point of edible playdough is eating it…but if you’re going to stick it in your mouth, it may as well taste good. On to the recipes!...

Nature faces can be made virtually anywhere, at any time, so remember this activity next time your kids say “I’m bored, mom!” Supplies for Nature Faces: Various natural materials Sidewalk chalk (optional) Gather natural materials. A paper gift bag is a handy way to carry around your natural treasures. Choose all kinds of different items, such as: leaves flowers moss grass rocks pine cones acorns Get more than one of each item, if possible....

While this activity does have a cute end-product, the main fun is in exploring different painting and printing tools to make the fall tree background. And, I never get tired of a simple black silhouette on a colorful background. I will enjoy having these paintings on display this fall! Use a fall-colored piece of construction paper for this painting project. It makes a great background for the warm paint colors, and you don’t have to worry about lots of white paper showing through....