Back-to-School Craft: Speed Car Erasers

Vroom! Vroom!  An eraser car is a creative, fun activity children can make as a back to school craft or even on the weekends! Adult supervision will be required, especially for smaller children, to prevent little ones from putting pieces in their mouths. Have fun!

WHAT YOU’LL NEED:

• Knife (have a parent do this part of the craft)
• White Glue
• Thumbtacks
• Cardboard
• Permanent Markers

HERE’S HOW TO MAKE IT:

1. Begin by cutting erasers with a knife (a parent’s job; kids can use scissors for this, but the cuts won’t be as straight).
2. Stack the erasers to make cars, trucks, and trailers. Pencil-cap erasers and automatic pencil eraser refills make good cargo. Use white glue to hold the pieces together.
3. To make tires, press thumbtacks into a piece of cardboard, color them with permanent markers, then remove the tacks and press them in place on the vehicles.

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Tips for Putting Your Baby to Sleep in a Crib

I was talking to my best friend Kristen yesterday who had a baby boy in February – and she is dying of sleep because it has become really hard to put him down for naps and even to bed at night. She kept pushing on me that when I have a baby, nothing is predictable—except for a shortage of shut-eye!  It’s every parent’s recurring nightmare: you and your baby are super tired, but your baby will not fall asleep.  In the first few months of your baby’s life, getting her to sleep can be a challenge. Newborn babies sleep around 16 hours a day, but due to the need for frequent feedings, these often occur in one- and two-hour stretches at a time. When your baby is 3 months old, sleep time increases up to five-hour intervals, and by 6 months, she may sleep from nine to 12 hours at a time. Mayo Clinic experts point out that regardless of your child’s age, it’s never too soon to learn how to put a baby to sleep in a crib to encourage good sleeping habits.

This post has been moved to our website. To view the full post and specific tips for putting you baby to sleep click on this link: http://blog.letop-usa.com/?p=25614

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Painted Sneakers Craft for Kids

Give sneakers a special and personalized look with this super fun summer craft activity of painting old sneakers!

Fun Tip: Using chalk paint on sneakers is such a cute idea!  This gives kids more options to decorate!

TOOLS:

• Newspaper

• Clean canvas sneakers
• 
Fabric or acrylic craft paint
• 
Artist paintbrushes
• 
Fabric paint pens
• Permanent markers

HERE’S HOW:

1.  Cover a work surface with newspaper.
2.  Using fabric paints and paint pens, decorate sneakers.


3.  Let paint dry for 24 hours before painting another shade on top of the original color. 

CHECK OUT LE TOP CHILDREN’S CLOTHING AT
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Chalkboard Paint Sneakers

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Uma Thurman Welcomes a Daughter!

Photo by: Donald Traill/AP

Third times a charm! Uma Thurman, 42, delivered a baby girl this past weekend on July 15th. The new baby’s name isn’t revealed yet, but her the baby daddy is financier Arpad Busson. Thurman is already mom to daughter Maya, 14, and son Levon, 10, with actor Ethan Hawke.

We think this super cute Le Top Baby “Baby Blossoms” skirted footed jumpsuit would look so charming and sweet on her new arrival to the family. This charming white one-piece skirted footed jumpsuit is crafted with the softest cotton for delicate skin. This one-piece features an embroidered pastel bouquet across the yoke and petite ruffles with pink picot trim along the skirt and cuffs. Pink satin bows adorn the dainty footies. Back and underneath snaps assist dressing.

Le Top Baby “Baby Blossoms” Skirted Footed Jumpsuit

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Smart Tips for Back-to-School Shopping & Le Top’s NEW Pre-Fall Styles!

To your kids, shopping for new clothes, gear, and school supplies may be the only good thing about going back to school. Here are some back-to-school shopping tips to get you in the mood for fall clothes in the middle of summer!

Shop Le Top’s NEW pre-fall arrivals and click HERE 

• Start early. If you haven’t already, try to get your child’s school supply list from the school. Or compile your own list of items (backpack, notebooks, pencils, pens, etc.) you think your kid will need right away versus items (calculator, text book covers, Spanish dictionary, winter coat) that can wait till later in the school year.
• Shop at home first. It’s easy to forget in August that you’ve packed away extra school supplies last spring. Try to find as many items on your list around the house before you hit the aisles. Chances are, you probably have binders, colored pencils and highlighters left over from last year. Once you’ve completed your search, gather everything together to determine where you can save.
• Make a list and a budget and keep it with you at all times. You never know when you might stumble onto a sale on your way to the dentist or the grocery store.
• Buy a lunch box. You can save so much money when you send your kids to school with a homemade lunch. Added bonus: It’s likely to be a healthier choice. And you can monitor the cost of your homemade lunch purchases by using grocery store coupons, packing leftovers and reusing water bottles.

Also check out Rabbitmoon’s mix and match styles HERE

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Pool Noodle Games & Crafts for Kids!

You and your kids will have so much fun with these pool noodle activities! A pool noodle is a tube of polyethylene foam, sometimes with a hollow center. The noodles are commonly used during swimming for play and exercise but have many more uses. The foam is soft, yet strong-featured and makes a great tool for creative game play out of the water. Foam noodles do not cause damage to people or gym floors, are super cheap and can be cut apart to make game accessories.

This post has been moved to our website. To see the full post go to: http://blog.letop-usa.com/?p=25493

 

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Beach Crafts: Sand Candles Craft for Kids

Summer is really here and so are fun beach days with the kids. What do kids tend to bring home with them? SAND! In their shoes, beach bags or even in sand pails because they can’t bear to part with the beach. Here is a fun activity – sand candles – to make use of all of that extra sand and continue your kiddo’s fun on a hot summer day!

Tip: For extra fun add sea shells from the beach to the top of your candle mold to add a little “beachy” effect!

TOOLS NEEDED: 

• Large heat-proof mixing bowl
• Sand
• Empty 1-pound coffee can
• Paraffin or old candle stubs
• Candle wicking
• Thin wood dowel or stick

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Fill the bowl three quarters full with slightly damp sand and ask your child to dig a mold about the size of his fist.
2. Using your hands, bend one side of the coffee can rim to form a spout. Fill the can halfway with paraffin and set it in a saucepan that’s one fourth filled with water. (Never place the can directly on the burner.) Then melt the wax over very low heat; when it has melted, turn off the heat.
3. Cut the wicking to 6 to 8 inches longer than your mold is deep. Rest the dowel across the bowl’s top and tie one end of the wick around it. Press the other end into the bottom of the mold.
4. Now it’s the adult’s job to carefully pour the wax into the mold until it reaches about 1 inch from the top.
5. Once the candle is cool, remove it from the mold, brush off any excess sand, and trim the wick.

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Vanilla Pudding Pops for Kids – Creamy and Yummy!

What is better than something delicious, creamy and cool on a hot summer day? Vanilla pudding pops for your kiddo! Check out this great recipe!

This post has been moved to our website. To view the full recipe go to:

http://blog.letop-usa.com/?p=25459

 

 

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NEW and Creative S’mores Recipes!

This past weekend my family had a clambake on the beach (yup…clams, oysters, lobsters, hot dogs, the works…essentially is a BBQ on the beach on the East Coast). The end of the clambake is always one of my favorite parts with the kids – roasting marshmallows and making s’mores! We are huge fans of s’mores in the summer. Who isn’t? But what is a Mom to do when there isn’t a campfire?

Cool WHIP Smores
Frozen COOL WHIP is the perfect stand-in for marshmallows and instantly makes the classic s’more into a refreshing cool summer treat. 

• 8 graham cracker squares
• 8 ice cream scoop-sized portions of COOL WHIP Whipped Topping
• 4 Hershey’s bars, broken in half

Directions: Make 4 S’mores by combining the COOL WHIP, Hershey’s and graham crackers.

Lego Smores (fun for little boys!)

• 2 graham crackers broken up into the rectangle shapes along the perforation
• 1 bar Hershey chocolate
• 4 large marshmallows
• 16 mini marshmallows

Directions: To assemble. Place 1 quarter of the chocolate bar on one of the graham cracker rectangles. Top it with a heated large marshmallow (heat by fire or microwave – your choice), and top with second graham cracker. Dip one end of a mini-marshmallow in water and stick it on top of the graham cracker so there are three marshmallows per cracker. Eat!

Breakfast S’more Waffles

• 3 toaster waffles, freshly toasted
• mini-marshmallows
• 1 chocolate bar

Directions:Layer the mini-marshmallows and chocolate with the toasted waffles and toast the sides briefly in front of the fireplace or with kitchen torch. Enjoy!

 

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Happy Fourth of July! Best Playlist for the Fourth of July!

Here is a fun playlist I put together for all of you going to BBQs or hosting your own party! It could even be fun to burn a DVD and bring it to a friend’s house if you are getting the kids together for the Fourth of July. This playlist is adult and kid friendly!  Enjoy and safe travels!

1.    American Woman by Lenny Kravitz
2.    All-American Girl by Carrie Underwood
3.    American Pie by Madonna
4.    Born in the U.S.A. by Bruce Springstein
5.    We’re the Kids in America by Kim Wilde
6.    American Girl by Tom Petty
7.    American Baby by Dave Matthews Band
8.    Our Country by John Mellencamp
9.    Living in America by James Brown
10.  R.O.C.K. In the U.S.A. by John Mellencamp
11.  California Girls by The Beach Boys
12.  Party in the U.S.A. by Miley Cyrus
13.  Philadelphia Freedom by Elton John
14.  America by Simon & Garfunkel
15.  Living in the U.S.A. by The Steve Miller Band
16.  God Bless America by LeeAnn Rimes
17.  Soak Up the Sun by Sheryl Crow
18.  American Honey by Lady Antebellum
19.  Good Vibrations by The Beach Boys
20. Take It Easy by The Eagles

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