Holidays Category
Happy Thanksgiving!
From our Kolcraft Family to yours, we wish you a wonderful Thanksgiving filled with family, fun and good food!
Thank you for being a Kolcraft fan!
Happy Thanksgiving!
Thanksgiving Tip Tuesday for Toddlers
Everyone gathers around the Thanksgiving table ready to eat a feast and your toddler couldn’t be less interested in all this rich “adult” food. Or even worse – the succulent dishes are filled with nuts, shellfish or other things your child can’t have. An easy solution that everyone will love is to create your own Kiddie Thanksgiving Buffet. (Make sure you set aside small servings before nuts and other ingredients your child might not eat are added to the dish.)
Set aside in smaller dishes some of the softer kid friendly food such as potatoes, dinner rolls, stuffing and vegetables. Your child will feel like she has her own special Thanksgiving feast Kiddie style! We love Dippy Cups for kid-friendly meals especially during the holidays.
What tips do you have for making your Thanksgiving more Toddler friendly?
Thanksgiving Recipes, Crafts, Activites and More!
While it may seem like we just finished Trick or Treating with our children, Thanksgiving really is next week! We wanted to share with you some recipes, crafts and activities that you can take to your own Thanksgiving family celebration.
Recipes:
- We love Jamie Oliver’s very tasty and healthy Thanksgiving recipes. We give the roast potatoes, parsnips and carrots 5 stars! Check it out on the Jamie Oliver website.
- Food Network has some great side dish recipes that we love. We highly recommend Alton’s Superstar Mac & Cheese.
- These DIY Turkey muffins are so fun for your kids and healthy too!
- How about a healthy fruit turkey for the table?
- One of our favorites for your leftover turkey that is sure to delight kids and adults alike - Turkey nuggets!
Activities & Crafts:
- Have your kids color their own Thanksgiving placements with these Thanksgiving printable pages! Disney also has some cute printable Thanksgiving pages here.
- How about having some family fun with Thanksgiving BINGO!
- A mosaic cornucopia will add a great splash of color to your Thanksgiving decor and show off your child’s artistic talent!
- These adorable place cards will definitely bring smiles to your Thanksgiving table.
- Need to work up to a dessert appetite after your big meal? Try one of these fun family Thanksgiving games!
No matter if you have 2 or 20 people at your table, your Thanksgiving can be memorable. We especially love the tradition of going around the table and each person saying one thing they are grateful for from the past year. What Thanksgiving traditions do you have to share?
Thanksgiving Craft for Kids & Contest
Kolcraft's Hand Turkey Remix with M & M's
We all remember the “hand turkey” that we made in school. This is a simple craft that is great to decorate your house with for Thanksgiving and we have given it a “new look” and have dubbed it the Hand Turkey Remix – gobble gobble. 
All your child has to do is trace his hand on a piece of paper and color it in. (Smaller children may need you to trace their hands for them.)
- The thumb becomes the turkey’s head.
- Cut out a little yellow triangle for the turkey’s beak and glue it to the thumb.
- Add a little dot on the thumb for turkey’s eye
- Cut out little yellow feet and glue to the bottom of turkey (what is the bottom of the palm of the hand)
- The fun comes in when you decorate the turkey feathers (the other fingers) with creative texture. You can make texture with a variety of things around your house.
A few ideas for creative texture:
- Fruit Loops
- M & M’s
- Reese’s Pieces
- Colored Pasta
- Glitter
- Feathers
- Small Leaves
- Felt
Essentials:
- Paper
- Glue
- Crayons, Markers or Non-Toxic Paint
Hand Turkey Remix Contest
We know that your child is a budding da Vinici and you want to show off their turkey art. We are having a contest to win a $20.00 gift certificate to your local grocery store to help a little with your Thanksgiving dinner!
All you have to do is post your child’s Hand Turkey Remix in our Magical Moments photo album and leave a comment on our blog of which turkey is your child’s creation (so we can contact you if you are the winner). The contest will end next Friday, November 19th at noon CST.
Have fun!
Halloween Kolcraft Style
Kolcraft homemade goodie bags
At Kolcraft we believe in working hard and playing hard so last Friday we celebrated Halloween Kolcraft style. Each department decorated and had yummy treats. From 11-1 everyone trick or treated at each others departments. We had a lot of fun interacting with each other and enjoyed some pretty amazing treats from homemade candy apples to chocolate and beyond!
We captured some photos to share with you!
One of our Marketing Managers dressed as AllState's Mayhem
We even had our very own scene from the Wizard of Oz!
Wicked Witch, Glenda & a prisoner
Everyone received a special Kolcraft Trick or Treat bag (eco-friendly ones at that!)
Emilie passing out Trick or Treat bags to Corrine at front desk
Of course we had a Trick or Treat fashion statement…
Bonnie & Marisa from Fashion Department
Even our president, Tom Koltun, joined the fun!
Tom Koltun trick or treating with us
We hope you all had a fun Halloween. We sure did. Now it’s back to creating great baby products for you.
Trick or Treat for Baby Products!
Win our Contours Lite Stroller!
Who says trick or treating is only for candy? At Kolcraft we are hosting a trick or treat for baby products on our website! By following the clues and “hunting” through our website for the Halloween icon embedded into a product image (be sure to look at all the images) you will find your way to winning one of the following baby products in fashionable Fierce orange!
How it works:
- Read the clues in this blog post
- Search for the icons on our website
- When you find the icons, send us an email at BabyMatters@kolcraft.com with the links where you found the icons
- You will automatically be entered to win one of our hauntingly fashionable baby products!
- Contest ends on Friday, October 29th at midnight CST
- You receive one entry for each icon you find. Winner will be chosen by random.org
3 Clues:
Our friendly ghost will entertain you & baby for hours!
There are always lots of treats when you can stroll with baby!
Nothing like extra storage for baby essentials when you put your little pumpkin to sleep!
6 Tips for A Safe & Fun Halloween
Princesses, ghosts and other creatures will soon be going house to house for trick or treating. Whether your child is dressing up as a cuddly or a creepy critter, a few Halloween tips can keep this holiday from being a scary one.
- Makeup vs Masks – Make sure your child’s costume is safe. Masks tend to inhibit vision which can be especially dangerous for little ones who are already a bit unsteady on their feet. A great alternative is to use age-appropriate makeup instead of a mask.
- When the Sun Sets – If your child is trick or treating at night, be sure he has reflective tape on his costume, a flashlight and knows safety rules before he heads out.
- Costume Material - Your little girl couldn’t look more precious as a sparkling princess, but nothing will make her Halloween more scary than an itchy costume. Be sure to try it on beforehand and if the netting or material is itchy, see if leggings, tights or a shirt underneath will take away the scratchy feeling.
- Simplicity is Key – Cumbersome costumes on your little one can make it more difficult for him to enjoy Halloween. If he is tied down by an intricate costume you will be spending more time fixing it than allowing him to just have fun. A simple outfit will make him feel dressed up but still free to play and enjoy the holiday.
- Size Matters – Costumes that are too long- whether that be a long dress, cape, or accessory- can be a tripping hazard for little ones.
- Little Ms. or Mr. Manners – Halloween is a great time to reinforce manners by making sure your child always says “thank you” after he receives his Halloween treats. If your child grabs a handful of candy instead of one piece, remind her of the importance of sharing with the other children who are trick or treating.
What tips do you have for a safe and fun Halloween?
Easy Halloween Activity for Kids
Ghosts, witches and jack-o-lanterns are popping up around the neighborhood. A great way to decorate your own house with the help of your kids is with these easy-to-make Halloween decorations.
What you need:
- Paper plate
- Crayons, markers, or watercolors
- Construction paper
- Tape or glue
Instructions:
- Paint or color the paper plate orange. Add eyes and mouth to your pumpkin.
- Cut out 4 strips of construction paper.
- Fold strips of construction paper in alternate directions so it gives the paper an accordion effect.
- Cut out a stem for the top of the pumpkin from construction paper.
- Glue or tape the accordion legs, arms and stem to the pumpkin.
- Tah-dah! Your do-it-yourself Halloween decoration is ready for display!
Tip:
- You can make other Halloween decorations with these same supplies. To make a Frankenstein, ghost, witch, etc. just paint accordingly.
One of our co-workers brought his daughter to work. She had fun doing this craft with us and definitely has talent. When she becomes the next big artist, remember you read it first at Baby Matters Blog!
Zoe's masterpiece made at Kolcraft
Labor Day Family Fun
Labor day marks the unofficial end of summer so we wanted to give some family-friendly activities that you can enjoy over this holiday weekend.
Beach picnic – Fill your beach bag with beach toys, sunscreen and towels and head over to the beach for one last summer splash.
BBQ – Fire up the grill and enjoy family favorites like barbecued chicken, hot dogs, burgers, corn on the cob and macaroni salad.
End of Summer Scenic Drive - Take advantage of the last days of green scenery before the leaves start to fall and check out some of your local towns or hot spots.
Ice-cream party - While ice-cream can definitely be an all year long treat. It has special significance for summer. “Toast” summer with some fun shakes or an ice-cream bar where your kids can create their own sundaes. Don’t forget to have some fruit as ice-cream toppings.
One of our favorite ice-cream creations
What you will need:
- milk
- vanilla ice cream
- whipped cream
- food coloring
- ice cubes
- seedless red cherries with stems
- sprinkles
- straws
Directions:
- Put two scoops of ice cream and about 2 cups of milk into blender. Bend for about 30 seconds.
- Add a couple ice cubes and a few drops of food coloring and blend for another 30 seconds. Add a little more coloring if you need to.
- Pour into tall clear glass.
- Add whipped cream to the top of the shake.
- Add some festive sprinkles and top off with a cherry
- Enjoy!
*We like to use frozen yogurt instead of ice-cream and fruit instead of food coloring. It does the trick and is healthier.
What fun things are you doing as a family this Labor Day Holiday?
4th of July Activites for Kids
4th of July holiday means picnics, fireworks and time with family. We thought today’s fun Friday should focus on some easy and fun red, white and blue activities and crafts for little and big kids.
Glitter Fireworks
What you will need:
- Black or very dark construction paper
- Glitter
- White glue
- Old tablecloth or covering for work station surface
- Straw (optional)
Directions:
- Spread glue on the paper in different shapes. If the glue is soft enough, you can put a small blob of glue on the paper, and then blow some air through a straw to spread it into interesting shapes.
- Sprinkle glitter onto the glue. Slide the excess glitter off your picture and back into the glitter container.
- Let dry
- Hang up your child’s decoration near your 4th of July celebration spot!
4th of July Star Centerpieces 
What you will need:
- Thick paper (construction paper or paper plates)
- Markers
- Scissors (used with adult supervision)
Directions:
- Draw 2 stars and cut them out
- Decorate stars
- Cut a slit through point of star to the start of that “arm” of the star
- Cut a slit in base of other star
- Connect the two stars at the slit so star stands on its own.
- Put down center of table for decoration
4th of July Relay Race
What you will need:
- 6 Red, white and blue balloons
- 2 teams of people
How to play:
- Divide into two teams
- Give each team 3 balloons
- Let teams know that the object is to pass the balloons player by player to the end of the line by using only their heads and legs.
- First team to complete this without the balloon touching the ground wins!
Guess the Candy
What you will need:
- Clear jar
- Red & white peppermint candies or red, white & blue M&M’s or any 4th of July colored candy
- Piece of paper and pen
- Blue and red ribbon
Directions:
- Fill jar with candy and decorate it with blue and red ribbon.
- Have people guess how many candies are in the jar (which of course means you count as you place the candies in the jar).
- The person who comes closest to the number without going over, gets the jar of candy.
My mother-in-law does this at our family picnic. Everyone from age 2 to 92 loves this game. Our tradition is that whomever wins the jar has a “celebratory lap” by sharing the contents with everyone at the picnic.
What 4th of July activities do you have to share with us?
