From A to Z: Letter B

Onto the next letter!

Letter B's Bible truth is Bear with One Another and Forgive Each Other. I don't know about you, but I definitely need this Bible truth as a daily reminder ;) 

This lesson includes making an adorable bear puppet, reading the story about Joseph, and giving great big bear hugs.

After we made our puppets, the puppet inspiration kept on coming and we soon had a band of puppets (robots, spiders, and tigers). Later, Luke declared they were all Joseph's brothers and we acted out some of the story. It did get a little interesting when the spider puppet turned into to Pharaoh--at least we are learning the main characters, right?

Go have fun! We'd love to see all your adorable bears or other fun ways you are using the pack, just tag us and use the hashtag #colorandkindness

-- Nicole

On the Bookshelf: Baby Wren and the Great Gift

Right now, my boys are out building snow castles and eating their fair share of dirty snow while I'm cozy inside with the sunshine and a bit of quiet (amen, right?) 

It's not quite spring here, but I am getting glimpses of it--the cold isn't so frigid, the birds are singing a bit more, and the snow is melting (for now) into mushy puddles. 

As the first day of spring approaches, I'm making a list of all the activities we can do and make once it gets a tad warmer: start seedlings for the garden, make little bird feeders, make mud pies, and take walks to the park. 

Since I have spring on my mind, when we went to the library last week, I picked up the sweetest little book that reminds me of spring. I had read the book before, so I was excited to bring it home and reread it again with the boys. 

Baby Wren and the Great Gift* is a book by Sally Loyd-Jones about a little bird who is searching for her gift/place in the world. Finally, after meeting many other animals, she learns what her gift is. The writing is lyrical and has repeated verses (which helps build the story for kids) and the illustrations are so lovely and beautiful. This book is wonderful for talking about how God has made everyone (and everything) unique and with a purpose. 

Since it is almost spring (right?), maybe it is a good time to whip us some little bird feeders for all those sweet birds singing their songs. Or, in our case, give the squirrels something new to eat ;) 

You can download and print this cute little DIY bird feeder instructions if you'd like to make your own. Once I can hunt down a pinecone, we'll be making some for our little birdies too.

Happy Thursday, friends!

--Nicole

*Affiliate links are included in this post--learn more about that here

From A to Z: Letter A

Yay for the first letter to explore creatively!

Letter A is all about how God ALWAYS keeps His promises. Isn't that such good news that we can share with our children? We talked about how God is faithful and promises to help us, never leave us, and always love us. 

This lesson includes making a cute paper rainbow and talking about God's promises, reading the story of Noah's ark, and painting raindrops. 

We've started putting the prints and some of the finished art work into plastic sleeves, so we can go back and look over what we've done. 

If you'd like to add some more activities or resources to this lesson, here are some other resources you might like (some of these are affiliate links--learn more about that here)

• Noah's ark giant coloring poster
• Big Book of Beasts to read and talk about some of the animals that may have been on the ark
• Wooden Noah's ark boat
• Promise Pack of scripture from Dear Mushka
• Rainbow stacker

Go have fun! We'd love to see all your rainbows or ways you are using the pack, just tag us and use the hashtag #colorandkindness

-- Nicole

From A to Z: Exploring Bible Truths Creatively

My oldest is almost ready to start reading. He's sounding out more letters he sees, pointing out words he recognizes, and asking me (constantly!) what something says. My littlest, well, he knows about the first three letters of the alphabet--and I think that's pretty great!

Since we are busy singing ABCs, sounding out letters, and generally obsessed with the alphabet around here, I thought it would be fun to combine some letter  + Bible learning. After searching the internet, I didn't find anything that was quite what I was looking to do. So, of course, I decided to create my own ;) 

For the last few months, I've been brainstorming, creating content, and designing each letter. Each letter "lesson" is simple, hands-on, and easy to print. I also tried to use art, craft, and activity supplies that you're likely to have at home--there's no gourmet crafting happening here ;) Plus, I also tried to focus on Bible truths that are about God, how we respond to God, and how God responds to us. Each lesson will include:

• Letter Print and Bible truth
• Bible story reference (read from the Bible or your favorite Bible for kids)
• Connect + interact page 
• Letter decorating
• Hands-on activity or craft
• Verse cards that correspond to the Bible truth (one full verse and one shortened version for younger kids)

There isn't a written devotional or a step-by-step guide because I wanted to give you the flexibility to go as deep or as simple as you'd like. For example, you may keep it super duper simple for your 2-year-old and go deeper with your older child. If you want to do scripture memory, great! If you want to add more crafts, wonderful! If you want to go the library and pick up more books, lovely! If you want to explore the Bible story more, go for it! If you want to keep it as easy as possible, that's perfect! 

In each blog post, I'll also share some other resources (like books, toys, games, tools) you could use to supplement the learning if you want to add more.

Although it will always be free on the blog, I will put it all together and add some supplemental content that will be available to purchase. So, if you aren't a fan of going through each blog post individually, you can wait and grab it as one big download. 

I hope you join me as we walk through the alphabet and explore Bible truths in fun and kid-friendly ways. I hope you are encouraged too! 

Letter A is coming soon!

--Nicole

On the Bookshelf: The Big Book of Bugs

Here in Minnesota, we are smack dab in the middle of winter. Although many parts of winter are draining (like zipping up winter jackets over and over, squishing little feet into boots, spending 25 minutes looking for a lost mitten, and days of grey skies), I do love that winter affords me the excuse to stay home a little more and get cozy. One winter rhythm we have is daily snuggle and reading time on the couch. We often find ourselves there after afternoon naps and snacks -- or maybe after I've called in the troops when the noise level enters into crazy-loud territory ;) We gather under the warm blankets and the boys grab some of their favorite books.

Recently, the book my oldest has been reaching for over and over to read is The Big Book of Bugs by Yuval Zommer* Although it's a hefty book, it's one that I certainly don't mind reading. The illustrations are beautiful and the bug facts included are interesting, but sometimes a little more than I want to know about dust mites and centipedes--ha! My four-year-old always gets a kick out of the dung beetle rolling poo ;)

I also love to use this book as a conversation starter for talking about the intricate and amazing ways that God put together nature. I find myself often saying "Wow! God made that bug super cool!" Even though we've looked through and read this book over and over, something surprises me or reminds me of God's character every time we flip it open.

I look forward to referencing it this spring when more of the creepy crawlies come out, and the boys can go bug hunting, dirt digging, and nature exploring. In the meantime, we'll keep enjoying our bug book during reading time and maybe pulling out some butterfly and caterpillar craft mats to remind us that spring is coming. Maybe you need a little spring in your days too? If you do, download these prints for a some afternoon fun. Decorate them with craft supplies, use them as a play dough mat, add fabric for texture, etc--just have fun :) 

Have a good one, friends!

-- Nicole 

This post includes affiliate links--learn more about that here