Search Results for: blog the frugal toddler

DIY Toddler Toys from Everyday Objects

Toddlers have an abundance of curiosity, a short attention span (when compared to adults), and an innate ability to uninhibitedly express themselves whenever the need strikes. One might say that toddlers excel at living in the moment. The good news is that this means you can make some DIY toddler toys out of everyday household objects that will attract and amuse your toddler. Obviously, parents will need to monitor their toddlers as they play with these “DIY” toys (just as they would if the toddler was playing with regular toys). Many parents have noticed this little “quirk” that toddlers have. … Continue reading →

Frugal Ways to Entertain Your Kids this Summer

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Summer vacation is a time that most children excitedly look forward to. It is easy to see why. They get a whole lot of free time! Parents are going to need some frugal ideas for fun activities that will entertain their children. Here are a few ideas to try. Bubbles Little kids cannot get enough of bubbles! You can pick up small bottles of bubbles, complete with bubble wand, from a dollar store. Check the dollar racks at Target, too. Parents can sit down outdoors and blow bubbles that their toddlers will chase. Older kids can blow bubbles on their … Continue reading →

Are You Uncomfortable Being Frugal?

Whenever a lot of money is being spent, I tend to be uncomfortable, even if I am not the one doing the spending. Just hearing about lavish consumption kind of creeps me out. I keep wondering about the mortgage on the friend of a friend’s McMansion or how I could apply the cost of someone’s lavish vacation to building up our retirement fund. I don’t know how to react when friends give their toddlers spa days or I am invited to jewelry parties, or when the suggested contribution to the teacher’s or pastor’s gift is three figures (nothing against our … Continue reading →

A Very Frugal Christmas Part II

While making wool gloves for my husband, I was inspired to make a pair of matching wool gloves for my son.  When the first miniature glove was complete, I tried it on my sleeping son only to discover that it is quite impossible to effectively put gloves on a sleeping toddler.  The next morning I had my son try on the glove and he did not like it.  I guess I should have made mittens for him instead, but with one day left until Christmas morning, I decided to save that task for next year (whereby I would have more … Continue reading →

Toddler Fun on the Fourth

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There are so many July Fourth events in the Dallas Fort Worth Metroplex. Our family could have gone any number of places to see stunning fireworks shows. We didn’t have to go far, though, because most of our neighbors set off their own fireworks. These fireworks displays were quite impressive, too. On Jessie’s first Fourth of July with us she was 19 months old. She did not like the noise at all. She liked the lights, but the explosions were entirely too loud. We’d been having trouble with Jessie and sleeping lately. We finally got her back to her regular … Continue reading →

Toddlers and Bath Time

Jessie was nine months old when she joined our family. We were already caring for another little girl who was 27 days older. After our experiences with the first girl, we thought the two would be able to take a bath together and have a good time. We put both little girls in the tub. Jessie wasn’t having any of it. We were not expecting that. We thought that maybe the bathtub was too big and she needed the blowup duckie tubby instead. We got out the other tub and blew it up. We filled it with water that was … Continue reading →

Frugalista fashions: Five Fashion Musts for Light Travel

If you are going on vacation, it pays to travel light. Firstly, you won’t need to pay the $15.00 luggage price plus $50 to $100 for a second bag. Second, you will be able to navigate your way through the airport faster. Finally, you won’t need to spend any time at the luggage carousel, which is one of the least enjoyable parts of any trip. Traveling light doesn’t must mean shoving every into one bag because you can also be penalized for having too heavy a bag. Furthermore, you don’t want a bag so heavy you can’t manipulate it. It’s … Continue reading →

Who’s More of a Pain to Travel With–Teens or Toddlers?

Here I thought traveling cross-country with a toddler would do me in. I was wrong. While a 2-year-old can be placated with a bottle, pacifier, soggy Cheerios or empty DVD case, calming a cranky teen requires quite a bit more finesse… and patience. It’s true; the one thing worse than dealing with an irritable toddler on vacation is finding ways to handle a crabby teenager. I learned this a couple of weeks ago when I hitched a ride to Chicago (for a “working vacation”) with a pal and her teenage sons. I won’t get into the gory details regarding our … Continue reading →

Great Toys for Toddlers

Toddlers can be a difficult bunch to shop for when it comes to toys. Some of them still put a lot of things into their mouths, they are very mobile, they are past the baby stage, but still not ready for complicated toys, their attention spans can be short, and they have a tendency to fall down. Keeping all of these things in mind, here are some great toys for toddlers. Wagons and wheels Toys that have wheels are pretty good at keeping up with a toddler. Things they can push, things they can ride and things that zoom across … Continue reading →

Toddlers and Popsicles

With summer on its way, no doubt that you will be faced with the issue of popsicles (or other frozen treats) and toddlers. These two things seem made for each other. You can almost hear the groans of mothers all over, though, when they contemplate the mess and the extra sugar involved when toddlers and popsicles get together. Here are some tips to help parents and kids alike enjoy this little staple of summer. To help contain the mess, you can fashion your own drip tray. Use plastic lids from formula, small oatmeal containers or other packaging. Cut a slit … Continue reading →