Recycle old crayons that are too short to draw with to make new crayons in fun shapes.

Heat makes a crayon a little loopy; it may melt into a swirl or pool into a whirl. With this in mind, we chopped up crayons and baked them in shaped mini cake tins, making large blocks that are easy for toddlers to hold and will surely inspire older artists.

Encourage kids to come up with their own combinations—a blue-and-white blend for drawing the sky, or a mix of reds and oranges for sunsets.

Tools and Materials : old crayons, kitchen knife, mini cake tins

Crayon How-To Parents can use the knife to chop crayons into pea-size pieces, taking care to keep colors separate so kids can combine them as they like. Preheat the oven to 150°F while children fill the tin with crayon pieces, arranging them in interesting designs. Bake just until the waxes have melted, 15 to 20 minutes. Remove the shapes after they have cooled. If they stick, place the tray in the freezer for an hour, and the crayons will pop right out.

— courtesy of Martha Stewart Kids

Having a baby is a far more complicated endeavor than you could ever imagine when you first get pregnant. To help you manage the influx of baby’s clothes (and all the size changes as baby grows), here are a few tips…

Supplies Needed:

• clothes dresser
• drawer dividers
• children’s hangers
• closet dividers
• paper bags
• plastic storage bins

Organization Tips:

1. Store socks, mittens, hats, and other accessories in separate sections of the top dresser drawer.
2. Fold all onesies and store in two separate piles in the second dresser drawer: whites and colors.
3. Fold all gowns and sleepers. Store in two separate piles in the third dresser drawer.
4. Hang up baby’s outfits in the closet. Separate them by size and/or season using closet dividers.
5. As baby gets bigger, toss any outgrown clothes into the corresponding paper bag at the bottom of baby’s closet (labeled “sell,” “donate,” and “keep”).
6. Once the “donate” bag is full, take its contents to your favorite local charity.
7. When the “sell” bag is full, take its contents to your favorite consignment store.
8. When the “keep” bag is full, place its contents into the corresponding plastic bin (labeled by size and season, plus gender as necessary).

Getting ready for baby?

Be sure to register online at Amazon.com for a chance to win a Dream Baby Registry valued at over $3,000, including a year’s supply of Huggies Supreme diapers!

One winner will be selected each month from May through December, so you’ve got a total of eight chances to win!

Here in Georgetown, schools are closed for Spring Break this week. So, with the kids at home, this is the perfect time to be intentional about spending quality time together as a family. Need some ideas?

• Explorium Children’s Museum
• Georgetown Pavilion
• Lexington Children’s Theatre
• Kentucky Horse Park
• Living Arts & Science Center
• Newport Aquarium
• Salato Wildlife Education Center
• Toyota Motor Manufacturing Kentucky

Discovered this great tip at ParentHacks.com :

To keep our umbrella stroller from tipping over from the weight of the diaper bag on the back, we bought a pair of ankle weights and put them on just above the front wheels. This keeps the stroller from tipping over especially when the child gets out.