Northeast Regional Library Blog

To turn popsicle sticks into a crafty cup of hot chocolate:  First, glue about eight craft sticks together into a square shape.  You can use the colored variety or color plain popsicle sticks with crayons or markers. Next, cut an oval out of brown paper and glue the oval to the top of the square to represent the hot chocolate.  Decorate the brown oval with small white circles to mimic marshmallows.  Next, cut out a Read more…

Celebrate National Cut Your Energy Costs Day this month by doing a few simple things around your house to help lower your energy bills.  You can get the whole family involved – young children can be taught to do simple things like turning off lights when they leave a room.  Even if they cannot reach the light switch, they can give older family members gentle reminders to turn off the lights. Other simple things that Read more…

Start the new year by becoming more organized.  Some great places to start include: Organize your pantry or kitchen shelves to make mealtime preparation go faster. Have each family member organize their clothes so that getting dressed in the morning and getting ready for bed at night go more smoothly. Encourage everyone to lay out the things they will need for the following day.  Think about things like backpacks, bags, lunches, clothes, shoes, etc.

Looking for some creative ways to entertain kids on New Year’s Eve?  Have a balloon stomp!  Blow up some small balloons and have fun watching as your kids jump, sit on, and stomp the balloons to pop them!  Not only does it make a loud popping noise that children love, but it can be a good way to burn off energy.  You could also hide small prizes, like quarters, inside the balloons. A fun alternative Read more…

It’s very easy to make a candy cane ornament with a skein each of red and white embroidery floss and a pipe cleaner.  (You could also use yarn or cord in those colors – the thicker materials would also be easier for little fingers to grasp.)  Take the paper wrapping off the skeins of floss and snip each looped end to make two bunches (but you’ll only be using one bunch of each color).  Tie Read more…