Evie Adventures

Evie Discovers Fireflies and Jellybeans

2010-01-08T20:07:00.001-06:00

Hello Evie Adventurers! I am so excited to be guest posting today!
I am Fawnda from Fireflies and Jellybeans, a little DIY blog that I co-author with my best friend Jeannine! We love all things crafty and we have some great projects for you all to try!

I am a mom to one son who we adopted from Korea. He is almost 2 and keeps me VERY busy! I am also a math tutor part time (I know what you are thinking... Math GEEK! But I am OK with that!) I am addicted to clothes- A girl can never have enough clothes! And scrapbook paper-I want every themed pack that I can get my hands on! I also LOVE blogging, it is surprising how fast I got sucked in!
Today, I have a special project for you all! Something to make you look chic and stylish while you are out adventuring! :)

A Ribbon-Bead Necklace - Have you seen these in the stores? I love them but I knew that I could make one with supplies I already had at my house! This tutorial is for personal and gift giving use only! If you don't want to spend the time to make your own, I am selling them in my etsy shop Funky Joy!
Here is what you will need:
Beads (big and chunky seem to work out better- I think)
Ribbon
Thread (I used quilting thread and I doubled it up)
A hand sewing needle

1.) Cut a ribbon length of 36 inches or more (depends on how long you want your necklace... I would say that 36 inches is the smallest you would want to go- mine is 36 inches) Tie a knot about 12 down from one end of the ribbon.

2.) Thread your need and tie a knot at the end of the thread. I double threaded mine to give it more strength.

3.) Put your needle through the knot and pull it all the way through so that the knot on the thread is hidden in the knot on the ribbon.

4.) Thread a bead on and than pull the ribbon over and sew through the ribbon.

5.) Add some more beads and sew through the ribbon again. A tip: leave a little slack in the ribbon it will weave through your beads a lot better.

6.) Continue adding beads and weaving your ribbon through. The ribbon will "weave" better if you pull the beads tight... this is why you need strong thread.

7.) Once you get to where you have about 12 inches left at the end of your ribbon tie a knot and sew your thread through it. Tie off the thread.

And TA-DA a very chic and stylish necklace all for you!

Now adventure on over to Fireflies and Jellybeans and be our friend too! We have many more fun crafty tutorials waiting for you!
We also have our Show Off Your Stuff parties every Thursday for you to link up your posts that you want to show off! Come join in on the fun!

Thanks Evie for letting me invade your blog today! I had so much fun!
____________________________

Blog Swap with Crafts and Deals

2009-12-07T08:00:00.000-06:00

HI! I am Mary Ann from {Crafts and Deals...}

I am thrilled to be on Evie Adventures today!

I enjoy seeing all the fun projects that Evie and her Mom put together! I have got some great ideas from them! Isn't she the cutest?!

Here are a few of my favorite sites for Christmas Kids Crafts and activities...

Kaboose-this snowman ornament is from here. They have great ideas!

DLTK-they have lots of great games that you can print out and use for holiday parties!

Here is my tutuorial on how to make these FUN and EASY paper gift bags...they can be used for party favor bags, gift bags and make a fun gift for any holiday!

To make it you will need:

6x8 piece of card stock

some type of adhesive...I have used glue sticks, tape and glue dots

paper punch/crop-a-dile or BIG BITE {you can use eyelets or not it's up to you}

ribbon for the handles

Step one:

Score the top and bottom of the paper in 1 inch

Step two:

Measure from the top down to 3.25 inches and score a line horizontally then do it from the bottom up. This creates the bottom of the bag.

I drew lines where I scored so you could easily see where I have scored....

Step three:
Cut the side tabs...in the picture below I added the white bars so you would know where to STOP cutting.

Step four:
Fold over the edges and glue or tape them together. You can add the decoration to the front at this time and punch the holes for the ribbon to make the handles.

And there you go! I hope this tutorial has made some sense!
If you make some of these email me you pictures I'd love to see what creative things you can do with this cute bag!!

Evie Discovers Paint Your Own Pottery (with a Christmas Twist)

2009-12-02T13:30:00.000-06:00

Evie has created several masterpieces at the pottery studio near her house. She thought it was only fitting that she should go back on the first day of December to paint a plate for Santa's Cookies!

Have you ever been to a paint your own pottery studio? If not, here's how it works:

Pick out a piece of pottery (they have plates, bowls, cups, mugs, frames, etc)
Wash the piece with water and a sponge
Decide what your pottery design will be
Pick out you paint colors
Go to town painting your pottery
Leave the piece at the store for them to fire in their kiln
Pick it up about 5 - 7 days later

Evie was originally going to pick a regular plate to decorate but then she saw the Christmas section and couldn't resist! Evie picked out a plate that had Santa's head at the top.

Evie's friend Barrett came along for the adventure too! Barrett and his brother Hunter put their hand prints all along the plate in green paint. Then his mommy colored in some berries and a bow to make a beautiful wreath! Such a cute idea!!

Here is Evie's finished cookie plate! She can't wait to go back and pick it up!

So, how much does it cost? You will pay for the piece of pottery you choose. They usually have the price tags on the back. To give you an idea, the small plates were about $12 - $14. The Christmas plate with Santa's head was $20. You also have to pay a painting fee for all of the supplies. This is about $3 - $6. If you want to have your own pottery adventure but want to save some money, try painting an ornament! They had a huge selection and those would cost a lot less.

Google "paint your own pottery" and your zip code to find a studio near you!!

Evie Discovers Her Christmas Giveaway Winners!!

2009-12-01T16:52:00.003-06:00

Evie is excited to announce the winners of her Christmas Card giveaways!!

She used the Random Number Generator to get three winning numbers...and here they are:

So that makes the lucky winners of a KM Thomas Card Design...

Congratulations Roger and Robyn, Kate, and rebekah.l.louis!!! Evie will be emailing you a KM Thomas code you will need when placing your order.

Evie Discovers Thanksgiving Place Mats

2009-11-23T06:30:00.003-06:00

Evie is so excited about Thanksgiving! She gets to spend time with her family and friends, and eat great food - it doesn't get much better than that!

Since she thought she might be a little messy during her Thanksgiving meal, Evie decided to make a Thanksgiving place mat.

Evie and her Mommy looked around at other blogs for inspiration on how to make the perfect place mat.

They found some great ideas! Here are a few of their favorites:

Instead of doing place cards, you could try this personalized place mat. Your guests are sure to be impressed with this special touch! And what a fun way to find your seat!!
Here are some adorable place mats for the kids table. They're cute decoration and the kids would love playing with them!
And finally, the place mat idea Evie chose for this week's adventure!

Since Evie made Fall cards last week using leaves as stamps, she wanted to try something different. Instead of using leaves inside her place mat, she wanted to create a cute little turkey!

She was ready to collect her supplies! Her Mommy didn't have to buy a single item for this craft - they already had everything at the house:

Colored construction or card stock paper
Markers
Scissors
Glue
Wax Paper
Pencil for tracing

Evie's favorite part was having her hand traced for the turkey body and feathers!

Her Mommy traced her hand on a brown colored paper for the turkey body. She also traced Evie's hand on 4 different colors of paper for bright feathers.

Next she cut the fingers off of the colored paper to use as feathers

Evie glued the colored pieces behind the turkey for the feathers. She also trimmed some red paper to add a wattle (red beard) Yes, Evie's Mommy did just look up what that was called. She glued on some stick legs, drew on a face and her turkey was ready to go!

Evie added a few pieces of paper to her place mat to write "Happy Thanksgiving" and her name and the year

After she had all of the decorations for the place mat, Evie and her Mommy were ready to iron it together. They took a piece of wax paper and arranged the design. They covered it with another piece of wax paper, and then ironed it together with a warm iron (Evie's Mommy used a cotton/linen setting). It sealed together very quickly!

After the place mat was ironed together, it was easy to trim the uneven edges...and Evie was finished! A place mat ready for her Thanksgiving meal!!

Be sure to enter Evie's giveaway for a free Christmas Card - ends 11/30

Evie Discovers Her Own Christmas Giveaway

2009-11-20T09:30:00.004-06:00

Evie was so impressed with Katydid and Kid's giveaways that she decided to have her own!! She started thinking back on recent play dates to remember what moms were currently talking about...what would be something everyone would want?? Then it came to her! Of course, free Christmas cards!! Evie immediately thought of KM Thomas Designs on Etsy!

Evie ordered her first birthday invitations from Krysta at KM Thomas Designs and loved how they turned out!

This is the design Evie chose so everyone could see how much she had changed throughout the year.

Evie's Mommy recently ordered baby shower invitations from KM Thomas Designs. She told Evie how great it was to work with Krysta on the invitations!! Krysta was always happy to tweak the design or change the wording until it was just like her Mommy wanted it to be...and Krysta was always super quick with sending over the design proofs!

This is the invitation that Krysta designed for the baby shower

Guess what Evie Adventure readers?! KM Thomas Designs has generously offered 3 (yes 3!) certificates for card designs!! Krysta said the 3 winners could use them for Christmas cards, birthday invitations, shower invitations ... anything you find in her amazing Etsy store!

Just in case if you haven't ordered cards through Etsy before, here's how it works:

Choose your favorite design, or contact KM Thomas Designs to request a custom design.

2. Email KM Thomas Designs with:
-your text/wording for your card
–attach your picture or pictures (depending on layout)
And you let her know if you'd like a design for a 4 x 6 or a 5 x 7 print.

3. In about 48 hours (but usually less), you will receive a proof via e-mail. From there, you and Krysta can make revisions until you are absolutely satisfied.

4. Once you approve the proof, you can take it or upload it to any photo finisher (Target, Wal-Mart, Snapfish, etc.) you'd like to have prints made. With this option, you can have prints made for as little as $.06 a piece (4x6)! Or you can have KM Thomas Designs print them for you, and have the cards and envelopes mailed right to your house!!

Note: this giveaway is for 3 gift certificates for card designs (a $15 value each). If you decide to print your cards through KM Thomas Designs, you will receive $15 off the total price. The winners will receive a special code to redeem their prize!

Isn't this amazing??

Here are just a few of the adorable Christmas cards by KM Thomas Designs

who can resist a monogrammed initial??

Evie is thinking her family Christmas card will be a 3 photo design this year

Evie loves the scalloped border

Now on to the important stuff - how to enter this amazing giveaway!!

To enter:

Visit KM Thomas Designs on Etsy and leave a comment on Evie Adventures with your favorite Christmas card design in her shop.

If you would like additional chances to win, you can do the following (each is an additional entry, so make sure to leave a separate comment for each one)

Blog about this contest (this will be worth 2 entries so be sure to leave 2 different comments; also leave the blog address)
Follow Evie's blog via Google Friend Connect (find this on the right of the blog)
Post the Evie Adventures button on your blog. Be sure to leave your blog address where the button is posted.

So there is the opportunity to enter 5 times for this giveaway!!

You must do the first entry in order to enter (going to KM Thomas Design store and list your favorite Christmas design) You will have until Monday November 30th at 11:59pm CST to enter. The winners will be chosen via random number generator the next day and notified by email. Evie will also post the winners on her blog. If Evie doesn't hear back from the winners within 72 hours, she will pick new winners.

Good Luck!!

Giveaways Just In Time For Christmas!!

2009-11-17T09:18:00.000-06:00

Evie found an amazing craft blog, Katydid and Kid! Not only are there great craft ideas, there are also great giveaways!! Evie loves that all of the items are so different...some she would like to win for her Mommy, others for family members, and some she wants to keep for herself!!

Current Giveaways Going On:

$100 Gift Certificate to Tiny Prints (are you serious?!?! $100 to Tiny Prints?! Christmas Cards anyone??) Ends 11/21

Mighty Leaf Travel Tea Mug Ends 11/22

Little Thinker Doll from Unemployed Philosopher's Guild Ends 11/22

Handmade Porcelain Snowflake Ornament Ends 11/23

Putumayo World Music Family Christmas CD Ends 11/24

Consumer Reports Best Baby Products Guide Ends 11/25

$30 Gift Certificate to Eco Time Toys Ends 11/25

Wee Squeak Shoes from Beibi Lin e Ends 11/26

Evie saw a kid at the mall wearing squeaker shoes the other day. She thought they were so cool!! If she doesn't win the contest, she might have to ask Santa for a pair!!

$75 Art Basket From Stubby Pencil Studio Ends 11/28

Good luck in the giveaways!!

Evie Discovers Homemade Fall Cards

2009-11-16T06:00:00.004-06:00

Evie discovered a great Thanksgiving craft thanks to the So You Think You're Crafty blog. You'll find a video tutorial for Kid Leaf Cards on the right side of the blog. She thinks you should look at each of the Crafter's blogs - each is amazing and has great craft ideas!!

Evie was excited to start her craft - especially since it required a family walk! She headed out in her stroller, ready to find the perfect shaped leaves!!

After she collected her leaves, Evie had all the supplies she needed:

Fall Colored Paint (Evie chose dark yellow, dark orange, and brown - each bottle of paint cost $0.59 at Michaels)
Paint Brush (She got a foam one at JoAnn's Fabric store for $0.39)
Paper (While at JoAnn's, Evie saw the card stock paper was on sale "buy 2, get 3 free" Regular price was $0.59 per sheet)
Leaves

Total Spent = $3.61

You will need to press the leaves overnight before creating your cards. Try using a phone book...or Evie discovered that Sherlock Holmes books work great too!!

Evie doesn't have any pictures during the actual stamping process since her hands were covered in paint! She does have one tip though: grab a scratch sheet of paper to test stamping the leaves. It took Evie and her Mommy several test stamps before they liked the finished product. Evie cut her cardstock paper in half, and then folded those halves into greeting cards.

She loves how they turned out!!

Evie had her Mommy write "Happy Thanksgiving" inside each card. Voila!! Homemade greeting cards ready for a personalized message to each of Evie's cousins!!

**A fun extra: let your kids sign the back of the card, or write something like "Evie Original Creation" Enjoy!!

Evie Discovers Pet Stores

2009-11-09T08:00:00.000-06:00

Evie's most recent adventure was an idea from her cousin - thanks Henry!!

Evie made a trip to Petco (even though she doesn't have any pets) to see all of the animals!
Evie reads all about dogs, cats, fish, and birds in her books...so this was a great opportunity for her to learn even more about them! And to get some help with learning what sounds they make. She visited the fish, birds, ferrets, bunnies, hamsters, turtles, lizards and snakes. Since people bring their dogs and cats into the store, Evie also had fun meeting the pets!

Petco has shopping carts just Evie's size!! She loved pushing the cart around just like Mommy and Daddy!

Evie had a great time at the pet store, and will definitely be taking her Mommy back soon! This is a great activity for when you want to get out of the house but don't want to spend any money.

Blog Swap with Sisters Stuff

2009-11-06T06:00:00.002-06:00

Evie and her Mommy love looking around at other blogs...there are so many great ones out there. They came across Sisters Stuff and visit it regularly! When Evie's Mommy saw the opportunity to do a blog swap, she was excited to let her readers see all of the great stuff Sisters Stuff has to offer. Today, Evie Adventures is visiting their blog. Enjoy!!

We are excited to be doing a blog swap with evie adventures today.
Don't we all need help as moms to keep those little ones busy and happy!

We are 2 sisters that love crafts, recipes, saving money, organizing, home decor, trends, and love being moms. {Sisters Stuff} was created to share all the stuff we love.

Here are some of our favorite posts.

Recipe for Death by Chocolate

Cleaning Box for organizing chores.

We love this jewelry holder.

We also just posted a new diaper wipe case tutorial that we wanted to share with you! Enjoy!

I saw these covered diaper wipe cases when I was pregnant with my first baby and fell in love with them. I thought they were adorable and had to make them! I hope you find this tutorial useful!

Supplies:
plain wipe case
glue gun
pins
paper
pencil
batting
material
trim
ribbon/embellishments
scissors
ruler or measuring tape

Trace the bottom of your wipe case once and top of your wipe case twice. One of your top patterns will be the pattern for your batting. Once you have your patterns for the top and bottom you will need to measure the bottom and top sides of your wipe case. Once you have the measurement you will need to extend the top and bottom drawing by the amount you measured so that it will cover the sides of your wipe case.

You will have three patterns .I labeled mine top, bottom and batting so that I could use my patterns again. *The batting pattern is your original top pattern. It will be the smallest. Pin your patterns to the batting and cut out your batting. Next, do this with your top and bottom patterns to cut out your material. Glue your batting to the top of you wipe case. Glue the material to the top of the case. Make sure it covers the sides. It doesn't have to be perfect because you will be putting trim around the edges. Do the exact same thing to the bottom of the case. Then add ribbons or any other "bling" you want to the top of your wipe case. You want to do this before you add the trim. Glue trim to the top and bottom of the case. I like to start in the back so that the seams match up in the back and not in the front.

Here is the final product! So cute! Thanks again for letting us swap with you today! Come check out {Sisters Stuff} for more great ideas!

Evie Discovers Picnics

2009-11-02T08:30:00.001-06:00

Evie's most recent discovery is picnics!

She knows that they seem really simple and ordinary, but how often do you have them? Evie and her mom get tired of eating sandwiches for lunch...but they magically taste better outside on a blanket!!
Evie loves being outside, even if there isn't a playground. Sometimes we take lots of books with us so we can all have some quiet reading time...or sports balls to throw and kick around...or you can bring bubbles and sidewalk chalk (these can be purchased at a dollar store).

There are so many things you can do on a picnic! Don't feel like you have to stay out there forever - this probably won't make you want to go as often. Evie likes to take her lunch to a neighborhood park for about an hour. It's a great reason to get out of the house, and of course, a free adventure!

Have fun!!

Evie Discovers Halloween Crafts

2009-10-26T17:10:00.003-05:00

Evie is so excited about the upcoming holidays! She wanted to get into the Halloween spirit by having some friends over to work on different crafts.

Craft #1 - Decorated Pumpkins

Evie and her friends had a great time using stickers to put faces on the pumpkins. They then wrote their names on the back with a Sharpie marker. The stickers were purchased at a pumpkin patch but you could use any type of stickers you find at the store. Do you want to save a few bucks? You can also decorate squash. They are on sale right now at most grocery stores! Evie found some at Kroger for $0.77 per pound. Some were even orange with stems on top - they looked just like lighter colored pumpkins! (enlarge the top picture with the pumpkins/squash at the center of the table - you can see the slight difference between the two)

Craft #2 - Crayons, Construction Paper and Halloween Stickers

Evie found foam Halloween stickers, construction paper, and crayons at the Dollar Tree. She also picked up a clear table cloth to make sure no one got crayon marks on the table! What an inexpensive way to have some Halloween fun!!
And a Halloween Craft Day wouldn't be complete without some Halloween food!! Everyone enjoyed Ghost Pepperoni Pizza for lunch. You just pinch out 2 eyes and a mouth on each pepperoni to make a ghost!

And Dirt Cups with Worms for dessert. Evie thought it was extra cool that the kids got to mash up the Oreo cookies themselves! They each had a Ziplock bag with their initial on it, and got to go to town on several cookies!

Evie wishes everyone a Happy Halloween!!

Evie Discovers Fall Festivals

2009-10-19T08:04:00.004-05:00

Evie has finished her research on Fall Festivals and is ready to share what she found!!

Evie will be attending a Fall Festival on Halloween afternoon. Although she doesn't have any pictures to share of her adventure yet, she wanted to pass on what she found to be sure her friends would have the opportunity to attend.

Lots of churches in your city hold Fall Festivals - an event that is free to the community!! Each festival offers different food, games, and activities!

Here are some of the items that festivals in Evie's area are offering:

Hot Dogs
Hayrides
Moonwalks
Giant Slides
Petting Zoos
Rock Wall
Horse Rides
Live Music
Craft Vendors
Pumpkin Patch
Carnival Games
Costume Parade
Face Painting
Booths for kids to trick or treat

The festivals are usually held on October 31st. Some are only in the morning and afternoon, and others are held Halloween night. You may even be able to find some in your area that are held the weekend before the holiday!

So, now that you know about this fun, safe, and free Halloween event - how do you find one near you?? Evie found a few ways to find out what's offered near your house. First, you can keep a look out while you are driving around town. Most big churches offer Fall Festivals, and they will have a large sign hung out front. Another way to figure out who offers a festival is to look online. Think of all of the "big" churches in your area and look up their website. Evie found links to the Fall Festival on the church's homepage.

Enjoy your adventure!!

Evie Discovers Pumpkin Patches

2009-10-12T08:30:00.002-05:00

Evie explore Pumpkin Patches this past week - just in time for the upcoming holidays!!

Don't know where a pumpkin patch is near your house?? Locate a Pumpkin Patch Near You!! This website allows you to click on your state and then city to find pumpkin patches, corn mazes, hayrides and more!

If you don't want to drive all the way out to a pumpkin farm, you can always look at local churches in your area. Evie's adventure took place within 10 miles of her house! A church had pumpkins out in the front lawn, and the proceeds supported the youth choir. There is no cost to look around - you only pay if you buy a pumpkin, or if you want to donate towards the cause.

The church had a large variety

Specialty Pumpkins:

And Spookies:

Evie decided on one yellow specialty pumpkin and 2 little Spookies that were just her size! She's going to help her Mom paint the yellow one to put on the front porch. Evie was really impressed with the selection since it was just a local church! Imagine the pumpkins you could buy from an actual pumpkin farm?!

An adventure to a pumpkin patch can serve several purposes: fun for the kids, buying your holiday pumpkin decorations, and as a free studio for a photo session!

Evie Discovers Farmers Market

2009-10-05T10:39:00.005-05:00

Evie is excited to share her adventure to Farmers Market!

She had a great time exploring different markets - especially with cooler weather on it's way!

She found a lot of items at the market - vegetables, grass-fed meats, local honey, cage-free eggs, fresh baked breads, seafood, cheeses... the list goes on and on! Evie really enjoyed the atmosphere at the market. Since farmer markets support family farms and boosts the local economy, there is a warm, family-feel! Most markets are held on Saturday mornings, but Evie discovered that several cities hold one during the week as well!

Here are some other things Evie loved about the market:

They sell fresh flowers, homemade soaps and homemade candles
You can buy premade meals and dips to take home
Even if you don't want to purchase any groceries at the market, you can spend about $5 and get a croissant and drink. Then just walk around and enjoy the atmosphere and beautiful weather!

There was a band playing throughout the day. Whenever the band took a break, music would be played on the stereo. Some markets even have free cooking demonstrations! There were lots of families and children enjoying the market. Evie met a lot of new friends!

What could be better than bundling up, getting a hot drink and croissant, and walking around a Farmers Market!? Just remember to bring cash!!

Evie Discovers Parent/Child Classes

2009-09-28T09:30:00.003-05:00

Evie has had a busy week at different parent/child classes, and can't wait to share her newest adventure with you!

First, she visited

The Little Gym has classes for ages 4 months through 12 years. Evie was really excited to find a place that allows kids to attend so early! After speaking with one of the instructors, Evie learned that the programs have been designed to build motor skills, but they also put an emphasis on fostering social skills. They offer parent/child classes, gymnastics, karate, dance, as well as sports skill development.

The facility has a glass wall so parents of the older children can watch the classes. Since Evie was in a younger class, her mommy got to participate with her. She even learned how to do a somersault!

Parents can register their kids for a full semester, which would allow you to attend one class per week. The best part is that they offer one free visit on their website. If you visit The Little Gym Website you can sign up for your free introductory class online. They will email you a confirmation, and even have your paperwork ready when you arrive! The instructor said, "This must be Evie" as we walked in the door! What a welcome!!

Evie's next class was the same afternoon so she had to catch a quick nap in the car to make sure she would have enough energy! Unfortunately, her mommy woke her up by taking pictures!!

Evie's next investigation took place at

It's a division of the Gymboree clothing store.

Gymboree Play and Music has classes for 0 - 5 years old! The youngest class is a Play and Learn for 0-6 months which focuses on tummy time, flashlight play, songs and parent discussion time to learn about the child's development. As the children get older, there are different classes you can choose from: older Learn and Play, Music, and Sports.

During Evie's Play and Learn class, the teacher brought out a large parachute. Everyone sat on top while the teacher walked around blowing bubbles for the kids to catch. Later in the activity, the parents pulled the parachute over their heads to create a tent for the kids!

Gymboree's registration is also set up per semester which allows you to attend one class per week. And guess what?! They offer a free introductory class too! Just go to Gymboree Classes Website, and find the location closest to your house! You can register online for your free class, and they will email you a confirmation.

Even if you aren't ready to commit to an entire semester at The Little Gym or Gymboree, it's a great one day adventure for your kids! And it's free!!

Both The Little Gym and Gymboree can host birthday parties. Another great service they offer is a parent's night out. The Little Gym calls them "Parent Survival Nights" and Gymboree calls them "Pajama Parties". Here are some of the details for each:

The Little Gym - 3-8 years old (children must be potty trained); select Friday or Saturday nights
Gymboree - 18 months - 5 years old; 7pm-10pm once a month on a Saturday night; $25 for one child and $42.50 for siblings

*The day of the week and times of the Parent's Night Out classes change depending on your location so be sure to check the website!

Here's a video of another activity at Gymboree's Play and Learn class. The kids helped push the toy back and forth. It's such a simple activity, but they all loved it! The only negative was that the children enjoyed it so much that they didn't want to give other kids a turn.

And now for the winners from the Indoor Play Zone Giveaway!!

For the 2 pack of passes to Jungle Java in Round Rock, Texas...the winner is entry #3 = Amelia!

For the 5 pack of passes to Jump N Jungle in Pearland/Webster, Texas...the winner is Barrett and Hunter! (Evie had one entry for Jump N Jungle so she didn't need to generate a random number)

Congratulations Amelia, Barrett, and Hunter!! Thanks to everyone who entered the drawing!

Evie Discovers Story Time

2009-09-21T08:30:00.002-05:00

After an exciting and active adventure at the indoor play zones, Evie wanted something a little more relaxing. She decided to investigate story time! She packed up her detective hat and magnifying glass, and headed to...

Barnes & Noble!!
After noticing an events flyer during a previous visit to the store, she made a mental note to come back for a true adventure! She couldn't believe all of the great kid events they have for free!! Each location has different story times...some during the week and some on Saturdays. She even found some cities have a bedtime story they do one night a week! You can visit the Barnes & Noble Store and Event Page to see the different events taking place at the locations near your home! Evie is really excited that the location near her house has story and craft time!! The day Evie went, the story teller read Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs by Judi Barrett. It was such a fun book! There were a lot of other kids that came to story time too!

After the story, Barnes & Noble provided the supplies to create a craft! Evie made a paper hat to help cover her head - in case it ever actually rained meatballs. Then she colored some meatballs to glue on her hat. And if it rained meatballs, guess what else would come down with it? Spaghetti noodles! So, Evie colored some yellow and orange noodles to glue on along with the meatballs!
All of the kids loved making the craft!
Here is Evie's finished product!

Do you not have a Barnes & Noble near your house? Evie also looked online at Borders. The locations near her house don't offer weekly story time, but she noticed that several other cities and states did! You can go to Border's Store Locator page, and type in your zip code. Once the results come up, you'll need to click on the location nearest your home. When the store information loads, you will need to scroll down to the bottom of the page where they have the store events listed.

Another great story time option is the public library!! Over half of the locations in Evie's city offer a weekly story time!

Are you a part of a Mom's Group, or do you have a large group of parents and kids that get together for play dates? When Evie visited the location near her house, the community relations manager told her that she would be happy to host a group of parents and kids for a private story time! If this is something that you are interested in, go to your location and ask to speak to the community relations manager. Just in case if this individual doesn't know what you are talking about - you can tell them that a location in Houston, Texas offered to do a private story time for free!

Evie hopes you will enjoy this relaxing, and free, adventure!

Be sure to register for the indoor play zone giveaway on the previous adventure post - giveaway closes Sunday, September 27th at 11:59pm CST. The winners will be announced in the following day's adventure post. Good luck!!

Evie Discovers Indoor Play Zones - Giveaway!!

2009-09-16T15:54:00.003-05:00

Evie has been working hard, and is excited to report back her discovery...Indoor Play Zones!!

Since it was her first adventure, she insisted on visiting two different play zones in two different cities!

First up, Jungle Java in Round Rock, Texas

Jungle Java is an indoor playground and restaurant. There are 4 different chain locations: one in Austin, Texas area and the other 3 in Michigan.

It looked like the kids were having a great time climbing through tubes, swinging on zip lines, and racing down the slides!!

There is even a Toddler Safari area for children under 3!

Parents also looked to be having a great time! There were several seating areas, one being a lounge with leather chairs and sofas. Evie saw at least one flat screen TV which was playing college football the entire time...she knew the dads appreciated that! She was also impressed that they had free wifi - what a great option for parents that might need to get some work done!

There is a concession stand style restaurant at the front of store. The items that caught her eye were the coffee drinks and smoothies!

Jungle Java had several areas for birthday parties. Since Evie explored on a Saturday, there were a few going on while she was there.

Evie's second trip was to Jump N Jungle in Webster, Texas. They also have a location in Pearland, Texas. This is a family owned and operated business - Evie met one of the owners, Julie, who was incredibly sweet and supportive of Evie Adventures!

Jump N Jungle is an indoor jump house. Have you seen those inflatable bounce houses that you can have delivered to your house for a few hours? This is the same idea except that the Jump N Jungle contains several rooms, with several bounce houses in each room!

Jump N Jungle also hosts birthday parties! This is such a great alternative to renting a bounce house for a party! You don't have to worry about the weather or your house getting destroyed! They even have the option to cater the event with items like pizza, chicken nuggets or sub sandwiches. Jump N Jungle was just recently voted Best Party Facility in Clearlake Area by Bay Area Citizen Newspaper.
Evie found out Jump N Jungle also offers a day care service. The children are able to play in the bounce houses during their breaks...what a great way to get good naps out of the kids!
One of Evie's favorite things about Jump N Jungle is the decorations! There are paintings of animals and scenes from a jungle on every wall, and even the floor is a bright colored tile!

Some things to know about indoor play zones: they require children to play in socks so remember to pack a pair if your kids are wearing sandals. Otherwise, you can purchase some socks at the front counters. Also, parents are required to wear socks if they are going to enter the play areas. But parents - guess what?! Admission for adults is FREE!

Are you excited to visit an indoor play zone but don't live near Jungle Java or Jump N Jungle? Try searching for "indoor playgrounds" + "the name of your city" on Google! Evie tried this for several different cities and found great results. There is also a chain called Pump It Up that has over 175 locations nationwide!

Do you want to save some money but still want to visit an indoor play zone? Try your favorite mall! A lot of malls have a small playground for the kids...what a great way to spend a rainy day!! Or why not visit Jungle Java or Jump N Jungle for free?? Both Jungle Java and Jump N Jungle were incredibly generous and donated free admission passes! So, there will be 3 giveaway prize packages:

2 free admission passes to Jungle Java in Round Rock, Texas
2 free admission passes to Jump N Jungle in either Webster or Pearland, Texas
3 free admission passes to Jump N Jungle in either Webster or Pearland, Texas

Would you like a chance to win one of the great prizes? All you have to do is comment on this post with your answer to the following question:

If you went to Jungle Java, what drink would you choose?
A. Café Mocha
B. Caramel Mocha
C. Chai Tea Latte
D. Lemonade Smoothie
E. Strawberry Banana Smoothie
F. Mango Tropics Smoothie

A few guidelines on commenting:

Leave an email address so Evie can contact you if you win
Put which prize package you are entering to win (either Jungle Java or one from Jump N Jungle). Do you want a chance to win both? Just put that in your comment
Deadline for entering the contest is Sunday, September 27th at 11:59 CST
Winners will be chosen using Random.Org The website will be used to generate a random number, and then Evie will start counting from the first entry until she arrives at the randomly generated number. (Don't worry, her Mommy will help her with the counting!)
The winners will be announced in an adventure post on Monday, September 28th!

Good luck!!

Each Monday a new adventure will be posted! Evie's looking forward to sharing her next adventure on Monday, September 21st!

Let's Have An Adventure!

2009-09-11T00:34:00.000-05:00

Have you ever searched the web for ideas of activities to do with your kids? Do you find yourself doing the same activities over and over? This site is to help parents and kids find fun, new ways to spend their days!

Evie is ready to start her adventures!! She will explore near and far to find the best places for you to take your kids, as well as the best activities to do at home! Evie will have at least one adventure per week, and will report back with all of the details.

She will also be gathering gift certificates from some of the places she discovers! There will be several random drawings using Random.org. Once you see a post with a giveaway attached, you will just have to post a comment to enter to win. A super easy way to have a free adventure!

Be sure to check back each week, and get ready to have your own adventures!!