My nieces and I are supposedly going to spend the summer crafting. I went to the store to buy our supplies, only to find that the ones they liked were issued a product recall. We’re going to have to do with another kind of craft supplies but for those of you who have also bought the EKSuccess Wilton American Girl Crafts Pearly Beads & Ribbon Bracelets Kit, do know that the item is considered hazardous.

There has been no one harmed by the beads, however, which is good news, but the company is recalling the items as a precautionary measure. The items are said to be painted with harmful lead paint.

Sold between 2009 to 2011 at Michael Stores (crafting) and other selected retailers, the recall has been issued last June 10, 2011.

More details after the cut…

» Continue Reading

You wouldn’t know it by the weather where I am, but it is officially Spring.  Several religious traditions have important holidays around this time–a couple of them this very week.   One of my favorite sites for holiday crafts and activities is Kaboose–you might remember that I linked to their MLK day activities a while back. 

If you want to do some Passover-based crafts, Kaboose has them, and so do a few other sites.  Here are some to try:

• This is the basic Passover page.
• Here are some kid-friendly Passover recipes.
• These are Passover coloring pages.

Then some Holy Week/Easter activities can be found at these locations:

• This is Kaboose’s Easter page.
• This page has Easter puzzles, contests, and games.
• Here’s a huge list of kids’ books for Easter.

And don’t forget Earth Day, on April 22!

• Kaboose’s Earth Day page.
• This is Planetpals, with a huge range of activities.
• Here are some Earth Day crafts.

We missed listing this on March 21, but the Spring Equinox is the Wiccan festival of Ostara, which also offers fun things to do with kids:

• This is a traditional Ostara story, and here is a contemporary story.
• Here are some nature activities.
• And here are some Ostara crafts you can do.

Spring provides so many opportunities to do things with our kids and to learn together.  I hope you find the above ideas helpful.