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 Ah… Spring is nearly here, and with spring, comes Easter. We’ve put together a list of unique, fun, and educational gift ideas to fill your Easter baskets!
Easter arrives on April 4th this year – make sure you’re ready!
Click the links below for more information about each item.
Make sure to visit our store for more great gift ideas – we have over 800 gifts for under $10!!!
For the Artist:
For the Do-It-Yourselfer or Crafter:
- DIY Blank Postcards – Create your own unique Easter postcards to send to your family and friends!
- Magnetic Paper – Make your own magnets for Easter!
- Glassine Bags – Use these simple and elegant glassine bags to create party favors and to package special treats for Easter. Available in two sizes.
- Blank White Craft Box – Ditch the basket and go with a box! Keep it white or have a blast decorating this quality cigar-style box.
- DIY Playing Cards – Use this deck of blank playing cards to create small, unique Easter greetings to give to your family and friends.
- Polyshrink Film – Remember “shrinky dinks”? Now you can create your own small works of art with this polyshrink film! Create small charms to use to decorate your Easter baskets and cards. Create dozens of small Easter eggs to use as table decorations. Be creative!
- White Wire Handle Box (Chinese Take Out Box) – This box is not just for take out anymore! Use the box for party favors or for packaging small gifts. Easy to decorate, and so many possibilities!
For the Builder:
For the Thinker:
For the Nature Lover:
For the Music Lover:
For Physical Fun:
Just for Fun:
Quality Small Toys – Perfect for a Basket:
For even more small toys and fun ideas, make sure to check out our Party Favors!
Join us on an educational adventure through each state in the USA! Each post in this series focuses on one state, and includes a regional recipe from that state. This is a fun way to get your kids involved in cooking, as well as learn a bit about United States geography! The post also includes a link to the featured state’s website, where you can learn more about the state. We also include free forms that you can download and print to use along the journey. Geography has never been so delicious!
Make sure to check back each week for the next post!
RECIPE:
Did you know that Nevada is the driest state in the United States? Yep! But with the help of irrigation, some crops are grown, such as onions, potatoes, and wheat.
This recipe makes a delicious side dish of potatoes from Nevada. Your kids are going to love it!
NEVADA Silver State Potatoes
What You Will Need:
- Vegetable Oil Cooking Spray
- 4 medium Potatoes, peeled (a great opportunity to show your kids how to safely peel a potato), boiled, and grated
- 2 cups Sour Cream
- 1 tablespoon Salt
- 1/4 cup Milk
- 1 regular can of Cream of Chicken Soup
- 1/2 cup grated Cheddar Cheese
- 1/2 cup chopped Onion
- 1/4 cup Butter
- 1 cup Corn Flakes, crushed
- Large Saucepan
- Casserole Dish
What You Do:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- In a large saucepan, combine sour cream, salt, milk, soup, cheese, and onions.
- Simmer on low heat until cheese melts.
- Add potatoes to mixture, and gently stir to coat potatoes.
- Place potato mixture into a lightly greased baking dish.
- Top potatoes with crushed corn flakes mixed with softened butter.
- Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour or until golden brown.
- Remove from oven and serve.
STATE INFORMATION LINK:
Nevada State Information – Click this link to learn more about Nevada attractions, activities, and to request free brochures, maps, and so much more!
FREE STATE PRINTABLES:
US Geography Journal Pages – Use these journal pages to create a geography journal as you collect information about each state.
Nevada Outline Map – Use this state map to label capitals, major rivers and lakes, and other areas of interest. Draw a star on the place you would most like to visit in this state!
United States Outline Map – Use this USA map to track your journey as you “eat your way across the USA”! Color in each state that you’ve tried one of recipes for.
YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE:
- The United States Cook Book – Take a Tasty Tour of America’s 50 States, and learn a lot of United States geography along the way! (PLEASE NOTE: The recipe featured above is not included in this book.)
- US History Cook Book – Serve up a heaping lesson of history with delicious recipes from our nation’s past… from the pilgrims’ first feast to today’s high-tech, low-fat fare.
- Maps of the United States – This reproducible book contains geopolitical maps of each of the fifty states; political maps of the six regions; and political, physical, and thematic maps of the United States. You’ll also find fun facts, geography bee-type questions, and review pages.
- DK State-by-State Atlas – More than an atlas, this book shows and tells young geographers who, what, when, where, and why.
- The Geography Book – From finding directions by the stars, to mapping your neighborhood, to making an earthquake in a box, you’ll have a great time learning about the world with The Geography Book.
- Professor Noggins USA Geography Game – From rural farming communities to urban cities, from snow-capped mountains to tropical islands, this game covers both the natural and political geography of the United States. Learn about the states, cities, and natural geographical wonders that make this country such an interesting place to visit.
- State by State Card Game – Learning about United States geography is made fun and memorable with this unique deck of cards!
- GeoPuzzle USA Puzzle – GeoPuzzles provide a hands-on approach to learning geography.
Make sure to check back next week for the next state in this series!
Copyright © 2007-2010 Escapade Direct LLC. All rights reserved. All content on this site is property of Escapade Direct LLC and may not be used without our written permission.
 The ZinkoTek Building System is one that most kids dream of.
With 276 pieces that are soft, easy to sort, and fit together with each other perfectly, they allow building flexibility to create small simple shapes. But at the same time, the pieces are large enough to allow large structures to be erected!
The ZinkoTek Building System is fun for children ages 3 through 13! Because this building set has so many different ways of play, it grows with children. A three year old child will begin putting the pieces together to create small-scale models while sorting pieces by shape and color. As a child grows, they continue to build bigger and more elaborate structures. Older children really love the aspect of the ZinkoTek system – they can actually fabricate buildings they can enter and stand inside. Large scale structures like airplanes, forts, and make-believe robots can be constructed.
Kids love to interact with their creations, and ZinkoTek makes that possible. This kind of play sparks great imagination and creativity, both of which are crucial to full child development. We think this is one of the greatest features of the ZinkoTek for both boys and girls. Creating a massive structure that is bigger than they are is universally appealing to all kids!
Not many building sets are designed to be used outdoors. Wood blocks don’t hold up to the elements, and metal sets rust and corrode. But the ZinkoTek pieces are made of fairly soft EVA foam that is weatherproof, so it can be played with outside as well as indoors. And because the pieces are soft and pliable, there are no worries about young children getting hurt while playing with any part of the set.
Kids quickly find ways to incorporate ZinkoTek into their play with other toys. Castles are created to house pet dragons. A detached garage is needed to park the tricycle. The summer cottage is built for the teddy bear clan. And who wouldn’t like a child-sized drive-thru for your friends to pedal up to?
ZinkoTek is certainly the large-scale building set that will grow with your kids for years of creative play!
We highly recommend this imaginative building set!
Click ZinkoTek for more information and pictures, as well as a complete parts list.
Art Works! is a series of blog posts created by the staff at www.EscapadeDirect.com that offer children of all ages and abilities the opportunity for hands-on art activities that allow them to explore, discover, and express their individual creativity.
We encourage parents to join in on the activities, too, and create their own Art Works!
 Art Works! Activity #21: Box Theaters
Create your own “theater in a box” and then put on a show!
This activity energizes imaginations and creative thinking, and allows kids to play with magnets, too!
What You Need:
- Blank Game Box or similar box
- Magnet Kit, Magnet Set, or other strong magnets
- Steel Washers (must be attracted to a magnet)
- Underwater World Box Theater Templates (click link below to download and print)
- Colored Pencils
- Art Board or cardstock
- Scissors
- 2 feet of String (or Yarn)
- Tape
- Glue
What You Do:
- Click Box Theater for complete instructions, and to download and print our free templates for this project.
- When you’ve made your Box Theater and Underwater World creatures, it’s time to put on the show! Place your Box Theater on a chair or table, then stand behind it, facing the audience. Place various sea creatures on the underwater world backdrop while placing a magnet on the backside of the box lid to hold the creature in place. Slide the magnets on the backside of the box to bring your creatures to life and to tell your story! When your show is over, place all the creatures and magnets in the box and close the lid for safe storage.
You Might Also Like:
DIY Blank Puzzle – This do-it-yourself blank puzzle contains 63 precut pieces, waiting for your designs!
Designs for Coloring, Tropical Fish – Where but under the sea can you find such a rainbow of brilliantly colored creatures? This imaginative coloring book is filled with schools or exotic tropical fish bearing graceful patterns of spots and stripes.
Share Your Art Works! Activities!
If you have an Art Works! project that you would like to share, email us a digital picture (or scan) of your project , and we will post it in our Kids Gallery. If you would like, include the artists first name, age, and your state. It’s fun for kids to see how other children interpreted the project!
As always, encourage your children to come up with their own new ideas for art – and make sure to check back next week for another Art Works! activity in this series!
Copyright © 2007-2010 Escapade Direct LLC. All rights reserved. All content on this site is property of Escapade Direct LLC and may not be used without our written permission.
Join us on an educational adventure through each state in the USA! Each post in this series focuses on one state, and includes a regional recipe from that state. This is a fun way to get your kids involved in cooking, as well as learn a bit about United States geography! The post also includes a link to the featured state’s website, where you can learn more about the state. We also include free forms that you can download and print to use along the journey. Geography has never been so delicious!
Make sure to check back each week for the next post!
RECIPE:
Did you know that in the 1920s, Reuben Kay, a wholesale grocer in Omaha, created the Reuben sandwich? He kept it a secret among a few of his friends, but one day the recipe leaked out because someone in Omaha entered it in a recipe contest and won!
This recipe allows you to experience the flavors of Reuben’s special sandwich!
NEBRASKA Reuben Sandwich
What You Will Need:
- Vegetable Oil Cooking Spray
- 12 slices Rye Bread
- 3/4 cup Russian Dressing
- 18 slices cooked Corned Beef
- 1 cup Sauerkraut
- 12 slices Swiss Cheese
What You Do:
- Preheat your oven broiler.
- Spray a broiler pan with vegetable cooking spray.
- Spread 6 slices of bread with Russian dressing.
- On each of the 6 bread slices, arrange the sandwich by placing 3 slices of corned beef, a heaping tablespoon of sauerkraut, and 2 slices of cheese. Place on the broiler pan.
- Place the remaining 6 slices of bread on the broiler pan to toast.
- Place the pan under the broiler about 6 inches away from the heating element or flame. Wait until the cheese is melted and bread slices are lightly toasted. This takes about 2 minutes.
- Cover the sandwiches and cut them in half. If desired, place a decorative toothpick through each sandwich half to keep it together.
- Serve and enjoy!
STATE INFORMATION LINK:
Nebraska State Information – Click this link to learn more about Nebraska attractions, activities, and to request free brochures, maps, and so much more!
FREE STATE PRINTABLES:
US Geography Journal Pages – Use these journal pages to create a geography journal as you collect information about each state.
Nebraska Outline Map – Use this state map to label capitals, major rivers and lakes, and other areas of interest. Draw a star on the place you would most like to visit in this state!
United States Outline Map – Use this USA map to track your journey as you “eat your way across the USA”! Color in each state that you’ve tried one of recipes for.
YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE:
- The United States Cook Book – Take a Tasty Tour of America’s 50 States, and learn a lot of United States geography along the way! (PLEASE NOTE: The recipe featured above is included in this book.)
- US History Cook Book – Serve up a heaping lesson of history with delicious recipes from our nation’s past… from the pilgrims’ first feast to today’s high-tech, low-fat fare.
- Maps of the United States – This reproducible book contains geopolitical maps of each of the fifty states; political maps of the six regions; and political, physical, and thematic maps of the United States. You’ll also find fun facts, geography bee-type questions, and review pages.
- DK State-by-State Atlas – More than an atlas, this book shows and tells young geographers who, what, when, where, and why.
- The Geography Book – From finding directions by the stars, to mapping your neighborhood, to making an earthquake in a box, you’ll have a great time learning about the world with The Geography Book.
- Professor Noggins USA Geography Game – From rural farming communities to urban cities, from snow-capped mountains to tropical islands, this game covers both the natural and political geography of the United States. Learn about the states, cities, and natural geographical wonders that make this country such an interesting place to visit.
- State by State Card Game – Learning about United States geography is made fun and memorable with this unique deck of cards!
- GeoPuzzle USA Puzzle – GeoPuzzles provide a hands-on approach to learning geography.
Make sure to check back next week for the next state in this series!
Copyright © 2007-2010 Escapade Direct LLC. All rights reserved. All content on this site is property of Escapade Direct LLC and may not be used without our written permission.
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