1. What made you start this blog?

When I was staying home with my kids and running a small home day care, I had started working online as a freebie trader. As I discovered more about the online world and blogging, I started to think about sharing all the fun crafts and activities I did with the kids on a blog of my own. I really enjoyed sharing the crafts with other parents and caregivers. My kids also loved seeing their work displayed online.

2. Why did you focus your blog on fun crafts for toddlers?

When I started the blog I was watching mostly toddlers and preschoolers, so that was typically the kinds of crafts we made. It seemed natural to focus on toddler crafts and preschool crafts. I decided to focus the blog on crafts for kids ages one to seven, since those are typically the ages the crafts I create are appropriate for.

3. As a stay at home mom, do you think it is absolutely necessary for the mom to stay at home until the kids grow up?

No, I believe parents need to do what they feel is right for their situation. For me, it was right to be home for a few years with my kids and I loved every minute of it. But, not everybody has that option or even wants it.

If it's not right for you then I don't think you should stay home.  Some people need to have out-of-the-house work to be refreshed and have energy for their children. Some do better to just focus on their kids.  I don't think either option is wrong. Financially, having one person stay at home can also be a strain for some families, so even if they want to, it might not be an option. As long as families are thinking about what is best for the entire family, then they are making the right decision.

4. What sort of fun crafts are the most useful and enjoyable for the entire family?  

I love crafts that facilitate imaginative play, like recycled crafts that kids can play with or masks they make for pretending.

5. What can parents do to help their children learn more from a fun craft activity? 

I love to connect crafts with books. So if you are doing a craft around a snow theme, you could read a book like “Snowy Day” and talk about the book and how you can create a scene from the book. Another great way for young kids is making crafts around letters. This reinforces their understanding of letter sounds and the way they look. For example, you can work on the letter ‘B’ and create ‘Bart the bunny.’ Explain to your child how it starts with B, and point out the B as you write Bart’s name. Even better, you can create an animal from a letter, like with the letter ‘S,’ create a snake in the form of an S. Give him a name like ‘Sandy the snake.’ Then you are reinforcing that letter and sound.  I always look for the piece kids can learn in making crafts. There are so many educational opportunities for toddlers and preschoolers in creating crafts.

6. What types of parenting tips do you provide in your blog?  

I like to highlight a variety of parenting tips on toddler crafts. Some topics I have focused on are potty training, sleep, behavior, anxiety, and picky eaters.

7. Which books would you recommend parents of kids aged between one and seven?  

WOW! There are so many that I love, it's hard to know where to begin.

For books on crafting with kids my favorite is “The Toddler's Busy Book” by Trish Kuffner. For children's books to read to them, I have so many but I do have my top 10 listed in this post: http://www.toddlercraft.net/281/top-ten-childrens-books/, but I really could list 50, easily!  To name a few here, “Goodnight Moon,” “Owl Babies” and “The Kissing Hand.” A great book on helping children sleep is, “The No Cry Sleep Solution” by Elizabeth Pantley and William Sears.