April Fools Day Fun!

April's Fools Day is April 1st! Do you have a sweet little prank to pull on unexpecting loved ones or friends? Personally, I have always been at the 'pranked upon' end of things, I'm hoping that this year, you know with a 4 year old and a 1 year old in the house, that I just might be able to be on the otherside this year and have a little fun :)

Here are some fun ways to celebrate April Fools Day with your family!

http://familyfun.go.com/april-fools-day/practical-jokes/

Oh, the giggles and the screams! What fun, ha, ha, ha! They will never see it coming!

We would love to hear in the comments section what you have done in the past to fool your family or what you are doing this year! Or what someone has done to you in the past! Are you seeking revenge this year?

Here's my best story: (funny now of course, not so much in the moment)

My sister, a travel agent, texts me that April morning in 2009.

Little does she know that I am in the emergency room at the hospital with a sick toddler (fever 104) and have been there since the wee hours of the morning waiting for tests and comforting an unwell baby. So, as you can imagine, I'm in no awareness of it being April Fools Day nor am I in any mood for a good joke.

So anyway, she texts and says that the airline that we are traveling to Hawaii on in 4 days, went bankrupt overnight and has since basically vanished. So, all of our flights are cancelled and we are out all the money for our tickets. But not to worry because she is going to try and find us new tickets on another flight, however we are looking at spending about another $1500.00.

Now, the story behind this is that this isn't just any trip to Hawaii, my sister is getting married there in a week!

So, already I'm panicking because I have a sick baby and don't know if we can even make the trip because of that, and now she's telling me we are out all of our money and will be spending another $1500.00 to see her get married!

So... as you can imagine, I lost my mind.

I phoned my parents, as they obviously must also be in hysterics about the bankrupt airline. After my long panic-stricken vent to them about what is happening, there is a pause.

'Well, um... hunny, I don't think your sister knew you were in the hospital with G.'

I'm thinking, What?! What does that have to do with anything?! She just told us we are out thousands of dollars and with no flights and we are supposed to leave in a few days to see her get married!

'Kel, what day is it today?'

What? I don't know, Wednesday? Thursday? I've been at the hospital since 3am I'm really not aware of the calendar at the moment, why?

'Well, I think your sister may have been playing a little April Fools prank on you.'

Oh, she did not!

Oh, she did.

Here are a few more great St. Patrick’s Day songs!

Here are a few great songs I found in Holiday Piggyback Songs compiled by Jean Warren! They all have a familiar tune so they are super fun and easy to sing!

St. Patrick’s Day is Here – Tune: The farmer in the dell

St. Patrick’s Day is here,

St. Patrick’s Day is here.

Let’s give a clap and dance a jig,

St. Patrick’s Day is here.

Eensy, Weensy Leprechaun –You know the tune!

An eensy, weensy leprechaun

Came out St. Patrick’s Day

To look for the fold

That was hidden far away

Over the rainbow

Was there he was told,

So, with a wink of this green eye

He ran to get the gold.

St.Patrick's Day Art Activities!

• Green Shamrock shapes ~ glue green sparkles on them  
• Shamrock mobile! Simply use a hanger with different lengths of string and tape or glue little shamrocks on the strings! If you really want to get fancy you can twist green ribbon around the hanger!
• Buttons in various sizes and colors ~ glue (or wire through the holes) buttons together starting from largest on the bottom to smallest on the top, creating a rainbow tree shape! Rainbows intrigue the leprechauns to come to your house!

• St. Patrick’s Day headband! Measure a strip of paper around your child’s head (you may need to strips taped together) Tape the band together when you have the right size. Next you have several options! You can create a mini leprechaun hat with black paper and tape/ glue it on the front of the band. Or you can take two green pipe cleaners and tape them on each side of the band (creating antennas) and tape shamrocks to the top of each one!

• Take 7 small jars (baby food jars are awesome, or spice jars) ~ fill them with water ~ using only red, blue and yellow food coloring ~ create a rainbow! Mix the primary colors to create the secondary colors. This is a great science experiment too! Each jar will have one color of the rainbow, place in a sunny window for a beautiful decoration!

• Glue/ tape four green hearts into the shape of a shamrock and hang in the window!

• Shamrock rings ~ use green pipe cleaners ~ shape the middle of the pipe cleaner into a ring to fit on finger, then using the rest of it, twist into a shamrock shape, ( two loops for each end of the pipe cleaner and then push in the top of the loop slightly to create each 'petal') twist the end under the ‘ring’ to secure in place.

St. Patrick's Day Fun Activities

St. Patrick's Day is just around the corner! Here are some fun ways to celebrate!

 

Fun Ideas:

• Green toilet bowl water
• Painted mini feet around the environment ( make your hand into a fist, pain the side of your hand green and stamp, use your fingertip dipped in paint to create toes)
• Create an environment that looks like a ‘mischievous’ leprechaun may have visited – turn chairs upside down, turn picture frames backwards, move things into areas they wouldn’t typically be in! Really have fun with it!
• Create a leprechaun trap (http://littlehandslotsoflove.blogspot.com/2011/03/leprechaun-trap.html) , and in the morning leave a map inside so the children can see they didn’t catch the leprechaun but he left them a map! Have a hidden ‘treasure’ of some sort at the X marks the spot! (Some great treasure ideas include: Lucky Charms cereal, Shamrock stickers, 'gold' coins, anything with a rainbow on it such as pencils, erasers, stickers, etc. or anything green! Such as socks (silly leprechaun!)
• Have fun with rainbows, put crystals in the window, make rainbow cupcakes or pancakes, use rainbow sprinkles on things such as the rim of their milk glass

Cool Games:

• Duck Duck Goose! Variation – Leprechaun, Leprechaun, Rainbow! (Or Gold!)
• Doggy Doggy Where’s Your Bone? Variation – Leprechaun, Leprechaun where’s your gold
• Shamrock Search - Cut out many shamrock shapes and hide them around the room. Have the children search for them like an Easter Egg hunt.

Great Songs and Fingerplays:

Where or Where? Sung to "Where oh Where has my Little Dog Gone?"

Where, oh where has my pot of gold gone?

Oh Where, Oh Where could it be?

It's black and big and full of gold,

Oh Where, Oh where could it be?

Did You Ever See a Leprechaun? (Did you ever see a lassie?)

Did you ever see a leprechaun, a leprechaun, a leprechaun

Did you ever see a leprechaun go this way and that?

Go this way and that way and this way and that way

Did you ever see a leprechaun go this way and that?

I'm a Little Leprechaun To the tune of I'm a Little Teapot

I'm a little leprechaun dressed in green
the tiniest man that you've ever seen.
If you ever catch me so it's told
I'll give you my pot of Gold!

Five Little Shamrocks 

1 green shamrock, in the morning dew,

Another one sprouted, and then there were two.

2 green shamrocks, growing beneath a tree;

Another one sprouted and then there were three.

3 green shamrocks, by the cottage door;

Another one sprouted,

And then there were four.

4 green shamrocks, near a beehive

Another one sprouted,

And then there were five.

5 little shamrocks, bright and emerald green,

Think of all the luck these shamrocks will bring.