Spring break is here! The kids are excited for a week of freedom (for about 5 minutes) and then the boredom sets in. This year I plan to transform our spring break into an exciting “stay-cation” filled with exciting adventures for my kids with out leaving town or spending a lot of money. Thanks to the DIY “Spring Break Survival Sacks” that I put together and the “Sophia the First: The Floating Palace” DVD and merchandise that I received for review, boredom should be far away from my house this vacation!
Spring Break is here! This year I wanted to do something different for my kids! I wanted to do something that would keep them busy, active, excited and making memories. After racking my brain for a bit, I came up with these fun “Spring Break stay-cation Survival Sacks”!
I first thought of five different, local activities that I could do with my kids Monday-Friday that wouldn’t require a lot of travel or money. However, I wanted to really get them excited for these little outings and turn them into a big adventure! So I found a small item that could be purchased fairly inexpensively that would go with each activity to build a little excitement for it. I put each item into a regular grocery sack, which I decorated, along with a small clue about the outing and a “Challenge” that must be completed while we are there.
For the last day (Friday) I wanted to give us some down time after a busy week of outings, so I put the new “Sophia the First: The Floating Palace” DVD in the bag as a “reward” for completing all of the week’s challenges. I know that my kids will be excited for this reward as they both love the “Sophia the First” movies and Disney Junior Shows.
If you aren’t familiar with Sophia the First, she is an adorable little girl who recently became a princess. She faces several challenges as she learns what it means to be a princess, and a good friend and family member to those around her. However, she is able to get help from her magical amulet, animal friends and even visits from some famous Disney Princesses. My daughter is absolutely in love with Princess Sophia, but my son even enjoys it because there is a lot of fantasy elements such as the wicked sorcerer, Cedric, who is constantly trying to steal and harness the power of Sophia’s amulet.
To go along with the movie we will be watching at the end of the week, I decided to make my set of Spring Break Survival Sacks, an entire “Sophia the First” theme, by including some Sophia the First merchandise, decorating the bags in purple and gold (the colors of Sophia’s amulet) and by rolling each of the clues and challenges up into royal scrolls.
Below is a list of the clues, challenges and daily outings that I have included for my kids’ survival sacks, however you could easily customize any part of this to make it fit your own child’s interests!
MONDAY
Activity: Nature Hike or Bike hike
Clue:
Spring break is here, so let’s have some fun,
We’re going to enjoy every minute till the time it’s done!
Each day is a sack that holds a surprise for you,
To help you along with a challenge to do.
A water bottle is your tool for today,
To use on a hike… Let’s be on our way!
CHALLENGE: We will be going on a nature hike, on your way spot 3 different kinds of wildlife and collect 3 different “treasures” along the way
TUESDAY–
Activity; Today we are going to have our own watery adventure just like Sophia does in “the Floating Palace”. We are going to go to a local river that my kids love to play in. The water may still be a little chilly to play in right now, but we are going to learn how to skip rocks! I put a towel in the survival sack though, because it will be nice to use on the shore (and odds are, at least one of my kids will still end up wet)!
Clue:
Although it’s still a little but chilly to get really wet,
Let’s go skip rocks in the river, but we’ll still need a towel (I’d be willing to bet)!
CHALLENGE: Skip 5 rocks across the river
WEDNESDAY:
Activity: Soccer and other ball games at a local park
Clue:
Today we are going to have a ball,
Let’s go to the park and play soccer one and all!
Challenge: score 3 goals on mom!
THURSDAY
Activity- Today we are going to try and spend the entire day outside in our own backyard! We are going to start with muffins and watching the sunrise. Then we will play some fun backyard games like tag, hopscotch, hide and seek and sidewalk chalk. We will have a picnic lunch, then spend some time planting seeds. In the afternoon I’m going to set up a pop-up tent, to read stories and relax and then we are going to finish the day BBQ-ing hotdogs and star-gazing!
Clue:
Today we will use these cool shades to see all we can see,
Because from Sun up until sun down, outside we all will be!
Challenge: Its a backyard adventure day! Your challenge is to stay outside from morning until night.
Friday
Activity; Movie and relaxing day! After a busy week, we are just going to spend today in our PJs, enjoying the new “Sophia the First: the Floating Palace” full length movie that was released on DVD on 4/8. This will be the perfect way to end our spring break adventure, because the movietakes place on a special vacation that Sophia and her family take together. Just like our week full of “challenges,” Sophia comes across many challenges when she meets some new friends who are mermaids. When one mermaid friend, Ooona, is in trouble Sophia learns how important it is for family members to work together to overcome challenges!
Clue:
It’s our last day of spring break, all your challenges you’ve down,
Now for your reward, let’s all enjoy a day of movie fun!
Challenge: relax and enjoy
I have already shown my kids the Survival sacks, and they are both so excited to open the first one in a few days! If you decide to make your own Spring break survival sacks, I would love to hear what you filled them with, and how your kids enjoyed them!
Leanne Cox is a guest writer for CleverHousewife.com. She is a stay-at-home mom to two kids, and a credentialed preschool teacher. Leanne teaches “mommy-and-me” and “preschool style” music & movement classes through her business “Little Stars Music & Movement Classes” . She is passionate about encouraging early childhood education through hands on learning and exploration
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