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Easter Activities for Kids PLUS an Easter Gift Guide!

Easter Activities for Kids PLUS an Easter Gift Guide!

March 10, 2016 By Katie Chiavarone 1 Comment

Who doesn’t love a good themed activity? Here are some of my kids’ favorites from this blog for Easter! Sensory egg dyeing, yummy party treats, and even edible play dough! I would love to hear which of these Easter activities for kids are your favorites! Easter Activities for Kids [Tweet

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Filed Under: Easter, Holidays, Uncategorized Tagged With: activités, Easter, kids, kids activities, learning, moms, play, preschoolers, toddlers

Easter Gift Guide for Kids: $15 and Under!

Easter Gift Guide for Kids: $15 and Under!

March 9, 2016 By Katie Chiavarone 1 Comment

Are you, like me, totally into celebrating holidays but kind of over all of the junk that comes along with it?? I have a major sweet tooth, so do my kids, AND I am all about moderation with just about everything in life, so this is by no means a

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Filed Under: Easter, Holidays, Uncategorized Tagged With: basket, cheap, Easter, easter basket, filler, gifts, kids, moms, preschoolers, present, toddlers

25+ Simple Indoor Kids Activities for Rainy Day Fun

25+ Simple Indoor Kids Activities for Rainy Day Fun

January 26, 2016 By Katie Chiavarone 9 Comments

I am all for getting outside in pretty much ANY weather….with that said, we have some REALLY cold days here on the East Coast and definitely need to find some fun (and easy) ways to stay busy indoors. These indoor kids activities use simple household materials and a bit of imagination

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Filed Under: Arts & Crafts, Babies, Elementary, Learn Through Play, Mess-Free Sensory Play, Preschool Arts& Crafts, Preschool Science, Preschoolers, science, Sensory, Toddler Arts & Crafts, Toddler Science, Toddlers Tagged With: activities, indoor activities, indoors, kids, learn through play, preschoolers, rainy day, stay at home mom, toddlers

3 Joys of Parenting a Spirited Child

3 Joys of Parenting a Spirited Child

January 23, 2016 By Katie Chiavarone 12 Comments

Spirited, intense, even difficult, call it what you wish, it all boils down to the same personality type. The one that can make you want to scream with frustration and giggle with delight, pound your head against the wall with exhaustion then melt into a warm and welcome embrace, or

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Filed Under: Gentle Parenting, Parenting, Uncategorized Tagged With: gentle parenting, kids, moms, parenting, spirited child, stay at homde moms

6 Creative Uses for Conversation Hearts

6 Creative Uses for Conversation Hearts

January 14, 2016 By Katie Chiavarone 4 Comments

One of the first things that come to mind when I hear ‘Valentine’s Day’ is conversation hearts. When I was little, I loved getting these, reading the messages, and handing them out to people in my family when a saying reminded me of them. My kids love it when we

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Filed Under: Holidays, Uncategorized, Valentine's Day Tagged With: activities, candy, conversation hearts, creative, educational, fun, kids, learning, valentines, valentines day

Life With a 4 Year Old: When You Never Know What They Will Say Next…

Life With a 4 Year Old: When You Never Know What They Will Say Next…

December 30, 2015 By Katie Chiavarone 7 Comments

One of my favorite things to post to my personal Facebook page is mini conversations with my 4 year old. I find them to be generally hilarious and highly entertaining, now clearly I’m biased, but I hope you enjoy them nonetheless. My son turned 4 in 2015, and with that came

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Filed Under: Parenting, Uncategorized Tagged With: Entertainment, funny, kids, preschooler, quotes, stay at home mom

Room Cleaning Checklist for Kids

Room Cleaning Checklist for Kids

December 30, 2015 By Katie Chiavarone 1 Comment

I believe in raising helpers. The awesome part about that, is that the kids don’t really mind it! Chores to us are really often fun for them. However, there are a couple of places where my kids need that extra push and structure to maintain their responsibilities. These simple room

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Filed Under: Parenting, Uncategorized Tagged With: checklists, cleaning, kids, planning, resolution, stay at homes

Kindness Candy: Spread Cheer this Holiday Season and Teach Kindness

Kindness Candy: Spread Cheer this Holiday Season and Teach Kindness

December 8, 2015 By Katie Chiavarone 3 Comments

Too often this time of year we hear stories about how poorly people can treat each other. It always amazes me that people have the audacity to say or do rude things to one another. I don’t want this post to be negative, and I do see good in people

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Filed Under: Christmas, Gentle Parenting, Holidays, Parenting, Uncategorized Tagged With: acts of kindness, christmas, kids, kindness, preschool, stay at home moms

Printable Thanksgiving Placemat for Kids with Fun Ideas for a Kids Table

Printable Thanksgiving Placemat for Kids with Fun Ideas for a Kids Table

November 19, 2015 By Katie Chiavarone 1 Comment

Thanksgiving is a time for family to come together and to share in a meal. For my kids, sitting at a table to eat is not the easiest task. Is it hard for your kids to sit still at Thanksgiving dinner? If they are anything like mine, they will love this placemat

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Filed Under: Holidays, Printables, Thanksgiving Tagged With: activity, Family, kids, kids table, placemat, thanksgiving, turkey

Cold Eggs for Breakfast: Because Toddlers…

Cold Eggs for Breakfast: Because Toddlers…

November 6, 2015 By Katie Chiavarone 5 Comments

“Wake up Mommy!!” I shifted my awareness from blissful sleep to the sound of my 2 year old next to my bed. “Come on mommy! I wanna cook with you. I hungry. Let’s make eggs.” My eyes opened slightly as I checked the clock. 6:30. Ugh. I gave her a

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Filed Under: Parenting, Uncategorized Tagged With: humor, kids, moms, parenting, toddlers

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Welcome to Views From a Step Stool!

Welcome to Views From a Step Stool!

I am a mom to three little ones and love to create and explore every day with them! We have open minds and messy hands, come join in our adventures!

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What’s New

  • 12 Snowman Crafts for Kids
  • 10 Elf on the Shelf Printables to Download
  • 12 Elf on the Shelf Ideas
  • Candy Corn Sensory Bin
  • Emotions Sensory Bag
  • 10 Thanksgiving Handprint Crafts

What’s New:

  • 12 Snowman Crafts for Kids
  • 10 Elf on the Shelf Printables to Download
  • 12 Elf on the Shelf Ideas
  • Candy Corn Sensory Bin
  • Emotions Sensory Bag
  • 10 Thanksgiving Handprint Crafts
  • Build a Jack-o-Lantern Sensory Craft
  • Breakfast Smoothies for Kids with BlendJet Portable Blender
  • 12 Outdoor Painting Ideas for Kids
  • Educational Sensory Bin Ideas
  • 12 Animal Sensory Bin Ideas for Kids
  • 10 Insect Themed Sensory Bins
  • 12 Bee Crafts for Kids
  • 15 Easter Chick Crafts for Kids
  • 15+ Earth Day Crafts for Kids
  • St. Patrick’s Day Emotion Cut and Paste Printable Activity
  • Valentine’s Day Charades Words
  • Printable Color by Number Valentine’s Day Cards for Kids
  • Valentine’s Day Kindness Countdown Calendar: Free Printable
  • Valentine’s Day Pixel Art Color by Number: Free Printables

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