Have you noticed that kids are grumpier when they have been sitting around playing electronics or watching TV? I sure have in my house! I have been observing my boys as they use their electronic time. When they are or have been spending time staring at a screen they are more irritable, and tend to get into more fights with each other or have a grumpy attitude.
I am NOT a fan of cranky kids! I know we all will have our moments or cranky/whiney-ness, but overall, I want to curb those grumpy tendencies in my children! We do try hard to keep electronic time balanced with active playtime both outside and indoors. And I don’t think that kids using electronics is a bad thing. In fact, I think it’s necessary. This is the world they live in and we will only have more electronics every year.
With all of that in mind, I decided to create a Smile Jar!
Silly faces and big smiles are my favorite!!! It doesn’t take much to get these crazy kids smiling and laughing, but I wanted to give them a fun new way to think of new silly games to get them laughing when the “grumpies” are around.
Using things we already had at home, (and most likely you do too!) we made the Smile Jar together.
SUPPLIES NEEDED:
- Jar (We used a glass mason jar)
- Stickers
- Construction paper
- Scissors
- Marker
- Goldfish (Snack)
The boys love getting creative. The hardest part was taking turns decorating our smile jar!
We cut the paper into strips and thought of silly things we could do and wrote them on each strip.
SILLY IDEAS:
- Have a funny face contest
- Do a silly dance
- Make up a song about Goldfish and silly faces
- Have a tickle fight
- Balance a Goldfish on your nose
- Walk funny around the house
- Run in the sprinklers while singing
- Talk like a pirate
- Tell a Joke
These are some of the ideas we came up with right away! We put each idea on a strip of paper and folded it and put it in the jar. Then we took turns pulling one out.
Of course, the whole time the kids were snacking on Goldfish! These boys love having a snack while being creative! I love that they are baked and there are no artificial colors in them. I can feel good about serving these smiling Goldfish crackers to my boys!
The first one we pulled was do a silly dance. I decided it was “Safer” to go outside and do our dances. Jimmy really broke it down.
The next one we pulled, ended up being a favorite! Balancing a Goldfish on your nose. I was rather impressed with their balancing skills.
I love these crazy boys! We had so much fun making our Smile Jar and I know I will be using it often to get them smiling and laughing. I may or may not have on purposely pulled the last one which was “Have a tickle fight.”
Our Smile Jar was a success! No more “grumpies” in my house!
Do you have a story to share about a time when Goldfish Crackers added smiles to you and your family? Goldfish wants to hear about them! Share your Goldfish Tale with them and win some awesome prizes! Go HERE for more details.
Happy Smiling!
Keikilani
maria @closetohome says
Even though my kids are ages 10-15 they still love goldfish. they are just happy snacks really and your kids are proving it with the smile jar.
Erin @ Stay at Home Yogi says
Such a cute idea! My boys would probably love balancing the goldfish on their nose the most too! lol 🙂
Heather Lawrence says
My kids love goldfish crackers but since they would eat the entire bag we need to hide those things!! They are a little too old for the craft but when they were younger they would have loved this!
Stephanie Manley says
This is such a cute idea and a great way to get the kids off their devices! There needs to be an adult jar around the house too because I’m pretty sure goldfish can make everyone smile. 😉
irishred13 says
Look at those smiles! Great ideas here, and balancing food on your nose would probably be my son’s favorite game!
Lynlee says
Oh my gosh! This is such a cute idea!!! We are definitely implementing this in our home because we ALL definitely need smiles on our day and who doesn’t love goldfish crackers?!
Aaronica @ the crunchy mommy says
What sweet boys and such an awesome idea!
Alicia says
What a great idea! I love all of their smiles 🙂 They look so happy!
Rosey says
Goldfish always make me smile too. I love the balancing act w/the cracker.
Nikki says
I love the “talk like a pirate” idea. That one would be my favorite 🙂 Your boys are adorable and look like they had some fun together!
Kerri says
I love this idea. It looks like you and the kids are having great fun doing this. MY youngest is 6 and she loves Goldfish!