If there’s one thing we know how to do at Frugal and Thriving, it’s shopping a really good sale. Our job is to be on top of the hottest and latest deals from all across the internet, and we’re rounding them up and putting them all in one place for you! See this week’s best sales from some of our favorite retailers below.
Banana Republic Factory
Update your wardrobe with with sophisticated seasonal styles. Shop the Banana Republic Factory Spring Sale and get up to 50% off everything!
Carter’s
Baby fever!! Get up to 70% off all things baby from Carter’s.
Coach Outlet
Grab the perfect gift for mom!! Shop gifts from Coach Outlet for under $50.
Dick’s Sporting Goods
This sale will put a little spring in your step! Get up to 40% off running shoes for the whole family at Dick’s Sporting Goods.
Kate Spade Outlet
Grab a gorgeous new bag for spring! Kate Spade Outlet is offering an extra 20% off already-marked-down styles.
Target
Don’t miss this chance to spruce up your outdoor space! Get 30% off outdoor furniture from Target.
Walmart
Let’s get cookin’! Shop kitchen musts from Walmart for $99 or less.
Summer break has arrived for mine and Kristy’s family, and that means an immense amount of time is spent outdoors! I have lots of entertainment right in my own backyard. Our pool is a big source, and the Jersey heat…IYKYK! We have a huge play set and playhouse so that comes in handy during intermittent pool breaks! There are a lot of fun activities that can keep the kids entertained…here are some of our favs to share with you – a mix of purchasable items and ways to get creative!
Sprinkler Fun – We purchased the kids a trampoline a couple years ago and we were later gifted a trampoline sprinkler and boy does it take the trampoline, which is already a backyard outdoor fav, to another level! A great alternative to beat the heat if you don’t have a pool!
Water Table Play – My littlest guy isn’t too into our pool just yet and isn’t a fan of sprinklers, but give him a water table and he’s set to go. He loves to pour and dump the water and uses the “tools” to make a welcomed water mess, since it’s outdoors of course!
We have gone through a lot of splash pads – they are very much well-loved and get a lot of use during the warmer summer days when the kids aren’t quite ready to be fully submerged in the pool or when they just need a quick cool down!
Balloon Volleyball – This one is fun for the whole family and is pretty simple – grab a jump rope or hose and make a line to separate your courts – first one to 21 wins! If you have young kiddos and tend to be competitive, just tell them it’s like the keepsy upsy game from Bluey!
Hot Day? Try using water balloons (underhand toss) – don’t drop or squeeze the balloon too hard – first team to pop 21 balloons loses!
Treasure Hunt – Kristy’s kids love this activity and it’s considered one of their favorites. Kristy usually creates her own scavenger hunts based off of what she has in eyesight for her kids. Take a clip board or binder and some crayons or pencils and you have a fun yet simple activity! With the treasure hunts, she will grab fun bulk items from our group page and will hide them in the backyard. She recently had extra stars from her son’s birthday party so that’s what she hid the other day. Whoever collects the most gets to choose the game or movie the family watches that night – and of course keep their findings.
Sun Melted Crayons – Most kids come home at the end of the year with all of the leftovers from their school desk, with 75% of it being broken crayons. Start by ripping the paper off and putting them inside a cookie cutter sitting on tin foil and place them out in the sun. Have the kids take turns checking the progress of their new crayons in the making. Voila! Now they’ll have fun new crayons for summer!
Rock/Seashell Art – Kristy lives by the beach so they go a lot, both during the on and off season (so you can imagine the collection of rocks and shells they’ve built over the last 6 years). On rainy days or as a boredom buster, they pull out their paint and markers and start creating masterpieces on the rocks and shells. Over time the rain can wash some things away, but it gives them the opportunity to color again and again!
Outdoor Movie Nights – If you’re like us we take every opportunity to get outdoors in the summer and that even means winding down for bed!! I mean who wouldn’t love movie nights on a cool summer night, enjoying some s’mores?! Grab some old blankets, outdoor pillows, your favorite snacks {mine is popcorn} and a portable projector and you’ll have endless memories for many summers to come! You can use your vinyl fence (if you have one) as a screen, but you can also grab a portable screen off Amazon or get creative with a sheet, clips and siding hooks!
Some of the best memories are made during the summer months so get outside, enjoy the sun and have some fun!
Summer break has arrived for mine and Kristy’s family, and that means an immense amount of time is spent outdoors! I have lots of entertainment right in my own backyard. Our pool is a big source, and the Jersey heat…IYKYK! We have a huge play set and playhouse so that comes in handy during intermittent pool breaks! There are a lot of fun activities that can keep the kids entertained…here are some of our favs to share with you – a mix of purchasable items and ways to get creative!
Sprinkler Fun – We purchased the kids a trampoline a couple years ago and we were later gifted a trampoline sprinkler and boy does it take the trampoline, which is already a backyard outdoor fav, to another level! A great alternative to beat the heat if you don’t have a pool!
Water Table Play – My littlest guy isn’t too into our pool just yet and isn’t a fan of sprinklers, but give him a water table and he’s set to go. He loves to pour and dump the water and uses the “tools” to make a welcomed water mess, since it’s outdoors of course!
We have gone through a lot of splash pads – they are very much well-loved and get a lot of use during the warmer summer days when the kids aren’t quite ready to be fully submerged in the pool or when they just need a quick cool down!
Balloon Volleyball – This one is fun for the whole family and is pretty simple – grab a jump rope or hose and make a line to separate your courts – first one to 21 wins! If you have young kiddos and tend to be competitive, just tell them it’s like the keepsy upsy game from Bluey!
Hot Day? Try using water balloons (underhand toss) – don’t drop or squeeze the balloon too hard – first team to pop 21 balloons loses!
Treasure Hunt – Kristy’s kids love this activity and it’s considered one of their favorites. Kristy usually creates her own scavenger hunts based off of what she has in eyesight for her kids. Take a clip board or binder and some crayons or pencils and you have a fun yet simple activity! With the treasure hunts, she will grab fun bulk items from our group page and will hide them in the backyard. She recently had extra stars from her son’s birthday party so that’s what she hid the other day. Whoever collects the most gets to choose the game or movie the family watches that night – and of course keep their findings.
Sun Melted Crayons – Most kids come home at the end of the year with all of the leftovers from their school desk, with 75% of it being broken crayons. Start by ripping the paper off and putting them inside a cookie cutter sitting on tin foil and place them out in the sun. Have the kids take turns checking the progress of their new crayons in the making. Voila! Now they’ll have fun new crayons for summer!
Rock/Seashell Art – Kristy lives by the beach so they go a lot, both during the on and off season (so you can imagine the collection of rocks and shells they’ve built over the last 6 years). On rainy days or as a boredom buster, they pull out their paint and markers and start creating masterpieces on the rocks and shells. Over time the rain can wash some things away, but it gives them the opportunity to color again and again!
Outdoor Movie Nights – If you’re like us we take every opportunity to get outdoors in the summer and that even means winding down for bed!! I mean who wouldn’t love movie nights on a cool summer night, enjoying some s’mores?! Grab some old blankets, outdoor pillows, your favorite snacks {mine is popcorn} and a portable projector and you’ll have endless memories for many summers to come! You can use your vinyl fence (if you have one) as a screen, but you can also grab a portable screen off Amazon or get creative with a sheet, clips and siding hooks!
Some of the best memories are made during the summer months so get outside, enjoy the sun and have some fun!
Summer break has arrived for mine and Kristy’s family, and that means an immense amount of time is spent outdoors! I have lots of entertainment right in my own backyard. Our pool is a big source, and the Jersey heat…IYKYK! We have a huge play set and playhouse so that comes in handy during intermittent pool breaks! There are a lot of fun activities that can keep the kids entertained…here are some of our favs to share with you – a mix of purchasable items and ways to get creative!
Sprinkler Fun – We purchased the kids a trampoline a couple years ago and we were later gifted a trampoline sprinkler and boy does it take the trampoline, which is already a backyard outdoor fav, to another level! A great alternative to beat the heat if you don’t have a pool!
Water Table Play – My littlest guy isn’t too into our pool just yet and isn’t a fan of sprinklers, but give him a water table and he’s set to go. He loves to pour and dump the water and uses the “tools” to make a welcomed water mess, since it’s outdoors of course!
We have gone through a lot of splash pads – they are very much well-loved and get a lot of use during the warmer summer days when the kids aren’t quite ready to be fully submerged in the pool or when they just need a quick cool down!
Balloon Volleyball – This one is fun for the whole family and is pretty simple – grab a jump rope or hose and make a line to separate your courts – first one to 21 wins! If you have young kiddos and tend to be competitive, just tell them it’s like the keepsy upsy game from Bluey!
Hot Day? Try using water balloons (underhand toss) – don’t drop or squeeze the balloon too hard – first team to pop 21 balloons loses!
Treasure Hunt – Kristy’s kids love this activity and it’s considered one of their favorites. Kristy usually creates her own scavenger hunts based off of what she has in eyesight for her kids. Take a clip board or binder and some crayons or pencils and you have a fun yet simple activity! With the treasure hunts, she will grab fun bulk items from our group page and will hide them in the backyard. She recently had extra stars from her son’s birthday party so that’s what she hid the other day. Whoever collects the most gets to choose the game or movie the family watches that night – and of course keep their findings.
Sun Melted Crayons – Most kids come home at the end of the year with all of the leftovers from their school desk, with 75% of it being broken crayons. Start by ripping the paper off and putting them inside a cookie cutter sitting on tin foil and place them out in the sun. Have the kids take turns checking the progress of their new crayons in the making. Voila! Now they’ll have fun new crayons for summer!
Rock/Seashell Art – Kristy lives by the beach so they go a lot, both during the on and off season (so you can imagine the collection of rocks and shells they’ve built over the last 6 years). On rainy days or as a boredom buster, they pull out their paint and markers and start creating masterpieces on the rocks and shells. Over time the rain can wash some things away, but it gives them the opportunity to color again and again!
Outdoor Movie Nights – If you’re like us we take every opportunity to get outdoors in the summer and that even means winding down for bed!! I mean who wouldn’t love movie nights on a cool summer night, enjoying some s’mores?! Grab some old blankets, outdoor pillows, your favorite snacks {mine is popcorn} and a portable projector and you’ll have endless memories for many summers to come! You can use your vinyl fence (if you have one) as a screen, but you can also grab a portable screen off Amazon or get creative with a sheet, clips and siding hooks!
Some of the best memories are made during the summer months so get outside, enjoy the sun and have some fun!
Nicer weather is upon us and that means a lot more outside time with my kids, which they live for! They especially love playing with outdoor chalk, so I always keep at least one container of it stocked in our garage. Recently, my 5-year-old specifically requested we bring out the chalk and get creative, and that was a no-brainer for me…chalk play it was! See our creative learning with chalk play below.
I happened to have a ½ box of the 192 count Scented Chalk Sticks by Scentos, so I grabbed those and headed outside on our deck with the kiddos! They love drawing pictures and writing their names, adding on to each other’s designs, and letting their imaginations run wild – it usually always ends up being an easy 30-45 minutes of creative busy time.
My 1st grader and Kindergartener actually really enjoy it when I incorporate what they are currently learning in school and apply it to their chalk fun! For example, I will take their current sight words/trick words and write them in different colors to make a learning game out of it for them! I started doing this last year when we realized my one daughter struggled with her sight words and learning to read. This activity with the chalk really helped her and she was excited to play while learning. I even take photos or a video and send them to their teachers…they love it and praise the “extra” practice!
I love this form of play with the kids not only because it is done outdoors, but because it ignites creativity and personality, and it is just plain and simple fun! It can be done with math and other subjects as well. The options are endless!
Nicer weather is upon us and that means a lot more outside time with my kids, which they live for! They especially love playing with outdoor chalk, so I always keep at least one container of it stocked in our garage. Recently, my 5-year-old specifically requested we bring out the chalk and get creative, and that was a no-brainer for me…chalk play it was! See our creative learning with chalk play below.
I happened to have a ½ box of the 192 count Scented Chalk Sticks by Scentos, so I grabbed those and headed outside on our deck with the kiddos! They love drawing pictures and writing their names, adding on to each other’s designs, and letting their imaginations run wild – it usually always ends up being an easy 30-45 minutes of creative busy time.
My 1st grader and Kindergartener actually really enjoy it when I incorporate what they are currently learning in school and apply it to their chalk fun! For example, I will take their current sight words/trick words and write them in different colors to make a learning game out of it for them! I started doing this last year when we realized my one daughter struggled with her sight words and learning to read. This activity with the chalk really helped her and she was excited to play while learning. I even take photos or a video and send them to their teachers…they love it and praise the “extra” practice!
I love this form of play with the kids not only because it is done outdoors, but because it ignites creativity and personality, and it is just plain and simple fun! It can be done with math and other subjects as well. The options are endless!
School is out for the summer! These next few months will be filled with pool parties, beach days, and family vacations, but also lots of free time for the kiddos. Help keep them active and occupied with fun and interactive games and toys so they can create, play, and imagine all summer long. See our roundup of summer activities for kids below.
Cook up some fun with this Science of Cooking Ice Cream kit and this Kitchen Explorers recipe book! Learn about the science behind how ice cream forms and make your own ice cream and sorbet, or dive into this book of kid-tested and kid-approved recipes for endless afternoons of fun experiments and art projects in the kitchen.
Have a blast with this rocket launcher and these super soaker water guns! Load up your rockets and count down to takeoff or don a water-activated target vest and grab your super soaker for a game of water tag in the backyard.
Grow your garden with this herb kit and flower kit. Paint and decorate your own pots and then plant your seeds and watch your botanical beauties come to life!
Make a splash with this splash park and adventure pool! Inflate, fill with water, and stay cool in the pool all day long.
Buckle up for a bubbly good time with this foam machine and build-your-own bubble machine! Turn your backyard into a foam-filled playground or build your own bubble machine and become a bubble boss.
Grab your friends and grab a game like Twister Splash or this Busy Idea card game. Put a splashy twist on your classic Twister game for a fun way to cool down in the heat or grab your Busy Idea cards to beat boredom and make the most of outdoor play.
Shop Summer Activities
School is out for the summer! These next few months will be filled with pool parties, beach days, and family vacations, but also lots of free time for the kiddos. Help keep them active and occupied with fun and interactive games and toys so they can create, play, and imagine all summer long. See our roundup of summer activities for kids below.
Cook up some fun with this Science of Cooking Ice Cream kit and this Kitchen Explorers recipe book! Learn about the science behind how ice cream forms and make your own ice cream and sorbet, or dive into this book of kid-tested and kid-approved recipes for endless afternoons of fun experiments and art projects in the kitchen.
Have a blast with this rocket launcher and these super soaker water guns! Load up your rockets and count down to takeoff or don a water-activated target vest and grab your super soaker for a game of water tag in the backyard.
Grow your garden with this herb kit and flower kit. Paint and decorate your own pots and then plant your seeds and watch your botanical beauties come to life!
Make a splash with this splash park and adventure pool! Inflate, fill with water, and stay cool in the pool all day long.
Buckle up for a bubbly good time with this foam machine and build-your-own bubble machine! Turn your backyard into a foam-filled playground or build your own bubble machine and become a bubble boss.
Grab your friends and grab a game like Twister Splash or this Busy Idea card game. Put a splashy twist on your classic Twister game for a fun way to cool down in the heat or grab your Busy Idea cards to beat boredom and make the most of outdoor play.
Shop Summer Activities
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