Showing posts with label tweens. Show all posts
Showing posts with label tweens. Show all posts
Showing posts with label tweens. Show all posts
Showing posts with label tweens. Show all posts

YA Book Series Angels Supernatural: Allegedly Mystic

Allegedly Mystic YA Fiction Aurora Series Book One


Allegedly Mystic. It's finally here! If you're a long time reader of this blog, you know I've been talking about it for years. In the early stages, I even published some chapters here to get help with crowd editing and story line content.  (Those have since been removed.) This is the first in a YA Book Series about angels and all things supernatural. Read on for the book blurb and to see how you can read it for free. 

This post contains Amazon affiliate links.


YA Book Series Angels Supernatural: Allegedly MysticAllegedly Mystic YA Fiction Aurora Series Book One
Check out my Amazon Author Page, Lora Langston, and follow along there.



“Ugly people argue. When I feel ugly, things get ugly around me. I always want to run and hide in a bathtub. Unfortunately, the school frowns on unusual behaviors like that. My school counselor says I walk the halls with the grace of Snuffleupagus and the air of Pig Pen. Apparently, a cloud of woe surrounds me in typical Eeyore fashion.

Troubled kids who cause their parents shame, stress, or miserable pain often get shipped off to some kind of camp. Maybe Fat Camp, Betty Ford, or a Funny Farm? I could never be so lucky.  

Where’s a bathtub when you really need one? “

_____________________________________________________________________

(Teen & Young Adult Visionary & Metaphysical Fiction eBooks)

_____________________________________________________________________


Life is nothing if not unpredictable. Navigating adolescence is never easy, but when you’re born into a family of mystic medicine, every moment is a challenge. Aurora thinks she’s got a handle on it until her emotions get the best of her. 

When your feels affect everyone within a city block, you move every six months, and you’re labeled a weird homeschooler, having friends seems like an impossible dream. Having a best friend is completely out of the question. 

Romance? That's a stone that will never get turned over...

After watching her mother perform a strange ritual in the park, Aurora can’t help but think the story of her ancestry is a pack of lies. She’s seen all the movies about witchcraft. Whenever she’s feeling stressed, a green aura haunts her every move, a white cat appears out of nowhere, the school bully suddenly has her back, and she finds comfort in the companionship of a mysterious kid no one else seems to notice. 

Wondering if she’s secretly a witch, but doesn’t know it, Aurora opens up to her new friends and ends up confessing more than just her concerns about her fanatical mother and the green light. Her emotions always run rampant, but once she gets a handle on it all, she realizes those confusing feelings about her new protector might be more than just gratitude. She’s finally ready to sort it all out when her reservation to the Indian reservation is confirmed.

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Aurora's mother tries to keep her ancestry hidden. Allegedly born into a family of skilled mystic medicine men and women, Aurora, a home-schooled, thirteen-year-old, high school freshman, tries to navigate her special gifts as a mysterious green aura haunts her emotional outbursts. If she learns to contain her emotions, she can use her gifts for good. If she doesn't... Well, that's exactly what she's trying to prevent.  

Has she created the cloud that hovers over her every move? Is she a danger to society? Serenity Waters is the keeper of secrets. Aurora didn't ask for these alleged abilities and she certainly doesn't want to attend a camp to find her inner medicine man, but her mother is making demands and her mystic grandfather keeps appearing out of nowhere. It couldn’t hurt to meet her estranged father, could it?

_____________________________________________________________________

*The story is told from a thirteen-year-old girl's perspective with flashbacks to her mother's teen years.

**This is an upper middle grade fiction/YA fiction supernatural novel perfect for reader's 12-18 yrs. 


GET YA FICTION, ALLEGEDLY MYSTIC FREE WITH KDP UNLIMITED.


Here's the original cover from the YA Fictions Supernatural blog series. Aurora, you've come along way, baby. She is my baby. I've started the next book in the series, I hope to have it completed by Christmas. Things are going much faster these days, I've learned a lot over the years. 

Whether you're a future novelist or a seasoned pro, hop over and learn new things or share your books with my Facebook group: Author Friends (Historical Fiction Books)



YA FICTION SUPERNATURAL BLOGGER AUTHOR 





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Is It Time to Let Your Child Have Their Own Phone?

What Age Should Kid Get Phone?


If your child doesn’t already have their own phone, and they’re at an age when their friends are getting smart phones, no doubt, you'll face endless nagging conversations in the days up to their birthday and the holidays. The peer pressure for kids to get a cellphone is high, and if your child doesn’t have a phone, they may worry about being excluded from their groups or missing out on events (#fomo.) So, is it time to bite the bullet and get your kid the phone they’ve been wanting? It depends, right?

This post contains affiliate links, including Amazon. When you click, we may get a commission.





Average Age
We face this in our family. On the one hand, I don't want to buy an expensive phone that's going to get lost or misplaced. But on the other hand, it would make life easier with after school clubs and activities. Children mature at different rates, each parent has to make their own decisions based on their own child. However, many parents want to know whether their child is ‘too young’ to get a cellphone, or whether they’re being cruel by holding out on this big purchase. According to recent studies, the average age to get a first cellphone is 10.3 years old, which means, by the time kids hit middle school, many of their friends will already have phones. 

Following Rules
Most parenting experts agree, it’s not the age of the child that matters, but more the maturity level and the ability to follow rules around smartphone usage. Before you put the device into your child's hands, you need to set ground rules. Set daily phone usage limits, how much time kids can spend, whether they can take the phone to school, etc.

Did you know, many cellphones have apps that help you keep track of your child’s screen time and ensure they’re not visiting inappropriate websites, but when you give your child a phone, you should be able to trust that they aren't using the phone in a way that will put them in danger. You can use "Google Find My Phone" to keep track of the phone's whereabouts, this can be very helpful when your teen is supposed to be home.

Protecting the Device
Cost is also a big factor when it comes to deciding to buy a cellphone for your child. Unless they’re already at an age where they have a part-time job, it’s another monthly bill for you to cover. You’ll need to ensure you have insurance in case the phone is lost or stolen. It’s worth looking for BodyGuardz iPhone 7 Plus cases too, just in case of any drops or knocks, so you aren’t stuck with a big phone repair bill. 

Ensuring Screen-free Time
One problem with giving children cellphones is that it’s harder to enforce screen-free times if they have their own device. If your kids go to the park with friends or hang out in their room, they’ll likely be glued to their phone.
When it comes to homework, studies have shown that simply having a phone in the room ruins a child's concentration, so you may need to watch out for slipping grades too. Consider enforcing cellphone usage times, say between 8 am and 10 pm, so your kids aren’t up all night surfing the internet or watching YouTube. When it’s time to do homework or sit down for dinner, place all phones in a basket out of sight, so there’s no temptation to fiddle with the phone and ruin family time.

Getting your first cellphone is a rite of passage in the digital age, but as a parent, it’s up to you to decide when the time is right for your child, and whether they can understand the responsibilities that come with this pricey gift. 
No matter what you decide, you'll have to deal with teen angst that will surely stress you out. We're right there with you. Got questions? Leave a comment and we'll try to help!


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Teenage Birthday Party Ideas Indianapolis: Tweens Too!

Birthday Party Ideas  for Teens in Indy


Planning a unique birthday party for a tween (soon to be teen) or teenager is difficult. When they're younger, there are so many options- plus they don't even remember most of them! By the time they become teenagers, you're running on empty. Here's a list of Teenage Birthday Party Ideas in Indianapolis, your tween will love them too. Enjoy!

Teenage Birthday Party Ideas Indianapolis: Tweens Too!


This post contains affiliate links.

Moon Magic Chapter Two: Online Young Adult Fiction Novel

YA Fiction Novel Online: Moon Magic Series Chapter 2

Have you been reading the Young Adult Fiction NovelMoon Magic? If not, start here: Moon Magic starts here. If so, this is the third post in the series or Chapter Two- if you missed the last post start with Chapter One. Last chapter, Aurora had some trouble in English class. She decided to sit down for solidarity. Has she gotten any braver? Find out in Chapter Two of Moon MagicEnjoy!


This post contains affiliate links for your convenience.

Allegedly Mystic YA Fiction Supernatural Metaphysical Teen Novel
The final published, supernatural  novel, Allegedly Mystic, is now available on Amazon.


YA Fiction Novel Online: Moon Magic Series Chapter 2
Moon Magic Chapter Two: Online Young Adult Fiction Novel.

Beach Theme Pool Party Ideas for Teens and Tweens

Sweet Sixteen Pool Party Decorations and Ideas

Planning a pool party for a sweet 16? A beach themed pool party is a lot of fun! It can be difficult to plan a birthday party theme for teens and tweens. Even if you don't have a "real" pool you can have a pool party for a sweet 16 birthday party. Just get an inflatable pool (or two) and add lots of fun decorations and beach themed food. We love planning parties with The Oriental Trading; they are our go to spot for summer fun. They have the most fun decorations at the best prices. So, have the best pool party ever for teens or tweens with these pool party activities, food, and fun decorating ideas with a pink and green flamingo theme. Enjoy!



The Oriental Trading compensated for this post by allowing us to choose our favorite merchandise for an upcoming birthday party.* This post may contain other affiliate links.



Beach Theme Pool Party Ideas for Teens and Tweens
Beach Theme Pool Party Ideas for Teens and Tweens.





Every beach party (especially one for girl's or my son whose favorite color in hot pink) needs some pink beach theme party supplies like flamingos. OT has the perfect beach themed pool decor: flamingo straws, inflatable flamingo cup holders for the pool, flamingo lights, flamingo pinwheels, and flamingos for the yard!


flamingo beach theme party supplies
Stick these in the yard and make a flamingo obstacle course!




flamingo beach theme party supplies
flamingo party lights


Flamingo Pink Pin Wheels Party Decorations
Stick these in the food display or line a walkway with them.





















Pool Party Ideas for Teens and Tweens


For your beach party theme, you will need a pool. If you don't already have one, get an inflatable pool. Once you have a pool, (or three) you'll need to get beach theme pool party decorations and games. We like to purchase tons of inflatable beach balls and cover the pool with them. They make great party favors to take home, and the guests will enjoy playing with them  throwing them at each other's heads. As we see, perfectly designed pool floats serve as both entertainment and decoration for your pool party. You can have a wide variety of inflatables to choose from and with so many options available make sure to find the perfect inflatable to suit your needs. Inflatables are also very easy to set up and take down, so you can easily take them with you for other occasions. Best of all, they are very affordable, so you can get a lot of use out of them without breaking the bank. 





These beach balls are a fun activity for kids of all ages. Grab some Glam Sharpie Markers and color your own beach ball! These would be fun for a Dory and Nemo theme party too! Another fun pool activity is to get a bunch of swim goggles and play underwater games for the pool.



underwater games for pool



Squirt gun painting is a fun pool party activity too. Be sure to get lots of squirt guns! Get the directions at Fireflies and Mudpies.


squirt gun painting
How to paint with squirt guns by Fireflies and Mudpies.


paint with squirt guns



Decorate the serving table with fun beach themed party lights and use sand pails to serve the food and drinks. To match the flamingo beach party theme, get solid color tableware in pink and green


green paper party supplieshot pink paper party supplies


serve food in sand pails for beach party


serve food in sand pails for beach party













You'll want to get super fun party favors for teens and tweens. Along with the take home beach balls, get these pre-prepped beach theme party favors on the Oriental Trading website. They pair nicely with your beach theme pool decor from above.

beach theme party favors
Beach theme party favors.


Beach Theme Party Food

Whatever beach theme party food you serve, serve it up in colorful beach pails like the ones below.




Beach theme party food is easy to make. Make these sand dollar cookies from Mama Miss before the party or with the teens. Aren't they amazing? You might also like these sand castle cupcakes. Here's a cool beach ball fruit and vegetable tray we found on Pinterest, while you're there be sure to follow us!




How adorable are these beach theme flip-flop sandwiches from Pretti Mini?


beach theme party food flip flop sandwiches for tweens and teens
Beach theme party food: flip-flop sandwiches.

Do you have pictures from a beach theme party for teens or tweens? How about fun recipes? Share in the comments!


Circle Time Activities Handbook

Get Camp Activities and Hand Games for Group Circles of all ages Handbook

Remember those hand games and fun group games activities you played in summer camp? Maybe you played games in an after-school program? You remember how much fun they were, maybe you remember the tune or the the general idea, but you just can't remember all the words or just exactly how it goes. Our Circle Time Handbook is made for you. Learn (or relearn) how to play your favorite large group games in a circle.

Post contains affiliate links.


Circle Time Games Handbook Elementary Teen Preschool



We've compiled the 39 most popular group games played in a circle with toddlers to teens in a reproducible format. Print them out, place them on your clipboard or share them with your summer camp counselors. These large group circle activity games are perfect for icebreakers and team building. Play them with adults, senior citizens, and youth groups too!

With the complete easy to follow Group Game INSTRUCTIONS, you can play these GROUP TIME Activities right now! All you need is a group of people from toddlers to teens.

Prefer a nice paperback with 8 1/2 x 11 reproducible pages? Order your hard copy on AMAZON, you can also get the Kindle version here. Just click the image to make the purchase on Amazon.


Buy Circle Time Handbook Paperback


Can't wait? Get the Digital PDF Version of our Circle Time Activities Handbook  to start playing right now! Just click the image and visit our TeachersPayTeachers store.


Buy Circle TIme Handbook PDF




Lora Langston (that's me) is the creator of Kids Creative Chaos blog. For over fifteen years, I taught enrichment classes in after-school programs, classes at parks for preschoolers, and summer camp.

When it comes to lyrics and how to play games, I have a terrible memory. Every time we played a game, I had to look up the instructions!

Time Management Group Activities: If you are sitting in a circle, waiting for parents to pick up the kids or transitioning to the next activity, sometimes you need an impromptu activity to fill up time. Inevitably, the kids will ask to play a game they've played before, but they don't know how it goes. Been there. Done that.

Now, you have all of those old favorites group activity games at your fingertips! Just print a copy from one of the reproducible pages and attach it to your clipboard. Problem solved. And, it cost less than $10. Enjoy!


Circle Time Handbook Popular Games no Equipment
Circle Time activities handbook pdf download.

Sure, most of these circle time activity games are out there floating around in the public domain. I've been playing many of them since the 1980's! The rest I learned from the kids in my programs from the late 90's to 2012. It sure is convenient to have them all in one place with easy access whenever you need a quick group activity.

If you've played these group games too, and played a different variation, we would love to hear it! Let us know, and we'll add it to our game's post and then send you a thank you Tweet.


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group hand games camp games for teens elementary afterschool preschool
Group Hand Games and Camp Games Book to be played in Circles.




Valentine's Day Party Ideas for Tweens Tutorial

Tween Valentine Party Activities Tutorial

Wondering what to do for a Tween Valentine Party? These Valentine's party ideas for tweens will keep kids busy afterschool. Invite their friends over for a fun filled Valentine's Day party with craftivities galore. Girls and boys alike will have fun making their own one of a kind snowflake hearts and Duct Tape Valentine Snack Treat Box to use while watching their favorite movie. Enjoy!

Valentine's Day Party Ideas for Tweens Tutorial
Heart Craftivities for a Valentine's Day Party for Tweens.


Your tweens may not enjoy exchanging classroom valentines or making valentine's mailboxes for school, but they probably enjoy eating fun food and having a party. You can make this as a surprise valentine treat for kids or you can have them help make the Valentine crafts as an afterschool activity.

Tween Valentine Party Activities Tutorial
Tween Valentine Party Activities Tutorial.

To decorate for our Valentine's Day party, we made a few heart crafts that are fun for kids of all ages.

First, we made paper snowflake hearts. Want the full tutorial? Click the link:  How to Make Paper Snowflake Hearts.

Once the snowflake hearts are cut out, glue them to a colorful background paper and cut them out. Use these lacy hearts as decorations hanging from the ceiling, placemats, or write fun sayings on them and hand them out as Valentine classroom exchange cards.


How to Make Paper Snowflake Hearts
Make paper snowflake hearts to decorate for a Valentine's Day party.

Using colorful cardstock, make heart sculptures. Cut out two hearts and then cut halfway up the bottom of one, and half way up the top of the other. Slide the hearts together (upside down) to form a 3D base for balloons. Punch a whole in the top of them, and slip a ribbon through to attach a balloon bouquet. They make fun, whimsical table decorations too- no balloons required.


3D heart sculpture table decorations.
3D heart sculpture table decorations.

Next, make heart garland to hang vertically in the window. These are a good scissor skill activity for younger kids. They also work fine motor skills. Fold paper in half, draw half a heart at the crease line of the paper. 

After the heart is cut out, keep it folded and cut two- 1" slits 1-2" apart. Open the heart and weave ribbon or string through the slits.

Using a glue stick (it works just fine) or hot glue gun, attach a pom pom to the end of the garland to give it a whimsical finishing touch.


How to make heart garland for Valentine's Day party decoration.
How to make heart garland for Valentine's Day party decorations.

Surprise the kids with snack treat boxes made from recycled cereal boxes. Make these ahead of time or let the kids choose their own patterns and make their own. 

At the Dollar Tree, we purchased duct tape in various colors. Not only does this decorate the box, it also makes the box sturdier giving it protection against spills or greasy food. 

While shopping, we found little red cups that make perfect Valentine treat holders. Fill them with dip for veggies or yummy candy treats. Ours are filled with Valentine candy conversation hearts.


Valentine snack treat boxes for movie time or after school snacks.
Valentine snack treat boxes for movie time or after school snacks.

Start with a cereal box. They are the perfect size for sitting on your lap. Cut out a large flap for the main course and then cut out two smaller wholes for the mini snack cup and a juice pack or drink holder. Trace the bottom of the cup and juice box to insure you cut out the perfect fit.


Things to do with a recycled cereal box.
Things to do with a recycled cereal box.

Carefully wrap the box in designer duct tape. When going around round the cut-outs, score the tape (cut a slit in the tape before folding it over), this allows for a cleaner, more attractive edge.


Snack box decorated with duct tape.
Snack box decorated with duct tape.

Once your box is covered in tape, attach a heart on the inside of the flap. Personalize it with your child's name or candy heart sayings like, 'Be Mine', 'Your the Bomb', 'Hers', or even 'Happy Valentine's Day'.


Snack treat box for Valentine's day or movie time.
Treat box for Valentine's day or movie time snack.

Place colorful plastic wrap or tissue paper inside the food flap. Then, fold four flaps over on a paper plate to form a square, paper bowl. Fill your food section with popcorn or a mini heart shaped pizza. Click the link for the full pizza recipe tutorial.


 Mini heart shaped pizza for Valentine's Day.
Mini heart shaped pizza for Valentine's Day.

These cute Valentine glasses were a steal at the Dollar Tree. They have lots of fun designs. If your tweens are too grown up for juice boxes, make a special drink for Valentine's Day. Keep scrolling for our easy Valentine's Day drink recipe.


Make a special tween drink for Valentine's Day.
Make a special tween drink for Valentine's Day.

Ever heard of a Shirley Temple? It is a non-alcholic fun, fizzy drink. To make a simple Shirley Temple, fill a glass with lemon-lime soda and then give it a splash of Grenadine. Grenadine is sweet, so a little goes a long way. For a fun version of the Shirley Temple, just add a bit of pink cotton candy. Don't forget to put a cherry on top!


Add a layer of plastic wrap or tissue paper to protect the inside of the box.

How fun was that? Kids will love getting invited to such a fun filled Valentine's party. Once everyone has their snack box, head over to the living room and watch a fun, Valentine's theme movie

Peanuts is always a good choice. Charlie Brown never gets the Valentine he hopes for.


Valentine treat box complete.
Valentine treat box complete.

Tween Valentine party ideas and activities.
Tween Valentine party ideas and activities.

These activities are so easy, if you don't have Valentine's Day plans, you can prep for this party in about 2 hours. So, go make your own fun! Hope you have a fabulous Valentine's Day!


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Fill your treat box with Homemade Heart Shape Pretzels.

Valentine's Day Movies for Kids*





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