Digital Photo Books: Great Ideas for Teacher and Father's Day Gifts, Yearbooks and Children's Artwork

June mainly means two things to many parents: Father's Day and the end of the school year. And that means gifts for teachers and dad and sometimes yearbooks and, ugh, what to do with all the priceless artwork that comes home from your child's classroom. Whew. It's a lot.

One thing that won't make your life easier (we're not going to lie to you), but may make it nicer is digital photo book services that let you make great gifts and memory books from your photos, children's artworks or writing. The great thing about photo books is they slide neatly onto a shelf, meaning those piles of artwork and great memories can be easily accessed and shared without creating clutter, something teachers appreciate as much as you do.

Here are some places to make great books including a place you can do it right here in person in NYC. And we've got discount codes too!

 

Things to do this weekend - Fun Festivals and More for Father's Day: June 19 -20, 2010

This weekend is Father’s Day so Dad is the man of the hour.  It is really important to make sure you do just the right thing with him this weekend (even if that means lounging on the couch!)  We have written about some fun home made gifts to make like barbecue sauce, books and clay handprints as well as the perfect activity in the city for each kind of dad and even places to dine on Fathers’s Day.

This weekend NYC’s neighborhood parks are teeming with live music and theater, not to mention carnivals, parades, fishing, bike racing and craft making.  Plus some of your children’s favorite television personalities can be found trolling the city this weekend.  There is a cool dinosaur event at the main NY public library, an awesome bike pareade in Queens and free concert at the Scholastic Store. And don’t forget that Saturday is the annual Mermaid Parade in Coney Island.

No matter what you do have a great weekend and Happy Father’s Day to all our amazing Dads.

Weekend Activities for Kids on Long Island, June 18th-20th

Happy Father’s Day one and all! No matter what dad is interested in, you’re sure to find something that suits him perfectly on his special weekend. Help him celebrate with a magic show or a cruise to the Statue of Liberty. Is he more of an outdoorsman? Perhaps a visit to a park to learn about animal daddies with his own kids is a great way to spend the day. And for all of those little ones who love their dad, there are a few places to make a creative treat for the big man in their lives. Enjoy whatever festivity you take part in or how you spend the day with the special father in your world.

NJ Weekend Events June 19-20: Father's Day Cars, Planes, Trains & More

This weekend is all about Dad.  So roll out the red carpet because the Garden State has an event that will put a smile on every father's face, be it a night at the drag races, airplane acrobatics, or caboose rides.  Perhaps the perfect day for dad is a nostalgic one, participating in an old fashioned fishing event like the New Brunswick Annual Fishing Derby or experiencing a historic battle at Smithville.  Or maybe when dad thinks of "old fashioned" he's thinking of a trip back some 65 million years for a fossil dig.  Other goings-on this weekend includes the NJ State Fair and the Cape May Harborfest or even a behind the scenes tour of Jenkinson's Aquarium.

Scribble Press: Fun Bookmaking Store for Kids

Sadly, Scribble Press closed its doors on Father's Day 2013. You can now enjoy bookmaking Scribble Press-style at the Upper West Side Make Meaning. Have you been to Scribble Press yet?  It is a brand spanking new drop in creative arts space that just opened on the Upper East Side. What makes Scribble Press so different from the many other drop in art places is that this is the only one in the city where kids can make a book from start to finish which is then professionally bound and printed on site.  The books are beautiful and would make a terrific gift for Father's Day. (My photo doesn't do the finished product any justice.)

The possibilities for creativity are endless at Scribble Press - read on to find out more:

Destination Playground: Central Park's Billy Johnson Playground

There are hundreds of public playgrounds in NYC and if you spend as much time as I do at yours, the same one can get old quick. Checking out fabulous playgrounds in other neighborhoods can be a great stop off on any excursion to a different part of the city, or it can be a terrific outing in and of itself. We've got the goods on the destination playgrounds all over New York City that are subway-worthy and worth the schlep and we will be bringing them to you all summer.

NJ Flea Markets, Summer Craft Fairs and Art Festivals

The origins of the term “flea market” are disputed, with explanations ranging from buyers and sellers being active as fleas, or that the very first flea market had flea-infested goods and people. Wherever the expression came from, flea markets are here to stay and a totally fun way to spend a summer day. And don’t forget to also check out all the summer craft fairs and festivals in NJ—there’s about 5,762 of them (only a slight exaggeration). We’re highlighting just a few of the best for your summer arts and crafts consumption. So cruise to the crafts and flee to the flea! (sorry, couldn’t resist.)

Pages