Monica McConkey, Author at Equipping Catholic Families

Birthday Party: Minute to Win it!

July 25, 2011 by Monica McConkey 3 Comments

****Update**** Get your FREE NEW Minute to Win It Printable from our 2013 party! ****Update**** Minute To Win It is an NBC gameshow with challenges to complete within 60 seconds. My eldest daughter decided to host a Minute To Win It party for her 15th birthday. She collected the household materials for about 25 different challenges and tried them out, ranking them by difficulty. Her 13 friends randomly chose 3 different challenges…and it kept them busy for about 2 hours! She let me take pictures as she and her brother tried each challenge before the party! Face the Cookie Move Oreo biscuits individually from your forehead to your mouth Materials: Oreo or other favorite cookie Suck Up (Minute To Win It’s name…not ours!) Materials: long straws and M&M’S® Brand Chocolate Candies
Ping Pong Plop Align 5 glass bottles upside down. Place a ping pong ball on the first bottle and blow it across the bottles and into a bowl. Materials: 5 glass bottles, ping pong ball and bowl A Bit Dicey Stack 6 dice on top of each other on a popsicle stick held in your mouth Materials: popsicle stick and 6 dice Baby Rattle Transport all the gumballs from one soda bottle to another. Materials: 2 empty, clean and dry 2L pop bottles, 1 lb of gumballs, duct tape

Unicorn Horn

Filed Under: birthday party

July Saints: TY doll makeovers!

July 2, 2011 by Monica McConkey 3 Comments

Blessed Kateri: July 14, St James: July 25, St. Anne: July 26

A few years ago, dollar stores were selling off
TY Teenie Beanie Bopper dolls.
My friend Lucia began collecting these dolls and turning them into her family’s favorite saints!
She told me how she found the little accessories at dollar stores and craft shops. Her 7 kids love playing with the dolls and learning about the saints. Lucia sent me pictures of the TY Saint dolls that she has made.

Filed Under: Saints

Baby Book and Journal…turned Catholic!

June 18, 2011 by Monica McConkey 1 Comment

We have all seen and perhaps filled in a baby book=&0=& read more...for Equipping Catholic Families!

Filed Under: Sacraments

HOLY RummOLI! The Catholic Edition!

June 17, 2011 by Monica McConkey 4 Comments

We have this great deck of cards called the Cathletics Playing Cards. Each of the numbered cards have elements of the Catechism and the face cards are St Joseph (the Jack), Mother Mary (the Queen), Jesus (the King!) and the Trinity (the Ace).

Filed Under: link-up, Catholic Bloggers Network

newest member of The Catholic Illustrator’s Guild

June 16, 2011 by Monica McConkey Leave a Comment

Our Kelly is the newest member of The Catholic Illustrator’s Guild.
Check out her introduction.

Hello!
My name is Kelly and I will be 13 in November.

When I was in Kindergarten, I was very unapproachable and stubborn. I cried. a lot. On my first day of school, my teacher suggested that we all draw self-portraits. Though all the other kids had A LOT of fun doing so, I tried and tried to make my drawing as good as something my older sister would draw, and failed. I cried and cried and even said the “s” word (”stupid”). What can I say? I was a Kindergarten rebel. I vowed never to draw again. But how could I do THAT?!? As weeks followed, although I remained unmanageable, I began to draw. In fact, the classroom was suddenly covered in my drawings. Yes, THAT is where I got my start.

Filed Under: link-up, Catholic Bloggers Network

I Spy…the SAINTS!

June 6, 2011 by Monica McConkey 1 Comment

I Spy…December! I Spy…November!

I Spy…October!

I Spy…September!

I Spy…August! I Spy…July! To find out how I made these photo-collages easily at home, check out Catholic I Spy…with a Scanner! read more...for Equipping Catholic Families!

Filed Under: link-up, Catholic Bloggers Network

IKEA helped me with my felt fort!

June 6, 2011 by Monica McConkey 3 Comments

I can’t believe that IKEA is selling these soft fruit, vegetables and carpenter tools…and that I discovered them just when I finished making my FELT FORT for Smidge’s birthday!
They are a whole $10 per kit, with anywhere from 9 to 15 pieces, but they are already made and come with little material baskets or a tool belt! They have more sets too! I think I saw cupcakes and a whole breakfast tray of food.

Filed Under: DIY Crafts, Family crafts

Description of A Treasure Chest of Traditions for Catholic Families

June 1, 2011 by Monica McConkey Leave a Comment

A Treasure Chest of Traditions for Catholic Families is a 304 page book offering ideas for activities, crafts and recipes to help families celebrate the various Seasons and Feast Days of the year. With fun-filled activities, we can build our own family traditions while passing on the richness of our Catholic Faith. Guided by the Liturgical Calendar, the book journeys through the Seasons of Advent, Christmas, Lent, Easter and the 2 spans of Ordinary Time. The months of the secular calendar are woven in, providing the context for Feasts and monthly Devotions. Saints are introduced as their Feast Days occur, offering details and legends about their lives and providing suggestions for family activities surrounding them. Various sections within Ordinary Time suggest that this time can be anything but ordinary! A section entitled “Extraordinary Events in Ordinary Time” offers activities surrounding special events in family life (births, moving, Sacraments and “firsts”).
A section entitled “Everyday in Ordinary Time” offers ideas for installing other family rituals to bring the family together and integrate the Catholic Faith into daily living.
The summer months bring “Cathletics” to Ordinary Time, offering activities to pass on basic catechism, while another section introduces simple prayers for children.

Suggested activities are intended to prompt families to actively practice their Faith, delving into Church celebrations and allowing these festivities to spill back into home life.Check out ordering information for

Filed Under: Treasure Chest crafts and activities

Felt Fort for Cool Kids!

May 31, 2011 by Monica McConkey 14 Comments

all those years of architecture school finally paid off…This was definitely not a quick craft project, but it was a lot of fun and we can still add to it! We decided Smidge needed her own little castle fort, that fits over our kitchen table! I didn’t make it too girly…just so Adam will think it’s cool for years to come.

Filed Under: DIY Crafts, Family crafts

magic party for a 5 year old

May 26, 2011 by Monica McConkey Leave a Comment

This is our 4th 5-year-old Magic birthday party, inspired by my dad who likes to do magic. We wanted to have a craft for the kids to decorate and cool stuff to send them home with, including a real magic trick that our very own magician will teach them how to do! Consistent with our family tradition, Sigurd the Wizard (a.k.a. my dad) will perform his excellent magic show extravaganza, with the birthday girl as his assistant.

Filed Under: birthday party