Wednesday, August 22, 2012

Wedding Activity Book for Kids!

Hello my friends!  I am very excited to share today's post with you.  One would think that I would have been most excited about wedding details such as the flowers, centerpieces (okay, I did love those) or my shoes.  Common, brides out there- you know what I mean.  The funny thing is- I was probably most excited about our "busy bags" that we made for the children attending the wedding.

We had a couple dozen children at the wedding who were young enough to need something fun to do during our reception.  In each bag we had a variety of goodies including an activity book which I will show you today:

{Front Cover Page}
 
The front is simple: our names, what it was, when it was and a picture.  Our entire wedding was based loosely on an "outdoor" or "grow" theme so of course, I added a tree here as well!  Lastly, a spot for the child to write their name was added.  This way they have their very own book and there is no mix up! Plus... it is always fun having your name on something.

Inside Pages
For this book, we decided to make six activity pages, printed back to back.  Here they are:

{Page 1 & 2} Maze and Drawing

For the maze I found this GREAT website that has mazes shaped in each letter of the alphabet!  Since it is a learning website, there were "S' characters (a snake and a snail) where my Mr. and Mrs. are.  To make it like mine, I just printed out the original, scanned it, then altered it in my Paint program. P.S. Our last name starts with an 'S' if anyone was still wondering!

As for the cake, I just hand drew it and scanned it into the computer.  I told the kids to design their own wedding cake however they wanted.  How fun is that?


{Page 3 & 4} Crossword Puzzle and Coloring/Writing
 
This crossword puzzle is awesome because I got to make up the clues and answers, but did not have to figure out how they all went together (win, win)!  Check out this website to make your own, it is easy and completely free!

The coloring page was copied from an image I found online.  I left the sign on the back blank so that the children could write their own message on the back of the car! 
Disclosure:  This is not my design, I merely traced and altered it.  (If anyone knows the source of this image, please let me know.  I would love to give credit where credit is due)


{Page 5 & 6} Secret Message and Word Search


Remember these "secret message" activities from when you were a kid?  I LOVED these and just had to put one in this book.  It is easy to make yourself.  Assign each letter of the alphabet a number:
A= 1
B= 2
Y= 25
Z= 26
You get it! Next, write out a message using the numbers as "clues".  Simple as that.

The word search was one of my favorite pages as well because it was so personalized!  This is another website that I cannot seem to find again (which really is a shame because it was such a good one).  However, a quick online search will lead you to a variety of options including this one.
Make it as personalized as you can!  I used words that were important to us, such as: family and God as well as our names and the names of our ceremony venue.  Doing this gives it a special touch that shows you did more than just print off a "wedding themed" puzzle.


{Back Cover Page}

Here I just left a blank area for the kids to draw whatever they felt like drawing!  In their bags were crayons, pens and ruler stencils that they could use to make designs.  I finished it with a "Thank You" for coming to the wedding.

How neat, right?
This activity book -along with the other goodies in their busy bags-  kept kids busy and helped them get past all those "boring parts" of the wedding!  Even if you don't want to make an entire goody bag, I would definitely consider making an activity book to hand out.  The activities range in skill and type and can be fun for both you to make and for them to enjoy!  I loved every minute of creating my activity book.

Disclosure:  I have received no compensation for the websites mentioned in this post.  I have suggested them only because I used them and/or think they will be helpful for you.

Sending my love,
Kelsie Ann

Link Love! This project is linked to: Every Day is an Occasion

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31 comments:

  1. Thank you so much for the ideas, your activity book is awesome!

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    1. Thank you so much! It was a big hit for kids and adults (who had occupied kids!)

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  2. Thanks for sharing! I made a similar one last night based off of this template for our wedding. I'm so excited for the kids to use it.

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    1. Exciting! So glad to hear that. How did the wedding go? I have to ask was it a June wedding? We were a June wedding too!

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  3. Would you mind sending me your template (a version where I can edit & personalize it). I would love to use these for my wedding on Sunday. My email is hwn_pride1322@yahoo.com

    Thanks!

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    1. So sorry I missed your wedding in responding! I've been away for a while
      I hope you found what you were looking for and in the future if you need it, check out the links below each picture for the websites to personalize it! Thanks and so sorry. Blessings for a beautiful marriage. <3

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  4. Are you willing to share your template to a stressed out mom whose daughter is getting married in a few weeks and second one to follow on New Year's Eve?
    dtmcinnes@shaw.ca

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    1. First off, congratulations! What and exciting and busy place your house must be! As for the template, each page is personalized with our names or clues about the venue, etc. That would likely not match their weddings! However, under each picture you should find a link to each website. Every one of them are free and are in no way a sponsor of this post or blog. Just some I found and LOVED! Hope that helps and I so apologize for the late response- I've been away for a while. Maybe it will still help for New Years. Best of luck!

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  5. Great idea, thanks for sharing! Would you mind sending me your template and what else did you include in the bags? jaynembaxter@hotmail.com

    Many thanks!

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    Replies
    1. I am unable to send a template for most of the pages because they are generated to fit specific names and clues. If you check out the links below each image it should take you to free websites that will make them for you.

      As for the bags, we split them up between boy and girl. Girls had magnetic dolls with a metal backing to stick it on, boys had tractor toys (we're from a rural community) plus those wooly willy toys, mini slinky toys and a small box of crayons and mini pens were in each bag with the book. Dollar stores are super for this type of thing or the Target dollar bin!

      Sorry for the late responce! When is the big day?

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  6. I would also love to get a copy of your template if you don't mind sharing! Thanks!!
    kimiko@ shaw.ca

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    1. Because most of the pages are created on other websites where you put in your information and it generates the page, I wouldn't be able to give you a template that would fit your needs. hope that makes sense! Let me know if you need other help.

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  7. I would love a copy of the template, please. iamemeraldgirl@gmail.com. Thank you!

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    1. Most of the pages are personalized from different websites. There should be links for each below the images. You don't want a copy of my pages unless you and your husband have the same names as we do! Let me know if you have any trouble accessing the pages.

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  8. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

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  9. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  10. this is amazing....and exactly what I was looking for....Thank you for the creative push!

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    1. Wonderful! I love to hear that. It was a BIG hit at our wedding....no bored kids here! Let me know how it goes & if you need any help, don't hesitate to ask!

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  11. I LOVE one of the fonts you used throughout the book. On the back page, it's the only font you used. What is the name of it?

    Thanks,
    Chelsea

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    1. It's called "Jenna Sue". It's one of my favorites too!

      thanks for stopping by!

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    2. Thank you! And thanks for sharing your book!!

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  12. Thanks for sharing Kelsie. I have just made one and it looks great.

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  13. This is great!! The only thing better would be for you provide us with a downloadable copy to edit w/our personal information! THANK YOU!

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  14. Are you willing to share your template for us to download and be able to edit it with our personal information on the booklet? our email address is 2buyoncraigslist@gmail.com
    thank you so much!

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  15. Hi, this looks great. Would you be willing to share? I have a wedding on Halloween and I need to give the kids something to do during this festive event.

    courtneyrbenton@gmail.com

    ReplyDelete
  16. Hi! would you be willing to email me the template??

    kelseybadger2@gmail.com

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  17. Hi! I love this would you please send me the template?

    Lexigurl2848@hotmail.com

    ReplyDelete
  18. Hi, I know it's been a while you posted this but would you mind sending me the template for this. It's exactly what I need for my wedding.
    My email is shima.uddin@hotmail.co.uk

    ReplyDelete
  19. Pleasecan you send to me too at faeeza1~@hotmail.com

    ReplyDelete
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