The temperature keeps rising, and you need a way to chill out. Well, we’ve got a few tricks up our sleeve. The secret weapon? Ice. That’s right—cold, frozen fun is totally in this summer, and we’ve got 17 ways to make it happen. Scroll down to see them all.

Eat & Drink

Sheri Silver via Unsplash

1. Make insta-smoothies. You'll never worry if you have all the ingredients for a healthy breakfast drink again. Simply make ice cube versions ahead of time and pop them into the blender when ready.

2. Making iced coffee? Make some iced coffee cubes! Freeze a little leftover coffee in a tray and the next time you are making yourself a cool, chilled coffee drink use these instead of regular ice. Your drink won't end up weak and watery.

3. Ditto for iced tea. Splash a little iced tea or lemonade into an ice cube tray for a great way to chill your tea without watering it down.

4. Get spriggy with it. Toss in a sprig of lemon thyme or mint for a perfect splash of herby-goodness in your cocktail, mocktail or cold water.

silviarita via Pixabay

5. When in doubt, make popsicles. You can make these in an ice cube tray or a popsicle mold, or even a paper cup with a popsicle stick in the center (you'll want to add the stick about halfway through the freezing process). Here are our favorite recipes for you to try this summer!

6. Fancy pants. Use edible flowers frozen in ice and serve the single most fancy glass of water on the block. Delicate violets, nasturtiums, lavender, calendula and even dianthus or carnations work perfectly.

7. Leftover rules. Use leftover juice from canned peaches or pineapple to make tiny popsicles that will also add a spike of sweetness to your tea or sparkling water.

8. Shine. If you happen to have edible glitter around you can swirl some into the water after you've filled the cube trays, or try adding a couple of sprinkles.

9. Keep it simple. Serve your drinks in an extra frosty glass. Just run water over the cup and place it in the freezer for a few minutes. Instant-frosty mug!

Play

Karly Wood

10. Make ice volcanos. With a little pre-prep, you can make this simple experiment for your curious kids.

11. Shapey things. These days you can find ice cube trays (or use candy molds) in all kinds of shapes and sizes, including LEGO bricks, dinosaurs and more. Freeze them in different colors and lay them out on a tray for adorable play that will make you melt.

12. Smells n"ice." Who knew you could use ice for a scent-sensory experiment, using classic items from your spice rack? Check out how Lemon and Lime Adventures did it, and then set up your own version.

13. Ice science. A proper experiment really doesn't get much simpler than a muffin tin with ice and a few key ingredients, designed to see what makes ice melt the fastest. The Chaos and the Clutter has an easy tutorial you can follow so you can literally execute this cool project in less than ten minutes.

Gabby Cullen

14. Painter's palette. Freeze washable paint in ice trays and make colored ice cubes. Once they're frozen, let the kiddos paint with their refreshing new paint! 

15. Excavation station. Take a few toys, like small cars, rubber duckies, even LEGO minifigs and freeze them in water. Use a nice tall container to get a tower or a big bowl. You add a few toys, let the water freeze a bit, then stash in a couple more to get a well-balanced icicle. You can equip them with a butter knife, plastic knife or spoon or a stick to begin the scraping. For younger kids, let them just go free-hand. We love this bejeweled rainbow version from Fun at Home with Kids

16. Frozen IRL. Make a big batch or buy a bag of ice cubes and get stacking. Using a bit of water to help them stick, race against the clock as you stack and form an ice castle fit for Elsa. Got a few Frozen-themed toys around the house? Get them in on the fun! Make ice beds, ice chairs, ice tables, walls and more.

17. Chill, baby! Looking for cute sensory play for your smallest set? Check out these awesome frozen sensory bags that are safer for babies but still keep them stimulated and cool on a hot day!

—Amber Guetebier & Karly Wood

 

 

RELATED STORIES:

Ice, Ice Baby: Awesome Ways to Keep Playtime Chill

Cool as Ice: 10 Flavored Ice Cubes Perfect for a Hot Day

The 16 Popsicles You Need in Your Life

Don’t let your skin reflect the cold dreary winter weather outside your window.  As the weather gets colder, the constant fluctuation between harsh winds outside and central heating inside can wreak havoc on our skin and immune system. Hello Bello, Kristen Bell + Dax Shephard’s family brand, has the perfect products to keep us all hydrated and healthy all season long. 

From the bestselling, soothing Lavender bubble bath to vegan, adult-friendly gummy vitamins to fight off cold and flus, Hello Bello has all of your winter essentials:

Tear-Free and Ultra-Mild Bubble Bath, Lavender

Hello Bello Lavender
Hello Bello

Nothing beats a relaxing, hot bubble bath after a long day, and this formula soothes skin with Aloe Vera, Calendula, Cucumber, and Avocado extracts, while moisturizing with Sunflower and Jojoba Seed Extract.

Tear-Free and Ultra-Mild Bubble Bath, Lavender retails for $5.98. 

 

Everywhere Balm, Unscented

Hello Bello Everywhere Balm
Hello Bello

Love your skin from head to toe with this ultra-nourishing Everywhere Balm. It's made with moisturizing shea butter, soothing chamomile, protective tamanu oil, and more magic from mother nature. Rub it in for instant relief.

Everywhere Balm, Unscented retails for $9.98.

 

Lip Balm, Mint

Hello Bello Lip Balm
Hello Bello

Say goodbye to chapped, cracked, sad lips! Keep those kissers soft and smiley with Hello Bello’s premium, plant-based Lip Balms made from natural jojoba and sunflower seed oils, shea butter, and botanical extracts.

Lip Balm, Mint retails for $2.98.

 

Immunity Vitamin Gummies

Hello Bello Vitamin
Hello Bello

Fight off the flu season with these gummy vitamins that contain vitamin C and Zinc – two classic immunity superstars. Best of all? They have no artificial colors and flavors, no high fructose corn syrup, no common allergens (wheat, gluten, eggs, peanuts) and no gelatin.

Immunity Vitamin Gummies retails for $9.98.

 

—Jennifer Swartvagher

All photos courtesy of Hello Bello

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Butterflies are more than just beautiful insects with wings: they play a vital role in the production of flowering plants which means without butterflies many, many plants would not flower, fruit and seed. Give these jewel-toned pollinators a place to call home with a few ideas for creating a butterfly garden no matter how much space you have. Scroll down to get the dirt.

Top 4 Ways Anyone Can Help

Public Domain Pictures via Pixabay

Be poison-free. Do not use pesticides of any kind, anywhere. This includes nearby lawns and other garden beds. We promise, where there’s a problem there is a non-toxic solution. Click here for ideas on pesticide-free bug control.

When in doubt, go native. Planting native flowering plants and shrubs help sustain native populations. We’ve offered a few suggestions here for butterfly-friendly flowering plants that do good in most climates (some of which may be native to your neck of the woods) and are generally not invasive, but it is always good to cross-check with your local garden center or native plant society. One man's annual can easily become another one's nightmare weed. 

Milkweed it: The single best plants for Monarch butterflies is milkweed—specifically Tropical Milkweed (Asclepias curassavica). It grows in zones 9-11 (mostly California) but can be grown as a summer annual elsewhere. There are also many species of milkweed native to areas throughout the U.S. that are beneficial to all types of butterflies. Click here for the low-down on this important pollinator plant.

Gimme shelter: You can buy or make butterfly shelters that can be hung on the side of the building, near the community and school gardens and even in parks (be sure and get permission).  

If You Have a Windowsill:

Pixabay

Even a single plant will help, but you can also consider buying or making a butterfly feeder. Here’s an easy how-to that takes just a few steps and is great for kiddos.

If you want to plant something in a window box, try nasturtiums and alyssum with zinnias and marigolds. The zinnias and marigolds grow straight and tall and the alyssum and nasturtiums trail, which makes a beautiful combo that butterflies love.

 

If you have a few pots:

Pixabay

Create a mini-oasis with just a few pots of soil on your stoop, sidewalk or front yard. Add plants that support the butterfly larvae as well as container plants that offer nectar for adult butterflies.

For the larvae: fennel (requires a larger pot) and borage (gets beautiful blue flowers and is edible!) as well as ornamental grasses that provide shelter.

For the adult butterflies: Salvia, marigolds, alyssum, nasturtiums, zinnia, oregano, and pincushion flowers (scabiosa) all do great in smaller containers. Many species of milkweed will grow in decent-sized pots and are so loved by butterflies the most common variety of this plant is often called “butterfly plant.” Also, most plants that are in the aster or daisy family are popular among the butterfly crowd but you'll want bigger pots for these, as well as any lavender or lantana you'd like to try. 

 

 

If you have a few feet: 

Teresa Villalobos via Unsplash

If you’re lucky enough to have a whole garden or garden bed, you can choose plants that spread out and like a bit more room to grow (though with the right sized container, many of these can be grown in pots). Be sure and plant taller plants and shrubs toward the back, medium-growth plants in the middle, and so on.

Tall plants: Hollyhocks, delphiniums, lilac bushes or any kind of flowering tree. Think cherry, apple, plum, etc,  some salvia varieties, fennel, willow (great for larvae)

Plants that typically grow 1-3 ft high: Coneflower (echinacea), yarrow, salivas, lavender, milkweed (can grow higher in certain climates), globe thistle, bee balm, borage, lantana

Lower growing plants (under 1 ft or groundcovers): alyssum, nasturtiums, calendula, marigolds, zinnias, some verbena, oregano (warning! Oregano can become aggressive in many gardens), dianthus

 

 

RELATED STORIES:
Easy Ideas for Gardening with Kids (No Green Thumb Required)
18 Easy Ways to Boost the Backyard Fun Factor
How to Make a Butterfly Mask

 

Cold, dry winter air takes a toll on skin, even smooth, soft baby skin. Protect, soothe and moisturize those dimpled cheeks, that pouty mouth, those chunky legs and chubby hands with a few great remedies for winter skin. Here are our favorites.

Erase Dry Patches and Chapped Cheeks

So you missed the boat on preventing chapped cheeks and your little one has a few dry patches on his arms and legs too. Use this rich, thick cream as a spot treatment before bed and your baby will wake up with smooth, healed skin in the morning thanks to super-ingredient Calendula extract which has been soothing dry skin for centuries. Don't let the price scare you, a little goes a long way.

Available at californiababy.com, $24.49.

 

What is your favorite lotion or potion for rough winter days? Shout about it in the Comments!

— Julie Seguss & Kelly Aiglon

 

Bathe Your Baby Naturally

Baby bath tub? Check. Wash cloth? Check. All-natural cream bath to nourish and gently clean baby’s delicate skin? Check. With organic calendula extract, sweet almond oil and a comforting fragrance from pure essential oils, Weleda Calendula Cream Bath is a calming addition to bath time that nurtures your baby’s sensitive skin and protects it from dryness. Receive a free, full-size Calendula Cream Bath with the purchase of any Weleda Calendula Baby Care product at usa.weleda.com while supplies last.