A Fun Idea

I love this one I found today. I might just have to try it!

Hand and Foot Rudolfs (Not a disease)

I'm not sure why, but blogger is turning this picture on its side and it won't let me fix it! If you want to look, just tilt your head a bit!

I got this cute idea at No Time for Flashcards, where I tend to get a lot of my quick project ideas (the pictures appear upright!). Go take a peek for a full rundown, with googlie eyes even! For a short explanation:

1. Trace hands
2. Trace feet
3. Cut out and glue together
4. Due to lack of googlie eyes and pom-pom noses, we used paint. The kids each did a dot of paint in the eyes and nose areas.

I think they turned out rather cute!

As soon as I whisked away the finished Rudolf's, the kids mixed the paints together into a big dark purple blob and painted whatever paper they could get their hands on until they were done.

Robot-Kids

Rand perfecting his robot walk.

This stellar idea comes from Randy. If Randy knows anything, it is that kids love robots. At least ours do! I have caught Lindsey pacing back and forth, swinging her hands high and getting frustrated, only to have her tell me in all seriousness, "My robot hands aren't working today!"

This robot get-up is made out of a big box of baby wipes (minus the wipes) with the head and arms cut out and covered in aluminum foil (my idea, thank you!). The back of the robot suit is left open for easy on-and-off - it would probably be impossible to pull this over their heads. We let Lindsey draw on the buttons and knobs, but had to supervise her closely when we realized that only permanent marker would work. This is a little narrow so if your kids are the opposite of mine and have some meat on them, you might need a bigger box.

Lindsey saying "Cheese" in robot form.

No Snow? No Problem!

A while back, my sister (Wendy or Heather? Sorry!) sent Lindsey a snowman kit with felt snowballs, 2 carrot noses to choose from, accessories and even felt lumps of coal. They are simple shapes cut out of felt, no sewing or gluing or anything else. My kids can choose from the different pieces to create their own snowman, even if it's not snowy out (and there's a lot less work to building a snowman in the warm house!).

This can be done with felt or even construction paper, and pulled out to play with any time!

Lunch sack turkeys!

We saw something similar at a friend's house the other day that Lindsey loved, so we decided to make them this morning.

All you need is a couple of lunch bags, construction paper, scissors, glue, stapler, and a few pieces of newspaper to stuff the body of the turkey. Rand wasn't interested and only did some half-hearted gluing. Lindsey was all over the stapler.

Playing Catch-Up

There are lots of reasons I haven't updated this blog in a while. We went on our trip. I had a primary program to do. Lindsey's birthday. Halloween. Lovely weather keeping us outside rather than inside. Whatever. With how busy this fall has been, I have really slacked off on putting together many projects for us to do. But it's such a great season for kid crafts. Let's play catch-up of what we have done recently so we can get going on some other new ideas!

(These are in reverse order since I can't seem to move the pictures around for some reason today).

"Painting" with shaving cream.

This kept Lindsey occupied for about an hour yesterday. Good clean fun.

Preparation time: 0 minutes.

Cleanup Time: 2 minutes.

Supplies: Shaving cream, cookie sheet, apron

Handprint turkeys.

Prep time: 5 minutes

Cleanup time: Depends on how messy your kids get

Supplies: Tempura paints, paper, table cloth, a few markers, scissors

I think they make a nice garland above our mirror,

though we could have used some brown paint to round off the fall colors.

And what's up with the red paint looking pink?

Pre-turkeys.

See, I told you this was in backwards order!

The easiest party game ever: Pin the nose on the Jack O' Lantern

Supplies: Poster board, marker, black construction paper for noses

N for Nose

Yesterday the kids and I worked on an ABC book with pictures from around the house.

N for Nose was the funnest one we did.
Lindsey couldn't help herself and kept peeking at me when I took each picture.

This one was a little too serious for our book, but sweet.

The final cut - I had to contort myself to be the pointer and photog all at once.

I then made the ABC book online through Sam's Club pictures. Have you ever done a digital photo book? I think I may have just discovered the solution to my inability to keep up with scrapbooking! It was so easy and quick and very fun! I just ordered a small one for this project (6x8) and it cost just under $10. I hope the book will be a good church quiet book, and a fun book to take on our upcoming marathon plane trip. I can't wait to pick it up!

Flannel Board Story

This has been on my to-do list for a while. I made a bunch of flannel board stories for our home preschool last year, but haven't made any new ones since then! All you need is a fun book with simple pictures to reproduce, some felt, glue, scissors, and fabric paint if you want.


This time, I decided to turn one of Lindsey's favorite books, The Little Old Lady Who Was Not Afraid of Anything, into a flannel board story. There's a lot of repetition in the story that can be done as actions, so it's a good fall-themed book to read out loud. With the felt pieces, Lindsey can present the story herself (with Rand's help of course!)

Anyway, this was a quick little project that I was able to start and finish before Rand woke up from his afternoon nap.

Easy Color Matching Game

I made this for Lindsey last year, but Rand has adopted it as his favorite game. I just cut out 2 squares of each color and covered them in contact paper. Just add some tape to the back and they are ready to go! At some point, I should put magnets on the back so Rand can use this on our metal front door since the tape has to be replaced a lot. I also want to make a shape-match version of this in the near future. Fun and easy.

Lunch Bag Bling!

My big sister, Heather, had a cute and practical idea for putting her kids' names on their lunch bags. Click here to see her great idea!

Stuffed Paper Fish and Tissue Butterflies

I am woefully behind in updating this blog. This summer seems to have flown by and while we have finished several of the project ideas on the side bar of this blog, we haven't gotten to all of them. Yikes! More fun for Fall I guess!


Here are a couple of pictures of stuffed paper fish we made, patterned after the ones found here. Hiding behind the fish is a scene we made out of a piece of paper the kids had painted a while before. We needed something to do, so I cut out some sea creatures and sea weed and had them glue them on the blue painted paper for a quick activity. I love saving the papers they paint and using them later since at this stage, my kids don't actually paint anything, but just put the paint on the paper. (I like to pretend we are artists like Eric Carle)


Also, a while back we made butterflies out of tissue paper. I'm fairly certain I copied that idea from somewhere, but it's been too long for me to remember where! To make them, do the following:

1. Take two pieces of different colored tissue paper rectangles and crunch them together in the middle. (Color them first if you like)
2. Using one pipe cleaner, twist around middle of tissue paper and curl tops to make antenna.
   

Fast, simple, cheery!

Did Someone Say Icecream Sandwiches?

We tried out this fun recipe idea. Lindsey was extra excited about mixing the different colors for the cookies. (The recipe is supposed to make a Neapolitan looking cookie, but we didn't have any red food color, so we went with blue). Try out the recipe here!




After sampling our first sandwiches, I wished I had put more ice cream in each, but they are delish! (And let's pretend the freezer door is clean.)

Home!

Want to read a REALLY HAPPY post? Go see this entry on my sister-in-law Valorie's blog about her hubby (Randy's big brother Joe) getting home from his 15-month deployment to Iraq. It's so exciting! Welcome home Joe!

A List That Entertains

I love lists, we all know this. I especially love lists with ideas for kids that are easy, fun, and easy. Did I say easy twice? We have actually done a few of these things and will have to try some others very soon!

Ten Surefire Ways to Entertain a Toddler....

Chocolate = Love

Doesn't the smell of chocolate cooking on the stove make you feel loved? No? Then you didn't grow up in my parents' house. Most Sunday evenings found my dad making fudge. Any time I smell chocolate cooking, it makes me hungry and brings back memories.

Dad's Fudge:

Combine in a large pot:
3 cups sugar
1/3 cup cocoa

Add:
1 1/2 cups milk

Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Lower heat to medium once boiling and stop stirring. Cook until it forms a soft ball in cold water.

Remove from heat and add:
1/4 cup butter
1 teaspoon vanilla

Cool until you can comfortably place your hand on the side of the pan. Still warm, but not hot. Stir until the color dulls and pour into a greased container or plate.

Most important step: Get some spoons and scrape out the fudge left in the pot.

******************

The chocolate pictured above is actually Randy's mom's hot fudge sauce. And it is GOOD. Real good. Just seeing the picture makes me wish we still had some and that there was a little ice cream in the freezer to go with it. While Marcia was visiting, we decided to make this and realized I had the recipe all wrong! No wonder our attempts at making this failed every time! If I didn't know that she's the nicest lady, I would think she was trying to sabotage my quest to make the best hot fudge ever.

Use this recipe, make it and share it. (It makes a lot, I promise - the lady had 7 growing kids to serve this to) Delish.

Marcia's Hot Fudge Sauce:

2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 12-oz can evaporated milk
1 lb powdered sugar
1/2 lb butter
2 t. vanilla
pinch of salt

Melt the butter in pan 1/2 way and add the chocolate chips. Gradually add the sugar and the milk. Cook over medium heat. Stir to blend well. Bring to a boil and cook and stir it while boiling for SIX minutes. (Don't question the 6 minutes rule, Marcia is a master) Remove from heat and add vanilla and salt, stir. Pour generously over vanilla ice cream. Store leftovers in a fridge and reheat without boiling (we just scoop out what we think we'll use and heat that portion)

Origami Light Covers!

I can't seem to get on top of things lately so this new blog is already neglected! The kids and I have mostly been spending our time at the pool or just playing so I haven't gotten to many of the fun projects I am anxious to do on my sidebar. Good intentions...

My childhood friend, Deanne, sent the link below as a fun crafty activity I thought I would post. I think these would be extra cute in red, white, and blue for a 4th of July decoration! I haven't tried them yet, but I think my older nieces and nephews would enjoy this one. It's not often that I come across things for the bigger kids that I pay attention to, so thanks for emailing me this one Deanne!

Clickety here.

Father's Day Ideas

**In case Randy reads this, we are working on something super secrety for you, so this list doesn't reflect your father's day gift (except the tie I suppose).

I borrowed this from sista Wendy. Hand-stitched, personalized handkerchiefs for a man who likes to carry his own hankie. (She made these for our dad, Wayne-o who is a gentleman and a farmer with allergies and who must have one of these on hand at all times.)

A tie.

An easy apron for the guy who likes to cook or bbq.
(Randy with baby Lindsey)

For the dad who likes to garden. (I think these would be cuter sloppily painted by a toddler, no design, but that's probably because that's how my kids currently paint)

These are very cute too.

Or if your dad has a stressful job, maybe something soothing like this to keep on his desk and work out his frustrations. (Luckily that's not Randy's job. He'd probably just use it to play a game of catch. I like his job)

And then, there's always dessert. Come on, isn't that the point of these types of "holidays?"

What are you doing for Father's Day?

Cool Idea

I need to file this beauty of an idea away for future inspiration. What a fun way to compile (yet not have to keep) your kids' best artwork!

Cheap Supplies

On my way to a playgroup today, I stopped at a Michael's (it was kind of on the way) where I found all sorts of crafty supplies for very very cheap.

• Little sponge brushes (easier for my kids to use than actual paint brushes) for 5 cents each
• Acrylic paint for some upcoming projects for $1 each
• The unfinished wood frames in different sizes for $1
• Nice sized watercolor pads and sketch pads for $1
  
• And because we were heading to a park with a big sand box, some buckets and shovels for $1

Can you tell I like things that cost $1? There was so much more, but most of it for things beyond my kids' current skill levels. It was really fun to browse and imagine what we could make with all the fun supplies for very little money!

Homemade Popcicles Recipe

It's really hot here. Seriously hot. And humid. 100% humidity yesterday with temperatures in the 90's made for a hot day. Did I say it is hot? I'm not complaining. Just informing. Whew. Hot.

Next to going to the pool, turning up the A/C, and sitting in front of a fan, nothing helps cool a kid down better than homemade popcicles. My Randy is the king of homemade popcicles. He's the one who makes them around here because I just never think of doing it.

Here's his most recent creation:

1 can limeade concentrate (prepared - he likes it with a little less water)
1 envelope cheery cool aide (prepared)

Mix and pour into ice cube trays or popcicle forms. Freeze.

Eat them outside. Wash shirts after so they don't stain.

Sidewalk Chalk Paint

Prep Time: 2 minutes
Activity Time: 10 minutes or until the paint is all spilled/used


The finished product, after it dried.

I borrowed this from a site, but can't find the link for it. The original poster said she used the sidewalk chalk paint on a wood fence, driveway, bricks, and other hard surfaces and it worked and was still washable.


I made four colors and divided the paint between two muffin tins, thinking it would help the kids keep their colors separate. They managed to mix them all up within seconds, but it was fine. One note: The paint needed stirring after it sat for a bit - the water and corn starch separated when allowed to sit.

We used cheap paint brushes from a $1 water color kit that I had on hand, some sponge brushes, and some sponge stamps.

The paint was a bit thin for the sponge stamps, but they ended up being good easy tools for my toddlers to get the paint on the sidewalk.

Wear aprons and shoes you can wash easily - this was messy, but it all washed out (though Rand's hands were a little green the rest of the day).

Recipe:

-liquid food coloring (like what you find in the spice section at the grocery)
-box o' corn starch
-water
-minimum 8 oz individual containers for each color

Method:
-Measure 1/4 cup cornstarch into each cup.
-Add 1/4 cup water to each.
-Drip in 5-10 drops of food coloring.
-Stir it up. At first it will seem as though the cornstarch just won't mix in, but all at once it comes together. Just don't put the water in first or it's significantly tougher to get it to mix up.
-Add more color for intense colors, less for pastel shades. Our box has recipes on the back for additional shades and we found that the 'egg dying' recipes worked great for this.
-The finished paint may seem thin, but it paints on just great. You can use more cornstarch next time if you'd prefer a thicker paint.

Borrowing

I am always on the look-out for ideas for new recipes, good deals, and especially fun and easy activities to do with my kids. When I find a quick, easy, fun, painless activity to try out, I borrow it, and if we end up loving it, we make it our own.

This is going to be my on-line filing cabinet of ideas. I love coming across activities in other people's blogs, magazines, books, wherever. I keep finding myself making lists of ideas in my email or on random pieces of paper, so I decided to just organize them into one location. I hope no one minds if I link to some of our favorites. This blog is for sharing, borrowing, and even showing off ideas if you would like. Who knows if anyone but my familia will see this? (hi mom!)

If you have any great kid-friendly (or mom-friendly) stuff you want to contribute, send me your ideas. I now have a blog-only email* for this very purpose (see profile). I'll either try them out when we can get to it, and post about it, or I'll just post your instructions, hopefully in a timely manner, but you never know!

*I reserve the right to shut down this email if someone creepy sends something.