Thing 1 & Thing 2 Pencils

Mommy Craft

Okay, I was out of time, but full of creativity, and I found the idea for the pencils online and just HAD to make them and sneak them in Gracie's back pack for today!

To make this craft you will need:

• 2 red pencils
• blue felt
• hot glue

Now, the original crafter used some sort of fuzzy material, but I didn't have any, so I spent A LOT of time "roughing up" a piece of blue felt. When I had made it fuzzy enough, I use hot glue to secure it, and I wrapped it around the red pencils. I added a printout of a Seuss quote and she found them in her snack bag for the day.

And, I had to jazz up her bag, so I added the "Thing 1" circle to her snack bag for the day.

Oh, how much fun I had doing all of this!

Candy Airplanes

Mommy Craft

It was a late night as I finished these up for Gracie's first grade classroom tomorrow--but they were so worth it! I am thrilled at how darling they came out.

This idea was a Family Fun idea, and was pretty simple to put together.

To make this craft you will need:

• Smarties candy
• Lifesavers candy (of any kind)
• sticks of gum (any kind/flavor)
• Small-Med sized rubber bands

I got the assorted bag of rubber bands from Walmart for $.98 and found plenty of the perfect size.

First, unwrap your lifesavers. Leave everything else in their packages! Pick two lifesavers, these are your wheels. Thread the rubber band through both wheels. Hang on to the ends--don't let go. Now, carefully place a Smarties candy in between the "wheels" and on top of the rubber band. You haven't let go of the ends have you?! Now, open the end of one rubber band and slip through on end of your piece of gum Once that is secure, stretch the other loop of rubber band over the other end of the gum.

Ta da! The rubber band is a bit tricky, but you will get the hang of it in no time.

I actually found this idea on one of my craft blogs after GiversLog offered a free printable to go at the end of the airplanes. These totally make for the complete package!

You can find the free printable here.

Groundhog Day Treat

Mommy Craft

I found this idea under the heading of "hibernating animals," but when I started racking my brain for groundhog ideas, I just knew I had to make this for an afternoon snack for my kids!

To make this snack you will need:

• Chocolate pudding
• Oreos or graham crackers (or both)
• Teddy Grahams

Use pudding snack cups or make your own and add your layers. First, crush oreos in a small baggy with a rolling pin. In a separate baggy crush graham crackers (or use some of the Teddy Grahams). I put my oreos on top first, but realized that the other layer blended with my groundhog too much. So, if you are using both crumbles, use your lighter one (graham cracker) first. Lightly spoon out the crumbles on top of the pudding. This is your dirt. The pudding is his burrow under ground. Now, stick a Teddy Graham in the middle of your dessert pushing him down until you just see his little head. From the head up he looks like a groundhog--right ? Well, my kids LOVED the snack, and I am sure yours will too. It is sweet and fun!

Conversation Jar

Mommy Craft

I came across the most fun idea the other day when I was going through my favorite craft blogs: a conversation jar!

The idea is to print off fun topics for you and your family to talk about.

My kids talk plenty, but it is usually me talking to them about kid things, and then me talking to my husband about non-kid things. This was a great way to start a fun family discussion.

Okay, "discussion" is a stretch--but it is a neat idea.

I found a container at the Dollar Store, and I printed out a label that read "Conversation Jar." I allow my 6 year old to pull a strip of paper out of the container at dinner time. We each take turns answering the family friendly question on the paper.

Follow this link to see the list of fun questions. Of course you can create your own. I copied the questions and pasted them into a word document and then cut each question and folded it up and dropped it into the container. I also looked over the list and took out any questions that didn't pertain to our family, or I thought would be too confusing for my daughter.

This is one idea that is super easy, and you will want to give a try with your family!

Snow Family

Mommy Craft

This is a simple and fun craft to display in your home! I found the idea from a Dollar Store blog--so it is super inexpensive too!

To make this craft you will need:

• 5x7 frame ($1 at Dollar Store)
• White construction paper (or you can get fancy and find a snow scrapbook paper)
• 1 white glove (they have these at the dollar store, but I couldn't find white. I paid $1.50 for two pairs of white gloves at Walmart) **NOTE: you need one finger for each family member, so you may need 2 gloves, or even 3..whew!
• Glue
• Felt, fabric of ribbon scraps
• Permanent marker
• White felt
  

Take the back off your frame--use this as your guide and trace the outline on the white construction paper. Cut out and glue to the back. Here's your snowy back drop. Now, cut out the fingers on your white glove. Arrange your family the way you want. The shortest finger would clearly be the smallest member, the longest finger the tallest...etc.

I glued my felt on first, but didn't like how the bottom of my snow family looked where I had cut the glove, so I ended up peeling it back and tucking them inside. So you may want to glue your family on first, and then add your felt snow, or just don't glue the top of the snow until you have them tucked inside.

Now, glue on your snow. I just free handed some felt "hills" of snow to give it dimension, but you could cut straight across.

Use felt or ribbon or even paper scraps and add noses, scarves, etc to your family. I used ribbon for my scarves, felt for the carrot noses, and I used a thin permanent marker to make the eyes, and coal mouths. The idea of cutting out all of those tiny pieces didn't appeal to me, and I think it looks pretty good this way.

Add your family's name to the top and "ta-da," a super cute snow family to match yours!!

Gingerbread Playdough

Mommy Craft

I thought what a fun experience it would be to make a "sensory" activity for this week, since party of gingerbread's appeal is its smell.

I found a recipe to home-make gingerbread play dough, but with my hands full, I thought "how about I just add the spices to bough play dough?' Well, if you were thinking the same thing--it works just fine!
I had a can of unopened white play dough and was sad to discover I didn't have the spices I needed for gingerbread! So, I went with cinnamon--close enough, right?

Next time I will not only stock up on the spices, I will buy brown play dough, that will make it look even more like gingerbread dough.

To make this craft you will need:
(if you want to cheat like me):

• 1 can of play dough
• Spices: Cinnamon, Allspice, Ginger & Nutmeg (apparently you kind of mix until you get the right "smell."

(if you want to make it from scratch):

1 Cup flour
1/2 Cup salt
2 tsp. cream of tartar
1 cup water
1 tsp. vegetable oil
Spices--Cinnamon, Allspice, Ginger, Nutmeg
*Green and Red food coloring to make Brown (optional--the spices usually
give the dough a good Brown color.)

DIRECTIONS--
1. Mix the dry ingredients. Experiment with the spices until you get
a scent and color that you like.
2. Mix water and oil together first and then add them to the dry ingredients
and stir.
3. In a pot, cook the mixture for three to five minutes on low/medium, stirring
constantly.
4. The dough will start to pull away from the sides of the pot and
stick together in a large ball. I take it out of the pan when I see a VERY faint
brown skin on the dough one each side when I flip it.
5. Take the dough out of the pan and knead the dough until it becomes soft
and smooth.
6. Allow the dough to cool and then store it in an airtight container.

Total time to make dough: 10 minutes. This is a very quick and easy recipe and the dough turns out great! 1 batch makes about the same amount as you would find in one small tub of store bought play dough.

Bubble Wrap Noise Maker

Mommy Craft

This was a HUGE hit--although, I had no idea just how loud it would be on hard wood floors!

I got the idea from Martha Stewart, and it was easy and fun!

To make this activity you will need:

• Bubble wrap
• Sharpie markers in various colors
• White paper
• Tape

First, turn the bubble wrap so that the flat part is facing up. You will want to color in a few circles with your sharpie markers. This really is a neat effect!

I taped several pieces of white construction paper together, but if you have access to a roll of paper, or, you could make a large square and put it on a poster board. I taped my bubble wrap to my paper, but first I wrote "2011" in several different spots to make it more festive. Then, I taped the paper to the floor. This is important, because it will slide on the kids! If you have carpet--you will likely be better served--but the kids love it no matter where it is!

Candy Cane Letters

Mommy Craft

This craft is too easy not to do it for your kids! I saw the idea here, and just had to make them. Of course, how neat would it have been for them to find them on the tree Christmas morning?! But, Gracie loved hers when she saw it the day before.

To make this craft you will need:

• Candy canes ***take off the plastic!***
• Silicone backing sheet/pan OR parchment paper **do NOT use wax paper--live and learn, sigh**
• Oven
• Wooden skewer (optional)
• Ribbon (optional)

Heat your oven to 250. Put the canes on the silicone baking sheet or parchment paper and put in the oven for 10 minutes. TAKE THE PLASTIC OFF THE CANES FIRST!

This is the hot part--but you can do it.

The candy is only pliable for about 2-3 minutes. Shape your candy carefully into the first letter of your child's name.

If you have a harder letter like "E" or "A" you will want to break your candy cane in pieces before putting it the oven. That way you have pieces to stick together to make your letter. I was able to make my "T" for Thomas with the cane intact, but it may have been easier with a long piece and a short piece.

Use a wooden skewer or something else to make a hole in the top while it is still hot. When it cools you can hang in on the tree!

Santa Felt Beard

Mommy Craft

This is just something fun to do for your kids to go along with the Santa hats they can make themselves.

Here is the pattern: (click to make it larger)

Now you may notice that I just cut out the beard part from felt. I didn't dew it, and I just hot glued ribbon to the back to tie it on. If you have more time I am sure a sewn version will look nicer, but this is faster and easier.

Rudolph Countdown

Mommy Craft

Since Thomas had a Christmas countdown (see Santa Countdown), Gracie needed (uhum, wanted) one too.

So I colored this Rudolph picture and cut out red construction paper noses. I stapled the noses together after writing the number of days left until Christmas. Make sure you stack them 14, 13, 12...until you get to 1. I used heavy packing (clear) tape to stick the last nose to the Rudolph picture.

She pulls off a nose each night, and loves it.

There is still time for a countdown, so if you want to make a Rudolph one--here's the coloring page I used.

Mommy Tip: remind your child to pull off the nose gently. Even stapled and taped on their, it may come off a few times.

Mitten Game

Mommy Craft

Toddler, Pre-K

This is a simple matching game for you and your toddler or preschool aged child that I think you will both enjoy. I hung mine on a rope to make it look like a clothesline and add a little more fun to the game, but you could place them on a table and you child can still match them.

To make this game you will need:

• Different color construction paper
• Mitten pattern (I included one below)
• Rope or string (optional)
• Clothespins (optional)
• Contact Paper (optional)

I simply cut out several different color mitten (2 of each color) and hung one mitten up and had my son match the mitten I held up. It took him a while to get the idea, but once he did he amazed me at his ability to recognize the similar color and patterns. (I added some patterns on the mittens to give it an extra touch)

I laminated mine with contact paper for durability, but that is optional.

Zipper Thermometer

Mommy Craft

I found this neat idea in an old preschool book, and just had to make it for my kids. Of course I dressed it up quite a bit. The idea is for a zipper to be a movable thermometer for your kids to learn about temperature. I did that--but just added a cute picture to go with it.

To make this craft you will need:

• A zipper
  
• Construction paper
• Packing tape
  
• Heavy paper
  

To make the thermometer you will want to use packing tape or another very heavy tape to adhere the sides of your zipper to paper. I used heavy paper as well for this project. Remember to only tape the sides of the zipper (the cloth) to the paper you do NOT want to tape over the actual teeth of the zipper. Now, make yourself a thermometer. I have added a pattern at the bottom of this post if you need help. I made marks for temperatures in increments of "10." If you live some place warmer you may want to start at 20 and move your way up, if you live some place very cold maybe include negative temps in your thermometer.

Cut the inside of your pattern out (the red part of the thermometer). This is where your zipper will show through.

Tape or glue your thermometer over your zipper paper. I laminated my "picture" to give it extra support and to cut down on wear and tear.

Now each morning your child (children) can take turns finding out the temperature and they can move the zipper to the proper place.

The National Weather Service is a great website to use. Type in your zip code and it will give you the current temperature if you scroll down to where it says "current conditions" on the right hand side of the page.

Thanksgiving Table Deorations From My Table

I don't usually do much as far as decorating the table for holidays and such (I've got two kids who know how to break things!)--but when I found this idea from Fiskars for a kids Thanksgiving table-- I HAD to do it for our family table!!

I absolutely love how it came out!

Now, they had a tree centerpiece with leaves, but I had found an idea on another site for a Mayflower centerpiece (made from wood--I used heavy paper and an empty tissue box) that I thought fit the theme better.

If you want to see all the how to's you can click here.

**Click the picture to make it bigger so you can see all the details. I LOVED how it came out!***

Candy Indian Corn Treat

Mommy Craft

This was another cute treat idea I found. I used these and the turkey pops and made treat bags (you'll see that idea next) for my kids and another special little boy.

To make this treat you will need:

• Reece's Pieces
  
• Snack sized baggies
• Tissue paper in yellow and green
• Tape (clear)

I fell in love with how cute this was, and how wonderful it turned out! I found the idea here.

First, put Reece's Pieces in a snack sized storage baggie and zip shut. Get ALL of the air out. Cut lengths of your yellow and green tissue paper about an inch longer than your baggie, and half the width of your baggie. I used two cut peices of yellow and two pieces of green for each Indian corn treat.

Roll your baggie up as tight as you can. and make sure that the zipper part of the bag is not showing when you assemble the corn.

Stack your tissue paper up green, green, yellow, yellow. Put your baggie on top and middle of the pile. Gather all the layers at one end of your corn--tape the end together. Do the same at the other end.

Mommy Tip: If you wanted a different look you could roll the candy with just the yellow tissue paper and then add construction paper shucks to the corn as well.

I always say--use your imagination and make it your own way! :)

Turkey Pops

Are these not adorable?!!

To make this craft you will need:

• Felt in a shade(s) of brown
• Scissors
• Rubber Bands
• Googly eyes and whatever scraps you want to finish him off, I used:
• Orange felt
• Orange pipe cleaners (cut in half, one half per leg)
• Red pipe cleaner (cut in thirds--1 per waddle)
• Craft Glue
• Tootsie Roll Pops
  

Cut 8" circles from your felt. Now, fold your circle in half, and in half again. Make a SMALL snip at the bottom, this will provide the hole for your sucker stick to go through.

Put your sucker through the hole, and gather the felt at the top back (like you were giving the lollipop a top pony tail). Secure with a rubber band, and fan out the remaining felt.

Decorate your turkey. The original idea that I found (which you can see here) used foam scraps--but I had extra felt, so I cut out a beak from my orange, added googly eyes, and curled a red pipe cleaner for the waddle.

To make his legs, I cut an orange pipe cleaner in half, then I twisted it around the bottom of the turkey pop making sure to keep it in the middle. I then "curled" each side to resemble legs.

Mommy tips: do not do like I did and "eyeball" the circle. The light brown ones are from where I tried to get to circles from one piece of felt. The fluffier dark brown one was closer to the 8" (nope, I didn't measure, just made sure I did it bigger. :)

Pilgrim Hat Cookies

Mommy Craft

I made these cute little pilgrim hats for Gracie's first grade Thanksgiving feast--and they were a hit. It took me so much longer than I thought to make them--but if you aren't making 30--it is well worth the effort.

To make this snack craft you will need:

• Chocolate chips
• Graham Crackers
• Marshmallows
• Tooth picks
• Paint brush (seriously!)
• Wax Paper
• Icing or candy melts
  

I painted the chocolate on my pieces--it really was a lot easier. You want to melt your chocolate--you can use the microwave or a double boiler.

Paint your graham cracker squares and place them on a plate/pan with wax paper.

Next, stick the marshmallow with a tooth pick. This will make this MUCH easier as well. Dip your marshmallow in the melted chocolate and use the paint brush to cover bare areas if you need (you will when the chocolate starts getting low.

Now, put the marshmallow on top of the graham cracker tooth pick UP. You are just using the tooth pick as an added handle. Once the chocolate on the marshmallow and cracker set, remove the tooth pick. You will likely need to paint the top of the marshmallow to make it an even color.

Using icing (or do like I did and melt some left over colored candy melts and put in an icing bag) and make your band and buckle.

Mommy tips: 1. do NOT attempt to melt the entire bag of chocolate chips at one time (lesson learned) 2. I made my "buckles" ahead of time and made square shapes on wax paper. I let it set and then they peeled off and stuck right to the band that I piped around the marshmallow.

Football Bean Bag Toss

Save your Costco boxes, because your kids could also have as much fun as mine have this week!

This is the second hand made bean bag toss I have made so far, and they love them! I was hoping to make some football shaped bean bags, but my sewing machines are dead, so we just used the ones we have.

I decorated my box with a football field look and used a sharp knife to make a hole for the bean bag toss.

You never know what you can use with an old box!

Football Math

Mommy Craft for
K, 6 & Up

This idea I have had before, and I even made one for my then Kindergartner, but it was just before the move, and it was a little above her skill level. So, I made a new one now that she is much farther along in the math department.

To make this game you will need:

• Green construction paper
  
• Brown construction paper
• Permanent marker
• White crayon
• Yellow construction paper (optional)
• Contact paper (optional)
  

I simply made a field from my green construction paper. I ended up using a sheet and a half of green and I glued it to some left over poster board I had to make it stiff--but you could just made a one sheet field.

Use your white crayon to make the yard lines on the field, only instead of doing 10, 20, 30 etc do 1, 2, 3 ...to 10.

Add some yellow goal posts if you would like. I free handed mine and folded a small part of the goal post and glued it to the field so it would stick upright.

Now cut out football shapes from your brown construction paper. Use a dark black (thick is better) marker to make addition or subtraction problems on the football. I was unfortunately out of brown construction paper and thus I had to color my white paper brown and it looks super dark. I also wrote problems on both sides of the footballs, and I laminated them to hold up to use.

Have your child choose a football and they have to land the ball on the correct yard line. Gracie likes to toss hers, but the idea is to get the football on the correct answer. For example one football might say "1+1" and the child would put the ball on the "2" yard line.

Even being as girly as she is--Gracie loves this game and I am hoping it will help her to memorize some simpler math tables.

Squirrel Magnet

6 & Up, Mommy Craft

There really isn't much of a pattern for this craft, but I found the idea on a Bible School web page. So, I kind of did my own thing, and it looks super cute on the fridge. But, you too can make a squirrel magnet for fall, or really any kind of magnet to show off your little ones art work.

To make this craft you will need:

• Paper
• A good pattern
• Brown Paper bag
  
• magnet

I started to make my magnet out of felt, but I found that it was a lot harder to do, so I just used thick brown construction paper, traced the pattern on to it. I added some contrast by making certain parts of the squirrel and nut a different color. I used a brown paper bag for the squirrel's belly (which I just kind of free-handed), and the top of the nut. The bottom of the nut is brown paper bag too, but I knew it needed some color, so I colored over it with a maroon-ish colored marker.

Once I finished my cute little squirrel I used an old magnet. You probably have a ton of these some where like from a pizza or Chinese place. But, if you don't, you can buy magnets from the Dollar Store or any other place, usually in the craft section. Just glue your art work to the front of it. I cut my magnet a little and used a small strip for the nut so that it would lay nice and flat.

I had already decided to make a squirrel magnet for the theme this week, but when I found the adorable saying days later, I couldn't wait to get it assembled. What a perfect reminder of what we are all striving to do as parents!

"From little acorns mighty oaks do grow"--American Proverb

If you want to use the same squirrel I used, I am adding it below. It was simply a free coloring page I found online.

Nutty Squirrel Game

Mommy Craft

Game great for: Pre-K, K, 6 & Up

*I let my toddler play this game with me and his big sister, but since it calls for a small but, you want to be aware of the choking hazard. I keep the nut put up and will pull it out for games. But, you may just want to make this cute little squirrel with or for them**

Where is the nut?! That is the question my daughter keeps giggling to her little brother. What a fun fall craft and game wrapped in one! These squirrels make a great addition to my fall decor and they double as a fun afternoon game for the kids and I.

It is definitely a win/win.

To make this craft/game you will need:

• Egg carton (empty ;)
• Brown paint
• Brown pipe cleaner (just 1)
• Brown felt
• Black mini pom-pom (I just used a piece of scrap black felt, my pom poms were too big)
• Googly Eyes
• An acorn/nut

(I am copying the instruction from the Family Fun site where I got the adorable idea. They do a pretty good job of explaining it, and I wouldn't want to miss anything as I recall how I did it.)

Instructions

1. To make the squirrels: Use a pencil to poke a tail hole in one side of each cup, then paint the cups. For each squirrel, cut a face, ears, and a tail from brown felt. Once the paint dries, glue the faces onto the cups, then glue the eyes, ears, and pom-pom noses onto the faces, trying to make the squirrels look identical for a better game. Fringe the edges of the felt tails and glue a piece of pipe cleaner in the center of each, letting a 1/2-inch stem extend beyond the bottom. Attach each tail by inserting the stem through the hole and gluing it to the inside of the cup.

2. To play the game: With the other players watching, place a nut on the table and cover it with one of the squirrels. Now begin sliding the squirrels around the tabletop, weaving them around each other to make the other players lose track of which squirrel has the nut. The faster you move them, the more likely you are to distract your audience. After a while, stop and challenge one person to guess which squirrel hides the nut.

Mommy Tips: First, when they say "be careful making your hole"--be careful--ouch! As I mentioned in the supply list, I just used a piece of black felt for the nose, but you could use black construction paper. Now, here's another thing with the game, maybe my egg carton was too big, but Gracie could clearly see the nut under the side of the squirrel whom posses it. So, I plan to go back over and add some felt around the carton openings to make it a little harder. And, don't forget your nut can be a challenge with small kids who like to put things in their mouths. I couldn't find an acorn, and I have no idea what nut that is that I did find, but it works. You could substitute the nut for a pom-pom or something else clever, but it would still need to be small, and thus a possible wind pipe blocker--so keep it up around small ones.