Baggie Painting

February means oodles of birthdays; today I gathered my assembly line (aka kids) for card making day. Hayden did great finger painting, for oooo...two minutes, and then began eating the paint. It just didn’t seem fair that he couldn’t join in on card making day; I remembered hearing or reading about a fun activity for little hands, unfortunately I can’t give credit where it is due since I can’t remember where I heard about this activity. Take a plastic sandwich bag, fill it with paint, seal and let your little one mush the colors inside the bag together with their fingers.

My little artist

Apparently paint is yucky!

Honest mommy, I wasn't eating paint!

Baggie Painting

Indoor Camping

Growing up in Mesa, Arizona where the average winter temperature is 41 degrees, I despise South Central Pennsylvania winters; I HATE being cold and trying to dress a 14 month old for the snow is like fitting a square peg into a round hole (11 Step Program for those thinking of having kids- Dressing small children is not as easy as it seems. 1. Buy an octopus and a small bag made out of loose mesh. 2. Attempt to put the octopus into the bag so that none of the arms hang out. Time allowed for this - all morning)! I’ll admit I like one measurable, sleddable, snowman building snow a year but after that I’m ready for warmer weather…well, we’ve had snow and I’m ready for spring, kiss the cabin fever goodbye and send my kids outside into the wide open.

To change up the indoor play routine I dug out and dusted off my old 2 man tent from my collage days, set it up and the kiddos and I had an indoor camping experience. We piled pillows, blankets and sleeping bags into the tent, we read books and for lunch I served a camping style lunch of hotdogs, trail mix, fruit and macaroni and cheese.

Since warmer weather doesn’t appear to be in the forecast, another winter wonderland front is scheduled to arrive tonight, the boys and I are off for a little change of scenery at the Hands on House.

Teddy Bear Den

Every bear needs a den to hibernate, including teddy bears…right?!?! After reading Leaves by David Ezra Stein I realized that Bear didn’t have a place to sleep and Benjamin had to fix this little problem; to solve this issue we created a den for Bear.

Materials:
Cardboard box
Packing Tape
Scissors
Glue
Leaves

Instructions:
Tape box closed, cut a hole on the side of the box, large enough to place your child’s bear inside. Have your child glue leaves onto box, be sure to cover box. You might want to line the inside of the den with some dry leaves or fiberfill to keep teddy nice and cozy.

You can make a sign for the face that says “Good Night, (name)! See you in the spring! Don’t worry about not seeing your teddy bear for several months. Bears often wake up during the winter months and come out and wander around a little before going back to sleep.

Very Hungry Caterpillar

Very Hungry Caterpillar
by Eric Carle
Very Hungry Caterpillar

Materials
Finger Paint
Brushes
Empty Toilet Paper Rolls
Googly Eyes
Pipe Cleaners
Headband
Aluminum Foil
Any other “crafty materials” you have lying around


My neighbor and I are both stay-at-home moms and though we love being home with our kiddos, she and I will admit-we sometimes NEED A BREAK! My wonderful and smart neighbor came up with a terrific idea, kid swapping; for one day I’ll watch her daughter and the following week she’ll watch my oldest son for a day. It’s an amazing, wonderful, relaxing… experience being able to grocery shop, run errands or clean without a “helper” or the horrendous three temper tantrums (yes, as of yesterday my “baby” is a three year old, but more on that in another post). The last time I watched Little Miss Alexa I had a theme day planned for the kiddos, Very Hungry Caterpillar; I made caterpillar antennas for each child using a headband, pipe cleaners and aluminum foil. We read “Very Hungry Caterpillar”, then headed outside where I had the kiddy table setup with materials for the kids to make their own caterpillar. Once their caterpillar works of art were complete I reminded them that the Very Hungry Caterpillar turned into a butterfly, I painted their hands and using their handprints we made butterflies. For lunch I served frozen peanut butter & jelly in the shape of a leaf (okay, it was actually a spade cookie cutter but the kids didn’t know that), ants on a log (peanut butter celery with raisins), strawberry shaped fruit gummies and for dessert autumn leaves.

Ball Drop

Ball Drop
Baby Play (Gymboree)

“Balls, bowls and anything that bangs are big hits with older babies. How can you get all those elements into one playtime? Just provide your baby with some lightweight balls (like whiffle or tennis balls) and a big metal bowl or plastic basket. Then show your baby how to drop the balls into the container. When the balls hit, they each make a different and interesting sound. Your baby will be intrigued by this simple activity and will gain and understanding of cause and effect. “

Scoop up Some Ice Cream

Scoop up Some Ice Cream
Highlights High Five

Materials:
Construction Paper
Glue
Scissors

Instructions:
1. To make the cones, cut brown triangles.
2. To make the scoops of ice cream, choose four colors. Cut circles from each piece of paper.
3. To make the cherry, cut small round circles.


Make a Picture
Glue the cones to a piece of paper. Glue the scoops of ice cream on the cones. put the cherry on top of the ice cream cones. Use crayons or small pieces of paper to add sprinkles.

Make a Game
Place 16 scoops in a bag. Give each player a cone. Take turns drawing a scoop from the bag. If you draw a flavor that you don't have, add it to your cone. If you draw a flavor that you already have, return the scoop to the gag and pass the bag to the next player. The first player to scoop up all four flavors gets wins.

Totally Tubular

Totally Tubular
Baby Play (Gymboree)

"Your baby may not have entered an ocean, lake, ore even a kiddie pool yet, but large swim tubes (*I purchased ours at the “Dollar Tree”*) provide plenty of fun on dry land, too. Sitters and crawlers alike enjoy using the tubes for sitting support. Or Play a game of peekaboo in the rings. Just sit him/her down in one on a soft surface, stack the rest of them up to his/her chest, and lift them off while calling “peekaboo!” enthusiastically. Babies who are more mobile will take pleasure in creeping and crawling in and out of several tubes placed on the floor.”

Father's Day

Craft projects have been nonexistent lately due to summer outings; WE LOVE SUMMER and BEING OUTSIDE! I’m a little late on this post seeing as how Father’s Day came and went; however this project can be useful for almost any special occasion. As much as I’d love to show you an awesome Father’s Day gift craft project, it just didn’t happen this year…we resorted to (gasp) store bought gifts!

Card

Materials:
Card Stock
Crayons, markers, paint…
X-Acto

Instructions:
Using Adobe Indesign I set up a document that that was 8”x6” (card will fold to 4”x6” fitting into an A6 Envelope [4-3/4” x 6-1/2"]) for the grandfathers and an 8 1/8”x9 1/8 (card folds to 4.0625”x9.125” fitting into #10 envelope [4 1/8" x 9 1/2"]) for daddy. Page one on the right side I created a star burst with a 1/2 point rule, on page two on the right side I added a photo in the exact same coordinates as the starburst on the front cover and added text above and below the photo. Printed out page one, flipped the card stock over printing page two on the backside. I then Folded the card in half and let Benjamin color on the front of the card, once he was done I used an X-Acto knife to cut out the starburst allowing the photo to show through. I saved the starburst cutout for a name tag on the wrapped gift.






Wrapping Paper

Materials:
Large roll or sheet of paper
Crayons, markers, paint…

Instructions:
Let your child finger paint, glitter, markers, crayon…whatever his/her preference of the day on the paper, then use decorated paper to wrap gifts.

Create Your Own Coloring Book

Create Your Own Coloring Book

My toddler absolutely LOVES to color, it's one of the few activities that will occupy him for 45+ minutes at a time, my only problem with his coloring addiction is he goes through coloring books like there’s no tomorrow or paper ends up all over the house. I came up with the simple solution of creating a coloring book, I Googled coloring pages of his favorite shows (Thomas the Tank Engine ["Tommy"], Bob the Builder and Curious George), merged all the files together creating an 80 page PDF document and I designed a simple but nifty personalized cover. I sent the files to a local printer, requested 100 blank pages added to the back and spiral bind the "book"...instant coloring book that cost a few bucks, while cutting down on paper clutter.

Watering Can Greeting Card

Watering Can Greeting Card
Family Fun

Happy Mother's Day! I am truly blessed to have my awesome mom and wonderful boys; a special thank you to my dear loving husband for making me a mommy of two adorable, loving, happy, amazing... boys that are my everything!

I had a completely different Mother’s Day project in mind for my 2 ½ year old, however I failed to read the instructions beforehand (hey-it’s Mother’s Day, I’m allowed to mess up) and didn’t realize I needed 24 hours to do the project…onto plan B.

Materials
Silver card stock
Scissors
Seed packet
Tape

Instructions
Print this watering can template on a piece of card stock. Cut out, let your child finger paint, glitter, markers, crayon…whatever his/her preference of the day is, then cut a horizontal slit across the front. Slip in a seed packet (add a piece of tape at the back to keep it in place), then write a message on the can.

Cards

Cards

I’m a fan of anything that will keep my children busy and happy while I work, I came up with the idea of homemade cards…and who doesn’t love a homemade card from a 2 ½ year old ;). I’m a graphic designer, using Adobe Indesign I quickly set up a document that is either 8”x6” (card will fold to 4”x6” fitting into an A6 Envelope [4-3/4” x 6-1/2"]), or an 8 1/8”x9 1/8 (card folds to 4.0625”x9.125” fitting into #10 envelope [4 1/8" x 9 1/2"]). Using google.com I’ll search for quotes/sayings for the card(s) (example: birthday card quotes), place the text into my document and hit print. Cut the card down to size, give the paper to my toddler and let him design the front cover using finger paint, glitter, markers, crayon…whatever his preference of the day is.

This card idea came from a catalog, unfortunately I can't remember which one.

Play Dough

Play Dough

Materials:
2 cups flour
2 cups water
3 tsp. cream of tartar
1 cup salt
2 Tbsp. oil
food coloring (optional)

Instructions:
Mix all ingredients, adding food coloring last. Stir over medium heat until smooth. Remove from pan and knead until blended smooth. Place in plastic bag or airtight container when cooled; will last for a long time.

Masking Tape Road

Masking Tape Road
The Toddler's Busy Book: 365 Creative Games and Activities to Keep Your One and a Half to Three Year-old Busy

Materials:
Masking Tape

Instructions:
Place masking tape onto carpet to make a pathway, always test with a small strip of tape first to be sure it won’t damage the carpet. My son LOVES to use the pathway for his cars, but you could also use the lines for games (example: follow the leader, hop scotch, etc).

Winter Sun Catcher

Winter Sun Catcher
Family Fun

Materials
Ice cube tray
Food coloring
Round cake pan
Ribbon
Plastic cup

Instructions
First, create colorful ice cubes by adding one to three drops of food coloring to the water in each section of the tray. Use only a few matching colors, as they will run together in the pan later. Freeze the cubes completely.

Fill a round cake pan about two-thirds full of water. To make the hole for the ribbon, set a plastic cup full of water in the pan. Place the pan in the freezer for an hour or so. Put the colored ice cubes in the pan, then let all the liquid freeze solid. Remove the plastic cup, flip the sun catcher out of the pan, then hang it outside with ribbon.