T.P. Roll Creatures

What to do with all those toilet paper rolls (other than recycle them, of course)...make creatures!

Here's what you need:
A toilet paper roll
Paint
Hole punch
Pipe cleaners

Here's what you do:
1. Paint the outside of your toilet paper roll in fun colors.

2. Add a face if desired (my 3-year-old opted for the faceless variety). Googly eyes would be fun to add - but I didn't have any when we were making the creatures yesterday.

3. Punch two holes (or more if you want a medusa-like or octopus-type creature) at the top of the roll.

4. Cut a pipe cleaner in half and insert each half into the holes punched at the top of the creature.

5. Create an fascinating story staring your new toys.

Braiding Board

My 5-year-old wants to learn how to braid, but is having trouble holding hair/ribbons in her hands the right way. I fashioned a little board for her that holds the ribbons for her.

Here's what you need:
Gardening knee pad (a book or piece of wood with a push pin would work too)
Ribbon
Duck tape

Here's what you do:
1. Cut three pieces of ribbon and tie around the top portion of the knee pad handle (or pin to the top if using book/wood).

2. Place a piece of duck tape around base of pad with the sticky side OUT. Tape adhere the sides with two more pieces of duck tape.

3. Stick the three ribbons to the duck tape...and start braiding :-)

Baby Shower Onesie Decorating

I co-hosted a baby shower this weekend and it was so much fun! But the MOST fun part was the idea of my co-hostess, Val. Instead of doing the standard baby shower games - we decorated onesies of various sizes for the baby to wear when she arrives! We had on-hand lots of cute onesies in different colors, puffy paint, iron-ons, and patches (if I had thought of it, I would've broken out my Bedazzler - but didn't think of it until right now!). We had an ironing board and iron ready in the corner of the room and had space to put them to dry.

We did this EARLY in the shower, so the ones that got painted would have time to dry before being transported home. We had a blast, everyone created adorable custom works of art for the baby, and we all enjoyed chatting! We did cake and gifts afterwards, so there was plenty of time for everything to dry.

Here's the finished products:

Photo by Amy Knecht - used with permission.

Cute No-Sew Blanket

My wonderful mother gave me the idea for this one - and helped me make them! We spent a fun afternoon with my kids making them as baby gifts for some friends.

Here's what you need:
Two different colors of fleece fabric (I made the one seen here for babies - so I used 1.5 yards of each color. For older kids, I'd use two to three yards) - works best to use one printed fabric and one coordinating solid color.
Pins
Scissors
Measuring tape
Chalk

Here's what you do:
1. Pin the two fabrics together (if your fabric has an unprinted side - make sure it is the side facing IN - so the printed side is showing when the fabrics are pinned together).

2. Cut off any excess to make them the exact same size (this will only be necessary if you have different yardage of each color or the fabrics came from different-sized bolts).

3. Cut a four-inch square from each corner. Make sure you cut BOTH colors of fabric.

4. Lay the measuring tape along one edge - four inches from the edge. Using your chalk, make small marks approximately two inches apart.

5. Cut four-inch long strips along the edge. Again, you will be cutting BOTH colors of fabric at once.

6. Repeat steps 4 and 5 along the remaining three sides.

7. You will have two sets of strips on each edge - one on top of the other. Gently tie the strips together.

8. Snuggle up!

Easy Homemade Soap

I've been making this easy melt-and-pour soap for a year now - and it's a huge hit! I use it at all of my sinks/showers - and it makes a great gift. I actually gave away a bunch of tiny heart-shaped bars today as baby shower favors! Plus, it smells really-really good. I use lavendar and rosemary - but you could play with the recipe and use different essential oils. You can also add dried lavendar and/or rosemary herbs/flowers if you have them - they look really pretty in the soap. My kids LOVE helping with this - and it makes it easier to get them to remember to wash their hands since they helped make it!

Here's what you need:
1 lb Melt-and-pour glycerin (you can find this at craft shops or online - you can find everything under the sun for soap-making at Organic Creations)
3/4 teaspoon Lavendar oil
1/4 teaspoon Rosemary oil
Mold (I use bar-shaped soap molds for big bars and silicone ice cube trays for little favor-sized soaps)
Cooking pot
Spoon to stir

Here's what you do:
1. Cut the glycerin into small-ish pieces and place into pot.

2. Melt over medium heat - stirring occasionally.

3. Add oils (and dried herbs/flowers if using).

4. Pour melted mixture into molds.

5. Cool for a few hours (you can speed up this process by placing in the fridge).

6. It's extremely easy to clean up - since it's soap ;-)  I just run warm water into the pot and wipe it with dish towel or sponge.

Sand Candles

We had a beautiful warm day yesterday and tried out a new project in the backyard - sand candles! (Melting and pouring the wax obviously required some adult assistance.)

Here's what you need:
Pail
Sand
Small shovel or spoon
Candle wax
Candle wick
Small pot

Here's what you do:
1. Fill a pail with damp sand.

2. Scoop out an area in which to pour the wax (the empty area becomes the candle mold).

3. Place the wick into the open area - make sure to leave some sticking out to light later (use a real wick - you can find it at the craft store - and not string or it won't burn right).

4. Melt the candle wax in a small pot. I tried lining the pot with aluminum foil to make the clean-up easier - but to be honest, it was easier to just melt it directly in the pot itself and then wipe it out with a paper towel while the wax was still melty. If your wax cools in the pot before you clean it, simply re-heat the pot for a few minutes so the wax gets warm again, and then wipe it out. Also, if you get wax somewhere you do not want it to be (like a counter or table) just pour some very hot/boiling water on it and wipe it away (obviously this is NOT a project to do on your heirloom kitchen table or somewhere else that is easily damaged). I highly recommend this as a BACKYARD project!

5. Pour the melted wax into the scooped-out area in the sand.

6. Let wax cool for at least 12 hours (we left ours overnight).

7. Remove candle from sand and admire it! You get a very unique, rustic-looking creation.

My 5-year-old was VERY proud of hers!

World's Best Cornbread

My kiddos are huge fans of anything corn-related (must be their Wisconsin heritage). This is a really easy, super yummy recipe for cornbread (aka "Johnnycake")!

Here's what you need:
2 boxes "Jiffy" corn muffin mix
2/3 cup milk
2 eggs
1 can corn (drained)
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese (could also use mexican-style blend or similar cheese)

Here's what you do:
1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Dump everything into a big bowl.

3. Stir. It will be a little lumpy.

4. Grease a 13x9" pan - pour the mixture in.

5. Cook for about 30 minutes, or until toothpick inserted comes out clean.

6. Eat!

Rainbow Rice

Saw this fabulous idea on Share & Remember and HAD to try! I altered her "recipe" a little bit, to match what I had in my kitchen. My kids LOVED it!

Here's what you need:
A bag of uncooked white rice
Rubbing alcohol or vodka (I used vodka 'cause I was out of rubbing alcohol)
Food coloring
Zip-lock bags
Cookie trays

Here's what you do:
1. Put one cup of rice into each zip-lock bags (I used 5 total).

2. Pour one "glug" of vodka/rubbing alcohol into each bag (about 3 tablespoons).

3. Drip a few drops of food coloring into each bag.

4. Shake 'em up to distribute the alcohol/food coloring evenly.

5. Pour the rice onto cookie trays and place outside to try (we had a 60 degree sunny day...in the sun the trays took about 30 minutes to dry).

6. Mix 'em together and have fun!

Get Some Dirt Under Your Nails With Your Kids

When my oldest daughter was about two and a half, we were at a craft fair where the local food bank was handing out small vegetable plants to kids. She took her little broccoli home, planted it, and grew a beautiful plant that she happily ate!

2-year-old Anna (who is now 5) in her garden

This started a love of gardening that we have enjoyed as a family ever since. We are partial to vegetable gardening since you get to eat your results, and it saves a lot of money at the grocery store! You don't need a large yard to garden - I've grown veggies indoors in window sills and on small patios in containers. You just have to make sure to water those container gardens OFTEN. Also, if your soil isn't naturally rich, I recommend placing a small border around your garden with wood or bricks and mixing in some fertilzed soil or mulch. I have done this in my garden, as I live in a desert where gardening can be tricky at times.

Although they haven't loved all of the vegetables we've grown (they love to grow/pick radishes but HATE to eat them...luckily I love radishes), my kids are much more likely to try something new that came out of our garden than a new veggie from the grocery store.

It is also their job to keep the garden watered (takes some daily reminding from me) - which they love doing.

After a while, we learned the benefits of composting and started a compost bin in the backyard. This has been a great way to teach them about the concepts of waste, trash, decomposition, and proper plant nutrition.

Our compost bin and wasp trap (used with apple cider vinegar to keep away fruit flies in the summer)

My kids also think it's really fun to take the veggie scraps out to the compost bin for me. You can compost obvious things like fruit/vegetable waste, grass clippings, and weeds - but ALSO  shredded newspapers, corrugated cardboard, eggshells, coffee/filters, teabags, and fiberboard eggshell cartons/takeout containers (don't put the styrofoam ones in). Steer clear of things like dairy, oils, and meat (that gets SMELLY and will attract unwanted visitors). I keep a bowl by my kitchen sink and drop veggie/fruit waste (peels, cores, etc) into it as I'm cooking and let the kids take it out and dump it in the bin after I'm done. You can also get little mini-compost holders for your kitchen which come with lids that you can store waste in for a few days, but to be honest the bowl works just fine for me. I bought one of those countertop waste storers and NEVER use it.

During the warmer months, my fruit remains attract fruit flies. I placed an inexpensive glass wasp trap next to it with apple cider vinegar inside - took care of the problem within a few days (see the photo of the compost bin above). The only way in/out of the wasp traps is through the base - they fly in, get a little tipsy on the vinegar, and can't find their way out.

After a few months - depending on where you live and what you have in your bin, the bottom layer will be ready for use and you can add it to your garden by sprinkling it directly onto the soil or making compost "tea". Here's some additional information on composting and the different ways to make and use it.

Recently-added remains to our family compost bin.

Monkeyin' Around

We went to a Curious George storytime hosted by our local university the other day and the Tucson Children's Museum was hosting this adorable craft. My kiddos are both huge monkey lovers and LOVED it!

Here's what you need:
Monkey template
Crayons/markers/colord pencils
Brown pipecleaners
Glue (hot glue gun works fastest, but obviously white glue is safer for kids to use themselves - so whatever floats your boat)
Scissors

Here's what you do:
1. Print out the monkey template and cut out.

2. Color the front/back of the monkey.

3. Cut one brown pipecleaner in half.

4. Make an "X" with two full-sized pipecleaners and wrap the tip of the cut one around the center and let it drop down through the middle of the "X."

5. Glue the "X" to the non-colored side of the BACK of the monkey - so the "X" forms arms/legs and the cut pipecleaner forms a tail.

6. Add more glue to the back of the uncolored side of the FRONT of the monkey and lay it on top of the back.

7. Start monkeyin' around :-)

Cute Valentine Lollipop Card

I'm a "sucker" for all things Valentines-related, so when my amazing photographer sis-in-law offered to make this for me, I was thrilled! All of my daughters' preschool classmates will be getting one on the 14th.

Photo courtsey of Simply Snapshots (used with permission)

Super easy and super cute - and big thanks to Meridy Twilling/Simply Snapshots for the photograph and idea!

Here's what you need:
A camera (from which you get a print made)
Lollipops

Here's what you do:
1. Take a photo of your valentine sweetie holding their hand out in front of them like they were holding a stick.

Photo courtsey of Simply Snapshots (used with permission)

2. When you have the print, stick a lollipop through the top/bottom of the hand and it looks like they're handing the recipient a lollipop :-)

Paper Flowers

What's better than a beautiful bouquet of flowers? One that will never wilt!

Here's what you need:
Construction paper
Pipe cleaners
Scissors
Small vase

Here's what you do:
1. Cut flower-shaped "petals" from the construction paper.

2. Put 1-5 petals onto a pipe cleaner - just poke through the center.

3. Put them into a vase!

How to Keep a 2-5 Year Old Busy for at Least 30 Minutes

For me, one of the biggest daily challenges is keeping my kids busy while I make dinner. Sometimes I just let them watch TV, but I hate to do that every day. Yesterday I let my 3-year-old make the dinner "centerpiece" while I cooked. She happily crafted for a half hour while I got things ready to eat.

Here's what you need:
Pasta Strainer
Pipe cleaners

Here's what you do:
1. Show them how to insert the pipe cleaner ends into the pasta strainer - leaving large arches on top.

2. Tell them to make a sculpture :-)