Here’s a super simple way to bring a little bit of nature indoors and teach kids a bit about ecosystems. Make a terrarium out of a jar from the recycling bin (we used a salsa jar) and a bit of moss and tiny plants from a shady area of your yard or nearby natural…
Category: crafts
Making Mushroom Spore Prints!
Have you and your kiddos ever made spore prints? It’s easy to do and so fun — not to mention a bit educational! Miss Fiona and I made some spore prints this month from wild mushrooms that big sister Rhiannon (Anna to you old time readers) found while hiking in the woods with our dog,…
10 Ways to Make Today Magical
Happy Monday! It’s been too long since I’ve popped in and I’m once again resolving to find a way to do so more regularly. So let’s start by getting back to some ways to make the day more magical. 🙂 Here are 10 ways to make a little magic this week… 1. Go on a…
Free Vintage Drawing Book!
Here’s a wonderful, whimsical freebie to help kids (and parents!) learn to draw. What to Draw and How to Draw was written in 1913 by E.G. Lutz and is one of the public domain books from the New York Public Library on Open Archive online. The 78-page book is full of old-fashioned, simple drawings for…
Signs of Love
Here’s a sweet art project that’s perfect for the times right now. Girls to the Moon offers instructions for how to make Signs of Acceptance to show people that you care about them and are on their side. The site says: What are some words you could say to let people know they are safe with…
Colorful Shaving Cream Fun!
I’m very sorry for my long absence! Five year-old Alex had a tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy last week and the recovery has been really hard on him. We’ve also been out of town to celebrate my birthday and to meet with doctors at the Mayo for my husband to get a long-overdue new hip. Also, a…
Easy, Sturdy (Free) Building Blocks!
Here’s a little project that we’ve been doing for years. These fun blocks are so easy! I was planning on making a set of building blocks for Fiona for Christmas, but she kept trying to manhandle the presents under the tree so I decided to make her a set of “presents” of her own. It…
Marble Mice!
Here’s a fun little printable craft from The Toymaker — Marble Mice! Just print out the pattern on cardstock, cut out, and add a large marble inside. The Toymaker says… These Marble Mice are fun to make and roll around on your desk. Cats love them! What fun!
Altered Artwork!
Here’s a fun project to do for your next art adventure. Alter some artwork! Twisted Sifter posted the altered thrift store masterpieces by artists Chris McMahon and Thryza Segal, and the results are so fun! You can generally pick up oil and acrylic paintings at thrift stores for next to nothing, and then assign the…
Colorful Baking Soda Busywork
Here’s a fun way to occupy the kids in a bubbly, colorful way. Do some baking soda and vinegar experiments but add color! You’ll need: A box of baking soda per child (ours cost about .50 a box and we bought a bunch) 1-2 cups of white vinegar (generally under a dollar) Food coloring One…