Project: Fairy House

Yesterday morning Cordelia asked me if I thought fairies were real. These kind of questions are tricky for me. On the one hand I do not want to lie to my children. I want them to know that I will always be honest with them. This is why we have never done the Santa gig. On the other hand I do not want to take away the fun of imaginative play and the wonder of possibilities. Also, it is tricky when asked if unicorns are real...I mean a narwhal is definitely a sea unicorn.

My response was vague enough that I didn't squelch imagination. I said something like,"Well I have never ever seen a fairy." She took that and thought for a moment. She then said,"I have decided to believe that fairies might be real." Then she asked if she could build a fairy house. I agreed to the project.

So after lunch we set up on the back porch with a box that had previously held soy milk. We had some glue and a few soy yogurt cups (emptied and cleaned). I also grabbed some burlap type fabric and a hunk of wood.

The girls gathered grasses and leaves and sticks. Cordelia wanted to make sure the fairy house was camouflaged. She guided the project while Elise and I followed her lead. Elise spent a lot of time playing her own thing when the making process became too dull.

Cordelia in the process of making.

I cut out a door and windows, removed the flaps of the box. Grass was glued to the sides of the box, leaves to the top. Sticks were made into a fence. The yogurt cups and burlap were made into beds. I used the wood chuck to fashion a porch. 

One of two beds.

The whole project took a couple of hours. Once the house was made each girl dug little underground shelters for fairies in case of winter or tornadoes. Fun was had, imagination and innovation happened. It was a good afternoon outside.

Ha ha, this was Elise when I asked her to smile.

Proud of her creation.

Betty Spinkles laid on top of the fence, but the girls decided she was the protector of the fairy house.

Project: Personalized Jean Jacket #2

So many of you have been reading this blog for so long that maybe you remember this post (click here) where Cordelia got to personalize her own jean jacket. Oh my goodness, did you look at that post of Cordelia in the jacket? Seriously, drop everything and look at that girl. My heart hurts...ahhhh! How?! That was three years ago almost to the day, that is all people. Everything has changed since then, yes it is all good stuff, but good gravy (yes I talk like this in real life).

Hold on, I must compose myself. I am seriously emotional as it has just occurred to me that Eric and I have created the two most adorable girls that were ever made ever in all of the evers. Before you get your panties in a twist about how darling your own offspring are let me assure you that my opinions are genetically biased and you will never ever convince me that I am wrong. Although I think this girl is third place for most adorable, and that is probably mostly all of the French sweetness. Anyway, I digress...

Let's see, where were we?

Ah, yes, jean jacket.

So it only seemed natural that Elise should follow suit and pick out her own patches to make her jean jacket. Right? Right. 




First we started with the jean jacket which I bought on clearance about six months in advance, when Target was switching out seasonal clothes and marked it down by 50%. Next we took her to the same store and let her choose her own patches.



Elise opted for a skull (like her sister) and two flower patches, which you cannot really see in the photos as they are covered by the lapel of her coat. Let me assure you that they are very glittery. She also chose a cupcake patch, because it spoke to her.




Eric adhered the patches and then I sewed them on for good measure as iron on patches never really seem to stay put do they?



Elise is incredibly proud of her jacket and looks especially hip in her little ensemble.

Project: Pun Filled Valentine's Day

Cordelia is sent home with a preschool calendar at the beginning of each month and on it is a list of activities and obligations. This month the major event is the Valentine's Day party. Cordelia needs to bring 33 Valentine's for her classmates. I don't know about you, but I just balked at the thought of my daughter bringing home so much candy. I mean even after we take out all of the non-vegan candy there will still be too much. I have a bag up in the cupboard with about 2 pounds of Halloween candy still, candy that will probably be passed out at next Halloween. So I decided to take us out of the candy game. We decided to make Valentine's that included toys over candy. Cordelia said, "If they have candy it will just be poof, gone.  With my Valentine's they will be able to keep them until they die." When you see what she is handing out you will note that they will probably disappear within a couple of weeks, but still the intent was there and should they treasure these Valentine's until they are old men and women...well...ok?

So I went to a party supply store and just wandered the aisle looking for gift bag fillers for birthday parties that I could turn into Valentine puns.  I settled on 12 red clown noses, 12 wind up chomper teeth, and 12 compasses. Each bag cost just a couple of dollars and there were six in a bag. I spent about $12 on the toys and another couple of dollars buying plastic bags. Puns were easy enough to think of and honestly I was able to Google my teeth pun and find an already made template, the others I just used some clip art to accompany the text. Easy!

Here is what I did for the teeth:
First I printed out the pun filled message onto paper, we were out of card stock printer paper--save yourself a step and print onto card stock.



Elise and I stuffed the teeth into small plastic bags while Cordelia cut the messages and pasted them onto the small squares of card stock that we did have. She then signed her cards and we slipped them into the bags with the gifts and sealed them shut.

 

For the  compasses we repeated the process with our punny message.





For the clown noses we did the same.







The most time consuming part of the project was the signing of the cards. Cordelia completed the process in three sittings over the course of a couple of hours with lunch and play breaks in between.

We ended up with 36, three of which Elise will use for her friends.

Project: Ice Balloons

 

It's no secret that it has been mighty cold here in the state of Wyoming. Often that cold is coupled with insane wind which means we spend a lot of time indoors. Thankfully this often leads us to come up with fun projects. Yesterday after lunch the girls and I decided to freeze some water-balloons.I added a little color to the balloons to give them something special. I used it as an opportunity to talk about freezing and solid vs. liquid, see what I did there? Educational points, boom. We also talked about the dilution of color, having added a very dark color to the balloons.

You could also add seeds or small leaves for a more natural/adult look that would also benefit animals.

We set them out in backyard the snow for the night.



This morning I gathered them up in a big sauce pan and brought them inside, leaving a few outside to freeze all the way through, in spite of the frigid temps the balloons weren't completely frozen.



I cut off the balloons and there was a little gushing as the unfrozen middles poured out over the sink. I wasn't sure if this was a win or a fail at first. I mean I certainly hadn't expected them to gush water from the middle.



I decided that I really liked the hollowed out globes, they had a really delicate beauty to them.



Then we took them out front and set them in the snow as temporary decorations. If I were having a party I think I would do this with a dozen or so balloons and then insert led lights into the hollow center, it would be magical!



The girls were impressed with our little project.



I mean really, it's pretty.



They look a bit like the glass water balls that people use to water indoor plants.



 Who knows, when the balloons I left outside are solidly frozen we might have to invent ice bowling.

Project: Art with Kids

My husband and I are both artists so it is no surprise that our kids seem to share our affinity for the arts. For goodness sake the girls are more comfortable in art museums than most adults we know. With that said, I think that anyone and everyone can and should benefit from the arts. I am not suggesting that you set your kid on a career path, just trying to raise well-rounded kids is the goal.  Eric and I have been making art with our kids since they had the ability to grasp a crayon and we have a few tried and true techniques that might be helpful to you if you want to introduce your kids to the arts.



The most simple way to begin, of course, is to sketch. Cordelia (age 4, almost 5) likes to bring along a sketchbook when Eric and I take long walks. Sometimes instead of walking she will still hitch a ride on the double stroller and sketch everything that she sees or dreams of along the way. She loves to show us her work. Elise (age 2) is happy to scribble and adorably holds up each scribble and declares, "I made a tornado!"

When Eric and I are at the art supply store we will often let the girls grab small canvases which are in the $2-$5 range. Then when the time is right we break it out and let them create. Sometimes they want guidance and other times they just want to do their own thing. If you want to give this a go there are a few things you will need:

paper
pencil (or crayon or whatever)
canvas or watercolor paper
acrylic or watercolors
paintbrushes
water
palette or a paper plate or really anything that can hold paint without leaking
Drop cloths if you are indoors, hose if outdoors

How to get started
1. If this is your first try just give your kid a paper and a pencil and let them have at it, just create without any end goal beyond the act of creation.

2. Depending on your child's interest/age/ability you can start with a simple sketch of something that she/he plans to paint. We learned that if you give a kid paints and a paintbrush before they know what they want to paint you will end up with a brown sludgy mess; totally fine for the little kids, but slightly older kids are more proud of an actual image. Although even Elise is able to do more than you might expect. She, before age 2, was able to make a mark with green paint for a stem and a colorful blob on top makes a flower. I suggest that you ask your kid what they want to paint and think of the most simplified way to achieve that goal. Much as we begin drawing people as stick figures trees can be brown with green on top, grass is is just a green smear, rivers a line of blue, simple stuff. Once your kid shows that they are ready for more you can up the ante a bit and you definitely don't need to be an artist to teach your child the basics, just think simple.

3. When you are done with the sketch, it may take 30 seconds or 2 days, depends on your kid. You can break out the paint and canvas. Sometimes I let them go crazy on a piece of paper first, just to get the wild thrill of painting out of their system before they are ready to focus on a project. I lay out the paints on a palette or whatever I happen to be using. I get a small amount of water for washing brushes (you can skip the water part for little kids). I make sure the area is secure, either there is some sort of ground-covering or we are outside with a hose at the ready. I usually strip the kids down, they enjoy it and it really helps with clean-up. In the summer I will use a water soluble, washable, paint and they inevitably paint on themselves before running through the sprinkler at the end of the painting session.



4. Guide your child a bit, this isn't a time to sit back and check Facebook. Give your kid tips. Teach them about mixing colors:
red+ yellow= orange
blue + red = purple
yellow +blue = green

You've now covered primary (red, yellow, blue) and secondary colors (orange, purple, green). You can experiment with the color wheel even more if you like! Rainbows are great ways to use these colors too.

5. Encourage your child to step away too, to let paint dry, to come back and see what she/he might want to add. You can talk about the shapes that make up our world (sun is round, mountains can be triangles, houses can be squares and triangles). Encourage your child to look at the elements that comprise the big picture and then let them go. Yeah, sometimes you have to bite your tongue as they do something weird that might "mess up" a perfectly good picture, but the end result isn't really a painting is it?

6. Finally, give that kid praise---for their painting, patience, creativity, whatever and display their work proudly!


Sunset by Cordelia

Project: Woodland Creature Magnets

My friend Sarah gifted me with these adorable cookie cutters that she got while at Ikea (check here). Naturally I plan to make millions of darling cookies, but I also had other plans. Magnets to be specific. If you want to make your own I have directions for you. Wahoo!

You will need
Oven bake clay (I used something like Sculpey)
Cookie cutters
magnets
cookie sheet and oil or parchment
rolling pin


1. First you will to get the clay workable. Knead it and roll it and generally play with it until it is malleable.

2. Roll your clay thin, 1/4" or so as it can't be too heavy to hang from a magnet.

3. Time to get creative. You could do the animals all one color. I wanted a little whimsy so I mixed colors.


The fox I just put orange and white together and positioned my cookie cutter in a manner that I enjoyed.





For the snail I made a snake of white and brown clay, rolled them together and then flattened. Next I pressed in a piece of yellow clay.

* Make sure that your clays are adhered together or they will break apart when baking.



4. Place your animals on a cookie sheet that has been lightly oiled or, better yet, lined with parchment. Follow baking instructions for the clay you purchased. Mine required 15 minutes at 275F per 1/4" of thickness. Let cool 





5. Once completely cooled adhere magnets. Be sure to place the magnet correctly or it will repel from your fridge. I actually used those weird magnets for law firms or whatever that come with the phone book and cut them to size.



Done deal. Put those bad boys on the fridge and let the compliments wash over you like waves in the ocean...or you know, maybe that won't happen.





Also, Elise was napping while I worked on this project, but Cordelia was all over it. She made her own magnet that I absolutely adore, a monster. She named him T.I.

Project: Earth Friendly Seedlings

I started my first round of seedlings a few weeks ago. I planted them in my little plastic seedling tray that I have used and re-used many times. Once the seeds started to grow it was clear that the little hands helping me plant had been very generous with their seeds and that a little thinning was due. If you aren't into seedling lingo, thinning is the simple process of removing a few plants in order to let the healthiest grow. Otherwise they compete for nutrients and choke each other, then all of them die.

I couldn't buy another tray and I hate to just throw away little plants that are growing. I am such a weirdo that I can't even throw out plants. I know as a vegan I am like a major plant killer, but I really like to let those little babies reach their full potential. Yeah, it's OK to sigh in annoyance at that, I annoy my own self with that business.I decided to do some transplanting instead of tossing seedlings into the trash like some kind of monster. I created a little DIY seedling tray that is a great way to recycle with things you probably already have laying around the house. Also, it is a super kid friendly project as long as you are cool with a little mess.



You will need:
leftover toilet paper rolls I also used a few old soy yogurt cups that I had cleaned
a large plastic container, or several smaller ones. I used a container that had originally housed some store bought lettuce.
seeds or seedlings
soil

1. Cut your toilet paper rolls in half and then set them upright ( I also included some yogurt cups) into my salad tray.
2. Fill all of them with soil. Little hands love this messy job.
3. Transplant seedlings or just plant some seeds.
4. Water them and put them into a sunny room, but if you are planting seeds keep them in a dimly lit room until they sprout.



Now if only it would stop snowing...

Project: Mailbox

Yesterday morning Cordelia was asking about the mail. You know, why they keep raising the rates for postage, what this temporary postage hike is all about, are forever stamps really forever, will the US Mail stop delivering on Saturdays? Oh, wait, no those weren't her questions. She just asked how mail was delivered. So I decided a little hands on action was necessary. We decided to write our Christmas thank you cards together so she could see that end of the deal. We also decided to make a pretend mail system for our house.

Here is how we made our pretend mail:
Supplies
old box
something to wrap it with, we re-used packing paper
scissors
tape
colors, marker, etc.
paper for writing letters (we used old copy paper so as not to create more waste)


Our empty box


Elise was insane, something about crumpled paper really set her on a track to destruction. She did manage to break a lens on the camera and write on the table with crayon while shouting "NO!"as this was going on.



First I left one side of the box open so our mail wouldn't be trapped. I wrapped the rest in our leftover packing paper, much like a present.



Next I cut a little slot on top for the mail.



I wrote "Mail" on the side and thought we were done. Cordelia said, "So, it's just brown mom? Really?" So, out came the colors and she decorated it a bit.



Finally I cut scrap paper to a size that would fit the slot and let her practice her writing and illustrating.




Elise and Cordelia are both really into it!