Our Mommyhood

Posts Tagged ‘crafts’

By Signe, Staff Writer, My Baby Clothes Boutique

Need a great hostess gift?  If a bottle of wine seems about right for your Merlot-loving sister-friend, but you are looking for something a little more personal or unique, try your hand at this fun wine-lover’s craft.

Materials Needed

• Empty wine bottle (and might I suggest that you enjoy being the one to empty it!)  Any color bottle will do, but I recommend a green one, if you can find it.
• String of colored holiday lights
• Decorative ribbon
• Gift tag

Instructions

You won’t believe that something so easy can be so gorgeous and loved by its recipient!

• Put the single string of colored holiday lights into the empty (and dry!) wine bottle, leaving the actual plug-in section outside of the bottle.

• Tie decorative ribbon around the neck of the bottle and attach a gift tag with a personalized message.

When your hostess plugs the string of lights into any standard outlet and sees the lights glow within the  bottle, you’re sure to have a friend for life!

Great gifting ideas brought to you by Signe Whitson, LSW.  She has been a child therapist for over ten years and has dedicated her work to bettering the relationships of parents with their children.  Her blog is dedicated to helpful tips on how to handle passive aggressive behavior – Passive Aggressive Diaries.  Her partnership with My Baby Clothes Boutique allows her to cover a larger audience of parents.   My Baby Clothes Boutique specializes in what parents want for their precious little ones – adorable baby clothes, flowered baby headbands and even unique tutus.

By Nicole, Contributor, The Activity Mom (@TheActivityMom)

I must admit that I’ve become a regular customer at the dollar store; I love finding things to use with my children to make learning fun and I really love when they are only a dollar.

Here are a few “must haves” from the dollar store that can be used in so many ways to make learning fun:

1. Garden Stones

What you can do with these:

*Make a set of alphabet magic rocks. Write a letter on the flat side (backwards) and seal with Modge Podge. Write names or words on index cards and use the magic rocks to spell them by matching and covering each letter.
*Glue them on picture frames, make a mosaic art piece or use them in a stepping stone.
*Buy different colored stones and use them for sorting.

2. Pipe Cleaners and Beads

What you can do with these:

*Counting – Thread a certain number of beads on each pipe cleaner 1-10.
*Make a pattern and have your child finish it.
*Thread the beads on the matching colored pipe cleaners.
*Get creative and make animals or shapes.

3. Foam Stickers

What you can do with these:

*Make puzzles
*Use them to make patterns.
*Sort them by color or shape.
*Decorate a card with them.
*Make a scene with the stickers and tell a story about it.

4. Pom Poms

What you can do with these:

*Put a number or dots on cups and have your child drop that number of pom poms in the cup.
*Sort them by color. Which color has more? Less?
*Sort them by size.
*Glue them on paper to make caterpillars.
*Use tongs and transfer one into each section of an ice cube tray.

Nicole is a former teacher, now SAHM who likes to try activities with her children that make learning fun. She shares them at her blog, The Activity Mom.

By Betsy, Contributor, Funky Mama Bird (@funkymamabird)

It’s a hot summer day and the toddler has run you into sweaty circles. He’s bored, you’re bored and you’ve run out of things to do.

Never fear; in your house this minute are some inexpensive supplies that you can use to create some fun, outdoor activities for your toddler. Some will need some preparation; others can be done in minutes. Intrigued? You should be. Now, head into your kitchen and gather up the following supplies:

·         Food coloring – or, if you have it and your kids are past the eating it stage, liquid water color paint works well, too.

·         Several large bowls filled with water

·         Scoops and measuring cups

·         Ice cube trays

·         Paper

·         Paint brushes, sponges or q-tips – whatever’s on hand

·         Shaving cream

·         Rice

·         The foam trays meat comes packaged on (washed and dried first, natch)

·         Any plastic bakery or salad container marked with a recycling symbol “6″

·         Markers

·         Scissors

·         Your microwave (OK, you can just leave that where it is, and go find it when you get to that point)

Got all that? OK. Mix up some water with food coloring and fill the ice cube trays with different colors, freeze for later.
Mix up some more food coloring and water with a different color in each bowl. Head outside where your toddler is unlikely to stain things. Now, you have several options for colored water play:

1.       Dump one color of water into another to watch the color change

2.       Paint or sponge the colored water onto the paper

3.       “Draw” with a frozen colored cube

4.       Place a frozen colored cube into a different color of water and watch the reaction as it melts – have your toddler swirl to see the effects

Next, mix up some food coloring with some dry rice and hide small toys in it – you have an instant, colorful “sand box” that can be used to mix colors, hide objects or just play in.

You can also add food coloring to shaving cream – either let the kids just plunge their hands in, or put it in large plastic bags they can squish to watch the colors change and mix.

When you’ve run out of food coloring, or your kids are older, make some homemade shrinky dinks. Cut some shapes out of the foam trays and plastic containers. Have your toddler color them in with markers. Foam trays go in the microwave for a few seconds, while the plastic goes in an oven heated to 200 degrees for 3 – 5 minutes. For best results, cut the shapes really large so your toddler can get the full effect of the shrinking.

If your toddler is old enough and has fun engaging in water play, he or she is old enough to add some color to the mix. I’ve found that a plastic art smock aimed at a 5 year old keeps my 1 year old clean from the splashes, and his hands clean up with just a little scrubbing. Raid your cabinets the next time you’re looking for something cheap and fun to do and bring some color to your day.

Have you seen all that the DIY Club has been up to?

Our blogging friend Cheri from “It’s So Very Cheri“– who has guest posted for us before — continues to deliver (with her super crafty friends) a monthly challenge with HUGE prizes.  And the prize list continues to grow!

To read the July rules, regulations, and giveaway details, just click here.  The competition will begin Tuesday night, July 8th at 7pm.  Prizes are valued at $200!!!  Good luck and get crafty!

By The Activity Mom, Guest Writer

Being a Mom is a busy job! There are times that I need to get something done like clean a bathroom, load the dishwasher, or take a phone call and I need a way to keep my kids happy AND busy while I do that. Sound familiar?

Here are a few independent activities for your child that will allow you a few minutes to get something done or to take a breather:

Sink Play

Fill the sink halfway up with water. Suggest that your child wash their play dishes or float their bath toys.

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Rip and Glue Collage

Ripping is great for motor skill development and glue is just fun! If you are afraid your child will make a mess, put dots on the paper where you want them to put a dot of glue.

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Pouring Challenge

Draw a line on a plastic cup and challenge your child to stop pouring when the water gets to the line. You’d be surprised at how much fun they have with this. Not as easy as it looks for little ones. Great for motor skill development!

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Sticker Scenes

With inexpensive stickers, have your child make a scene (as shown above) or stick them in a mini notebook.

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A quick hint:
-Try these activities WITH your child first. Then, when the time comes that you need them to do it by themselves, you can be confident that they know how to do it and know the rules of the activity. I’ve learned that the hard way!

A huge thank you to the ladies of Our Mommyhood for having me today!