The emphasis on art projects has always been on the process in our household, but Emily was very proud of the outcome of this project and it has encouraged her to do more stamping projects similar to this one. To make your own sunflower stamping project you will need: a brown paper bag, some paint, […]
Pantry Art
March 10, 2009 by
Today we raided the pantry and bathroom closet for some art supplies for a Van Gogh-like beach project! If you have seen this post, you would understand why we have a huge supply of oatmeal and this was a great way to use up some of it. We also added some cotton balls, paper, paint, […]
March Comes In Like a Lion….
March 9, 2009 by
Emily spent some time this afternoon working on this drawing of a lion, which proved to be quite frugal since it only required paper and crayons. She was quite happy with the end result and proud that she had drawn it “all by herself”. Here is the secret to her success — a book called […]
Frugal Fun with Stilts
March 6, 2009 by
I was trying to come up with ideas to reuse some empty baby formula canisters, and with the help of the power drill, Mark and I made these adorable stilts for Emily. These are great for practicing balance. The small canisters were the perfect size for her. Emily wobbled a bit the first couple of […]
Happy Birthday, Dr. Seuss!
March 2, 2009 by
Some of my readers requested crafts that use up empty oatmeal canisters, so I thought this was a great way to incorporate them into a craft and a Dr. Seuss theme day. To make your own Cat-in-the-Hat hat, you will need an empty oatmeal canister, a paper plate, and some paints (we used Crayola Washable […]
Scratch N Sniff Painting
February 27, 2009 by
We had some leftover unsweetened powdered drink mix that was several years old — I’m not kidding! It probably would have been okay to drink, but instead we made scratch n sniff paint with it. I lightly penciled in some fruit pictures for Emily to paint. It made very vibrant colors, and the pictures smelled […]
Homemade Hockey Table
February 26, 2009 by
This is how we spent our morning — designing our own hockey table, and it was so easy! Emily had a blast, and is still planning to devote the rest of the afternoon to table hockey. A few years ago, one of our neighbors had a moving sale and sold this fabulous coffee table to […]
Ribbon Dancer
February 23, 2009 by
I could not believe what a hit this was — so simple and Emily adored it! I was cleaning out a “junk” drawer in the kitchen and came across a plastic spatula that I rarely use. It inspired a day of ribbon dancing. We played some Brazilian music on the stereo, and this little girl could not […]
Frugal Fun with Music
February 20, 2009 by
This afternoon we made musical instruments from recyclables. This was a big hit and Emily is still making lots of new sounds with her drum, guitar, and shaker. We made the drum with an empty oatmeal canister. If you saw this post, you would understand why we have a lot of these! This version of […]
Indoor Sandbox
February 15, 2009 by
One of the things Emily misses the most about Spring and Summer is playing outside in her sandbox. I created an indoor version that was a big hit for both of my girls. You might already have an inflatable pool (most likely it is hanging out in the garage for the winter). We brought ours […]
What Valentine’s Day Is Really About…
February 10, 2009 by
This afternoon I took the girls to a retirement community to give the residents there some much needed company this time of year. In return, Emily and Clara received TONS of attention. Emily made a Valentine placemat with some construction paper and stickers, and then proudly showed it off to the residents while they were […]
Stained Glass Snowflakes
February 2, 2009 by
A friend of mine recently hosted a Royal Snowflake Ball and it was the inspiration for this twist on classic paper snowflakes using white paper and colored tissue paper. For the Ball, she had story time for all the princes and princesses by reading snow-themed stories, and the kids decorated their own snowmen out of […]
Preparing for Special Guests
January 27, 2009 by
Since we have made the decision to eat out less, we have been entertaining at home more often. Yesterday afternoon was spent preparing to get together with friends from college to celebrate Chinese New Year! We planned to get Chinese take out, eat with chopsticks, and spend some time getting caught up with one another. […]
Weave a Placemat
January 20, 2009 by
This craft is so frugal, and keeps kids busy for a good while. Younger kids might need a little bit of help, but the older ones will have no trouble. Use these as a great opportunity to teach patterning! To make your own woven placemats, you will need: Two sheets of contrasting construction paper Scissors […]
Frugal Way to Occupy Kids During Football
January 18, 2009 by
Trying to watch the football game on TV and looking for a frugal way to keep the kids entertained? I thought this would be a fun topic, since the Super Bowl is coming up! Thanks to ThriftyCraftMama for posting about this fabulous frugal activity that will keep kids occupied all through the game. (Worked well […]
Family Drawing Time — Portraits
January 12, 2009 by
Wow! This is my 100th post already!! Want to know how your kids really see you? Try a family portrait day! Each member of the family takes turns drawing everyone else. This makes for some interesting artwork, especially from the little ones. Here are some of Emily’s drawings: From Left to Right: Me (what […]
Family Painting Time
January 6, 2009 by
Looking for some good quality time spent together as a family? Try scheduling family painting time! All of us look forward to this when Mark comes home from work. After dinner, we clear off the kitchen table and spread out the paints, brushes, and paper. Altogether it was about an hour’s worth of creative time […]
Fun with Felt — Pizza Set
January 1, 2009 by
The inspiration for this project came from a box used to deliver Omaha Steaks burgers. Back in October, I got a great deal on beef for 36 cents a pound! You can read more about how I did that here, but the box was about the size of a personal pan pizza box. We decorated […]
