Cool Flowers for Mother's Day

I originally found this in one of the parenting magazines (cannot remember which one right now) but I thought it was a cool art & craft for Mother's Day. Daddy & Toddler (mostly Daddy) ended up finishing them but they still came out great! Basically, you cut 1 inch strips of construction paper, take a 3 hole punch to make 3 holes in each strip, thread a pipe cleaner through a button then thread 4-5 of each of the construction paper strips (folded over so the holes line up) through each pipe cleaner until you have a full head of a flower. Ta-da! There you have it! We used old Gerber Puffs and other containers around the house for vases - covered them with wrapping paper and stickers to pretty them up.

Elmo Tower by a Toddler & Mom

Fun with McDonald's

Fun with Glitter

Snowflake by My Girl

My toddler made this "snowflake" out of Popsicle sticks and colored rice while at the Ayer Family Partnership playgroup with her friends.

Homemade Car by a Toddler

My girl kept asking if she could drive while we were out on errands today so I had an idea to make her a car out of a box for her to "drive" around the house.

Snowman Fun by My Girl (courtesy of Ayer Family Partnership - Playgroup)

Teddy by a Toddler

My Girl's Abstract Art

Homemade String Instrument - UPDATE

O.K - So Daddy came home and added to this project - and I must say it definitely looks more like a guitar now. See how creative you become when you have kids!!

A Toddler's Tropical Island

Homemade String Instrument

Homemade String Instrument

I made this with my 2 year old daughter as she has been very fascinated with instruments lately (especially on her favorite show "Caillou" - she likes singing with Caillou's rock and roll band). I took an old checkbook box and put both pieces together to make the cardboard stronger. Wrap the box with construction paper. Use various stickers and foam/felt pieces to stick and glue on then let dry completely. Take a few rubber bands and put them around the box the long way. And there you have it! A homemade string instrument (or "guitar" as my daughter calls it).

Make Your Own Twinkle Tiaras (courtesy of "Klutz", "Chicken Socks" and "auntie L")

Make Your Own Twinkle Tiaras (courtesy of "Klutz", "Chicken Socks" and "auntie L")

This was fun to create with my 2 year-old. There are some small pieces but as long as there is adult supervising (who does not might getting glue everywhere) it's fun. Try it! A tiara makes every little girl feel like a princess!!

Pom-Pom Pals (courtesy of "Parents" Jan 2009 edition)

Pom-Pom Pals (courtesy of "Parents" Jan 2009 edition)

I decided to try this craft with my 2 year old daughter. It ended up being a little more difficult that I expected (mind you I'm not very strong in the artsy crafty area) but it was still fun. Here are the directions (with my comments included in parenthesis):




What you will need:
- 1 skein of thick yarn (I used regular width yarn and they still came out OK)
- Thin book, approximately five inches tall (I apparently did not read the directions carefully as I used a smaller book - about 3 inches tall - hence probably why I had some difficulty in this area)
- Scissors
- Assortment of craft supplies (chenille stems (pipe cleaners), beads, pom poms, googly eyes, craft foam, felt, buttons, feathers, etc.)
- Glue (lots of it)

1. Wrap yarn (loosely - I wrapped it too tight the first time and could not get it off the book!) around a small book 80 - 100 times, until yarn is 1 1/2 inches thick on each side. Slip the yarn carefully (very carefully) off the book (in one piece).
2. Cut a 6 inch strand of yarn from the skein; knot it tightly around center of yarn bundle. Snip each loop until the pom-pom forms. Trim as needed.
3. Decorate the pom-pom with craft supplies. Use chenille stems (pipe cleaners) for arms and legs, feathers for ears, a bead for the nose (ours did not get noses or ears - I'll have to remember that for next time) or get creative (with your own ideas).

This was a fun craft in the end and I would definitely do it again.

Snowman

A snowman made with my 2 year old daughter out of paper and various felt and foam shapes. One of my finer artsy-crafty moments I must say! (To those of you who do not know me I do not consider myself very creative - however, I will say that since having children my creativity has increased some!)