Had such a fun morning with my cute sister Tiffany at Studio 5 today. Not only is she my sister, but honestly she one of my favorite people to be around. I am so lucky to have her and a sister and friend. In fact, she is my main source for the idea around my segment today.
So lets give you a few more details about the things you saw today, shall we!
First, I have to admit, I think the shirt I wore on Studio 5 today, along with my necklace,
has to be my my favorite outfit I have worn on Studio 5 so far!
KIDS CRAFTS THAT
ENLIGHTEN
I spend lots of time at my house crafting. However I notice
sometimes that while I am in project mode, my little ones always want to get in
on the action. I remember my mom allowing me to craft along with her when I was
a little one, and realized how important it was to allow my kids that same
opportunity. These were, and still are, some of the most valuable and memorable
moments of my life! Today I decided when planning out my projects, that I
wanted to include them in on the action for this segment!
I want my kids to LEARN
while doing these crafts, not just going through the motions and have another
craft to stick in the good will basket in a few months. So here are 5 fun
projects to create with your children and may just teach your kids a skill!
Sock Puppets with a purpose!
Along with my sister passing off the "good idea" carma, I am constantly having friends enlighten me on ideas for Studio 5. Just wanted to give a HUGE shout out to my friend Wendy who gave me the idea to do the sock monsters and pair it up as a dust Monster. I am so blessed to have such great friends. THANKS WENDY .... DON'T KNOW WHAT I WOULD DO WITHOUT YOU!
Making “DUST MONSTERS” was really fun! I spent an hour putting these cute little guys together. I got the fuzzy socks at Target, used buttons
as the eyes, and a little felt and cardboard for the mouth.
Check out this tutorial of how to do the mouths!
My boys loved helping me glue pom poms and even helping me
use a yarn and needle to sew on each button eye!
The result … DUST MONSTERS! My baseboards have never been so
clean, my boys have been entertained for hours and the memories … PRICELESS!
Play dough with a spin!
My mom made play dough for us often when I was a kid.
However I have never taken the plunge to do it myself! I never realized how
easy it was!! A new trend I have noticed is making play dough that is scented!
I decided to use the Duncan Hines Frosting creations flavor mix packet (found at Walmart next to the canned frosting) to
flavor and color my play dough. It was so easy and my boys loved smelling each
color! Here is the recipe I used:
1 cup flour
1 cup water
¼ cup salt
1 TBSP oil
2 tsp cream of tarter
1 packet of Duncan Hines Frosting Creations
Mix all together in sauce pan with wooden spoon. Stir until
most of lumps are gone. Cook over medium-high heat until it clumps together in
a ball. Pour out onto counter and knead until all mixed together!
I made 4 batches in ½ hour … and it entertained my kids for
hours!!
The benefits to making play dough according to Mandy:
- Allows your kids to interact in the kitchen with you.
- Teaches them very simple cooking skills.
- Allows you the opportunity to make whatever colors and scents you would like.
- Uses all edible and natural ingredients that won’t make your kid sick if they decide to try it!
Bean Bag shape game
My boys are both learning their colors and shapes in
preschool right now, so I thought a great way to teach them was to help me make
a game. I printed out 9 different outlines of shapes. (PRINTABLE
ATTACHED)
My 3 year old colored each shape a different color. I then
laminated all of them.
After you have made the cards, the next step would be to
make the bean bags. This would be a great idea to do with an older child (8+)
to help them learn the skills of sewing. This might even be something an older
sibling could do to help you make the game for younger siblings.
Some great ideas for bean bags would include:
Jean pockets
Monograms on each Bean Bag of your kids
Shape that are on the game cards, also on the bean bags
Click here to download the shape game and small shapes for bean bags!
To play the game, name a shape and see if you can throw the
beanbag onto the shape!
Placemat Fun!
Dinner time seems to be my most chaotic time of the day. I
am sure most mothers can relate! I saw this darling idea online and thought I
would customize it for my boys! I made a placemat with lines to practice
writing their names.
Click here to download the placemat
I printed it
out at my local copy store on an 11”x17” piece of white cardstock. Then before
laminating it, I drew their names with dotted lines so they could trace it.
The boys loved it and were so proud to show me that they
were learning to write their name! You could do this for all sorts of writing
activities to keep the kids busy. The other placemats that I showed on my segment I found on this darling website!
Block Puzzles
If you don't know how to use photoshop, and resizing pictures is not something you know how to do, I am available for hire at a very minimal cost. Please email me for questions!
skierdouglass@gmail.com
My 5 year old has been obsessed with puzzles lately. It got
me thinking about a great way to incorporate our family memories with his love
for building and putting pictures together. Each side of the blocks are a
different family picture of the things we love to do together. This will make a
total of 6 different puzzles on one set (9 blocks).
I promised a tutorial of how to do this! So here you go ...
1. Go into Photoshop and resize your photo to 6" x 6" and 300 resolution (or dpi).
2. Create a blank document that is 12" x 12". Drag 4 - 6" x 6" pictures onto the blank 12"x12" document. Then go to the "LAYER" menu and go down to flatten image. (If you're wanting to do 6 pictures to make your own blocks, you will have to make 2- 12" x 12" documents. One will have 4 pictures and the other will just have 2.)
3. Save as a JPEG
4. Upload the document to Costco and be sure to print is as a 12" x12" document.
Instructions of how to put the pictures on the blocks:
1. After you get your pictures back, cut them apart (making 6 - 6" x 6" pictures)
2. Then cut your pieces into 2” x 2”
squares. Attach to blocks (found at Hobby Lobby for $1) with Mod Podge.
I have to admit, this segment totally stressed me out. Because of the holiday weekend, I didn't have the time I really wanted to be able to prepare. I am a mommy, I am just like you! It was super fun to have an excuse to do these projects I have wanted to do with my kids for A LONG TIME!! One of my favorite things I love about Studio 5 is that I get to have dedicated time to work on projects I would like to do. My advice is that if you "want" to do these projects, but just can't seem to find the time ... just act like it is a job, give yourself a deadline, and enjoy the moment! Let the bathrooms, vacuuming, and housework for a day or two, and just enjoy being with your kids! I have to remind myself that I need to do that time and again!
Off to clean my office! After my last segment, Bryson's Birthday (post coming soon), Valentines Day, and Presidents Day weekend trip snowmobiling ... My office needs a little attention ... don't you think!
#livewithoutpretending
Now it is time to clean so I can prepare for another Studio 5 segment coming March 13! If you have any fun ideas you would love for me to tackle on Studio 5, I would love to hear them! There might even be a little treat from me if I decide to use your idea! Feel free to email or comment!
1 comment:
Hi. Thanks for stopping by ZoesLunchbox.com. Looks like you've got some fantastic ideas here! I look forward to seeing more!
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