Last Minute Santa

Phew!  It has been too long since I have logged in.  This time of year always flies by so quickly, so I apologize for being a little distant on the blog this winter.

As we are only a couple of sleeps away from Santa’s debut, we had better wrap up our shopping quickly!  Like every year and in every family, there are always those last minute gifts to prepare.    Have you considered a handmade craft for that special someone this year?  I don’t know about other parents and grandparents out there, but ANYTHING handmade from my 2 1/2 year old is special.  And my heart instantly melts when she hands it to me with a proud grin on her face and says, “Look what I made for you Mama!”

So, if you have little ones in the house and need a last minute gift idea, consider this.  I found this idea on Pinterest and my daughter made one for each set of grandparents this year.  I liked this craft idea because it’s not only seasonal and can be displayed through the holidays, it’s also a memory display.  They are footprints of my daughters feet at this stage in her life and I painted the year on it so we would always be able to look back and compare.  Just a cute, fun and QUICK craft idea, guaranteed to put a smile on any family members face.

Happy Crafting and Merry Christmas!!!

Supplies Needed: 

• Plain Canvas (any size)…I used an 8×10
• Acrylic Paint …I used light and dark brown, blue, black and red
• Small Tip Brush (for painting details on canvas)
• Larger Foam Brush (for painting the child’s foot quickly before paint dries)
• Baby wipes (to wipe their feet immediately after painting them.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Step One:

Paint bottom of child’s foot with the light brown paint and stamp on canvas to make reindeer head.  Repeat with opposite foot until you have two reindeer heads on the canvas.  Wipe paint off feet.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Step Two:

Let dry completely and then paint details on (antlers, eyes, nose and and the year).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Step Three:

Let dry completely and gift wrap for that special someone.

Optional:  You can staple a nice red ribbon to the back to create a ribbon loop on top for hanging.  We just set ours on the Christmas tree as extra decoration.  Or you could display it on a plate holder and set on a shelf for display too.

Creative Minds Jewelry Display

I’m sure my two-year old daughter is a lot like others in that she loves jewelry, nail polish, dress up clothes and anything that says “GIRL” loudly.  She recently acquired many of these items for her turning two celebration and initially I thought we’d throw it all in the same ‘dress up box’ together.  However, that plan soon failed when I was constantly finding costume jewelry in my bed, in her bed, in our dogs bed…and not to mention the long hunts to find the ‘missing necklace’ somewhere in the house…ugh, enough is enough.  What to do with all these pieces?!

My daughter loves to paint and do anything crafty (probably gets that from her mom ) and I had a few extra blank canvas’ laying around.  So I pulled out my container of miscellaneous paints, containing mostly acrylic paints and puffy paints, and gave her a brush and let her have fun.  She created a lovely piece of artwork she was quite proud of.  Once it dried of course, I screwed six little white metal hooks into the bottom of the wooden canvas frame and hung it on the wall at a height she would be able to access.

So far it has worked like a charm.  Not only are all the costume jewelry pieces in one place, she enjoys the independence and ownership of having a place to put HER jewelry.  Like mommy, she too can put it in safe keeping.

  

Here is what you need for this project: 

Canvas (already framed) – I bought mine at Michael’s craft store for about $5 (11 x 14) on sale

Acrylic paint (or any other paint that can be applied to canvas)

Paint Brush 

Screw Hooks – I bought a pack of six at Wal-Mart for $2

Two nails and a hammer to hang on the wall after you’re done! 

Super easy and fun for the kids…and/or you!

Ice Cream Theme Birthday Party

I know this post comes to you a little late, considering my daughter’s birthday party was held in mid-July, but I loved the theme and wanted to share it with all of you.  Better late than never, right?

My daughter, Kelly loves ice cream (who doesn’t right?) and therefore, the theme was an easy pick.  It was great for the kids.  They had a blast building their own sundaes and snacking on ice cream themed snacks all day.  Not to mention, it was the middle of summer and it just so happened to be one of those days you can’t eat your ice cream quick enough before it melts all over the place.  It was a perfect day for ice cream and everything cold.

We held it in in the back yard and set up activities for the kids to play, such as a water sprinkler, bubbles, sandbox, fishing pond, water table, balls, and toys.  And as far as the decorations and food went, I was inspired by Pinterest once again.  There are so many ways to search for things on the internet and yet, I still find the most creative and inspirational ideas through Pinterest.  Check it out if you haven’t already!  It’s a cataloging site so you can easily find and ‘bookmark’ where your favorites are in cyber world.

Decorations: I stuck to pretty basic pink decor (table clothes and streamers).  However, instead of just having helium balloons around, I added a cone to the base of each balloon with brown packaging paper to transform the balloons into ice cream cones!

Food: We simply ordered pizza for the main course of the day and then splurged on the sweets!  Of course…it was an ICE CREAM party!   For a snack I had chopped fresh fruit stuffed in waffle cones and for cake I made a cake out of cupcakes in the shape of an ice cream cone as well as a special cake for the birthday girl.  And if we’re gonna load them up with sugar, why not go all out with a full fledge sundae!?  I laid out bowls with different toppings for the kids’ ice cream and they went to town decorating their sundaes.

  

 

Favors:  This was one of my favorite things from the part and I completely forgot to get a photo before handing them all out.  Go figure.  I found fun ice cream sundae plastic glasses and filled them with ice cream themed candies and toys.  I also included a tooth brush .

Not only was this theme easy for  a mid-summer birthday party, it was fun for the kids too.  I was surprised at how many ice cream themed toys, treats and activities there are in the stores during the summer months.  It certainly made this a very easy party to put together.  There were so many other ideas I wanted to incorporate however, I did my best not to go overboard.

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