Ll-Ladybugs

It seems some ladybugs have landed on our L page today! You can make these too by dipping your thumb in some red paint and pressing it on the paper. Then, just add details with a black marker:0)

Foot Print Butterflies

This is a project that we have been doing since the kids were babies. From tiny foot prints to some big kid feet they are always cute.

1. Dip your child's feet in some colorful paint and print them on a piece of construction paper.

2. Add the body, face and antennae. Then cut them out:0)

You Could Win A $10,000 Scholarship For Your Child!

For a while now I have been telling you all the great things that Fishful Thinking has to offer, parenting advice and activities to help raise more optimistic children. Now, Fishful thinking has introduced something new and fantastic! It's called Storybook Maker. It a place to make a customized storybook about your very own child. The best part, by creating a Storybook, you are entered in a sweepstakes to win a $10,000 college scholarship for your child. Isn't that fabulous?





So go ahead, click the little blue book to get started!

I am an ambassador for Fishful Thinking through RepNation and could earn incentives for my participation.

Egg Carton Flowers and Caterpillars

In honor of Earth Day, we made a couple of projects today using some egg cartons. I try to save as much as I can to reuse at craft time. Egg cartons, milk jugs and cartons, cans, paper towel tubes, bottles, etc. are great to make a variety of projects. Here are just two examples of thing you can make with egg cartons.



The flowers were made by cutting individual sections of the egg carton and painting them. I then added a pipe cleaner for the stem by poking it through the egg carton section. I added buttons to the center to give it more color.



You can make a caterpillar by cutting an egg carton in half and painting it. Add a pipe cleaner for the antennae and some eyes. You could also make an ant by cutting it into a three section piece and painting it black. Happy Earth Day!

Celebrate Earth!

In honor of Earth day this week, we are planning to do some special activities. Most of those will be crafts made using recycled materials. Today we started our Earth Week off by making the Earth.

For this activity, you will need a paper plate and some green and blue paint.

1. Paint the paper plate with the blue paint.


2. Using your child's hand dipped in green paint, make the "land".


3. There you have it! Our Earth:0)

How Sweet It Is!

I have received this super cool new award from Jen at Creative and Curious Kids! It's awesome! Thank you so much:0)

Here are the rules for this award:
Tape it up on your blog somewhere.
Pass it along to 5 fellow super bloggers, and comment on their blog to let them know how lucky they are today!
When you present your Super Blogger awards, link back to the super blogger who gave it to you.

Here are the five blogs I think are super!

Vickie's Scrapbooking and Tidbits
Crayons, Glue and Scissors
Everything Except The Grill
Book Worms BookNook
Superheroes and Princesses
Casa Camacho

Do It For Your Children:0)

Friday Book Projects-Bugs, Bugs, Bugs

Wow, what a week we have had! Our house is undergoing some major renovations and with Easter, we have been very busy. We had not be staying at home for a week and just got back yesterday. It's great to be home and getting settled back into our normal routines. So of course I had to make sure to do a Friday Book Project! The book we read is Bugs, Bugs, Bugs and in honor of the girls favorite bug, we made ladybugs!

For this project you will need: a paper bowl, red and black paint, black construction paper, glue, and a black pipe cleaner.

1. Paint the bottom of the paper bowl red.

2. Paint a small area on the side of the bowl with black paint for the face.

3. Glue some spots cut from construction paper to the back of the ladybug.

4. Add some eyes and the pipe cleaner antennae.


If you have a book inspired project that you would like to share, add your link to Mr. Linky:0)

We Have Had a Makeover!

How fabulous is our new look? I love it! This wonderful blog makeover is brought to you by the fabulous April Showers Blog Design! I could not be any happier! April is a pleasure to work with and always gives you exactly what you want. If you are in the market for a new blog design, she is your girl. I promise you will love her:0) Go visit her and tell her how wonderful she is! You won't be sorry, she is having lots of great giveaways this month:0)


p.s. Don't forget to grab our new button!

We Have a Winner!

The winner of the Fishful Thinking giveaway is Shanda! Congrats! You have won the $25 Macy's gift card! Thank you to everyone who entered. Please continue to visit the Fishful Thinking site for some great tips and fun activities:0)

Kk-Kites

Onward and upward to the letter K! We made kites on our K page for the alphabet book we are creating:0)

Tissue Paper Easter Eggs

Wow, Easter is less than a week away and we are so behind on our decorating! We are in the midst of a major renovation and it's kind of getting in the way of crafting. But, today we found a somewhat quiet corner of the room to work and we made some brightly colored Easter eggs. The girls love anything involving glue and tissue paper so this was perfect.

1. Cut out an egg shape from a piece of construction paper.


2. Cut some tissue paper into small pieces and glue them to the egg.


3. These eggs will brighten any room! Even in midst of a construction nightmare!


Don't forget to enter my giveaway for Fishful Thinking!

Fishful Thinking Giveaway!

Several weeks ago, I was introduced to the Fishful Thinking website by a couple of other bloggers. I checked it out and immediately realized how wonderful it is. Soon after, I became an ambassador for Fishful Thinking! Fishful Thinking is a great initiative, sponsored by Pepperidge Farm, that helps parents gain the skills needed to instill optimism in their children. The site is full of activities that are designed to incorporate into every day life.

Fishful Thinking is comprised of five ingredients:
Optimism
Emotional Awareness
Goal Setting/Hope
Resilience
Empowerment

I am very excited to announce that I am having my very first giveaway on Just For Fun! But it's not just any old giveaway, it's a chance for me to share the fabulous things that can be learned by visiting the Fishful Thinking website.

The prize for this giveaway is a $25 Macy's Gift card!

Here is what you need to do to be eligible for the drawing:

First entry: Show me what you have learned about Fishful Thinking! Go visit the Fishful Thinking website. Take some time to explore the site, then come back here and leave a comment about what you have learned. You must visit the site to qualify!

*Update- Due to an amazing response to the Fishful Thinking ambassador program, they are no longer accepting new ambassadors. Those of you who earned the extra entries for becoming an ambassador will still receive those entries.


This contest will end Sunday, April 12 at 11:59PM(EST). I will announce the winner sometime on Monday, April 13.

Good Luck!

Handprint Bunnies

What says spring like a cute, little bunny? Today we made an adorable bunny with our hand prints.

1. Paint the palm of your child's hand and the index and ring fingers.

2. Using a thumb dipped in pink paint, make a nose in the center of the palm.

3. Add some eyes, mouth, and whiskers to your bunny:0)

After my post about the ducks made with feet, I received a comment asking where I get all my hand and foot print ideas. Occasionally, I find some online, but most of these ideas I used when I worked in the baby room at a daycare center. We always tried to have art from children of all ages hanging on the walls and the babies did a lot of hand print things because it was easy. Hands and feet can be turned into many things, just use your imagination:0)