5 Ideas for Learning about the body!

I think last week's Creative Preschool Collaborator's theme of learning about the body was probably my favorite theme yet.  Each of us came up with really different and really creative ways to teach young children about the human body!  Here's a recap of all 5 bloggers' awesome ideas!

5 Ideas for learning about the body!

Super Cute Personalized Pencil Toppers

Often times I just wanna make something, cute, kiddy, and fun.   And that's totally the vibe that I was feeling when I made these personalized pencil toppers.  *Insert girlish squeal* Colorful perler beads?  Lovely letters?  Hearts?  Too. Much. Cuteness.  

Personalized Pencil Toppers!

So satisfy your inner elementary school girl and stop on by DIY Candy to see how I made these bad boys.

And if you feel like making more super cute and fun kids crafts, check out the links below!

5 Super Cute and Fun Kids Crafts!

• Valentine's Day Arrow Through the Head
• Marbling With Nail Polish
• Kids Glow-In-the-Dark Jellyfish costume
• Make Corn Syrup Paint
• Crazy cute Paper Plate Purses

Let's keep in Contact!

You can always find other fun ideas on my Pinterest, Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter accounts!  (Or subscribe to my email mailing list by filling out the pink bar at the top of your screen.)

Happy making, friends!

Shark Valentine Card Box

Sometimes I wish I could be a kid again just to experience the magic of different holidays.  Do you ever feel that way?  As a child New Years seemed cooler, Christmas seemed more magical, and Valentine's Day was way more romantic.  Now that Chuck's getting older, I see him getting excited about holidays too.... and I LOVE it.

Here's a fun Valentine Card Box that I recently designed with Chuck in mind.  (He loooooves sharks.) Isn't it hilarious that the shark "eats" the Valentines?

Shark Valentine Card Box

You can find out how I made this Shark Valentine Card Box at MollyMooo Crafts!

And if you're looking for 3 other cute Valentines day crafts, check out the links below!

• Super adorable Valentine glasses
• "High Five" Valentines
• Kiss-tastic wrapping paper

Let's keep in Contact!

You can always find other fun ideas on my Pinterest, Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter accounts!  (Or subscribe to my email mailing list by filling out the pink bar at the top of your screen.)


Happy making friends!

Straw Rockets

My preschooler still absolutely LOVES rockets and space shuttles.  Over the years, we've made a lot of  awesome transportation crafts, but I was excited to post  these straw rockets today because they were easy to make (and FREE)!

Easy Straw Rockets

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FREE Valentine Printables

Today I'm continuing the funny Valentine Day Series with these 2 free Valentine Printables!  To see the other funny Valentine's day crafts in this series, check out the links below!

• #1- You "Rock my World" Rocks
• #2 - "Set my heart aflutter" butterfly notebooks
• #3- Send "High Fives" To your Valentine!

Funny Valentine's Day activity #4:  2 FREE Valentine Printables!

Let's learn about our brain! (Preschool Science Activity)

Today's Creative Preschool Collaborators theme is body parts!  (So be sure the check the bottom of the post for 4 other ways to teach preschool kids about their bodies!)

Lately Chuck's been interested in learning about his body, so this topic was right up our alley.   Since we have out-of-town guests staying with us for a bit, I designed 5 low-prep and easy activities to help Chuck learn about the brain!

Preschool Science:  Let's Learn about our brain!  

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Kiss Wrapping Paper

Love reading with your child?  Love Valentine's day too?  Well then you're in luck!  Today is Read and Play Day!  Today, several kid bloggers and I are sharing 27 great Valentine's books and corresponding activities and crafts on our blogs! You can check out The Pleasantest Thing for the full list of all the great activities!

Here's the Valentine's Day craft that I made with Chuck-  DIY Kiss Wrapping Paper!

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Happy Handmade Ebook!

Today I'm so excited to announce the launch of Happy Handmade!  This is a brand new kids craft ebook that contains 115 pages of unique and fun crafts to make with and for your kids!

If you could see me now, you'd see that I'm grinning ear-to-ear right now because I'm so proud of how this book turned out!   

To celebrate the launch of this awesome ebook, we're offering it at a discounted price of  $9.99 for one week only!  Afterwards, the cost of the ebook will return to $12.99.  So buy it now, to get it an a discounted price!  Woo-hoo for bargains!  And, for all you international readers out there, Paypal will take care of the currency conversion for you!

What's up? Happy Handmade- A Joint Craft eBook Adventure!

Hi everyone!  I don't usually post on Saturday but I'm posting today because I'm feeling super excited and super nervous about next week.  (Isn't it funny how those two feelings often seem to go together?)  

Around this time last year, I shared my now-not-so-secret dream of being a professional crafter.  Re-reading that post, I wish I could go back in time to hug my old-self, and tell her that I'm proud of her for taking a step in a new direction.

Throughout 2014, I took several steps towards making that dream a reality.  I pushed my super shy self to join a couple of really supportive kid blogger groups (like Kid Blogger Network, Rockin Art Moms , and the Creative Preschool Collaborators.) I dipped my toes into the super scary (and still, completely confusing) world of blog advertising and sponsorship.  And, I also got the opportunity to do some freelance craft work for wonderful sites like Handmade Charlotte, MollyMoo Crafts, and DIY Candy.

You're probably wondering now- Leslie, was it worth it?  Are you raking in the big bucks?  Well, yes.  I'm glad that I took those initial steps.  And no, I'm definitely not making big bucks.  But, I do make some grocery money and I really appreciate the opportunities that come my way.

And that's what I wanted to share with you today- one of these opportunities.  (Sorry for the rambly intro, but I felt so nostalgic after re-reading my posts from 2014 that I had to say something first...)

I recently had the opportunity to join with 17 other kid-craft-loving moms to put together Happy Handmade- a beautiful, unique and fun ebook showcasing 115 pages of crafts to make with and for kids!  

   

I'll be sharing more about the ebook and how you can purchase it on the blog this Tuesday, January 20th.  But I just wanted to just write something about it today because there are just so many lovely and unique ideas inside.  And my heart feels like it's bursting open because I'm so proud of all the work that went into it.    


Ok.  That's all friends.  Thank you for stopping by and thank you for all of your support.

And before you go, here's a sneak peak at some of the crafts inside...

*Insert happy sigh here*

  Hope you have a wonderful rest of the weekend, friends!
   

Send High Fives to your Valentine!

Are you looking for a unique and simple idea for a Valentine's day card?  Or, are you looking for a quick way to send someone some encouragement?  How about sending them some high fives?

Funny Valentine's Day Craft 3:  Send someone high fives!

This is the 3rd installment in my funny Valentine's Day craft series.  (To see the other ideas, check out my "Valentine, you rock!" Rocks and "You set my heart aflutter" Butterfly Notebooks.)

Lately Chuck hasn't really wanted to do any crafting.  But I loooove making things, so I've been trying hard to figure out other ways we can craft together.  I've noticed that while he may not like painting or drawing, he does seem to like using technology.  Light bulb moment!  So instead of usign paint or plaster of paris to make traditional hand print crafts, we used technology!

Simple Heart Decal Wall

Last weekend I kinda went bonkers and made myself a heart accent wall.  

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DIY Toy Launcher!

With the nights still being quite long, we often find ourselves stuck inside twiddling our thumbs... and going kinda bonkers.  :)  So one day we took matters into our own hands, and our family worked together to tinker and turn a long, narrow box into a DIY Toy Launcher!

DIY Cardboard Toy Launcher

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It's really amazing how many moving types of toys you can make from with rubber bands!  The stretchiness of the rubber bands provides ample opportunities for fun STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) activities and crafts.  (For example, we've made this DIY Rocket Launcher, this DIY Paper Slingshot, and this Cardboard car... that uses potential and kinetic energy to MOVE using rubber bands!)  

The Snowy Day Shadow box

Howdy, friends!  Today the Creative Preschool Collaborators and I are sharing 5 fun Winter-themed preschool activities and crafts!  So be sure to scroll down to the bottom of the post for other great ideas!

The Snowy Day Shadow Box  

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Ezra Jack Keats' book, The Snowy Day, has always been a favorite of mine.   His illustrations are simple, charming, colorful, and graphic.  He really captures the magic of a winter snowfall.  Plus, I love that he supports multiculturalism and made his main character a young black boy.  So when I found out that this week's theme was Winter, I was excited to read this book with Chuck and combine it with a craft.  

18 Transportation Crafts that "Go!"

Do you have a plane, train, helicopter, truck, boat, car, or spaceship loving kid?  While looking through the archives, I realized that we've done quite a few transportation-related crafts here.  18 to be specific!  (Whoa.  Kinda cray-cray and kinda cool...)  So I thought it would be fun to take a walk down memory lane and share this compilation of all 18 crafts that "go" here!

18 Awesome Transportation Related Crafts!

Ok.  I gotta admit something to you.  I was originally going to call this post, "Crafts for Boys" (that's why it's in the permalink) but then totally decided against that name.  Girls can like cars, trains, planes, boats, trucks, and bikes too! Right?  Right.  Ack!  Sometimes it's so easy to fall into gender stereotyping.  (Do you ever feel the same way?)   So anyway, that's why I changed the name to Transportation crafts.

Valentine, you set my heart aflutter

Last week I shared about our new fascination with butterflies.  (You can read about it and see our fluttering butterfly kid craft here.)  My mind was still on butterflies when I came up with this idea for a DIY butterfly notebook.  

You can easily make this butterfly notebook from items lying around your home.  Plus, it would be a nice handmade gift to give someone for Valentine's Day too.  (It even fits into our 10 funny pun-y Valentine's Day craft series!)

Funny Pun-y Valentine's Day Craft 2:  "You set my Heart aflutter" Butterfly Notebooks!

You can see my first funny, pun-y craft here (Craft 1: "You Rock My World" Rocks).

 

Rubber Glove Finger Puppets

Ever find yourself wanting to do a quick craft with the kids that's different, easy to set up, and encourages creativity?

I think about that question all the time when I think up ideas for kids' crafts.  I know that parents and teachers want to keep their kids entertained, but they also want them to use their minds too.   And that's why I love these rubber glove finger puppets.  You just need 3 materials and bam!  Now you have instant mini canvases for creativity and endless opportunities for storytelling and fun.

Rubber Glove Finger Puppets

To make these gloves, check out my tutorial for rubber glove fingers today on MollyMoo!

Happy making friends!

Let's keep in Contact!

Like this idea?  You can always find other fun ideas on my Pinterest, Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter accounts!  (Or subscribe to my email mailing list by filling out the pink bar at the top of your screen.)

  

Valentine, You ROCK MY WORLD!

Even though our Christmas tree is still up (I know, I know, I haven't the heart to take it down), my mind is currently on Valentine's Day and all the lovely crafts that go along with that.  Last year we made adorable heart shaped glasses and DIY Coffee and Candy Gifts.  This year I'm challenging myself to think of 10 easy funny, pun-y crafts that say Happy Valentine's Day!

Here's my 1st attempt!

Funny Pun-y Valentine's Day 1:  

"Valentine, You Rock My World" Rocks 

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New Year's Party Horn Photo Props!

Oof.  I just realized that I never put up a happy New Year post on the blog!  Thank you, dear reader, for stopping by this year.  I hope you always leave entertained, smiling, and itching to  make something with the kids!

Here's a craft that I made to ring in 2015- Party Horn Photo Props! 

New Year's Party Horn Photo Props

Loud noises?  Funny faces?  These are seriously hilarious and would be super fun to make with the young'uns (and the young at heart!)  

Come on.  Tell me that isn't funny?

You can get the full tutorial on DIY Candy!

Happy making, friends!

Let's keep in Contact!

Like this idea?  You can always find other fun ideas on my Pinterest, Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter accounts!  Or, sign up for the newsletter in the pink bar at the top of the site. 

Fluttering Butterfly Craft!

Hello friends!  Today I wanted to share this really neat fluttering butterfly craft that I recently did with Chuck.  We cut out, painted, and folded butterflies that flutter when you move them!  (We also made some lovely butterfly notebooks too!)  The whole process entertained Chuck for quite awhile, so I thought other kids might like it too!

                                             Fluttering Butterfly Craft

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I know it's winter, and most people are doing winter crafts with their kids, but honestly, I just haven't had the heart to do so.  Our weather is right now in the 60s which is totally bizarre to me.  I'm used to cold, wet, or snowy winters.... not cool, sunny ones.  It's very weird ... but I'm thankful for the sun and warmth!

This butterfly craft was inspired by our local butterfly grove.  Nearby our home is a plot of land where monarch butterflies migrate to during the winter.   How neat is that?  Last week we hiked up to the butterfly grove and saw thousands of butterflies, clumped together in tree branches.  It was a pretty amazing sight.  (And I WISH I could have taken photos of them, but they were just too high up to get a decent shot.)  One of the other children at the park found a dead butterfly on the ground and showed everyone.  Chuck really wanted to find one of his own, but we never did.  So I came up with this craft so that he could have his very own fluttering butterfly.

Looking for kids' butterfly books?

This would definitely be a great craft to go along with any of these great butterfly books!

• Hungry Catterpillar
• My Oh My- A butterfly
• Butterfly and Moth 
• Gideon's Dream 
• From Caterpillar to Butterfly