Kid Made Planter

The other afternoon, I was calling for my 11 year old son.  He wouldn't respond, so I thought that he was up in his room playing legos or reading.  After a little bit longer, he finally came to me.  I told him that I had been calling him for awhile. He apologized and asked me if I would like to see what he had built in the garage.

 

He loves to spend time in the garage working with my husband's tools.  He likes to build things and fix things. He loves to organize and clean out there.  Whenever my husband is out there he always has a little shadow.  I should have known that he was out in the garage the whole time.  In fact, there are some mornings when he will go out and work in the garage before school!

 

When he brought out this planter he made, I was completely shocked!  A few days before, he found a little plant growing next to our potted climbing rose bush.  He rescued the plant and had been nurturing it in a plastic cup for a few days.  I guess he thought it needed an upgrade!

I loved how he used old wood to make the sides and bottom.  He even drilled holes in the bottom to ensure proper drainage.  And I thought the twine he used around the planter was the perfect finishing touch!  It was so cute and I was so impressed! It's a good lesson to remember: never to underestimate a child!

Carry-Along Truck Yard

For Christmas, I made my daughter a My Little Pony Farm.  I had to make something similar for my son.   So, I made this Truck Yard for him...  

I did the truck yard just like I did the My Little Pony Farm.  The only thing I did different is I only put enough spaces for 5 trucks since they are bigger than the little ponies.

It is really nice having something they can carry to entertain themselves with.  For the trucks, I got him construction trucks so he can haul the dirt, load it, and drive on the roads. He LOVES it!

My Little Ponies Play Farm

I saw this adorable My Little Pony Play Farm and knew that I had to make it for my daughter for Christmas.  I thought I would share it with you.  There is a great tutorial on how to make it on Smashed Peas and Carrots.   I did mine just a little different.  

This is what the Pony Farm looks like all folded up.

 I made a red barn in mine for the little ponies.

My son helped me decide where to put everything!

 My little girl is going to LOVE this!  I am SO excited to give it to her on Christmas!

Glitter Pumpkins!

This was a really fun activity for my children!  

My children LOVE painting and LOVE pumpkins, so this activity is PERFECT for them!

GLITTER PUMPKINS

We actually grew these pumpkins from our garden and my children picked which ones they wanted- which was really fun.

  I got the glitter paint at JoAnn's.

Here is a link to the paint on Amazon.

I just put some of the Glitter Paint on a plate and had my kids paint the pumpkins with their hands.  

They LOVED smearing the paint everywhere!

 After they were done painting, we let the pumpkins dry overnight.

This was a SUPER cheap and FUN activity for my children!! They LOVED it!

Spooky Ghosts

A few weeks ago, our family made a few spooky ghosts to put on our front porch.  It didn't take very much time and was really easy.  Everyone loved this project!  My 1 and 3 year old even got involved, with the help of Dad. 

Materials:

Cheesecloth

Liquid Starch

Items to form the ghosts, we used plastic cups and foil

Put the liquid starch in a bowl.  Drench the cheesecloth in the liquid starch and wring out.  Form the cheesecloth into desired shape and let dry.  

We did this in the evening and the kids were so excited to run outside and see their ghosts all dried and ready to spook a few people.

Just a note: if the ghosts get wet, they will lose their shape.  A few of our ghosts got hit by a rainstorm and "melted" if you will. :)

Kids Art Storage Folder

As many Moms know, when you have children you seem to accumulate tons of their art projects.  My fridge has been completely full of them!   I wanted a storage solution, but I didn't want to put them away because they love to look at their art.  So, I decided to make them art folders that they can look at, add to and take with them to show off.

 I just bought some 1 inch folders and some sheet protectors.   I had my kids paint the front of the folder with their hands and the back with their feet (they loved that).  Then I printed their names out put it in the side.

Then I just made sure to date each picture/project, and then put it in the sheet protector.

They adore their new folders and now where so excited to show Dad all of the artwork when he got home.  It is also nice that my fridge is clean!

Crayon Roll

My kids still have one more month of summer left before school starts.  I wouldn't say that I'm the best at keeping my kids busy, they have a tendency to keep each other busy.  Which is really good for me!  

One of my sons really wanted to sew something, he has been asking for about a week.  So when he asked to make a crayon roll, I thought that it would be a simple enough project to start and finish in one day.

He picked out some fabric that we already had.  The fabric he used is a heavier type fabric, which really holds up for this project. 

He already had in his mind how he wanted it to look like.  I just had to guide him on a few parts, but I was really impressed!

I think he did a pretty good job!  He has taken it many times in the car and this would be great to take to church as well.

Now he wants to make them and sell them.  We shall see...

Monster Pillows

My son found some cute stuffed monsters on Pinterest a few months ago.  And he has been talking about them ever since.  I tried to find the etsy shop that sold them, but I couldn't find them.  I don't think she makes them anymore.
 (A reader just commented and shared with me the name of the shop that sold the monsters.  She doesn't have any listed right now, but she may in the future.  Her shop is called Little Bit Funky.  She is really creative and has some really cute items!)

In fact, my son (who was 9 years old at the time) loved these monsters so much that he made a few for his brothers and sisters and gave them as presents.  He made them all by himself and did a really good job!  

He made these little ones:

So for his birthday, the only thing that he wanted was a monster for himself.  

I decided to make a bigger one and surprise him!

The front has a pocket and I sewed on the letter C, since that is the first letter of his name.  

(Since his birthday, my other son begged for one, so I had to make another monster with the letter A. I am also in the process of making one with a D.)

You should have seen his face when he opened his present!  He was so excited and carried that monster everywhere!  I think he even took it to school to show his friends.  Now the kids at school want one!  :)

This monster has been everywhere, even camping!  My boys love them, because they use them in the car on long trips as a pillow.

So now, I have more monsters to make... I better get busy!