Doh!

I love these squishy, little, dimpled hands. :)

We whipped up a batch of salt dough today!  Not for eating...for sculpting.  :) 

Ingredients:

½ cup salt

1 cup flour

½ cup warm water

...mix/knead/create/dry (you can bake at 250 to speed drying time)

We spent the afternoon making Christmas ornaments and keepsakes. I think that I had more fun than the kids.  :)  

"Christmas Tree"



Thanks for the inspiration: Allison & Christina !



Painting with Kids :)

We LOVE to paint! They key to painting (or doing anything messy) with toddlers/kids is being prepared.   Here are a few things that I do to make painting fun and not-so-stressful when working with my little ones:

1. Prep the workspace: Cover table with a placemat/newspaper and have all materials at hand. This includes: paper/canvas, brushes, water, washcloths, bucket for dirty brushes, etc. I always make sure to have an out-of –the-way drying space for the finished product.  
2. Prep the paint: I squirt paint into individual cups (we recycle yogurt cups). I love making colors more exciting, so instead of going with paint straight from the tube…I mix up (or have the kids mix) some fun colors first. Always make sure that the paint is non-toxic (for tasting purposes).
3. Prep the kids: We use over-sized white t-shirts for smocks. I love the paint splatters and smudges that build up…it’s like a wearable canvas. :) Be sure to ponytail long hair.
4. Painting: Since my kiddos are little, I usually give them each one cup of paint at a time.                         Toddlers + multiple colors = mud. 
5. Relax and Paint along with them…it makes the experience more fun!
6. Clean up: take them outside and squirt them down with a hose. Just kidding (sort of)...this is the tricky part and experiences vary depending on how much fun they have painting themselves. I just make sure to have a few washcloths and a sink nearby.

It is paint, it's messy...just have fun with it!

Happy Creating!!! :)

Happy Thanksgiving!

 

mk Bakes: Soft Pumpkin Cookies

A student stopped by my room one day and left a sweet treat on my desk. It looked like a chocolate chip cookie but it was orangey in color. I thought it was a little strange looking -  but since my absolute favorite cookie is a soft and chewy chocolate chip, I had to ignore the color. I am glad I did!  It took me about 2 seconds to figure out that it was a  pumpkin chocolate chip cookie – genius! So, I would like to share one of our favorite cookie recipes with you:

Ingredients:

1 cup canned pumpkin

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1 egg

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon milk

1 tablespoon vanilla

Directions:

1) Mix pumpkin, sugar, veggie oil, egg and vanilla.

2) In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt.

3) Dissolve the baking soda with milk and stir in.

4) Add flour mix to pumpkin mix…mix well.

5) Drop by spoonful on parchment lined cookie sheet and bake at 350 degrees F for

    approximately 10 minutes or until lightly brown/firm.

Recommended ingredient additions:  chocolate chips, nuts, craisins, cream cheese icing… yum!

Enjoy!!!

{Link up and join the party @ 30 Handmade Days }

Thanksgiving Wreath

We had a few paper hands left over from our turkey project so we decided to trace and cut out a few more hands to make this festive wreath:

Here is how we made it:

1. Gather Materials: paper, scissors, foam wreath, stapler, scrap fabric
2. Trace and cut out hands (we used craft/scrapbook paper…but any kind of paper will do). Make sure to trace and cut a good portion of the wrist/arm for wrapping around foam.  
3. Staple, glue or tape hands to foam. We stapled and fluffed/reinforced with tape.
4. Add a bow and hang. It’s that easy. J

Hmm. I have sudden urge to go make a Christmas wreath...

 



Gobbles of Fun...

We are gearing up for Thanksgiving and anxiously waiting to decorate for Christmas. Since we are lacking in the Thanksgiving décor department (am I the only one?)  - we decided to make some cute little turkeys to make things more festive around here.  So...let's talk turkey:

1. Gather some cans, craft/scrapbook papers, scissors and glue.

2. Glue brown craft paper around can. We usually align the bottom then fold the inch or so of excess paper over lip of can.

3. I sketched out some turkey features and had the kids color them (big kids can draw their own)

4. Cut out features and glue on can

5. Trace hands, cut out, then tape or glue hands in can (shortcut: stack 3-4 papers behind tracer)

How about that upside down turkey?  :)

I think it is important to let the kids do the work on their own. The results are more fun when you let them do their thing. 

If you want to take this project a step further, you can add hands throughout the month and write about the things that you are thankful for on each. 

Materials: cans, brown craft paper, scrapbook paper, scissors, glue, stamps, colored pencils, sharpie

Sporty Number Headbands

Hi there! I am sorry for my light posts over the past couple of weeks...I've been busy working on some new projects and coming up with fresh ideas for the shop. Here's the latest! It's the perfect gift/accessory for the athlete(s) in your life. Stop by my Etsy for more details...

mk inspired shop



Wednesday's Pic:

Busy in the studio this week. Here's a little glimpse of what I have been working on.

Happy November! :)