Tag Archives: arts and crafts

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February 23, 2013

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She looks so small in there

This morning, my phone told me there was a Kids Craft at Michael’s. Ashlin was napping, so I took Teagan and we went. Teagan was very excited, she loves doing arts and crafts. When we got there she was the only kid, there weren’t any others there. I’m not sure if there were any other kids before we got there. Crazy! For two dollars, they entertain your kid for 30 minutes while you shop. I guess that it works out for them, but still.

I got Teagan settled in, and the craft helper said that if there were any issues with her behaving they’d page me. Teagan was a bit daunted by the idea that the entire store would hear that she was being bad, and promised to be good, with her listening ears turned on.

While I browsed the yarn selection, looking for colors for a blanket for Ashlin, Teagan did water color. She painted this picture, a self-portrait. She’s in the lower left corner, with green hands and black hair. There are raindrops falling down, and a black puddle. The hearts she glued on are a tree, and the circle underneath is either the trunk and roots or a bucket that the tree is planted in.

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Self-portrait

The watercolor was a bonus. The craft was a heart mobile, with watercolor hearts matched with pink heart cut outs. I think the lady helped cut the hearts out, though Teagan can use scissors. She did tell me that this was the first time she used glue, and not a glue stick. That made her really happy.

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Heart mobile

She initially wanted to keep the paper the hearts were cut from glued onto the bottom heart. Eventually she allowed us to take the scrap off, so that the mobile wouldn’t break from being too heavy. The hearts wouldn’t be able to blow in the breeze.

Teagan wants to go to the next one. We’ll try to make it.

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November 5, 2012

Moon and Stars

The other day the girls and I made some Halloween decorations.  Yay for decoupage!  Relatively simple, but elegant looking craft.  One that can also be done at various skill and coordination levels.

Both girls love doing arts & crafts, but sometimes it’s hard to get the right craft for both of them.  Sometimes, what I find is too fine motor skill intensive for Teagan, but I’ve gotten better at measuring her abilities.  Most things do get aimed at Teagan, although now I try to get Ashlin involved too.  She used to go to the play room, or outside and swing, with daddy.  Ashlin gets a bit impatient with her coordination, and also tries to taste or eat everything.  But she does have fun,  and now can do a pretty good job.  Teagan tries to rush through everything, thinking she knows exactly how to do whatever it is we’re doing.  Once she realizes she doesn’t know everything, and stops to listen, she does great!

We each had one jar, made one votive.  I had pre-cut the shapes, some stars and moons, a jack-o-lantern.  Although Teagan could do the paper punch, she wouldn’t have had the attention span to do the whole craft.

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Ashlin puts on confetti

I also had the girls do their decoupage jar in shifts.  Ashlin needs a bit more attention than Teagan, but with glass and sticky glue, I didn’t want either to be too unsupervised.

Ashlin really enjoyed putting the Halloween shaped confetti on the jar I had prepared with glue for her.  Her focus was intense, and she would giggle as she saw the paper stick to the jar.  She also put a few pieces of tissue over the confetti, but lost interest soon enough. The lure of Blue was too strong.

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Moon and Stars for Teagan

Teagan watched while I did a few swipes of the glue, eager to put her shapes on.  She also did a great job applying the glue, ripping the tissue to small pieces – maybe the best part! – and putting it over the glue.  I let her finish putting the tissue on Ashlin’s jar, then on my jar and hers.

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Applying glue

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Mom’s Jack-o-lantern gets orange tissue

Waiting to dry

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All done!

decoupage

Spooky Votives

I think they turned out pretty good! We may do some more for Christmas!

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February 5, 2012

Teagan's Hand Print Heart

Today, I finished up some of the artwork Teagan and I started a few weeks ago.  While Stu and Teagan went to the grocery store, Ashlin and I went to Michael’s and Big Lots to find frames.  To put Teagan’s hearts in.  I made a set of these handprint hearts for LaLa, NayNay, and Nana and Auntie Em.  Two are now framed, and one picture, (sans frame), will soon be on it’s way across the ocean.

It sort of looks like a heart.

Almost.

If you squint.

At two and a half, it’s not bad.

I need to finish up the other hand print hearts I started, and then get Ashlin’s feet done…  Then it’s on to Easter and Spring.  Tee hee hee!

Thumbprint tree

Oh, I also need to find time to do their hair-clip boards. I have the stuff now.  Teagan and I found the material yesterday, Ashlin and I found the frames today.

There’ll be time to do them.  Soon enough.

I’m waiting for the Budweiser hockey commercial to come on…  I hope I didn’t miss it while doing baths tonight.  Teagan was a bit needy – and very annoying! – this evening.

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Poop.  I just went for a link for the commercial, and it’s not going to air here.  That sucks.  It’s an awesome, really-makes-you-feel-good, optimistic, warm and fuzzy commercial.  I wish they’d play it here.  Even though it is hockey.

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December 21, 2011

The stockings were hung

The girls are trying to kill me. And almost succeeded.   I’ve been sick.  Since Monday.  Or more that Monday started with that tickle in the back of my throat and a sniffly nose.  That feeling that you get and hope that if you get enough sleep, enough Airborne, you may just escape.   I went to bed early (like that was hard), hoping against hope that I wouldn’t get sick, but no luck.  The girls are thorough.

I woke Tuesday knowing that I hadn’t escaped.  Throat had that lovely broken glass mixed with gravel feel to it.  Nose was stuffed full of snot.  Awesome.  I supposed I should be sort of happy, that it took until this week to succumb to all the germs that they’re just crawling with.  They have been oozing some sort of icky body fluid for the past few weeks, maybe since Halloween, when they had back to back episodes of croup.   Well, one each, but both girls.

Not quite there

Yesterday was not fun.  I was sick and Ashlin was home.  I suppose if I had enough presence of mind to think, even a little, I would have sent her into day care, and swapped her days.  But I wasn’t thinking.  I just wanted to sleep.  Ashlin, on the other hand, wanted to play, to move.  She got so close to getting on all fours and rocking.  But she’s not quite there.  I think we’ll be seeing her move come by New Year’s.  I did get two short naps in while she napped in the bouncer.

And, of course, I couldn’t take anything to make me feel better.  With all the supply issues I’ve had this time, I couldn’t take any chances.  Yay to feeling crummy in order to nurse longer.

Today was better.  Both girls were in day care, so I got to relax a bit.  And nap, for more than 20 minutes at a time.  And after the afternoon nap, I feel almost ok, just some remnant sniffles.

When the girls got home, I made a batch of salt dough and we did Teagan’s hands, and then Ashlin’s hands (yay!) and feet.  They turned out pretty good!

Ashlin's Foot

Ashlin's Hand

Teagan's Hand

I don’t know if I’ll get more decorations up or not…  I still have to do a little more shopping, and then wrap.  Yikes.

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December 17, 2011 ~ Christmas Tree Sun Catcher

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Lookie what Teagan and I made today!

With glitter!

Sssshhhhhh! We made a sun catcher Christmas tree for LaLa for her birthday.

Teagan had a lot of fun making it. So much that she really wanted to make another one, but I had only cut enough paper for one. So during her nap, I cut stuff for a second, and we made one for NayNay.

I still have to cover Renee’s and cut it out. Teagan and I put moons on it, and a special hidden surprise. Maybe she’ll find it!

We had fun!

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November 30, 2011

A few weeks ago Teagan and I (and friends too!) did an art project. The friends were lovely enough to take some pictures during the process – and what a process it was! Two toddlers. Paint. So exciting!!

Anyway, we had fun.  Teagan really enjoyed doing the leaves. She’s a big fan of doing art.

I’m not sure if our friends got to finish theirs…

Oh, and nothing was damaged!

Paint tickles!

What doin'?

Hold it down

Teagan's Hand!

Teagan's Tree

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PS. Teagan made one for Nana too!

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October 10, 2011

Out and About

Today I was left with both girls.  Alone. All day.  Day care was closed!  Insert your standard Home Alone Culkin scream here.

So far, Stu and I haven’t left the other alone with both girls for more than a few hours.  We usually take one of them with us if we go out.  We have survived so far by always using a divide and conquer strategy.

It ended up not being anywhere near as bad as I thought.  Much better than the time I had to take both girls to the doctor and they both cried, although only one got shots.

We took it easy in the morning.  Breakfast for the girls, clandestine apple cider munchkins for me.  Books and kisses and fetched toys, with a side of Nick Jr. until nap time.  Ashlin always laughs when Teagan pulls faces.  Heck, she will laugh when Teagan simply looks at her.  She loves when her big sister brings her toys.  Teagan, so excited, is eager to oblige simple requests to bring her sister a new toy.

Before she went up for her nap, Teagan decided Ashlin needed to have her snuggle bear. Teagan, at first, was fine about the nap, but instead of actually napping, sang songs – Itsy Bitsy ‘pider, Twinkle twinkle, Rain Rain Go Away.  I love when she sings herself to sleep, or wakes up singing!

Anyway, Teagan wasn’t convinced she needed a nap, but a bit of convincing – and a little rocking – got her down.  Down she stayed for over an hour and a half!

I needed some paint for a craft project, so had to go out to get some.  I thought it would be a good good way to spend some of the time between naps, going out and then crafting a bit.  Shopping was successful.

After a quick afternoon nap, we got ready for the craft project.  Teagan got a kick out of helping me find paper, something to put the paint in.  She loved doing it too. And loved that I included Ashlin too.

The day was very good, up until around 5:00, when Teagan started breaking down.  And I started losing my patience.  Ashlin was over tired too, so she didn’t help much, unfortunately.  I would have liked to have a better ending to the day, but when I asked her, she said she would want to do it again.

I guess, that’s what really matters.

April 19, 2011 ~ Floating Eggs

Floating Easter Eggs

One of the things I was able to get accomplished last week was to make Easter Eggs for Teagan’s mobile.  I got this clip mobile, around Thanksgiving, to hang off the hook that Teagan had over her dresser.  Since then I’ve been making seasonal decorations to hang off the hooks.  I’ve done leaves, Christmas decorations, hearts, Shamrocks, and now Easter Eggs.

Teagan is always excited when I change out the decorations. I do it when she’s out, so it’s always a surprise.  I took advantage of Ashlin sleeping last Monday to do the eggs, as well as some flowers for after Easter.  Shame I didn’t go hunting for a rabbit.  She would have loved a hop-hop in there.

Eh, it’s not too late…