Kid Made Stenciled Artwork

Greetings from Australia!  Sorry for the lack of posts this week.  We're currently visiting family in Brisbane, so posting will be sporadic till we get back.  Since I had a couple of free moments today, I thought I'd share these handmade gifts that Chuck and I made for this trip.  Chuck currently enjoys painting, so we created some lovely pieces of contact paper stenciled artwork.  We gave them as gifts and I think they're extra special because they were handmade by Chuck.

Kids' Contact Paper Stenciled Artwork

Keep reading to see how we made them!

Toilet Paper Roll Flowers and Cacti

I've said it once, and I'll say it again.  I've got a black, black thumb.  And this saddens me because deep down, my heart is really green.  I love looking at plants, I love eating plants, and goodness one year I was even a tree for Halloween!  But I'm a plant killer.  So this makes today's toilet paper roll craft perfect for me.  These cardboard roll plants are pretty to look at, and impossible to kill.

Make Toilet Paper Roll Flowers and Cacti

Yup.  Aren't they pretty?  If you're interested in making yourself some everlasting recyclable plants, keep on reading!

Make Pretend Play "Dirt"

Does your child love playing with construction toys too?  If so, today's post is just for you.  It's all about dirt, glorious dirt.  Since it's freezing cold outside (and we live in an urban environment), playing in real dirt just isn't an option for us.  But no worries, I whipped up a batch of Pretend Play "Dirt" and we had a blast playing with it inside. 

Make Pretend Play "Dirt"  

The coolest thing about this recipe is that you only need three common household ingredients to make play "dirt."  (It was inspired by MollyMoo's Leprechaun slime recipe.)  So keep reading to see how you can whip up some play dirt at home too

DIY Magnetic Fishing Game

Currently, one of Chuck's favorite books is 10 Little Fish by Audrey and Bruce Wood.  It's a cute book about subtraction.  Kids count colorful fish on each page as they leave one by one.  And (my favorite part), it has a fishy romance at the end (What can I say?  I'm a closet romantic... tee heee hee.)  To accompany his love for fish, we recently made this DIY Magnetic Fishing Game. 

DIY Magnetic Fishing Game

It's cute and colorful and really fun to make and easy to play.  Want to make your own fishing game?  Keep reading to see how we made ours! 

Make a simple paper kite

Spring is here!  Let's go outside!  Let's go fly a kite!  What?  You don't own a kite?  No worries, we can  make one!  Today I'll share with you this really simple DIY paper kite.   It's easy to make, fun to play with, and my young son loved decorating his very own kite.  

Spring, spring, la la la!  (Can you tell that I have a bad case of spring fever?  *Twirls around and leaps*)

Make a Simple Paper Kite

Now the only warning I have about this craft is that you have to make more than one paper kite.    Seriously.  Each kid should get have his own.  And, be prepared for kites to break or float away.  (One of our floated away.) 

Alright, let's make some paper kites!