Make a Record Player! (Inspired by Travels with Charlie) #bookingusa

Today I'm going to share with you how I made a record player using materials found around our apartment.  *pauses*  Wait, wait, I know what you're thinking, "What are you doing Leslie?  A DIY record player?  Why would you even try to build one in the first place?" Well, friends, before I answer those questions, let me first show you the finished product:

Kid Science:  How to Make a Record Player

Yes.  This baby plays.  Yes.  I have a video of it playing a record down below.  And yes, I will share the inspiration behind this fun project!

Toilet Roll Helicopter Craft

Chuck loves his vehicles.  Thus far we've built a toilet roll airplane, a cardboard roll space shuttle,  a shampoo bottle boat, styrofoam gliders, and a tin can car.  (Wow.  That's a lot of transportation crafts!) Since we live near the river, helicopters fly over our building on a daily basis.  So we recently added this toilet roll helicopter to our collection of recycled transportation crafts.   (Can you tell that he's modeled after Harold the Helicopter from Thomas?)

Toilet Roll Helicopter Craft 

(*Note:  This post includes affiliate links which means that I earn a small commission for every purchase made at no extra cost to you. Thank you so much for your support.)    

6 Fun Flower Activities for Kids

I've had flowers on my mind lately.  But can you blame me?  Spring is here and the world is bursting with color!  Plus, Mother's day is coming up and I imagine mothers all over receiving flowers as gifts.  So that's why I put together this list of 6 fun flower activities that you can do with your kids.   You can turn flowers into works of art, use them to decorate stationary, or place them in a sensory bin!  Let's get started!

6 Fun Flower Activities 

Cup Weaving Tutorial

I've been meaning to try out weaving for awhile now.  I decided to start out small with this cup weaving project.  It's a super simple craft that can be completed while watching your favorite tv show.  (Yay Agents of Shield!  Does that make me geeky?)  To make your own cup weaving, you'll need some yarn, a pair of scissors, and a plastic cup and then you're ready to go!

Cup Weaving Tutorial 

Pretty right?  The yarn really transforms my plain old disposable plastic cup into something useful and beautiful.  Ok.  Let's get weaving! 

Painted Twig Wall Hanging

Painted Twig Wall Art 

Chuck's still too young to completely understand the idea of Mother's Day.  But if he were going to give me a handmade gift this Sunday, I'd venture to say that this Painted Twig Wall Hanging would probably be it.  My little guy has an eye for twigs.  Whenever we go for a walk outside, we inevitably bring back a twig, or a rock, or a leaf (luckily, he hasn't asked to bring back any bugs yet.  I might have to put my foot down there.)  Our nature collection tends to grow pretty quickly.  That's why I really like this twig wall art.  It's a beautiful way to remember walks outside, showcase his collection, and do some fun mommy-son crafting too.