Create-Celebrate-Explore

Rusty and Rosy: Gardening with Kids

If you are looking for simple tips to get the kids out in the garden and growing fruit, vegetables, and flowers, then head over to Rusty and Rosy where I'm sharing some simple tips for gardening with kids.

Build It Workshops For Kids

I was recently introduced to a new kids workshop that has opened in Southern California called Build It Workshops.  Add it to your list of places to take the kids, they will love it.

Admission:

    $12 per child - $10 for additional siblings

    Daily Build - additional fee of $3-$15 depending on the project (non-members)

    5 Visit Pass - $50

    $1 military discount available (with identification)

DIY Travel Scrapbook

 

Once upon a time (apparently when I was far more organized), I collected maps, theme park tickets, and other assorted items from vacations and put them into brown paper bags, labeling each so that one day I could put everything I'd saved into scrapbooks.

I've been cleaning out our garage lately, which seems to be a never-ending project, and I still don't see any end in sight. During this cleaning and organizing though I have come across some really fabulous things that I had completely forgotten that I'd stashed away, like the box filled with brown paper bags, where I even found photocopies of photographs of my mum when she was little, I don't even remember having seen these before, and am still wondering how they got into this box.

Around the time I found all of this, I received a box of fun scrapbook supplies from the lovely folks at Staples ... who knew they had scrapbook supplies?  Anywho, I decided it's probably about time I set to work on putting all of those old bits and bobs into albums (and get them out of the garage).

I still haven't finished filling it, but thought I'd share the first album I made.

In the big box of scrapbook supplies Staples sent me, I came across a couple of fun items I could use:

• Clear Scraps Acrylic and Chipboard Album
• American Crafts (Studio Calico) 'Abroad' Collection Pack (scrapbook paper)

What you also need (which I already had, but that are available at Staples too):

• Book Rings
• X-Acto Knife
• Mod Podge

Begin by choosing the scrapbook paper you want to use. 

Lay the acrylic over the top, and very carefully cut around the edge using the X-Acto knife.

With a pencil, mark the center of where each hole is, and using a hole punch, punch the holes to match the acrylic overlay.

Brush a thin layer of Mod Podge over the front of the scrapbook paper and then lay the acrylic over the top. Turn it over and press out any air bubbles, smoothing over the back of the paper with a little pressure to ensure that the paper and acrylic are bonded. Set aside to dry. The Mod Podge will dry clear.

Once all of the acrylic sheets are completely dry, use the book rings to keep the album together.

Now I want to share a few suggestions of things you can put inside your album.

• Index cards are a great way to to jot down notes when you are on vacation. Hole punch them when you get home and place them directly into the album.
• Hole punch tickets or passes (particularly airline, theme park, boat rides etc) and place directly into the album, or alternatively, place them into small bags, or envelopes. You can stick these envelopes or bags onto index cards, or on plain paper and then place them into the album.
• Print photographs when you get home and type, or handwrite labels to go on the back of each outlining a special story behind the photograph, or where it was taken.
• Hole punch postcards of tourist destinations you visited and place directly into the album. 
• Attach several small clear plastic bags, or alternatively sew strips of vinyl onto a piece of card stock to create pockets to store special little treasures such as a shell, sprinkling of sand, special coin, or a pressed leaf that was collected on your trip.
• Have the kids do special rubbings of textured surfaces, such as a brick, tree, or leaf to place into the album. 
• You may even want to hole punch a napkin of a special restaurant you ate at.
• Hole punch maps and place them directly into the album. Mark off the locations that you went on your vacation. Place the map into the front of the album. Add a number sticker to each of the locations that you visited that corresponds with a page in the album where tickets, mementos and photographs can be found.

The great thing about these albums is that you can use alphabet stickers, or stamps to label each chipboard or acrylic sheet to categorize each section of the album. You could do this by date, or by place you went to.

Book rings (also called loose-leaf rings) come in a variety of sizes from about 3/4 to 3 inches, depending on how many items you need to add to your album. You may want to create a separate album for each of the kids to record their special moments and store keepsakes in.

 

Disclosure: I received a box of assorted scrapbook supplies from Staples.

Mira Mesa Living: Spring Craft

My latest craft project is in the March/April issue of Mira Mesa Living magazine. 

I decided a fun flower project to welcome Spring was in order for this issue.

These flower pegs make a great Spring Break craft project for kids.  They also make a fun activity for a garden party, or Easter party with kids.

 

AS SEEN ON:

The Classroom Creative ... BabyCenter UK

The Blogger Connection: Angry Birds Craft and Game

I would say that Angry Birds are almost on an equal par with LEGO these days. Although the twins still love their LEGO playlists, read their LEGO books and play with their LEGO a lot, they also love to play Angry Birds games on their cell phones (which were our old phones).

We haven't bought them any Angry Birds toys, and I don't know that I intend to, so the kids got creative recently and made their own game.  I had no input in this, none of it was my idea, and I wasn't allowed to help. I simply took a few photos when I saw what they were doing. 

So, if you head on over to The Blogger Connection I'm sharing the Angry Bird craft project and game, which involved a lot of paper rolls ... which could also explain why there have been so many blocked up toilets of late.

How to Make a Bird Feeder

Christmas Day was spent with my husband's uncle.  It was snowing, and the kids were thrilled to wake up to a white Christmas.  Aunt Melinda put together a fun project for the kids to do while they were visiting (and taking breaks from throwing snowballs at one another).

PINE CONE BIRD FEEDERS

What you need:

• Pine Cones
• Peanut Butter
• Bird Seed
• Rope, string or ribbon

Spread peanut butter onto the pine cone.  We found that using a small knife (that wasn't sharp such as a butter or pate knife) was perfect for this.

Roll or sprinkle assorted bird seed over the peanut butter so that it sticks.

Now tie your string, ribbon, or rope around the bird feeder and hang it up outside.

Birds are going to love this.  By the following day one of the pine cones was stripped of bird seeds and they had started on the second one.  What a lovely Christmas treat for them.

This would make a great project for an outdoor themed party.   Just don't go making them at a campground and leave them out overnight, you might attract an unwanted critter.