No Beads? No Problem!

Stringing beads is a fun activity for pre-schoolers. It's great for their fine motor development and if you're lucky, you'll get a sweet little present when they're done. I buy most of my craft supplies from the dollar store though, and they don't always have chunky beads in stock. They do almost always have drinking straws. When you cut the straws into little pieces, they are perfect for beading. To the right, you'll see the neclace that was made for me in the year 2067???

Apple Smiles

For some reason kids are always hungry, and you can only give them goldfish crackers so many times before they decide they're boring. Apple smiles are always a favorite, and are also great to send in for school snacks. These are so simple and tasty. Just spread peanut butter on apple slices and arrange mini marshmallows on them to look like teeth. Slap another apple slice on top and voila, apple smiles. If they aren't going to be eaten right away just dip the apple slices in a half lemon juice half water mixture to keep them from turning brown. Easy peasy, right?

Paper Plate Lions

One of my favorite things to use for crafts is paper plates. They are cheap, and I almost always have a stack in my cupboard. These are some lions I made with the kids from my previous job. We cut strips (or I cut for the little guys) all around the outside of the plate for the mane. They painted them with crayola washable paints and used some dollar store puff balls for the eyes and nose. Pipe cleaners were used for the mouth, whiskers, and handles. I added a dab of paint to the eyes for eye balls and helped shape the mouths. The handles were just something the kids wanted to add so they could hold them up in front of their faces like masks. If I'd known they wanted to make masks, I would have cut out eye holes. Either way, they turned out pretty cute and the kids had fun getting messy with paint and glue. Everything used was stuff we had sitting around the house. (it's always good to have a stocked craft box) So there you have it......paper plate lions. Have fun.

Introductions

I'm a nanny and also an avid crafter. I love making crafts with the kids, and usually take pictures of our creations. I thought it would be fun to share them with the world. Hopefully our crafts will inspire you to go out and get messy!