Melting snowman

When it comes to making crafts, we try to use things we already have around the house. This craft, a melting snowman, uses household items you probably already have like paper, twigs, and cotton balls. Remember when it comes to art, there is no real right or wrong. Let your children use their creativity. If they want to use a different material or add something to the craft, let them try! You might be surprised!

So let's get started with our melting snowman...........

Materials

* White paper * Cotton ball * twigs * pipe cleaner * black marker

First cut out a free form snow puddle from your white paper. This can be any shape you want. No two snowmen will look the same! Next, with a black marker put the eyes and mouth on the cotton ball and buttons on the paper for your snowman.

We glued a small bit of orange pipe cleaner for a nose. We also used a piece of pipe cleaner to twist a simple scarf. After a quick trip outside for some twig pieces we were ready to build out melting snowman.

First we glued the scarf pipe cleaner to the paper. Next we put glue on the twig arms and positioned them in the scarf. Lastly we put a generous amount of glue on the cotton ball head and pressed it into place. Placing the head made the arms stand up! Hold the head for a minute and your done! One super cute melting snowman!

Make a gingerbread house at Lowe's

I have said it before and I am saying it again (and no I do not get compensated to do this)  take your kids to the Build and Grow clinics at Lowe's. They are FREE and lots of fun. Coming up on December 8th the kids will be making these cute gingerbread house boxes. Tell me these are not cute! So what are you waiting for, it is FREE!!! Signing up online on their website is easy, so get going.

Craft stick snowman

There is something special about those "not so perfect" ornaments made by our children that really make a Christmas tree have personalty. Here is a cute ornament idea made out of craft sticks, a snowman face! For this project you need the following (and any other items that your creativity sparks):

Materials

10 wooden craft (Popsicle) sticks
White and black paint (other colors as desired)
Glue
Wiggle eyes
Pipe cleaner








We started by gluing 9 sticks together to make the "face" area. Once the glue was dried, it was time to get out the paint! Painting is my 6 year old's favorite part of any craft these days. We painted the bottom 2/3 of the sticks white and the top 1/3 black. We also painted the 10th craft stick black for the hat portion of the snowman.


Once the glue was dry it was time to put our snowman together. The 10th stick is glued where the colors meet to form the hat section of the snowman. With just some wiggle eyes, sparkly pipe cleaner and paint we created a friendly chap who will look amazing on our tree. For the hanger we used twine. **Hint: put tape over the glue and twine till the glue dries in order to keep the twine in place.

Your tree will be darling with your child's handmade ornament hanging on it. These rnaments would also make precious gifts for the grandparents! So what are you waiting for? Hurry and make some of these cute snowmen faces for Christmas!

50% of Memebership sale at the Alligator Sanctary!!

As some of you know by now, we here at MAD love going to Critchlow's Alligator Sanctuary. It is one of those hidden gems of mid-Michigan. If you live in mid-Michigan I have the best deal ever for you! Mr C. (who owns Critchlow's) is offering 50% of all their memberships till the end of November. That means you can get a 1 year family membership for just $25!!!!

Not only do they have alligators, but they have so much more. And you can get hands on with many of the animals (including the alligators.)  And trust me, this is the type of place your kids will ask to go to again and again.You can even get your membership over the phone! How easy is that!!! Check out their website.

Simple can be just as good

For Thanksgiving, we did not have the onslaught of friends and family most people do. We had just the four of us and a yummy meal. Our dining table has long been given over to crafts so what were we to do? Our six year old came up with the best idea ever, of putting tv trays together to form a table in front of our couch.

That got me thinking, so I threw a bed sheet over the tables and we grabbed a few items to decorate. Was it the most glamours Thanksgiving table ever? Not to most, but to my son it was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen. Some times simple can be just as good.

Make a Cornucopia

 

The Cornucopia (also know as the horn of plenty) is symbol of abundance and nourishment and has become a Thanksgiving icon. With just a paper plate, twine and generous amounts of glue you can make your own cornucopia as part of a center piece or a few to fill with yummy goodies like popcorn as a snack.

Simply roll the paper plate into a horn and tape. Next grab the glue and be generous with it as you start at one end of the horn and wrap it with twine. This craft is not for the toddler set as it takes some patience, time and LOTS of glue. When you get to the other end, secure the twine with tape till the glue dries.

Once I had my paper plate wrapped in twine, I turned it over a pop bottle and added even more glue over the top of the twine. I left it on the bottle to dry over night. The next day my cornucopia was very firm and sturdy and ready to be filled. Since we were out of popcorn, I used beans to give you an example. I will have to pop by the store for my popcorn!

This craft is an item you can store and use for years to come. Who knows, maybe one day they will end up on the Thanksgiving tables of the grown children who helped make them!

Paint chip turkey

Here is a new twist on our toilet paper turkey we did last year. This year we raided the paint department at our local home improvement store! We cut the multi color paint chips to remove the names of the colors and then glued them on to our toilet paper tube. Next we added wiggle eyes, a paper beak and a red piece of pipe cleaner for, as my son calls it, the gobbler. I think Mr. Turkey is looking very colorful this year!