Class Valentines

I love a good class valentine. As soon as the Valentines' Day goodies replace the Christmas items on store shelves, I begin my search for the kids' class valentines.

As much as I love a good cartoon character card, I am partial to the homemade valentine.  However, with all of the work demands, I may not always be as creative as I would like to be.  That sends me to Pinterest for ideas.

For my three-year-old son, we decided to do dinosaur valentines this year.  I found a delightful free printable here.  I got the plastic dino figures and the cellophane bags from the Target dollar bins.  I also chose to add a couple of Dove Heart candies.  I think they turned out very cute.

For my five-year-old daughter, I had more input.  She was very open to whatever we put together but required the outcome be cute.  While buying dinos at Target, we ran across these adorable little 20-page note pads.  I created the following printable and used double stick tape to affix each note pad to its card.  Since they work on their names in Kindergarten, she had the honor of writing her name on all 48 cards.  Lucky kid.

We can't wait to distribute these simple yet cute cards to their classes on February 13th!

Celebrating the Pre-K Graduate with a Candy Lei!

My first born graduated from preschool last week.  Weeks before the event, my daughter began counting down to the big day.  She even practiced her songs and revealed all the special surprises her teachers had planned.  She was giddy!  I thought I was emotionally strong when we arrived to the school but as she filed onto the playground with her classmates and flashed a shy smile, the tears were instant.

To celebrate her big day, I made a candy lei.  What a fun, easy way to honor our special little graduate!

The process:

1.  Gather your materials:  Candy, cellophane, yarn or curly ribbon, and scissors.  Be sure to select non-chocolate options if the event is held outdoors or during warmer temperatures.

2.  Cut the cellophane slightly larger than the candy used.  Be sure to securely wrap the cellophane around the candy, leaving room to tie the ends.  The seam of the cellophane should be at the back of the wrapper.

3.  Use the yarn to tightly tie each end of the cellophane wrapper.

4.  Link individually wrapped candies by their ends.  Link them so the wrappers face the same direction, tying knots at the back.  This makes for a more attractive finished product.  Continue until the lei is the desired length, then link the two ends to close the loop and form a necklace.  Trim the ends of the yarn or curl the ends of the curling ribbon.  Add bows or other decorative embellishments between candies on the front side, if desired.

5.  Drape the necklace around the neck of the special graduate and wait for the smiles.  (Pay no attention to her hairdo.  Shortly after the ceremony, she ripped the hair bow off of her head.  Lovely.)

Easy Holiday Tees

I love to make the holidays special for my family.  Crafts are huge in our house and when I can put the kiddos to work to make their own holiday attire, I do!  They are always soo proud to wear their creations.  These holiday tees are not only easy but totally adorable! 

The process.

1.  Gather the supplies.  You need a cardboard box, packing tape, image copied onto card stock, plain tee, scissors, plastic lid, new pencil with attached eraser, fabric paint, and embellishments if desired.

2.  Prep the tee.  Slip a cardboard sheet into the tee, and fold the shirt around the box, and tape to secure. 

3. Cut out the desired image from the card stock and tape securely to the front, center of the tee.  These tees were for Easter but a shamrock for St. Patrick's Day, a heart for Valentine's Day or a tree for Christmas would all be lots of fun!

4. After placing a little fabric paint into a plastic lid, let the kiddos paint around the outside of the image using the eraser end of the pencil.  Make sure the kids get paint around the entire edge of the image so it will show clearly once the image is removed.

5.  Allow tee to dry then remove the card stock image.  Send through the wash, then wear!  Add embellishments like a bow on the bunny's head or under the chin, if desired.

Minnie Mouse Birthday

A Minnie Mouse Birthday Party!

The three-year-old is turning four!  Where did the time go?

Wee One requested a Minnie Mouse themed party and I was happy to oblige.  Who could turn down this sweet face?

Since school was finally out for summer, I had a little time to prep.

Invitations

We had a little photo shoot in the front yard.  It was difficult to choose the cover photo.  I petitioned my family to vote for their favorite.  This was their choice.

I printed the pictures at Costco and used the Cricut to cut out a little phrase to place on the front of the card.  I think they turned out cute.  Don't you?

Decorations

I used the Cricut to create a birthday sign.  I did not wish to spend the high price on a new cartridge so I used what I had.  I cut out circles in 5-inch and 3-inch sizes to make the mouse silhouette.  I also found a butterfly shape on my garden cartridge and used it to make Minnie's bow.  I just cut off the body and glued it into place.

Pinata

I made my own pinata to fit with the theme.  While it was a LOT of work, I am very pleased with the result.  So was Wee One!!   You can find the tutorial here!

Party Hats

Party hats were made for the younger guests.  Of course they had to fit the theme!  You can find the tutorial here!

Games

In addition to the pinata, we played "Pin the Bow on Wee One".  It was a cute game and I found it on Pinterest.  Where?  I can't remember but if you are the one who came up with the idea, you are BRILLIANT!

Cakes

What is a party without birthday cake?  Rather, what is a party without chocolate cake?!  I made the Minnie Mouse cake by baking one rectangle cake and one round cake.  I cut two circles from the rectangle cake to make ears.  I placed together to form the iconic silhouette and frosted the entire thing.  I then added a bow shaped box lid which I found from the dollar bin at Target.  Perfect!

We also had Minnie Mouse cupcakes (thanks to Pinterest for the idea).  I made strawberry cupcakes with cream cheese frosting and adorned them with one standard Oreo and two mini Oreos for ears.  The bows were cut from a sheet of sugar purchased at Michael's.

I thought about using my mouse ear cookie cutter the moment I knew we were having a Minnie Mouse party.  These sugar cookies were tricky to make as the ears kept breaking off!  What you see on this platter is the best of the bunch.  Although they did not turn out as expected, they were delicious!  The recipe for the cookies and the icing can be found at these links.

Goodie Bags

I used the Minnie Mouse heads I cut out with the Cricut, to decorate white paper bags.  I filled each one with summer time treats!  The kiddos were very excited about the popsicle molds.  I also added a thematic coloring book to each bag.  I made it by downloading black and white graphics from Google Images.

Everyone seemed to have a wonderful time... even in the 100 degree heat.

Happy 4th birthday, Wee One!  

We love you soo much!!