Taking Time To Create: October 2012

Wednesday, October 31, 2012

Road Trip Entertainment {For Kids}

Back in July I posted some fun ideas for keeping your kiddos busy on a road trip (here and here ). Well, we’re going on an even longer (like 3 or 4 times longer) road trip, so of course I have some more ideas to share! Let’s get started shall, we?

Behavior Clip/Prizes

I think I mentioned in one of the previous posts that I was planning on wrapping up little “presents” to give my little guy periodically. That was possibly THE BEST idea that we used. He loved getting those little presents.

This time, we’re going to try to pair the presents (or prizes in this case) with what’s called a behavior clip. The idea comes from Random Thoughts of a Super Mom, and the basic idea is that you put up the clip and keep it up as long as the little one behaves. If the clip is still up at the next stop (or appointed time), the kiddo gets a prize.

For the clip: I just cut out a train from some scrapbooking paper I had and then glued it to different colors of paper to get the layers/borders around it. Then, I glued it to a clothespin.

For the prizes: Dollar store, dollar store, dollar store! Books, toy dinosaurs, cars…you get the idea. I also made some crayon rolls (similar to these) that I’ll be sharing with you next week.

Glow Sticks

You can get them at the dollar store (a 15 pack even). Simple entertainment that my little guy loves, so I figured they’d be great if we’re driving in the dark at all.

Color Sticker Matching

I saw this idea here.

The idea is this: you create a grid with a section for each color and label it. The child then puts stickers in the correct section. Learning and fun! Now that’s my kind of activity! Oh, and my little guy loves stickers (what kids doesn’t, right?). Perfect.

The original was simply handwritten, but I created a template to print (you know I couldn’t have crooked/wavy lines). It’s available here to download. Lovely, right?

Magnetic Paper Dolls

Okay, I know many people probably think more about girls for paper dolls than boys, but I thought they’d be fun. I went searching for free “boy” paper dolls and found this post which then led me to this post. There are lots of options (not just for boys either!).

You can print them on magnetic paper sheets or glue them to magnets and then use a small cookie sheet (like the one in the Magnetic Activity Board) to play with them.

Since I’m a hoarder of magnets, I happen to have several that I glued my paper doll’s clothes to (you know the kind you find on phone books). I didn’t make the actual “doll” magnetic but opted to have him in the center of a piece of paper we can fasten to our cookie sheet.

Cute, right? I think I’ll play with him even if my little guy doesn’t.

Pom Pom Activities

Another thing my little guy loves—pom poms. I don’t know why but he’s fascinated with them. This post from Sew Fantastic led me to all kinds of fun printables for pom pom activities.

Glue some magnets on your pom poms to use with your little cookie sheet and you’re set!

Button ~~Snake~~ Errr Ribbon

I’m sure most of you have seen these. You sew a button to the end of a piece of ribbon, cut pieces of felt with slits in them, and your little one “threads” the felt onto the ribbon.

My only problem? My son has this thing about snakes that I may or may not have accidentally passed on to him. I HATE them. That’s right bold, italics, capitals HATE them! They scare me. They give me the creeps. I’m sorry if you like them. Really I am, but I will never, ever, never like or even tolerate them. Yuck. Yeah, so we’ll have to call it something else, so he doesn’t think it’s an actual snake of some sort. I’m sort of sorry about passing on my feelings about them, sort of. I’m sure he’ll grow out of it and scare me with one at some point or another.

Well, now that I have that off my chest...back to that road trip entertainment!

Some more ideas…

New coloring books or coloring pages. I printed lots and lots of coloring pages (mostly Disney/Pixar ones of course). Just do a Google image search or you can find some here and here.
Color Car Bingo I decided my little guy wouldn’t quite get the concept of this one, but it would be fun for kids that are a little older. The concept is just as it sounds. You play Bingo and the “numbers” called out are colors of cars you see driving.
Paper Bag Puppets? I’m hoping this one will work. I cut out all the pieces and am bringing glue to put them together in the car. We’ll see. Even if it doesn’t work out in the car, this website has some really great ideas that you could do at home.
Books are always a good option. If you have a Kindle or something similar, you can even load them on there, so they don’t take up as much room. Check to see if your library loans out e-books and you can even find free kids’ books on Amazon.
Apps. If you’re opposed to too much screen time with your kids them may not be an option, but there are some fun kids’ apps out there that may keep them entertained for a while.
If you absolutely, positively have to…movies. I remember watching movies all the way to Disneyland when I was little and it really passed them time for us kids.

Do you have any fun road trip ideas? Leave me a comment...I’d love to hear them!

I'm linking at these great parties:
Mondays: Sweet Sharing Monday * The Girl Creative * Destination: Cutesy Monday * What's In The Gunny Sack *  Made by you Monday*Make It Yourself Monday*Mop It Up Mondays*Make The Scene Monday*Make It Pretty Monday*
Tuesdays: Riverton Housewives Roundup *  Show Me What You Got * Tuesday Time Out * Tasteful Tuesdays * Too Cute Tuesday*Tuesday's Treasures*Crafty Tuesday* Trendy Tuesday
Wednesdays: Super Link Party * Show & Share * {Wow Me} Wednesday *From Dream To Reality*Create & Share*What I Whipped Up Wednesday*What We Wore & Made Wednesday*The Creative Spark Wednesdays* Milk & Cuddles*Made By Me Wednesdays*Adorned From Above*
Thursday: Pin'Inspirational Thursday * Recipe Roundup *A Crafty Soiriee * Creative Thursday *Taylor House Thursday*Transformation Thursday*Hookin Up With HoH*Creative Juice Thursday*Live Laugh Linky Thursday* Link Party Thursday*Taking A Time Out Thursday*Eat Make Grow*
Fridays: Delicately Constructed Fridays * Flaunt It Friday * Financial Friday Link Up  *Friday Fun Party* Friday Flair*Pity Party*Frugal Friday*Friday Favorites*Weekend Craft Soiree*Weekend Warmth*One Creative Weekend
Saturdays: Strut Your Stuff Saturday * Once Upon A Weekend * Sharing Saturday * Dare To Share Saturday * Craft, Create and Inspire * A Pinteresting Party*Serenity Saturday
Sundays: Nifty Thrifty Sunday * It's Overflowing Sunday Party * Cooking & Crafts Party

Tuesday, October 30, 2012

Disneyland or Bust {Freezer Paper Stenciled Shirt}

Since we started planning our road trip to Disneyland, I’ve wanted to make this shirt for my little guy. The idea just popped into my head one day and I haven’t been able to forget it (and, hey, that’s saying something).

My little guy is going to wear it on day 2 of our road trip. I mentioned making matching shirts for everyone, but no one seemed too excited for that. A little too nerdy maybe? Oh well, he’ll be super cute.

I downloaded this font, Googled Mickey Mouse ears, and put everything together in Microsoft Word. Then I did some freezer paper stenciling. Oh, and if you’ve ever wondered if you can use puff paint to do freezer stenciling, the answer is YES! I like using soft fabric paint (like this) a little better for freezer paper stenciling, but it still works well and looks great!

Oh, and if you’ve never heard of freezer paper stenciling or need help getting started, I AmMomma Hear Me Roar has a great video tutorial.

Friday, October 26, 2012

Okay, Fall, I Give Up

I've been in denial. Fall can't already be here, can it? No, it's not. If I ignore it maybe it will go away? Guess not. Don't get me wrong...I actually love Fall. It's just that Fall leads to Winter which leads to my fingers being frozen for the next few months. Good grief. For someone who lives in Colorado, I sure am a wimp!

Well, I couldn't ignore it any longer, so I finally got out my Fall decorations this week, and I thought I'd share my "tablescape"/centerpiece with you. I bought nothing for it, so I love it all the more. I love the blue pumpkins, but I've struggled with arranging them in years past. Then a pumpkin hit me in the head (no not really-that would hurt!), and I realized that I should combine them with other pumpkins...real ones that we already had to be precise. Combine those with a votive candle set my mother-in-law gave us, a yellow piece of fabric for a runner, a glass bowl turned upside down for a pumpkin stand, and a box wrapped in another yellow piece of fabric for a shorter pumpkin stand, and I think we have a winner!

I'm loving it!

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On a side note, I've been super, super busy getting ready for our road trip to Disneyland and have lots and lots to share over the next few weeks. I don't think I've ever had so many posts lined up this far in advance! There's some fun stuff ahead that involves duct tape, sewing, games, and more! I hope you'll head on back next week. Have a great weekend!

Thursday, October 25, 2012

A {Simple} Mickey Mouse Costume

Still looking for a Halloween costume for your little one? Here’s a relatively simple costume you can put together in a few hours (maybe even faster if you buy pants instead of sewing them).

Last year my little guy was all into big semi trucks (and still is actually), so I figured it only made sense for him to dress up as a truck driver. My dad actually works for a trucking company, so it worked out great!

If you follow me on Instgram you saw that my dad even won a photo contest at work with a picture of my little guy in his uniform. Pretty cool!

On to this year...

With all the Disneyland excitement this year, I figured it only made sense for him to go with that theme, so he’s going to be Mickey Mouse! He LOVES Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, so it’s perfect for that too. On top of that, I’m planning a Mickey Mouse Birthday for him in January, so we may get the costume back out and modify it a bit for that. Waste not and all that, ya know?

I tried and tried for a “happy Mickey” picture, but it just wasn't meant to be. Bribes of toy dinosaurs didn't even work (don’t judge-you know you bribe your kids too). He’s still super cute if I do say so myself.

To throw this costume together:

Top: I just bought a black t-shirt. Simple.

Pants: You could try to buy some, but I didn't even look. I thought it would be easier to make them. I followed Dana from Made’s tutorial for the Kid Pants and added large white buttons. It’s a really, really simple pattern. This is the 3^rd time I've used it and it only gets easier.

Shoes: I found some plain white canvas shoes and painted them yellow with fabric paint. I looked and looked and looked and the cheapest I found were at Kmart. I’m a Target girl and never shop there, but by chance stumbled across them in a web search. Perfect!

Ears: My lovely sister ordered my little guy Disneyland Mickey Mouse ears (and even got his name embroidered on them). You could also make your own, though, following this tutorial.

Gloves: Some costumes I've seen add the gloves. Super cute, but I knew my little guy wouldn't keep them on, so I went without them. To keep it simple, you could buy white gloves. If you have a little more time, you could make them, so they're shaped a little more like Mickey's hands.

Here in Colorado we have a joke about planning our Halloween costumes around our coats. It almost always gets cold on Halloween here, so I also bought a black jacket to kind of keep the color scheme going.

All in all, it's a pretty easy costume to put together. I hope you all have a wonderful Halloween!

Friday, October 19, 2012

2 Types of Artwork {For FREE!}

Welcome to the latest post in the seemingly never ending project that has become my master bedroom! (Some of the other projects including The Patchwork Headboard are here, here and here). It's almost finished. I can't wait!

I am trying to spend as little as possible to finish the room, and what's better than FREE? Nothing, right?

Let's start with the watercolor paintings.

Oh, isn't that kid cute?!? I may be a little biased....

I'm sure you've seen these watercolor portraits from Grow Creative floating around. They're so cute, and as it turns out, super easy to do. Be sure to listen to her tip about picking the right picture, though. I started out with 4 different pictures of my little guy, but the others turned out looking a little too much like kids from another planet for my liking. No problem! I just did the same picture in four different colors.

How to do it for free?

Recycle some old frames. You can leave them as is or paint them like I did. Mine were originally black.
You don't need fancy watercolor paints. I used some that were from a kids' art set I got when I was in high school a few (ok, over ten-yikes!) years ago.
I used some drawing/sketch paper I've had forever too.

And now for the second type of artwork which involves one of my favorite things...paper! I have a slight paper obsession, so gathering supplies for this project was no problem for me. I was first inspired by this project from Creative Passage, and then this one from Simply Living inspired me to make it into a smaller version.

To make this project:

Cut square pieces of plywood and paint them white (or whatever color you'd like). I happen to have a few 8x8 inch squares leftover from the Patchwork Headboard, so I used those and some white paint I had sitting around.
Cut out lots and lots of petals/leaves to create your art. I tried to use the same shape as the version from Simply Living.
Create your pattern and use Mod Podge to fasten the pieces onto the wood. Seal them all with a coat of Mod Podge.
Oh, but how will we hang them? This is the BEST part of the whole thing. Pop can tabs! Check out the post from Practically Functional to see how to do this. It's genius!

And there you have it! Two simple and FREE artwork projects.

Questions? Please feel free to leave a comment or send me an email. I love hearing from you!

Tuesday, October 16, 2012

Leaf Stamping?!?

Did you know you can stamp with leaves? Yeah, you totally can. You can do it any time of year, but I always have the urge to this time of year.

These cards were stamped with an actual leaf and white ink. Aren't they lovely? And now for a close up...

It's one of my favorite techniques, and oh yeah...it's FREE. Gotta love that!

Head on out to your yard or park and gather some leaves. It's a fun technique!
(Just make sure your leaves aren't dried out or they'll crumble)

Tuesday, October 9, 2012

Card Week: Card 3 {Friendly Mr. Lion}

We're having a card party here at Taking Time To Create with a whole week of card posts! Read this post for more details about card week.

Welcome to the final day of Card Week!

I'd like to introduce you to Friendly Mr. Lion. He's my absolute favorite!

Just look at that face...

And those cute feet...

He's wishing that special someone a Happy Birthday!

Would you like to make a Friendly Lion card of your own?

Here's a little step-by-step just for you:

Start with that standard white card stock base measuring 4.25 x 5.5 inches when folded portrait style.
Cut a piece of blue card stock measuring 4 x 5.25 inches and glue it to your base.
Cut a piece of green card stock measuring 3.75 x 5 inches and glue it to the blue piece.
To create Mr. Lion:

Start with the body...

I sort of free handed a template for the shape of the body (don't forget the tail!). Once you've got that created, you can cut out the shape of the body from a light yellow card stock.
Add the details of the feet, legs, and tail with water colors.
Glue onto the green piece but be sure to leave enough room for the sentiment below it.

The mane is just a scalloped oval (or flower) measuring about 3.5 x 3.75 inches. I used my computer to create a template. Once you have the template created, cut out the mane from orange card stock, and glue on top of the green card stock and lion body.
The face...

Cut out a circle measuring two inches in diameter. I have a tool that I used for this, but you could probably create a template using your computer. Glue to the mane.
Glue on the googly eyes. I just used a glue stick at first for this and they ended up falling off. Something like tacky glue will work a lot better.
The nose is cut from a piece of black card stock. It's basically an upside-down triangle with rounded edges, or you could think of it as a squashed strawberry without the leaves. You could also draw it with a Sharpie like the smile...
Draw the smile with a fine tipped Sharpie.

Now you're finished with Mr. Lion! Stamp your sentiment below him and you're finished!

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