Time to paint

Since Breanna is so difficult to shop for, we tend to let her pick out her own gifts for Christmas and birthdays. This year she picked out some new canvases, paint brushes, and bright pink paint. Last year for Christmas MyKayla and Jordyn both got easels and with the kids winter visitation schedules last year and moving last summer the easels never got put together. Breanna was in the mood to paint and instead of clearing off my table and laying the drop cloth over it like I usually do, I put together MyKayla's easel for Bre to use and set up an area near the bar for her to work.

Somehow between moves we have misplaced her plastic tray she uses for her paint but luckily we have a ton of paper plates to use until a replacement tray can be purchased.

Bre usually will pick out all the colors she wants to use on her painting, before she begins, however, today she decided to choose one, then paint, then choose another. This paintings colors were (in order applied to canvas): light pink, bright pink, purple, blue, red, orange, and black.

Contemplating on adding more colors

All done

Finished product the next day

Garden Rock Labels

Yesterday (Sunday) the weather in the Seattle area was so-so, overcast with rain showers here and there, so I presented an indoor/ outdoor craft idea to keep them entertained and OFF the television and game systems, painting rock labels for our garden.

Our yard is filled with various sizes, shapes, and types of rocks, which the majority of them were already being used as garden dividers. We currently have about 20 items planted in our garden but the kids felt that some of the like items could be combined on one rock, so they searched the yard for about a dozen or so rocks. After scrubbing and rinsing each rock, they chose a rock for each label, and we laid them out to dry.

 The kids decided to paint there rocks indoors due to the possibility of light showers throughout the day.

 With a variety of paints, paintbrushes, and a few various items painting begins!

The kids go-to item, wooden skewers!

 

The rocks that were completed, we have about four more rocks to do.

Advent Calendar

This fun, simple project was found at http://simplemom.net

 

Needed Items:

Large frame - without glass

Ribbon

White card stock blank bookmarks (they purchased theirs at JoAnn's, set of 20 for $2.50)

Clothes pins (they used miniature ones found at JoAnn's)

Items to decorate (they recommended number stickers, but had found scrapbook paper that worked great for this project)

Step 1: Tape rows of ribbon to back of frame

 

Step 2: Place numbers facing upside down on bookmarks.

Step 3: Fold bookmarks in half.

 

Step 4: Decorate clothes pins - they glued strips of scrap paper to each pin.

 

Step 5: Decorate inside of the bookmark, if doing and activity advent calendar place an activity inside each day (see below for activities they used)..

 

The finished product! 

Once you do each daily activity, simply fold the bookmark so that the inside picture is showing and re-hang on the frame.

Simplemom.net shared their list of activities.

1.       Open a gift! (Inside are new Christmas pajamas)

2.       2. Find and decorate a Christmas tree

3.       Go downtown for the Christmas parade

4.       Go to The Nutcracker! (this is just the girls… the boys will probably do something manly, like have a snowball war)

5.       Drink hot cocoa and watch The Polar Express

6.       String popcorn garland for the tree

7.       Help address cards and watch classic Christmas cartoons

8.      Make paper snowflakes

9.       Attend our homeschool co-op’s Christmas party!

10.   Get together with family friends to play games

11.    Pop popcorn and Watch Elf 

12.    Make a new ornament for the tree

13.    Go to the local museum (which has recreated Christmas from the 19th century)

14.    Build a snowman

15.    Bake cookies

16.    Buy a gift for a child with Angel Tree

17.    Walk around Sisters (a nearby small town that’s decked out for the holidays)

18.   Make snow angels

19.    Watch A Christmas Story

20.   Skype with friends to wish them a merry Christmas

21.    Make easy gingerbread houses

22.   Drive around and look at Christmas lights

23.   Watch A Nativity Story

24.   Go to the Christmas Eve service at church

25.   Have a Merry Christmas!