Preschool Activities #Obsessed

"Mom! Please play with me!!"  We play together all the time, but sometimes... Mama needs a moment.  I set up little activities for Tate all the time when he was little, but that was 5 years ago.  I have forgotten what they were!  For this reason, I went to the almighty Pinterest for inspiration.

I fell down the "Kids Activities" "Busy Boxes" "Quiet Time Activities" worm hole on the Pinterest, and became obsessed.  Most of the stuff for these activities, I already had on hand (but that was after I convinced myself that I didn't need every sensory bin pictured!)   This is a good way to clean out your kid craft stuff, while presenting it in a new way.  We also made a few activities to share with Soleil's friend.  

Beads and Pipe Cleaners

Kinetic Sand+Table Cloth+Sand Table

Homemade Playdough (SOOOO Many recipes online!)

**In case you were wondering, homemade playdoh will turn totally to mold if you leave it sealed in a rubbermaid container for a few weeks.  Don't put it on a bookshelf and forget about it like I did!

Travel Sticker Kit inspired by THIS POST

This was a travel hit!

Fairy Garden using most things found in the yard.

Melissa and Doug reusable Stickers

Other activities include:

Mandala using little bits of fabric and yardstick cut into pieces.

PlayMais

Beads+Pipecleaners labelled with numbers

Tiny Clay Kit

We went to Meijers today (kind of like a Walmart, but better) and found a few things that would be fun.  I like when the activities are surprises, so I took photos of things to get on a visit when the kiddos were not with me.

These are pool LED lights that float.  These would be fun in the tub or in a water table.  These were only 2.99, and you can also wait for them to go on sale at the end of the season.  The animals below are the also floating LED lights.

 I saw a tutorial for turning a baby pool into a ball pit, and for turning into a giant Easter Nest using paper bags.  I won't have time before Easter, but maybe I'll do it over the summer during Animal Week.

 And you can't go wrong with some of the Melissa & Doug activity books.   These are a few that Soleil does not have.  They have them at Michaels craft store as well.

Frozen Fractals

This is someone else's idea, probably off of pinterest, but I don't remember where I got it!  In any case, it was a hit with Soleil.  The official title is Frozen Fractal Soup, and in case you have been living under a rock, is inspired by Frozen the movies reference to "Frozen Fractals" in the song "Let it Go".  

You start by making the Fractals.   I used one drop of food coloring and water, and the idea was to let her fill the ice cube trays before popping them in the freezer.  She was NOT interested in this part, so I quickly filled the trays for her. 

After the Fractals have frozen, I popped them out, and put them in a bowl.  I placed it in her sand table with tongs, ladle, and different colored water in squeeze bottles and little pourable containers.

I later added a little bowl of baking soda, just to have another ingredient to play with.  (It also cleans the sand table before coming inside for the winter.)

This is a super simple activity, but my little one loved it.  We have already done this twice:)

Beeswax Candles!

I have been wanting to make these for a very long time.  I have been to many Waldorf schooling blogs, where they have posted beeswax crafts, and I always thought the candles looked so glowy and creamy yellow.

Now that we are settled in a bit from our move, we can craft more and more each day! Also, when we went to the farmers' market this week, the "bee guy" had his wax there at a great price.  I am so happy to be able to seek out those special places and people where you can find, say, beeswax, or the best coffee, or the best apple orchard.  I love it because we aren't going to move--we can embrace our lovely community in a way that I couldn't before.

Anyway, back to the candles.
I thought that Tate was getting to that age where he is going to start opting out of Mama's activities.  He recently complained about "Vinegar and Baking Soda and Food Coloring again??", so I have been letting him do his own thing.   Before I could even finish getting everything on the table, he was obsessed with the yellow soft sticks of beeswax.  He was building with them, playing with them, talking about them, etc.  It was a PERFECT Sunday afternoon activity.

How did we do it?

1.  Get Beeswax.  (Bee Guy, Natural Food Store, Amazon)

2.  Put a thin wipe of Jojoba oil in pyrex, then add wax to Pyrex.  Use about 1.5x the quantity that you want to fill.  (We used old glass candle holders and teeny canning jars.)

3.  Melt by putting Pyrex in a pot with an water in it.  (It takes awhile.  Watch very carefully as it can ignite if it gets super hot.   I just stand by and stir and stir and adjust temp as necessary.)

4.  Get wick ready.  They sell these at Michaels or other craft stores and are very inexpensive.  I used the long wick that I could cut to whatever size I need, with metal bases that are sold separately.  You just tie a knot in the bottom, pull it through until you hear it pop into the metal tube, and then crimp with pliers.  

 5.  Pour a little melted wax in the bottom of glass and "glue" wick down.  (You can do this before all of the wax is melted.)

 6.  Add and stir essential oils to fully melted wax OFF the burner.  I used 4 ml total and you could just smell the scent.  It was subtle, so add more if you want.

7.  Pour into glass candle holder.  Use 2 chopsticks or skewers (seen above in the corner) that you lay flat across the top of the glass, on either side of the wick to make it stand up straight.

8.  Let cool and trim wicks, and you have candles!

 They helped choose the oils, stir the wax, and basically just played with all the supplies as I did most of the work.  They didn't care--they still felt like they made the candles.

I need to go back to the "Bee Guy" for some more wax!

4 Year Old Fun--Fall Edition

Our local library.

 Before:

 After:

She has always loved to play with colorful scraps of fabric.

Sticker Exchange!  We mail stickers off to a child, and a chain mail letter is sent out to our friends.  (I'm about a week late with the mailing, but I'm still excited about it!)

Her current favorite is Glue+Glitter.  Yes, it is a gigantic mess. 

In order to contain said mess, I use a plastic table cloth under her work, and then this cool tray and Pampered Chef scraper with rubber edge to get it all off the table.  This table is imperfect, worn and old, and I intend to keep it this way.  It is kid friendly, which I love.

The first day we finally put on the heating.  The kids were laying next to the vent in the kitchen!  They love cold and cozy weather.

When you go to the grocery store, you should always wear your brother's dragon costume.

This afternoon's activity.  

My parents were cleaning out the garage and gifted us this cool Moon Sand.  I had to pull the sand table inside as it is about 52F.

What is it about Fall that makes me feel extra Crafty?? Anyone else with me?

Early Summer Fun 2014

I made a little craft kit for the little girls of a good friend.  The girls and his wife are super crafty, so I knew I just had to send them a fun little packet!  It had stickers inside, small kits, extra craft supplies, bits of paper.  Their eldest is the same age as Tate, 8/9, so I knew she could handle a little stitching, so I added a stitched felt kit.  (Sidenote: Tate is doing stitchery in art class and finds it delightful!)

This kit was super easy to make.  2 felt hearts (cut with pinking shears), a little stuffing, a needle and embroidery thread.  I threaded the needle so that it would be ready to go, and she had it finished while we were all waiting for brunch at a restaurant!  

Soleil was not about to be left out of any sort of crafting.  Thank goodness I made her a fairy kit as well as my friends' girls.  She was so excited to put it together. 

Doll Clothespins+circles of scrap fabric and felt-small "x" cut in center+yarn or wool for hair+ribbon piece for shirt+wings cut from cardstock+pipe cleaner for arms+marker for face and feet.

And since it has been 90F, playing in the hose an sprinklers are almost expected.
(When you do this at other people's houses, you might have to walk home, shirtless, dripping wet, and in a Cars towel.)

Frozen treat on a hot day!!  

Frozen pineapple+splash of almond milk+squirt of honey+water as needed.  

Crafting at Casa de Schwartz

I had these wonderful scraps of fabric, sent to me by The Makery, so it finally time to use them.  Soleil wanted an eye mask, because she always takes Mama's.  

(I would suggest using 2 pieces of thinner elastic, instead of the one thicker one that I used.)

 And I am addicted to making zipper pouches.  They ARE great for giving small gifts, and it is reusable wrapping!

This is the AFTER photo of the craft cabinet.  The BEFORE photo is on the last post.  It wasn't pretty...

Because all of the kid craft supplies were out, it was easy to make little "invitations" for Soleil all day.  She loves them, and I do as well, as it leads to a moment to read for me:) 

 grocery bag + construction paper crayons +markers

 big buttons+pony beads+pipe cleaners on a messy table

stencils+black cardstock+white crayon

Random Observations

Going here.  Soon.  

Soleil will do anything for a French Macaron.  Or (/mɑːkɑːrɔːn/ mah-kah-rōn;^[1] French pronunciation: ​[makaˈʁɔ̃]^[2]) as the pretentious Hipster at our local cafe corrects me in saying...

Perhaps I should stop buying my 3 year old daughter shoes.

Why I hate going to the commissary.  The bread aisle looked even more bare.

Returning home, and dreading leaving it when we move.

Easy meal for Cinco de Mayo.  Throw whole chicken in crock pot+italian season+chicken broth+onions.  Shred, add taco sauce at end or leave plain, like my kids like it.   Oh, and don't think I made the Spanish rice... I made the Trader Joe's frozen, microwave brown rice and then heated up rotel, and added it in, cooking until heated through.  (It was pretty good.)

Selling this.  I want a Cameo because it fits my lifestyle better.

Cleaning Craft Cabinet.  (I never have need to walk into a Michaels/Joann's again.  But I will.)