crafts

Pen Favor Valentine Cards

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This year, my kids all wanted to have pens for their classroom Valentine favors. I love how each pen choice is reflective of their personality.

An a-MAZING-ing choice by my puzzle-loving middle child. I purchased these Maze Pens on Amazon, but this Valentine would be great with just about any other pen/pencil or simply by itself!…

[CLICK HERE to purchase from my Etsy Shop]

My daughter’s choice, adorable as ever. I mean, what kid doesn’t love a Squishy? Would also work well with any other stress ball or squishy toy…

[CLICK HERE to purchase from my Etsy Shop]

And my oldest, engineer-brained son with his resourceful choice – a multi-tool pen with includes a touch screen stylus, ruler, level and mini screwdriver. These Valentine’s would also work well with a ruler favor..

[CLICK HERE to purchase from my Etsy Shop]

I ordered all of the pens online (links below!), printed the valentines on white card stock, and used washi tape to attach the pens to the back of each Valentine.

Happy Valentine’s Day! May it be filled with love, giggles and scribbles!

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St. Patrick’s Day Joke Teller

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I’ve been on a roll with my holiday-themed joke tellers, so decided to create one for St. Patrick’s Day as well. Sometimes called “fortune tellers”, “chatter boxes” or “salt cellars”, these simple paper crafts have been popular for decades. My twist on them is to insert jokes instead of fortunes – a fun way to connect with friends (without screens) and spread a few laughs this St. Patrick’s Day 🙂

Click HERE to download the St. Patrick’s Day Joke Teller from my Etsy Shop.

Thanksgiving Activity Placemat

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My son Jacob and I were talking about Thanksgiving coming up and he tells me “I’m looking forward to your activities”. I paused, not understanding what he was talking about and asked “What activities?”. He replies, “Like your Thanksgiving Joke Teller“….. While I was happy he appreciated my efforts last year, I felt bad I hadn’t come up with anything new for this year. Not wanted to let him down, I decided to design a Thanksgiving-themed placemat with fun activities including a maze, word search, how-to-draw and one of their favorites – a secret decoder message to solve!

Click HERE to download the Thanksgiving Activity Placemat Printable from my Etsy Shop.

Thanksgiving Jokes Cootie Catcher

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Because 2020 could definitely use a little more humor and a lot less…. well…. 2020, I designed a joke-telling cootie catcher in an attempt to help spread a few laughs. This fun Thanksgiving printable will keep kids of all ages occupied and is a great way to interact over Zoom with family members who can’t be with you in person this holiday season.

Click HERE to download the Thanksgiving Jokes Cootie Catcher from my Etsy Shop.

Click HERE to download the Thanksgiving Jokes Cootie Catcher from my Etsy Shop.

“Small cheer and great welcome makes a merry feast!” ― William Shakespeare

Father’s Day Questionnaire

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Happy Father's Day Free Printable Questionnaire, All About Me - projectsinparenting.com

Two of my absolute favorite things: Children’s drawings and unfiltered kid honesty. 🙂

I created this Father’s Day printable because, as a mom, I always enjoy getting questionnaires from my kids. Whether it’s their coloring, personalized drawings or thoughtful answers – I love that their choices come straight from their little hearts. And lets be honest, some of their responses are simply hilarious!

Happy Father's Day Free Printable Questionnaire, All About Me - projectsinparenting.com

Click HERE to download the above free printable.

Smaller kids may need help writing down answers to these questions, but all kids will enjoy coloring in the pictures and drawing dad with this fun Father’s Day printable!

 

Related Posts:

Thank you Coloring Page  DIY Childrens Artwork Canvas Tote Bag

Sun Catcher Valentine

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Sun Catcher Valentine Banner - projectsinparenting.jpg

With 8 to 14 inches of snow expected today, schools in the area were cancelled for a rare occurrence — SNOW DAY!! Needless to say, the kids were very excited and we spent most of the morning outside. This afternoon, we decided to stay warm and stick indoors for a Valentine’s Day themed craft.

Using these cute doilies from the dollar store, (click here for a similar product on Amazon) I simply cut out a heart shape from the middle of the doily and attached a square of contact paper (larger than the doily) to one side. Then, with Valentine’s Day inspired colors, I cut small squares of tissue paper and put them in bowls.

Sticky side up, the kids selected their preferred tissue squares and attached them to the contact paper heart in the center of the doily.

When their Valentine heart decorating was complete, I trimmed any excess tissue paper that was hanging over the lace part of the doily, then sealed their heart with another sheet of contact paper. After trimming around the outside of the doily (to cut off excess contact paper), we hung their masterpieces in our window to enjoy the beautiful stained glass colors!

These Valentines also make perfect gifts to send to family and friends! 🙂

“Close your eyes and picture of the sun. That’s what it felt like to love her, warmth.”
– Atticus

Follow me on Pinterest and Instagram for more fun ideas!

Unicorn Valentine Printable

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Unicorn Valentine Banner

Right now Avery is OBSESSED with everything unicorn. Anytime she spots something at a store with a unicorn on it, she ogles at it like it’s a lost baby kitten and is convinced it was made for her. So to no surprise, this year we decided to create Valentine’s Day cards with this mystical creature – and just the right amount of sparkle!

Since Valentines these days usually come with a fun favor attached to them, I purchased cute unicorn fans to include with Avery’s. Some other ideas if you are interested in adding a favor (which you can either tie on, attach with double sided tape, or use a fun glitter or unicorn Washi tape)…

Based on whichever size you would like, click on the above image to download and start creating your own magical Valentines!

Related: DIY Heart Breaker Valentine’s Day Cards

“Always be yourself, unless you can be a unicorn. Then always be a unicorn.”

Teacher Appreciation Coloring Page

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Teacher Appreciation Coloring Page 2 - projectsinparenting.com

Celebrate all the wonderful teachers in your life during Teacher Appreciation Week! Whether it’s a school teacher, sports coach, or even a caretaker – these real life superheroes cannot be thanked enough for taking the time to help us learn and grow!

This year I created a “Thank you” coloring page that’s easy for even the littlest of ages to provide a gift to their teachers with their own personal touch. For the boys, I also included a questionnaire on the back of their coloring page.

tree-growing-in-hands-3.jpg tree-growing-in-hands-3.jpg

Click HERE or on above image to download FREE printable.
Click HERE or on above image to download FREE printable questionnaire.
Click HERE for more options on my Etsy Page.

Teacher Appreciation Printable Etsy Teacher Appreciation Printable 2 Etsy

Looking to give your teacher a little something extra? Below are some fun ideas:

  • Colorful Pencil Personalized Notepads:
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  • Flower Pot Amazon Gift Card:
    81fMZOZ7A4L._SL1500_
  • Sticky Note Dispenser:
    61qPqZV-nbL._AC_SL1500_
  • Tape Dispenser:
    71fG9tVrY5L._AC_SL1500_
  • Apple Personalized Notepads:
    71W31DtlL4L._AC_SL1500_

Thank you to all the hard-working teachers!

“It takes a big heart to shape little minds”

Related: Teacher Appreciation Coloring Page with Questionnaire

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Stained Glass Sun Catcher Leaf Craft

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stained-glass-sun-catcher-fall-leaf-craft-for-kids-projectsinparenting

A couple of years ago, we had to remove most of the trees around our property due to Ash Borer. Now we hardly have leaves in our yard during Fall. Seriously, this is the leaf “pile” the kids were playing in yesterday…

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The kids had a blast – but without a ton of leaves, it hasn’t felt much like fall (to me anyway). So I decided to create a fall-themed craft to set the mood for the autumn season. My boys loved the Stained Glass Sun Catcher Ornaments we made last winter, so I created a similar craft using a leaf shape… Super-easy, no-mess, and perfect for all ages!

To get the project ready, print any of the following leaf shapes:
leaf 2.jpg
CLICK THE FOLLOWING corresponding leaf for free PDF printable:
Maple
Magnolia
Oak
Oak 2
Redbud

Cut out the CENTER of the leaf shape with an X-Acto knife or scissors.
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Prepare colored tissue paper by cutting them into squares.

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Note: I separated the tissue paper squares into coordinating cup colors for easy selection. I’m not pointing this out to show how overly organized I can be, I’m sharing this to show one of the MANY ways I’ve re-purposed the cups provided in our Easter egg dying kit – Great cups to save and reuse!

Adhere a piece of contact paper to the FRONT of your pre-cut leaf print-out, covering the entire outline. (Don’t have contact paper? Packaging tape works as a wonderful substitute!) Then lay the paper down, sticky side up.
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Now it’s time for your little artist(s) to decorate their leaf… Have them select their tissue paper pieces, and press them down onto the contact paper.
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When complete, seal the back with another piece of clear contact paper. Trim around the outside of the leaf shape with scissors and tape or hang your masterpiece in a window to enjoy the beautiful stained glass colors!
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Related: Fall Leaf Lantern

DIY Lion Guard Costumes

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diy-lion-guard-costumes-projectsinparenting-com

Months ago, Jacob told me he wanted to be Kion from The Lion Guard for Halloween. To no surprise, Evan and Avery wanted to team up with him as Beshte and Ono to help defend the pride lands!

For Kion and Beshte, I used orange and grey footed pajamas from footedpajamas.com (while also scoring a 15% off coupon from Retail Me Not – deals rock!). I attached red and black craft fur that I got from Michael’s Craft store (also available online at Amazon or Walmart) for hair, and used fleece fabric to sew on ears and a tail.

For Beshte, I designed a mask and created this TEMPLATE to make it into a fabric mask using felt squares and Stitch Witchery. Seriously, this stuff is AMAZING! All you have to do is cut the Stitch Witchery to shape and iron your fabrics, bonding them together – no sewing required! (Note: I cut the eyes out after bonding all the materials together to make sure the fabric was even)

For Ono, I purchased a white leotard from Amazon and created wings and a tail, using fleece fabric (Fleece is great for this purpose since it does not fray at all). The leotard fabric and skinny arms were a bit difficult to work with, so I chose to use a combination of Velcro and sewing to attach the wings. To give the tail a more 3 dimensional look, I sewed in pipe cleaners between the two tail fabrics.

diy-ono-costume-wings-and-tailSimilar to Beshte – I designed an Ono mask for Avery and created a TEMPLATE so I could make a fabric mask, using felt squares and Stitch Witchery.

diy-ono-mask

diy-ono-costume-frontdiy-ono-costume-back

To complete their costumes, The Lion Guard needs their badge of honor – so again I used my trusty Stitch Witchery to fuse the symbol (from felt squares) to each costume’s left arm. Tip: After printing out this TEMPLATE, I cut out the shapes with an X-ACTO knife, and chalked out a mirror image as a stencil.

lion-guard-badge-for-diy-costume

Now my little protectors of the pride lands are ready to roar on Halloween!

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Related: See Paw Patrol and Ghostbusters costumes.