14 Gifts for Kids who Love Words

     

In our family, our kids really like reading and all things associated with it. Maybe you've found, over the years, that your kids do too, or maybe you're just looking for gift ideas. Either way, these fun ideas are sure to please.

Succulents in Seashells: Kid's Craft

I never used to care much for succulents.  Deciduous leaves and lots of flowers just seemed more alive.  Ever since moving to drought-ridden Texas though, where dry weather plants reign, succulents have really grown on me. 

 Or maybe it's just because they have become trendy, and I'm more of malleable to popular opinion than I like to think.  

At any rate, they really are great, aren't they?  So many textures. So many fun names.  (baby toes!) So un-plant-like sometimes.  Not to mention the fact that they're adorably juicy...it makes you just want to squeeze their little leaves!  

Front and Back Photo Bookmarks

Heart Shaped Granola Bars {Healthy Valentines Treats}

You know what I recommend?  Trial runs for homemade Valentines Day treats!  Ha ha...why not- right?  We did that the other day with these heart-shaped granola bars as I wasn't sure how granola dough would work with cookie cutters.  I'm happy to report that it works just fine (said through tasty granola crumbs).

I vote for making these above actual heart-shaped sugar cookies for the following reasons:

Silhouettes on a Hill {Photo Tutorial}

I was able to make this grandparent gift last year  by accident, but I've since realized that the process is completely reproduce-able.  And who doesn't like silhouettes of children?  Especially children playing?

Here's what you do:

Thumbprint Reindeer Ornament

Running out of time to make a homemade Christmas gift for family members?  Here's one that takes no time at all!

Michaels has some flat, paintable ceramic Christmas tree ornaments.We used them to make thumbprint reindeer and then let the kids paint the other side however they wanted with acrylic paints.

Father's Day Mug for Kids to Make

There's an idea that's been floating around Pinterest these days that I've been curious about for a while- color a ceramic mug with sharpie and bake in the oven at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

So simple and exciting if true- but it made me wonder why anyone would bother to buy real ceramic pens if a sharpie works just as well.

With such a fun idea though and all the materials already in our house...definitely worth a try.  First, I used a black sharpie to draw a bubble letter outline for "I Love Dad" on one side and a blank face on the other side of a plain white, ceramic cup.  I baked it at 350 for 30 minutes, waited for it to cool and let my preschooler use our colored sharpies to decorate.

  Back in the oven for another 30 minutes.

So what were the results from our little experiment?

1.  The marker does not smudge when it is handled.  It didn't even come off when we ran it through the dishwasher.

But-

2.  If you work at it with your fingernail or with a rough sponge, you can get some of the marker to rub off.    Rubbing alcohol erases it completely.

3.  I imagine ceramic pens work better and don't rub off, but for a child-made mug for Daddy I think the sharpie is just fine!

I looked it up, and it does seem that sharpies are non-toxic, but since they are not manufactured for use on food items, I think playing it safe and keeping the pen marks out of the inside of the mug and away from the rim might be a good idea.

Looking for more Father's Day ideas?  

Fill-in-the-blank Father's Day letter
10 Ideas for Building Memories on Father's Day
Daddy Banner

Three Dimensional Wrapping Paper

For some reason I had always had in my mind the idea that wrapping paper needs to be flat.  But of course it doesn't.  I recently wrapped up a gift in white paper and let the girls glue on all kinds of things:

pom poms,
confetti
ribbons
and googly eyes!

Have you ever let your kids go three-dimensional with their gift decorating?  What things have you glued on?  

Patterns in Nature: a Book and a Craft

I've often enjoyed how the patterns and shapes in nature mirror one another.  That's the idea behind the beautiful picture book Shapes and Patterns in the Natural World. 

Homemade Peppermint Marshmallows

I've never been a huge fan of marshmallows (I'd rather do a sink full of dishes than eat a Peep), but for some reason the idea of making them myself fascinated me from the first moment I heard it was possible.

Since so many imitations of processed foods are mediocre at best, and me not being the most careful of cooks, I half expected my marshmallows to turn out a puddle of white goo on the counter that I would reluctantly allow my girls to lick up and sicken themselves upon (so it wouldn't be a total waste).

I was definitely encouraged when several of you on facebook mentioned having good experiences with marshmallow recipes, and the girls and I promptly set off to make our own.
Peppermint Marshmallows
(adapted from Martha Stewart)
Ingredients

•  cooking spray
• 2 cups sugar
• 1 tablespoon light corn syrup
• 4 packages (1/4 ounce each) unflavored gelatin
• 1 teaspoon peppermint extract
• 2 large egg whites
• 2 teaspoons red food coloring
• powdered sugar for dusting

 Directions

1. Coat a cookie sheet  with cooking spray; line bottom with parchment paper. Coat the parchment with cooking spray, dust with powdered sugar and set pan aside. 
2. Put sugar, corn syrup, and 3/4 cup water in a small saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring, until sugar is dissolved. Stop stirring; let mixture come to a boil. Raise heat to medium-high; cook until mixture registers 250 degrees on a candy thermometer.
3. Meanwhile, sprinkle gelatin over 3/4 cup water in a heatproof bowl; let stand 5 minutes to soften. Stir in extract and set aside.
4. Beat egg whites in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment until stiff (but not dry) peaks form. Whisk gelatin mixture into sugar mixture; with mixer running, gradually add to egg whites. Mix on high speed until   very thick, cool and glossy, 15 minutes or longer.
5. Pour mixture into lined pan. Working quickly, drop dots of red food coloring across surface of marshmallow. Using a toothpick, swirl food coloring into marshmallow to create a marbleized effect. Let marshmallow stand, uncovered, at room temperature until firm, at least 3 hours or overnight. Cut into squares, using a pizza cutter or sharp knife.   Roll in powdered sugar.

Thoughts:

1.  Definitely tasty.  Lighter and creamier than storebought marshmallows.

2.  The red marbling did not work out so well for me.  You can see that rather than artistic red swirls, I ended up with what looked a bit like a snowy battlefield.  

3.  Very fun process!  It was fun to watch the sugar mixture foam up when we added the gelatin, fun to watch the Kitchen Aid poof up the glossy white marshmallow fluff.  The girls also enjoyed cutting and rolling the marshmallows at the end.  

4.  Ever since we made them my mind has been racing, thinking of useful variations of this recipe.  I've heard that coconut flavored marshmallows are very delicious roasted over a campfire.  Apparently, cookie cutters can also be used to make fun shapes.  We gave out these marshmallows as a gift to some friends and family along with some homemade White Chocolate Peppermint Hot Cocoa.  

Festive Mini Pretzel Rods

Inspired by my friend Carissa at Carissa's Creativity Spot, the girls and I decided to make some quick Christmas gifts for the mailman and the new neighbors across the street (and of course there were all of those not-quite-perfect little rods that we felt compelled to eat ourselves :-)

1. First we crushed candy canes in a ziploc bag with a heavy rolling pin.  (The girls enjoyed doing this part, but needed quite a bit of help to get the pieces small enough.

2.  Then we melted some white chocolate chips in a makeshift double boiler on the stove.  (Large saucepan filled with hot water with a smaller saucepan nested inside filled with the chips)  I think doing it this way worked better than the microwave because it kept the chocolate smooth and melted for long enough for us to dip a lot of pretzels

3.  Next we dipped small pretzel rods into the white chocolate and sprinkled them with the candy cane pieces.  (This part was very fun for the girls too, but they needed some help making sure they let the excess chocolate drip off before they rolled them.

4.  Set to dry on a piece of wax paper.  (Only takes about 10 minutes)

(Yes, M has a tin bucket on her head.  Not sure why :-)

For our packaging, we tried a cute idea I saw on Pinterest a while back.  We just used small ziploc bags and stapled some holiday scrapbook paper on the top.  They turned out cute and tasty- the girls were proud to stick them in the mailbox.

   (We wanted to give some to the garbage man too as a Christmas thank-you, but couldn't figure out how to do that without getting up at 6:30am when he usually comes- any suggestions?)

Child Made Gift: Tile Coasters

A friend of mine had some moms and daughters over the other day so we could all make homemade Christmas gifts together.  She had everything purchased and laid out so we could make sets of tile coasters- It turned out to be a simple and surprisingly inexpensive gift.

Materials:

Ceramic tiles (from the kitchen and bath section of the hardware store; they only cost about 14 cents each!)
Mod Podge
Scrapbook paper
Scissors
Foam brushes
Polyurethane (the most expensive part of the craft.  A quart costs about $16 but can make a TON of tiles)
Hair blow dryers
Adhesive cork

1.  Cut scrapbook paper to the size of the tiles.

2.  Mod podge the paper on to the tile and wait about 15 minutes for it to dry.  It's important to wait because otherwise the paper will bubble.  (I found out the hard way)
3.  Cover the paper with 3 layers of polyurethane.  Make the layers thin and smooth, and allow to dry completely between coats.  You can use a hair blow dryer to speed the drying along.  Air drying usually takes a couple of hours for each coat.  When you use the hair blow dryer it takes about 10 minutes for each coat.

4.  Cut cork for the size of the tiles, and stick onto the backs.

M was able to help with each step of the process, but it got a little tedious for her, and so she only did one or two all the way through.  I thought the coasters turned out quite nice for being something that young children can help so much with!

A Daring but Good Christmas Present for a Child

Every year, thousands of people receive Christmas presents in the form of donations in their name to organizations like  Heiffer International, World Vision, Compassion, etc.   It seems to me though, that most often the kind of person who tends to receive this kind of present is someone who is difficult to buy for- someone who already has everything they could possibly want.

That 's why I thought it was really surprising when, this past summer, my parents chose to buy a goat for a poor family through World Vision as M's fourth birthday present.  M definitely is NOT difficult to buy for- she has lots of things she would have liked!

But how neat that my parents would trust a little girl to be compassionate and mature enough to be able to see this as a good thing.  My mom also gave M a copy of the book Beatrice's Goat which tells the story of a family in Africa who receives a goat and is able to use the benefits from it to make a better life for themselves.  It is told from the perspective of a young girl who would really like to go to school, but whose family cannot afford the cost of a uniform.

My mom read this book with M and talked about it with her to help her understand the present.  In the end, M did seem to understand, and she smiled and talked about it positively.

I think it was really special that my parents would want to give M the gift of helping her to develop compassion and empathy for others.  That's really an investment in her character, and something that could really make a lasting impression.

Certainly, my parents don't always give this kind of present to my kids.  There's a place for giving them fun, traditional gifts too.  (It also seems like you have to know the child and their situation pretty well.  There are definitely some situations in which this kind of gift would be a really poor choice)

But if it does seem like a good idea for a gift for a child on your list this year, here are some ideas for making it a good experience:

1.  Look at the catalogs. Many companies like World Vision put out catalogs of gifts like this that can be given to families all over the world.  It might be neat to pore over one of these books with a child to pick out something together.

2.  Pray for the family who will receive the gift together with your child.  

3.  Research the country or region where the gift will go and locate it on a map.


4.  Buy a stuffed animal to match the kind of donation as a reminder of the real animal.


5.  Encourage imagination.  Let your child imagine what the family might name the animal, how they would feel upon receiving it, and what that animal might be doing, etc.

Have you ever tried this sort of present with your children?  What suggestions do you have? 

10 Toys with Longevity

Since it's Cyber Monday, I thought I might post a list of some of the toys/ gifts to our girls that have had a relatively long play-life around here.  (I'm definitely not in favor of loading kids with toys, but if you are going to buy a few things, it's nice to make sure that they're going to have some lasting value in your playroom :-)

1.  Melissa and Doug Stacking Train Set- The girls have been playing with these from about 18 months, and M (my 4-year-old) still plays with them.  I don't know what it is about kids and trains! :-)

2.  The Peter Yarrow Song Book: Favorite Folk Songs- Picture book and CD.  I'm pretty picky about children's music (I like it to be simple and gentle, but still pleasant for adults to listen to).  This CD gets played at least once a week in our house.  We all love it.  (It's the Peter from Peter, Paul, and Mary fame)

3.  2pc Adventure Play Tent Kids Dome & Children Tunnel Tube- This set gets pretty low reviews on Amazon, and I guess I understand why.  It is a little cheaply made and has gotten some holes pretty easily, but the girls have gotten LOADS of fun out of it- especially the tunnel- which they've put to all kinds of unconventional uses.  If you can find a comparable item that is of a little higher quality, that might be the way to go.  

4.  Dress-up Accessories- We don't own this exact set; so it's not really a recommendation, but it fits what I like in dress-up sets- lots of smaller accessories that can be combined in creative ways (rather than a single, expensive outfit that really only has one particular use).  

5.  My First Little House Books- Our favorite series of picture books (based on the original series by Laura Ingalls Wilder, but simpler language).  I think the words and pictures keep the same spirit as the original books.  We've read each book over and over again.  I think our favorite so far is Going to Town.

6.  Glue Sticks- seriously.  What craft supply gives more joy to a toddler or a preschooler and is in more need of constant replenishment?  

7.  Toot and Otto- like a simplified version of Connect Four with several versions of play for different levels.  My two-year-old regularly begs to play this game (I think she mostly likes the feel of the tiles sliding in and out, but she's starting to understand the object of the game more and more).  

8.  Child-sized Broom- We discovered what a wonderful thing this was when we visited my aunt and uncle who happened to have one.  M used it lots.  After we left, she talked about it as if it were the highlight of the trip.  And of course, what parent can resist a toy that helps make their child want to clean?

9.  Melissa and Doug Pet Sounds Puzzle- Just about all of Melissa and Doug's wooden puzzles are wonderful, but this one is probably our favorite.  

10.  Create Your Own Pop-Up Books- This set really more for older kids (especially six through nine- year olds); so I've saved some of parts of the set for the girls for later, but M loves the interesting little books she's been able to color and put together already.  I've also learned some fun things from the set on how to create my own lap-book mechanisms for homeschooling.  


I'd love to get some ideas from you about long-lasting toys, games, and books around your house.  Please share!

Childmade Gift: Homemade Bath Fizzies

M's little friend just turned five the other day.  M and G helped me to make little heart shaped peppermint bath fizzies for a gift.  The directions came from Martha Stewart.

Things I liked about this as a birthday gift:

1.  It allowed M and G to give the gift of time and service instead of their parents' money.
2. The bath fizzies really are a fun gift to receive (unlike, say a picture, which may not be very exciting for the receiver)
3.  Bath fizzies get used up and don't add to the toy clutter problem so many families have.

4.  They were fun and interesting to make.  The girls enjoyed stirring the ingredients together, spritzing it with a spray bottle, and packing it into the heart-shaped ice cube trays.

Things that weren't as wonderful:

1.  Citric acid can be a bit difficult to find.  (It is sometimes sold for canning, and can be found at Central Market for any interested Austin readers)
2.  They take a long time to make.  You have to moisten the mixture slowly with a spray bottle so that it doesn't fizz while you're doing it.  Martha Stewart's website warned that spritzing could take quite a while, and it DID. We spritzed for about 35 minutes before it was ready to pack into the trays.

3.  It can be a bit messy.  G, in fact, spilled the entire bottle of peppermint oil onto my dining room table.  At least the mess smelled pleasantly of Christmas though!

What are some other child-made gifts you have enjoyed giving?

Teacher Gifts from Young Children

With the end of the school year coming I went hunting about to see if I could find some nice teacher appreciation gifts that a young child could help make. These are some of the fun ideas I found.

1. Decorated Soap pump from Giver's Log
2. Another soap idea from Factory Direct Craft.
3. Thank you pouches from Skip to My Lou.
4. I would just love to receive a tea bag wreath like the one at Kojo Designs. (maybe your child could be the one to clip on the tea bags?)
5. Homemade bird feeders from Salt Water Kids

Summer Gift for Grandparents

I've seen some really cute hand and footprint art; and so when I was trying to come up with a unique grandparent gift lately I started poking around the internet for some ideas along that line.  I found a fun blog called Hand and and Footprint art where I saw the author had made some cards with footprint flip flops.

Since my summer-loving mother in law was about to have a birthday, a hand-decorated beach tote seemed like just the thing.  I'm sure some of you crafty sorts could do a better job executing this concept, (I'm more of an impatient, imprecise idea person) but even doing it simply like I did turned out cute. 

The girls enjoyed having their footprints made (giggled like crazy because the paintbrush tickled ).

The canvas tote, fabric paint, and coordinating ribbon to line the bag with all came from Michaels.  For the pattern of the flip flops I traced around a pair of M's shoes and a pair of G's shoes, but when I filled in the pattern with paint, I enlarged them slightly (because footprints are slightly larger than feet).

I had the girls sit down and placed the bag on the ground for the print.  After each print, I washed the foot and filled in some of the spotty places on the footprint with a paintbrush.

Getting the straps on the flip flops to lay right turned out to be a little tricky.  I'm not going to include a tutorial on that because I think there's probably a better way than how I did it.  :-) 

Teacup Candle

I love crafts that don't involve me going to the craft store.  Something about going to Michaels and roaming down the aisles of overpriced, perfectly prepared materials just feels like cheating (plus, the temptation to make impulse purchases is often more than I can bear :-)

This craftstoreless craft was inspired by Martha Stewart.  Of course, her finished product is more perfectly beautiful, but I got a kick out of adding my own little twist.

I found this mini teacup at a thrift store for 2.99.  (a bit overpriced, but I liked the fact that it was miniature, which seemed especially suited for a candle.)

I wanted the wax inside of the cup to be brown to look like a real cup of tea, but didn't have any old brown candles I wanted to part with.   But then I realized that of course this is the perfect time of year to be in need of brown candle wax....after Christmas sales!!   I bought a red and green taper candle at Walgreens for 9 cents each.

Using a hammer, I smashed open one of the candles to extricate the wick.  (By the way- I didn't actually use the candle in the picture for the wax- you'll notice that the red is only painted on)

 I broke the red and green candles into pieces and melted the wax.  Everyone seems to say that wax should be melted in a double boiler or in a special wax melter contraption.  I melted mine under the broiler in the stove.  This method actually worked fine the first time, but the second time the glass container I was using got too hot and shattered.  (terrible, TERRIBLE mess...next time I may use a double boiler)

Because I was using an old wick, I needed to tie something to the end so that it would sink.  I used a paperclip that I folded in half and twisted around the wick.

I left the wick extra long to imitate a teabag string, and held it in place with a popsicle stick while the wax was cooling.

Tracing around a tea bag label as a guide, I cut my own label out of cardstock and used it to write a birthday greeting to my sister (an avid tea drinker- as are all the women in our family)

Such a fun little craft...I think I'll be on the lookout for pretty teacups at garage sales from now on!