Cards and kids

I've been on a craft kick lately, and I'm trying to get my kids into the act.  Fortunately, they are happy to color, paint and draw, which makes for some fun art projects. 

We did some hand print cards for Valentine's Day:

The thumbs, fingers and sides of the palms are supposed to form the shape of a heart. We didn't quite get there, but that's okay because my kids had a lot of fun making these cards, and that's really all that matters.

Notice the entire roll of paper towels in the background. Just in case!

I like to buy plain white 5x7 cards/envelopes in 25- and 50-packs from JoAnn's and Michael's.  They make perfect canvasses for send-able artwork.

Here, Little Miss made a birthday card for the Big Guy:

I'd like to emphasize at this time that Crayola Washable markers are, in fact, truly washable.

The Little Guy used Crayola watercolors for his card for the Big Guy.  Also totally washable.

The kids really enjoy their craft projects, and I like being able to send their fun pictures to friends and family.  Plus, I'll never need to buy another birthday card again! 

Need a rainy day (or any day!) craft project for your kids? Pick up some plain white cards/envelopes at the craft store and let them do their thing!

Martha Monday--Last minute romance

Valentine's Day is tomorrow...are you ready?  If not, you could always run to the store to buy a card and a box of chocolates. But if you really want to wow your sweetie, try these last-minute ideas from Martha instead:

Scattered rose petals

Chocolate love note

Paper Heart Wrap

Happy Valentine's Day!

A colorful Valentine's Day

Little Guy and Little Miss will be giving out these adorable crayon hearts for Valentine's Day:

Though it's been making the rounds on Pinterest, I first saw this idea in Family Fun a few years ago. Start by breaking up crayons. There's no need to buy new crayons for this project; I simply used all the crayon bits and pieces that my kids have broken over the past two years, as well as the crayons they get whenever we go to a restaurant. Between the crayon box, the diaper bag and the bottom of my purse, we had more than enough crayons to make 24 crayon hearts.  In fact, I could probably make 24 more!

Little Guy and Little Miss had a fun time filling the molds.  I broke each crayon into 3-4 pieces, and each heart-shaped cavity holds 6-8 pieces of crayon.  I always like craft projects that my kids can help with; not only is it fun for the family, but it also gives them a sense of ownership and pride in the finished product.

The baking molds went into a 230F oven for 10-15 minutes.  As you can see, some brand/type of crayons didn't melt well, but otherwise everything melted just fine. After the tins cooled, the crayons popped right out.

I decided to save a bit of time by using a pre-made cards for the crayons. I found this one, from The Long Thread, that prints out four to a page. Sweet!

Though it may look complicated, this Valentine's Day project is really easy to do and doesn't take a lot of time.  The hardest part might have been breaking the crayons!  Overall, this took less than an hour to do and it was a fun project for the kids.

And bonus: Little Guy's preschool friends will get a crayon, and not a sugary treat, for Valentine's Day.  That really makes me feel all warm and fuzzy.

Have a great weekend, everyone!

Valentine's Day printables

In years past Valentine's Day has not gotten its due at the TMI household, but now that I have two small children who get excited about any holiday that involves candy, Valentine's Day is becoming a big deal. 

We are making homemade Valentines for Little Guy's preschool class, as well as for Little Guy and Miss's friends and cousins.  Additionally, I'm decorating the house a bit.  Always mindful about budget (Little Miss's birthday parties right around the corner so I need to save my pennies for those) and time (I have none to spare), I found these free, easy and gorgeous Valentine's Day printables featured on Catch My Party.

All you need to do is download, print, cut out and enjoy.  Voila! Valentines for everyone, and all is right with the world. There are 13 sets of free Valentine's Day printables at Catch My Party, and I had a hard time choosing my favorite.  Here are my top five collections in no particular order:

First up is this "Sweetheart" collection from Paper and Pigtails.  Her invitation, banner and tent cards are completely editable so you can personalize these items for your party.

The "So Sweet" collection from Anna and Blue Paperie is just that--so sweet!  Little Miss is totally into polka dots right now, and I know these printables are going to be a huge hit with her.

The banner is going over my mantle, and I might use these candy stickers for workplace treats:

The "Happy Heart" collection from Magnolia Creative Co. offers another great banner and some cute Valentines cards, among other adorable things.

This next collection has a soft pink and gray palette which is a more sophisticated take on the usual red and pink Valentine's Day color scheme. "So Sweet" by Love the Day includes a heart-shaped treat holder and cute Valentines.

The entire "Cupcake" collection from Green Apple Paperie is adorable, but I especially like the tented cards with the soft pink striped background.  These would make perfect treat signs for a Valentine's Day party.

With these easy printables, I am all set for Valentine's Day.  Thanks to all the designers for sharing their work, and thanks to Catch My Party for hosting all the downloads.  Hugs and kisses for everyone!

Valentine's Day inspiration

Valentine's Day sneaks up on me every year and I'm not sure how it manages to do that, being as it comes with chocolates and flowers (two things that really grab my attention!). 

Maybe I don't notice right away because it's still winter, or maybe because Valentine's Day is on the heels of the Super Bowl (which is a really big deal in my house)? For whatever reason, I haven't done too much with Valentine's Day.  However, now that the Little Guy is in preschool and has to give Valentines to his friends, Valentine's Day has become a BIG DEAL in the TMI household. 

Being a Martha Stewart enthusiast, I want to make some homemade Valentines for my kids' classrooms rather than picking up a box of ready-made cards at the store.  It just makes sense to me that for a holiday revolving around love and friendship, tokens of such should be handmade.  Fortunately, I'm finding a lot of great Valentine ideas on Pinterest.

With all these great ideas, I'm set for classroom Valentines for Little Guy and Little Miss for the next 10 years or so.  I am constantly amazed by the wonderful crafts and fun ideas I've found on Pinterest.  Take a look at my Valentine's Day board, and you will be, too!

Happy Valentine's Day!

To celebrate Valentine's Day, which is mostly only fun if you are a kid, the Little Guy and My Big Martha spent several days working on Valentines for friends and cousins.  First, my Little Guy had to learn how to use scissors.  Note the Spiderman costume--I guess it's easier to get into the Valentine's Day mindset if you have Halloween as a frame of reference.  Or something like that. 

He cut out a bunch of hearts, and then glued store-bought Valentine's cards to them.  That was the first phase of Operation: Valentine's Day. 

 

Phase 2 was to make Martha Stewart's Heart-and-Lollipop Flowers.  The Little Guy needed a lot more help from My Big Martha for this project since he was new to the scissor thing, but that's what Grandmas are for.

My Big Martha did a slightly different take on the project, but the end result was the same: adorable lollipop Valentines that the Little Guy was just so proud of! 

The Little Guy left his mark on them by adding the Transformer stickers.  Because nothing says "Happy Valentine's Day" like a crazy car that turns into a robot that may or may not want to destroy the human race.  Isn't love grand?

This year, I got into the Valentine's Day spirit myself.  Using my school pictures, I made some Valentines for a few teachers I pal around with.  Please note: I only have these school pictures of myself because they made me take them for the yearbook, I swear! 

This particular card is for the art teacher.

OUTSIDE:  I made this card especially for you...

INSIDE:  ...while I was in the bathroom.  Happy Valentine's Day!

Isn't that classy? 

Happy Valentine's Day to everyone!  May all of your cards be of the Little Guy variety, and not mine. :)

Disclaimer:  I am not a teacher, so no students were scarred for life by my wacky sense of humor.

Martha Monday--Valentine's Day Signup

Need inspiration for Valentine's Day?  Like Thanksgiving and Christmas, Martha has a set of emails filled with ideas and recipes to make this Valentine's Day a special one.  You can sign up for the enewsletter here. 

For this year, I'm lowering my standards considerably.  Since I'll be within 2 weeks of my due date at Valentine's Day, I'll consider the celebration a success if I manage to say something sweet to The Big Guy before I start snoring on the couch...maybe I'll just make a nice card that says it for me, just in case. :)