Fall Crafts 2012

Well, lest you think I have oodles of time on my hands...no...only random moments to throw in a craft for my girls, and only simple crafts at that.  So simple, I thought I'd share!

Inspired from some various toys and other crafts I've come across recently, DECORATE A PUMPKIN!  Microsoft Word has so many fun pictures in Clipart.  I picked out a pumpkin, and made it a full page size, and then picked some fun shapes to be eyes, nose, and mouth.  And extra pieces to swap them out. 

If you care to have a copy of the document to print out for your kids, let me know; I'm happy to share.

*As a side, if you care to keep this fun craft from year to year, you can laminate it with laminating sheets, or use packing tape.


COLORFUL LEAVES
Now this is a craft that I recall doing as a child.  It was always fun.  You'll need wax paper, leaves, crayon shavings, and an iron.  My girls and I had fun walking and picking up pretty leaves.  And since the girls are a little young, I shaved some old crayons while they napped.  Now, place a piece of wax paper down, have your child pick a leave or two and place on the wax paper.  Then let them sprinkle some crayon shavings on top.  Just a light amount of crayons.  Then cover with another piece of wax paper.  Be sure the shavings are away from the edges of the paper.  Iron over top of the wax paper, and the two pieces will stick together and melt the crayon inside. This will not stick to the iron, but you won't want to get crayon on your iron.  The color will create a fun effect!  You can later cut close to the leaves and put on a card or paper.

Enjoy this season with your kiddos!

Get Back on the Horse

So it's about time to "get back on the horse", so to speak with this whole blog thing.  Over the past several months there have been numerous changes in our house, and I've often thought, I should blog that, but it never happened.  Now that our baby is practically 6 months and taking some longer naps, perhaps some of what's in my head will make it to a post!

I've recently been struggling with CHAOS!  Everyone's version of chaos is different.  Mine is usually centered around disorganization, too many sounds or distractions, or a life situation that feels completely out of my control.  Here's one example:

I know, in retrospect this seems like a small mess, but to my ridiculous brain this is overwhelming and chaotic.  So until it's 'cleaned' up I become stressed, cranky, and task focused.  Little messes often keep me from doing great things like getting down on the floor to play with my kids and make a bigger mess, or taking them to a different room to work on another project.  It's one of those areas that's a work in progress.

So for now I do a 15 minute power-clean, restore my sanity, and move on.  I kind of hope I don't ever get used to a messy house, but it would be nice to be able to enjoy in the midst of the chaos!

Psalm 29:11 

"The Lord gives strength to his people;
    the Lord blesses his people with peace."