Ramble On

I was never really into play silks cause, well, I thought they looked boring. I ordered a rainbow one from atoygarden for my littest's Easter basket on a whim and she loves that thing dearly, it goes with her everywhere.

So I finally ordered a couple of blanks from Dharma trading co to dye and the kids have been playing with them for about an hour now non stop. I got one super big one and they made a tent (using some play clips) and with the smaller ones they've been tying to themselves as pieces of clothing (a hat, eye patch, a belt, and a bandage for a pretend wound). It's nuts. I haven't even dyed these yet. Now there is a great debate going on about what color to actually make them.

I made these fairy jars for my daughter's 4th birthday party as centerpieces. I made five which was a good idea because a couple of people wanted to take them home and I was able to keep one for myself and one of my little girl for a decoration in her room, on a high shelf because these are glass. I was toying with the idea of making one with a plastic container as well for her but we'll see how this one holds up in her room.


*ahem*

How to make a fairy jar.


Ingredients:
* a clear jar with a lid
* a photo that will fit into the jar
* small wood block
* fuzzy yarn
* ribbons
* fabric flower
* flat back marble
* scrap book paper
* sparkles and spangles
* glitter
* glue
* scissors

Here we go! Cut out your picture, embellish with glitter and glue your little fairy to the small wood block. I took a picture of my daughter dressed up as a fairy so I didn't have to fashion her wings.



Next I take my clean jar (using a spaghetti sauce jar here) and glue the wooden block to the bottom of the jar. I usually just drop it in then use the tips of my scissors to push it down and make sure it's nice and stuck.



Then I cut a length of fuzzy yarn and pushed it down into the jar around the wooden block. I tried to make sure the block was covered with the yarn it gives the appearance of a nest.




Next I threw in a handful of star shaped sequins to give it some sparkle.



I took some sparkly scrap book paper and cut a bit of a rectangle with it. This then gets placed in the jar for a background.




I also had these little star ornaments left over from xmas time so I put the string against the threads of the jar and twisted on the lid.



Then to embellish the top of the jar I first take apart the fake flower and glue it one layer at a time to the lid of the jar, finish it off by gluing a button or flat marble to the middle of the flower to hold it all down (you could also use a button or anything with a flat side)



If you need to (like I did) wrap a piece of ribbon around the lid of the jar to cover up any writing and there you go!



(The little fairy in the tub beside the fairy jar is an embellished photo of my youngest daughter. I added the wings and glued her to a wooden block.)

In the next week I will be posting:

* a review on the things we bought from A Toy Garden
* a how-to guide for a fun center piece for a Fairy Party
* a fancy cake
* and other general rambling as I prepare more gift-guides (I'm getting ready for Christmas already, not shopping just brain storming ;-)

Happy Easter to all those who celebrate!

... how to make a super cute bunny cake for Easter but I burnt both my cakes and made a huge mess in the kitchen. The downstairs of the house still smells like burning.

I'm so thankful my husband said he'd stop and pick up something for the kids for dinner. I'll try the cake again later (maybe). For now I have to go boil some eggs and finish cleaning up the kitchen (argh).

Praising the Lord for what I have right now and praying for my LJ friends who are struggling right now.

I almost ordered some things from Chasing Fireflies for my daughter's birthday but having never ordered from them before I got nervous. So I googled and I found some bad things. It's a shame because they do carry some very lovely (and spendy!) things. I would be a shame if the quality wasn't up to par.


gifts for a 4-year-old girl by jayamaree on Polyvore.com

I guess I'm going to have to find a different place to buy her pettiskirt (really want to get her one for xmas!).

My daughter's birthday is April 22. She will be 4 years old (I know I posted the other day that she was 4 already, but that was a lie..). I'm trying not to spend right now but I love love to go to shops online and fill a cart. Today I clicked on over to Let's Explore and with my little one in mind filled my cart. I know she'd love any of these things, and this way I can keep them in mind for when I start Christmas shopping in the fall!


Gifts for a 4-year-old girl by jayamaree on Polyvore.com

Featured above:
1. Silk Fairy Skirt $24.99

2. Birds of the World Rubbing Plates $8.99

3. Crayon Rocks $6.99

4. Child's First Stencil Set $14.99

5. Silk Wings $24.99

in the country by jayamaree on Polyvore.com

I bought this game with my 4 year old in mind. We play a lot of games and not very many of them are for her age group that would keep the whole family entertained. My 7-year-old will not play Candy Land, it's boring to him and hungry hungry hippo is way too loud and those marbles go everywhere so I had to find something else.

I've had In The Country in mind for quite some time and when I went to oompa.com to order some Easter gifts I added this game to my cart as well. I felt it was a little pricey ($34.99) but thought I'd try it out anyway.

So far we've played it seven times in a period of three days. Needless to say we love it, all of us, even my husband found it entertaining. First of all the board is a puzzle which gives the game another entertaining element. My daughter loved to put it together and now says that it's her job (since it's her game) to put the puzzle board together eat time. The cardboard it's printed on is very heavy and seems like it will stand up to years of use.

Now actual game play, you move in "tractor spaces" genius! The tractors are round disks of cardboard which you place on the board between your figure and where you want to go, you move your figure the length of these pieces. I'm not sure my explanation makes sense but it allows the freedom to move around the entire space of the board. I think it's brilliant!

The game pieces are real wood and heavy, even the dice. The cow is probably my favorite piece that along with the small loaves of bread. I have to be careful because I know these will disappear into my daughter's room if given the opportunity so we've been very careful to pack it up completely after each round of game play (the bags of "wheat" are actually little bean bags, sooo cute, and nice to squish!).

The game changes each time as well, which a bunch of different recipe-goal cards (not just the apple pie recipe which is in the discription). I'm sure this game will see many many more uses in our household. It's so much fun to play and the pieces are all so sweet. I'm so glad I took a chance on this game!

Yesterday was Wednesday and we did our project. I bought two large canvases (did I spell that right?) and two paint pallets (cause they can't share!) and supplied them with my acrylic craft paints that I've hoarded through out the years.

I poured the paint, handed them the brushes, and let them have at it.



I was really proud of myself because I tend to micromanage and I really want them to feel free to express themselves, even if it's messy, and even if it's not a way I would prefer them to do things.



I love them (the paintings and the children).

Do you get it?



As soon as I was able to I had to buy this onesie for my littlest one (who is modeling it above). The onesie is of good quality 100% cotton (because of my daughter's sensitive skin I won't dress her in anything but cotton right now). 10% of the proceeds from each sale goes to the American Breast Cancer Foundation. I opted for the short sleeve onesie ($16) so my baby could wear it all year 'round (at least until she grows out of it) and they come in a bunch of colors. I really like the brown!

Buy them here. My only complaint is that I wish they came in larger sizes (up to 24 months)!!