Preschool At Home: Newspaper Delivery Toss Game

So I recently made some classroom goodies for my daughter's 

preschool teacher (table games, manipulatives)

and asked her to please let me know 

if there were any thematic units or 

specific games she would like me to make 

for the classroom. 

She took me up on the offer,

and shared this great idea with me.

It was so cute (and easy to make) that I had to share it with you too!

She had clipped the idea from a teacher newsletter

once upon a time and asked if I could make one.

So here you have it,

a Newspaper Toss, 

Newspaper Delivery Game.

Great practice for that hand-eye coordination. 

I painted a simple house (with acrylic craft paint) on a piece of 

foam core

that we just lean against the wall. 

(easy to clean up and store out of the way!)

Then, wrapped some gift wrap around a box

from our recycling stash 

(about the size of a shoe box)

Set it up on the floor in front of the front door. 

Then I bundled up some mini newspapers

with rubber bands

(each paper was about 9" long) 

Step back and toss them to the house, 

try to get them in the box!

 You probably have everything you need to make your own

at home (or in your classroom) right now. 

Happy Newspaper Delivery!

Fondly,

pink and green mama,

Homemade Christmas: Homemade Nativity

Get ready for my latest favorite craft project! 

How stinkin' cute is this little Nativity?! 

This mama has been down for three weeks

with the Worst. Cold. Ever.

Long story short -- my new hobby is "coughing."

It has meant a lot of time spent indoors

so we've been keeping busy with 

art projects and crafts

 made with 

stuff that's already in the house. 

"C" (age 3.5) and I decided to make our own 

homemade Nativity last friday.

My kitchen table still has glue gun glue

and glitter residue on it but it was totally worth it.

"C" did a great job and it sure is cute!

We made the manger with the 

Shutterfly box our Christmas cards arrived in.

I cut out the front with a knife and she and I 

worked together to glue popsicle sticks to the outside.

We left a hole in the top to stick our

pencil angel. 

"C" drew faces for Joseph, Mary, the Angel,

and Baby Jesus. 

I love Joseph's soul patch

and Mary's Eyelashes!

We made Joseph and Mary by wrapping

toilet paper tubes with felt and gluing

fabric scraps on them.

The Angel started with a cardboard

shape I cut out of the leftover box front

with a fabric scrap dress.

 "C" cut out and added doily wings

and another sweet face.

I glue-gunned a colored pencil

(that never worked well anyway)

to the back of the angel

so we could stick her in the top of the manger.

Yes, we used a wine cork

to make Baby Jesus.

(I thought it was kind of funny)

We wrapped and glued a swaddle

of scrap fabric and added another cute "C" drawn face.

For the cradle, we used another toilet paper tube

with two pieces glued to the bottom for feet.

Added another scrap of fabric inside to 

make it "fancy" 

We didn't have a sparkly star

so we added glue and gold Martha Stewart glitter dust

to a foam craft star

that mama glue-gunned to the top of the manger.

We glued some raffia in the bottom of the manger

to be the "hay." 

When it was all dry, 

"C" set up the manger with visiting ponies,

sheep, and unicorns. 

Gifts of gold rocks, gems, and presents 

from the three wise Polly Pockets.

If you look carefully at the last photo

you might be able to see that she also

glued some doily snow flakes

on the back wall of the manger.

She worked so hard to cut them out carefully

and said they had to be there because, 

"Baby Jesus was born on a cold winter night" 

"C" loves her new Nativity set and so does 

our whole family. 

I think I'll be setting this one up for 

many, many years! 

Happy Celebrating!

Fondly,

pink and green mama,

Homemade Christmas: Felt Bad Guys Set!

Who is that masked bandit wearing Moose Pajamas?

Role play is a huge part of our day around here.

Especially on the weekends. 

Props like Masks, Wands, and Silk Scarf Capes

play a big role in that.

I apologize for the fact that you pretty much only see my kids

wearing Pajamas in all of my posts!

My kids live in their PJs at home

(we really do get dressed when we go out in public....

most of the time -- 

maybe it's because their mom lives in Jeans and Slippers) 

I've had this little project 

bouncing around in my head

for the past year and I finally made it last weekend.

And no...I couldn't save it for Christmas but it

WOULD make a fantastic Homemade Christmas Gift!

For the "Sack" I cut down an old

pillow case and made it not quite as deep

(It was a King Sized Pillow case and

little arms would have had a hard time with it)



Now, I have to admit I thought I was being clever

by re-purposing materials we already had

(using the pillow case) BUT....

sewing the Felt "Dollar Sign" to the pillowcase

was a giant pain in the butt

because I was trying to manipulate the whole pillowcase

through my sewing machine (ugh!)



Using a flat piece of fabric to sew the felt to first

would have been MUCH easier.



I also should have stitched down the two straight lines

of the "Dollar Sign" first then the "S" shape.

I did it in a different order and it doesn't look great up close.

(However, my kids don't seem to care.)

Pinning the "Dollar Sign" in place.

I made up my own pattern by tracing

an existing play mask from our Dress-Up Box

onto two pieces of Green Felt.

Then, I stitched it all up with a piece of elastic

sandwiched in-between as the strap.

Then, I carefully cut out the eye holes with my

sharp sewing scissors.

The finished Mask. 

We might need some more in other colors!

Of course we needed some Gems and Jewels

for our Theif(s) so we raided our gold rocks

(gravel I spray painted Gold) 

stash from "C"s Pirates and Mermaids Party

and some of our Dollar Tree Glass Stones 

and Michael's Plastic Jewels. 

Hey! Get that bad guy!

Happy Homemade Gift-Making!

Fondly,

pink and green mama,