Easy Pumpkin Craft for Toddlers and Preschoolers

Last week Beatrix and I needed something to do. She had been asking to paint for a few days now, so I wanted to do something with paint. A little quick thinking and this is what I came up with. We both had a blast making this adorable little Jack-O-Lantern!

I cut a piece of paper into a rough pumpkin shape for her to paint. She used yellow and brown in addition to orange (she wanted more than one color.) *tip - a brown paper grocery sack makes an excellent paint mat!*

I told her to fill the whole paper with paint, leaving no white spots. She took this instruction very seriously! She got every last white space using both a brush and her hands. While she painted I cut shapes for his face and a stem out of craft foam. Construction paper would also work well. (An older child would enjoy doing this step for themselves.)

We let the pumpkin dry while we ate lunch, then it was time to give him a face! We talked about where our eyes, nose and mouth are located on our face, to give her an idea of where to put each shape. I had her arrange the face and then I glued each piece on in her chosen location with white glue. I also glued the whole pumpkin to another sheet of paper. I set the whole thing under a heavy book to dry. She was so proud to see it hanging on the wall when she woke up from her nap! 

Flower Arranging | A Toddler Activity

April showers bring May flowers!

My mom gave me the idea for this activity and Beatrix is really enjoying it! I bought a few bunches of fake flowers, rescued a few "vases" from the recycling and - voila! Hours of springtime fun!

Please excuse the jammies :)

Working hard!

Beatrix's beautiful bouquet!

Boys and girks alike would enjoy this activity. We have mixed it up by counting the flowers as they go in the vase, sorting the different flowers into different vases, and just using our imaginations!

Flowering Tree Q-tip Bundle Paint Stamping

Wow, life has been crazy since I last posted. Hopefully I will get back in the swing of things in these next few weeks!

Today Beatrix and I did a painting project!

Isn't it cute? She really did a great job!

I drew a quick tree with a brown crayon (you could cut one out of brown construction paper for added dimension, that would be really cute!)

To make the stamp, take a small handful of q-tips and tape them in a little bundle. I chose pink, green, and white paint. I was going to mix the white with the pink and the green to make them lighter, but I forgot to leave out a q-tip for mixing and Beatrix was getting antsy to start. It got all mixed up anyway!

We started with the tree upside down so she would be more likely to paint the branches. She really got into filling all the white spaces with paint!

So proud of her work! I did direct her just a little bit, I suggested she use green at the bottom like grass and rotated the paper to help her find empty spaces to paint so she didn't have to drag her arms through the fresh paint. But ultimately she was the artist!

The finished product! This would be a great Mother's Day gift for grandma's or an easy project for dad to do with the kids for their mom! I also think it would be fun to do one for each season as they come. This would make a really pretty fall tree with oranges and yellows, don't you think?

I hope I will get back in the habit of posting more often - I have a few fun Spring ideas up my sleeve!

Cooking with a Toddler

Cooking with a toddler is crazy, messy, practical fun. The skills they learn and the memories they make while cooking will be something they carry with them their whole lives. 

Beatrix has been in the kitchen with me since a few days old. I would either wear her or she would sit in her bouncy chair while I cooked and explained to her everything I was doing. I still wear her a lot of the time while I cook, but more and more I am having her help me out! 

Above are pictures of some of Bea's previous cooking adventures.

Here are some things to keep in mind while cooking with a toddler:

1. Plan ahead. Gather all of your ingredients, you may also want to pre-measure everything into bowls like they do on cooking shows. You don't want to leave your child sitting on the counter where they may fall while you rummage in the pantry for a new bag of sugar. 
2. Let them try. Cooking is a perfect opportunity to help them hone their scooping, dumping, and stirring skills.
3. It is okay to make a mess. ^see above^ Your child's skills likely need some perfecting. Just accept the fact there will be a mess. Obviously you don't want flour thrown all over your kitchen, but if they are really trying to make it in the bowl, encourage them! Make sure they participate in cleaning the mess afterward!
4. Be ready for lots of touching. All these ingredients are interesting! Some are cold, some are sticky. Let them explore with their senses. If it is safe, allow them to taste. They should wash their hands before cooking, to avoid germs.
5. Keep them safe. This really should go without saying, but never let a toddler handle hot food or sharp utensils.

Today, Bea and I baked chocolate chip cookies. She helped stir the dry ingredients together, after she dumped in the flour I measured for her. In the middle picture she is tasting the butter. In the picture on the right she is sneaking some dough.

She helped me by putting handfuls of chocolate chips in the mixing bowl.

She may have eaten a few!

The look on her face says it all :) she is so proud of the cookies she helped to make!

Don't be afraid to let your toddler help you cook! The memories you will make are priceless.