Salt Dough Ornaments, Part One

Today I set out to have a "crafty" day with Lil Man, I was quite ambitious in thinking that we could make salt dough ornaments AND decorate a gingerbread house. Apparently, 20 month olds don't craft quite as fast as 25 year olds. :) Needless to say, today we only made it to half of the salt dough ornaments.

The Paper Mama sucked me in with her 50 DIY Christmas Crafts Salt Dough Ornaments. I love the folk art feel of salt dough crafts, and thought that this would be the perfect opportunity to share my love with Lil Man. So while he was napping I prepped the dough, as directed in The Paper Mama's post. Then after he woke up we set off to make some ornaments! Lil Man LOVED it!

Some of the creations... we did use a straw at the end to put holes in the top

Lil Man making a star ornament

Super excited about his accomplishment!

During our time crafting the ornaments, we spent time talking about the different shapes of the cookie cutters, working on enunciation of words, and talking about different textures, turning the ornament making process into an early-literacy experience! I don't think Lil Man knew he was learning at all. :)

You'll notice that there aren't any pictures of the finished product in this post, that's because the ornaments have to bake for almost 5 hours. So, they are baking away in the oven right now. They won't even be out until after Lil Man is in bed. So stay tuned....there's more to come!

Corn Cob Prints--Thanksgiving Crafts for Kids

I've heard of taking apples and cutting them in half and making prints of the "star" that appears. I've also heard of taking potatoes and carving images into them to make prints. One thing I hadn't thought of is using corn to make prints. It makes such a cool pattern!

Check out the directions on how to turn an ear of corn into a cool new stamp at Disney's Family Fun. Use the corn stamp to make place mats as suggested, or use fabric paints and decorate a canvas apron, or even cloth napkins. What a neat way to decorate your Thanksgiving table that will last for years to come! If you do decide to try this please leave a comment with a picture, I'd love to see how your creations turn out!

Review: Everything On It

One of my favorite authors from my youth is Shel Silverstein. Where The Sidewalk Ends was a staple in my elementary school. And it opened the door to a love of all Shel Silverstein's poetry. To this day, 20ish years later, I can still recite parts of Sarah Cynthia Silvia Stout. 


This October, when I found out that Shel had published a new book of poetry I was ecstatic! Everything On It,  is written and illustrated in standard Shel style. And the poem that shares the book's title is one of my favorites. A boy orders a hot dog with "Everything on it", but instead of getting ketchup  mustard, onions, and relish, the boy gets a hot dog with some pretty odd fare atop it. Shel's poetry taps into children's imaginations and gives their imaginations a voice. He is a spectacular writer and this book is a must read. It is particularly good for reading in short bursts, as the poems are short and sweet.

While reading Everything On It, why not make a Plaster of Paris hot dog for your little one to paint and decorate. It's a fun way to work on developing motor skills while tying the craft back to the book! If Plaster of Paris seems like too much work, pick up a pack of multi-color pack of modeling clay, and craft some hot dogs out of that. Or even better yet, have hot dogs for lunch! You might even want yours with everything on it!