Projects and Ideas- kids' grocery list

Grocery list- a great tool to keep toddlers and preschoolers busy while you shop for groceries.  Find a couple of grocery store ads and cut out pictures of the items you purchase most often.  If your child works well with scissors and glue sticks, they can help- they don’t have to be perfect.  Use a glue stick to attach the pictures to both sides of note cards (preferably used ones or some that your child has found and scribbled on almost every single one).  Write the name of the item on the card with each picture.  Use a hole punch to punch holes in the corner of each one and attach them to a sturdy ring.  During your shopping trip, ask your child to find a picture of the next item you will pick up, or find a picture of a vegetable, something green, or something that starts with the letter C, for example.

Projects: Decorative Paper Clips

Here is a little more detail on the paper clips I used in my card display project:

1.       Craft wire circle- start with a length of craft wire approximately 10 inches long.  Bend it in half and thread it through the top of the paper clip.  Twist the craft wire 2-3 times with itself (like a twist tie), then hold the base and wind repeatedly in a circle.  Secure the ends to the top of the paper clip where you originally attached the wire.

2.       Craft wire flower- start with a length of craft wire approximately 20 inches long.  Bend it in half and thread it through the top of the paper clip.  Twist the wire 2-3 times with itself (like a twist tie), then hold the base and wind in one complete circle for the center of the flower.  Thread the two ends of the wire through the circle, then out and around to form a flower petal.  Thread the two wires through the circle again, then directly back out and around for the second petal.  Repeat for each petal, securing through the center between each one.  After completing the petals, wind the remaining wire around in sequentially smaller circles to fill in the center of the flower.

3.       Buttons- for shank buttons, just thread the paper clip directly onto the button shank.  Secure with thread or embroidery floss if desired.  For threaded buttons, just sew onto the paper clip at the top.

4.       Ribbon flowers- start with a length of ribbon 5-10 inches long.  With a needle and thread, stitch with long stitches along one edge of the ribbon.  Pull the thread tight to gather the ribbon, then twist around in sequentially smaller circles and secure with a few stitches on the back of the flower.  Add a few extra stitches to secure the flower to the paper clip.

5.       Ribbon bows- tie a small bow with ribbon.  Secure the bow to the paper clip with a few additional stitches or thread the paper clip directly through the back of the bow.

6.       Ribbon ties- start with 2-4 short lengths of ribbon (thin ribbon works best), and tie each in a knot around the top of the paper clip.

Use your imagination!  Felt, fabric, glitter, yarn, craft foam are all great options for creating interesting clips!

Projects: Card Display Ribbons

We are blessed to receive many wonderful handmade cards from my

mother-in-law, and the kids absolutely LOVE getting mail.  They enjoy looking back through them and pointing out funny pictures or characters.  We had been displaying them all on the refrigerator, but quickly ran out of room since we had to keep them out of our 15 month old’s reach.  We needed a better solution, to allow them to look at all the cards easily.  I also needed something quick and easy, especially with the holidays quickly approaching, as we expect lots of holiday cards in the mail soon.  Here’s what I came up with:                         

Card Display Ribbons:

1.  Attach a small Command hook to the wall

2.  Tie a long ribbon to the hook, using a small knot or bow

3.  Adjust the length as needed

4.  Decorate paper clips with ribbon, flowers, buttons, craft wire, or your favorite embellishment

5.  Use the clips to attach cards or photos