Valentines Cards with 3D Appeal

I first saw the idea for these super cute Valentines cards on Pinterest, and I fell in love with them.  Every year, our homeschool group has an annual Valentines party - and I thought these would be so neat to hand out this year.  
Since we have a party for all the homeschool kids together, and not just individual grades - I thought it would be cute (and cheaper) to get both my daughters together with their fists outreached and right beside each other for a joint card.

Whether you have one kid in the photo or two - the process is the same. Have your child hold out their fist in an upward position.  Stand on a stool or chair and take a picture.  Once developed, cut a slit in the picture at the top of their fist and another at the bottom.  Stick a sucker right in the opening, and ta-da - you're done!  The slit with the sucker gives the hands a 3D effect.  Very cool!
I ordered my cards through SeeHere.com.  I added 24 of them to my cart, and then used the code 25FREE.  I paid about $3.00 for shipping.  I am not sure how long that code is good for though.  You can do cards, or just regular photographs.

Check out all the great blog parties that I link up with!

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10 DIY Crafts You & Your Kids Can Make

The following is a guest post by Jessica Snow over at PartSelect

Making crafts with your children doesn’t have to be expensive and it doesn’t have to require a trip to the craft store either. Children don’t care whether an activity uses special equipment or extensive supplies, they appreciate simple crafts just as much, especially if someone they love is willing to help! 


 Here are 10 do-it-yourself crafts you and your children can do together using supplies you probably already have around the home. 


1. Create a bird feeder by coating a stale bagel with a tablespoon of peanut butter mixed with a tablespoon of shortening or oil. Coat with seeds, then hang outside and watch what comes. 

2. Make an activity tray from an old rimmed baking sheet. Cover the surface with contact paper to make a dry-erase station that can be wiped clean easily. 


3. Since younger children love noise, add assorted charms or buttons to the inside of an empty water bottle to create a noisemaker that’s fun to watch too. 


4. Make an ocean in a bottle. Fill a small soda bottle half full of cooking oil, add some glitter or confetti, then fill nearly full with water. Watch how the colorful items dance as the bottle is turned. 


5. Every child deserves as least one pet rock, so make one from an odd-shaped stone from the yard and whatever paints you have around. The ones pictured are actually from a professional rock shop on Etsy, but the ones you make at home will look just as good! 

6. Use four popsicle sticks to form a picture frame, then decorate with whatever charms are around the house. Add a stiff cardboard back and your child’s favorite picture for a very personal treasure. 


7. Raid the recycling bin for some old newspaper, then teach your child to make paper maché animals with a simple flour-and-water paste. Even plain old balloon shapes will be fun if they’ve never done this before. 


8. Egg cartons are still as much fun as when you were a kid, so cut one into tulips and use twigs from outside to make a nice arrangement in a pot that your child has decorated too. 


9. Help your child create a treasure chest by decorating a small plastic container with whatever the child wants to make it uniquely his or her own. Then, teach the importance of putting precious things away inside. 


10. Schools don’t always teach macaroni art anymore, so make sure your child knows about the joys of gluing pasta to construction paper to form pictures and words. Tutus and Turtles has a great tutorial for dying pasta too if you want to make it extra fun. 


 Other ideas are limited only by your imagination. Using whatever you have around the house, you can keep your children entertained and spend some quality time with them too.


This post was written by Jessica from PartSelect, online resource for do-it-yourselfers and appliance parts retailer.

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A Token of Appreciation to our Local Heroes

I took a pledge that I posted on my facebook page to use our kitchens to show appreciation to our local heroes in remembrance of September 11th.  Not only was this just a wonderful thing to do, but also served as an amazing lesson to my kids.  
My family & I baked a basket full of cookies to take to the local police department last night.  

After we dropped the cookies off, I started thinking of how I wished I had made more to take to our local fire department too - so we drove over to the bakery & picked up a large sheet cake, and had them write 'Thank You Local Heroes' on it along with American flags stuck in the corners.  

Walking into the fire department was the most solemn of all.  The firefighters were all gathered around the television, watching the 9/11 coverage on the news channel.  I told them how much I appreciated all of them, & the sacrifices they make for us.  You could see tears in a couple of their eyes, and gleams in others.  But, in each of their eyes - there was a strong sense of pride.  It was a moment I will never forget - just as I will never forget this day 10 years ago.
Let us always show that same respect, gratitude, & appreciation - not only on September 11 - but the other 364 days of the year.

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Free Homeschool Planning Guide

The Old Schoolhouse Magazine has teamed up with a group of homeschoolers to write an ebook full of tips & encouragement on planning your homeschool year.  
You will need to register to download the ebook, but it is 100% free with no need to enter any credit card information.

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