And our leaf fun continues! Last year we enjoyed our leaf printing so much that I knew I wanted to do something similar again. Not only did these leaf plates produce wonderful results, but we'll be able to keep and enjoy them long past the fall.
We're in the full swing of fall around here, including our first bout of the flu last week. Luckily all was well before Halloween- what would we do without All that candy? (wink)- but it meant many more snuggles and less time writing here. As I pick things up again this week, I thought I'd share some of our stick & leaf experiments. Our woods have been generous with both this fall, making up quite a lot of our play- and lots of our art-making too. This first leaf experiment was fun for both Isia & Billy, and easy to make too!
It takes me awhile sometimes to warm up to a project. I asked for this awesome icing kit a few years ago because I wanted to learn how to pipe, especially flowers. How long did it take me to pipe my first flower? Hmm, not until this summer when I decided to fulfill Isia's request for "a birthday cake with pink flowers" by myself. What I didn't realize was once I got started, it would be so much fun. If you happen to use a whole batch of royal icing, just realize that you're going to have a Lot of flowers. For those of us who find repetitive activities calming, such as knitting or making chinese dumplings, this is a perfect activity for you.
Have the leaves started to fall in your part of the world? Ours really started to turn this past weekend. Today the kids and I sat on our deck and watched them drop gracefully into the cove, a few at a time. There's something so magical about watching them, even quieting Billy for a full five minutes on my lap- a feat for my busy, forty-pound toddler! (wink) As the days start to get chillier, I start to stock-pile my activities that I can pull out quickly indoors. This is a great one! Perfect for the whole family- with toddlers & preschoolers only needing a bit of assistance. I have some great extension activities for the older kids at the end too.
...preparing for my next big mural project- eight examination room walls. My goal is to do it in four painting sessions. (My previous mural here.)
...planning & planning so that I can make that happen.
...watching our leaves slowly change.
...wanting to do this experiment with Isia & Billy before our little paw-paw trees do. I don't know what color they turn & would love to find out!
...having perhaps too much fun playing around with their yearly pictures (wink).
...excited to share the finished products- and my methods- with you soon! I have to go figure out how on earth they can possibly be four and two first, that might take awhile.
I didn't have a crown in mind when I created this activity, just an easy way for little hands to practice tying knots. Tying knots is such a great preschooler skill. Not only is it the first step toward tying shoes, but doing it over & over helps develop those awesome hand muscles they need for writing. It was Isia's idea to turn it into a crown, and a great idea at that! Quick, creative activities don't get much easier than this, and the possibilities for embellishments are endless.
a few years ago because I wanted to learn how to pipe, especially flowers. How long did it take me to pipe my first flower? Hmm, not until this summer when I decided to fulfill Isia's request for "a birthday cake with pink flowers" by myself. What I didn't realize was once I got started, it would be so much fun. If you happen to use a whole batch of royal icing, just realize that you're going to have a Lot of flowers. For those of us who find repetitive activities calming, such as knitting or making chinese dumplings, this is a perfect activity for you.
