leaf girl

I was lurking over at the artful parent blog artfulparent.wordpress.com and saw that she posted photos of some nifty flower people. It reminded me of "leaf girl" that I had created a few years back as a class assignment in college. We were directed to create an interactive bulletin board as a response to a book or collection of books. Our group chose Leaf Man by Lois Ehlert. My part of the project was to create a leaf person...so I strolled outside on our beautiful college campus and picked up nuts, seeds, berries, twigs, etc., whatever bits of nature I thought I could staple/glue/force to stay up on a vertical wall.

Sorry the photo is not perfect. I took the shot with my camera phone on a whim, and now I am glad I captured it that morning. There were a few mishaps with our bulletin board by the time our professor graded it.

Anyway, interactive bulletin boards are a great way to lure and excite children to/about reading! The idea is to capture their curiosity about the book and have a response activity ready to go right there at the bulletin board. This can be something to be done before or after they read the book. The possibilities are endless.

spontaneous creativity

craftin' in the 'hood

self-directed creativity

In the spirit of learning all the time, I really wanted to keep my mind and my children's minds active this summer. We are all 3 voracious readers, so I was not really worried about keeping the books cracked open. (my husband, dear man, reads out of necessity) the rest of us read like tomorrow is our dying day.
My last post was about teaching the kids to read a sewing pattern, and as it turned out, pajama pants only require one pattern piece, cut twice--once right side up, once, well you know, the other way.
We have not yet completed the pants but I will not give in to despair. A couple of days ago our kids played with their neighborhood friends, and embarked upon an impromptu art project.
SELF-DIRECTED LEARNING, PEOPLE....THERE IT WAS! right on our back sidewalk--3 girls, 2 boys. ages 11 down to 6. kids with varying interests such as knitting, star-wars, lego, american girl...nagging, yelping, and all those other endearing qualities. But somehow in the midst of their usual roller coaster ride that is the life of girls... The kids came up with their own project idea, gathered materials and tools, and just busted out the door and CREATED!
So now I am reflecting on what stars had to align, which elements had to to be in place--
you know, so i can guarantee this will happen again. The biggest component to this thrilling and beautiful display of creativity and cooperation was this: I said YES. I did not get involved or play 20 questions. I didn't ask why, what, and if it would be sticky or whatever... I just said yes and trusted that they would not injure themselves or destroy the property with a spray bottle, markers, paper, and scissors.
Sure, our 2 families have craft supplies at the ready, we moms are both knitters-the other mom more than me...she and i both have the desire that we (kids/parents) are ALWAYS LEARNING...we are lifelong learners, we are aware of teachable moments,etc., and the best way to lead is by example.
Sometimes learning and creativity happen, and the adults just have to get out of the way and let it happen.

PHOTOS TO FOLLOW-NEED PERMISSION FROM OTHER MOM TO PUBLISH PICS OF HER KIDS

recycle your starbucks

yum yum yum

coffee is good. hot, steaming coffee with just the right amount of foam and sweetness, black coffee, iced coffee, frappuccino...i will slurp down any of them just about any time of day.

and while many people rue the day a starbucks popped up on a street corner near them, i want to sing the praises of the 'big-bucks' coffee chain.

1. the first time i picked up a bill bryson book was on the sharing bookshelf at the marion starbucks, and i have been reading and re-reading his works ever since. if you have never read bill bryson, his books usually chronicle his travels in europe in a humorous way. he also has a great one called "a walk in the woods" this recounts his trials and joys of hiking the appalachian trail...if you can't travel, then read about it-it's much cheaper, and less dangerous

2. i loooove to make something out of nothing, or to use the current terminologies, upcycling/repurposing. i have cut, pasted, and stitched countless cup sleeves and cups into gift-card holders and bookmarks.

3. starbucks will give you their used grounds to toss into your composter, which i have been told is great for your garden/flower bed.

4. order black fresh brewed coffee and you can take the leftovers and make these:

a. coffee ice cubes for a future iced coffee or frappuccino

b. espresso/coffee brownies--just replace the water called for (on the brownie mix) with

chilled coffee.

if any of you are so inclined, i would be happy to pass along a tutorial, or at least some photos of my upcycled creations using starbucks paper goods. just fling me an email, or leave a comment.

paper flower happiness

good morning to you my dear 3 readers :)

The paper flowers have taken on a life of their own. At the bridal shower Saturday the flowers seemed to be the hit of the morning. Then late Saturday evening I received a call to fill-in as Sunday School teacher for our 3rd-5th grade girls...

I focused the lesson on kindness and friendship; we had a brainstorming session, sharing, praises and prayers, etc., and the girls could hardly keep their eyes off my stash of scrapbook paper!

We made our own Friendship/Kindness flowers, and to tie it to the lesson we wrote a scripture verse on the back of each flower.

I wonder where these flowers will appear next?

paper flowers pdf

http://ellesstudio.blogspot.com/2009/06/birthday-pixy-stix-project-free.html

this will give you a pdf template to make LOVELY layered flowers--use paper, fabric...be creative...
i'd love to see what you make!

i will post a photo of my flowers as soon as i get new aa's for my camera

creativity

Ahhh, creativity is great. Creativity with decorative papers is even better! Just returned home from a bridal shower (i helped plan, throw, whatever)...we had a good turnout, good food, and nifty decorations, i must say :)

over at oneprettything.com i found a link to some paper flower templates/patterns...

there is something so satisfying about creating something with your own hands that you will share with someone else. when i craft/create/make for others, i find myself thinking of the special person and hoping they will like what i am making, and know that i put thought into it for them.

hey, if you're looking for 2 easy, crowd-pleasing recipes consider these:

1. coffee punch

brew strong coffee

chill overnight

in a punchbowl combine:

cold coffee (strong)

1/2 gal. vanilla ice cream

1 container cool whip

1/2 -3/4 bottle hershey's syrup

that's it

i am really not a cool-whip person (prefer hand-made whipped cream)

nor am i really crazy about the questionable ingredients in hershey's syrup, but--

all in a punchbowl this is a sweetly satisfying, caffeinated, dessert-like treat that people will cheer about all during your party :)

2. spinach feta egg bake

6 oz. feta cheese, crumbled

14 eggs

10 grape or cherry tomatoes, sliced

two handfuls fresh spinach, chopped

splash of milk or cream

preheat oven to 350

bake 30 minutes (approx.)

i'll post some photos of the paper flowers sooon

it's time to do the kitchen-clean up dance and clear the dining room table of the paper-craft aftermath...

are there state standards for that?