Someone teach me how to knit!

So these are my new favorite toys. Do you ever buy something for your children that is really just for you. I'm sure I won't really play with them. But it was that feeling of , "Mom, please..please..please can I have those!" when I was at my favorite Fashion Island store (This Little Piggy Wears Cotton) in California last month.

I paid a small fortune for them. But they are awesome and the girls really love them.

But now I need my master knitter sister to visit and teach me how to make these perfect little yummies. I bought the ones in the checkered basket. The other set I found on-line.

Monster Pals

Thank you Family Fun Magazine for yet another wonderful idea. I don't know how mothers get along without a subscription. It is my favorite magazine and the source to most of my "great" ideas. I saw these in the May edition and I am really excited about them. Unfortunately (for me at least) my kids really love stuffed animals. I know they will like these. The girls have been having problems with bad dreams lately. Who better to fend off those bad dreams with your very own monster pal. Of course it might totally backfire and make things worse but I think it's worth a try.

For directions see here:
http://www.blogger.com/jas.familyfun.go.com/arts-and-crafts?page=CraftDisplay&craftid=11974

New Lunch Bag

So this is Chase's new lunch bag. Or at least it will be. It will take us a few days to drink the juice and let the bags dry out. How super easy. And very afforable:-) Chase loses his lunch sack so often this is just what we need. Our school secretary has a bag just like this. The other day I was volunteering and saw it. I love it so much it has jumped right to the top of my list of crafts to make.

Here are some online tutorials. The first is the lunch sack, the second is a purse.

http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf984011.tip.html

http//www.mormonchic.com/crafty/juice-pouch-purse.asp

Space Mud

My Friend Heather Robertson first introduced me to this ingenious concoction through our little preschool group. It has since become a very popular play staple in our home. So much so that we took the ingredients to Arizona to make ourselves a batch there. The kids and their cousins had a fantastic time playing with it. And there was no surprise to see the adults getting in on the action. Heather had warned me that it would be consuming even to adults.

Here's the recipe. Everyone Enjoy.

In one bowl mix:
2 cups Elmer's glue (use Elmer's!)
1 1/2 cups hot water from tap
food coloring

In another bowl mix until dissolved:
1 1/3 cup hot water
1 Tablespoon Borax

Mix together. I ended up kind of kneading it together after a while. Don't dispare when you mix it all together and it looks like a watery mess. A chemical reaction takes place and the liquid turns to SPACE MUD!

Fabric Beaded Necklace

I found this awesome necklace at Nordstroms while shopping for Easter dresses. I thought to myself, "that looks easy enough." Hoping it would be a fun project to try out with my Mom I stopped by Michaels for supplies and had hi hopes of making my own in Arizona. One quiet afternoon my Mom and I went through her chest of scrap fabrics, picked out some fun scraps and gave it a go. Here are our first attempts.

Supplies:

small wooden balls
approximately 2 1/2 inch wide piece of scrap fabric (long and thin...nothing heavy)
hardware for the clasps at both ends

First we made a know in our fabric.
Then we put in a bead and folded the fabric over itself around the bead.
Holding the fabric in place we made another know and cinched it down as tight as possible over the bead.
Repeat until desired length.
Add on jewelry making hardware.
Trim any frayed ends around beads for a clean look!

Hope yo all like them. Have fun trying them out yourselves!