Pinterest-Inspired Projects - Rainbow Pasta for Crafting

Are you as addicted to Pinterest as I am?

That's what I thought.

I am trying my hand at finding easy projects on Pinterest that I can share with everyone.  I found this tutorial for rainbow pasta before St. Patrick's Day and wanted to make some for Bean to use for crafting.

The "recipe" is very similar to the way I made rainbow rice for her sensory bin.  This is very easy to do.

You grab the following items:

• Small shaped pasta - we used small bow tie pasta but you could use macaroni or twists or whatever you find.  
• Rubbing alcohol
• food coloring - some people say gel food coloring is better but I didn't have any so regular works fine, too.
• Ziploc or storage bags

• Put a handful of the dry pasta into your storage bag.
• Squeeze a few drops of food coloring.
• Pour in a few drops of alcohol.  I did use more for the pasta than I normally do for the rainbow rice but if you use no more than a teaspoon, you're fine.
• Mix the items around in the storage bag until all of the pasta is coated.
• Pour the pasta out on paper towels to dry.

Bean made a rainbow picture with her pasta.

You can follow my Pinterest boards here.

Pinterest-Inspired Projects - Calendar Board

I hinted around last week about a project I was working on using this oil pan.

What am I using this oil pan for?

I recently found this idea by Nic and Kate from a pin on Pinterest and was inspired or pinspired to make something similar.  I've wanted to make Bean a calendar board for awhile and with recent behavior problems we've had with the kid, I thought it would be a good place for a behavior chart, too.

This oil pan was found at Auto Zone for $9.99.  It is made by Blitz.  You can find these at any auto parts store and Wal-Mart also carries them.  I could not find one that did not have the manufacturer's name stamped into it though.  This one is 25 x 36 inches.  You will have to clean the pan thoroughly front and back with something like Simple Green or similar to get the coating off of it.

To attach it to the wall, I used 3M Command velcro strips.  After you clean the coating off the back of the pan, wipe it down with some alcohol and let it dry.  Then you can attach your strips.  I personally realized I didn't like this method only because once the tabs are in place, it was really hard for me to line everything back up and get it back on the wall.  If you're not as challenged with those types of things as I am, I'm sure you won't have any frustration using these strips.

So here is the pan/board up on the wall.

I hung ours in our living room which is a central location for all of us to be able to access and Bean can change the date daily.  I found these calendar pieces on markdown at Target for $1.12.  I realized that these are for teachers to use and there are no Saturday or Sunday name plates so I will have to make those myself.  We've put the month label at the very top of our board.  Next to it we keep track of the calendar day.  Bean gets to put up the number date each day.  Then I made a day tracker from a felt flower I had on hand from an old hairbow project.  I attached a magnet to the back of the flower and Bean moves it to the corresponding day.

I want to print out some activity picture labels that we can put to the side of each day so Bean will know what is coming up in her week like a birthday party or "tim-tastics".    I also have a pack of weather labels but they are kinda big and I've run out of room on the board to use them.  Maybe I should have hung it sideways instead.  I will toy around with printing out some smaller pictures of weather symbols to use.

At the bottom of the board is where we have Bean's new behavior chart.  I found this one free to print out online at freeprintablebehaviorcharts.com.  They have a ton of different charts you can use.  It is labeled for each day of the week.  The things she has to work on in order to earn magnets for her chart are

• Not taking things that belong to other's.
• No fibbing or lying.
• Using a pleasant voice.
• Listening the first time.

Each day Bean follows these rules, she is allowed to put a magnet on that day's corresponding box.  If she can go the entire week, she will be rewarded with a trip for ice cream or something like that.  We haven't made it that far so I haven't really hammered out the rewards yet.  I will need to make some more magnets for her and I have a few bottlecaps that I plan on using for those.  Stickers could also be used but I plan on using the same chart over and over so I went with magnets instead.

So there is my first Pinterest inspired project.  I hope to do more projects from ideas found on my new addiction, Pinterest, and I'll share them here with you.

If you'd like to follow my boards on Pinterest, here is my link.

Be Our Valentine 2012

Happy Valentine's Day 2012!!!!!

To those of you with hunnies, enjoy the day together.

To those of you without a hunny, you can be our Valentine.  The more the merrier!

Things are starting to get back to normal around our little home.  That is until the next germ invades, I guess.

If we could win the actual lottery like we have seemingly won the germ lotto, we'd be sitting pretty.

Today is also my Aunt Grace's birthday.  Happy Birthday to you!  We love you.

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Recently Bean and her Daddy attended a Daddy/Daughter Date Night at a local Chick-fil-A.  They really enjoyed themselves and this is what I was brought back.  The restaurant gave it to Bean but she passed it along to me.  My ownership of this rose lasted about five minutes until she decided that it was much more practical to dance around the living room floor twirling it about.  The rose put up a good front but I don't think it was happy about it.

Poor Bean.  She has fallen victim to the flat hair curse just like her Mamma.

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I have a couple of tutorials I'm working on.  I have the completed projects but need pictures to show my work.

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Bean's school is having a Valentine's Day party today and we were in charge of the goody bags.  Ugh.  I never noticed the sign-up sheet for the party and by the time I did, wouldn't you know it, the only thing left to pick were goody bags.  God sure does have a funny sense of humor, doesn't he?

We went retro with these bags - regular old brown lunch sacks.  Bean stamped each bag with a heart outline.  The design was made with a toilet paper roll bent in the shape of a heart.  Well, she started this process but 17 bags was asking way too much from her so Mommy finished them up.

I am hoping to be back posting regularly here with all of our friends.  We've missed you all.

Book Advent Calendar - Update 1

We've made it to December 7th and Bean still loves this idea.  Mommy still hasn't picked up the remaining books that we need to get all the way to the 24th.  Hey, I'll try to do it after my Procrastinators Anonymous meeting tonight.

Here are the book selections for December 2nd through the 5th.

December 2nd:  All I Want for Christmas

December 3rd:  Merry Christmas, Curious George

December 4th: The Christmas Story

December 5th:  The Littlest Christmas Elf

Are you using a fun way to count down the days 'til Christmas?

Our Advent Calendar - Bookworm Style.

I ran across this idea of a book advent calendar last year on several other blogs and thought it was brilliant.

We have a basket that holds 24 gift wrapped Christmas-themed books.  Well, there WILL be 24 books in it soon.  This is one advantage to having a kid that can't count yet - you can go right along after you realize you miscounted and didn't get enough books to make 24.

Don't tell her.  She loves this idea and is so excited about it.  Santa's helper will just sneak a few more in one night.

But here's our little basket of books.  She will open one book each night before Christmas.  (Sorry for the picture quality.  Once I showed it to her, Bean was too excited to wait so I could get a better picture.)  Preplanning is my not strong suit.

Last night Bean opened the first book.  She can choose whichever book from the box that she wants each night.  She has become an Olympic-style unwrapping fiend.

The book that marked December 1st was Gingerbread Mouse.

I can't vouch for the story yet as Hubz was the one to read it at bedtime.  I will try to share a picture of each night's book as we move along towards Christmas.

Fall Activity Trays

Bean has been working on some new fall activities.

Cutting Practice Trays

I found these free Fall Cutting Strips from Montessori Print Shop.  Bean does really well using her scissors.  She does better with paper than hair, though.

Playdough Play

I found this recipe for pumpkin pie scented playdough and made some up for Bean.  Note to fellow playdough makers - I tried making this recipe.  I did not have enough salt so it did not turn out right.  Next time I think I will try cutting this recipe in half to see how much that will make.  But it did smell wonderful anyways.

Halloween Sensory Tub

I couldn't find all the fall items I had for last year's sensory tub so I had to get a few new things.  Thank goodness for Target's $1 section.  Yes, lookey there, I gave Target a compliment.  Ha!

We used sticky skeletons and mice which we quickly learned weren't good cause the green peas stuck to them, ghost and bat erasers, mini pumpkins, snakes and spiders.  Bean left one of the spiders on the counter and later that night when I went in for a snack, I had quite the fright!

Notice the bee that is hanging around up there?  That's Bizzy.  Bizzy the Bee.  Bean was assigned to bring her home for the weekend and journal what the two of them did all weekend.  They had a wonderful time together and Bizzy has been invited back any time she wants.

Lacing Beads and Sea Creatures

On Sunday, Bean and I did some painting - a lot of painting. A few months back I purchased these packs of wooden beads, spools, pegs and pots from Hobby Lobby. I had intended to paint the spools and put them in Bean's Easter basket but that danged bunny didn't leave me any room. He took it all with his silly candy. Oh well.

(I will share the peg and pots and the larger beads and how we use them in a later post.)

I wanted to make Bean some new Montessori-ish activities to do this month and remembered I had these that needed to be painted. I spread out some newspaper, grabbed all of our paints and supplies and we got to work. Bean started painting a little box she found in my craft stash. I asked her what color she wanted to use and she said "PINK!". That's my kid.

You can tell two things from these pictures.  One, she is tired of having her picture taken, and two, she has developed the same habit I have of sucking in my bottom lip when I'm concentrating on something.  Aww...

This painting process took a lot longer than I had planned. Like all day longer. Bean gave up way before I did. We took breaks throughout the day but it did take all day to paint everything.

Here's the finished product of the spools and how I presented them to her as a Montessori activity. Right away she knew what to do and started lacing the beads. She got frustrated a few times with the cord I gave her to use. It was a drawstring that came out of a hoodie I wear so it does have a little more "play" in it than should be but it did the job.

 

After she finished the lacing beads, I brought out some printables I found on 1+1+1=1. These are from her In The Girly Sea Preschool Pack. These are the 3-part cards showing various sea creatures.

There is one control card for each image and then Bean is supposed to match up each creature name and the corresponding picture. I was really amazed at how well she did. She got them all correct the first time she tried. She matched the words up first. I know she can't read but she matched the letters up by shape. Then she went back and added in the pictures. My kid's a genius!!! Okay, okay, I know that's a little overboard but really, my kid's a genius people! She takes after her mama. Duh!

G is for Goat

I recently started an online Montessori training class. Bean was enrolled in a local Montessori preschool but I don't think, due to finances and scheduling, that we'll be able to send her back there in the fall. I really believe in the Montessori method or what I have learned of it in the past year. The basic concept is to "follow the child". I am in no way a trained teacher nor do I play one on tv, [this is where you all laugh], but when I found this class, I thought it would be a way for me to learn more about the method and a way that I can continue the lessons with Bean on our own.

Just to share more info on the online class that I am taking, it is taught by Karen Tyler, owner of Worldwide Montessori Online. Karen teaches her class through a Yahoo group and shares her Montessori albums she has complied through her years teaching. This is an easy and affordable way to learn the method and the information that I've already received is amazing.

Now, along with this class, I have been scouring the internet for activities I can do with Bean. One extremely helpful site I found is 1+1+1=1. Carisa shares so many wonderful printables completely free to her readers. She shares activities for different ages and stages - Totschool, Raising Rock Stars Preschool, and You Can Read. My biggest problem is learning to pace myself with the printables.

One recent set of printables that I found at 1+1+1=1 is G is for Goat. I printed the set off and let Bean work on them while I made dinner. She loves to do her "actibities" all the time. She had a lot of fun using her dot markers with these printables.

I was afraid she was going to run her markers dry trying to color the whole goat.

 

She used one color to pick out all the uppercase letters and another color for all the lowercase ones.

 

She used a crayon to trace the uppercase and lowercase "G"s.  It's a bit shaky but this is the first time she's done one of these.

Here's another tracing printable that she used to follow the line from the uppercase to the lowercase letter.

This was Bean's favorite printable in the series.  I would call out a shape and she would mark it off with her dot marker.  She wanted to do this one over and over but I only had the one copy.  Next time, I will put the printable in a sheet protector and let her mark the shapes off with her dry erase crayons so she can do it more than once.

If you're looking for activities to do with your toddler, I would definitely recommend 1+1+1=1.  You can find so many ways to teach while your kids just think they are having fun.

Toddler Needlework

Some of you may know that Bean goes to a Montessori preschool. I often ask her what she does at school. I am most often given the same answer - "I don't know".

Each week they send home a folder with school information and Bean's handiwork. It is usually crayon drawings or colored pieces of paper glued to a page. Standard toddler work. 

This is what came home with Bean on Monday.

 

I was amazed.  They teach the kids to use a loom and a needle and thread.  The teacher will outline the shape and sit with the child while they stitch around it.  Bean's come home before with a partially completed shape but never a fully completed one.  I used to think that this was one of those projects where the teacher did most of the work while the child sat at watched.  I actually did an observation in Bean's class yesterday morning and watched this process take place.  The teacher did sit with a child while she was doing her needlework.  But the child went and got the needle, cut the thread, took out the loom, did get some help putting the material in the loom but not much, and then sat there and went around the shape sewing back and forth herself.  Again, I was amazed. 

Bean is 3.  She can do better needlepoint than I can.  Do you think my Mom would have handed over a needle to me at age 3?  Nope. She didn't want to give me one when I was 12, especially after the tragic sewing machine incident involving my thumb.  My thumb still twitches when it gets near a sewing machine. 

I just love the Montessori method and am glad Bean has gotten to experience it.