Message Rocks ~ Rock Painting

Rocks can carry messages!I love rocks. My daughter also loves rocks very much.Rocks that are hand painted you can keep for yourself and place in strategic places to inspire you.That Painted Rocks with messages can be given to loved ones, friends, people you care for.

Amaze your Friends with special rocks painted just for them ! My Little Girl made this to give as a gift for her classmates on Valentines Day.She had fun writing her classmates names on rocks and giving them away.This is a fun project for kids, teens, and adults!

Materials  Needed :-

• Smooth clean stones
• Acrylic paint
• Paint Brushes
• Mod Podge (optional)
• Water
• Plastic Cup for Water

Instructions:-

1. Wash your rock to remove dirt. Dry it with a towel and then let it air-dry for 15 minutes.

2. Paint the rock with your desired colour. Let it dry  completely.Once that is dry, paint the rock with another layer. It gives a nice rich color that way.

4. Then turn the rock and paint it and keep it for drying.

5. Once your paint is dry you may wish to put a coat of Mod Podge on as a sealer.

6. So just go ahead and brush it on nice and thick...don't worry, it dries clear! Let them dry completely.

 7. Once everything is dry,You can start writing the message  you might like on your rocks...the sky is the limit just use your imagination! Let it dry completely.

You can write messages such as:

• Rock on
• You rock
• Love
• Hope
• Smile
• Laugh
• Hugs
• Cheers
• Thanks
• You can also write your Friends Names

Silly bandz

The latest craze for kids now a days are silly bandz. You should have heard of them by now.Every kid is busy buying or trading the silly bandz. And my daughter is no exception.She came home from School One Day with 2 wrists full of plastic bracelets. They looked like rubber bands to me.Then she told me that they are called "Silly Bandz".Apparently these craze is found among all elementary and middle school kids nowadays. 
        Whenever we go to some shop with my daughter, she is making sure that we buy a packet of silly bands.After the collection, the kids trade the silly bands which they do not like or if they want some specific bands. Nowadays kids are very crazy for these and they carry them to school everyday.These cool rubber bands are multi-colored and they come in a hundreds of different shapes and colors like stars, fruit,alphabets,numbers,objects,princess ,hero's,fantasy,Holiday ,Western,sea creatures and animals etc. Some of them even glow in the dark. They are normally worn as bracelets.On a wrist, they function like a bracelet, and when taken off they revert to their original shape.They are often worn many at a time and are traded like other collectibles.They are really becoming a hot item among young kids today.These bands are cute, stylish and funky.Silly Bandz are cheaper than most toy crazes and you get at least 24 in a pack. You can buy them just about anywhere. They are sold at Dollar Tree, C VS, Walgreen's and even gas stations. They range in price depending on where you go from $1.00 to $6.00 per pack. They are usually sold right in front near  check out.

The above is some part of my daughters collection. She also trades bands with her friends in the apartment and school. Do your kids collect Silly Bandz?Or they are into any other funny fads?

I really wonder though how long this craze will last?

Milk Carton Ginger Bread House

If you are looking for an easy gingerbread house to make with kids,in the classroom or at home then a milk carton gingerbread house is perfect for you.Milk carton gingerbread houses are easy for kids to make and fun to put together.This  Christmas craft allows kids to be hands on and involved from the very first step- no waiting around for mom or dad to complete the complicated prep.As your child's imagination is stimulated, his motor skills will receive a boost!Yesterday my daughter's class was having Christmas Party. There they made and decorated this no-bake Ginger bread house.

Materials Needed:-

Milk Carton
Graham crackers
Frosting / Icing
assorted candies
Small candies
M&M's
Gum drops
Red Hots
Peppermints
Candy canes
Pretzel Sticks
Mini Marshallows
Cherrios
Paper Plate
plastic knife
shredded coconut / coconut powder
News paper
Cookies
Sprinkles

How to build:-

# A few days before the activity, We rinse out the milk cartons and let them dry.Otherwise, a sour-milk will come out of milk carton.
# We used milk carton as the base of the house.
# First gather all needed materials and get organized before beginning to assemble milk carton gingerbread houses with your kids.
# Its best to have all of your candies ,pretzel sticks,cookies and gingerbread house decorations in individual
bowls or in a big paper plate separated each thing.
#If you are using homemade icing, prepare it ahead of time. Always cover homemade icing as it will dry out
quickly.
# Cover the tables where kids are going to make ginger bread houses with newspapers.
# Place a milk carton on a paper plate.
# Smear Frosting onto the side of your milk carton, covering all 6 sides.
# Stick on the graham crackers across the angled tops of the cartons to make the roof and 4 sides to make the walls and press firmly to attach.
# Using the frosting as a glue have kids decorate the gingerbread house with candies.
# Use green candy as shrubbery for the front of your house.
# You should have variety of candies on hand to use to decorate gingerbread houses. Look for unique candies.
# Sprinkle coconut powder / Shredded coconut all around the house as snow.
Be creative !Use your imaginations.If desired create detailed designs.

This is reaching Artsy Craftsy's  Edible Crafts  event and  Christmas Craft Event 2010 

Fingerprint Garden

 What to do on a cold and rainy days ? How to keep our kids busy ?Get your paints and ink pads and start finger printing! Create a garden with bugs,butterflies and flowers.My daughter enjoyed doing this.

Materials needed:

construction paper ( We used white)
paints or ink pads
Newspapers to lay across the table
markers or crayons
Paper Plate or Plastic Palette
Small cup
Water
Tissue paper

How to make your Fingerprint Garden:

1) Cover the table with newspaper where kids are going to paint.
2) Take a tissue paper and small cup with water (for rinsing the hand).
3) The first thing is to take the light colored construction paper and a paper plate with a few colours on it.
4) Dab the thumb with the colours of your choice.
5) Print it on a construction paper as the butterfly's wings.
6) You also add in some flowers, leaves and the bees ,bugs  too with fingerprints.
7) Once it is all dried up ,draw some stripes and wings with markers to the bugs and bees.Draw antennas to the butterflies.
8) Draw few flowers also.Give final touch ups.
There is a  beautiful fingerprint garden with butterflies ,flowers,bugs and bees!

Fingerprint Flowers

Kids love to get messy, and allowing them to do so actually improves their motor skills and they will also have lot of fun.Allow kids to express their creativity with a finger-painting activity.My daughter made this beautiful flowers with her fingerprints.This idea can be used to make a beautiful greeting card also.

Materials needed:

construction paper ( We used white)
paints or ink pads
Newspapers to lay across the table
markers or crayons
Paper Plate or Plastic Palette
Small cup
Water
Tissue paper

 
How to make your Fingerprint Flowers:

1) Cover the table with newspaper where kids are going to paint.
2) Take a tissue paper and small cup with water (for rinsing the hand).
3) The first thing is to take the light colored construction paper and a paper plate with a few colours on it.
4) Let them dab their fingers into the paint and then put fingerprints on the paper. We can also use washable ink pads to do this, instead of paints.
5) They can make fingerprint flowers by arranging four or five or six prints in a petal formation.
6) After the paint dried we can add some final touches with markers.With the markers children can draw some stems for flowers.

Your cute fingerprint flowers are ready.

Rock Burger ~ Rock Painting

You can paint rocks to look like lots of different kinds of food. My daughter with little help of me made burger for her picnic table.My daughter enjoyed a lot painting the rock.This project is a good project for all age levels and the kids can feel really good about and use their imaginations to play with .We took this idea from the book "Painting on rocks for kids by Lin Wellford "

Materials Needed:-

Rock
Pencil
Palette or Paper Plate
Paint of your Choice
Paintbrushes
Water
Small Cup
White colored pencil
White Dimensional Paint (Optional)

How to Paint:-

1) Find a burger shaped rock. They can be big or small as you wish,but rock fits into your hand is perfect.Scrub the rock clean and let it dry.

2) Draw the bun lines:- Draw a line all around the rock, a little bit over the center.Make another line below the first line,leaving enough space for burger patty and toppings.

3) Paint the Pattie or meat :- Use your large or medium brush and brown paint to paint the meat or pattie,keeping the top and bottom edges as smooth and level as you can. Let the paint dry.

4) Mix Paint for the bun:- Use your brush to mix two drops of yellow ,one drop of white and one half drops of orange.Put a small brown on your palette and pick up a little on the tip of your brush. Add it to mix. Add touches of brown and white until the mixture is the colour of a bun.

5) Paint the bun :- Use your brush to cover the entire top half of the bun with the bun colour. when you are finished dont rinse your brush ,but use to mix the next colour.

6) Paint a tan ring and the bottom tan:- The bun should be lighter just above the meat. Mix a drop of two of white the paint left on your brush ot make a tan.Paint a narrow ring just above the meat.Use a dry brush to soften the edge where the two colors meet.paint hte bottom bun this tan colour too.

7)Add the fillings:-Use a white pencil to sketch half round tomato slice, cheese triangles ,ruffled edge of lettuce.

8) Paint a base coat for filling:- To help the fillings stand out, use brush with yellow to paint all the shapes you
just sketched.Leave a narrow ring of brown paint showing along the tops of the fillings.Make sure edge of the
lettuce looks wavy.

9)Paint the cheese , tomato and lettuce :- Use red paint to paint tomato slices and yellow paint to paint cheese
triangles.Paint lettuce leaves with pale green colour.( yellow + white + green).

10)Dot the top of the bun:- Use smallest brush and brown paint to paint small dark dots over the top of the
bun.Don't put any around sides.

11) Add sesame seeds:- You can paint the seeds with white paint or with white dimensional paint .Touch the tip of the bottle just off the center of each brown spot then lift up sideways.A rim of brown should show on one side.When; all seeds are painted let it dry for an hour.

Photos taken by my 5 year old at Gilroy Garden

Last weekend we went to Gilroy Garden.Walking around this beautiful park rewards you with scenic vistas around every turn. Perfect for a day trip. Lots of rides preschoolers and young children can enjoy. The water play areas are great fun, and the gardens are absolutely gorgeous!There my daughter took these Photos.