Not Far from the Tree

This is what I found in Julio's pocket the other day when I was doing laundry:

Why does this little collection make me so happy?

Feathers on the Felt Board

Did you know that little, downy feathers stick to felt?  Yesterday, I overheard Julio talking to himself at the felt board, "I wonder if this sticks here. Yep. It does."  He left a small blue feather stuck on the board.  Today, I put a jar of feathers by the felt board and the kids took the idea a bit further.

This was a fun fine-motor activity.  The feathers require some delicate placement or else they easily fall off or blow away.

Julio and a friend worked on this tree earlier today, and then Diego and I added some more to it this afternoon.  When we were done, Diego blew lightly on the feathers and we watched them all flutter without blowing away.  It gave the tree a cool animated effect that we normally don't see on the felt board.

This feather and felt combination has some great potential, and I can't wait to see where they go with it next!

Woody Guthrie

I was driving down the road, having one of my usual conversations with my three year old, when this great old Woody Guthrie song came on:

As far as I can tell, this song is all about three year olds.  And, as I'm sure you can imagine, these old lyrics inspired a barrage of new questions!

Easy Felt Board & Felt Christmas Tree

Here is a simple felt board tree that we have all been enjoying for the past few weeks:

This tree has been decorated and redecorated many times, and the kids have also had fun cutting out some of their own ornaments and presents.  I made the tree in sections so that they could assemble it themselves.  Here's how:

Do you have a felt board?  I made a very easy one last year.  I covered a 20"x30" piece of foam board with grey felt, stretched it tight and taped it on the back with packing tape.  It was a gift for a two year old, so I also made some very bold, geometric shapes in black, white, red and yellow: squares, circles,  semi-circles and rectangles, all about 1 to 4 inches in size.

I intended to mount it on the wall or find a better way to attach the felt to the board, but it has held up very well as it is, and the lightness and portability of the foam board have made it easy for small kids to carry it around and lay it on the floor or lean it against the wall.  Here's the "temporary" taping on the back:

I highly recommend this toy for two to five year olds.  It gets played with a lot at our house, and over the past year it has had many different scenes on it, including: a bear family with tree house, an autumn tree with falling leaves, jack-o-lanterns, children with pets, farm animals, and more.  Usually I cut out the shapes that my kids request, but sometimes they make their own.  They love moving the pieces around and acting out scenarios with the characters, so if you are looking for a gift for a child who is often playing with little animals or figurines and making up voices and actions for them, this is perfect.

I made our felt board and pieces using inexpensive acrylic felt, but have since learned that felt that is at least 50% wool clings better and is less likely to fall off on the floor. If you don't have foam board, I'm sure a thick cardboard or a thin plywood would work as well.

Hardware Store Bath Toys

Are you getting ready to start making some holiday gifts?  We've got a few home made ideas that I would like to share with you.  Here is one that would make a fun gift for a little water and construction lover:

If you can, add some small pvc gutters or other shapes.  The piece on the bottom in that last picture is a plastic bowl in which I drilled a dozen small holes to make a rain shower.

Halloween 2012

After changing his mind daily for weeks, Julio finally settled on a character from his favorite movie.  His idea for the costume revolved around the scene where he carries a torch into a cave, so the torch was most important.  Fortunately, everything else was already in our dress up arsenal.  He is not unhappy in this picture, by the way, just seriously in character.

 Diego underwent a major transformation on Halloween.

Wasn't he scary?

2 Gallons and a Half Pint

Me: I've gotta' stop in this gas station and put five bucks in the tank.

Julio: What tank?

Me: The gas tank.

Julio: Why do you have to put five bucks in the tank?

Me: 'Cause we're almost out of gas and I want to make it home for naps.

Julio: And if you don't put in five bucks then we won't make it to home?

Me: Probably not.

Julio: But why do you have to put money in there?

Me: Oh, I see. I'm not really putting the money into the tank. I'm going to use the money to buy gas and put the gas in the tank.

Julio: Are you going to use five dollars?

Me: Probably ten. Actually, I'm going to use my debit card.

Julio: Oh. (pause) Does Deb have a debit card?

Me: I don't know.  Probably.

Julio: DOES she?

Me: Yes.