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Owls Crafts: When My Kids Are Bored

Do you also feel that if your children are bored it’s your problem? That it’s your job to keep them busy?

Let’s clear this first: It’s not your problem if they’re bored. Let them be bored, and let them learn to keep themselves busy (or not). Boredom is good for children, and encourages creativity.

Now, if you still feel you need to keep them busy (what can I say, I always do…) well…

I am an owls addict!

Collected for you some owls crafts ideas for various ages, toddlers up:

Owl paper craft Instructions 

Flying owl pattern here

Isn’t he the cutest??? Here 

Love this.  From Kerry’s craft blog

Stuffed owls here

So many creative idea’s, I don’t know where to start.

While we’re at it, one of my favorite owl sites is my owl barn, publishing this yearly amazing free download owls calendar, a collaboration of many great artists.

See some of the artwork, I just can’t stop looking at it:

Enough owls for today…See ya

Amazing Washi Tape Crafts Ideas

Although I may seem as a crafty mom to some of you, this is how it usually goes:

1. I see a beautiful idea (that someone else thought of).

2. I show it to everybody around.

3. I start collecting the art supplies required, and promise my children that we are going to do it next Saturday.

4. Saturday comes and goes, nothing happens.

Washi tape is a great example.

I already have approximately 150 different designs:

For those of you who are not familiar with washi tape, the latest trend in crafts and design, it is a Japanese masking tape made of rice paper with endless amazing designs. It is used for decorating walls, mirrors, furniture, glasses, endless possibilities. You can use it to hang your kids drawings or photos on the walls.

I know that most of you are not eating a popsicle right now, but you can still buy the sticks.

Look at this, isn’t it the most creative, and easy to do with kids??? I am in love.

OK, boys too:

Found it in teawagontales.

By the way, in case you’re an animal lover like us, you can also try this idea from makeandtakes (this is not a washi tape craft).

These are just some more easy to do washi tape ideas: I’ve collected them for some time now, and have no idea where I found them. Not mine anyway…

Like it? Let me know!

A Glittery Pink Weekend Post

This photo of a girl recovering from  cutting is now widely shared in Facebook; my daughter’s daily update.

Again today, my daughter (12) told me about a good friend sending photos of her cuts by WhatsApp to another friend, showing her arms covered with cutting marks and large butterflies. 

She wasn’t aware that this girl was cutting, but she’s not surprised anymore.

My first cutting post was the primary reason for me to start blogging last January.

The good things that came up since I understood that not all’s glittery pink at the teens kingdom (ok,  I didn’t think it was), is that I started blogging, and then there’s this parenting new site that followed , an amazing journey for me.

The bad thing is that my daughter is breaking news to me every second day now about the epidemic spreading, and guess who became the news reporter to other naive parents, thinking their world is glittery pink.

A short (but powerful) break with wind chimes crafts

Colored Bamboo wind chimes

Don’t know about you, I could use some break. 

This post of yesterday – such comments are always taking me a bit off-balance.

Not that I’m very balanced lately. Balance is not interesting anyway.

So I did what I always do lately, created some new tech issues with the new parents site. Try it, that’s when you lean back in your chair and let other people fix what you ruined. That is great, take it from me! I’ve started doing it on purpose, see?

Wind chimes. I was leaning back thinking I need to relax, and suddenly heard the wind chimes from outside.

It was like someone heard my thoughts.

I’m already planning to make wind chimes with my kids for the last 8 years, So I’m sure it will happen very soon.

I collected for you some amazing ideas that you can  show your kids, and promise to do with them during the next weekend. This way I’ll  not be the only mom always making promises.

Pencils! Creative isn’t it? Did they mean to show boys and girls chimes? Probably not, in any case I’m not sure about the noise effect here, but it looks great, and not difficult to make.

When you finish your pasta, that’s a great use for the pasta bowl!

Look at these tin chimes, see this adorable kid with blue sunglasses 🙂 Looks like this is one picture that was carefully planned… Just Love it!

Not so crazy about the outcome in this case, but I just love the idea of using the paper eggs box for a mobile or wind chimes.

This made me laugh.  Suggest you do it with Coca Cola cans instead. With the kids, I mean.

You helped me relax now, thank you! Back to making some more programming mistakes. Take care all.

Share this:

Great and funny Ted talk about mental illness. We’re all there one way or the other, so why don’t you give it the 8 minutes of your busy day:-) Thank you pride in madness!

A winter giraffe

I started this blog 3 weeks ago, following an incident described in my post “The scary world of 12’s”, which was for me a moment of recognition that my closest circle don’t always supply answers to parenting surprises.

I am surprised and excited by the number of comments and new followers of my blog. I know that you are all very busy, and the fact that you are taking the time to read, and care enough to comment and share, is surprising for me and above my expectations.

I think I owe you a paper mache giraffe for that!

Giraffe

To those of you who are not familiar with paper mache yet:

There are endless paper mache sites / explanations.

Basically you need to prepare a paste made of glue and water in a bowl, stir it and use it with newspaper straps or mashed wet toilet paper.

Another attitude is to boil 4 cups of water, add to it a mix of 1 cup of flour with 2 cups of water and 2 spoons of salt: Cook it all on low fire for 4 minutes and let it cool.

Very fun to do with children, and an opportunity to discuss and demonstrate recycling.

If you use newspaper straps, you work with layers: The bigger the object is, the more layers you should put. (Let them dry between 3 – 4 layers and then continue). Another good suggestion is to make the external layer white, easier to decorate.

And last – you can use any kind of paint, but it’s recommended to seal it with varnish or an acrylic sealer.

I collected some ideas, there are endless of course.  

Note that these are various creative ideas of  various creative and talented people, none is mine:

These tins are created by people with disabilities:

See the fish that can also become a mobile: The base contains polystyrene balls. The eyes are small balls, the tail is a piece of cardboard placed in the ball by making a small cut with a knife or scissors.

Here’s the link to this creative designer’s blog

She also made these owls, you already know about my obsession with owls…

OK, I love dogs as well, don’t even remember where I found this dog, sorry:

Houses can be made of milk boxes. You can also cut open windows and doors in it.

Another great idea can be an animal money-box, you cut a hole for coins in a cardboard box, add to it cardboard legs, eyes, nose, tail and cover it with paper mache.

Don’t forget to share with me other great ideas please!

About wintery moments and square screens

You are probably familiar with these wintery grey rainy days:

Hiding behind closed doors afraid to get your nose out, and pondering upon how to get your kids interested enough to move them from the screen (never mind which one).

These screens that stand between the future chances of your kids to become  communicative grown ups, starting directly at the eyes of the person they are communicating with (Unless of course this person is square, high tech designed and very fast, in this case they will both communicate with each other through screens).

Sometimes the answer is closer to you than you think.

We waited for a rare moment of piece with the sky, and went out for a short walk. I am not saying that everybody was happy to leave the I-pad, all I’m saying is that they didnt have any choice. See?

Something about the nature colors after the rain always makes me wonder, was this view always so close to my house? How didn’t I see it before? And this after rain smell…it makes you healthier.

These snails are all over, great companions and are great for keeping your kids busy looking after them.  Don’t forget to release them back to where they belong…

3 kids far away from square screens, this is how it looks!