Penguin Prep

Sophia and James will be having a joint birthday party again this year, in mid-February.  They are both quite excited about it and the theme will be Penguins and Polar Bears.  While Sophia is always quick to remind anyone that penguins and polar bears actually live on two different arctic poles, Jimmy immediately follows that up with, "Sophia likes penguins and I like polar bears."

It's a great theme for winter -- so many decorating ideas and crafts for this time of year.  And frankly, we have done more than I planned due to the fact that the kids have had a record number of snow days home from school already this year.

One such craft was using a potato as a stamp and making homemade penguin wrapping paper for Sophia's gifts.  I already had everything on hand -- plain brown paper, potatoes and acrylic paint.

I set Sophia up on one counter and Jack on another ... we began with the black body; let it dry and then followed up with a white belly and eyes and then orange beaks and feet. 

I explained ahead of time that the penguins would end up looking "rustic;" that is, they wouldn't be PERFECT.  Some will be larger than others, some will not have as much black or white, etc.

Overall, the kids did great with it.

I ended up finishing it up by myself (the snow outside was piling up and they were anxious to play), but I am already thinking of the endless ideas that we can do with this concept for future wrapping paper ideas -- not just for family, but also for friends!