Frigid temperatures resulting in a FULL week off of school, high winds and blowing snow, followed by icy roads -- all of which made for 14 Snow Days in between the regular days off for MLK Day, President's Day Weekend and teacher record days. As a mom that works from home, I needed to find ways to keep the kids entertained so that I could still accomplish my normal, daily tasks.
The kids still spent a lot of hours playing outside. And we did meet up for a play-date at the bowling alley one day when the restless feeling of being cooped up spurred my friend and I to make plans for the eight kids that we share between us. It was good for the kids ... and for us mommas.
My 'go-to' for activities is CRAFTS. I love the creativity and it's no secret that I could probably open my own craft store with all of the random items that I have tucked away in my office closet. I like to provide some direction and supervision, but let the kids draw from their own imaginations.
Salt dough ornaments
Steve actually suggested this idea after remembering making these when he was a child. They are so simple to make with exactly 3 ingredients (salt, flour and water).
We came up with an idea for each kid and they set to work kneading the dough and making their design.
Jimmy was more than a little excited to get his hands dirty.
Using a cup to make a circular cut-out:
Sophia's design involved using her FOOT to make a penguin ornament.
I backed the ornaments in the oven on low heat for quite some time depending on the thickness. Once they cooled later that afternoon, we used my acrylic paints to finish them off.
Jack made a few "bonus" ornaments using his recently "excavated" dinosaurs.
They ended up looking like genuine fossils.
All done and packed away to be put on our Christmas tree this next holiday season -- a penguin made from Sophia's footprint, a ninja turtle made from Jack's handprint, a couple of emojis (one of Sam's favorite things right now), a dinosaur for Jimmy, some fossils and an apple.
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Polar Bears
The boys helped make a craft to be used at the upcoming Penguin and Polar Bear party. I cut a polar bear out of BLACK paper and then we talked about how the skin of polar bears is actually black. Then, they glued cotton balls on for fur.
Whenever he is concentrating, Jack bites his tongue and focuses deeply on the project in front of him.
Later that day, Jack and I put the polar bears on background paper and he painted snowflakes on them. Again, I used this as a learning opportunity to talk about how no two snowflakes are ever identical and how he can use the paintbrush in different ways to make some more detailed than others.
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Canvas Painting
Sam had a friend over one day and they needed something to do, so I pulled out three leftover canvases that I had in my closet (from 2 years ago when Sam celebrated her 8th birthday with a Painting Party).
We taped them off in various patterns and then the girls chose their colors to paint them. (Note that purple must have been the color shirt for the day!).
Sophia's design surprised me -- it was more abstract and less precise than I would have figured for her.
Sam went with a near-perfect geometric design with three colors.
I lined them up by the fireplace to dry (it took very little time!) and then carefully peeled the tape off to reveal some very neat creations. Sam's friend was so excited to take hers home that day and the girls' canvases are hanging in their room above their beds.
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