Handprint Christmas Tree

I'll admit, I have no "during the project" pictures for this one, because we did this while T was at work and I'm not Superwoman. Painting my toddler's hand and doing the handprints was job enough for me without trying to take a picture of it, too :)

WHAT YOU NEED:
     - green paint
     - paper bag or large construction paper
     - yellow paper or paint
     - baby hand (baby is optional)

There is a hard way and an easy way to do this. Let's say I learned the hard way. Set the paint and paper up and paint your toddler's dominant hand liberally. You want to make sure you have enough room to do three handprints across the bottom. Reapply paint as needed. Top the bottom row with 2 handprints in the middle row. Follow with one handprint on the top. Let dry and add a star (paint, paper, whatever you choose) and a tree trunk, if desired.

Paper Candy Canes

I have to be honest, I am so glad this 25 day challenge is almost over. It is really hard to find time to prepare, make, and clean up a craft and edit the pictures and write the blog every single day! But I shall persevere. Today we are making Paper candy canes.

WHAT YOU NEED:
     - 1 sheet construction paper
     - red paint
     - tape
     - gold glitter glue (optional)

You will need to cut out as many candy cane shapes as you want and tape them to a paper bag or scrap paper. Use the tape to block off stripes on the candy canes, so they will stay white. The un-taped parts will be red.

Set your toddler up with the page of candy canes and some red paint. Let them paint a thin layer of red, making sure to cover all the exposed paper. Let him or her experiment with different styles and techniques of painting. Half way through, Roo discovered the "dab" technique :)

Let dry for a few minutes and remove the tape very carefully, so you don't rip the paper. If your toddler wants to add a little gold streak to the candy canes, be my guest!

Red Christmas Tree

This craft uses a left over template from some Christmas gifts I made and leftover poms from several other crafts we have done. Roo loved that the tree wasn't green like it usually is. She finds it funny when things are silly colors.

WHAT YOU NEED:
     - 1 cardboard "tree" shape
     - red paint
     - tacky glue
     - a few poms

This craft is really plain and simple. Let your toddler paint the tree to their heart's content. Let dry for a few minutes.

Let your toddler decorate with poms and glue. Roo says "boop" with each pom she adds :)

Finger Print Candy Canes

These are so cute and fairly easy. They make great gifts, too!

WHAT YOU NEED:
     - Scrap paper
     - red and white paint
     - baby finger (possibly the baby, as well)

Paint your child's index finger with red paint and have them press their fingerprint in the shape of a cane, leaving space between for the white prints. Wipe off the red paint and redo with white! I would plan on making extras in case your little one accidentally messes a few up, like mine did :)

 How cute are these?

Winter Sky

Another simple, quick, hands off craft.

WHAT YOU NEED:
     - white paint
     - snowflake stamp
     - 1 sheet blue paper
     - silver glitter (optional)

No prep needed, just set your toddler up with some paint in a shallow dish and let your little one stamp, stamp, stamp. If they end up with globs of paint, that's good! Let them shake some glitter on there and it becomes even more magical!

Touch and Feel Winter Scene

I saw this on a blog a couple weeks ago and thought it was adorable. It actually went really well too, which I didn't think would be the case! This craft has many different textures to stimulate your toddler's curiosity.

WHAT YOU NEED:
     - 1 sheet cardstock or cardboard
     - 1 blue construction paper sheet
     - yellow and green paint
     - 1/4 cup rice
     - 5-6 cotton balls
     - glue

Before you begin, you need to color the rice with a few drops of green paint. Spread the rice out and let dry for about a half hour. Affix the construction paper to the cardstock or cardboard.

Now it is time for the fun! Apply the glue for the land and horizon. Tear the cotton balls into smaller, fluffier pieces and allow your toddler to cover the "ground" with them.

Paint the glue on in the shape of a tree using a q-tip. 2-3 trees should be enough. Allow your toddler to pat the rice onto the glue, the more the merrier! Shake off the excess.

And lastly, have your toddler paint a little circle of paper with yellow paint (or even, gold glitter glue if you want to be a little sparky) and, when dry, glue it to the sky section of the board.

There you have it!

Glitter Princess Wands

Ok so this one has nothing to do with Christmas, but Roo is in a big princess phase, and while shopping for Christmas craft supplies, we came across some awesome wands and I just couldn't say no. I'm a weakling- I know.

WHAT YOU NEED:
     - Pre-made foam wands from the $1 store
     - glitter glue
     - finger or acrylic paint
     - assortment of decorating choices (stickers, puffs, etc)

Now, if the store near you doesn't have these wands you can EASILY make them by cutting out a shape from foam and adding ribbons and a plastic dowel. This is a really hands off craft, even for my not-quite-2-year-old. I set her up with a little bit of paint, the wand, and some stickers and let her do her thing.

After she was done, I took the liberty of adding a glitter border to make the wands a little more "magical." Here is how they turned out:

Thumbprint Christmas Lights

DAY THIRTEEN:

Super excited about this craft. This is something you can redo every year and see how your child grows!

What you need:
     - acrylic or finger paint (at least 4 colors)
     - sharpie
     - 1 baby thumb (if the rest of the kid is attached, that works too)
     - paper

Before you start, draw a squiggly line from one end of the paper to the other. This will be the strand for the lights. Put only a few drops of each color of paint in a shallow container. We used baby food lids and introduced only one color at a time to avoid mass chaos making a mess. Depending on how old your child is, they can do the next part on their own or you can help them. Dip your toddler's thumb or index finger in the paint and position the print just above the strand line. Do a few of each color.

Let the paint dry completely. For us, this turned into a perfect opportunity to make a family painting, using the rest of the paint. Roo hijacked all artistic attempts and we turned out with this masterpiece! 

After the paint has dried, ground the floating light bulbs to the strand. I added Roo's name, age, and the date so we can keep this as a memory :)

Stained Glass Ornaments

DAY ELEVEN:

Yes I am a day behind.. We had a very busy day Tuesday, so today we will do 2 crafts to catch up. Today's activity is something I spotted at the Dollar Store while I was hunting for Stocking Stuffers. Nothing beats a craft with no prep for only $1!

WHAT YOU NEED:
     - 1 Stained glass ornament kit (from $1 store)
     - tape

Just a note, it took me about 20 minutes, 2 knives and a bandaid :( to open the stinkin' paint palette. Loosely tape each ornament to a paper bag to avoid slippage. What worked for us was opening only one color at a time. That way Roo could paint a little of each color on all the ornaments without mixing the colors and ending up with 8 brown ones. After each color, rinse the brush and color section with water to avoid "cross-contamination." Let dry overnight and string them.

Roo REALLY liked this craft. It really surprised me how she was actually painting one part on purpose (see above, top section of the ornament, stars on the sleigh, and the snowman's hat, etc.) instead of just painting everywhere. At one point she even said "Hands! Hands! Hat!" as she painted the snowman's 2 hands and hat. Proud mom moment!

Here is the final product. As you can see, you get what you pay for. This project is great for entertainment value, but don't expect to get a good result. We had so much fun with this, I didn't really care that the colors were so weak and cracked. Disclaimer: I did the Christmas tree (below) and it didn't turn out much better than Roo's! :)

Recycled Reindeer

DAY TEN:

Today is another project using leftovers. I just wrapped all the Christmas presents with paper grocery bags (cute, free, and good for the earth!), and I had all the handles left over. I knew I could use them to make a cute craft, so I created this reindeer.

WHAT YOU NEED:
     - Paper plate
     - 1 red pom (or reuse a lid and paint it red)
     - 2 grocery bag handles
     - brown craft/acrylic paint
     - 2 quarter sized white circles
     - 2 hole punch sized black circles

This is another quick and easy project. Set your toddler up with a small amount of brown paint and a brush. Loosely tape the plate to a paper bag to avoid getting paint on your table. Let your little one paint the plate to their heart's content.

Time to take a break while the paint dries a little. Then, apply the glue in the right place for the nose and eyes to go. Let your little one put the nose and eyes in place. Your reindeer might end up with googley eyes if you don't turn them to face the same direction. Again, let dry.

 Meanwhile, you have to do some antler-makin'. Unfold the bag handles and cut one in half. Use tape or glue to position the 2 halves on the 1 whole, as seen below. Staple the antlers to the back of the plate and paint over the staple marks to hide them. There you have it!

AFTERTHOUGHT: You could totally make this into a mask by attaching a stretchy cord to the sides and cutting out eye holes. How fun! We will do this after the holidays are over.

Painting with Cookie Cutters

I love Christmas. Love.

I am embarking on a 25 day challenge. 25 crafts for my almost 2-year old, one each night, to get her excited about Christmas.

DAY ONE: "PAINTING" WITH COOKIE CUTTERS

This one is really easy and can last as long as you want. It can be a quick "while mommy makes dinner" activity, or an evening event for the whole family to participate in.

WHAT YOU NEED:

     - Cookie cutters of any size, we used little Christmas shapes
     - Stamp pad or finger paint poured on a plate
     - Paper

VERDICT: Roo loved this. I just showed her one or two times and she took it from there. She experimented with different "styles" and even stamped her handprint a few times :)