Welcome Winter

In north Texas this weekend, we are expecting a thrust into winter with ice and sleet.  Ice is not my favorite - if we are going to have winter precipitation, I would much rather have light, fluffy snowflakes.  Doesn't the thought of snow make you feel nostalgic, happy, excited, and childlike?  I'm not talking about the months of snow that my brother and sister in law experience in Iowa- I'm talking first snow.  Let's welcome winter and make a cute craft all at the same time!

All you need is newspaper, masking tape and scissors.  Get your kids to help you and teach them how to make smaller versions as well!

Step 1 - lay out newspapers and tape together using masking tape.  I used three sheets of newspaper high and three wide.  I found it worked well to take the three in a row together, then tape my three completed rows together.  When you have your newspaper taped together, fold in half on the diagonal and trim to square.

Step 2 - Fold in half on the center line again (see photo above).  It should now be folded in quarters.

Step 3 - Fold in half on the center line again (see photo above).  It should be folded in eighths now.

Step 4 - This is a photo showing what your snowflake should look like now - folded in eighths.

Step 5 - Draw where you want to cut your snowflake.  Make sure you do not cut the entire length of either of the folded sides.  You can easily cut things OUT of the sides to make a cool design.  Check out Pinterest for awesome templates you can use, or draw your own!

Step 6 - Cut out your snow flake.  This step will probably require adult scissors, though feel free to welcome your kids to try on their own with safety scissors if they are old enough.

And there you have it, a giant paper snowflake!  So many possibilities!  This one is going in the display case at the school where I teach along with student artwork.  Looking for festive ways to bring some Christmas spirit to school.  I'd love to see your snowflakes!  Feel free to post your photos on the Mama Marcie facebook page :)

20 more days until Christmas!

Thankful, Day 1

It is so easy to get bogged down in the daily grind - the dishes, the laundry, the carpool - seems to be never ending!

I propose we take 1 month - just one (though maybe it will be contagious and sneak into the other months, too) - and just be thankful.  Look for something good in every single day.  Seek our our blessings, not our curses.  And in return, possibly see a change in ourselves, in the way our home runs, and in our attitudes.  *fingers crossed*

When we were little, my mom was a crafty genius (still is), and always had some fun ideas to get us kiddos involved.  One of the things that sticks in my mind the most is the Thankful Turkey on the pantry door.

This is ours so far this year.  Every day, make it a routine to write down one thing per person that you are thankful for.  You can do it at dinner time or maybe at night as part of the bedtime routine...

Now is the time to break out that construction paper!!  Let your inner 7 year old out and have FUN creating a memory for your kiddos.  For the center shape (the turkey body), I used butcher paper because I had it laying around.  You can also use a sheet of poster board.  I made it easy on myself and folded all my shapes in half so that they were symmetrical. 

Here are the shapes you need:

Be creative!  Use whatever colors you want.

For the beak, I folded the triangle in half, then cut a tiny slit on the side opposite the point and folded about a quarter of an inch down so that I would have a way to glue it to the body.

My girls are totally into this already.  Izzy wanted to do all of them tonight - she is already looking forward to tomorrow night's feather!  Even daddy got in on the action!