Sweet Pea & JoJo: Pint Sized Project

Sunday, October 3, 2010

Pint Sized Project - nature art

So I have been on a hunt for nuts. Like a squirrel. Sweet Pea loves making pictures out of little bits of everything (fabric scraps, paper, etc) and I thought this project would be her cup of tea. It was. In fact, she made three or four pictures before she agreed to glue one down. I know we aren't the first people to do something like this and I can understand why, it was fun even though JoJo spent most of his time trying to eat acorns and feeding them to the dog. He was very helpful with the owl though. I put down the glue and he pressed on the nuts!

So this is what we did:

1. Let your kids pick up a WHOLE bunch of nuts, twigs, leaves etc while playing at the park on a Thursday. Spill them in the car. Pick them up. Watch your two year old eat them. Watch him spit them out. Spill them again in the house. Pick them up again.

2. Make a base. We used some corrugated plastic because I have a mountain of it in my basement. Cardboard or a piece of wood would work just as well.

3. Cover with paper of your choice. Interestingly, the paper we used was a paint sample. A big paint sample. (thank you interior designer sister!) I used a glue gun.

3. Play with your goodies. Make a picture, make a pattern, whistle with an acorn cap. Your kids will think you are cool.

4. Glue down your pieces. I used the good old glue gun. Sweet Pea pointed, I squirted glue, she put down the piece. For Jonah, I picked the spot, he put down the piece. Lots of fine motor skills practice!!

5. Embellish as you wish. I added some strips of fabric around the edges, a couple of walnut pieces at the corners & another strip of fabric to hang it. Sweet Pea's we left plain for now. I think I'll give it an edge and hanger and put it in her room. Oh and it's a boat. Cant' you tell?? That leave is the sail! She was bummed we ran out of room to make an anchor.