Fall crafts

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Friday's Grand Connection Fun

by Mary May Larmoyeux

Fall is officially here!  I so look forward to cool autumn days and the changing colors!

How do you connect with your grandkids during the autumn months? One thing that I've done is make fall placemats with them. It's so easy to do:

•  Snap some pictures of the grands holding pumpkins, sitting in a pile of leaves, or standing by trees that are turning fall colors. Print out the pictures. With the grands, glue or tape the back of each selected picture onto a piece of placemat-size construction paper. 
• Help your grand write a Bible verse about changing seasons on each placemat, such as Daniel 2:21: “He changes times and seasons.” Discuss the verse and memorize it together.
• Now, encourage the grands to decorate the placemat with personal drawings, his/her name, stickers, prints of leaves made from a leaf stamp or a homemade “potato leaf stamp” (directions below), words describing things he/she is grateful for, etc.
•  Date each place mat.

How to Make a Leaf Potato Stamp:

• Wash several baking potatoes and cut them in half (width). Using a sharp knife, carve out the shape of a leaf (a different shape on each potato).
• On each potato, cut away the potato surrounding the shape so that the shape of the leaves will be about one-fourth of an inch. Presto—you have your stamp.
• Pour paints of fall colors into bowls (throw-away bowls are nice to use). Help your grand dip a stamp into a shallow bowl of paint. Now it’s ready for your grand to stamp his/her masterpiece.

As an added touch, the placemats could be laminated.

For long-distance grands: Make and mail some fall placemats to the grands. You may want to send them some stickers of pumpkins and leaves and ask them to create a picture with some of them and mail it back to you.

For older grandkids: Go on a picnic with them (of course, little ones would also enjoy this). Give them a piece of "fall jewelry" such as a necklace with a leaf pendant or a bookmark made in the shape of a leaf.

How do you create fall memories with your grands?

Have fun!
Mary
http://www.marymaywrites.com/
http://grandconnection.blogspot.com/


© 2009 by Mary May Larmoyeux. All rights reserved.

Fall Fun (Acrylic Paints, Pumpkin Centerpiece, and More)

Friday’s Fun

Well, today is Friday and two of our grands (almost 4 and 1 ½) will be spending the weekend. I’ve already made a trip to the hobby store. We’re going to make the fall placemats that I blogged about on September 26, and we’ll also decorate some plastic cups.

I learned today that you need acrylic paints for plastic … so, we now have acrylic paints. After a trip to the dollar store for the cups, we’ll be all set.

Painting can be messy for kids. If you're looking for an inexpensive “smock,” you could cut holes in an old pillowcase (for the child’s head and arms). I found disposable smocks online at Rex Art. Rex also sells an inexpensive child’s canvas apron with pockets that can be painted. Hummmm ... painting a grand's name on one of the aprons could make a fun Christmas present!

I was looking at Michael’s website and found a neat idea for an Autumn Pumpkin Centerpiece. It could be the perfect centerpiece to go with the kids’ fall placemats. You might want to scroll Michael’s site for the creative craft pumpkins ideas. I especially like Super Pumpkin.

Do you have any ideas for creative ways to decorate a pumpkin this year? Please share it in a comment or e-mail it to me at mary@marymaywrites.com.

Have a great weekend!

He is able,
Mary
http://www.marymaywrites.com/
http://grandconnection.blogspot.com/