Looking For Signs of Spring

It’s that time of year again! 🙂 It’s time to take a walk and see what signs you can find that Spring is on the way! Now if you live in a place that has a lot of snow right now, I’m sorry! We are in Ohio and we might still get some snow, but I’m keeping my fingers crossed that we are done with snow for now!

We live in the country and I love taking walks around to see what new signs of Spring I can find. It gives me hope that one day soon it will be warm outside again! So what do you think you might find? Look for new flowers peeking up through the ground. Like our mini daffodils…which actually have a few flowers blooming now!

I even spotted this lone little dandelion. 🙂

Our trees are getting buds on them.

Our Daylilies are peeking through the ground and last year’s foliage.

And so is another type of lilies.

The ice cream store in a little town close to us is open again! 🙂 Watch for birds that are gone in the winter, but show up again in the Spring. We’ve seen Robins, Bluebirds and a Red-Winged Blackbird! Every time I see one, I get excited!

You will know that it’s almost Spring when the greenhouses open up again and this happens:

Haha! That has been me a few times in the past! 😉

The daylight hours are getting longer and this Sunday we will set our clocks ahead one hour for Daylight Savings time. (If you live in most states in the United States, it’s probably not your favorite thing to do.)

Do you love Spring? What are your favorite things to look for that tell you Spring is not far away? The sun is shining today, but the temperature and the wind are making it feel cold yet. But Spring is on the way, so keep your chin up and have fun looking for signs of Spring! 🙂

Making Your Own Paper Surprise Boxes

The other day I opened up a box of cream cheese and I noticed that if I opened it up completely and laid it flat that I could use it for a pattern to make another paper box. 🙂 So that’s what I want to share with you today. The next time you buy cream cheese, save the box!

I used a piece of cardstock for making my box. Lay your pattern on the piece of cardstock. My pattern box fit just right in one direction on an 8 1/2″ x 11″ piece of cardstock.

Trace around the outside of the pattern box using a pencil.

Cut it out along the line you just drew. Erase any pencil marks that you can still see after you finish cutting.

Using the pattern box as a guide, make a fold on your box every place the pattern has a fold. It’s very helpful to lay a ruler across the paper in the place you want the fold to be. This will give you an edge to press against and keep the fold straight.

I made all my folds that go in the same directions first.

Then turn your box and make all the folds in the other direction. For a lot of the folds, you can see easily where the fold should be and use the edges for a guide for your ruler. One place that there wasn’t an easy mark was the part on the top of the box that folds down inside the box when it’s closed. I laid the pattern back on top of my box, bent the pattern up and made 2 small marks where the fold needed to be.

Now all the folds have been put in our box and it’s time to put it together!

Oops, I’m getting ahead of myself! 😉 Before you glue/tape the box together, turn the box over and decorate the outside.

Since St. Patrick’s Day is in March, you might like to make your box for that holiday.

NOW to put it together! 😉 Fold the box up and put a little glue or double sided tape on the small tabs that fold inside the front of the box.

Do the same for the back side…put glue or tape on the small tabs that fit inside the box.

Close the top of the box and stick the front tab inside. Great job! You’ve made your first paper box! 🙂

Don’t forget to hide something fun inside the box before you share it with that special person! These could be used for any holiday or special occasion that comes along. Just decorate your box to fit the occasion. And maybe even hide the box to be found at the end of a treasure hunt! 🙂

I hope you will have fun making your own surprise boxes! 🙂

Making a Melting Snowman

Today is the last day of February! Who is ready for Spring?! 🙂 To celebrate that winter will (hopefully) be leaving us soon, we made a melting snowman!

You will need some shaving cream (I used Barbasol), some Elmer’s glue, 2 big wiggly eyes, a piece of cardstock (a darker color shows up the best), some brown or black pipe cleaners, 3 small black pom poms or buttons and some colored paper. (You can make the snowman parts all out of colored paper if you’d like to.) You will need a bowl and spoon for mixing and a disposable bowl and spoon works best for easy cleanup.

Mix 1/2 Cup of shaving cream and 1/8 Cup of Elmer’s glue in the disposable bowl.

I suggest you wash your measuring cups right away to prevent the glue from drying in them. After you’ve mixed the shaving cream and glue together, spoon it out onto your piece of cardstock.

Spread the mixture using the back of the spoon until you have the shape you want for your melted snowman.

I cut 2 brown pipe cleaners in half and wrapped one half-piece around another to make some stick arms for the snowman. You can also cut some arms out of paper instead.

Stick the arms onto the melted snowman. I started out with my arms too high and I moved them down a little farther.

Add 2 wiggly eyes, some black pom poms or buttons and an orange carrot nose and a black hat cut from paper.

I cut a thin squiggly line from black paper for the snowman’s mouth.

Allow your snowman to dry for a couple of hours. It will still be puffy and soft to the touch but not sticky. And there you are! The last of the snowmen have melted on this last day of February! (Keeping my fingers crossed that we are done with snow, but we might not get that lucky!) 🙂

Monday Funday Riddle Time!

Today is a rainy, dreary day in our neck of the woods, so it’s a good time to share some more riddles and make us all smile! What do you say? Let’s do this! 🙂

#1.) What did the dog say to his girlfriend?

Answer: “You look fetching tonight!”

#2.) What do you get if you cross a bear and a skunk?

Answer: Winnie the Phew!

#3.) When do seals giggle?

Answer: When they hear seal-y jokes!

#4.) What is a toad’s favorite movie?

Answer: Star Warts!

#5.) What kind of car does a cat drive?

Answer: A Cat-illac!

#6.) What’s another name for a nerdy pig?

Answer: Dorky Porky!

#7.) What do you feed a goat?

Answer: Braaa-d and butt-er!

#8.) Why do parrots go to rock concerts?

Answer: Birds of a feather rock together!

I hope these riddles cheered you up and made you giggle! Now, go share them with someone else and make them a smile! 🙂

Making Snowmen From Craft Sticks

Today we are thinking of all those that are getting hit by the historic Winter Storm Olive! Yikes! In support of you, we are making some friendly snowmen using craft sticks. (Or some might call them popsicle sticks.) We used the wider sticks for our snowmen. Here’s a sneak peek! 😉

You will need 1 wide craft stick for each snowman plus glue, markers, small wiggly eyes, confetti type decorations (or just draw “buttons” on with markers), white paint, paintbrush, small pieces of pipe cleaners and a bit of black paper. (Or white paper that you color black.)

Begin by painting your craft sticks white and allowing them time to dry.

Once the paint is dry, glue 2 small wiggly eyes on each stick.

Using the markers, draw a carrot nose and a mouth on each snowman. If you add a few tiny lines to each orange carrot nose, the nose will look more realistic. 😉

Now wrap a piece of a pipe cleaner around the stick to be the snowman’s scarf. Twist the ends together once.

Glue on 3 small decorations for the snowman’s buttons or use your markers to draw some buttons.

If you would like your snowman to have a hat, color the top part of the stick with a black marker.

To finish making the hat, cut a very small strip of black paper and glue it on at the bottom of the black area you just colored in.

And that’s it! Your snowmen are finished! If you would like to hang up your snowmen, you can glue a magnet or a loop of string to the back of each one.

I hope everyone enjoys making their snowmen and that each and every one of you stays safe and warm! Hang on! Spring will be here soon! 🙂

If You Like Ada Twist Scientist, Check Out Your Nearest Walmart!

On a recent trip to Walmart, I saw a couple of Ada Twist Scientist toys that are on clearance with really great discounted prices. Let me just say though, that I’ve never watched Ada Twist Scientist so I have no clue if this is a popular thing or not. 😉

The first set is an Ada Twist Scientist doll with a drawing board that also makes a desk. (Sorry about the face reflection in the picture! LOL)

The regular price was $28.88 but the clearance price is just $9.00! Wow!

The second toy is a Create-a-lab deluxe playset with 50+ pieces.

The regular price on this set was $24.97 but the clearance price is $11.00.

So if you’re an Ada Twist Scientist fan, (or your kiddo is), check in at your local Walmart and see if they have these items on sale too. Great buys! Good luck! 🙂

More Fun With Riddles!

Welcome to another Monday! And since sometimes Mondays can be a little rough with going back to school and work after a weekend off, let’s have a little fun with riddles to get us all grinning again. 🙂

#1.) What sign is posted at a Boa Constrictors family reunion?

Answer: “No Hugging!”

#2.) What time is it when a dinosaur sits on your sofa?

Answer: Time to get a new sofa!

#3.) What do frogs eat in France?

Answer: French flies!

#4.) Where did the dog leave his car?

Answer: In the barking lot!

#5.) How do sheep get clean?

Answer: They take a baa-th!

#6.) How do you entertain a cow?

Answer: Take her to the moo-vies!

#7.) What do you feed a race horse?

Answer: Fast food!

#8.) What do you call a parrot that likes to hike?

Answer: A walkie-talkie!

Are you smiling now? 🙂 I hope these riddles helped to lighten your mood and make you grin!

Making Colorful Snowmen Inside the House

Building a snowman outside with the kids can be such a fun time, but it has it’s drawbacks, right? Like getting all the kids dressed for going out into the cold weather. Finding coats, snow pants, boots, mittens and hats and getting all the items on all the kids at the same time can be a challenge! And just as you are ready to head out the door, you’ll probably hear a bundled up kiddo say, “I have to go to the bathroom!” Or you will be outside for a total of 2 minutes before someone starts crying because snow got on them or they are too cold! Haha! Yep, been there, done that! 😉

So today, let’s build some snowman inside our nice, warm houses! 🙂 And why stick with just white snowmen? Nope, let’s add some color to our lives! We’re making colorful snowmen! All you need is a few colors of Play-Doh. You can, of course, make your own dough, but I dug out the leftover cans we have stashed away for the grandkids.

Pick a color for the snowman’s body and work the dough in your hands to soften it up. My first snowman is blue. Then make 3 balls for your snowman…1 small for the head, 1 medium for the middle and 1 larger for the bottom of the body.

Stack the balls on top of each other to build your snowman. If you have trouble getting the balls to sit one on top of the other, stick a toothpick in the center to hold them in place.

Make a little carrot for the snowman’s nose. It doesn’t need to be orange, but since we had some orange Play-Doh, I decided to stick with an orange nose.

Pick another color and make 2 teeny tiny balls for the snowman’s eyes.

Make a long skinny piece for a mouth.

I made a long flat piece of Play-Doh for a scarf. One handy way to roll the dough flat is to use the side of the can like you would use a rolling pin.

I wrapped the scarf around the snowman’s “neck”. He’s quite handsome, don’t you think? 😉

For my second snowman, I chose to use purple for his body.

I added an orange nose, green eyes and green buttons.

I gave this snowman a couple of arms.

Wow, I think that’s the first time I’ve made a blue and a purple snowman! They are kind of wild looking, aren’t they? 😉 That’s what makes them fun! You can feel free to make your snowman look any way you want! There’s no wrong color for a colorful snowman! 🙂

You can have fun making a snowman without needing your coat or mittens! Haha! Have fun!

Making a Simple Handmade Card

With the price of greeting cards these days, a great hobby can be making your own cards. Today I want to share a simple design that can be made in different ways for different occasions. This design can be made by kids too although especially young children will need some help.

I used a premade blank card but you can also use a piece of cardstock. If using the cardstock, cut an 8 1/2″ x 11″ piece in half and then use one of the halves by folding it in half.

You’ll need 4-6 different pieces of coordinated printed paper like scrapbooking paper. I had a pack of origami paper, so that’s what I used.

Here are the 4 papers I used for my card.

Cut some strips from your paper so that you have some of each color/print. I cut mine about 1″ wide by the length of the paper which was about 6″. You can make the strips all the same width or you can make them different widths. Both ways will work fine.

Select 1 strip of paper and glue it down to the front of the card. Let it hang over both edges.

Glue another strip of paper next to the first one. I left a small space between the strips, but you can line them up against each other if you prefer.

Continue gluing on strips until you have filled up the front of the card.

Using a pair of scissors, trim off the extra parts of the strips of paper all the way around the front of the card.

Then the outside of your card is finished. 🙂

You can write a verse or greeting inside the card to fit the occasion. The paper can be coordinated with the occasion too. For instance, use birthday type scrapbooking paper for your strips when making a birthday card. I have some stamps and ink that I used to put a message inside my card.

Little stickers can also add a nice touch to your card.

And there you are! You have a cute card ready to send to brighten someone’s day. 🙂

Happy Valentine’s Day with 1 More Valentine Craft

Happy Valentine’s Day! 🙂

I had some other Valentine’s Day crafts in mind to do for you, but when I got sick with Covid, that all kinda went by the wayside. But I do have one more cute Valentine card idea for you that’s super quick and easy. You can make it as a decoration or a card. You’ll need a piece of construction paper (I used pink), some glue, pretty string or yarn, a pencil, markers or crayons and scissors. Begin by drawing a heart on your piece of construction paper. I used a heart shaped cookie cutter to trace around for my heart. (My apologies for the poor quality of pictures. I was coming down sick when I made this and didn’t feel up to moving around to find better lighting.)