Colored Chalkboard Paint

(Click on pictures to make larger)

I have always loved the idea of chalkboard paint.  I remember being very excited when I found a can of  Chalkboard Spray.  I once made Maggie a magnetic chalkboard but was very disappointed how it turned out.  Sigh.  This left me still wanting to make her a board, but I never tried again because of the first failed attempt and I didn't want a big black wall in her room.  Over the years I have thought about how great it would be to make colored chalkboard paint.  Well, guess what you can!  And I did!  And so can you!  It is so unbelievably EASY!

(Click on picture to make larger)

Here is what you do:

Start with a flat finish latex paint in any color (make sure you start with a clean, primed surface).  I used Pale Sea Mist by Benjamin Moore.  It's a nice soft green color.  I only bought a quart since I was (a) trying out a new idea and (b) I was only painting the door panels on the inside of her bedroom door.  Which, by the way only took 1 cup of paint to do, so I still have left over for future projects!

Pour 1 cup of paint into a container.  I just used my paint pan so I wouldn't have a lot of extra things to clean up.  I then added 2 Tablespoons of unsanded tiled grout (make sure you use unsanded so it will smooth when you finish).  Mix carefully making sure to break up any clumps. 

I then took a small sponge brush and painted the corners of the panels and then used a small roller to paint the rest of the surface with.  Using a roller made the surface smoother.  A brush would have left stroke marks, didn't want that!  I painted 3 coats mainly so I could achieve the color on the paint chip sample.  I am pretty sure two coats would have been just fine.  I let each coat dry in between painting.

After my paint dried I then took some 150-grit sandpaper and gently smoothed the area.  Then wiped off the dust.  

Before turning Maggie loose with her new chalk, I rubbed a side of piece of chalk all over the entire area and then wiped away the residue with a very lightly wet cloth.  

It turned out so awesome that I am now planning to make a bigger board (in another color) for her room and possibly a chalkboard magnetic wall for our kitchen.

I wish I had taken a true "before" picture.  The door was actually painted yellow with pink panels.  It hadn't been painted in some time and really needed some love.  It's getting lots of love now!  Maggie is having an absolute great time with it! 

Now off to find the perfect door knob!

 

Applesauce Cinnamon Ornaments

This Christmas is going to be very different for us.  Normally we have a 7.5 ft+ Christmas tree, I have a huge Christmas village that I LOVE to put up, we are also usually the house that goes way overboard on the outside decorations and lights.  You know the house that everyone drives by.  But this year we aren't doing any of that.  This year is the year for simplicity.

Most of you know we are living in a tiny, temporary home.  To have a 7.5 ft tree would take up my entire living room.  Now, like I told Chris, if we didn't have a 6 year old running around playing, I wouldn't care.  :)  On top of the small living conditions, all of our Christmas decorations are in storage.  When we were moving stuff into storage we loaded all the Holiday decorations to the very back of our storage units.  We thought our stuff would only be there for a month.  Surprise, surprise!

So, because it has been raining and cold and I am just too darn lazy to go dig through storage, we are making our own ornaments!  We are also getting a tiny little tree.  Maybe 4ft?  Maybe smaller.    Normally this would just bug me!  I don't know why.  I guess I am pretty set in the way things are done.  I am not one who tolerates change well.  But for some reason I am kind of excited about this.  Who knows what this will mean for future Christmas'!

All that to say (hey, i'm Italian, I can't help but tell the ENTIRE story before getting to my point!), today we made Applesauce Cinnamon Ornaments.  The smell alone is enough to put me in a great mood!  Chris, Maggie and I teamed up and had a good time!  I made the dough, they rolled and cut.  Then we decorated with some glitter.  The ones that didn't get all glittered up will get painted.

All I did was take equal parts of cinnamon and applesauce, mixed together very well.  Made sure it wasn't too gooey-just a nice dough consistency.  Rolled out on a piece of wax paper.  Used cookie cutters to cut shapes, added glitter and baked at 170 for 1 hour on a cookie sheet.  Then took ornaments off the cookie sheet and put on cookie rack, baked another 1 1/2 hours.  Tie strings on them and then hang!  Super easy!

It was a nice family activity.  Everyone loves getting their hands gooey in dough and sprinkling glitter.  The Christmas music was going in the background, kitchen window shades open with a promise of snow!  Looking forward to hanging on our tree and having a "semi-homemade" Christmas!

{gathering}

Gathering items for an upcoming project............

       ........stay tuned!

A Free Silhouette Craft Cutter!

Yes!  Really!  I have been reading a great blog lately, Southern Hospitality and she has a great giveaway going on!

Here is the direct link to the giveaway.  You MUST go and enter to win!  What a great prize this would be!

Good Luck!

Spring is definitely in the air!

Good grief!  It's almost been a week since my last post!  Time sure has gotten away from me!  I guess I will just have to "recap" a little of what has been going on here!

On the project home-front we made a Spring Bouquet.  It was really fun, and turned out cute.  These have become a tradition in our house over the last couple of years.  Chris and Maggie started making them when he was a stay at home dad.  This time we got to do them as a family.  :)

We have had a lot of excitement around here as well.  Something we have been waiting for for some time FINALLY happened!  Ellen DeHeneres laid her first egg!  And, not only was it her first egg, it was also green!!  We have been a bit disappointed with Meryl Peep, who gave us a brown one, which is rare for the Easter Egger hens.  It's hard to tell the color as it is pretty light, but here is our green beauty!

She is in her box right now laying her second egg.  I'm hoping it's a bit darker.  :) 

And something we were expecting but didn't know when it would happen was the birth of Daisy's babies.  5 sweet little fuzzy babies.  3 striped, 2 black.  They are so stinkin' cute! 

Hours old

One baby-1 day old

3 days old

Daisy will be going in to get spayed in 12 weeks.

Yesterday we had an unexpected surprise.  SNOW in Northern California.  We were bummed it didn't stick, but it was sure pretty coming down!

Right before it started snowing we saw our neighborhood Coyote running about in the field.  He/She sure is pretty!

And today we had a little food fun.  We made Rice Crispy Treat Easter Eggs and Chocolate Covered Raisins.

Somewhere in between we have snuck in homeschooling and a lot of game playing.  I also got some great products in the mail this week that I will post a review on next week.  We have been having a lot of fun with that as well!

Hope everyone is having a great day!

Leprechaun Trap

It's that time again!! We need to start watching out for that little sneaky Leprechaun to come around! Maggie and I have high hopes that we will catch him this year. We know he is pretty tricky and also very smart. Leprechauns are very careful to not get caught. We thought this trap would be perfect though. Its sparkly, we know Leprechauns like that! I hope we catch him!



You can make one too! Here is how!

• Oatmeal can
• Green Felt, Scrap paper, Craft Foam-anything green you want to use.
  --we used 2-12x12 pieces of Light Green Glitter Cardstock from Best Creation Inc. One piece to cover the can, the other for the brim
• Yellow and Black Construction paper for band and buckle
• Playdough for Rainbow
• Cotton Balls for clouds
• Straws for ladder
• Gold Coins
• 3 Green Straws

I covered the can with our green cardstock. Then we cut a trap in the top of the lid. A little square that we covered loosely with a piece of cardstock cut just slightly bigger than the hole. We did not glue or tape it down because this is the trap for the Leprechaun to fall into! I also took the second piece of cardstock and cut out the brim.

To make the band and buckle, we just cut out the pieces from construction paper and glued them on. I decided last minute to add some glitter for the buckle. You can never have too much sparkly when making a Leprechaun Trap!

We picked out our playdough colors for the rainbow. Took small amounts and rolled them into "snakes". Once we got them all rolled out I slightly smooshed them together. Then I glued them to a piece of construction paper to make it sturdy enough to stand up on it's own. Once we were done with our rainbow I glued on our clouds and placed our gold coins right by the trap door.

The ladder is easy but takes the most time because it needs to dry. If we make this again I will make the ladder first so it will be dry by the time we are done putting the trap together. We used 2 straws for the sides and cut up the third for the steps. We glued the steps on to the two other pieces.

Maggie and I really think we might actually catch a leprechaun this year! Are you making a trap for your house? How are you making yours?

Valentine Door Hanger

I know yesterday I mentioned that I would post the dog food recipe today, but we made this adorable Valentine Door Hanger Craft yesterday and I just had to post about it. It's absolutely adorable! We had a lot of fun making it.

It is suppose to be hung on the doorknob, but we can't do that because of our 3 very curious kitty cats. I think it looks cute on the door, and it still jingles when the door opens. That's what counts!



Here is what you will need:

1-2 sheets of red construction paper or craft foam
1 piece of white construction paper or craft foam
1 piece of pink construction paper or craft foam
White ribbon or string
3 jingle bells
Glue
Hole Punch

How to make your door hanger:

-Cut out 4 red hearts
-Cut out the letters "L" and "V" from white paper/foam
-Cut out the letters "O" and "E" from pink paper/foam
-Glue each letter on to a heart
-Punch 1 hole at the top and bottom of each heart
-Cut small pieces of ribbon (3-4 inches) and use the ribbon to tie the bottom of one heart to the top of the next in order so you spell out the word "LOVE". At the top of the "L" heart use a longer piece of ribbon to use as a hanger. At the bottom of the "E" heart thread 3 jingle bells onto the ribbon and then tie it onto the heart.
-Hang up your door hanger!

We are thinking of making another one of these for Maggie's Grammie. I think we may jazz it up a bit by putting gold glitter around each letter for some extra sparkle!



I think it's pretty cute. Maggie is excited for her daddy to come thru the door so the bells will jingle.

Homemade Lanterns

We did a very quick, easy project this morning. We made lanterns out of mason jars and tissue paper. We even got Dad to make one. This is a simple craft that is great for even the littlest of hands. All you need is a glass jar of any type (we just happen to have an over abundance of Mason-type jars thanks to my mom), some watered down white school glue and tissue paper.

Mix your glue with water to get it pretty thin. "Paint" sections of your jar and stick on tissue paper. I was so thankful to have my tissue paper already cut. Keep going around your jar until you have the design you want. You can cover up the entire jar or leave little holes in spaces. If you want to get real creative glitter is always fun too!
After we got all the tissue on we painted over it with a real thin coat of watered down glue to make sure the tissue was secure.

I wish I had some craft wire because I would have made a lantern handle. But I still think they are cute without. I still may get some today when I run into town. I think they would look "finished".

Put a candle inside your jar and you have a beautiful new creation!

Chocolate Playdough

Cold, rainy days call for something special so we whipped up a batch of chocolate playdough. Be warned though, once you make it your hands will smell like yummy chocolate all day. Not that that is necessarily a bad thing. Seeing it in that bowl makes me think of chocolate pudding......another yummy thing!


So, you think you want to make some? It's probably one of the easiest playdoughs I have ever made.





Here's how:

1 1/4 c flour
1/2 c cocoa
1/2 c salt
2 tsp cream of tartar



Combine and mix ingredients thoroughly. Once mixed, add in 1 1/2 T cooking oil and 1 c boiling water. Mix and knead until you have a nice soft ball of dough.

Store in either a plastic baggie or airtight container. I always keep mine in the refrigerator,I don't know if it really prolongs the lifespan or not, but I do know that I have playdough that is about 1.5 years old now and it's as good now as it was the day it was made.

Who could resist a chocolate heart made by their favorite kid?

Flat Sarah

Maggie absolutely loves learning about the States and Countries on our map. It's been really fun for her learning where family members and friends live. Knowing that Uncle Ken lives in Tennessee and Cousin Steve lives in Oregon has made learning the States pretty easy for her. But now we are running out of family so we are relying on friends now! In order to do this we are doing a Flat Sarah. A female version of Flat Stanley.

Not only will this help Maggie learn the map, she will also be learning about things that happen in different states. Weather, things to do, things about the State, etc. We are hoping for some really good feedback.....and pictures!!

Check in as I will have updates on Flat Sarah's travels!

Here is a picture of our little friend on the night before she sets out on her journey!

Making pretty things!

Maggie has discovered the art of making jewelry! We have a small bead store in town that we have tried to go to on several occasions. They have kind of weird store hours, but even when you go during those hours it's not a guarantee that they are open. We have lived her for almost 2 years now and we finally hit the jackpot last Thursday when we were in town. We were at the health food store across the street and we noticed they were open. Of course we ran across the street to make sure we got there before they decided to close for whatever reason. That's the downfall of small town living! LOL

Anyhow, Maggie and I walked around with our jaws wide open, like kids in a candy store. Maggie found a cute little kit to make necklaces(they give you enough materials to make two necklaces), we made 1 necklace and one bracelet. We have enough stuff to make a whole other set! Pretty impressive that the kit was only $5.50. Not only did we get enough to make two necklaces and two bracelets, but there are plenty of green beads for another project!

Here is the kit:


Necklace


Bracelet


Admittedly, the two silver charms were not part of the kit. Even if we hadn't used them we still would have had lots of leftovers from the kit. For .20 cents a piece, who could resist a cute silver frog and crown??

We are heading into town in a little bit....hoping the store is open so we can get more beads and stuff!

Maggie walked on the Moon!

Maggie is obsessed with anything that has to do with Space. The Moon, Stars, Planets. Loves it. While I was blog stalking I stumbled upon a new blog, well, new to me Mind Games. She had the cutest project. Here is our version of what she had done!

Coloring Space Suit:


Making "moon glue" (1/4 cup flour, water to make paste, white/iridescent glitter for sparkle--you can also use salt


Getting dirty making the moon (favorite part) We used a strip of bubble wrap to make craters.


Glued her face to the space suit


Added stars and a space ship, Maggie walking on the moon~


She had so much fun making it we had to come up with another project. So we colored a larger version of the space suit and put in another pic of her. I *think* thats what she really wanted. I mean, how much fun is it to see a picture of yourself walking on the moon!

Starting Over

Well, as the title says, I'm starting over! A whole new blog.

Chris' favorite cookies are Snickerdoodles. Maggie and I decided we would make him some for part of his Father's Day gift. We started making the cookies before Chris got home. When Maggie heard him pull in the driveway her excited squeal and her "I have to hide" was routine just like any other evening. Chris came thru the door, Maggie giggling under the blanket on the couch. Chris acting like he doesn't know where Maggie is. All of a sudden Maggie popped up and yelled out "me and mommy are making you Snoodledoodles for Father's Day".

Well, Chris and I giggled and fell in love with Snoodledoodles. It's become "the word" over the last day in our house. So, there you have it. I love it! I hope you do too!

I am so happy to get back to blogging. So much has happened since I last wrote. I took a few months hiatus due to some big issues going on. The biggest is that I quit my job. I am once again a Stay At Home Mommy! I can not tell you how good it feels to be back home!
I am slowly getting back into a routine.

Maggie and I are currently working on a Mermaid diorama that we got in this weeks newsletter from KCW (http://www.kidscraftweekly.com). Amber out did herself this time as far as Maggie is concerned. I took some pictures but haven't downloaded them yet. So far we got the Starfish done. Tomorrow we are working on the jellyfish and going to the beach at the lake to get some sand. Can't wait to post pictures and show you!

So glad to be at this again and hoping that all my readers find me again!

Have a great night!