I Spy Ornaments-Gift for Kids

We have a family tradition of making homemade gifts. There is something special that goes into something you make for a certain someone.

This I Spy Ornament is fun to give for lots of ages!

To make {This Little Project} you will need:

• A clear plastic ornament that is fillable (ours were from Hobby Lobby)
• ribbon for hanger
• miniature ornaments or other small things (like shaped buttons) to put inside
• "snow" is polypellets (like inside a bean bag chair or try plastic "snow" from the craft store)
• paper to write the "list" of what you put inside so it can be found
• super glue (to hold it closed once you are done)

Make your list of what is inside then put the items in one half of the ornament. Cover with "snow" then put a little glue around the outside and attach the other half. Punch a whole in your list and attach it with the ribbon hanger.

Easy and FUN!

Have fun give something YOU made JUST for THEM!

Mr. Potato Head Turkey

Jay came home from his art class with this potato-head styled turkey. It was so cute I had to share.

He's so proud of himself for making it (toothpicks and feathers-including one in the back to help him stand) but doesn't think it's funny when we talk about cooking him up for Thanksgiving!

Make a Turkey Cookie

These turkey cookies are made out of a cookie, carmel, chocolate kiss and candy corn glued together with creamy peanut butter. YUM!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Hand Turkey Shirts

This post is also from the past as I made these Thanksgiving shirts last year. I think they're going to fit again this year too so we may not get new shirts until next year!
Last year I bought orange shirts planning to make the Halloween pumpkin shirts I made this year. I didn't get to it in time so I made Thanksgiving shirts instead. My little one's shirt was made out of an 6-9 month boys onsie. I cut off the bottom, hemmed it and covered up the logo with the hand turkey.

To make the turkey on their shirts, I traced their hand and cut it out to make the pattern. Then using a scrap of fabric I cut out the hand and a square to back it up. The turkey needed a little contrast to help it stand out. I appliqued the square and hand on with my zigzag stitch and then added the details of feathers, eye, beak, legs and feet. I reversed the fabrics on the second shirt just for fun and to make them a little different.

What are you wearing for Thanksgiving?

My Favorite Pie Recipe

Whenever I get the chance to make pie I go for this one:

Sour Cream Apple Pie.

The recipe comes from an old friend of my mother's. Every time I serve it people ask for the recipe. So here we go!

(I'll give you an easy pie crust recipe to go with it too-down at the end.)

You need 3 cups of apples-peeled and cored. {Little Project Tip:} If you don't have one of those handy little things the slicing and coring for you just cut around as you go-see photo. It's faster than cutting into 4's and slicing the seeds out. Plus you end up with nice small pieces.

{Little Project Tip:} I think it's easier to peel the apple in one long peel going around and around. But that's just me. I love adding such a cheery bit of color to the compost pile-but that's just me too!

Sour Cream Apple Pie Recipe:

2 eggs beaten

1 cup sour cream

1 cup sugar

2 T flour

1 tsp vanilla

1/4 tsp salt

3 cups apples (peeled/cored and sliced)

Crumble for top of pie:

3 T. butter

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup flour

Directions: Combine eggs and sour cream. Add sugar. Then add flour, vanilla, and salt. Apples go in last.

Pour into an unbaked pie crust (see recipe below) and bake for 15 minutes at 375 degrees. Then sprinkle with the brown sugar crumble and finish baking 20-25 minutes

So many people are afraid of making pie crust. I love this recipe because it always turns out and it's so EASY!

Pie Crust Recipe:

2 1/2 cups flour

1 cup shortening

1/2 tsp salt

1 egg

1 T white vinegar

1/4 cup water

Just throw all the ingredients in your Kitchen Aid or Bosch and it turns out great.

(makes three 9 inch crusts or four 8 inch)

To roll it out, start with a ball of dough and sandwich it between two layers of wax paper. Roll and then release each side of the paper and roll again as needed. If it sticks too much to the wax paper sprinkle a tiny bit of flour. It gets easier each time you do it.

One other {Little Project Tip}: I use enough wax paper that I have some extra hanging over the edge of the table or counter so that I can lean against it to keep it from moving around as I roll.

Enjoy This YUMMY Little Project! It's best served warm, but it's great the next day too :)
Trust me, it's the best!

Thanksgiving Blast from the Past

If you are looking for some ideas for celebrating Thanksgiving, be sure to check out the Thanksgiving Little Project archives here for ideas like this shirt,
game, and more!

Enjoy!

Turkey Treats for Kids

There isn't anything fancy about these turkey treats. But they are festive and kid-friendly to make.

To make {This Little Project} you will need:

• graham crackers (2 of any cookie would work too)
• chocolate chips
• frosting
• candy corn
• vanilla wafer cookies
• sour straws (for feathers)

Just cover on graham cracker with frosting. Add the feathers and cover with the other graham cracker. Then use the frosting to add the face.

Kids like to make 'em and eat em' and they take just a few minutes to complete ;)

enjoy your turkey treats!

Bones Song

My girls love to sing and will learn anything in the form of a song. A year ago, my 5 year old discovered bones and we made up a song to learn the different bones in our body.Click on the picture to see the movie of her singing it. She isn't pointing to the respective bones in the movie, but you should when you sing it. Here are the lyrics:
TibiaFibulaPatellaFemurPelvisSpine Ribs SternumClavicleHumerusRadiusUlnakiss my Skull on top
Hope this hits your fun bone!

Friday Favorites and Freebies

I hope your first weekend in November is looking to be fantastic! Enjoy these fun favorites and freebies!

I have been wanting to have a "ball" with my stash of styrofoam balls. These are beautiful! And I can't wait to try one!

Tis the season to fall in love with your slow cooker. Here's a a yummy blog and recipe to try!

This is a clever way to personalize a t-shirt!

If you haven't tried making your own crayons yet, these pumpkin ones are perfect!

And finally, a fun way to play with your food-check out these AMAZING pancakes!

Happy Weekend to you!

Upcycling Halloween

When I was a kid I always looked forward to Halloween. My Mom loved making costumes and it was fun to see what she could dream up! I caught the costume-making bug and love to do it for my kids now! This year by popular demand Jay, Kay, and Elle were Peter Pan movie characters.

But a fun costume to make is one that doesn't totally stress you out, right?

So, how to get from this:

To this?

My secret weapons for {This Little Project} are:

hot glue gun

steam-a-seam

and not starting a costume from scratch.

Here's what I mean:

The green jumper was $2 at the thrift store (this way I didn't have to make it)

The purple is upcycled from an unused t-shirt.

The Tinker Bell cut from a piece of fabric is put on with one of my favorite secret weapons: steam-a-seam. It's the easy way to make your own iron-ons.

And, since tutus are so stink'n cute on babies I had to make her one and the wings were from the dollar store.

Total cost was about $5 and time spent was around an 1.5 hours.

Kay's Tiger Lily Indian costume is felt, ribbon, and hot glue (with a few feathers and beads). Seriously. I didn't sew a single thing!

Safety pins are a good secret weapon too. We started with a pink jumper underneath and just accessorized

(never mind that her collar is crooked for the photo ;)

Now you have a few secrets for adding some fun costumes to your dress-up box, school plays, and yes Halloween! Have fun dreaming them up!