Pumpkin Wreath

This was my attempt at a cute fall wreath.  I didn't want to do flowers or burlap because I feel like every other person I know has those type of wreaths on their door right now.  Instead, I tried to make a pumpkin.  I wrapped christmas lights around my wreath and then added layers of tulle.  I added a bow (which was suppose to look like a stem).  All in all, I'm not too proud of it, but because I put in the time, money, and energy it will stay right where it is until my Christmas wreaths come out.

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Fall, Thanksgiving, and Christmas Themed Busy Bag Swap

We recently had a Fall/Thanksgiving/Christmas Busy Bag Swap.  However, this time instead of having a swapping party, everyone dropped off their bags at my house through out the week and I was able to deliver all of them one Sunday at church.  It actually worked really well and I think is a great alternative during busier seasons.

First, we have a fall leaf matching memory game.  I love these memory games because if your child is pretty young they can match the cards with the pictures face up and then grow into using the game as a memory game.

Next, we have fall themed lacing cards.

Then, we have these really neat cards that show the child what eight different kinds of trees look like.  If you flip over the card there is an outline of one of the leaves from that particular tree.  The child can then match the leaves with their outline.  So fun!

Next, we have a felt Thanksgiving turkey board.  The child can make many other scenes from the felt shapes provided, but I gave Addilyn a picture of the Turkey scene and asked if she could make it on her own.

Another Thanksgiving felt activity focuses on Pilgrims.  I think this is so neat because you dress the person in the boy pilgrim or girl pilgrim clothes.  I thought about make some felt Indian clothes to to add to the bag.  We will see if that actually happens before Thanksgiving.

Next, we have two size sorting activities; one for Thanksgiving and one for Christmas.  The Thanksgiving set includes a small, medium, and large set of 2 different types of leaves, pumpkins, and Pilgrim hats.  The Christmas set includes a small, medium, and large set of ice skates, snowflakes, scarves, Christmas trees, and sleds.  I haven’t let Addi play with this one yet since it’s only October, but all she will have to do is put the appropriate size object in the correct foam window.

Then, we have some fun snowball counting made from cotton balls and paper cups.   I like games like this where is a piece goes missing you can easily replace it.

We also have a few Christmas themed lacing cards.

Now, this one is a fun one.  With lots of foam shapes we can make all sorts of Christmas symbols.  There are several pattern cards for younger kiddos.

And, last, but not least, we have a felt Christmas Tree button game.  The stars have the numbers 1-20 on them.  You place a star on top of the tree and your child can place that number of buttons on the tree as if they are ornaments.  I just thought this was the cutest idea.

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Homemade Mr. Potato Head Book

Who doesn't like playing with a Mr. Potato Head?  Endless possibilities.  I took pictures of the many different faces that appeared over the course of a few weeks as we played with him.  When my favorite prints company did a sale I got a copy of each picture and filled up a cheap photo album with tons and tons of Mr. Potato Head options.  Now, I ask Addi if she can make her Mr. Potato Head look the same as the one in the picture.  For the most part she can replicate it.

I would post the pictures I took so people could download them but I realized that it actually might not be helpful as most people have different parts and accessories to go with their Mr. Potato Head.

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Popsicle Stick Color Sorting

I picked up a bag of colored popsicle sticks and decided to make another sorting game by covering some toilet paper rolls with construction paper.  I hot glued the rolls to a piece of sturdy white cardboard.  Ta da!  All done.  New game for the little ones!

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Mini Eraser Sorting

I bought a pack of mini erasers for $0.88 to use on another project but Addi thought they were so cute so it quickly became a busy bag game.  She loves sorting the different kinds into different sections of a plastic vegetable tray.  Fun, fun, fun and super easy!

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Crockpot Rotisserie Style Chicken

Oh, yes, so yummy.  Easiest dinner EVER!  Thanks to Pinterest I saw where you could buy a whole chicken, rub spices on it, and stick it in your crockpot for 6-8 hours (depending on the size of the chicken and what setting your crockpot it on).  I tried it and the whole family loved it.  And, as a bonus, I also had chicken broth left over to use in other recipes. AWESOME!!!

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Scrapbook Paper Craziness

Scraps of scrapbook paper lying around or stuck in a box hoping to get used?  Well, pull'em out.  Cutting multiple sheets in to small, medium, and large shapes is so easy.  You can do just about any shape you want.  I choose squares and rectangles because it was easiest.  I gave Addi a bag with 12 different patterns and she spread all her materials out across the entire kitchen floor.  I wasn't expecting this to turn into a really active game, but Little Miss Energy was so excited to find matches and put them in their "right spot."

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Rubbing Cards

Rubbing cards.  So much fun and so so so easy!!!  I took a piece of heavy white cardboard and cut it into small pieces.  Then, I used my hot glue gun to make shapes on the boards.  After it completely dried I got a piece of blank white copy paper, laid it over one of the boards, and gave Addi a crayon.  I showed her how to gently rub back and forth and she thought it was amazing how SHE colored a square!

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Tri-Beads and Tongs

These tri-beads have been placed in an oversize medicine sorter.  I found this extra large medicine sorter at the Dollar Store.  I added felt to the top and bottom of the lids. For this game you child should try placing the beads in the correct compartment by transferring them with tongs.  The tongs in this picture are not the type I would recommend but at the time, it's all that we had.

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Transferring Colored Beads

For this activity I took tiny pieces of felt and hot glued them into the bottom of an ice tray.  Next, I found some matching tri-beads and threw in a small spoon so we could work on scooping and spooning beads from one side of the tray to the other in their correct spot.  So far, it's a big hit!

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