Happy Halloween!
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Category Archives: Recreation
F is For…
EEEEEEeeeeeeeee!
E is for earth and envelopes.
Time For Change
I was sick of my hair. Long (for me), hot, shaggy, all over the place, drab. So I changed it. Presto! New me, at least externally and above the neck.
I also dragged out the sewing machine finally, and figured out how to thread it. Claire says she wants to be a ghost for Halloween, so I made her a costume. Unfortunately, she won’t actually keep it on. It’s not that she doesn’t like it; she plays a came of “on and off.” But I did it. I’m so proud of myself. Do you know how hard it is to sew a curve, or a 60-inch circle?
Because I’m not sure she’ll wear the costume, I also bought her a witch had and black tutu, and I made her a little cape. So as a backup she can be a witch if she wants. And all this will go in the dress-up basket too.
Autumn Beauty & Savory Fare
We made some today. Sequins make life sparkle!
I also received a bread maker from a friend’s friend, hardly used. My first loaf of whole wheat bread was quite delicious. I just need to learn to slice evenly. (It makes great pizza dough too.)
D
We’re Back
We are back, we’ve been back, we had a wonderful trip. I just haven’t had time to sit quietly and write about it. However, we have been crafting!
A Full Weekend
The weekend was fast! So much happened. We went to a toy store and bought a tricycle that one of Claire’s relatives is giving for her third birthday. The funny thing about all this is that in the store, the only toys that captivated Claire were the stuffed animals. She was hugging them, playing with them, using her imagination and having them say and do things. She had zero interest in the trike at the time, and even less interest in the other stuff packed into the small store. Makes me wonder when we’ll be getting a dog, since that is her very favorite of all time beloved animal. However, she did get into the trike once we got home.
Then later in the evening, we made our first backyard campfire. We were waiting until it was dark enough early enough so we could still have a reasonable bedtime. The fire pit was a housewarming gift from a relative. (Hey EP, it might look different to you, and that’s because it is. The first one was just huge for our patio space, so we exchanged that for the one in the photo.) We roasted marshmallows, which Claire decided she didn’t like. She likes them uncooked. And she likes chocolate. And graham crackers. Just not all together in the form of a s’more. Mmmmm, I enjoyed some!
Claire was learning about heat radiation and how to figure out the safest distance.
This evening I was puttering in the garden, and I gasped when I saw the flower below. I was beginning to wonder if they’d ever bloom. Claire calls them Morning Glorias. It was the first batch of seeds we planted right after we moved in. I see a ton of buds on the vines now, so we’re in for a full bloom soon.
From Our Garden
The first week of June, Claire and I planted seeds, a heritage seed package stating it was designed to attract butterflies and hummingbirds. We have a lot of hummingbirds around. I haven’t seen many butterflies, but this is the first year we’ve planted. Tonight Claire and I picked some flowers, and here they are. (Oddly, our “Morning Glorias” have not bloomed. They’ve grown robust green leaves and vines, but no flower buds.)
Stained Glass Streamers
We made the simplest craft the other day, and it turned out so well. To make this, you need a roll of clear packing tape, some string or yarn, a hole punch, and a bunch of tissue paper of different colors cut up into small bits. Put a strip of tape on the table, sticky side facing up, and invite your child to put the paper pieces onto it. I had to tape the ends to the table to keep the strip stationary. When she feels it’s been decorated well enough, put another piece of tape, sticky side down, on top. Trim off any bits of paper sticking out of the edges. Punch a hole in one end, help your child get the yarn through the hole and then hang them outside in a tree, on a bush, off a pole — wherever you can tie them. Here they are hanging in the window for us to admire before going outside.
Now they are in the tree, fluttering about.
We watched them dance as we sat on our porch eating icy pops.
Paper, Paint, and Glitter Glue
I bought a package of die-cut flowers at Michaels, and we undertook to decorate some on Saturday. It took several days to work on this project, because the paint had to dry on each side before we could flip them to paint the other side, and the same for the glitter glue (which took forever to dry). It was difficult for Claire to summon patience through this process, and to understand that time had to pass. But it was worth the wait; this morning I hung them, and the grin on her face and her quiet exclamation of “Wowwww!” when she saw them was proof!
I made the ones on each end.
They rotate in the breeze, and they sparkle!
A Morning Outing
Yesterday on a neighborhood walk, Claire told me, “I want to show you the world, Mommy. The wonderful world!” She does, every day!
We live so far away from the din and havoc the comes with living in an urban area like Silicon Valley. About five miles from our home is the entrance to the Santa Teresa County Park. (There’s a trailhead about a mile from our house, but I went to the main part this time.) We see the hills from our home, so today I took Claire for a little hike. We wanted to see what nature had to offer.
Summer in California is the season of drought, dust, and death. The grasses turn “golden” (i.e., tinderbox dry and brown), and there is no rain for about five months. It is certainly not California at its prettiest. (I’m partial to the emerald green hills of the rainy season.) Here’s an example of the “hills of gold”:
And the poor parched ground:
Nevertheless, nature knowns no season. It always exists. It’s always interesting. So we headed out on a trail…
Even during summer, flowers manage to bloom.
The view from on high is expansive!
But we also had to keep our eyes sharp for other things.
Looking around reveals interesting shapes…
And glimpses of a bird soaring high in the sky (that teeny dot in the blue is not dust on your screen!).
Then we were treated to a surprise! A turkey vulture perched on a dead tree, I guess airing its wings. It sat still for several minutes like this!
Once it flew away, we returned our attention to the path.
We found a branch covered with lichen. Such interesting colors and textures!
And we also found some pinecones and hardened pine tree sap. We brought the rock of resin home for later exploration and research.
At the end of our walk, we ate a snack at a picnic table. On the way home, I asked Claire what her favorite part of our adventure was. She said it was “sitting and looking.” It was so quiet and breezy there. A lovely Monday morning.
Sunday Fun
Two batches of shells from the dollar store provide at least an hour of fun on a Sunday morning. Fill the sink with water…
Then sort! Later on Claire had her Little People friends play among the shells at the beach.
Then she decided that today was Space Bunny’s birthday (a little jingly rabbit toy she’s had since birth). So we got out construction paper, scissors, and glue. We made presents, cupcakes (with sprinkles!), and a cake with candles.
We also made paper flowers with marker, paper and pipe stems. Then Claire held the bunny and everyone sang happy birthday. Everyone had fun, and soon enough it was time for dinner and an evening walk, then bath and bed.
Abstraction
Here’s an easy, simple activity. I bought some colored masking tape, half-inch width, online at Discount School Supply. This stash will last a long time and be useful for many things. Then I got out some construction paper and tore off pieces of tape. (Claire chose the colors.) Then she decorated the paper with them. I noticed she mostly wanted to concentrate the color in one spot. After six were done I taped them to our dining room wall. Voila! Simple abstract art. It entertained her well for a while.
And thanks to the Frugal Family Blog for the inspiration!
No Muss, No Fuss
We do a fair amount of painting around Chez Harper, but once in awhile I want a less messy activity. So today I tried an idea I saw at Frugal Family Fun. I may have had more fun making them than Claire did playing with them, but they’ll be around awhile for those moments of boredom when a quick distraction will do.
I took file folder and cut out a 5″ by 7″ window. Then I decorated them with markers. Then I took a gallon-size heavy duty zip-top bag and put in the following:
1/3 cup of mineral oil
1/3 cup of color A
1/3 cup of color B
A dash of glitter
Gently press the bag so all the air is pressed out and seal. With packing tape, seal the zip-top. Then I taped the bags inside the file folders and taped the folders shut. If I’d had quart-size bags it might have been a bit easier — in that case I’d have used 1/4 cup of each item.