Spin Art Valentines

So easy, a 12 month old can do it!

I don't know about other moms out there, but I can not wait for Sal to be old enough to enjoy "projects". I have failed at tried a few age appropriate ideas off pinterest and my little guy either had no interest what-so-ever, or the "mess free" chinese ziploc wanna be  Ziploc baggie full of paint leaked all over the place, looking like a rainbow threw up on my floor/baby/highchair/clothes.

Anyways, I saw an idea for spin art with toddlers. Sal loves to play with our salad spinner while I am in the kitchen, so I knew he had the motor skills and coordination for this one. With Valentines day around the corner, and no Hallmark stores or scrapbooking supplies in sight, I decided we would try and make our own spin art hearts.

I had some left over cardstock that my sister had mailed me ( for Sal's Birthday bunting banner), so I cut out some 3" hearts. The only paints I have are chinese poster paints with a really thick  consistency. I picked out three "boy" colors ( Oh, I know, I'm feeding into societal norms), and diluted the paints with a bit of water so that they could be dropped from an old dropper I had on hand.

I let Sal pick up each heart and instructed him to put it in his spinner. He is really good with one step instructions these days. I then sucked up a little paint into the dropper and gave it to him, showing him how to squeeze paint out onto his heart. I put the lid onto the spinner and just let him go to town spinning the handle round and round.

We continued this method for each heart, and amazingly enough, the kid had a long enough attention span to make eight Valentines.

Not too bad for an almost-13-month-old.

And, best part of it for me?

Mess free.

FOUR months old

When Sal was first born, the consensus amongst friends was that the first three months are the most difficult. Each week is a new challenge, and the days run into nights, and nights into days. Before you know it, your baby is 4 months old.

Nick and I took that advice with a grain of salt, and I always chuckled when he'd answer with, "Well, I guess we'll find out", because really, what other option is there?

For the most part, our friends were right. The three months fly by. I woke up today and realized that we have a four month old. Whether the first three months will be the most difficult-- I guess we will find out after we have something to compare them to. Speaking for myself, they weren't all that hard. Perhaps my view is skewed because I'd struggled so long to have a baby that I could be responsible for. I had sat through enough baby showers and overheard mothers talk about how tough the first few months were..I don't really know, but the first three months were totally what I expected, with the exception of a son who refused was superhuman and didn't need daytime naps. With the help of my pediatrician, we improved that issue, and other than that...I'd do our first 3 months all over again.

So, now that Sally Bananas ( he earned a new nickname this month)  is a whopping 4 month old, he's gained a few new skills to add to his repetoire.

Our favorite?

Babbling. Laughing. Happy Shrieking.

I can not get enough.

Sal made his first long roadtrip this past month, and met many many cousins in Yosemite. He attracted all sorts of attention from the Asian tourists..many would walk by and do a double take with no shame...finger pointing included..What I wouldn't give to know what they were saying. I'd like to think it was along the lines of " cutest baby ever!". Nick warns me that I should prepare for much of the same when we arrive in China. There's something about babies that make them go nuts.

Sal didn't seem to mind the attention, although he is becoming more aware of where Nick and I are at all times. He was slow to warm to many of our family members, but I do believe it was a mix of tiredness and overstimulation from such a new environment for him. By our last night inYosemite, he was tolerant of other people holding him.

So, what's month 4 have in store for the little guy??

Travel.

Lots of it.

Wish us luck!

Homemade Holiday: Quiet Book

A couple years back, I made our first born nephew a quiet book when he turned three. This year, one of our other nephews also turned three, and seems to be drawn to my childhood quiet book every time he comes over to "Uncle Nick's house". So, I decided that I would make him his very own book and give it to him for Christmas. I call this one Quiet book 2.0, since I have made some changes to my original pattern.

The main change I made with this book, was that I opted to use felt for the pages, like my friend Liz , over at A crafty B, did for her daughter's book. The felt just feels sturdier, and is easier to snap, button, and velcro to, than the quilting cotton that I used on my first version.

I like quiet books because they work on a child's fine motor skills, and they can go at their own pace. Some pages are meant to be challenging, with things like lacing, or weaving, and others focus on color recognition, counting, and day to day tasks, such as snapping, buttoning and using velcro.

Upon completion of the pages, I made a canvas cover complete with carrying handles, so our nephew can take his book on-the-go.

I hope it provides hours of entertainment ( & some quiet time for his mama!) for years to come.