Easter Tree

What is better than Spring? Seeing the magnolia blossoming, tulips, crisp new shoots on otherwise bare branches….So delicate, so green – so life assuring. Really love this time of year.

Have spent the day outside and managed to get some gardening done (with three little helpers). Cutting our hedge was first priority and we got some fantastic branches that inspired….Instead of ending up at the tip in the green waste container they now are bringing joy to our family in the shape of an Easter Tree!

The single best thing about this picture is her pride. Priceless. 

• About now, cut your branches and place them in a vase with water. This will give the buds time to open and be beautiful by Easter Sunday.
• Prepare yourself and your surroundings for a bit of mess… 🙂
• Get your raw eggs ready, as well as a large bowl and a sharp needle
• Prick a hole in both the top and bottom of the egg with the needle
• Holding the egg over the bowl, blow into one hole and watch the egg come out of the other! If you have never tried this before it may disgust you! It definitely is a strange experience! Children laugh every year…husband refuses! 🙂
• Save the blown out egg – omelette for breakfast? Make a cake for Easter lunch?
• When all the eggs are done wash them out with some hot soapy water to ensure there is no left over egg inside. Pat dry.
• Get lots of paint brushes and paint and let the children enjoy decorating the eggs.
• Once completely decorated place them in an empty egg tray to dry overnight.
• Thread a needle with two strands of thread and pull it through the dried, decorated egg the next day – ensure you have put either a small piece of toothpick or something at the end of the string in order that the string stays in the egg when you pull the needle through. Tie the two strands together and hang your egg on the tree.

Don’t worry if an egg breaks – makes a cute “nest”…. This one will be stuffed with cotton wool and have a wide ribbon wrapped around it….

Squishy Balloon Men

Christmas came and went and was lovely. Very lovely. It has left a warm, happy glow in the house – and a few extra kg’s that need to go…but we will not worry about those until January – right?

Our children love balloons – am not sure I have met a child yet that does not! Here is a little fun activity that will delight!

Warning – it is messy! Very messy! Prepare your mind and working space! 🙂

You will need:

water

corn flour

balloons

funnel

pen that dries on any surface

 

• Blow up the balloon you are going to fill – a few times is good – and make sure you stretch it well. This will make filling it easier
• Put a funnel on it
• Fill with cornflour – as much as you can manage to get in there! This is tricky…my kitchen looked like we had had a snowball fight in it…. I used toothpicks and wooden skewers to stuff it as much as possible but in all honesty, the balloon people will be small and cute as it is hard to get them full!
• Once you cannot get more into the balloon, add 2 tbsp of water to the funnel and have fun getting this into the balloon! 🙂
• Close the balloon and dry it
• Find some string and make hair – any string! Attach to the top of the balloon
• Draw a face on it and voila! Have fun! Fat, thin, round, square….up to you!
• The children love them – and they are great if you are feeling slightly stressed or irritable….Have a soothing effect!

If you fail at this activity..it happens…do not despair! Simply put lots of corn flour in a big bowl, add some water and let the children play with the goop! It has a fabulous texture – hard in the water but once you lift it out of the water it melts in your fingers! Great fun!

Salt Dough Ornaments and Reindeer Food!

So, we have almost got there! Christmas is less than five fingers away…that is how it works with my four-year old anyway!

It is getting harder for the children to sit still and activities that get them concentrating for more than two seconds are always welcomed!

The first one is a great one for all ages, but specially for those that are able to spell a few words on their own. It is making little salt dough ornaments for the Christmas Tree that the children can initial, write a note on or simply decorate. The dough can also be used to make name tags for gifts which is very cute, or simply little gift tags with messages on – like the one in the picture above.

Salt Dough (recipe also found here)

300g flour

150g salt

200ml water – ish!

 

• Pre-heat oven to 150C
• Place flour and salt in a bowl
• Pour water in as you stir – when dough comes together stop adding water!
• Get your hands in the bowl – knead the dough – if it feels a bit dry add some more water – if it feels too sticky add a bit more flour
• Let your children have a piece of dough each, give them cookie cutters as well as rolling pins. Another great tool is a toothpick! They can draw faces, write notes or simply make their shapes look like hedgehogs (my youngest decided that was best use of them!)
• Make sure you put a hole in the top, using toothpick, if you want to hang the ornament on the tree or place on ribbons for gifts
• Once decorated – glitter is good here – put the shapes in the pre-heated oven and bake for about 1 hour – may be less if the shapes are rolled thinly – keep an eye on them. They should be light brown.
• Transfer to a wire rack and let cool – once cool paint with acrylics or leave as are
• Hang them on the Christmas Tree, string onto gifts or decorate windowsills in your home

REINDEER FOOD

The second activity, and this is a MUST of course, is Reindeer Food making. How will Santa and the Reindeer know where to land if this is not sprinkled on the lawn or in front of your house?

This may look like sparkly cereal to you, but believe me, to a child it is magic! So simple and so sweet to see how excited about it they get. Mine decided to make quite a few of the little parcels and we went to a few friends of theirs and handed them out.

Reindeer Food

1 tbsp oats

Half a weetabix

1 tbsp bird seeds

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tbsp raisins

Glitter of your choice

 

• Add all the ingredients in a bowl – the children can have a tablespoon each and combine it.
• Good stir
• Then add sprinkles – lots! This is what lights the way in the night….
• Fill little baking parchment parcels with a few tablespoons full of “food” and wrap up.

• Save them for the evening of the 24th
• Let your children write this little poem to go with it – or just read it to them! You can make up your own of course!
• Make sure Santa does stop by….:-)

Reindeer Food Poem

                                                                                                                                                On the 24th at night

When the stars are shining bright

Be sure to take this magic food and sprinkle on the lawn

On Christmas, Santa’s reindeer travel miles before the dawn

But here’s a secret I have to tell, one you must try to keep

That Santa’s reindeer only come when you are fast asleep

So quickly put your jammies on and get a story read

Then sprinkle this magic treat outside and hurry off to bed!

 

All that is left for me to say is Have a Lovely Christmas – I hope you have a really special and memorable evening and morning – and that your wishes come true! Thank you for reading along and commenting, it really makes me smile when you do!