Homeschooling My Kinetic Kids

The kids and I started reading "Little House in the Big Woods" last week for the first time.  They're really enjoying hearing about life in the "old days" and all the ways that things were done differently 150 years ago.  It's been a very special time, too, because we all pile on the parents' bed for reading time and have some quiet time as part of our day.  It's been a great way to reconnect with them. Many of these ideas came from my own reading of the series; however, where possible, I've added links to give you more information about them.  Many of them can be done without extra supplies and don't involve other people, so their perfect for living "self isolated" like a pioneer. 1- Preserve Meat In my search, I found a blog and podcast called "Pioneering Today."  She has a post about salting, fermenting, and other ways to preserve meat.  The very first chapter of "The Little House in the Big Woods"...

I meant to get this blog post up before Christmas, but I didn't get it done in time.  Instead, I started my own Etsy shop !  I've been very busy trying to get that store stocked and full of unique items.  I didn't realized how much I had to get done to start a new project like that- oops.  Anyway, I have a fun set of circle-based cookies to share with you.  Like all my felt food, it also includes free patterns! As I already stated, all six of these cookies are based on a simple circle shape.  It makes it so much easier to cut out and sew up if you're not dealing with a lot of extra pieces and shapes.  The pattern lists which circle sizes to use for each cookie, so you should be able to reproduce them very easily.  The main supplies you need are felt, thread, and needles, which I've listed below along with links to where you can purchase the products. SUPPLIES -  2mm thick felt  in cream, white, and brown -  1mm thick fel...

I wrote this post several years ago and just found it when I was "cleaning out" my old blog to move things here.  I'm not sure why I never posted it.  Dragonfly still loves them and asks me to make more of them all the time. The leash is made from a 1-inch ribbon.  I used my machine to put a "handle" loop on one end, then added a key ring and tacked that down on the other end.  The key rings and clasp came from a pack that I found at Walmart, but I think these lobster clasps would work better.  The leash is about 3ft long* and just right for Dragonfly to drag around. *Strangulation danger* The collar is made from 3/4-inch ribbon.  I added a plastic buckle on each end, sewing the loops with the machine.  The leash and the collar probably took me ten minutes, including the time to gather the supplies and set up the machine.  Very easy, but so cute. Maybe I decided not to publish because the post was so short.  It's a great sto...

Skimmer (age 6) is a chewer!  He's been biting and ripping toys, clothes, and other things with his teeth his entire life.  It's been challenging to know how to help him meet his chewing needs in a healthy way.  We had tried chew necklaces (often called Chewelry) before, but they only lasted a few hours before getting lost or left somewhere. A few months ago, I contacted Ark Therapeutic about my son.  Their customer service was amazingly helpful in asking questions about what Skimmer likes to chew and helping me select the right types of chews. Before our road trip , I was making fleece blankets for my kids and had the idea of attaching a chew necklace to the blanket.  Skimmer loved his chewie blanket, and I loved how calming it was for him on our road trip.  Even better, we made it 4,000 miles and never lost the chew! After we got home, I wanted to make a more portable version of the chewelry blanket for my kids.  I was also inspired by a...

It's October, which means that many people are searching for and crafting their own costumes!  For day 7 of my All Wrapped Up series, I want to share an easy one-piece costume you can make for your dolls or elves.  It is hand-sewn and uses less than 1/4 of a yard of fleece and a bit of velcro, plus whatever notions or extra fabric you want to use for accessories. The main part of the onesie is created by using 3 cut pieces of fabric, one large full-body piece and two half pieces (right and left).  You can plan for the onesie to open on either the front or the back depending on your costume design.  For this frog, I had the costume open in the back, but for a Santa suit, I had it open in the front. To create this particular doll onesie, I searched out frog costumes for ideas.  Many of the store-bought designs had a yellowish panel on the belly.  I decided not to add that part and to leave the tummy solid green.  You, of course, could do whatev...

I love making toys for kids, so when I heard that my niece was having a donut-themed 1st birthday party, I knew I had to make a themed gift.  After talking with another sister, I decided to make each of the donuts have a different texture.  My kids were excited about their cousin using the donuts for play kitchen. With my general idea in mind, I set out to start creating the pattern on my digital scrapbook program .  After printing out the donut shapes, I cut them out and taped them to my fabric.  For the terrycloth (bottom), I used duct tape to secure the pattern for cutting.  For everything else, I used office tape. Donut Stacker Pattern Download Supplies printed pattern fabric in many textures sewing machine duct tape office tape straight pins sewing machine hand-sewing needle brown thread stuffing First, I cut one circle out of the brown fabric.  Then, I taped the pattern to the colored or pattern "frosting" fabric and cut either a random squiggle shap...

I had a very bad blogging day and had to write this post twice.  I'm going to attempt to do as well on the second draft as I did on the first, but I'm a bit disheartened.  Ok, here we go again. This Wednesday, March 14, is the nerdiest holiday of all- Pi Day!  On 3.14, we celebrate circles, fractions, mathematical formulas, and all things geeky.  Those are all fun, but the best part of Pi Day is eating pie!  It's not always practical to make homemade pie in the middle of the week or in a school setting, which is why I'm dedicating my Pi Day blog post to pretend pies! I've asked for help from some of the best bloggers on the net to bring you a fun collection of play dough, felt pies, and pretend bakery ideas for kids. Felt Pies with Pattern from In Our Pond I made these felt pies two years ago for Christmas, and they're still my kids favorite thing for their play kitchen.  They love to put the pies in the pie pan, bake them, and serve them.  Eventually,...