Fireworks and Yankee Doodle: 4th of July Crafts for Toddlers

For the first craft we made fireworks! Well, at least the non-explosive kind :) I found the idea for that here. It was really easy. We just took 4 baking cups (the kind you bake cupcakes in) and flattened them out then used different colored markers to make them colorful. Then we glued the cups onto a black piece of construction paper. After that we took glitter glue and spread it around with our fingers so the fireworks would be sparkly.

The next craft was a little more mommy involved. In my attempt to be festive, I've been singing the boys "Yankee Doodle". Scientist thinks the part about the macaroni is just hilarious, and asks me to sing it to him over and over. So I thought it would be fun to do a Yankee Doodle craft. I had Aaron make both boys a paper hat out of newspaper. (I don't know how, but you could probably Google search for instructions.) Then the boys painted their hats. In order for this to be festive, I only gave them the option of using the red, white, and blue paint. :) When that was dry, I put a line of glue around the bottom of each hat and the boys (Sponge had a lot of help from me) stuck macaroni all around the bottom. Then we glued some feathers to the top.

I was really happy with how the hats turned out. It was kind of a stop and go project. We painted one side of the hats, then had to let that dry so we could flip them over to paint the other side. Then we let that dry, glued one side of macaroni, let that dry, then the other side. And finally the feathers. But it was worth it, and it took a good part of the morning, so in my mind it was a success. We'll see how long the hats last, and how long I find random macaroni noodles strewn about my house. :)

Here are some things we (but probably mostly I) have learned about Yankee Doodle the last couple days.
Lyrics:

Yankee Doodle went to town

A-riding on a pony
Stuck a feather in his cap
And called it macaroni.

Chorus:
Yankee Doodle, keep it up
Yankee Doodle dandy
Mind the music and the step
And with the girls be handy.


Father and I went down to camp
Along with Captain Gooding
And there we saw the men and boys
As thick as hasty pudding.

Chorus

There was Captain Washington
Upon a slapping stallion
A-giving orders to his men
I guess there were a million.


Chorus

Also a few interesting things from Wikipedia:

"Yankee Doodle" is a well-known Anglo-American song, the origin of which dates back to the Seven Years' War. It is often sung patriotically in the United States today and is the state anthem of Connecticut.

The song's origin is unclear. Traditions place its origin in a pre-Revolutionary War song originally by British military officers to mock the disheveled, disorganized colonial "Yankees" with whom they served in the French and Indian War. It is believed that the tune comes from the nursery rhyme Lucy Locket. One version of the Yankee Doodle lyrics is "generally attributed" to Doctor Richard Shuckburgh, a British Army surgeon. According to one story, Shuckburgh wrote the song after seeing the appearance of Colonial troops under Colonel Thomas Fitch, Jr., the son of Connecticut Governor Thomas Fitch.

As a term Doodle first appeared in the early seventeenth century, and is thought to derive from the Low German dudel or dödel, meaning "fool" or "simpleton". The Macaroni wig was an extreme fashion in the 1770s and became contemporary slang for foppishness. The implication of the verse was therefore probably that the Yankees were so unsophisticated that they thought simply sticking a feather in a cap would make them the height of fashion.


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Pirate Crafts

During the summer months, instead of story time, our local library does craft time for kids 12 and under. Today they had the kids make these adorable pirate hats and pirate hooks. I thought they were so cute and easy that I would share them.

To make a pirate hat all you need is a piece of black construction paper, a white crayon, and some tape. Turn your paper the long way and cut about an inch think strip off the bottom. Then on the rest of the paper trace this shape:

and using the white crayon, color in where all the white parts are, or designs of your own. Then cut it out. Next tape the inch thick strip to either side of the front of the hat so that it fits the child's head. Done and done.

To make a pirate hook you'll need 1 pipe cleaner, tin foil, and a large plastic or paper cup. Make a square out of tin foil that's as long and wide as the pipe cleaner is long. Lay the pipe cleaner on the edge of your tin foil square and tightly wrap the pipe cleaner in tin foil. Poke a hole in the bottom of your cup and feed the tin foiled pipe cleaner through the hole. Bend into a hook shape. Leave enough on the inside of the cup that the kids have something to hold onto.

My boys had such a fun time doing this project. And both were able to help making it to some degree (Scientist my 2 1/2 yr old obviously could do a lot more than Sponge my 1 yr old.) and they loved the finished projects even more. In fact, they wore them all over town while we ran our errands today. :) But I think these ideas are simple as easy enough for a wide age range of kids. They would make great Halloween costume ideas, a good activity for letter P, or just for some fun an old day.


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Sorting Jelly Beans

It snowed today, and it was freezing, so going outside was not an option I was willing to consider. Instead we decided to have some fun with our Easter Candy.

I gave Scientist a handful of Jelly Beans (I had to presort them so there were only 4 colors, because I only had four different colors of bowls) and four bowls that matched the color of the Jelly Beans. Then I told him that the game (he's been really into games lately) was to put the green Jelly Beans in the green bowl, the red ones in the red bowl, etc.

He did really well. I've never had him sort anything before except laundry (into whites and darks, and he does ok with that, but not wonderful) so I wasn't sure what would happen.

It was interesting to watch how he chose to sort the beans. If it were me, I probably would have just picked up a bean, decided what color it was, and then decided what bowl it went in, and then moved on to the next bean. Scientist on the other hand, looked through the pile and picked out all the red beans first and put them in the red bowl, then the yellow, then the green, and was left with only orange beans, which he could scoop up quickly and put in the orange bowl. After he'd done it one time, I dumped out all the beans, mixed them up and had him do it again. I tried to get him to pick out a red bean to put in the red bowl, then a green one, and so on, in a pattern. He didn't want anything to do with doing it that way, he wanted to pick out all of one color first and then move on to the next color. I was telling Aaron about this later in the evening, and Aaron said that the way Scientist was doing it was really a more efficient way of sorting, because he only had to sort three colors instead of four, because the last color was already sorted by the time Scientist got to it. So I guess that proves that Scientist has Aaron's brain. Engineers...gotta love 'em I guess.

Happy Easter!

I generally only decorate for Christmas, but Princess and I had a great time making these eggs today. You can cut out any shape you want so this project can be done anytime. Plus it's super easy and fun!

1. Crush up several old crayons in a zip lock bag.(Lighter colors work better.)
2. Place an old towel on a hard surface, lay down a piece of wax paper with your design drawn on it.
3. Sprinkle the broken crayons on the wax paper.
4. Cover with another piece of wax paper and another towel.
5. Iron with a hot iron for about 15 seconds or until the wax is melted. (Be careful not to scrunch up the wax paper while you're ironing)
6. Cut out your design!

Here's another fun idea for Easter. I haven't tried these cookies yet but I have a friend who swears by this recipe/activity and I'm really excited to try it out this year. You mix all the ingredients Saturday night, put the cookies in the oven and Sunday morning you have hollow white cookies - how cool is that!

Easter Cookies

1 cup whole pecans (or almonds)
1 tsp. vinegar
3 egg whites
pinch of salt
1 cup sugar
Ziploc baggie
wooden spoon
tape
Bible
2 cookie sheets
parchment paper

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Place pecans in zipper baggie and let children beat them with the wooden spoon to break into small pieces. Explain that after Jesus was arrested He was beaten by the Roman soldiers. Read John 19:1-3.

Let each child smell the vinegar. Put 1 tsp. vinegar into mixing bowl. Explain that when Jesus was thirsty on the cross he was given vinegar to drink. Read John 19:28-30.

Add egg white to vinegar. Eggs represent life. Explain that Jesus gave His life to give us Life. Read John 10:10-11.

Sprinkle a little salt into each child's hand. Let them taste it and brush the rest into the bowl. Explain that this represents the salty tears shed by Jesus' followers, and the bitterness of our own sin. Read Luke 23:27.

So far the ingredients are not very appetizing, are they? Add 1 cup sugar. Explain that the sweetest part of the story is that Jesus died because He loves us. He wants us to know and belong to Him. Read Psalms 34:8 and John 3:16.

Beat with a mixer on high speed for 12 to 15 minutes until stiff peaks are formed. Explain that the color white represents the purity in God's eyes of those whose sins have been cleansed by Jesus. Read Isaiah 1:18 and John 3:1-3.

Fold in broken nuts. Drop by teaspoons onto wax paper covered cookie sheet. Explain that each mound represents the rocky tomb where Jesus' body was laid. Read Matthew 27:57-60.

Put the cookie sheet in the oven, close the door and turn the oven OFF. Give each child a piece of tape and seal the oven door closed. Explain that Jesus' tomb was sealed. Read Matthew 27:65-66.

Go To Bed!! Explain that they may feel sad to leave the cookies in the oven overnight; however, Jesus' followers were in despair when the tomb was sealed. Read John 16:20 & 22.

On Easter Morning open the oven and give everyone a cookie. Notice the cracked surface and take a bite. The cookies are hollow! On the first Easter Jesus' followers were amazed to find the tomb open and empty. Read Matthew 28:1-9