DIY LEGO Wall Art For Less Than $5.00

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As you know we are getting ready to move. Well both kids are REALLY excited, because they will finally be getting their own rooms. The last few days we have been very busy painting and crafting. Rowyn's bedroom theme is going to be LEGO's and superheros. And Gwyn's bedroom theme is fairies and horses.

As you know LEGO wall art can be expensive (and we are trying to not spend a lot of money right now), so I decided to get crafty!

These awesome wall art pieces were not only super easy to make, but also very inexpensive. They cost me less than $5 each to make!

Materials:
-Lego Scrapbook Kit (I found mine on sale at Michael's for $2.99).
-Frames (another sale item at Michaels for $1.79).
-Lego Club Magazines (sign up to receive these FREE each month or you can also visit your local store and ask for a copy). I had my son choose his favorite characters/themes.
-Scissors, paper cutter, double sided tape.
-Colored scrapbook paper for matting.

Next get creative and have fun scrapping. There is NO wrong way to create these fun wall art pieces! I have plans to make a couple more (probably a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle one and another superhero one)! If you decide to head to Michael's DON'T forget about the teacher/homeschool discount.

I hope this post inspired you to get crafty!

Valentines Day Fun

The last three days were filled with fun fieldtrips, crafts and learning to celebrate Valentines Day. Mommy and Daddy even got to go on a much needed lunch date today. So grateful for homeschool friends who are willing to help you out and watch your kids for you in the middle of the day.

So here are some pictures of the things we did the last three days!

1-2) Our homeschool group invaded Stevi B's pizza on monday. There were about 40 homeschool kids that exchanged Valentines.
3) Checking out the Valentines they received from their friends.
4) Books we read.
5) Picture frame the kids made daddy. We made a square with popsicle sticks and then glued puzzle pieces to it. Then Gwyn wrote "I love you to Pieces" on a piece of paper which we glued to the top. We glued a few hearts to the bottom and added a family photo. Daddy hung it up in his cubical at work.
6-8) On Tuesday we went ice skating. It was the kids very first time and they had a blast. I was so very proud of how hard they tried and how quickly they learned.
9-10) Valentines worksheets and coloring.
11-12) The kids made tissue paper roses for daddy. They are super easy all you need to do is take a stack of tissue paper (whatever colors you want), scrunch in the center and wrap a pipe cleaner around the tissue paper. Then fold up the tissue paper a layer at a time. Here are some directions on youtube even though we improvised a bit because the kids couldn't do an accordion fold.
13) Heart shaped crayons. We used a mold we got at Dollar Tree, put some broken crayons in the molds, placed in the oven at 275 degrees for about 10 minutes and presto fun crayons.
14) We got these little tin mailboxes at Target int he 1$ section. I gave the kids some ribbon and stickers and they went to town.
15) Making cards for daddy.
16) The Valentines we made for our homeschool friends. We wrapped scrapbook paper around Laffy Taffy, decorated them with stickers, and

And on Valentines Day daddy brought home Valentines cupcakes for the kids and beautiful roses and a card for me!

I am linking up with:

January 3 in 30 Goals, New Years Resolutions and Word for 2012

Welcome 2012!!!!

I didn't have time to write an update for December because well I was too busy getting caught up on my to do list. But December went very well and I completed all 3 goals.

I am changing things up a bit this year in our home and homeschool. I am going to be doing more of a gentle /guided learning approach with the kids. I am going to plan each week of homeschol a week in advance rather than trying to plan stuff the night before and many times the same day. I am going to start cooking and baking more from scratch to save money. I am going to limit my online time by only getting on social media during breakfast and lunch time, in the afternoon before dinner and just for a little bit after the kids go to bed (unless there is a Twitter or FB party). I am going to not stress about keeping up with all of the different blog link ups, memes, etc. When I started to blog early last year (sounds funny to say last year) I wanted it to be a personal journal and a place for homeschoolers to learn more about homeschooling and the resources/products that are available for homeschoolers. Have you seen my NEW resource page (it is still under construction)? But I started getting sucked into the blog-o-sphere and was spending too much time fiddling with my blog and trying to write posts for every link up and meme. I don't know how some bloggers post everyday (have you ever noticed my posts are almost always on Friday, Saturday and Sunday)? I just don't have enough time in the day and get overwhelmed with dividing my time between the kids, husband, myself, household chores, etc. With that being said I am going to be focusing on my weekly wrap ups, FREE resources available for homeschoolers, 3 in 30, one book club or challenge a month, reviews/giveaways and marketing my affiliate links. My children, husband, myself and house come first!!! I am going to go out on more dates with my husband, mom only outings and more one on one mommy dates with each kid (if extra funds are available). And I am going to focus on building my friendships and making more hopefully. I have always had a hard time making friends and for over 11 yrs I haven't had a close girlfriend. You know someone you can confide in, share mommy stories with, go out with, hug, text/talk on the phone, cry with. Well last year I met 4 women who live somewhat close to me that I can now call my friends. And there you have it these are my New Years Resolutions.

My word for 2012 is TONE! No I am not planning to workout! I am talking about this TONE: a particular quality, way of sounding, modulation, or intonation of the voice as expressive of some meaning, feeling, spirit, etc.: a tone of command.The character of voice expressing an emotion. I will be focusing on the tone I set for the day and the tone I use with the kids.

Now for my January goals. I thought of about 5 goals and after much thought narrowed them down these three.

January Goals:

1. Complete these two activities - 31 Days to Pray for Your Spouse and How To Have A HEART For Your Kids - I am very excited to be joining both of these. And look forward to growing as a wife and mother. Its not too late to join in the fun if you are reading this and not participating read my post here to find out how.  

2.  Scrapbook - complete at least two pages a week - I am so far behind on scrapbooking about 5 yrs on the kids albums and even longer on my childhood albums. I am setting my goal low and hope I accomplish more than two pages but with kids,  

3.  Get my email inbox under control - Right now there are over 2,000 emails in my inbox. My goal is to get that down to at least 100 by the end of the month.

Any encouraging words or suggestions are always appreciated! And if your a friend on Twitter or Facebook and see me on there too much during the day please feel free to give me a virtual smack!

Truth in the Tinsel Advent Review and Special Offer

I had the privileged to review an Advent e-book called Truth in the Tinsel (don't you just love the name and cover) created by Amanda White from Impress Your Kids. This wonderful Advent e-book was inspired by a 4 yr olds request to make ornaments again so they could teach her little brother the Christmas story.

I was so excited when a Facebook friend shared the Truth in the Tinsel Facebook page because we didn't actually have a family Advent calendar yet, we normally just do the Christmas chocolate countdown from the dollar store. One of my favorite memories growing up was our family's Advent calendar, which was a felt tree with various felt ornaments. My parents also did a wonderful job of telling us about the birth of Jesus. We did the Advent every year even when I was a teenager (and the only one still at home) so I really wanted to start an Advent tradition with my kids. Since this is our first year homeschooling  I really wanted to do something special this year to begin  teaching the kids the REAL reason we celebrate Christmas. I was searching for something that would help me accomplish my goal and not overwhelm me or the kids and Truth in the Tinsel was just what I needed. I am so happy I was blessed with a review copy.

I love Truth in the Tinsel because it is so much more than an Advent! Truth in the Tinsel provides an opportunity for families to spend quality time together while teaching and discussing the Christmas story. It also gives children a way to express their creativity everyday and create something that will remind them of  the REAL meaning of Christmas. At the beginning of the e-book there are easy to follow instructions and a supply list. This e-book is great for preschool- early elementary age children but I am sure older children would enjoy it just as much. If you have a busy December and don't think you can do all 24 days there are even alternate schedules in the back (just covering the basics, characters, books of the bible, prophecies). Each day is broken up into the following 5 sections.

1) First there is the clue. These are all ready for you and all you need to do is print them and either place them into your fill-able Advent calendar or if you don't have a fill-able Advent calendar yet you can use the paper chain option.  Since we didn't have an Advent calendar yet I decided to make one. At first I was clueless until Amanda sent me a link with some ideas. All I need is a bit of inspiration and then my brain wakes up and starts working so here is what I came up with using scrapbook paper, ribbon, buttons and my Cricut. This Advent is re-usable so now my family can have a family Advent tradition just like I did when I was a kid!

Top left is a close up of the clue card that is in each pocket, bottom left is a picture of the back pocket where the cards after taking them out of the pockets. And the right picture is the full Advent calendar.

2) Each day there is a scripture which includes the clue word. Make sure the kids are listening so they can yell it out when they hear it.

3) Next is the craft. These are easy to make ornaments so not only do the kids get to be creative and create a wonderful craft that goes along with the scripture they also get to decorate the tree! I don't know about you but I have tons of art and craft supplies so almost all of the items on the supply list I have on hand. But there may be some things you will need to purchase or you can always improvise. Some of the crafts include things like a crown, angel, Mary, Joseph, stable and  Jesus in the manger. If you not crafty no need to worry there are very simple instructions and even templates provided.

4) As you are making the ornaments you are encouraged to use the "talk about it together" section. I sort of freaked out about this because I have so many other things to plan and prepare for with homeschool how on earth was I going to have time to come up with some discussion questions.....but I had no need to worry Amanda has some great discussion questions already typed up for you.

5) The first 4 steps should take you no more than 30 minutes to complete (unless your kids take forever with craft projects like mine do). But if you would like to extend the activity Amanda has included some extras for you like links to additional scriptures, songs to download, DVD's to find and watch, family activities, etc (she really has thought of everything).

As you know Advent calendars start December 1st so be sure to get your e-book tomorrow (Black Friday) so you can take advantage of the special offer and start preparing. The Truth in the Tinsel e-book will be released tomorrow and will be on sale for $2.99 the regular price is $4.99 (which is still a great deal).

Moms if you want to have more fun there will be a challenge on Impress Your Kids to "give" your kids the first 24 days of December by doing the book together & joining the Tinsel in the Truth Facebook page. We will be encouraging each other every day during the Advent (by posting pics of the crafts we did, funny things the kids said while doing the activity, etc.). I will be participating in the challenge and would love to see you do so as well! If your on twitter you can also join Impress Your Kids there as well. Be sure to use the hashtag #TruthTinsel if you post something on twitter.

The little Baby is no longer in the manger but alive and sitting on a thone-waiting to have a relationship with you and your children. Help your children get to know Him this Christmas! Amanda White

Thanks for stopping by and I hope you will join in the Truth in the Tinsel fun! Be sure to check back I will be doing a follow up post with some pictures of the crafts we created and our decorated tree!

Disclaimer - Amanda White generously provided me with a copy of Truth in the Tinsel in return for my honest review.Many of the links found on my my side bars and in my blog posts are affiliate links. As a result, I might get paid money and I will most likely spend the money on homeschool supplies.

K is for Keepsakes

K is the letter this week for the ABC's of homeschooling meme. K is for Keepsakes!

One of my other hobbies besides homeschooling, blogging and geocaching is scrapbooking. However I haven't had much time to devote to it lately and feel more like a scrapbook supply hoarder, lol. I love to take photos and collect keepsakes for our albums for every event or trip.

One of the pages out of our Dollywood album.

My keepsake collecting has even rubbed off on my kids. Every time we take a fieldtrip or have something exciting take place like a milestone, holiday or birthday they collect keepsakes for our albums. On fieldtrips they also insist I take pictures of them posing with everything we encounter.

So I thought....well maybe I can incorporate scrapbooking into homeschooling somehow. They love stickers, cutting, gluing, and coloring which is basically all scrabooking really is. And scrapbooking can be very educational. Kids can learn their colors, practice handwriting, composition, fine motor skills and more.

Supplies don't have to be fancy or overly expensive. Dollar tree has supplies as well as the dollar sections at Target and Michaels. You can also use recycled items likes brochures, newspaper, fabric, wrapping paper and magazine clippings. If you prefer you and your kids can also make digital albums on websites like shutterfly and snapfish. (see one of ours below)

Click here to view this photo book larger

Here are some ideas I came up on ways to incorporate scrapbooking and keepsakes into homeschooling.

• Create a yearbook! Just because we are homeschooling doesn't mean we cannot have a yearbook too or a class photo. Take pictures of the kids on fieldtrips, playing and homeschooling. Journal about accomplishments, goals, favorite subjects, interesting things that were learned. And don't forget to include handwriting samples, workbook pages (could be used as background) artwork,  and  projects (or pictures of projects if they are large). Your yearbook can also serve as a annual progress report for family or maybe even the state? And of course be a cherished keepsake for your child to preserve your their memories and school days.

• Have more fun with unit studies and lapbooks! Unit studies already involve a lot of cutting, gluing and coloring. But how about expanding on that and including pictures, keepsakes, etc of items relevant to the unit study. For example if the unit study is on trees have your child take pictures of trees, or include a piece of bark from a tree.

• Create story books! Have your child make up their own story and use family pictures, keepsakes etc.
  
  
• Create cards! Rather than purchasing store bought cards have your kids use their scrapbook supplies to make them. They can create their own Thank you cards when they receive gifts and include a picture of themselves with the gift.
   
• Create a pet scrapbook! If you have a pet your child could create a scrapbook when they learn about that animal.
  
• Create handmade gifts! Around the holiday's have the kids create handmade gifts using their scrapbook supplies. Kids can create handmade story books, pencil/pen holders (like the one below) and candy bar wrappers.

Pencil/Pen holder made with a tin can and scrapbook supplies.

So what are you waiting for? Go gather your supplies and get the kids started.

My other ABC Posts:
E is for End
F is for Fabulous Fun Filled Field Trips on Fridays starting in the Fall
G is for Grateful
H is for Helping Hands
I is for Imagination
J is for January and June