Tissue Paper Leaf Sun Catcher

We had a blast making our Tissue Paper Leaf Sun Catchers at our playdate last week, they were so much fun that we had to make another one! This is a great craft for a playdate or for a Fall party because it is easy to do and is very inexpensive. 

 

 

You can pick up everything you need in the dollar store-- clear contact paper, colored tissue paper, and construction paper. You will also need a pencil, a piece of string, scissors, and a hole punch.

 

 

Fold 1 piece of construction paper in half. Draw or trace (Google leaf template images) a leaf onto the paper and cut it out. Then cut small squares out of the tissue paper. A little goes a log way, I cut 1 strip off of each piece of tissue paper and then cut it into small squares.

 

 

Cut a rectangular piece of contact paper that when folded in half, will fill the leaf window that you made in the paper. Remove the paper from half of the contact paper and cover it with small pieces of tissue paper. Be sure to overlap the piece of tissue paper like you are making a collage.

 

 

Remove the paper backing from the other half of the contact paper and fold it over the side that has the tissue paper.

 

Open your construction paper and place your contact paper/tissue paper sandwich inside, covering the leaf window.

 

 

Glue and/or tapethe contact paper to hold it in place between both sides of the construction paper.

 

You can leave your sun catcher as is or trim it with your scissors.

Punch a hole in it and put your sting threw to hang it.

 

The sun shines nicely through it-- today was not a very sunny day, it actually snowed and rained all day, but you get the idea!

 

I am planning on making more of these with my little one in different designs, I will keep you posted!

 

Leaf Placemats for Thanksgiving

Last week, we had some friends over for a playdate. We  had a blast making these fun Fall themed placemats. We decided to add some cute handprint turkeys to them to make them perfect for Thanksgiving. These were fun and easy to make. The kids loved going outside and searching for leaves to add to their placemat. 

 

 

To make these, you need 2 pieces of clear contact paper cut to the size of a placemat. I picked up rolls of contact paper from the Dollar Tree, I got 2 placemats (4 pieces) from each roll.  Take the paper backing off of 1 piece of contact paper and lay it sticky side up on your work space.

Place your leaves and handprint turkey wherever you like onto the sticky side of contact paper.
*I chose to cut out our handprint turkey, some didn't.

 

 

Once everything is in place, put the second sheet of contact paper on top of the first one. I found the easiest way to do this is to take the paper off as you go-- Remove the paper about an inch or two and stick that to the bottom sheet. Then, repeat with a few more inches. Continue to repeat until you are done.

 

 

Smooth the contact paper out to make sure it sticks and then trim the ends with scissors so that they are even. 

 

 

There you have it, a wonderful kid-made placemat for your child to use and show-off  on Thanksgiving!

My son is loving his, he cannot wait to show it to his Grandma & Poppie on Thanksgiving!

 

I plan on making these with the kids again next year, I think I may do them a little earlier so that we can highlight all of the beautiful colors of Fall. Here in PA, the leaves are mostly brown by the time November rolls around.

Pumpkin Pancakes

I made Pumpkin Pancakes for our Pumpkin Potluck the other night. I love adding fruits and vegetables to dishes that are not normally real nutritious, which is one of the reasons why I love this potluck. I love it for other reasons too-- I LOVE pumpkin and I love to experiment and try new recipes and concoctions.  I figured that pancakes are very kid friendly, so Pumpkin Pancakes would be a great way to introduce the kids to pumpkin. The pancakes were delicious and big hit with the kids (and the mom's). The pumpkin taste is just right, not overpowering or overwhelming.

I will be making these again Thanksgiving morning.

 

Pumpkin Pancakes

Ingredients

• 1 cup pumpkin puree (I use canned)
• 1 3/4 cups milk
• 1 egg
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 3 tablespoons light brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

Instructions

In a large bowl, combine the milk, pumpkin, egg, and oil. In another bowl, mix together the flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and spices. Fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. Stir until combined, do not over mix.

 

Heat a lightly greased griddle or skillet over medium-high heat. Pour batter into small circles on the pan and allow each pancake to cook for 1-2 minutes per side, or until golden brown on each side. Serve the pancakes warm with maple syrup.

 

Pumpkin Pie Cheesecake Dip

I love pumpkin! Pumpkin Pie, Pumpkin Pancakes, Pumpkin Ravioli... Anything pumpkin! My kids are big fans as well. This is the second year in a row that  we hosted a Pumpkin Potluck Dinner Playdate. Our friends (moms and kids) join us for dinner, dessert and some playtime. Each mom brought a dish or dessert that highlighted the deliciousness of pumpkin. I made Pumpkin Pie Cheesecake Dip, Pumpkin Smoothies, and Pumpkin Pancakes. Over the next few days, I will post the recipes so that you can enjoy  them this Fall too! Below is the recipe for the delicious and simple to make Pumpkin Pie Cheesecake Dip that I made. This dip is amazing and only took a few minutes to make. I always have a few cans of pumpkin in my pantry and cream cheese in the fridge, so I had everything I needed on hand. I threw all of the ingredients in my stand mixer and let it do the work for me. I served the dip with graham crackers and animal crackers. 

Pumpkin Pie Cheesecake Dip

8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature

1 cup canned pumpkin

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup powder sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/8 teaspoon ground cloves

Combine all ingredients thoroughly and serve. Refrigerate any left overs.

A Hay Playdate!!

We had so much fun with our friends and a bail of hay! We cut the bail open at let the kids have at it!

They had a blast throwing it at each other and rolling around in it!

 

HAY + FRIENDS = HOURS OF FUN!!

 

 

After we finished playing, we made our very own scarecrow out of the hay and an old  pair of pajamas. We set it up in front of our house and my little guy loves it! He is so proud of the scarecrow that he made and happy that he's not too scary!

 

This was a lot of fun! It is a great activity for Fall, Halloween, or even a farm unit!

 

Pumpkin Rice Krispies Treats

 

Last week, we had another fun playdate with the kids! We made some adorable Pumpkins out of Rice Krispies! They were almost as easy to make as regular rice krispies treat, but definitely more fun!

 

Ingredients:

• Rice Krispies cereal
• 1 Bag of Marshmallows
• Butter
• Red & yellow food coloring
• 18-20 tootsie rolls unwrapped
• Green Frosting for leaves

 

Directions:

To make, all you need to do is follow the rice krispies treats recipe on the back of the box. When your marshmallows are nice and melted, add red and yellow food coloring until you reach a pumpkin orange color.

 

 

After you stir the rice krispies into the orange marshmallow mixture, spray some cooking spray on the palms of your hands and roll the mixture quickly into balls. I found that I needed to spray my hands between rolling each ball. Place a tootsie roll in the center of each pumpkin and garnish with frosting leaves.