Father's Day Gifts

Aren't homemade gifts the best?!  My daughter is five now, and every year, we try to make something special for her daddy for Father's Day.  Last year, we made a bouquet of his favorite candy and some fun scratch off tickets.  It was easy breezy and even though he didn't hit the big bucks, he really liked it!

This year, we decided to make something that we know he's going to love.  I found the recipe for these Spicy Cajun Nuts on Pinterest.  They are from Spicy Southern Kitchen, and they are delicious!  I know that my dad and my husband are both going to love them.  

We doubled the recipe in order to yield two half gallon jars, because we know how much our guys like to snack.  ;)  I made a cute tag and tied it on with some jute, and TADA...

I made several different versions of the tag to meet various needs.  You can download them for FREE here.  If you are making them with your class, you could easily just put them in small bags and add the tag.  If you do so, you may want to choose to print two sheets per page so that they are a bit smaller.   

Happy Father's Day to all of the great dads out there! 

Picture Perfect Parent Ornament Gifts

It's almost Christmas Break, and we have been having so much fun!  Our Elf on the Shelf, Oliver showed up a couple of weeks ago, but because we were out of school for six days due to winter weather, he's had to cram a lot of tricks and surprises into this week. 

I literally move him somewhere every time that they are out of the room to keep it exciting!  It's amazing how well they behave when he's watching!

We've also been busy working on our parent gifts.  Our fabulous art teacher, Mrs. Holly Huber, came up with the idea to make these cutesy frames.  They are just adorable!

Here's how it's done:
1. Glue 4 large craft sticks together to make a frame.  I use hot glue to ensure that it holds!
2. Glue discarded puzzle pieces on to the frame, with the backside facing upward, so that the white part is showing.
3. Using a paintbrush, "paint" liquid glue on top of the puzzle pieces.
4. Sprinkle craft snow or glitter on top of the glue. Let it dry.

5.  Turn the frame over, where the craft stick side is facing upward.  Run a thin line of hot glue along the outter edge of the picture.  Place the picture face down on top of the frame.

6. Next, use your finger to curl a chenille stem to make a hanger.  It should look somewhat like this:

7.  Put two dabs of hot glue on the top part of the frame and attach the hanger.

8. Cut a piece of scrapbook paper or construction paper the same size as your picture.  Using a thin line of hot glue, glue the paper onto the back of the picture to create a pretty backing and support to hold the hanger.

That's it!  Easy as pie, and sooo cute! :)


Back when I was teaching 3rd grade, I used to make these ornaments with my kiddos.  They are a bit more complicated for small hands, but they turn out adorable!  I know that I saw this idea somewhere years ago, but can't find a link to the step-by-step directions.  If you know where it came from, please let me know so that I can give the creator some credit where credit is due! ;)

To make these ornaments, you basically follow the same steps listed above, with these modifications:
*Before gluing the pictures inside the cookie cutters, you will need to tie ribbon through the top of the cutter to create a hanger. 
*Also, you will need to back the picture with foam board before gluing it inside the cookie cutter so that it will stay in place. 

While I let my kiddos complete a lot of these steps on their own or with assistance, I make sure that their little fingers stay away from the hot glue.  Please make sure that you do too! ;)

Finally, we always have a gift wrapping party, where I let my kiddos use pre-cut squares of paper to wrap their gift for their family.  I show them how to tie a bow, and let them choose a tag to finish it off.  They are always so excited to take their gift home to give to their loved ones! 

I hope that you and your kiddos have a fantastic week!
Amy