To make these you will need four sheets of tissue paper, (three of one color and one of another color) some color coordinating pipe cleaners, some scissors and a ruler.

Lay down three full sheets of tissue paper with one half sheet of tissue paper in another color centered in the middle.

Next you are going to want to fold in two inch increments. Fold one way, then turn the paper over and fold the other way.  Repeat until you end.

Flatten out your tissue paper after folding.

We are now going to cut some fringe on the center piece.  Carefully remove center piece and fold it back together accordion style.  Cut each end with small cuts (about 1 1/2 inches) to create fringe.

Open your middle piece tissue paper back up and place it back on your full sheets.

Fold everything back up again and then fold in half.

Taking your scissors, cut half circles at the end of your tissues.

Open your tissues and place a pipe cleaner in the middle.   Twist tightly but don’t pinch the middle.

Open up your flower and start fluffing the tissue paper one side at a time by pulling the layers of tissue paper apart.

Now that you know how to make tissue paper flowers, they are ready to hang.  Use the pipe cleaners in the back to attach to a rod if you’d like to stand them up.

These are fairly large as you can see in the pictures and make a beautiful look on walls.

You may have some tissue paper left over so here is another fun tissue paper craft!

Tissue Paper Flower Bracelet

Tissue Paper Flower idea by The Crafty Mom

The post How To Make Tissue Paper Flowers appeared first on TGIF - This Grandma is Fun.

The items needed for this craft are toilet paper tubes or paper towel tubes cut in half, red, white and blue tissue paper, red, white and blue pipe cleaners and some patriotic ribbon, then lots of treats as a filler.  We used small candies but you could also put in small toys or balloons. Anything goes that would fit in the tubes.

Cut your tissue paper into about 10 inch squares.  You will want 2-3 layers of whatever color you are working with.

Roll your tube around the tissue paper.  You can either glue with a glue gun (with supervision if you have little kids!) or Elmer’s glue works also but will take a little longer time to dry.

Cut some of your pipe cleaners into smaller pieces and wrap these around the bottom of the tissue paper.  Twist tightly and then put the pipe cleaner into the end of the tube to hide it.  Don’t cut all of your pipe cleaners though.  You’ll  need some longer ones later.

Now fill your tubes with all of the goodies that you have gathered.

You can decorate the outside of your 4th of July Firecrackers by gluing on some ribbon but I think that some patriotic stickers would also look cute!

To close your tube, wrap a full length pipe cleaner around the top of the tissue paper and twist tightly. Make the pipe cleaner curly by wrapping it around a pencil.  We also fashioned a star popping out of the top.

Now you are ready for any 4th of July party with these fun poppers! Kid love cracking them open to find their surprises! 

Thank you to How Does She for a great patriotic kids craft!

Need a little more patriotic spirit?  Try out these crafts!

Kids Teeshirt              Popsicle Stick Flag

The post 4th of July Firecrackers appeared first on TGIF - This Grandma is Fun.

Is it just me, or is staying inside all day long mind numbingly boring? If you’re feeling my pain, I’m sure your kids are feeling it even more! If you’re looking for something to keep them engaged while soaking up some vitamin D, we’re here to help you with 25 ideas to get your kids outside. 

1. Pouring Station– This activity from Busy Toddler will keep your little ones busy for hours!

2. Coffee Can Ice Cream– If you love a little dessert after burning lots of calories, than this activity from Living Well Mom is perfect for you!

3. Play Garden– Dirt and childhood go hand in hand, especially with The Imagination Tree‘s beautiful play garden!

4. Puffy Sidewalk Paint– Upgrade from regular old sidewalk chalk to Midget Momma‘s puffy sidewalk paint!

5. Old School Outside Games– Need something low maintenance? Check out Living in Happy Place‘s outside games that require little to no extra equipment or planning!

6. Nature Color Wheel– Show off all the beautiful colors found in nature with Mother Natured ‘s color wheel scavenger hunt!

7. Dinosaur Ice Excavation– If you need something fun that will take up a long time, you have to try Parenting Chaos‘s dinosaur excavation!

8. Water Pistol Painting– Water guns are not only great for water fights, but also artistic expression, like in this activity from Messy Little Monster.

9. Spring Sun Catchers– These sun catchers from I Can Teach My Child are simple, yet beautiful.

10. Rainbow Clean Mud– You read that right. Clean. Mud. It’s like a miracle from above! Find the recipe from Frogs, Snails, and Puppy Dog Tails!

11. Tin Can Bowling– For those of you with a serious aversion to wearing borrowed, dirty shoes at the bowling alley (me!), you’ll love A Girl and A Glue Gun‘s tin can version of bowling!

12. Human Ring Toss Game– Kids will love this fun twist on the classic backyard game from Kid Friendly Things To Do!

13. DIY Bean Pole Teepee– Can you imagine the memories you’re little ones will make in this bean pole teepee from Artful Parent?

14. Bubble Snake Maker– With just a few simple materials, you can make these fun bubble snakes from Mum in the Mad House.

15. Sidewalk Chalk Board Game– Liven up the sidewalk with Views from a Step Stool‘s fun game!

16. Garden Sensory Bin-Help your children experience the joys of gardening with this sensory bin from Mess for Less.

17. Water Table Paint and Print– Put that water table to use with No Time for Flash Cards‘s fun activity.

18. Obstacle Course– If you’re looking for something to expend some of that extra energy, you’ll love this obstacle course idea from Playing and Learning Begins at Home!

19. Backyard Bug Hunt– What kid doesn’t love bugs? Find this fun scavenger hunt at The Littles and Me.

20. Nature Tree– Make a beautiful picture with all the treasures you find in nature! Check it out at Raising Hooks.

21. Tic Tac Toe Painted Rocks– Take tic tac toe outside with Run Wild My Child‘s tic tac toe rocks!

22. Garden Xylophone– Music and nature- a perfect combination! Try it out at The Moments At Home!

23. Backyard Mud Cafe– Make your child’s dreams come true with this mud cafe from The Crafting Chicks.

24. Monster Footprint Hop– This game from Raising Dragons is perfect for fun memories and burning a little energy.

25. Pinecone Mobiles– Is it just me, or do kids love collecting pinecones? Put them to use with Happy Hooligans‘s pinecone mobile!

We hope our list of 25 ideas to get your kids outside will help make this difficult time a little easier. Stay happy and stay healthy! 

The post 25 Ideas to Get Your Kids Outside appeared first on TGIF - This Grandma is Fun.

Moon sand has made a huge come back. Or at least that is what my mom says. She remembers it from the first time around. But it’s not exactly cheap. I would have a hard time letting Thor play with it, knowing that he still gets things like that everywhere. Luckily there are a ton of DIY recipes on Pinterest so that your littles can get their play on.

This was something great to have in the house over the holiday break. While the baby was napping this kept the toddler quiet and entertained without the use of TV. Win!

I looked at Pinterest and found a pin from Happy Mothering. I then went to Target and bought a big 32 quart bin to make a double batch in. I chose that one because the lid clips on. I wanted it to be good and secure when it was being stored. I wanted it to be big enough for there to be room to play in without making too much of a mess. Turns out I probably should have bought a bigger bin. As it was moon sand was everywhere. Luckily it is very easy to sweep up.

When we came home I put ingredients in. For a single of moon sand batch you will need:

8 cups of flour
1 cup of baby oil
A couple drops of lavender essential oil (optional)

I just filled the bin with flour, added the essential oil to the baby oil and poured the oil over top. Then we mixed it all together with our hands. It didn’t take too long to get it all mixed. Maybe five minutes.  Now it was time to play. I was hoping the lavender would entice Thor to nap after playing. It didn’t, but it did make the whole thing smell lovely.

I gave him a scoop, measuring cup, silicone baking cup, a lollipop stick, and a plastic kids cup. He had a lot of fun for a few minutes. Then he stared grabbing toys to add when I wasn’t looking. The dinosaur wasn’t bad, but the car, not a good idea. Haha. So definitely keep an eye on that. I had to wash a whole sink full of toys that weren’t supposed to be used in the moon sand.

Over all it was a win. I even enjoyed playing with it. I couldn’t believe how soft it was. It will probably get everywhere, so just keep the play on a surface that is easy to sweep. And probably keep the dogs away. Mine was trying to eat it as it fell out of the bin.

Want more kids activity ideas? Check out these posts.

Lego Minifigure Matching Game

Rainbow Rice

Velcro Sticks

If you are looking for more ideas for kids be sure to follow me and check out similar posts on my blog.

Pinterest  |  Facebook  |  Twitter  |  Google+  |  Instagram

The post Homemade Moon Sand Recipe appeared first on TGIF - This Grandma is Fun.

Hi Everyone! This is Melanie from Artzy Creations here to share with you, a fun Thanksgiving craft for kids. At our house, it’s typically a long day for the kids and they get a little restless waiting for the big Thanksgiving dinner. Not this year… I’ve come up with a clever way to create a turkey using just a few materials and some wood slices. I love wood slices and how versatile they are for so many crafts. Plus, they make the cutest darned turkeys.

This Wood Slice Turkey is great because you can have the pieces pre cut and put in separate bags for the kids to complete on Thanksgiving day. That really helps make this project extra simple, easy to distribute and manage on that busy day.

Supplies Needed:

• Wood Slices
• Red Felt
• Orange Felt
• Googly Eyes
• Tacky Glue (It’s great for kids to use for this project.) or Hot Glue
• Colored Ribbon

Step 1: Cut several pieces of different colored ribbon to roughly 3″ in length. Make a loop and place a dab of glue between the ends of the ribbon to glue them together.

Step 2: Glue the loops of ribbon to the back of the turkey and space them out just a little bit in a fan pattern.

Step 3: Next, you will create the legs of the turkey by taking two pieces of ribbon, roughly 1″ in lenght and glue these pieces to the back of the turkey. If you’re using ribbon with a pattern (like mine) make sure the pattern is facing the front so you can see it. You can angle the legs like I did or have them just go straight up and down.

Step 3: Take a little piece of red felt and a cut a curved waddle shape. Use a small piece of orange felt and cut a triangle for the beak.

Step 4: Glue the waddle shape down first. Followed by the beak. Finally, glue the googly eyes on.

Look at these cute turkeys. They will be a kid crowd pleaser for sure.

They are not only cute, but they make great a table decorations. You could also turn these into magnets for the fridge too.

I hope you enjoyed this project! I wish you and your family a wonderful Thanksgiving. I will see you all in December. Until then you can follow me for more craftiness fun at Artzy Creations or on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, Twitter, and Google +.

If you like this project, check out these fun projects too:

Color Blocked Leaves

Borax Star Ornaments

Borax Star Ornaments

Free Fall Coloring Page

Free Fall Coloring Page

The post Wood Slice Turkey appeared first on TGIF - This Grandma is Fun.

Have we got a great craft project for you today!  If you have girls that like to make things, then you are going to want to read this tutorial.   These are super easy to make, super cheap but also super cute!  When my girls were littler, I always loved having projects like these for them to make during the summer instead of just watching movies all day and they would have loved making these Fabric Bracelets.

This is a great project to be able to use  all of your scrap fabric.  And you won’t believe what you use for the “bracelet part”.   Plastic Shower Rings!  I know what you are saying…”Get out of Town!”  I know, right?!?!

Here is what you will need to get going on this fun project:

Plastic Shower Rings (I bought mine at the Dollar Tree for $1!)

Scrap Material ( I bought some fat quarters at WalMart for like 97 cents.)

Scissors

Wire cutters (not pictured)

Glue Gun (not pictured)

With  your wire cutters, cut off the “pokey” part of the shower ring.  If you have super small arms, you can leave this on and use it to close your bracelet.

With your scissors, cut your strips of fabric into 1/2 inch strips.  I cut mine from selvage to selvage and one strip covered one bracelet perfectly.

Taking your glue gun, glue the underside of one of the ends of the shower ring and attach a strip of fabric.

Put another drop of glue on the top side of the shower ring and pull your fabric strip around.

Now you want to start wrapping the fabric around the shower ring covering any white that you can see.  When you wrap, make sure you cover the edge of the last wrap so that the shower ring doesn’t show through. Wrap as tightly as you can.

When you are at the end, wrap the fabric strip over the end and tack on the inside of the shower ring with some glue so that none of the shower ring shows.

Cut off any remaining fabric.  Now you are ready to wear your masterpiece!

Tutorial inspiration from The 36th Avenue

We made these in red, white and blue for the upcoming 4th of July but they can be made in any colors and trust me…if you have daughters, they are going to want some in EVERY color.  And with how inexpensive these are to make, you can let them make these till their hearts content!

You can also find us on Pinterest │ Facebook │ Twitter │ Instagram │ StumbleUpon │ Hometalk

 This awesome post has been shared with Homestories A to Z and Whipperberry.

The post Fabric Bracelet Tutorial appeared first on TGIF - This Grandma is Fun.

XOXO, Lindsay

Make sure you check out some of my other projects too!

This great post has been shared with Living Well Spending Less and Whipperberry.

The post Kitten Ear Barrettes appeared first on TGIF - This Grandma is Fun.

WHALE, look no further!  We COD send you elsewhere for some Valentine ideas, but this seemed like the perfect oppor-TUNA-ty to share a free printable with you!

All these fish puns?  Well, they are on PORPOISE because these Valentines are REELy fishy.

We crafted them from vintage French postcards, found at The Graphics Fairy.  We think they are hilarious!

If you like them, too, then click below to download the PDF file for these FREE printable Valentines!  After all, we’re sure that SALMON you know would love to get one.

Click this button to get your free printable Valentines!

The post FREE Printable Valentines! appeared first on TGIF - This Grandma is Fun.

Valentine’s Day isn’t too far away, so we’ve come up with a very quirky–and very FREE–printable you can use to make your own “o-FISH-al” greetings for the day of love!

Scroll down to download the PDF file below and print it out at home or send it off to your local copy store and let them print it for you.  We recommend printing them on cardstock.

The free file contains a page of four fishy valentines that you can cut out and attach to your favorite “fish food”.  We suggest Swedish Fish or Goldfish Crackers.  Did you know there are princess goldfish that are pinkish purple?  (Perfect for Valentine’s Day!)

Notice that these cards only have a space for “from”, not “to.”  That’s because of a busy mom tip we’ve got for you: simplify your life by having kids write their own name in the “from” spot.  Don’t worry about writing the names of everyone in their class on the Valentines when they are handing them out to the entire class!  It is much less stressful for the kids and makes the distribution go so much faster in the classroom!

Click on the image below to download and save the file for this printable thank-you postcard template.

Just in case you missed it up above, you can click on the highlighted text to download the PDF file for this printable right here:

Free Printable Fish Valentines

The post January FREE Printable appeared first on TGIF - This Grandma is Fun.