Repeat This With Me: Change is OK, Change is OK. (PLEASE READ for News on The Amazing Mess)

I hate endings.


I really do.


I love to start something new and work on it, but when I get to the end, I procrastinate.  I don't want it to end.  Whether this is just a personality trait or some irritating defense mechanism I have, I don't know....


But I do know that things are about to change.


For almost two years, I have shared on The Amazing Mess all my sometimes simple, sometimes messy, sometimes fun, sometimes stupid projects.  And I have loved it, and I have loved you.  And I have loved the name The Amazing Mess.


It suits me...it's my life. Sometimes amazing.  Sometimes messy.  Mostly both!


But I had to make a hard decision.  I'm moving all of this blog over to my Motherhood on a Dime blog.  It's been too much for me to have one blog over here (on Blogger) and another blog on Wordpress, and I've struggled with how to manage both of them.


This decision has been months in the making.  After tons of sleepless nights and tears, I finally came up with the idea that I could find a way to combine them.  This weekend, my sites will be down as we migrate everything over to Motherhood on a Dime.  There will be three sections:  Living (recipes, frugal tips, faith and DIY projects), Deals (all the coupons and good buys), and Kids (all of the posts from The Amazing Mess).


PLEASE!  DO NOT BE UPSET WITH ME OR LEAVE ME!!!  Nothing will really change except the name and the location of the blog.


1)  I will still post 2-3 crafts, activities, cooking or other projects per week.  If you currently get my daily email updates or RSS feed, it will still be the same -- just with a different title at the top for now:  MOAD's Amazing Mess (with MOAD standing for Motherhood on a Dime).  


2)  You will still ONLY GET my crafts and activities for kids in your emails or RSS feed!  I'm not forcing anyone to get deals or coupons or anything like that!  


I REPEAT:  Everything will be pretty much the same (you'll even be able to type in www.amazingmess.com and be redirected to my site)!  I'm not changing the content.  I'm just changing the name and location.


It's still been hard for me, because I love the name so much.  But rest assured, I will not be giving up the name anytime soon.  I have tons of ideas:  maybe a book series, an eBook or two, or whatever else I can dream up to do!  Hmm...the biggest problem will be to actually finish what I've started....  ;)


Please feel free to contact me with questions or concerns.  I really hope it will be a smooth transition.  You may not be able to access the site much throughout the weekend, but we should be up and running by Monday!

Making Patterns with Valentine Stickers

I was able to pick up a booklet of Valentine stickers pretty inexpensively several years ago at Walgreens.  They worked perfectly for this patterning activity!

Supplies:

• Sheets of stickers
• Paper

1)  Place several stickers in a pattern on a sheet of paper.  Ask your child to continue the pattern.  Older children may enjoy making up their own patterns. (We ran out of stickers, because they were making all kinds of patterns!!)

Preschool Basics: "Snowy" Day Number Formation

One more snow-themed activity before we move onto Valentine's Day activities!  

Here's a quick tip:  Whenever we do number activities, I always use these Number Rhymes to help the girls remember what each number looks like and how it is formed.

Supplies:

• Paper
• Marker
• Cotton balls

1)  Write the numbers 1-10 on sheets of paper. 

2)  Outline the number with cotton balls.

You can either put the cotton balls and sheets of paper in a plastic bag and reuse them again (as a very simple learning bag), use the cotton balls for a "snowball" hunt, glue them on the number, or use them for another art project!

If you have an older PreK-2nd grade student, challenge them to form the numbers without a written guide.

Indoor "Snowball" Hunt

If you're stuck indoors, or you are just wishing for snow (like us!), this is a simple little activity to get you up and moving around.  It also builds fine-motor skills (if you use tweezers) and develops one-to-one correspondence.  

Supplies:

• Ice cube tray or egg carton
• 12 cotton balls

1)  Hide the "snowballs" around the house.


2)  Have your child find them and place one snowball in each section of the ice cube tray!


*Variation:  Pick up the "snowballs" with tongs or tweezers after your child finds them. 

Torn-Paper Snowman

These torn-paper snowmen are helpful for building up the muscles in the hand (yay for small motor skills).  Tearing up stuff is fun, too!!  

Supplies:

• Tagboard or cardboard
• Pencil
• Circle templates
• Scissors
• Glue
• Paper

1)  On sturdy paper, trace three circles:  small, medium, and large.  I just looked around and used what we had to trace around.  Glue the circles together to form a snowman.

2)  Tear strips of white paper and glue to form the body.  Tear different colors and patterns for various body parts, buttons, etc.  We used paper from our scrap box.

Share your creations!

Shimmery Snow Scenes

Salt + Glue = Messy, fun project!

Supplies:

• School glue
• Glue stick
• Salt
• Construction paper
• Scissors
• Small bowl or cup
• Pan

1)  Cut out trees (or any other desired objects) and glue onto blue paper to make a "snow scene".  

2)  Cover the edges of the trees and ground with a glue stick and add glue dots for snowflakes in the sky.  Sprinkle with salt.  I found it easiest to put the salt in a small bowl for each child.  

3)  Shake off excess salt into a pan.  Allow to dry.


There are many ways to add to or modify this project.  Let your child explore and create!  Our favorite part was sprinkling the salt and making huge puddles of glue!! 

Snowman Votive Holder

It's 65 degrees here today...and we haven't seen more than a dusting of snow in the last few months, but I've decided we're embarking on a winter theme!  

This Snowman Votive Holder makes a sweet gift for grandma or other loved one.

Supplies:

• Votive Holder
• White paint
• Permanent markers
• Tea-light candle

1)  Paint your child's index finger with white paint.  Carefully press onto the votive holder.  Repeat as many times as desired.  Allow to dry.


2)  Use permanent markers to add eyes, nose, mouth, buttons, arms, etc. to your snowman (or woman).


3)  Add a tea-light candle.

*Variation:  If you have multiple children, they could each make and decorate one snowman on the votive.