"Upcycled" Crayons

My son loves crayons.  He loves breaking them, eating them, peeling them, and stabbing things with them.  He really doesn't care much about coloring with them, but he can certainly destroy them.  So I have ended up with an entire box of broken crayon bits.  I had been planning on melting the bits and making "new" crayons for a while but today we finally did it.  So, here's the steps:

Start with a non-stick muffin pan, preferably in a cute shape.  I had hearts.  Disregard the potatoes, they have nothing to do with the crayon project!

Liberally coat pan with cooking spray, unless using a flexible silicon pan.  It will help them come out easier.

Fill each cup in pan about 3/4 full with broken bits of crayon, paper removed.  Put those kids to work sorting the crayon bits!  I told you I had a lot!  It helps to use a variety of colors in each cup so that you come out with rainbow crayons. Heat oven to 225 degrees and about 15 minutes or until soft and partially melted.  Turn oven off and remove crayons.  They will continue to soften and cook on the counter.  I have made the mistake of over-cooking before and this will make the crayon solids separate from the oil, pretty much ruining your "easy" project.

Let crayons sit and cool for at least 30 minutes.  Be patient, taking them out too early will also ruin your project.  Clearly, I have some "trial and error" behind me here.

When crayons have fully cooled, slip a thin knife into the side and gently pop crayons out.  Arrange nicely on a plate and marvel that they actually turned out really well.  Or maybe that's just me...

Give to kids and watch them have an entire new set to maul.  Enjoy!

Here's a bonus tip:  I store the kids' crayons in an old wipes container.  It works really well because it allows the kids to reach their hands in to get the crayons without spilling easily.  Really, these little babies are great for storing all sort of stuff!

Dear Santa...

Today we stayed at home.  Fairly unusual for us but I do try to work in a lazy day sometimes and a cold Friday is just perfect for one!  We stayed in pjs until lunch, watched an entire Sesame Street...and wrote letters to Santa!  Or, to be more accurate, Mrs. Claus for my daughter (a budding feminist apparently).

A few months ago our neighbors "gifted" us with this holiday paper with matching envelopes.  While I appreciated the sentiment, I'm not really a "Christmas newsletter" type of gal (surprisingly) so it just went into a drawer somewhere.  However, today I remembered it and thought it was the perfect paper for our letters to Santa, er, Mrs. Claus.

I gave each child a sheet to draw their picture on while I carefully addressed the envelopes (1 Mistletoe Lane, North Pole, North Pole, 01225 if you need the big guy's address).  Then, they dictated their letters, with a few suggestions from mom of course.  I mean, I wanted to make sure they used their best manners, of course!

My daughter thought Mrs. Claus needed a picture of a tree and a rainbow.  Smart girl, she knows that's probably a rare sight at the North Pole!  My son of course, just did lots of scribbling, crayon "stabbing" and screaming at Sister for getting too close to his personal space.  Sigh...

We managed to get through our letters with minimal freak-outs, then it was time to decorate the envelopes with glitter (never good for the nerves of a Type A moms like me) and Snoopy stickers.  Then, it was off to the mailbox!

I love that the kids are big enough now to mail their own letters.  I have no idea why, I just think it's cute.  See???  I wonder what my neighbors sometimes think of me.  'Cuz trust me, they're watching!  The cross to bear of living on a street full of retired people.  Sorry for the tangent!

So, we mailed Santa and the Mrs. their letters requesting princesses and footballs and now it's just two weeks of waiting to see if Santa delivers.  Stay tuned for the dramatic conclusion...

Thankful Turkey...or As Crafty as I Get!

This year a friend gave me a great idea: make a turkey craft where you write things you are thankful for on the feathers.  What an awesome lesson in a house where we often have to discuss gratitude and graciousness!  My friend found a turkey template on the Internet.  Done!  Then she had her kids decorate him.  Done!  Then she "free-handed" some really great looking feathers for the kiddos to write all the things that they were thankful for.  Um...roadblock!  I'm a terrible artist and even worse with scissors.  Once my daughter asked me to draw Santa Claus and when I was finished she said "Mommy, why did you draw a dog?"  I blame it on being a "lefty."  But, I can trace and cut along the lines, so we made turkey feather hands.  This actually turned out to be pretty cool.

I traced each family member's hands and then we had forty "feathers" for us to write on.  Plus, it will be a nice keepsake of the kids' hands when they were ensy wensy little kiddos.  Sorry, had to throw that in!  So, here's what you need:

1 turkey template (or draw one if you are that skilled)
Crayons or markers for coloring and writing
Fall-colored construction or craft paper
1 pencil
Glue stick

Trace hands on construction paper and cut out.  Have each person write 10 things that they are thankful for on their finger/feathers.  My son was thankful for the dog that bit him, motorcycles, trains, God and Jesus, about in that order.  He was not thankful for his sister, no matter how many times I suggested it.

Glue hands to the back of the turkey.  It helps to start at the top with the smaller hands and fan out with the larger hands.  Tape finished product to coveted spot on refrigerator and admire its loveliness.

Not bad, right?  The kids had fun making it and I thought it was a good way to introduce the "real" concept of Thanksgiving to pre-schoolers.  Incidentally, if you are looking for a slightly more grown-up craft, check out this awesome fall wreath!  It looks so cute and simple that I'm actually considering giving it a shot.  Maybe...