Last week, Martha and Mema show you how to make a Snow White paper bag puppet… and this week it’s lil Allan’s turn!  He decided he wanted to make a VERY SCARY monster paper bag puppet.

(And I sincerely apologize for all the “background noise” in this week’s video.  It’s tough keeping everyone quiet for these long 3 minute video shoots…)

To recap, you’ll need:

• one paper lunch bag
• glue stick
• scissors
• construction paper – we used green, purple, white, blue, and red
• googly eyes if you have them

Now, don’t worry about perfection here.  Just cut the following:

• a colorful rectangle for the head/face
• a spiky hair-do
• two spiky pieces for the mouth
• two white circles and two blue circles for the eyes (if you don’t have googly eyes)
• three round buttons

Glue it all together and you will have a fun puppet that your preschooler will love!

Happy crafting!

Don’t forget… if you and your children/grandchildren create something from one of our Crafting posts, we’d LOVE to see photos (or videos).  Along those same lines, we are also interested in posting YOUR video or photo tutorials, so if you have crafty kiddos and want to share, please send an email to admin@nanahood.com.

About “Mema”: Cheryl Booth has been crafting for more years than she cares to remember, and has shared her love of crafts with kids in her home, in Bible classes, at summer camp, and elsewhere.  You can visit Cheryl’s craft shop online at http://www.mycraftbooth.etsy.com

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It’s been a couple of weeks since we last did a Crafting With Mema post… are you ready for a new one?  I am!

This week’s video is Mema with Martha, making a Snow White paper bag puppet.

We didn’t really have a pattern for this puppet when we started… Martha just really, REALLY wanted Snow White, so we grabbed some paper and started cutting shapes to see what we could come up with. It’s about as easy as it can be, but Martha loved it!

To recap, you’ll need:

• one paper lunch bag
• glue stick
• scissors
• construction paper – white, black, red, blue
• googly eyes if you have them

Now, don’t worry about perfection here.  Just cut the following:

• a round piece large enough for Snow White’s face/head. Cut it in two pieces so her face will “move” when you put it all together on the paper bag
• a nice snake-ish type shape in black for Snow White’s hair
• some ruby lips
• some blue eyes (if you don’t have googly eyes)
• two white hand shapes
• a red apple shape

Glue it all together and you will have a fun puppet that your preschooler will love!

Happy crafting!!

P.S.  The kid running through the background at the end saying, “My turn…my turn…” – well, that was lil Allan.  And NEXT week, we’ll share with you HIS puppet!

Don’t forget… if you and your children/grandchildren create something from one of our Crafting posts, we’d LOVE to see photos (or videos).  Along those same lines, we are also interested in posting YOUR video or photo tutorials, so if you have crafty kiddos and want to share, please send an email to admin@nanahood.com.

About “Mema”: Cheryl Booth has been crafting for more years than she cares to remember, and has shared her love of crafts with kids in her home, in Bible classes, at summer camp, and elsewhere.  You can visit Cheryl’s craft shop online at http://www.mycraftbooth.etsy.com

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But today… there is no vlog… and actually no Crafting with Mema post.  My family and I have been in California WITH Mema for the last few days, and we had INTENDED to craft our little hearts out while we were here.  My mom had a nice list of things to make with the kids, and the kids had expectations of crafting… but somehow the days went by so fast with OTHER activities that our crafting never happened.  Last night on the way home from church, three year old Martha turned around in her seat and said, “MOM, we never crafted with Mema!!!”

It was past bedtime when she said that. And we are supposed to head home this morning.  Oops!

Thankfully Daddy is NOT a Type A personality, so we’ll probably be leaving closer to lunch time.  That means there will be time for one (maybe two) crafting with Mema projects (and yes, even though I tend to grumble about it, there ARE occasions when my husband’s laid back approach to life works to our advantage).

Anyway, I hope to be back on Wednesday with a new Crafting With Mema segment for you.

In the meantime, I wanted to tell you about another fun Monday Bloggy “thing”.  My friend Jennifer has started a new blog carnival entitled Making Memories Monday.   It’s the type of carnival I’m going to enjoy participating in, and I know you will to.  If you have a blog and want to write a post about Making Memories with your kids or grandkids, head on over and join in!  If you DON’T have a blog, but like making memories with your kids or grandkids, head on over and read the posts and join in!  Here is today’s Making Memories Monday post.

And speaking of memories – even though we didn’t do a lot of crafting while we were here, my kids are going to remember this trip.  The days were jam-packed, mostly with activities that surrounded them and their interests… with a little of Mom and Dad’s interests thrown in.

When we travel to see my folks, it’s a ten or eleven hour trip and we’re riding in a little Jetta with the kids crammed in to the back seat, three across, but our kids always do fabulously.  We don’t have a lot of room for extra STUFF, and I’m always happily surprised by how well kids can do with just one or two little happy meal toys and an imagination.  Gas station bathrooms are an adventure to them (and to mommy too!), and we enjoy seeing nature in a different way.  (California countryside is a LOT different than the Nevada desert!)  It was kind of a “new” experience for Martha, because she was old enough to really take it all in.  In fact this whole trip to my folks was a “new” experience for Martha.  The last time she was here, she was barely walking.  So, the entire weekend was full of, “Mommy, does Mema have a BATHROOM?”  Mommy, where does Mema SLEEP?”  “WOW, what is THAT??” (in reference to Mema’s back porch).  Her three year old self was pretty amazed at Mema’s HOUSE.

Besides the ride over, we managed to fit in the following memory-making activities:

• a cemetary visit (which probably sounds not-s0-fun, but the kids like hunting for markers with Daddy)
• driving over the Bay Bridge to San Francisco
• a trip to the Exploratorium in San Francisco.  If you are ever in northern CA, this is definitely a place to try and visit.
• a walk around the Golden Gate park while laughing at and talking to many, many ducks in the pond
• a drive over the Golden Gate bridge
• a trip to McDonalds and 2 hours in the play place there
• breakfast at IHOP with smiley face pancakes
• a visit to the cousins house to play with THEIR toys
• a matinee at the movie theater – How To Train Your Dragon – BIG hit with all the kids, except Martha who slept through it
• a trip to the “castle park” (which is a really cool park in town where my folks live)
• a fun dinner at church with the cousins, and some basketball playing time in the church gym
• and lots and lots of playtime outside at Mema and Papa’s house with all THEIR toys

Yes, I am tired, and rather glad to be making the LONG drive home today.

The kids… they don’t really want to leave, but they are being consoled by the fact that we’ll be coming back in four months.

Oh, and the fact that we will get to do at least ONE Crafting With Mema project before we go.  Speaking of that, I need to go grab the camera …

Happy Monday, everyone!

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Today I have something a little different for you.  When my mother (a.k.a Mema) was in town we spent three days filming videos for this series.  On the third day, I LEFT my kids with Mema, and my husband and I went for a much-needed 24 hour retreat.

Obviously this meant that I couldn’t film any more videos of the kids crafting with Mema… but do you think this stopped her from crafting?  NO!  They cooked, they created, they crafted… and she took pictures all along the way.  So, for the next few weeks, we’ll have photos instead of videos!

(And be assured that we’re heading to CA to see Mema in just a few weeks, where we plan to create several new videos!)

Today is also different because it’s not exactly crafting with Mema, as much as it is COOKING with Mema.  (And I’m sure bakers and chefs alike would tell me that cooking IS a craft, so I think we can still do this, right?)

The kids and Mema made some fabulous Monkey Bread.  Here is the recipe, and I’ll post the photos below with a little commentary:

MONKEY BREAD

• 4 cans of instant biscuits
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 3 tablespoons cinnamon
• one stick of butter
• nuts (walnuts or pecans) if you want them.
• bundt pan

Spray or butter your bundt pan.  Sprinkle nuts (if you are using them) in the greased pan.

Open the cans of un-cooked biscuits and cut each biscuit into fourths.

Mix the sugar and cinnamon together, and pour enough into a smaller bowl to coat all the biscuit pieces.  Roll the biscuit pieces in the sugar/cinnamon mixture and completely coat them.  Place (or if you are three years old, THROW) the pieces into the bundt pan.

When all the pieces are coated and in the bundt pan, melt the stick of butter and dissolve the remainder of the sugar/cinnamon mixture in it, making a very, very yummy (and not so healthy) “syrup/glaze”.  Pour the glaze over the biscuit pieces in the bundt pan.

Bake at 350 degrees for 35-40 minutes.   Remove from oven, and place a plate over your bundt pan.  Flip the bundt pan and remove your Monkey Bread.  Wash the bundt pan RIGHT AWAY.  (Experience talking here).

Wait as long as you can before eating the Monkey Bread.  Have the cold water running and ready when you burn your fingers because you couldn’t wait long enough!

Happy crafting (and cooking… and EATING)!!

Don’t forget… if you and your children/grandchildren create something from one of our Crafting posts, we’d LOVE to see photos (or videos).  Along those same lines, we are also interested in posting YOUR video or photo tutorials, so if you have crafty kiddos and want to share, please send an email to admin@nanahood.com.

About “Mema”: Cheryl Booth has been crafting for more years than she cares to remember, and has shared her love of crafts with kids in her home, in Bible classes, at summer camp, and elsewhere.  You can visit Cheryl’s craft shop online at http://www.mycraftbooth.etsy.com

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