This ones for the birds

Type:  craft
Age:  over 3

Monday marked the end of the holiday vacation for my oldest daughter, but before she headed back we snuck in a few more projects! 

A morning playdate seemed like the perfect time for my girls to make a little treat for our feathered friends!  Each girl got their own "bird feeder station" consisting of pine cones, peanut butter, birdseed and age appropriate knife.  Then the girls got to work spreading and sprinkling to make some awesome pine cone bird feeders.

After I attached some string to the tops, our small Japanese maple was adorned in these winter decorations.  The fun didn't end there though, as the girls loved seeing who was visiting their pine cones for a snack! 

Salt Dough Cookie Ornaments

Age:  3 and up
Type:  Craft


A week before Christmas the girls and I set out to make salt cookie dough ornaments to adorn all the gifts for their grandparents.  I had seen this idea several times before, but this was our first attempt.  I have to say, that I enjoyed salt cookie dough way more than real cookies - much less nagging to stop eating the dough :)  The girls happily rolled out their dough below.

 After several LONG hours of baking and cooling, the ornaments were ready for decoration.  In retrospect I would advise doing the rolling/cutting one day, and the decorating the next.  Even I thought the cookies would never be ready - you can only imagine how the kiddos felt!

 We had just received a whole set of new paints for a birthday present several days earlier - so this was the perfect time to put them to good use.  The girls had a great time picking just the right ornament for their loved ones and carefully crafting it for them.  Definitely a successful project!

25DG&G: Day 5

Recently my 5 year old has discovered my stash of envelopes and in case you didn't know, stuffing some treasure inside of an envelope is about the coolest thing ever.  Add some decoration to the outside and you are lucky to be on the receiving end of one of these :)  So when my mother in law gifted us with a million candy canes, I thought it might be a good idea to share the wealth!  Enter said envelope, a cutout wreath and some markers.  Sure a little red and white striped loved brought a smile to friend.

25DG&G: Day 4

Thought I would high-light a guest post idea today!  With times as they are I, like many of you I am sure, have started to dabble in the world of couponing to save a little here and there.  The families on military bases overseas are no different, except for the fact that they can use coupons up to 6 months after their expiration date!

So if you have stacks of unused or expired coupons consider sending them here, where they will be packaged up and sent to military families who could use them.  How can your little heart help out with this project you might ask, a couple of ways crossed my mind.  If your child is old enough to use scissors this would make for some great practice!  Coupons should be sorted by food/non-food items - another great options.  Decorate the envelope?!?!  Finally, as shown in the picture above, a walk to the mailbox and sending some love!

Care Packages

Age: Over 3

Type: Activity

Getting mail, not just the boring ads and bills, is certainly a fun surprise. Receiving an actual package makes me downright giddy! I am sure I am not alone in this feeling. Can you imagine how much joy recieving a package would bring to a soldier who is serving our country far away from friends and loves ones? Pretty sure giddy doesn't do it justice. A care package for an enlisted service man - a great idea for our little hearts!

My friend Melissa recently sent me this adorable pic of her oldest two boys, Noah and Chase, holding items from their military care package. Inspired to do something for "a nice solider" as her son explained, Melissa and her sons put together a care package. It included, among other things, hand made airplanes as well as a note to thank the solider for their service.

When planning to send a care package I think two questions immediately come to mind: what should I include and who should I send it to. A quick Google search can easily answer both of these. Here is one site I found which talks about what to include in a package, as well as gives links to places you can send the package. Even easier than that? Melissa simply posted a note on Facebook asking if anyone had a loved one serving that she could send their package to. Numerous responses followed.

Looking at the picture above you can clearly see how great Noah and Chase felt about giving back to someone else. Making for, as Melissa put it "A very proud mom moment".

Craft Hope - Orphan Outreach

Age: over 3
Type: craft

For those of you who are even the least bit creative but aren't familiar with Craft Hope, I suggest you remedy that immediately! What a fantastic website, as they say "spreading hope one stitch at a time". Their projects are typically more appropriate for people older than our little hearts, but my sister-in-law brought to my attention the current project which would be perfect for the youngsters.

Craft Hope is partnering with an organization called Orphan Outreach who will be making a trip to Russia in August. As a small token of love, Orphan Outreach will be handing out handmade bracelets to the orphaned kids they are visiting. Beaded, knotted, tied - whatever homemade type of bracelet will work. Reading about the project on Craft Hope I was instantly drawn back to my youth and the HOURS spent laboring over intricate woven bracelets with painstakingly selected colors. Apparently some things transcend age, ethnicity and geography - who knew bracelets were one of them!

So how can you get involved? Grab your kids, some yarn, beads, string - whatever you have on hand and get crafting! You have until June 15th to mail your finished bracelets to this address:

Carin Vogelzang 630 Griswold SE Grand Rapids, MI 49507

For more details about this project or information about Russian orphans, definitely check out this link. As for me, I will be getting my girls together and getting crafting. I'll post pics later!

Special Delivery

Age: Over 3

Type: Activity

We are fortunate enough to live in a neighborhood where the the concept of being a 'good neighbor" is still alive and well. We socialize, we lend eggs, we watch our kids in the yard we keep an eye on your house. It's community at its best, and certainly makes life a lot easier. Which leads me to my latest idea.

As we were out walking this weekend, my oldest and I noticed our next door neighbors mailbox overflowing, though I knew they weren't planning on being gone long. A quick text confirmed that they decided to extend their weekend trip and would be gone several days, so we offered to get their mail.

I can so clearly remember getting our neighbors mail as I was growing up if they were out of town. When people would simply ask their neighbor to pick it up, rather than fill out a form online to have it stopped. Such a small, easy, but thoughtful gesture. Perfect for a little heart! You know how kids are, each day our mail came my daughter was quick to remind me we needed to pick up the neighbors mail as well.

So next time your neighbor is out of town, maybe it could be the perfect chance for your little heart to be that 'good neighbor'!

Crafting for Cats

Age: 3 and up

Type: Craft

Our local library recently hosted their annual teen "Kitty Fort" building event to benefit the Michigan Humane Society. While this particular event was aimed at an older crowd, it certainly wouldn't have to be!

"Kitty Forts" are essentially brightly decorated cardboard box homes that keep cats happy while awaiting a new home. A 12x12x12 size box is recommended and then our little hearts are encouraged to go to town decorating with construction paper, stamps and small stickers. The specifics can be found here. Once completed the forts can be dropped off at your local humane society.

Considering making a kitty fort with your little one? Would love to see the results!!

Stamp Out Hunger

Type: donation
Age: over 3

The arrival of the mail carrier at our home each day is a time of excitement for both myself and my daughters. There's something about not knowing what fabulous surprise could be delivered for you that is so enticing! However, rather than just waiting for what the letter carrier could bring for you this week, we have a unique opportunity with our little hearts to give something back.

On Saturday May 8th, letter carriers nationwide will be collecting non-perishable food donations left in your mailboxes. Donations will be given to Feeding America, the nations largest hunger relief organization. In mere minutes, with a little guidance from you, your little one should have no problem finding items in your pantry or kitchen that can be donated. This is also a great time to talk with your kids about the problem of hunger in our country. For some additional information, check out the website here.

It might be a pretty simple project, but be sure that you and your child will have a huge impact 'stamping out hunger!'

Movies Can Make a Difference

Type: activity, donation

Age: over 3

Leave it Disney to combine 2 wonderful children's activities - watching movies and serving others! You may have heard of Disney's new movie Oceans coming to theatres on April 22nd. But did you know that by seeing it the opening week a donation will be made in your child's name by Disneynature to help save the coral reefs? After watching the majestic cinematography, I'm sure your child will understand the importance of not only helping people, but helping our planet as well.

Check it out and let us know what you think!

Easter Ideas - Palm Sunday

Type: service
Age: 3 and over

Though many years removed, I can still remember Palm Sunday at my hometown church. The altar was always festooned in rich purple fabric and at the close of the service, each attender received a small palm cross much like the ones shown to the right. I can picture my Dad tucking his into the jacket pocket of his coat, and I bet if I looked, there might still be one of these crossespressed into the pages of my youth Bible.

Reflecting on this, I thought it could be a perfect opportunity for our children to get involved in celebrating the Easter holiday. While making the crosses might be a bit challenging for little hands, distributing them certainly would not be. If your place of worship has a similar palm Sunday tradition, consider asking if you and your little one could hand out these symbols at the close of service. Imagine the joy it would bring the worshipers to see your little one serving, and what better way to help reinforce the message of Easter to your child.

As always, please let me know if you give this project a try. I'd love to hear about the results!

Pet for a week

Type: service, animals
Age: 3 and up


When your preschooler first poses the question "Can we get a (fill in the blank with any adorable, furry, lovable creature)" it is one not easily answered. Of course your little one would be interested for the first week, but what happens after that? Having your own pet is a large responsibility. But what about having a pet for a week?

We have had several opportunities to help out family members and neighbors by babysitting their cat and fish. Both are pretty low maintenance and require basically daily feedings. It has been a great experience for us! For that week Schuler is eager to feed the pets everyday and great about remembering it. Just about the time they need their bowl or litter box cleaned, it seems its time for the pets to go home and our responsibility to be over.

So next time your neighbor is going on vacation, maybe you and your little one can volunteer to do some pet sitting. Not only will your child learn the responsibility of caring for something else, he or she will also feel proud and important for helping out a neighbor in need. Has your child ever pet sit? If so, we'd love to hear your story!

Caring Cans

Type: donation/recycling

Age: 3 and up

My oldest, Schuler, loves to return cans. Odd I know. Like most people, returning cans isn't exactly a job I relish, so to have such an enthusiastic partner definitely makes the job much more enjoyable. Once our recycling bin hits about 6 bottles, she is clamoring to head to the store to take care of them. Up until now I have just used the money towards whatever items I was purchasing, but because of Schuler's interest in it, giving her the use of the money seemed like a good idea.

She is just now grasping the concept of how money is used to purchase things and how we need to save it, etc. So she was very excited when I told her that she would get to have all the money we get from the cans to use to help other people however she wanted. We got a little container and she decorated it with stickers to hold all her earnings.

I debated if we should decide up front what cause, or who would receive the money, but I thought it would take awhile to accumulate much, so maybe it was better to wait until we had some to give before deciding where. We did make it very clear that it was to go to other people who needed it "Like people who don't go to work a lot or go to the bank" she asked me? Exactly! In the meantime we told her she could use her 'can money' to make an offering at church. I'll keep you posted when we make our first official donation, but in the meantime, if you and your little one try this activity, I'd love to hear about it!