Book Club Ornament

 

I'm a part of several book clubs, but I made a commitment to one of my friend's book clubs, or rather, to myself.  I decided I was going to read every single book this year.  We have a rule-it's for fun, there is not shame, if you don't read the book, still come.  So, I have, and I do, but this year, I decided to personally challenge myself.  

Last year, I saw this super cute ideas for making an ornament with tiny replicas of all the books you read throughout the year, and I decided to adapt this to the 12 from our book clubs, so I made each girl one of these ornaments I'm going to gift them at our Christmas get together (and book exchange).  

I bought a package of plastic, empty ornaments, and I printed off little books using thumbnail size prints.  I'm going to post the whole process on youtube.  I also added the year with some vinyl and a little book charm to the top.  

I don't think I'll commit to that next year b/c there was one that was so not up my alley, but it was a fun year regardless, and it will encourage me to pick up more of them, in between all my 'regular' reading.  

Book Page Pencils

 Today I'm headed to Good Morning, Texas to do some book themed crafts.  This is one of three projects.  I'll post the video later here.  Recently, we were cleaning out some books in our school library and tossing out some books that were missing their covers etc from too much lovin'....this is a good thing for a reading specialist.

 I cut down a page from the trash bound Charlotte's Web to the size of a pencil.

 I covered the pencil with mod podge and then rolled the paper around it.

 I smoothed it down, cut the excess off and added a little more mod podge to close it off.

It doesn't get much easier than this, and it would be really cute with old dictionary pages as well!

Reindeer Gift Pack

 I have been super obsessed with themed Christmas gifts for my friend's kiddos.  I mail them out, and with so many aunts and uncles present on Christmas day, I've been sending packages the kids can open in advance to enjoy throughout the holidays.  A few years ago I did the twelve days of Christmas, which was a hit.  Last year I did themes like the above gift-reindeers.  I included shirts, a few of my favorite books, movies, and lots of goodies like blinking noses, reindeer food, antlers, and make your own nose.

 I made reindeer food a few years ago and blogged about it here.  I found a free printable on Amanda's blog when I made it this year.
I blogged about the shirt and reindeer nose with free printables/sources etc a few days ago.

I've already mailed off this year's themed gifts I'll blog about in the future.  It may be more fun for me as the giver than the gift-ed.  

Gingerbread Brunch Invitation

 When I found out that my family was coming into town for the holidays for the first time in 4 years....I went a little nuts.  And the base in which I measure 'nuts' is already pretty far off the scale.  One of the 7,564 things I did in the 6 days they were hear was throw a gingerbread brunch...mostly for Blythe and Jonathan, but I let others attend...they just didn't get the shirts.  Blythe is all about the party as well.  A few years ago when she came I threw a princess party and when she came over that evening and I asked her what she had been doing all day she said she had colored and 'waited for the princess party.'  I knew I had to send an 'invitation' and some fun stuff to get her and Jonathan (as much as a two year old can be...) excited about the brunch...and more importantly the gingerbread crafts we would be doing.
I typed up a little invitation to mail....watch out Dr. Seuss....

 ...and then I made some party shirts to wear.  I hunted down some cute shirts I liked, then designed my own in paint using some free clipart.  I used some tshirt transfers to print them on and then iron them down to some shirts I grabbed at the craft store.  The thing I ALWAYS forget is to flip the rotation so it's the mirror image you press down so the name is written correctly on the shirt.

 Ta da.

 I also bought a book so that they would be familiar with the story when we put together our cookies and crafts.....though I was a little disturbed when I reread this book, but.....I think they can look past the morbid details towards the end for a few more years.

 I tied together my shirts, books, invite and some cut outs and sent them at the beginning on December.

Party details to come....lots and lots of party details.  

Purplicious Gift Pack

I love giving gifts that go with a book theme.  My niece, Blythe turned 5 this past May, and I knew it was time to introduce her to one of my favorite book serious.  It begins with Pinkalicious...and I did get that book, but the rest of my gift pack goes with Purplicious.  I made her a special jeweled five candle....complete with purple glitter and jewels.  I made a little party hawwt, a cupcake shirt, and matching skirt.  I also got her a little necklace with a little five on it.  She's really into jewelry right now, but she likes jewelry that looks like adult jewelry.  When she was here last Christmas she wanted to borrow one of her Nana's necklaces....she requested one with a 'pendant.'  I love that little girl...and I love that she loves everything girl without any every introducing her to these things...she found it...so....purple, and pink and some books that match. Packed and ready to ship...

Garden: Ladybug Girl Gift

 I love giving book themed gifts to little beings.  My teaching partner introduced me to this cute little story, Ladybug Girl.  I then stumbled across these red gardening tools at Target in the dollar spot (the 3 dollar spot for the little metal pail), and my pal Terry was making these ladybug garden picks last year.  It was too perfect.  I bought the book and collected the gardening supplies to pass along in hopes of helping some of my favorite little ones collect their own ladybugs in their gardens.  A few years ago when I went to visit Blythe she was carefully watching the daddy and Blythe cactus she and her dad had bought on their last trip to the 99 cent store.  I'm pretty sure she'll appreciate adding these goodies to her porch hobby.

Book Themed Gifts and Parties

My very favorite gift to give for little ones are those that are oriented around a book.  I often pick a favorite book and then put together a gift set.  I started a pinterest board here.  Or you can click on the label 'book' below and these projects will pull up.  Some of my favorites include Fancy Nancy and all her fanciness, Chicka Chicka Boom Boom, and one year I recorded all my relatives reading a story and put them on a dvd and sent the book and the dvd to Blythe so she could have the book read to her from her different family members....even though she lives a few too many thousands of miles away.  I also love giving books instead of guest books at showers.  I even helped host several showers in the past completed revolving around bedtime stories.

I'm working on another birthday gift this year (May) that I'm really digging), and I'll be posting a bunch of Christmas gift book ideas I put together this past year in the fall.    I'm a reading teacher....so anything I can do to get kids excited about reading...I'm in.  I heart a good picture book!

Books: 3 Little Pigs Party

Another workshop theme  last year at work during workshops, as we discussed where we wanted students to go/where they were at and what 'foundation' to build our teaching on was The Three Little Pigs.  

We had straws...

 Sticks (pretzel sticks).

Pigs in a Blanket (kind of morbid...I guess that makes us the wolves?).  

And then all our papers were on red acme brick with the info for the meeting for building a solid foundation.  Get it?  Huh?  Do ya?  Whatever...it makes planning workshops so much more fun.  You could also serve rice crispie treat squares as bricks....but it didn't really go with the 'theme' b/c we needed something to tie it all together.  

Miss Spider's Tea Party Gift Set

This year for Blythe's Christmas I wanted to get Blythe a paint your own tea set.  I think she's finally old enough to handle the ceramic, and enjoy the painting it up to fit her style.  I made some little tea bags, sugar cubes, and lemon wedge pieces to add to the playset (I blogged about these a few months ago).  Per usual, it's necessary that each gift I give to small children comes with a book-so I added Miss Spider's Tea Party. Simple, educational, and lots of imagination required. I can't wait to have 4 year old hosted tea parties with Blythe.

Books: If You Give a Pig a Pancake

 Part of my job includes presenting and/or facilitating meetings within the district, or within our school.  My teammate and I always come up with a theme.  We realize if you feed people they are a little less upset about the extra hours.  Last year we decided each meeting's food would align with a children's book.  These things are important :cough-to nobody but me-cough:.  BUT...wouldn't this be fun on a bigger scale as a teacher appreciate gift, or just for a bunch of kids that love the If you Give A....A..... series.  We decided to go with If you give a pig a pancake (it was a morning meeting) and I brought up a skillet.  We made pancakes..

 Then put out some different toppings (fruit, butter, walnuts, peanut butter, whipped cream, syrup etc).

 All the papers, of course, given out at the meeting had some icons that follow the book (downloaded online) along with the meeting notes.  I really do this more for my own sanity.  Themes make everything way more fun.  ...or at least a little less miserable.

Penguin Pack

My goddaughter's mother loves penguins....thus-Micah has no choice.  Zero.  She will like these little creatures, or there will be therapy involved.  This year, for her birthday, I decided to go with the theme.

 I bought a book (of course) and then went a little crazy.  I made a tic tac to board with little wooden eggs (Mondays' post) and then a penguin shirt (yesterday's post) and then I let the store 'make' the rest of the penguin themed stuff.

 I found quite a bit in the dollar section of Michael's and Target as well, along with anything and everything penguin....she doesn't already own.  Incidentally-I'm predating this post and writing it on April 9th....almost 8 months before I'm mailing this....you can bet it has grown since this time.....

Boy Book Gift Sets

 For quite a few years, all the little ones I bought gifts for were girls...and then the boys came.  It's a different sort of thinking that goes into gift giving, but I'm working on it.  My cousins little guy, Jonathan has a birthday right around Christmas, so these are two gifts I put together.  I've been trying to put gifts around a book theme.  Jonathan's a pretty busy little guy that likes to pull things apart.  I found this little board book called The Toolbox which is all about a little guy's dad's toolbox.  I then found this little wooden container in the unfinished wood section at the craft store and stamped the word tools across it.  You could personalize it, but homeboy has a long name.  In the past, I did a little something like this and made a tool belt, but this time I found this little set that came with one (found it on Amazon).  Works for me.

For Christmas, Jonathan is getting this little book that is currently a best seller, and super cute.  My friend Kristin told me about it, it's her son's favorite.  It's called Goodnight, Goodnight Construction Site.  I found this little Melissa and Doug construction site puzzle to go along with it.  A added a little hard hat I snagged at the craft store for a buck.

I've got a ton more gifts I've put together for Christmas/birthdays that come by the dozen, but I figured I'd share a few in case anyone is in the same boat...and I'm always looking for fun boy craft ideas!