DINO PENCIL TOPPERS DIY

What is better than a set of pretty new pencils? Pretty new pencils with dinos on top! I was going to make these for Elliott - and truthfully he will most likely confiscate them - but for now they are all mine. These would be awesome to put on top of your kiddo's pencils and would make for great play breaks amidst all that learning. They are super easy and pretty fast to make. Here we go!

First, drill your dinos. You'll want to stop occasionally to be sure you can fit the pencil in there securely. You'll most likely have some plastic shavings when you are done. Mine looked like white chocolate. Do not eat them! 

Next, paint! I went with white, but whatever color combo your little heart desires would be just fine. After a few coats and after they are totally dry, you are ready to add them to your pretty pencils.

Aww, dino love.

PLAY CLOCK DIY

My parents recently came back from a trip and of course they brought gifts for the grandkids. Among those gifts were some pretty rad little watches! Elliott has shown a lot of interest since then on being able to tell me what time it is. He doesn't quite grasp the concept yet - he doesn't even recognize all the numbers - but hey, that's what learning is all about, right? So I made him this simple play clock to practice with. I used foam sheets to make the face and the hands and a regular brad to connect them. Super easy and surprisingly durable! He's not ready to tell time yet, but he's getting there! Here are the instructions to make your own play clock: 

Cut a circle from your foam. You can use something to trace if you want to be more exact. I for one love the sloppy look.

Next, cut out your hands! They don't have to be arrows, you can use whatever you want! Use an awl, or just use the brad to make holes through the hands and the face.

This is just for looks, but I painted the brad to match the numbers. I thought it would be a nice punch of color.

Write the numbers onto the face with a paint pen or maybe a sharpie. The paint pen worked awesome and won't smear or chip off easily. Plus, I love the neon. 

Now just put it all together and you have yourself a play clock! 

Hours and hours of educational fun.

RING TOSS DIY

This is such a fun project! It's one of those projects that you are just giddy about, you know? We have literally been playing it for weeks. I initially made all the rings black, but since have made a bunch of more colorful ones. Even more fun! This DIY is a lot like this one here, but with some minor differences. Of course, the colors are all customizable, but it costs next to nothing to make and is endless fun for the whole family. You can see the full tutorial here. Have fun! 

SHAPES PARTY BLOWERS + GARLAND DIY

I decided to do a two-for-one DIY this week since last week I went a little MIA. But you forgive me, right? These party blowers and garland are so easy to make and a lot of fun for little ones. Elliott loved trying out all of the different shapes. He calls the heart the "love you shape", even though he knows its called a heart. That cutie. All you need to make these are some card stock, shape paper punchers and a 1/2 inch hole punch. Oh yeah, and some party blowers. Just punch out the shapes, punch out the hole with the 1/2 inch punch and stick them in. They're that easy! Of course you can do any colors you would like and any shapes you fancy. You can also just cut out the shapes if you don't have shaped paper punches. 

For the garland, pick a shape - or all of them - and punch out the shapes. Grab some twine and some tape and put it together. Again, it's that easy. 

Then just hang the garland, and get to partying! 

BALLOON PING PONG DIY

Playing with balloons in the house is nothing new. I think everyone has played "don't let the balloon touch the ground" at least once in their life. This is kind of like that, but with rules and a table and some fancy new paddles! You most likely have all the supplies you will need to make the paddles already at home. My favorite part of this game is you can make it whatever you want! Come up with your own rules, design your own paddles, you can even make a net for the table if you so desire. We've been playing balloon ping pong non-stop the past couple of weeks. So take that as fair warning, it can be addictive. See how to make your own

balloon ping pong paddles over here

And of course you can purchase one of the Best Ping Pong Tables and enjoy the game even more.