Boats

Having had so much rain recently I thought we would have some more fun with water but not puddle jumping this time. The children and I spent the morning making different types of boats.

We started of with some paper origami ones,

The children managed the first few folds on their own or with just a little help but as it got further on, we worked together to complete the boats.

We then used some A4 paper to make your traditional paper boat, they then decorated them with felt tips. They were very curious as to what might happen to their pictures when they got wet.

We then cut up some sticks to make a raft.

We tied the sticks together with some wool.

I then cut out some cardboard rectangles, cut out a paddle shape from the back and trimmed it so it is slimmer than the gap. Wrap an elastic band round the outside of the cardboard and fit the paddle through the middle of the band and wind it up,

you can then launch your paddle boat and of it should go, they quickly discovered that depending on which way you wound it as to whether it went forwards or backwards.

They spent ages playing with them, I had to cut some more cardboard out because after a while they get rather soggy.

Much to the children's amazement the raft floated and the lego man stayed safe.

They had so much fun that I will definitely be doing this again, I am tempted to get some of this waterproof origami paper and see how well it does work.

Embroidery

This embroidery is a work in progress, I started it not long after L was born and have been doing a little bit in between other craft projects and studying but now I'm determined to finish it before she's 2!

M has nearly finished the bodice of L's dress, she did complain that dress making was a lot harder than she thought and I make it look to easy! Not sure if I do but in her eyes I do, mind you she has had to learn to read the instructions on a paper pattern which is not always an easy thing.

I have nearly finished this playsuit for L, I fell in love with the fabric but hubby says the print and outfit make her look like a clown! I will reserve judgement and wait until I've finished sewing the button holes and buttons and then see what she looks like in. Hopefully a pretty outfit that will keep her cool if we have some hot weather.

In the garden our new raspberry canes are looking very healthy, we planted 10 new canes, we love fresh raspberries so hoping these will do well. Unfortunately the ones we planted up the allotment, several years ago didn't do well at all, not sure if it's because we made the mistake of planting them in the same place the previous allotment tenant had his or just not healthy canes, who knows. All our seedlings are coming along nicely, won't be long before we have a momouth session of planting out.

Crochet Nesting Bowls

A few weeks ago a friend of mine posted some pictures of some lovely crochet nesting bowls she had made and the link for the pattern. After seeing her pictures and having just had a sort out of my boxes of yarn, I thought these would be a lovely way to use up some of the odd balls of yarn I have left. I have only ever crocheted blankets and Christening shawls before so this was something new to try. I was really pleased with how they turned out, only just had enough orange yarn to make the orange bowl. Why after years of knitting etc do I still feel the need to knit/crochet faster if I am running out of yarn?  I know it won't make the yarn go any further but I still have a tendency to do this!

                               

They love to play with the bowls, sorting out our glass pebbles or our tub of brightly coloured buttons, so these crochet bowls are a nice addition to their play. They spend ages putting them into different bowls, tipping one bowl into another, generally having lots of fun.

These bowls have been a huge hit and I am so glad I decided to make them even if it did mean I left another knitting project half done to make them.

Farm Trip

We are really enjoying the lovely weather, even more so as hubby has this week of work. We had hoped to have a couple of day trips but you can never really plan the weather.

Our trip on Monday was to Bucklebury Farm. We made the most of the sunshine and explored the nature trails, spotted a couple of pheasants. My children love to spend time watching animals, doesn't matter what, they just love animals.

We decided to take the tractor ride round the deer enclosures, so they could see them up close

As we leaving the tractor ride area, the driver asked why L didn't want to feed the deer, apparently she was the only one that hadn't, explained about her allergies and was unsure what was in the feed. Apparently he had never been asked about the feed but was of to read the labels so he would have the answers if he was ever asked.

M was very happy that she was able to feed a lamb, luckily L was more than happy to held and watch the feeding.

Ice Decorations

This is something we did last week, the children loved decorating the tree and watching the sun catch the coloured ice. This something I would normally do in winter, especially if we had snow, as the coloured ice against the white snow is truly beautiful but I thought why not try it in the Spring. The day was sunny but not too hot, didn't want the ice melting too quickly! We had been looking at blossom and how pretty the trees looked so I thought this would be a good time to decorate the tree and watch the coloured ice slowly melt.

I had frozen various heart and flower shapes, my soap moulds etc came in very useful, I had put a length of string into each mould so the children could tie their piece onto the tree.

The children enjoyed decorating the tree and then watching them drip as they started to melt. Seeing how the ones in the direct sun melted quicker than the ones in the shade of the tree.

I had one littleone that loved to go back to the ice decorations and feel the ice and then say "cold" and giggle and smile at everyone.