Now that we have sprung ahead an hour, I’m hoping Mother Nature will get the hint and adjust the weather accordingly. We’re still buried under several feet of snow and the high temperatures are frozen in the 20s.
If the weather outside is frightening in your neck of the woods too, then make the most of your indoor time by springing into spring with these simple, affordable and kid-friendly seasonal projects:
Candy Lei: You don’t have to travel to Hawaii to enjoy the beauty and fun of wearing colorful lei. The eye-popping garland, traditionally worn around the neck, can be modified to suit the occasion or the recipient. If you don’t live in a place where flowers are plentiful year-round, consider making a candy lei with your kids. All you need to do is to roll out about three feet of colored plastic wrap on a large flat surface. Next, place your favorite hard candy (e.g. jelly beans, Skittles Jolly Ranchers) or bubble gum in small groups in the middle of the plastic wrap roughly two inches apart from each other. You need to leave a space in between each group as you will be tying individual packets to make the lei. Next, fold the long end of the plastic wrap over the candy, and then carefully roll the body of the lei over repeatedly until the plastic wrap is secure. Tie off each packet of candy with ribbon. Finally, tie the two ends of the lei together with more ribbon.
Paper Plate Fish: It may be too cold right now to head to the lake for a fishing expedition, but that doesn’t mean you can’t catch the little swimmers at home. To make these colorful fish you need large or small paper plates, markers, crayons or paint, scissors, glue and various embellishments, such as stickers, beads, glitter glue, sequins, googly eyes or gems. To start, place your plate on a flat surface and cut an eighth of an inch pie-shaped wedge from the side to make the fish’s mouth. Next, glue the wedge shape to the opposite side of the plate, with the wide end facing away from the plate to create the fish’s tail. Then, glue the googly eye in place. Finally, decorate the fish using the crayons, paint, markers, sequins, beads, and gems.
Photo credit: seahorseandstripes.com