I set up the banner on the floor, and I laid all the covers under the banner (see above).  I chose not to force this activity on my two youngest.  I simply set it up and walked away. My 2 year old was the first to notice this colorful and enticing activity.  He started to match up the letters when his sister age 4 saw him at play.  She came over and they worked together to match up all the letters.  The I on our banner was the only letter that I helped them with.



 They were pretty proud of themselves when they had all the letters matched up.

I love that they are starting to recognize letters and are able to match the letters to the sign.

Can't wait to celebrate my little man's birthday tomorrow!!

I love to reuse household packaging. I've made felt board pieces out of cereal box characters; made organizers out of food boxes; and bookmarks out of packaging too. At the moment my kitchen island is balanced by a tiny piece of cardboard too. Repurposing at its finest!

As I was sweeping, I found a popsicle mold package on the floor.  I set it on my counter as I swept. When I glanced over the holes in the package reminded me of eyes.  I instantly felt inspired to create.

I took out a black marker, scissors and construction paper.  I decided to cut the cardboard packaging in half.  Then I took one half and placed it on the paper. I drew dots in the holes for eyes.  This helped me to visualize an outline.  My first thought was a monkey.

As I placed the packaging on the paper in different ways, I came up with a few ideas. When I put both halves down on the paper, I decided to draw a boy and his mother.

I think kids would have a lot of fun with this activity.  It is pretty open ended.  They could first pick out a package from your recycling.  Then they could cut it up into shapes and then they could draw around the packaging. Sky's the limit!

This is a great creative and family-friendly activity.  So please share if you give this idea a try! Have a great day!