works for me: easy craft idea for kids

if she had her way, Big Girl would do craft projects all day every day. sometimes she will come to me and say "I'm feeling crafty today!" which translates to this: "Mom, get me some paper, glitter, glue, scissors, stickers, stamps, markers, pencils, pens, crayons, paint, sequens, feathers, and anything else you can think of, and let me be creative!" i like to do that for her. but sometimes when she is feeling "crafty" i am not feeling "crafty," i have no creative juices flowing, so i can't come up with a craft project for her beyond markers and paper. (and Big Girl will quickly point out that paper and markers do not qualify as a craft project!)

so when i saw this adorable Pet Rocks craft kit [on clearance!] at the bookstore i snatched it up for days when our creative juices weren't in sync. it sure did come in handy a few weeks ago. Big Girl and a friend were playing at our house and after about an hour i heard the dreaded "mom, we're bored. what can we do now?"

at first, as i usually am when she asks that, i was like a deer in the headlights. ["uh...um...help me with laundry? feed your brother? load the dishwasher?"] but then i remembered the kit! i had backup!

they loved the craft project! they even named their Pet Rocks. Big Girl made two. and they weren't bored for another 30-45ish minutes.

it is a simple kit, containing rocks, paint, little felt pieces. you could make this at home very easily and almost free. here's how:

1. collect quarter- to palm-sized rocks from the yard, street, or next time you're at the park

2. cut paper or felt into triangles, squares, circles and rectangles (for rock face and body pieces)

3. give the kids paint and paintbrushes

4. make Pet Rocks!

easy craft ideas for kids works for me! check out more WFMWs over here.