We Walk by Faith...

If you've been reading One Artsy Mama lately, you probably know that Little Crafter and I have a new favorite hobby; painting with watercolors.  We started out by painting dots to go along with a book we read, then we worked together to make a special mixed media collage.

But every now and then, a mama needs to do a project on her own.

The other day, while LC was taking his nap, I decided to attempt a watercolor project all by myself. 

{I didn't tell him until after he woke up, or he would've thrown a royal fit and never gone to sleep!}

I envisioned something in the pink/orange color family with a word on top.  I just started painting and mixing colors until I liked what I saw.  Then, I remembered seeing some paintings at the Torpedo Factory Art Center one time where the artist suggested a bit of a landscape while staying in the color family, so I decided to give it a {very rudimentary} try.

Once I was somewhat satisfied, I penciled in the word "faith" and painted it with acrylic paint.  Then, I finished up by  writing the rest of the verse with a fine tip Sharpie.

I don't have any kind of training or anything, so I'm sure those of you who are trained artists could find a million things I could have done better, but it was a lot of fun just to play with the colors...and to actually get to paint by myself for once!  It makes me happy when I look at it, and that's good enough for now!  I'm using it to help me remember my word of the year {remember that?  Courage!}

Happy crafting to you!

Pin it!

 You may remember that for the past two months, we've been working with Little Crafter to teach him about the fruit of the Spirit.  We've already learned about love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, and faithfulness, and this week we learned about gentleness.  It's so sweet to hear him list them all, and the best part is that he really is learning what they mean.  If we're out somewhere and he's being impatient, I can say to him, "Buddy, you need to be patient.  What's patience?"  To which he responds, "Wating nic-e-ly."  And then he usually tries to do it.  Hubby and I were talking the other day about ways to reinforce when we do notice him displaying those qualities besides just saying, "Oh, that was so kind of you." We want to make a big deal out of it so that he realizes he's doing exactly what we've been learning about.

Sooooo...we decided to make some special reward pins.  I'm so used to clicking "Pin it!" every time I see something I like online now, why not do it in real life?  Each pin represents one specific "fruit" and is a different shape/color combination so he can recognize it.  Now, when he displays one of those particular qualities and we notice, he'll get to wear that pin to tell the world, "I showed kindness," or whatever it was.  Here's how we made them.

REWARD PINS
Materials: 9 wooden shapes, acrylic paint, paintbrushes, Sharpie marker[s], pin backs, hot glue gun

Step 1: Paint a base coat on each pin.  Little Crafter did this part and boy did he have fun!  Except that he wanted to make them all blue.


STEP 2: When dry, use Sharpie to write one "fruit" quality on each pin, or whatever quality you're reinforcing.

STEP 3: Glue a pin back on each one with hot glue.

STEP 4: Reward your little one!

We obviously made ours to reinforce these 9 particular qualities, but you could use them for anything you're working on.  You could make one as a potty training reward that he/she gets to wear after using the potty instead of a diaper, or you could use it to say "I shared," or "I was obedient" or anything at all.

The first one Little Crafter got to wear was Kindness.  Why?  Well, see for yourself...

He and Daddy had been out to the library and came back with these...

I sure do love those boys!

Faithfulness

love.

joy.

peace.

patience.

kindness.

goodness.

faithfulness.

gentleness.

self-control.

For the past seven weeks, we've been working to teach Little Crafter about the fruit of the Spirit.  {We still have 2 weeks to go!}  We explained that there are certain qualities that other people should see in our lives because we love and follow Jesus.  Each week, we define the quality in simple terms {ie: Patience = waiting nicely}.  Then, we sing songs about it if there are any, read a Bible story where someone displayed the quality, and make a craft related to our "fruit of the week."  We also add a fruit to this bowl that's displayed on his bedroom door.

This week, our "fruit" in focus was Faithfulness.

We defined it as doing the right thing even when it's hard and being a person others can depend on.

Our Bible story was Daniel in the lions' den...talk about someone who was faithful!

Captured and forced to live in a foreign land, serving a foreign king, Daniel stayed true to his faith.  He refused to eat meat because he didn't know if it had been sacrificed to idols.  He did everything that was asked of him to the best of his ability.  And even when he knew it could cost him his life, he continued to pray to God three times a day, just as he had done before.  We explained to Noah that Daniel did what he knew was right even when it was hard; even when it could cost him everything. 

Then, to go along with the story, we made this craft.

 PAPER PLATE LION

 Materials: paper plate, colored constrution paper, scissors, glue, crayons

Procedure: Turn plate upside down and color the center.  Draw a lion face.  Cut construction paper into strips and glue around edges of plate in two rows {or more!}.  Then, ROAR!

We've been having a lot of fun, and it blesses my heart to hear him list off the fruit of the Spirit from memory.  Makes me feel like maybe, just maybe, we're doing something right.

Go Tell!

Last week, Little Crafter and I both had a fantastic time at Vacation Bible School.  The only problem is, he doesn't want to accept that it's over now and keeps asking to go back.  I had the sweetest little class of three boys and I really felt like they learned some important things while having a great week.  Each day, there was a "Big Question" and a "Big Answer."  Things like:

Who is Jesus?  God's Son!

Why can I trust Him?  Because He loves me!

What happens when I mess up? Jesus forgives me.

Friday, our Bible story was Jesus' ascension into heaven after the resurrection, and our "Big Stuff" was:

What does Jesus want me to do?  Go Tell!

Here are the crafts/activities we did to reinforce the story.

3-D ASCENSION PICTURE

Materials: blue and green cardstock or construction paper, cotton balls, scissors, glue, coloring picture of Jesus

Instructions: Cut green paper to make hills/landscape and glue onto blue paper.  Color and cut out Jesus and glue Him in the sky.  Fluff cotton balls and glue all around Jesus.

Easy and to the point!  And kids always like playing with cotton balls.  You could also color other people to put around on the ground as disciples, or cut people out of magazines.

SHARING GOD'S LOVE: HYGIENE KITS

The big lesson of the story was that since Jesus isn't physically on earth anymore, it's up to us to tell other people about Him and about God's love.  As a practical, physcial way to share that love, we assembled these kits to send to people who are still without their homes in the areas of the U.S. affected by severe storms and tornadoes.

 Each kit contained one hand towel, three washcloths, a toothbrush, a pair of nail clippers, six band-aids, and a bar of soap.

 My little guys also made cards to put inside.  We wrote "God Loves You" and the first name of the child who made it, and each boy decorated his card with crayons and stickers.

 Here they are, so proud of their finished kits!

It was an exhausting week, but I know that every moment was worth it when I hear Noah repeating those "Big Answers" and telling me, "I loved Vacation Bible School.  I want to go some more."  During the closing program, the pastor called all the children up front and asked them what their favorite part was and what they learned.  One of my little guys, Ethan, {on the left in the hygiene kit photo} shouted out, "Jesus is God's Son!"  Yup.  Worth every minute.

Paper Plate Boat

I really look forward to Sundays.  First of all, we make cinnamon rolls for breakfast!  But my favorite part is when we take time to do "Noah's church."  We wanted to make sure we were doing something with him because while we get our fellowship and study time, Noah is just having fun watching movies and playing on the playground.  He loves that too, but we wanted to be sure he was also learning to know Jesus in a purposeful way. So, we make time to sing some of his favorite songs, then read a Bible story and make a craft related to it.  It's been such fun for all of us, and he's really learning the stories!

This week, the story we read was when Jesus calms the storm.  Here's the craft we made to go along with it...it would also go along with last week's story of Jesus walking on the water.

PAPER PLATE BOAT SCENE

Materials: glue, paper plate, mini popsicle stick, craft foam, foam adhesives or stickers, blue tissue paper, brown crayon, marker

 STEP 1: Use a marker to draw a basic half-circle boat shape and triangle sail.

STEP 2: Color bottom of boat with brown crayon.

STEP 3: Cut craft foam in triangle shape and glue to plate on top of sail.

STEP 4: Glue wooden stick on top.

 STEP 5: Decorate sail with foam adhesives or stickers.

STEP 6: Make "water" by scrunching up small pieces of blue tissue paper and gluing them to plate beneath boat.

STEP 7: Add foam fish or fish stickers in "water."

I think it turned out really cute and Noah enjoyed working with several different materials and practicing different skills within one craft.  Now I have to start brainstorming some VBS crafts...the 21st will be here before I know it!

The Bank of Noah

How can an empty can of onions help someone in need?  You might be surprised!  Noah's Bible story today was about the widow who put just two small coins into the temple treasury.  Jesus told his followers that she gave more than all the other rich folks who made such a show of giving large amounts because she had given all that she had.  We talked with Noah about how important it is to share what we have to help other people, just like the widow gave all she had to God so that He could use it to do His work.  Our craft for the day was to make a "bank" set apart for money to help others.  When he puts money into his regular piggy bank, he can also put some in this special bank and from time to time, we'll make sure that it goes to an organization that will put it to good use.  Noah said he especially wanted to help other children, so we may use it for the local pregnancy center, St. Jude's, or other children's foundations.

HELPING OTHERS BANK

Materials:

- empty can with lid: we used one from French's fried onions, but you could use a coffee can or any other container you have on hand as long as it's relatively sturdy and has a removeable lid that you can cut.

- cardstock

- decorative supplies, like adhesive foam shapes, stickers, crayons, etc.

- tape

- scissors

STEP 1: Draw & carefully cut slit in container lid and make sure it's big enough for a quarter to go through.

STEP 2: Measure height of can.  Cut cardstock to same height.  Our can was more than 12" in diameter, so I had to tape two pieces of cardstock together to go all the way around the can.

STEP 3: Lay cardstock flat and decorate, using your choice of supplies.  Noah used stickers, foam shapes, and foam letters.  He asked us to help him spell out "Helping Others," then stuck the letters on himself.

STEP 4: Wrap cardstock around can and tape where ends overlap.

STEP 5: Place lid on can.

STEP 6: Insert money!

This is a really easy craft, even for the littlest hands.  Noah really enjoyed it and couldn't wait to put money in for "udder chill-dren."  We explained that you need money to buy clothes and food and a home and medicine, and I think he really is starting to understand that there are people out there who are in need of those things.  It's such a blessing to see him so willing to share and to sacrifice for other kids who don't have the things he does.  A simple craft, a significant lesson...

Come On Down

One of my earliest Sunday School memories is the story of Zacchaeus, the tax collector nobody liked.  Lonely and curious, he decided it was worth catching a glimpse of the much-talked-about rabbi Jesus when He passed through Jericho.  But Zacchaeus was too short, so he climbed a tree for a better view.  Jesus stopped in front of the tree and called for Zacchaeus, saying, "Come on down, I'm going to visit your house today."  Jesus talked with Zacchaeus, forgave him, and told him to give back all the money he had stolen from the people, which he did. 

Whenever I think of this story, I think of the good old Sunday School flannelgraph, complete with four important pieces: Zacchaeus, tree, Jesus, and "Crowd."  Remember those?  And in my head, Jesus always sounds a little like Rod Roddy, the old announcer from the Price is Right, when he would say, "Joe Smith, Come oooonnnnnnnnnn down!"  It's a great story, isn't it?  Jesus noticing the guy nobody likes, showing love and forgiveness to someone who obviously doesn't deserve it by his own merits.  This was the story we decided to teach Noah today during his "Bible time."  We sang the song, of course, read the story, and acted it out (Elmo got to play Jesus while Amy Duck scaled the chair/tree).  But what to do for a craft?  I took stock of our supplies.  I had some colored tissue paper left over from our tissue paper rainbow adventure on St. Patty's day, and we always have cardstock, glue, magazines, etc. laying around.  So, I decided we'd make a handprint tree and stick Zacchaeus in it.  Here's how we did it:

HANDPRINT TREE

MATERIALS:

- 1 sheet each of brown and white cardstock

- small squares of green tissue paper

- old magazine

- scissors, glue, and pencil

STEP 1: Trace child's hand and forearm with fingers spread wide open on brown cardstock.

STEP 2: Cut out and glue to white cardstock.  This will be the tree trunk and branches.

STEP 3: Scrunch up small tissue paper squares and glue all over branches to make tree leaves.  This was Noah's favorite part.  He's a great scruncher and loves not getting in trouble for it.  He also loves glue.  A lot.

STEP 4: Look through old magazine and cut out a small picture of a boy/man to portray Zacchaeus and a taller boy/man to portray Jesus.  It's even cooler if you can find a picture of someone from the back so he can be looking up into the tree.  Cut out and glue to picture.  If you like, you can always find more people to make the crowd too, just like on the good old flannelgraph.

STEP 5: Cut out magazine letters to spell ZACCHAEUS and glue above tree.  If you have trouble finding a big "Z" like I did, an "N" turned sideways can do the job quite nicely. 

Now you can use the finished product as a prop for helping to re-tell the story!

This same idea can also be used as a general springtime craft; just swap out the green tissue paper for pink, white, purple, or any color you want and let it represent blossoms.  You could cut out pictures of flowers, birds, bunnies, and other animals to put all around it as a nice visual.  It could even become a lesson on seasons if you divide a large piece of posterboard in four sections and make one tree to represent spring, one with red, yellow, or orange "leaves" for fall, one with green "leaves" for summer, and a bare one for winter.  It's super easy and even the littlest crafter can do most of the work independently.   It may not be an old-school flannelgraph, but it just may be the next best thing. :)

Happy Purim!

Today, Jewish folks all around the world are celebrating Purim.  It's a day to remember the long-ago story of Esther, the girl who became Queen of Persia when King Xerxes picked her as his second wife.  Long story short, during her reign a sneaky villain of an advisor named Haman (who hated all Jews) convinced the king to sign an edict ordering the annihilation of all Jews in the land.  Esther had to go before the king uninvited, which could have meant death, and plead for her people.  The king, who didn't know she was Jewish (nice, right?), was appalled at what he'd done.  The Jews were saved, Haman was killed, and God proved faithful once again.  Traditionally, to celebrate this holiday, the story is read aloud and people boo and hiss and use noisemakers to drown out Haman's name every time it's mentioned . . . it's quite fun!  So, for Noah's Bible time this morning, we decided our craft should be noisemakers!  Yay!

"Wait a minute," you're thinking.  You guys aren't Jewish!  What's the deal?  Well, several years ago, we started reading some books and participating in a Bible Study that led us to realize how much more we can understand our own Christian faith when we explore its Jewish roots.  Jesus was, after all, a Jew Himself.  The more we learn about the cultural and historical context of first century Israel, the more we understand what He taught and preached and how He lived.  If you're interested, I have a little more explanation here.  Anyway, as a result of all that we started celebrating many of the Jewish holidays in addition to the ones we already have.  Soooo, that brings us back to homemade noisemakers!  Here's the two kinds we made:

PAPER PLATE SHAKERS

These are super easy, even for a 2 year old.  Classic VBS.

You'll need:

- paper plates (heavy duty ones if you can!)

- crayons, markers, stickers, and any other decorations you'd like to use

- dry rice or beans

- streamers (optional)

- glue, stapler, scissors

STEP 1: Turn plate upside down and decorate.  Keep in mind that the plate will get folded in half.

STEP 2: Fold plate in half and crease.

STEP 3: Fill with dried rice or beans.  Noah put in about 4 large spoonfuls.  This was actually his favorite step. 

STEP 4: Put glue on the inside edge of one half and attach streamers if desired.

STEP 5: Staple along outer edge to seal. 

Now you're ready to shake, shake, shake!  Noah made a bunch of them for his little buddies because we're going to do this celebration again on Tuesday night with our Bible Study group.  It's a great excuse to be noisy and eat pastries. :) 

TUBE SHAKERS

A little trickier, a little messier, but oh so fun to shake!  They turned out really cool looking too!

You'll need:

- empty tubes from TP or paper towels

- small squares of colored tissue paper

- aluminum foil

- rubber bands

- dried rice or beans

- Mod Podge or other liquidy glue

- large paintbrush

STEP 1: Brush Mod Podge onto a section of the tube and place colored tissue paper over top.  Repeat, overlapping colors until entire tube is covered.  I found that smaller squres worked and looked better for this project since the surface wasn't very large.

STEP 2: Brush a coat of Mod Podge over entire tube to seal it. LET DRY!

STEP 3: When tube is dry, place foil square over one end and secure with rubber band.

STEP 4: Fill tube 2/3 full with rice or beans.

STEP 5: Cover other end with foil and secure with rubber band.  Shake!