Letter "A" Birthday Party for my 1 year old

Ive started thinking of my son's upcoming first birthday and what theme to use. I think Ive decided on a LETTER "A" theme as my sons name is Alex.

**this is what Ive come up with so far but will add to it as I find more ideas (& pictures!)**

I will iron a "A" on his shirt to wear for his party.

Cake: Alligator or Airplane or Anaconda (havent decided yet) - ANGEL FOOD CAKE?
or a Wooden Block Cake with two of the sides having an A and 1.

Loot Bag: Animal Crackers, "A" shaped soaps or crayons, plastic snake (anaconda), Alien toy, Animal or Alien or Astronaut or Airplane or Alphabet Stickers, ...

Snacks:
Arrowroot Cookies,
Apple Slices (With Peanut Butter dip),
Appetizers,
Jello Jigglers in 'A' or something that starts with A,
...

Invitation:
Come to A lex's A wesome Birthday A ctivities on A pril 28!
(need to get out my thesaurus and see what kind of alliteration I can come up with)

Activities:
Colouring pages of "A" or "A" pictures (see ideas below)
(probably no planned activities since the age group is quite young)


Maybe some of these A words will give you some ideas for cake, snacks, decorations, loot bag favors, etc.

• Armband
• Apricot
• Appetizer
• Animal
• Ant
• Ape
• Ark (boat)
• Antelope
• Apple
• Arrow
• Art
• Artichoke
• Astronaut
• Auto
• Airplane
• Album
• Alien
• Alligator
• Almond
• Alphabet
• Anaconda
• Angel Food Cake
• Athletics
• Avocado
• Aquarium
• Apron

Recycled Christmas Cards Magnet Craft

Using any type of lids (pickle jar, salsa, cheesewhiz, baby food, etc.) trace a circle from a cute Christmas card. Cut the circle out a little bit inside the line you drew. Glue inside the lid. Use glitter glue (yes, we use this for almost every craft!) around the edge of the card and could also be around edge of lid too. Glue a magnet on the back. Or turn into a ornament by glueing a string on.

Could also glue ribbon on outside edge of lid.

I think these would look great on the fridge in random sizes. I plan to do random sizes from various Santa cards that we've received this year.

Easy Toddler Made Ornaments

this was from a foam kit but could easily be cut from brown foam and then use various foam stickers to decorate.


storebought ornament covered in stickers.


wooden ornament coloured, glitter glued, and stickers applied.

another storebought ornament with stickers

pinecone dabbed with glue, glitter sprinkled on and a ribbon glued on.

Homemade Yarn Ornament - Toddler Craft Fun!

Make these easy homemade ornaments for your tree. Would be great in any colour and size!

Need:

Yarn

GlueGlitter or Glitter Glue

small Balloon

Blow up the balloons into a small round shape (grapefruit size perhaps). Dip yarn into glue (use a disposable cup, can, etc. so that you can toss after you're done). Remove yarn from glue squeezing some of the excess glue from it. Wrap yarn around and around and around the balloon in multiple directions. Wrap the ends under other strings. Sprinkle with glitter (or wait until dry and then decorate with glitter glue and then allow to dry again. Put somewhere warm to dry.

*tips* i did this craft over a piece of cling wrap (could also use wax paper or aluminum foil) for easy clean up. I used a ice cream pail lid for the balls to dry on.

Once dry, (you may need to turn occasionally as it drys) pop the balloon and remove. Tie a ribbon and hang on the tree.

Easy Gift for Toddler to Make: Bookmarks

I had my daughter make one of these for my birthday (:0)) and have made a few more for the hard to buy for family members (who also are avid readers)

Foam
Foam Stickers
Markers
Glitter Glue
Yarn or Ribbon
Beads

Cut foam into rectangles. Punch hole in top. Decorate with stickers, markers, glitter glue. Tie ribbon or yarn through hole. Thread with beads if desired.


Can also use previous years Christmas Cards (or Birthday Cards) or Child's Artwork cut out and taped onto cardstock. Punch hole in top and thread ribbon or yarn through.

Stocking Stuffer Ideas for Baby

Hmm, what to get for my 7m old little boys stocking...
Here are some of the ideas Ive come up with.

Rattle

Socks

Bib

Stacking Cups

Board or Cloth Book(s)

Baby Cookie

Sippy Cup

Tube of FP Little People

Balls

Mega Blok accessories

Blocks

Teething Toy

Spoon & / or Fork

Plate or Bowl (with special design or personalized)

Easy Toddler Kleenex / Tissue Box Craft

* Tissue Box (full - not empty!)
* Various papers, stickers, colouring pages, previously done artwork, buttons, ribbons, Christmas or Birthday Cards etc.

Cover the sides of the box with blank construction paper, previous artwork or coloured colouring pages. Further embellish with whatever! It is now a festive tissue box. :0)

(sometimes I dont want EVERY craft we do to last forever! just want something for an afternoon activity that will be on display short term.)

This can be done for any holiday or as an every day item.

Handprint & Footprint Angel Craft

This craft was done at our Toy Library and thought it was share worthy :-)

Trace child's foot, cut out.
Trace child's hands, cut out.
Glue hands (wings) to back of foot (body)
Glue on Hair and Googly Eyes and draw a mouth.
Shape pipecleaner into halo shape and staple to head.
Glue magnet or piece of string to back.

Paint Stick Snowman

Paint Stick (you get them free when you buy paint)

White Paint

Black Marker

Orange Marker

random Buttons

Small length of fabric or ribbon

Felt

Paint the stick white. Draw a face near top of stick. Tie length of fabric or ribbon as a scarf. Glue small buttons down front. Wrap felt around top of head and glue to back. Tie ribbon or yarn around to make a hat shape.

Button Snowman Magnet or Pin - A Gift a Toddler can Make!

2 white Buttons (large)
Black foam
Ribbon or Yarn (small piece)
Orange foam or paper (small piece)
Magnet

(I like to reuse buttons for crafts and usually save good magnets if they fall off or before I toss the craft that was on it)

Glue the two buttons onto the magnet with the first buttons holes horizontal (looking like eyes) and the second buttons holes verticle (looking like the snowman's buttons)

Cut a small hat shape from black foam and glue onto head of snowman.

Glue small piece of ribbon or yarn around neck of snowman. Plus another small piece as a hat band.

Glue small sliver of orange foam or paper for the snowman nose.

Use a marker or small dab of black paint to dot a mouth.

*If wanted as a pin, substitute the magnet for a pin backing.*


This would be a great gift to give a teacher, Grandma, etc.!

Edible Toddler Craft - Sugar Cone Christmas Tree

* Sugar Cones

* Green icing (could substitute coolwhip & vanilla pudding combo tinted green for a slightly less sugary icing)

* Various little candies, coconut, raisens, etc. (could substitute with fruit loop cereal)

* Sprinkles

Working over a paper plate: Spread the icing on the sugar cone.
Decorate your little Christmas Tree using the candies!

Cotton Ball SANTA Craft - easy for small kids

Materials:
Paper Plate
Cotton Balls
Red Paper
Googly Eyes
small piece of yarn or pipe cleaner or red paper (for mouth)
white paint (with a small toothpick dipped in red paint & mixed in)

Instructions:
Paint plate a skin colour (optional)

Cut triangle of red paper. Glue to top of plate.

Glue cotton balls around perimeter of plate (this will be beard & hat fur) including over the bottom edge of hat. Glue another layer of cotton to 'thicken' the beard.

Glue one stretched cotton ball on as a mustache

Glue yarn or pipe cleaner or piece of red paper for mouth.

Glue on googly eyes

Glue half a cotton ball for each eyebrow.

Puzzle Pieces Wreath

A use for those puzzle pieces that can no longer complete a puzzle (due to missing pieces!)

Materials:
Paper Plate (not styrafoam) or piece of cardboard cut into circle.
Random Puzzle Pieces
Green Paint
Glue
Glitter or Glitter Glue
Ribbon
Buttons

Instructions:
Cut a large circle in center of the paper plate (a wreath shape)

Let child glue the puzzle pieces on overlapping them completely around the circle. Let dry.

Paint green. Let dry.

Paint another coat of green. (if using glitter, apply now) Let dry.

Dazzle it up with glitter glue. Attach random buttoms.

Make a bow from the ribbon and glue on bottom of wreath.

Put a larger ribbon around top of wreath to hang.

Reindeer Crafts

Do these crafts as a random fun Holiday Craft or perhaps part of a Book theme Craft from one of many Christmas books about Reindeer.

Or switch out the red nose for a black one and use these crafts when learning about deer or elk.

****
REINDEER ORNAMENT:

Materials:
3 Craft Sticks
2 Brown Pipecleaners
2 Googly Eyes
1 Red Pompom
Brown Construction Paper
Piece of Yarn or magnet

Instructions:
Help child glue 3 craft sticks (or popsicle sticks) into a triangle. Let dry. (Perhaps having you the parent do this with a hot glue gun may be quicker & sturdier).

With flat part of triangle up and point downwards, this will be your reindeer face.

On the top two corners, wrap a brown pipe cleaner on each to serve as antlers.

Glue brown construction paper to back of triangle.

On front, glue on googly eyes and a red pompom nose.

*I didnt have any pipecleaners that werent in neon colours so used two popsicle sticks with puzzle pieces (sticks & pieces coloured black with marker) glued together*

To display, you could glue a magnet to the back or attach a string to hang on your Christmas Tree.
****

REINDEER (made with HANDPRINTS & FOOTPRINT)
(turn this guy into a Moose by putting the footprint in the opposite direction and using a black or brown pompom)

Materials:
Brown Construction Paper
Black (or different shade of Brown) Construction Paper
2 Googly Eyes
1 Red Pompom
pencil

Instructions:
Trace your child's foot and their Left and Right Hands.
Cut out the shapes.
Glue the hands to the back of the top of the foot. Glue on eyes and nose. (this one has a magnet on back to display on the fridge)

****

REINDEER CUPCAKES:

Materials: Prepare your favourite cupcakes. Bake as per recipe. Tint icing brown and decorate the cupcakes. Insert two pretzels for antlers, half a marachino cherry for the nose, and two small candies (m&ms, hershey kisses, smarties, etc) for the eyes.

****

REINDEER (Gift Tag / Plant Poke / Ornament / Magnet)

So EASY & QUICK! (I did this craft at a playdate and it took the kids maybe 5mins. All ages were able to make it)

Materials: Craft Stick, Brown Paint (optional), Brown corrugated Cardboard, Black Marker, Red Marker (or paint or pompom), Ribbon/Yarn

Instructions:

Paint craft stick brown (optional)

Cut antler shape and small circle from corrugated cardboard. Glue antlers at top of craft stick. Glue circle for the mouth area.

Use marker to make eyes just above the brown circle and a little mouth at base of circle.

Use red marker or paint to make rudoph nose.

Tie a ribbon around his 'neck'.

Either leave as is for a plant poke or attach magnet or string on the back for Fridge Magnet or Ornament/Gift Tag.

Toddler Fruit Loop Picture Craft

*Great use for stale Fruit Loop Cereal!*

Place cereal into ziploc bag. Remove air. Seal.

(Depending on age of child, have them sort the colours into different bags)

Crush with rolling pin.


Give child large piece of paper and white glue. Let them draw a design with the glue on the paper. Show them how to sprinkle the cereal glitter onto the glue (could use extra spice shaker, medicine cup, small spoon, etc)

Shake extra cereal off of paper into baking pan (to be reused on next picture) or into garbage.