Natural Diaper Rash Remedy

My poor little boy had a nasty diaper rash (which I think came from putting too much bath soap in his bath the other night)

So after doing some research, this is what worked for us.

Warm bath with some oatmeal (I put a handful of oats wrapped up in some cheesecloth and held under tap as I ran the bath)

Towel dry. Attempt to use blowdryer on the affected area (he didnt really care for this part!)

Spend some diaper free time to let the air flow on affected area. (I let him wander around & play in the bathroom while his sister had her bath. This is fun for him because I dont let him play in the bathroom normally and clean up would be easy for any accidents - after awhile of that I laid a towel on the livingroom carpet and put some snacks and his drink there)

Apply a natural diaper rash remedy of a blob of olive oil shaken with a few drops of water.

**I am not a doctor so take this for what it is worth! **

In the summer (or if you are very worried about accidents in the house) the child could go diaper free with some loose airy shorts on. This would help prevent any "spray" and keep grass & dirt from getting all over his sore area if outside.

Recycle / Reuse Baby Food or Spice / Seasoning Jars

Im getting a collection of baby food jars and small jars from spices & seasonings.

Im also looking into ideas for my kids upcoming birthday parties and have come up with the plan to use the little jars to package up candies for the loot bags!

I can decorate the lids with fabric or have my daughter decorate with stickers.

This will save on the plastic baggies I am trying to live without!

(of course they could also be used to make snowglobes, storage for nuts/bolts, hair elastics, pushpins, bread bag tags, musical shakers, large shot glasses, small vases, or small drinking glasses)

Upcycling Formula Cans

Once that baby starts on formula you will end up with MANY empty cans. They seem like they should have some great new purpose since they are a sturdy container with a nice plastic lid.

(Wipe clean with a wet cloth and thoroughly dry)


So here is a collection of ideas I have found.

1. Storage of dry cereal or crackers or packaged snacks.

2. Toy Storage - keep similar toys in each container with a picture or label of contents on outside of can. (Ex. polly pockets, animal figurines, marbles, rock collection etc.)

3. Arts & Craft Storage - Great storage for all the crayons (or markers or scissors etc) or for the foam stickers that come in a plastic bag and need to be restored in something else.

4. Piggy Bank: Cut a slot in lid with exacto knife. Voila!

5. Toilet Paper storage: holds the spare role of toilet paper perfectly. Outside of can could be decorated in wallpaper or scrapbook papers to coordinate beautifully with your bathroom.

6. Hair Accessory Storage: Decorate (have your child help) and store those multitudes of ponytail holders & clips!

7. Nuts, Bolts, Screws (etc.) Storage: Get that garage or shed organized!

8. Office: Use in a drawer at your desk to keep some plastic cutlery, tea bags, granola bars, etc. to have on hand when needed.

9. Office2: Keep your collection of spare pens, pencils, highlighters from cluttering up the drawer by being in the can.

10. Tea Bags!

11. Use as a gift container for items such as baked cookies, homemade hot cocoa mix, brownies, fudge, spiced nuts, bath salts or any other gifts that will fit!

this container was decorated by my daughter and we kept her Halloween treats in it (on top of the fridge)

Valentine's Day Holders - some from Recycled Items!

Decorated Enveolope:
Last year, my daughter was at her sitter's for Valentine's Day. She gave the kids each a red or pink envelope and the kids decorated with various stickers. Then the kids gave out their Valentine's and stuck in their envelopes. Great for a small group or those too young for any intense crafting! (I save envelopes that we receive cards in if they are not sealed shut - even if there is a name on the card it can easily be covered with a sticker! Great way to reuse)

Cereal Box Card or Treat Holder:
Cut a cereal box in half. Cut the front half a bit lower than the back so that the contents are partially shown. Cover in paper or paint. Decorate with anything! (glitter, ribbons, stickers) This holder would be one that stays home for the kids to store and look through their valentine's afterwards. (Other boxes that would work well would be from Instant Oatmeal, Bisquick, Crackers, etc - check out your pantry!)

(some blogs will show you the perfect finished craft -obviously done by Mom- I prefer to show my daughter's perfect work of art :-)

this one made from a crystal light box covered in paper with pipecleaner handle and decorated with stickers. It was a craft for our Valentine's lunch at a restaurant so it needed to be a clean craft with no glue, markers, etc. The stickers kept her and the other kids busy for a little while - they all loved it!

Felt Bag Necklace/Purse:
Create a felt bag that can hang around your childs neck or use as a purse. Cut out two rectangles of red or pink felt. Glue or Sew three edges - leaving top end open for the cards to go in. Cut out other heart shapes and let child glue onto bag. Could also be decorated with puff paint or glitter glue. Attach long piece of ribbon or yarn for the handle.

Heart Jar for Candies or Candles:
Cut out one or various sized hearts from contact paper. Stick to a clean jar, vase, or candle holder. Let child paint the jar in various shades of red or pink or white (use paints made for glass). Once dry, remove the contact paper! (could be done with a clean spaghetti, salsa or pickle jar! cover the lid in fabric to hide what it had previously been used for)

Paper Plate Card Holder:
Cut one paper plate in half. Glue or staple it facing to the bottom of another paper plate. Decorate with stickers, paints, markers, etc. An older child could lace the two plates together. With plates facing each other, punch holes with hole punch an inch apart along the plates. Use thick red or pink yarn (with end wrapped in masking tape) to lace together.

Recycled Candy or Card Holders:
Decorate any type of container to store the treats or cards. Items such as tall potato chip cans, hot chocolate containers, boxes from pastas/cereals/crackers etc., margarine tubs, cappucino tins, baby formula cans, etc! Earth friendly and crafty!

Toddler Christmas Craft - Tin Pie Plate Stars

In researching some ideas of what to use my aluminum pie plates for in a toddler craft, I came across a great idea to use next Christmas!

Cut stars out of the center of the pie plates. Punch a hole in the top and hang several in the window at varying lengths.

Perhaps the toddler could help decorate them with glue and glitter.

Easy Toddler Craft for the Birds

Help toddler thread cheerios, pretzels and other such items onto pipecleaners.

Bend into loops.

Create several to have a chain.

Hang outside where the child can watch the birds eat their creation!

Winter Suncatcher

Using a metal pie plate, have child put an assortment of small colourful toys, beads, buttons, etc inside.

Lay ribbon or string so that it will be able to hang the suncatcher once frozen
Fill to brim with water.

Remove from pan and hang outside near window.

*Perhaps a Nature version too - using pinecones, pine needles, rocks, twigs, leaves, etc.

Green Birthday Success!

We did a "Green" theme for our daughter's 2nd Birthday and it was a huge success. Here's some pictures of our decorations & activities.

There's also another post in the Birthday category with more details on a Green Birthday.

Decorations:
Two homemade banners made with felt, cord, and a glue gun. See separate post for more details.
Also made garland from our weekly flyers.

Craft:
I had several tins from my Cappucino Mix. I covered them in construction paper and then supplied the kids with stickers, ribbons, buttons, etc.

Some of the finished products:

The kids seemed quite excited about them and I heard comments from the parents that they thought it was a great craft.

Colouring Station:
My daughter had done a couple earlier in the week that we used to hang up as decorations.

Kids were supplied with crayons and colouring pages I had printed off the internet. We then hung them up.

Lots of fun with Water & Sand

Fun with Bubbles:
See recipes section for the bubble juice. For tools, we used funnels, potato masher, slotted spoons, etc.

They had fun but it was a little advanced for the younger kids. Some got soap in their eyes which they didn't enjoy.

Fun with Water & Minnows:
The biggest hit of the party seemd to be the clear rubbermaid bucket filled with water, rocks, a dozen minnows and some water toys. It was always surronded by kids and they had a great time with it. A few minnows were sacrificed but all in all I believe it was worth it!

Presents:
We asked on our homemade invitations for parents to consider giving a gently used toy or books wrapped in something recycled (newspaper, artwork, fabric, etc)

My daughter did receive a couple things like that and most of the presents had amazing artwork for wrapping paper and the most wonderful homemade cards.

Food: Cake was homemade. I didn't use any disposable dishes (that made for a lot of dish washing) and had finger foods so there were no utensils needed. I had washcloths set out for any mishaps so no papertowel would be inadvertantly used.



Loot Bags:
I had fun making these as I love crafts. See separate posts under Mommy Crafts. I made a little drawstring bag filled with peanut butter playdough, a cookie cutter, a small notebook, chunky homemade crayons, stickers, a thank you card made from some artwork, and little bags of candy.

Homemade Birthday Banner

In planning my daughter's Eco-friendly birthday party, I decided to make a banner that I could re-use for the next few years. I already had piles of felt that had been purchased over the years for various projects that had either not happened or not needed as much as purchased.

Materials:

Hot Glue Gun & Glue Sticks

Cord

Felt - various colours

Scissors

I went with yellow & white pennants as those were the only colours I had enough of in full sheets of felt. (I would have liked to used multiple colours for the penants but wanted to use up what I already had)

I cut out a triangle from one felt sheet and then used it as a template for all of the other triangles. I got three triangles from each sheet of felt.

I drew out the letters on various coloured felt pieces, cut them out, and hot glued them with the ink side down.

To add some more colour to the banner, I used some more triangles and added colourful circles to them. I used these before "Happy" and between "Happy Birthday" and at the end.

The easiest sewing-free way to hang them I thought would be to make little tabs and thread the cord through. Like a tab-top curtain panel would have.

It turned out great and I can't wait to start using it!

Playdough Recipes

** All are inedible ** - but not toxic

Store any version of playdough in an airtight container to ensure a longer lifespan.

Here are various recipes that I have compiled, depending on what ingredients you might have on hand.

*See separate post for ideas on Playdough Tools around your house.

COOKED PLAYDOUGH:

#1
1 cup flour
1 cup of water
1/2 cup salt
2 tablespoons cream of tarter
1 tablespoon of oil

Cook ingredients until they form a blob in the pan. Pour it out into a plastic container. Cover with damp cloth. Add food coloring if desired.


#2
1 cup water
1 cup salt
1/2 cup flour
Food coloring

Mix ingredients in pan. Add food coloring. Stir on low heat. When it thickens remove from heat. Put some on waxed paper or floured surface and roll out. Cut out objects. Air dry objects few days.


#3
1 cup baking soda
1/2 cup corn starch
3/4 cup water

Mix the baking soda and corn starch in a pot. Use hands to make sure all the lumps are broken up. Add water. The adult should put the pan on the stove over medium heat and stir constantly. As soon as the mixture gathers together, remove from the heat. When it cools, have your child knead it into a smooth playdough.
Note: Don't over cook this playdough or it will crumble when the children use it.


UNCOOKED PLAYDOUGH:

#1 (Coffee Scent!)
4 cups unsifted all purpose flour
1 cup salt
1/4 cup instant coffee
1 1/2 c warm water

Dissolve the coffee in the warm water. In another bowl, mix the flour and the salt. Make a well and add 1 cup of the coffee water into it. Mix with a fork or with your hands until smoother. Add more coffee water as needed: dough should be smooth not sticky or crumbling.


#2
1/4 cup salt
1 cup flour
1/4 cup water

Have your child mix the flour and salt in a bowl then add water. Knead and squeeze the dough to make a clay consistency. You may need to add more water.
Note: Your child will find that this playdough doesn't last as long as the cooked recipes.


#3
1 cup cold water
1 cup salt
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
Tempera paint or food coloring
3 cups flour
2 tablespoons cornstarch

In bowl, mix water, salt, oil, and enough tempera paint or food coloring to make a bright color.
Gradually add flour and cornstarch until the mixture reaches the consistency of bread dough.

Homemade Chunky Crayons - Recycling!

My Aunt found a big bag of crayons at a second hand store, so I went to work at making the chunky toddler crayons I have heard about.

1. Peel off all paper from crayons (kids might enjoy this task!)

2. Cut into small chunks

3. Prepare Pan.

Muffin Tin: use an old one because it will get wax on it and surprisingly it is very hard to remove it all afterwards. Or purchase one from second hand store.

On my first batch, I put pieces of tin foil in each cup (I have heard you can buy muffin cup liners made of foil but haven't seen them). 7 out of 9 cups had wax leak underneath the foil and make a mess. Plus the crayons turned out very wrinkly due to the creases in the foil. * Not recommended unless you use the aluminum liners but I didn't try that.

Second batch, I sacrificed my muffin tin since it already had wax on it from the first batch. I sprayed it liberally with cooking spray. * This worked the best.

4. After preparing pan, pile your crayons chunks. I liked to stick to 2 - 4 colours per cup and grouped each colour together.

5. Turn oven to 250F (no need to preheat, this isn't a cake we're making!) and put muffin tin in. It took about 10 mins. Even if not all the chunks were melted, I turned the oven off and left it inside for awhile.

6. Remove from oven and let cool on counter. When they started to solidify, I stuck them in the freezer. An hour later they popped out so easily.

Option 2: Film Canisters - Place film canisters in a baking pan lined with a piece of tin foil to catch drips. Using a tin can, melt your crayons in the can by placing it in a saucepan with an inch or two of water on the stove. Stir the chunks (wooden skewer worked great) until melted. Pour carefully into film canisters. Some of them I layered a few different colours for a cute effect.

*Unless you want to use a dozen different cans, start with your lightest colour and then reuse for the next darker colour. This way the leftover wax in the can won't distort your colours too much.

Finished product from Film Canisters

Finished product from aluminum foil lined muffin tin.

Finished product from greased muffin tin & my Favourites!

These crayons will be used in the loot bags for my daughter's birthday party and the less pretty crayons will be used at home & our cabin.

I read somewhere that the washable crayons don't work for this. Whatever makes the washable will rise to the top and the kids won't be able to colour with them. Since my crayons were a mixed assortment of unknown brands, I made sure to use some of each type in a muffin cup.

I really enjoyed the project and couldn't stop once I started creating my little masterpieces!

Loot Bags

I made these mini drawstring bags this weekend for the loot bags at my daughter's upcoming birthday party. Im doing a 'green' theme so these are more environmentally friendly than the tradional plastic dollar store variety.

I used scraps of fabric that I have saved over the years and found instructions on the internet.

It was so super easy (I am not an advanced sewer). The instructions were for a certain sized bag but I just 'winged it' with my own sizes depending on the size of scraps I had.

Im hoping the kids (& Moms) will enjoy these and use them for storing little cars, snacks, doll accessories, whatever!

I enjoyed making them (since they were so quick & easy) and made extras of various sizes for myself. Im thinking that perhaps future gifts will be encased in a homemade drawstring bag as well!

Green Birthday Ideas

Working on ideas for my daughter's upcoming 2nd birthday. Thought that perhaps we'll try an Eco theme of Green.

Location: Summer Birthday outside in the yard. I won't purchase any games but will find some ideas for games on the internet. Most activity will just be free-play on swings, sandbox, wading pool, etc. If in future years I need a theme for this same style of birthday, I can say butterfly celebration, bug safari, or garden party.

Craft Activity: Trinket Boxes. I have several little containers from Maxwell Cafe Cappucinno, Hot Chocolate, Fancy Tea, etc. They are all sturdy little containers with nice lids. I'll let the kids decorate them with craft supplies I have on hand (glitter, ribbons, stickers, markers, buttons, etc.) It's recycling & keeping them occupied at the same time. After they've made their creation, I will write their name on the bottom and hand back with the loot bag later.


Dishes: no disposables, we'll use our plastic camping plates & cups for the kids. Im thinking of finger foods so I don't have to worry about utensils. Parents can use the glass plates.


Cake: Homemade


Loot Bags: Reusable cloth bags that I'll make myself. Internet has various instructions for making easy drawstring bags. Ive got tons of fabric scraps I can use. The bag can then be later used by the child for their cars, snacks, doll clothes, etc.



(Here's how they turned out!) --->

You could also take two squares of felt and sew up three sides. Cut a rectangle for the handle. They could be left as is or decorated with paints or markers (party craft!)

Or purchase small canvas bags from a craft store that can be decorated at the party.

*check out another post I made on loot bags for various other ideas*

Loot Bag Fillers: No plastic junk that will just get tossed. Some ideas so far are:
*homemade playdough w/ recipe & cookie cutter
*clay pot (kids decorate at party) with baggie of soil and seed packet
*homemade decorated cookies
*notebook & fancy pen
*homemade chunky toddler crayons (see separate post)
etc.

Anything that is practical and either usable or edible. Any candy I buy will be bought in bulk to reduce packaging.

Stay away from the mult-pack of plastic junky lootbag stuff (ie. sunglasses that break before they are out of the packaging, whistles, etc.) Most moms are tossing that stuff out before the end of the day cause they're broken or annoying.

Also including in the Loot Bag a Thank You Card made from cutting various artworks (that Sophie has done lately) into little folded cards. Inside is a simple "Thank you for coming to my Birthday Party, love Sophie"

Decorations:
~ Tablecloths that I already own rather than the one-time use plastic version. Or if I feel creative, I could take a bed sheet that isn't in our bedroom's colour scheme anymore and add some felt flowers or butterflys or circles to dress it up.
~ Happy Birthday Banner that I'll be using for a few years. (see separate post for more detail)
~ Pictures of friends & family from Sophie's 1st birthday party and perhaps some from the day she was born.
~ Paper Garlands from colourful flyers & catalogues.
~ Birthday Crown - make from felt and decorate with puff paint & glitter. Let them use this for years to come (even a picture with it for sweet 16 would be great memories!)

Gifts: Im going to somehow (have to think of the best way to word it on the invites) ask my friends for gently-used toys or books. My daughter will be two and won't care if it's a used toy, we love second hand stuff. This will save lots of packaging (it's amazing how much plastic & cardboard one toy comes packed in). Also asking for gifts to be wrapped in newspaper, flyers, pre-used gift bags or fabric!

Still looking into other ideas to help keep it green...

Homemade Finger Paint Recipe

Found these great & simple recipes for homemade fingerpaint:
(I suggest having them wear one of your old shirts - this will completely cover their outfit or using a smock)



Fingerpaint:
1 cup Flour
1 cup Water
1 tsp Salt
Food Colouring

Stir up and let them at the paper!
(This one is quite goopy/slimey which is half the fun!)


Muffin tin works great for having many small doses of colour - also try a foam egg carton or ice cube tray!

ALSO:

Kool-Aid Finger Paint:
2 Cups Flour
2 pkgs. Unsweetened Kool-Aid
1/2 Cup Salt
3 Cups Boiling water
3 Tbsp. Oil
Mix wet ingrediants into dry. *Kids will like watching it magically change colour!

Recipes for Paint, Playdough, and FUN!

WATERCOLOR PAINTS
1 T. vinegar
1 T. baking soda
Stir for 1 minute and add:
Food coloring
4T. cornstarch
1T. corn syrup


GOOP Mix:
2 c. white glue
1 1/2 c. water
Stir in separate bowl: 1/3 c. water and 1 T. Borax
Add Borax mixture to glue mixture and mix with hands. It will take a bit. This becomes like Silly Putty and will even take imprints from newsprint!

Edible!! PEANUT BUTTER PLAYDOUGH
1 c. peanut butter
1 c. dried milk
1/2 T. honey
Knead together well. Good dough for small children as it's good to eat too! Store airtight.

SILLY PUTTY
2T. white glue (glue all type)
food coloring
1T. liquid starch
Pour glue into a small bowl. Mix in food coloring of choice. Cover with liquid starch. . .pulling away the sides of the glue. DO NOT STIR! Let this sit for 5 mins. Squeeze out the starch and knead until the right consistency.

KOOLAID CLAYDOUGH
1 package Koolaid (the kind where you add the sugar yourself)
1 cup flour
1/4 cup salt
1 tbsp oil
1/2 tbsp alum/cream of tartar
1/2 cup hot water
Dissolve everything except the flour in the HOT water. It has to be hot to dissolve all that salt. Then add the flour, mix, and knead. Resist the temptation to add a little more flour because it's too sticky just keep kneading.

SQUISHY BAG:
3c Water 4T Cornstarch
Food Colouring Ziploc Bag

Boil water. In separate bowl, add cold water to cornstarch to make a paste. Slowly add to boiling water. Cook and stir until thick. Add food colouring and allow to cool. Pour into Ziploc bag and seal.
OR: non-cooking alternatives are Ketchup, Mustard, Relish, Hair Gel, Lotion, Shaving Cream etc.

MAGIC MUD:
Put into bowl: 1 Box Cornstarch
Add just enough water to be able to stir. Add in food colouring.


Face Paint:
1/8 C. Baby Lotion
1/4 Tsp Powdered Tempera paint
1 Squirt liquid Dishwashing Soap
Mix Up. *test small amount to be sure of no reactions* Remove with soap & water

Bubble Mix:
1/2 cup Water
1/2 cup Liquid Detergent
1 Tblsp Cooking Oil

PUFF Paint:
Mix equal parts of FLOUR, SALT, & WATER. Add food colouring or Tempura Paint to colour. Put into a squeeze bottle and paint away. Drawing will puff as it dries.