Pine Cone Bird Feeders

Our family gets together once a week, usually on Monday night and does something fun together. It's a great way to make sure that you take time for your family. So, each week, I'll post something about what we did for fun.

On our summer fun list (that my kids made) they wanted to make pine cone bird feeders. They love the birds and were really excited about this. We have two huge pine trees in our yard and I kept seeing these beautiful pone cones on the ground well we started collecting them and I knew I was going to do something with them. So here's what we did.

Pine Cone Bird Feeders

Materials you will need:

Pine Cones

Peanut Butter

bird seed

string

Directions:

Place string on the end of the pine cone leaving a loop to place the feeder on the tree. Place peanut butter on the pine cone and get into the underneath parts of the pine cone. We made 4 feeders and it took a whole jar of peanut butter. Next, I got a casserole pan and place the bird seed in it and the kids rolled the pine cone in the seed. Then we hung them on a tree.

Cost-

Bird seed- $1.00 (we used half a bag)

String- $1.00 (from Dollar Tree and there is lots left over)

Peanut Butter- FREE (for me but this might cost you a little more.)

Pine Cones- FREE

Results:

So, for under $5.00 we had a really fun family time and also accomplished an activity the kids wanted to do this summer. The kids were really proud of their feeders and can't wait to see the birds eat from them. I am really glad that I waited to do this activity when my husband was home because every kid wanted you to help them. The extra hands came in handy.

So, if you want to have fun this summer with your kids, consider pine cone bird feeders.

Naturally-Dyed Playdough

I had this perfect project picked out this week, but it has rained every single day and we needed to go outside for this project, so we made play dough! I had never made it before and it was fun. Go here to see the first play dough recipe we made. This was the second one we tried.

~

Experiment: Can I make a play dough that the kids will love that is still pretty cheap?

Experiment Taken From: Notebook Entry 04.29.09

Materials Needed: See One Golden Apple for the original recipe

~

Naturally-Dyed Playdough

1 cup flour
1 cup brightly colored juice (blueberry, cherry, pomengranate, grape, etc.)
1/4 cup salt
1/2 teaspoon vegetable oil
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
Put all ingredients in a pot and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until the dough comes together. This only takes a few minutes. When cool enough to handle, squish and knead until smooth. Voila. Store in a container in the fridge.
Note: A lovely yellow can be made by using the recipe above, replacing the juice with water, and adding a teaspoon of ground turmeric.

~

Results: The play dough was super easy to make, smelled good, and was pretty cheap to make. But best of all, it gave my kids hours of fun! I do however like the ease of the first recipe because I do not have to actually cook the play dough and the colors were so much brighter.

Conclusion: I like both recipes and will definitely use both of them again. Both are cheap and my kids love them!

For more experiments go to Mom Advise.

Fruity Playdough

This week is suppose to be rainy, that's right for the entire week! So, I planned to do this little activity with my kids when they got home today. They are hot to the touch after you make them, so I am putting them in the refrigerator and tomorrow we will get out the cookie cutters and play with the playdough. It really does smell fruity! The colors are so vibrant compared to the playdough you buy at the store too. I first saw this recipe on MomAdvise and then at Day By Day. I used the suggestion from Day By Day to use 1 tbs. flour instead of the 1 tbs cream of tarter because cream of tarter is expensive and guess what it works just fine without the cream of tarter. We will definitely be using this recipe again!

Here's the recipe!
Fruity Play Dough (courtesy of Recipezaar.com)
1 cup flour
1 package Kool-Aid (any flavor)
1 tablespoon cream of tartar or 1 Tbs flour
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1/4 cup salt
3/4 cup boiling water (the original recipe called for one cup of boiling water, but I found it made the dough too loose- aim for 3/4 cup and add more if needed)
Mix all dry ingredients in bowl then oil, then pour boiling water in and mix thoroughly. Wrap in cellophane or air tight container and store in fridge. The play dough should last a few months.

LORIE

I saw this at Stace's Place. You go to Flickr and put in your name and it creates a picture for you. Here is mine. Lol I think one of them is a grave stone.

Microwave Madness!

You should take a look at this website, it shows you what happens when you put certain things in the microwave, too funny. I thought the christmas lights was kind of neat and others on there are pretty funny too. I found this at Angie's blog. I knew I just had to share it with you all!

Simon

I remember getting this game for Christmas when I was like 12 and I really loved it! I found this game online at a blog I visited only I can't find that blog now to give them credit. :( Anyways, go play and post your score here in the comments. Have FUN!

How Messy are you?

I got this off of Marcia's blog. Fun!

You Are a Little Messy

You aren't the cleanest person in the world, but you're definitely not a slob. You clean up when you have the time, but you're realistic about what you can get done. Generally, you're pretty organized and tidy - though you may have a few hidden messes. You eventually get around to making things spotless, but you do it on your own schedule!

Are You Messy?

Wanted Pictures

I got this off of The Punkin Patch. I thought it was so cute. To make your own go here.

Lorie needs to...

I got this from Kara. You just put "(your name in) needs to" in google and see what comes up. this is so much fun!

1. Lorie needs to hurry up and have her baby.
(Hey, I just did that 3 months ago.)
2.Lorie needs him.
(That would be my dh!)
3. Lorie needs to know about Wizbang.
(I don't have a clue what Wizbang is, I hope it's not bad. lol)
4. Lorie needs to e-mail me.
(Who do I need to e-mail? lol)
5. Lorie needs a few more prayers.
(Hey, I could always use a few more prayers.)
6.Lorie needs to get a life!
(Hey, now!)
7. Lorie needs to know by June 11.
(What do I need to know?)
8. Lorie needs to hear your concerns.
(I'm all ears.)

If anyone else does this, let me know. I think this is really fun!

What kind of cheesecake are you?

You Are a Brownie Cheesecake

A little chunky and a little gooey, you pretty much run on sugar!You take hedonism to the extreme.. And people love you for it.

What Kind of Cheesecake Are You?