Pumpkin Carving with a drill: How to/How Not To

Apparently it's the IN thing to drill holes in your pumpkin, instead of, or in addition to, carving it. After seeing so many drilled pumpkins, I wanted to try this new fad myself. After all, they did look amazing! First I thought of a theme to utilize the drill. I wanted something that would look really cool with the drilled holes, but not anything too simple, so I went with leaves blowing in the wind. My adventure in pumpkin carving started with a knife to cut open the top, so that I could remove all the insides of the pumpkin.

I couldn't find my drill so I started with a dremmel. (DO NOT DO THIS!!!) It started out okay, but then the tip I was using kept vibrating too fast, where I couldn't tell where I was placing it in my pumpkin. I messed up my pumpkin somewhat this way. Then I tried carving my leaves with the dremmel and it didn't quite carve it the way I wanted. 

Go straight for a regular drill.  I wish I had. You can use a decent size tip for your holes depending on the size you want, but don't go too small, or it will be hard to see any light through them when you put your candle in. Don't forget to put on safety glasses or something to protect your face from the flying pumpkin. I had pumpkin all over my face.

Once I started up the regular drill everything went so much smoother. I was able to get the drill completely through to the inside of the pumpkin, and also drill exactly where I wanted to. Using different size drill bits will make some really cool patterns. 

I drew on my pumpkin where I wanted things first, and improvised from there. First I carved out the leaves with a knife which was the easiest way to do the leaves, then I drilled the holes for the wind. Once you get going it's pretty easy. 

Have A Wild Time With This Fun Wild Kratt's Birthday Theme

With the Kratt brothers doing their summer tour at zoo's across the country and their new toys coming out, your kids might be talking a lot about the PBS show The Wild Kratts. My daughter just loves The Wild Kratts! She can watch the same episode over and over again. Sound Familiar? If your child is like mine, they might be convincing you they need a Wild Kratts birthday party. My five year old daughter really wanted one, and  I found out that there really aren't that much as far as party supplies go. So I had to improvise. I thought I would share my experience with having a Wild Kratts themed birthday party, and give some tips or ideas to make it special!

First, I wanted to decide on a place to have the party. You could have the party at home, and that is totally fine, but I was inviting a lot of people, and thought having it somewhere else would be easier. I looked into a local zoo that my daughter loves, and was going to plan to have it there, but I ended up finding a pet store that does birthday parties and they had a better deal. I wanted more for the money, so we decided on the pet store. Any place with animals would be a perfect place for the party. Zoo, pet store, animal rescue, or the Rainforest Cafe. Keep in mind it doesn't have to be an animal themed place, and your home is a great place to do it as well, this is just what I wanted to do. I don't know if you have on by you, but we chose Petland. They gave us a room for 2 hours, an hour of visitation from any animals we wanted. My daughter got to pick out a few dogs, a ferret, and a guinea pig. Unfortunately we had picked out some reptiles and the lady doing the party was too afraid of them to bring them out and told us there wasn't enough time. So if you want reptiles, especially a snake, make sure that you request someone who is okay handling them. They also included gift bags for everyone, and a tour of the aquarium adventure side complete with a piranha feeding and a chance for the kids to feed and pet the Koi fish! All for a reasonable price.

Next, I thought that I wanted to incorporate the Wild Kratts show into the party decor, but finding Wild Kratts party decorations was a chore, seeing as there really isn't any. They do have birthday banners for purchase though through the PBS website, so I decided since it was almost the only party decoration, we had to have it. I went ahead and bought the banner, and when it came I was very surprised! I thought I would be getting one of those little plastic birthday banners, but what I got was a full size vinyl banner! It was gorgeous! I was very impressed with the banner, although I did wonder how I would hang such a heavy banner. This banner is something she can keep for a long time and hang in her room.

Here are links to Wild Kratts Banners.

https://www.wildkratts.com/products/birthday-adventure-banner/

https://www.wildkratts.com/products/wild-birthday-banner

https://www.walmart.com/ip/Personalized-Wild-Kratts-Birthday-Adventure-Banner/30280479

There are a few other party supplies and t-shirts, and creature power suits also. I know if a lot of kids are invited and you'd like everyone to have a power suit to put on, it would be much cheaper to make them. My mother-in-law made my daughter a creature power suit for Christmas last year from Santa that she wore to her party! It was simple to sew a vest, and add on the details, and a pocket in back for the creature discs. The creature discs were made from fabric and she drew on the animals. There are many ways you can make your suit.

I decided that since there weren't Wild Kratts decorations or tableware that I would do a blue/green and animal print theme. I got blue and green paper plates, and cups. I also got animal print napkins. I found zebra and giraffe dinner napkins and peacock and  leopard beverage napkin prints at party city! You could find a lot online too if you're willing to pay shipping and have time to wait. For the party I stacked the dinner napkins together, and separately the beverage napkins together alternating prints. 

I also bought a pack of 20 animal print balloons from Party City

and one #5 Balloon! I then separated the balloons so that there was one of each in a group and put them on different tables. Instead of buying weights, I used different stuffed animals to add to the Wild Kratts theme. I also hung info fact cards around them. (Read Below)

I looked up ideas for Wild Kratts parties on Pintrest and found a lot of cool ideas for themed food, so I decided to use some of the ideas. I then also named the food, printed out a paper that had a picture of the animal on it, and then wrote a fun fact about the animal. I thought this was a really neat way to tie the party together, although it was a lot of work, and I'm pretty sure no one read them. I recommend this more for a party at home where more time is allotted to the party and the guests may eventually read them.  It was a really cool tie in to the party, but in the end, maybe not worth it. I did also however print out a picture of the Wild Kratts as different animals (carnivore, omnivore, and herbivore and at the watering hole) and taped that to the table near the food/drinks that went with it. That may be a cool tie in option that would take less time to make, and read! 

Zebra Treats

Popcorn in individual animal print cups.

                                                                  Chickens

  Yellow Marshmallow Peeps and Jellybeans. 

Luckily my daughter's birthday is in February, so we had the party at the end of March, and there were peeps and jellybeans available since it was so close to Easter. I just laid jellybeans on the platter and put the peeps on top in rows. 

Caterpillars

Green grapes, skewers, and frosting. 

I just poked the grapes onto the skewers longways, and then once I got to the head horizontally. Then just added a mouth and eyes. 

Earthworms

I used sour gummy worms.

Ants On A Log

I used celery sticks, peanut butter, and chocolate sprinkles.

I made sure to be precise with the chocolate sprinkles, one at a time so it looked like ants in a line. You can also use mini chocolate chips, or raisins if you'd like. 

Jungle Vines

I used green vines (like the red vines you get, they also have green.) from Walmart

Goldfish

I just got a huge jug of Goldfish at Walmart

I also got some animal cookies and put them in a basket, made strawberry, banana, and kiwi kabobs, a veggie tray with dip, and got some two liters of pop, water bottles and ice. 

I also made a sign for outside the room, and taped it to the door so that when people came in they could read it and get more of a animal adventure/Wild Kratts theme feeling. I just used a brown paper bag, and crayons/markers. Used bubbles letters, and drew animal print inside the letters! 

Jar of Fireflies

I got a container with a lid and enough glow sticks for each child.

I made a label which also said to "take one", poked holes into the lid to act as you would real fireflies, and then right before the party I cracked all the glow sticks to make them light up like real fireflies.

I also made a poster board full of pictures of my daughter from birth to 5 years old. Just random cute photos from different ages and made a collage.

Lastly, The cake!

I had the cake made at Jewel. They don't have Wild Kratts cake decorations, and won't put anything on that you buy yourself. I printed out a Wild Kratts picture, and had them put it on the cake. I told them to make grass and water around the picture and write happy birthday. I then went out and bought small animal figures. I got a variety pack of animals, and marine animals. After I picked the cake up, I put on my own little pieces. I also bought animal print candles. 

So now that you have some ideas, go ahead and say YES to the Wild Kratts party your kid's been bugging you about!! All these food items went over very well! You can even use these ideas and be creative with it, make it your own. Yes, it will take some work, but it is do-able, and your kid will love ya for it. Make memories.

8 Easy Ways To Be Festive For The 4th

The 4th of July is one of my favorite days of celebration! I just love celebrating our independence with fireworks, music and the red, white and blue! My family had an amazing day at the parade, and an amazing night with beautiful fireworks here in the suburbs! Since I love decorating for the holidays, and being the crafty mom I am, I decided to try out some fourth of July crafts, and food recipes I found on the internet! My daughter loved getting into the fourth of July spirit with me by helping create them! Whether you want to get your little ones involved in the festivities, or having an outdoor barbecue these simple ideas will be a great addition to the fun! Here are the fun ideas we tried out this year!

Tin Can Windsock

• Empty can-We used an empty can of beans, washed it out and let it dry. You can use any kind of can, and size. 
• Blue acrylic or spray paint-We used acrylic paint because we already had it, but spray paint works as well. 
• Red and white ribbon
• Glue gun
• Star stickers (optional)

We emptied a can of beans, washed and dried it. Then I let my daughter paint it with blue acrylic paint. After it dried I painted white stars on it because we used what we already had at the house, but if you want the younger kids to get more involved you can buy star stickers and allow them to stick them on the can. While the can was drying we cut red and white long ribbons of the same length. When the can was dry I used the glue gun to attach the ribbons to the inside rim of the can alternating colors. Then I used a nail and hammer to make two holes in the top of the can, and tread a string through them, and tied it to make a loop for it to hang.

Here is the finished product!

American Eagle Craft 

• Thick paper such as construction paper or art paper
• Brown paint
• White paint
• Orange/Yellow paint
• Black/Blue paint
• Red/Blue marker

I painted my daughter Autumn's hands brown then instructed her to put her right hand on the paper with her thumb pointing down on the left side of the page. Then her left hand, thumb down on the right side of the page overlapping the first hand print. After that you can paint the neck and head white, the beak and feet (which we forgot) orange or yellow depending on preference, and a blue or black eye. Then take a marker and write U.S.A or America on the paper. My daughter chose to write both. She also made a second one where I wrote U.S.A with glue and she used glitter to decorate it. 

Glitter Fireworks

• Any color glitter, but at least having red, silver and blue is a good idea.
• Glue
• Thick paper (construction or drawing paper)

It's a good idea to show the kids how to make a firework first if they are younger. I showed my daughter just to get her started, and she did a few, then kind of went off on her own imaginations version of a firework. I showed her how to make a glue blob in the middle and kind of drag the glue pressing lightly out from the middle blob in lines. She did a few that way, then made some that looked like they were falling or booming. We tried doing one firework at a time so the glitter wouldn't mix as much.She had a lot of fun with this one! 

Patriotic Jello

• Red jello
• Blue jello
• Cool Whip
• Clear cups

The amount of jello you need depends on how much you want to make. I used one small box of each and made 7 cups. Make the jello according to the package. When the jello is set put the jello and cool whip into a cup. I put blue first, then cool whip, red, then I topped it off with cool whip, but that's optional. Mine didn't all turn out as pretty as I wanted. The cool whip was stubborn about going in. I will try to find a better way to get it in next time, but I was only making them for my family. They tasted great!! 

Red, White and Blue Strawberries

• Box of Strawberries
• Bag of white chocolate candy chips 
• Blue sprinkles
• Wax paper

Use one box of strawberries, more if your entertaining a larger group. Rinse and dry. White chocolate candies can be found at a local craft store, or Walmart. I like the bags from JoAnns. Put 2 cups in a microwavable bowl and cook on high for 1 minute. Stir. Then cook in 30 second increments and stir after each time. Once they are melted enough they should be easy to stir and blend to a creamy chocolate. Cook more if necessary which depends on how many strawberries you bought. Get a small bowl and pour some blue sprinkles in. This is an easy food for kids to help with as well. My daughter loved being able to help make this festive strawberries. Dip the strawberries 3/4 way with white chocolate, then, dip ends in the blue sprinkles. Place on wax paper to dry. It hardens pretty quickly, then you can transfer them to a more decorative plate. Re-heat white chocolate as it hardens. 

DIY 4th Of July Flip Flops

• Any pair of flip flops, but red, white or blue work best! 
• Red, white and blue ribbon

I could not find fourth of July flip flops anywhere, so I decided to make my own. We have ribbon laying around the house already, so I just had to find flip flops. I could not find plain red, white, or blue, so I used the flip flops with jewels on them that she already had. Cut medium long strips of ribbon. 2 red, 2 blue, and 2 white. Wrap the colors around the flip flops and then tie each color in the font of the flip flop. Double knot if possible. Now you have a pair of custom 4th of July flip flops. 

Ribbon Braids

• Red, white, and blue ribbon
• Rubber bands for hair.

I started by taking the front of her hair and pulling it back into a half pony tail. Then I tied ribbon to the pony tail and held it in place with a rubber band. There are many ways to hold it in place, or attach ribbons to the hair tie. Then I separated the pony into 2 parts. I took one of those parts and separated it into 3 parts, each part had a separate ribbon color. I then braided a normal braid trying to get the ribbon to be on top so it would show through every braid. I then took the other half and did the same. Then I separated the rest of the hair into pig tails, and tied the hair and ribbons with a hair band right past the ear. I then let the rest of the ribbon hand down with the hair and cut the ends so they were all even. 

American Rice Krispy Treats

• 1 box of rice krispy cereal 
• 1 bag of mini marshmallows
• Red gel food coloring
• Blue gel food coloring
• 1 stick of butter
• Glass pan 
•  Wax Paper

Use separate bowls for the 3 colors. Measure 2 cups of mini marshmallows, and pour them into a bowl. Using bigger bowls is a good idea. Cut a small slice of butter and add to marshmallows (this part may not be necessary, I did not try it without the butter because the recipe I had requested it) Put bowl of marshmallows in the microwave. I put mine in for a minute or minute and 25 seconds. Watch them in the microwave and when they get big a fluffy over the top of the bowl you can stop them, take them out and stir. When ready add the food coloring. Gel works best. You can get Wilton gel colors from craft stores or Walmart. Royal Blue and Red work great! Use the blue first. Put a small amount of gel coloring in the marshmallow. I use a toothpick to get it out. Stir until all the marshmallow is blue. Add about 2 cups of rice krispies. Stir until rice krispies are completely blue. Grease pan so the rice krispies don't stick. I used vegetable shortening to coat mine. I used a 9X13, but it was a little big. This size would work, but a slight smaller might be better. Make sure to get sides as well as the bottom. Pour the blue rice krispies into the pan. Pat down and spread with wax paper. Repeat steps, but this time with no food coloring for the white. Then repeat steps and add red gel food coloring to the marshmallows for the top layer. Once Marshmallows cool they should be ready to eat! Cut up and Enjoy! 

I hope you got some great ideas here and the directions were easy to follow. We had a lot of fun creating our fourth of July items and even more fun decorating with them, and eating them!