Sure could use some 'Mili-friendly' ideas for school break.

[milivica]

The kids will be off school for 12 days (including the weekend) for winter break. Knowing me as you all do, I'd love some fun fun Mili-type ideas for stuff to do together. OH and it certainly helps if the ideas are free and/or DIY type things. Also, would like to share my ideas in case anyone here needs any.

So far, all I could think of that would be really fun is to make a worm farm. I found sites that show the principle of making one.

I'd love to create some wee indoor hydroponic gardens for lettuce and tomato since we eat that a lot, fertilized with what ever winds up in the drip tray of the worm farm, hee hee, but dunno how well they'd grow in a window though. Anyone know off hand? Vince still loves weather and plants, so he'd go for it. Carmen pretty much likes doing anything with me, so she'll be game too.

I thought I could buy some citric acid (I think that's what it was called) and use natural flavors and stevia instead of sugar and make home made soda pop. Vince got a soda pop kit for his birthday last month, and it was darn fun! Especially since we never have soda here, so it's like a huge treat to the kids. We all sat around the table like a bunch of chemists mixing and test tasting. I have to look up citric acid and find out if it's a good or bad thing, but you add baking soda to it for the fizz, then flavor and sweetener and wah-lah, soda pop...and if you don't add but a drip or two of water, you get pop rocks! Vince discovered that.

One day could be a trip to the cheapo movies and a trip to a pet shop or two where they can play with the ferrets in open cages - Vince winds up completely scratched up every time but he loves it.

So, those are the only a few ideas so far, I'm sure their Christmas gifts will provide a lot of things to do, but I'd still like a few more ideas. Of course the way things are going, we might make an igloo even bigger than our house, brrrr! We sure got the snow! Hmmm, if I can find a way not to freeze to death, an igloo isn't a bad idea actually. Sure would take up a lot of time.

[peglem]

Wow, if we had snow...well that sounds like there'd be plenty to do!

We make playdough every year and use cookie cutters to make ornaments. We decorate them with fabric paint before they dry. (don't forget to put a hole with a drinking straw while they are still wet or you can't hang them.

How about a pet album- scrapbooking style. Take fun pictures of your pets- dress them up in costumes (historical pictures?) and make background scenes. Oh, how cool would it be to make, like a vacation scrapbook for pets? Standing next to the eiffel tower...at Disneyland...an audience with the pope, meeting Barach Obama? Your kids would have to do a little research about different places, make a scene for it to photograph, a costume for the pet. Then you'd have to post the results here so we could see it!

[Kristen (ColeysMom)]

What a great thread guys!

There are likely loads of arts & craft ideas (painting, cutting snow flakes, hmmmm)...or baking cookies, cupakes, or making dinner stuff like pasta or soup or something...

what about playdates?

I gotta pop in the shower while I have the chance...but will start thinking, and come back later!

[NTLegend]

Well, let's see. If you're still in, or near, Madison -- look at these:


Madison children's museum FREE admission the first Sunday of every month -open noon to 5:00 p.m. on Sundays


Library calendar is here: http://host.evanced.info/madison/evanced/eventcalendar.asp?ag=&et=&dt=mo&mo=1/1/2009&df=calendar&cn=0&private=0&ln=ALL


Geology museum http://www.geology.wisc.edu/~museum/exhibits.html
Kids might like "black light" display. Some of the rocks are gorgeous.
FREE -- open Mon – Fri 8:30am – 4:30pm, and Saturday 9 – 1


UW College of Engineering has its own library, and the library has an art gallery. Art gallery has cool stuff on display:
http://wendt-library.blogspot.com/2008/11/wendt-art-exhibit.html -- and maybe they have some other exhibits?

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KIDS' OWN DESIGNS ON T-SHIRT (or fabric of some kind) - I got this off of the internet.

SUPPLIES: crayons - T-shirt - Sandpaper - Iron
cardboard (sized to fit inside T-shirt) - Aluminum Foil

Using crayons, draw a picture on the rough side of the sandpaper. Make sure
to press hard when drawing so there is a thick layer of crayon. Using a rough grade of sandpaper gives a 'pebbled' look. Using a fine grade gives a more even transfer.

*** Remember if you are writing words, write the word and letters backward so they will be correct after the transfer.

Cover the cardboard with aluminum foil, being careful not to create creases in the foil. This will help color adhere to shirt.

Next, insert the wrapped cardboard inside the t-shirt, to protect the back
side of the shirt.

Lay sandpaper with drawn design CRAYON SIDE DOWN on front of t-shirt where you want the picture to be.

Heat the iron to the "warm" or "rayon" setting. When it is heated, apply heat to the the back (the smooth side) of the sandpaper (which is lying on the t-shirt already).

Hold the iron on each part of the sandpaper for about 10 seconds, to melt the crayon design onto t-shirt. It really does transfer that fast.

Allow the t-shirt to cool before peeling back the sandpaper.

To keep vibrancy of the color design, wash in cold water and hang to dry.

[milivica]

Heyyyyyyyyyyy! NtLegend! How are you? What's going on over there with you? Give us a scoop! Love your T-shirt idea too, that's right up our alley. We've gone to the places in your links lots when the kids were younger, I was the only one that liked the Geology museum, but the kids loved the children's museum when they were younger, they're a bit too old for it now, everything is geared for little ones.

Kristen, I home make everything, even my bread and pasta, so that's a daily thing anyhow - Carmen loves it, especially rolling the pasta and cutting it into noodles. Vince not so much but does love eating for sure. I love playdates, we take em when ever we can get em. LOVE making snow flakes, I forgot to this year, I wanted to put them all over the windows, good idea.

Peg, we're making ornaments already, have been for about 2 weeks here and there. Carmen makes these way cool ornaments you might enjoy...you take a TON of cinnamon, and mix it into applesauce so it's super thick and can be rolled with a rolling pin into about 1/2" thick...then cut with cookie cutter and use drinking straw to make a hole. It takes days to dry...maybe only hours out by you...but then it's a cinnamon smelling ornament - I hang it from my rear view mirror in my car and it smells great for months. Your idea about a pet photo album is something I've wanted to do forever, what a great idea. Vince might even like it as long as I get all the photos organized first (which in my case, might literally take me till next Xmas). Would sure be nice to at least start one with the pets we have now. Also, check your pm, I sent something a couple of days ago.

[MomOTwins]

What about a band with homemade instruments? I know you've got plastic containers around that could hold dried rice or beans (or pet chow) for maracas, some containers that could become drums, even something that might be a bell or gong-like thing. You could record everything and entertain yourselves listening later or send the music to relatives or friends. This would give the kiddos a chance to use their creative skills to write the lyrics to the songs they create, too.

Somehow I'm envisioning serenades to lizards and earthworms being sent from your house all over the world! Wonder if BrainTalk takes music clips? :D

Kim

[NTLegend]

What's going on around here? Well, everyone's worried about the economy, everyone's elated about Obama, and the grown-up 'kids' are all so busy they're mostly unavailable. Snow recently, and colder than usual. So . . . same old, same old.

Things that kids can do? How about make their own mini-pizzas? Get a 'tube' of biscuits from the refrigerator case at the grocery store.

On the kitchen table or counter at home, kids push, smoosh, smash, stretch each separate piece of biscuit dough into the thinnest, biggest piece they can.

Then pour on some tomato sauce out of a can, sprinkle on a little oregano.

Grate some cheese, and put on toppings, whatever they like. Sausage pieces? Slice pepperoni? Ham? Mushrooms? You get the idea . . .

Then bake in a really hot over till done. Kids usually love it.

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Puppet theater?

Take an old sheet and hang it across a doorway on a shower curtain rod. Cut a hole, for the 'stage'. Kids make puppets from old socks -- or old gloves, or whatever. Buttons for eyes, can be glued on or sewn on. Magic marker? Fabric paint?

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If you can get some glow-in-the-dark paint, you can do a "shadow wall." Instructions below are from a website . . .


SHADOW WALL

A shadow wall (aka "silhouette wall" or "glow wall") is an inexpensive way to entertain a lot of kids for a long time. It is a wall covered completely in our Economy Green Glow-in-the-dark Paint. On the opposite wall is a “charging” light.

You ask the kids to strike a pose in front of the wall. While they are posing, you "flash" the light – just for an instant -- and a good strong black silhouette of each child is left on the wall.

After a few minutes, the wall's glow returns to black and you can do it again with a different pose. Kids will always want to "do it again" to try out different techniques. They will soon also figure out that they can make hand shapes.

Glow walls can be made permanent or temporary; some can be folded up and stored. Components can be made out of a variety of materials you may already have. Costs in almost any case should be low. It also uses the most inexpensive type of glow paint.

Construction:
WALLS: Walls can be made out of a variety of materials. Recently, a product used by sign companies called Coroplast is becoming popular. It is a lightweight material that comes in 4 x 8 sheets made from plastic. It is similar to corrugated cardboard (box material). It has a smooth, easy-to-paint surface. It also comes in a variety of colors. It also comes in a fireproof version. You can buy a sheet for about $15 at a local sign shop. On the other hand, almost anything will work.

For a permanent wall, use drywall, plywood, or medium density fiberboard (MDF). Smooth surfaces work best, so rough-surfaced wood may deteriorate the effect. This can be solved with sanding, but that is a lot of work.

For a temporary wall, use canvas tarps, plastic tarps, or 6 mil black plastic which is commonly sold for paint protection (as a “tarp”) or for gardening.

PAINT: If you use Coroplast for the wall itself, you can skip the first step. If you do not use Coroplast, make sure that you let the paint fully dry (as per the instructions on your paint can) between each of the following steps.

Paint the surface with a sealing primer and let it dry. (If you paint a coat of Krylon Spray paint and let it dry. For our projects, we use black gloss -- but the color and sheen are not critical, so feel free to try different colors. Continue adding coats until you get a smooth consistent colored surface.

Next, simply paint on several layers of Economy Green Glow-in-the-dark Paint. Our higher-end Ultra products will stay bright too long and therefore are not suggested. Store-bought paint will not be bright enough and therefore is not suggested. We suggest that you continue adding layers until you have used a whole quart.

Light Source

Option 1: Disposable Camera with Flash. You can get dozens of free used disposable cameras from local film-
developing stores. They are a quick and easy light source for a shadow wall. Some customers have even modified these cameras to be on an automated timer. Warning: Inside these cameras is a large capacitor; a capacitor stores energy, like a battery. But unlike a battery, they can release all their energy in a millisecond; therefore they can be very dangerous if touched. Remember, they store energy and therefore can and most likely will be charged even when the battery is removed. Unless you are a skilled engineer, we do suggest that you not open the camera body for modification.

There can be a pleasant surprise (for the kids) if you use a disposable camera. You can tell them that you want to take their picture. The sudden silhouettes which emerge would then be a surprise. Also, you probably want to tell the kids to close their eyes during the flash -- so they can enjoy the wall without being blinded first.

Option 2: Black Light. A powerful black light, turned on for a second, is a great source. Unlike white light, it will not dilate the pupils of the eyes. Its ultraviolet light will really charge the glow. Such lights can be purchased very inexpensively at Walmart. We suggest that you use the fluorescent-tube type, not a "screw-in" bulb. A typical 6-outlet power strip with an on/off button makes a good switch.

Main lighting in room: Since the glow powder is charged with light, you want very dim lighting in the room. You want just enough light to allow the children and the operator to move around safely. For advanced walls, very dim lights can be mounted above and slightly behind the wall. The angle of light never directly impacts the wall, so the the glow is not affected. For a permanent setup, we suggest that everything in the room be painted flat black except for the glow wall itself.

Notes:
On a 4' x 8' wall, you will need the following paint:
1 Can of Primer (although this is not needed if you use Coroplast)
2 Cans of Base Color (likewise, not needed if you use Coroplast)
1 Quart of Economy Green Glow-in-the-dark Paint.

[milivica]

Since transforming into Susie f-ing homemaker, the kids and I make pizzas including making the dough. They have to kneed their own, takes time which I like cause while they're busy, they're not giving me more to do! Everything around here is from scratch...wonder if my Paxil dose is too high, lol.

I LOVE the shadow wall idea, wow, never knew that could be done at home. That was the favorite activity at that childrens museum you linked me to above. I wouldn't use that Coroplast though, way way too expensive compared to say hardboard...that stuff is wonderful for making DIY guinea pig enclosures though.

Kim...since the kids have seen their school band perform, that's a good idea to try! I have several instruments here, keyboard, guitar, and a drawer full of kid stuff like maracas and harmonicas and a couple of plastic slide flutes, stuff like that. When they were little, I used to do a marching band with them, we'd march all over the house making music together...I forgot all about that. Once in a while we still play music together along with songs we like, not that we actually play the song, we just play whatever as the song plays and sing along too.

[The Pogue]

Spend some time volunteering at an animal shelter! Kitties and dogs can't get loved enough! Go to the thrift stores and gather up a supply of old sheets, blankets, and towels to donate. They go through tons of that stuff for bedding, cleaning rags, etc.

You can also help me move the kids into their new home!

[milivica]

Ironic you say that, I got lots of cheap felt, we WILL be making toys for animals at our shelter. They have 'critter cuddlers' at our local Humane Society that they let kids do, but honestly, I dunno if I could say "No" every time they fell in love with a new critter, scary thought!