A Keepsake Craft for Kids

Hey friends! If you’ve noticed that I’ve been a little absent lately, you’re right…I have been! I’ve decided to go back to work in order to help us get out of debt fast and start saving up! It’s just what we gotta do and the only way I would EVER go back to work is in the evenings, so I’m at home with my babies during the day and my hubby is with them in the evenings/night while I’m at work.

It’s only been my first week and so far so good. It’s interesting and keeps me on my toes. I am working for a survey agency (can’t go into too many specifics) and I have only one request from my readers…if people call you and ask you to do a survey, please be nice and do it. We’re not trying to sell you something, we just want your opinions. It’s not nice to be mean to people. You could be affecting somebodies livelihood. I work with a lot of different types of people. Yes some are teenage kids. But you know what? Some are 70 year old men who have had to go back to work because of this junk economy and the hand that life has dealt them. I can’t tell you how many times rude people have said, “Go out and get a real job.” And you know what?! It is a job. At least they’re not sitting at home wondering how to get more free stuff on other peoples dime. (Not everybody who receives help does this). I’m just saying at least they’re out there trying. You don’t know the person on the other line asking (sometimes begging) for a moment of time. They could be a neighbor, best friend, or sadly somebodies grandfather having to go back to work to pay the medical bills.  So please play nice.

Although, I gotta admit, I love my readers and know that none of you would ever do something that harsh right?! I guess that was more of a vent session hoping that those meanies who do that junk will somehow stumble across my blog (not likely) and be inspired to knock it off.

Ok rant session over. I wanted to share with you guys a craft tutorial I did for mom it forward.

I love it, and I love even more that my baby boy loves it! He is so proud of his craft!

For this craft, I wanted it to be something special that I would treasure and that my little one would be proud of!
I decided it would be fun to make a Tree Base out of my kids’ hands and feet so we could use it all year round for different seasons and also, it may even be fun to turn into a family tree!

Here is what the finished tree looks like:
My little guy was SO proud to tell me all about it! I’m thrilled to have captured how small their little hands and feet were before they grow up!

To make your own you will need the following supplies:
-A Blank Canvas
-Brown Paint
-Green Paint
-Paint Brush or Sponge Brush
-Pencil
-Cute kids for their hands and feet
-Possibly a helper if you have really little ones

1. Take a pencil and draw a tree base onto your canvas. I would draw lightly…if you make a mistake where you’ll be painting over it’s no big deal, but if you make a mistake on the canvas, it’s not as forgiving as I would have hoped it would be.

2. After your base/trunk is completely drawn paint the trunk brown. I used short strokes. I really liked the effect it gave and it was easier to control the brush that way also.

3. Continue with your short strokes all the way up your tree. If it’s too light, you can do another coat of brown paint.

4. Let your tree trunk dry. After it’s completely dried it is ready for your little ones. I decided to start with my oldest first. I painted his hand completely green.

5. Then I pressed his hand onto the canvas and made sure he knew not to wiggle his fingers. We could go about two hand prints before we needed to repaint his hand for more paint.

6. We alternated using both hands to make sure the tree looked even. Here is how the top of your tree should look:

7. Then it was my baby girls turn. I went ahead and just painted both of her feet to get started. This was definitely a two person job. My hubby held her and also made sure the foot we weren’t using at the time was clear of the canvas.

8. I alternated each foot every time. I reapplied paint as needed. This is what your finished tree will look like:

It was truly so much fun! I love it and so does my little one! For fall we are going to cut out leaves and write what we’re thankful for and stick them on there!