google+ hangouts – Page 4

Monster Craft Ideas to make from your Kids’ Art

Chaos writes:

What do you do with all of your children’s art, how can you preserve them as keepsakes?

My 10 yo is always drawing little mono monsters and aliens, so was delighted to be able to preserve his latest creation…. In the form of a 3D towelling monster alien!

We took the drawing, folded it in half, traced over it, onto a large piece of broadsheet newspaper.

Cutting around the shape, we then pinned our newspaper template onto the doubled-over towel, and cut and sewed around the edges. Leaving a corner un-stitched for stuffing the Towel Monster.

We turned the monster, inside out, and used ripped up shreds of plastic carrier bags we had in the cupboard (saving them from landfill!) – He is safely the favourite ‘plush toy’ at bedtime now, and has been on a round trip of the UK to visit various grandparents already! Don’t forget your toothbrush!

click image above to view the kidschaos.com hangout hosted by redtedart.com

AND then we had a google hangout hosted by Maggy at RedTedArt who talked about ideas for making Easter decorations to hang from her Easter Tree (as featured in her new book!).

We were also joined by Anthea Barton Zing Zing Tree with her Glass Paint jars, Adele Crozier’s Playful Learners Artwork Bunting, Missie Lizzie’s Bubblewrap keepsake (wow!), Aly Hodge at PLUS 2.4.I who embroidered her children’s drawings, Anna Ranson from The Imagination Tree’ Eric Carle Initial Art, The Fairy and the Frog’s Father’s Day Card, Stephanie Stanesby, and Helen Newberry.

Ali at writes at aGreenerLifeforus.com

cooking, crafts, create, google+ hangouts, key stage 2, kids, monster

Bottle Lid Monster

Chaos writes:

8yo wanted to personalise his book bag so that he can spot it, at a glance, amongst all of the identical school book bags, piled high on the playground floor. So we made the most of the oven being warm from a baked potato supper, and positioned some plastic bottle lids on some foil on a baking tray.

Five minutes later, and as the ‘monster’ started to melt, we added some Hama (or Perler) Beads for a bit of colour, and they melted in beautifully. Bringing it out of the oven to cool (warning, it does get super-hot) we positioned the googly eyes (don’t do that too quickly as the eyes will start to melt too!) I pierced a hole with some scissors, and we added a key ring and out Bottle Lid Monster is complete and ready to adorn said book bag with pride!
We also thoroughly enjoyed a Google + hangout with this one too, featuring Maggy’s redtedart‘s bottle lid stamps, and ladybugs. Adele from Playful Learners bottle top Easter art, Anthea at Zingzingtree‘s bottle top flowers and people. Also Cerys’s beautiful bottle top owl, and a first – our anonymous blogger with Spanish Marbles, plus Kath’s KnittyMummy’s beer bottle photo badges.

For more Monster ideas, click here and for other bottle lid ideas click here. And for a fab Despicable Me Perler Bead classic click here.

Oh, and I’m on twitter.com/MoreKidsChaos too… Erm, and funnily enough on Google+, Facebook and Pinterest! Pop over to say hello x Like it? Pin it!
Ali also writes over on AGreenerLifeforus.com

cooking, food, google+ hangouts, kids, life

Pizza the action

Chaos writes:

I seem to spend my whole time impressing other people’s children with my culinary skills…. little do they know! Tonight’s a case in point, 10yo has a playdate. Playdate says: “mmm, delicious pizza, is this HOME-MADE?!”

“Yes” I answer, “of course it is!”
“Wow, it’s the most delicious pizza I have ever had. My mummy is so lazy, she BUYS ours”. (apologies to all mums and dads who BUY their pizzas, seriously, I do that too….)

So, this is basically the easiest thing, bung all of the ingredients (300g flour, a tsp of dried yeast, tbsp sugar, 30g butter, 2tbsp milk powder, 1 tsp salt, 420ml water) into the breadmaker at 3pm, go on the school run, come back from school run, break the pizza dough into six pieces, shape into balls.

Make three pizza (I have proper pizza bases, nice and thin and crispy) couple of spoons of pasta sauce, rip up mozzarella ball, grated cheese, couple of olives if you’ve got them….

Freeze the extra three dough shapes, and use them in about a fortnight! (kids get bored of having pizza TOO often believe it or not…)

job done. Nigella, beat that. 🙂

2014 UPDATE for this recipe…. temporary glitch with the breadmaker (it started spewing out black smoke!) so we’ve been experimenting with using flatbreads and wraps as makeshift pizza bases – and these are SUCH a winner – spoon a couple of tomato pasta sauce, mozzarella, a few slices of mushrooms and some grated cheese, and pop in a hot oven for about seven minutes – sprinkle over a handful of rocket, and TOTAL WIN!

I joined Britmums to talk about vegetarian meals, both simple and fancy – click to watch the google+ hangout above.

Ali also blogs over on aGreenerLifeforus.com and is a new lover of Instagram too… pop over and say hello!

This post is part of the #FaveFamilyRecipes Competition with BritMums and Tilda Rice. Every pack sold will provide a meal to an expectant mum in need in support of the World Food Programme’s Mothers Helping Mothers initiative in Bangladesh