St. Patrick's Day Crafts!

My little sisters (ages 4 and 7) went to a friend’s birthday party last weekend and the highlight of the party was the cake! It was one of those rainbow cakes that had every color layered inside.

Photo

If you were super mom and had like a billion extra hours in your day with nothing to do, then I would suggest you make these cupcakes for your kids on St. Patrick’s Day. However, you probably have more important things to do than start an experiment in cake-making when you have your dog and toddler running around you asking for a snack.

So, let’s talk about crafts and snacks that your kids can actually help you with!

SNACK

To create a pot of Gold for your little leprechaun of a toddler, you can make Jello Jigglers out of lemon-flavored Jello (or any yellow colored jello). If you make them in the morning after breakfast, they will be set in time to be a side for lunch. Cutting the jello into squares that your child can pick up with their little hands will help them to develop their fine motor skills.

Here is an example of the wonderful, edible “gold” from Disney’s Family Fun website:

Photo

CRAFT

Because St. Patrick’s Day is on a Saturday this year, your kids will be home! 

Here are some ideas to keep them busy with minimal set up and supervision by you:

Potato Prints

Step 1: Take a potato and cut it in half.

Step 2: Draw or etch a shamrock shape into the potato.

Step 3: Cut out the edges of the potato so that the shamrock shape is left raised in the middle. You can also take the other half of the potato and only cut out the shamrock shape in the middle so the edges are left raised.

Step 4: Cover your table and your child with a table cloth or newspaper (for the table) and an old tee shirt or apron (for the child).

Step 5: show your child how to dip the potato stamp into the green (or whatever color you have) paint and press it on a piece of paper.

Step 6: Admire the beautiful creation of your little leprechaun.

WARNING: You might confuse your child for a real leprechaun when they have green paint all over their skin and smock.

Provo-area TIP: The weather will be relatively warm on Saturday, so feel free to heave your kids to this craft outside!

Photo

Photo

      

Craft Idea for older children:

Treasure Chests to hold their St. Paddy’s Day gold!: http://familyfun.go.com/st-patricks-day/st-patricks-day-crafts/magic-treasure-box-710371/

GAME

Coin Drop

Setup: Mark start and turn-back lines a good distance apart. Cut the lids from the egg cartons and place one for each team on the ground midway between the start and turn-back lines. Place 20 pennies (choose a larger item for younger children, such as small toys, ping-pong balls, pieces of candy, or toy money) in each bowl and put a bowl for each team on the turn-back line.

Playing the Game: The teams line up at the start line. At "Go," one player from each team races to the turn-back line, picks up one penny from her team's bowl, and runs to her team's egg carton. There, she gets one chance to drop the penny into one cup of the carton -- without lowering her arm below waist height. She then runs back to the start line and the next player goes. The game ends when a team has gotten at least one penny in each cup of its egg carton.

*You don’t have to play this with teams. You can just have your kids play against you, each other, or the neighborhood children.

Do you have family traditions for St. Patrick’s Day? 

Are any of your family activities passed down from distant Irish ancestors?