Paint and Pixels

Family Fun Magazine

I'm going to do a little free advertising for Family Fun Magazine. OK? In my opinion, everybody should have a subscription to Family Fun Magazine. It's only like $10 a year, and every issue has the greatest ideas in it. This magazine makes me LOVE being a mom. BUT there is abosolutely NO parenting advice, or articles on how to keep your child from throwing temper tantrums, or potty training, or stuff like that. It is just strictly fun stuff to do with the kids (or without them!). A great deal of our craft projects are inspired by the magazine, but it also has stuff like science projects or other activities to do together.
Above Roxanne shows off the jellybean necklace we made yesterday, as suggested by the magazine. Below, she gracefully models her new jewelry. Then we made jellybean bracelets for all the kids in her class for her to hand out at the Valentine's Day party which was today. It was a fun project. This morning, when I went into her room to wake her up for school, I said "it's time to go to school Roxanne". Then her eyes popped open and she said, "I am SO excited about going to school today!" That doesn't seem like a big deal, but it caught me off guard, because I don't think she has ever voluntarily expressed something like that before. It totally warmed my heart up, so I smiled and kissed her on the cheek.
This is a wallet Rocket and I made on Monday, because he didn't have school, but Roxanne did. It is made out of an orange juice carton (the kind with a screw off spout). You have to unscrew the cap to open the wallet. He decorated it with markers and magazine clippings. Family Fun referred us to the site with a cutout template that you can trace onto an empty carton. Below, he is showing the back of it. He has been extremely ambition about doing chores and saving allowance ever since he got an Nintendo DS for Christmas (from my parents). I refuse to buy him noneducational games for it. So, he has to earn the brain eating games himself. Now he can save his money in an awesome wallet instead of a sock.

Family Fun magazine also gave us this idea. It is a notebook entitled "Family Questions". We fill it with paper, that each has a different random question on it. We get it out a dinner time somtimes and each family member answers a question. It is fun to look back at the older questions. I am reading it now and it's making me laugh. About a year ago, we asked the question, "what makes you angry?" and Rocket answered "Three things. 1. Spankings, 2. When I am about to get spanked, and 3. Right after I have gotten spanked and it still hurts". The next question was "what's your favorite vegetable? " Matt answered "tomatoes"; I answered "avocados"; Rocket answered "pumpkin pie", and Roxanne answered "macceroni and cheese".

Rocket designed the cover of our "Family Questions" book.

If you do order the magazine and like it, during Mothers Day they run a special where you can order 4 or more magazine subscriptions for only $5 each. That's when you should order the magazine for every mom you love.