The Art Box – June 21, 2010

 

More great picks from M last week for his art box – he chose part of an egg carton, a box of collage thingies, feathers, electrical tape, a small paint roller, dot stickers… and a lot of other things I can’t recall.  He’s an art maniac.  I’m sure this phase will pass though, so I’m trying to enjoy it!

 

Here’s a taste of what he made…

 

Remember how I couldn’t get him to do many bug crafts a couple of weeks ago?  Well one was a caterpillar from an egg carton.  He was not. interested.  No way.  But of course when it’s his idea, he’s all over it.  He thoroughly enjoyed making this caterpillar.  If you can call it a caterpillar, because, you know it has feathers and two faces.  But ok, it’s a caterpillar.

Front face:

back face:

 

He also had a fun time making tape resist paintings with the electrical tape.  I did this one time with him as a structured art project, and he’s never forgotten it. 

   

 

Thanks you for all the encouraging comments last week.  I was honestly expecting to hear that no one is interested, and your comments really meant a lot to me.   I’m feeling very blessed by all my online friendships.  Thanks, everyone, I appreciate you so much!

If you have a post you’d like to link up, look below!

Have a beautiful day! :)

Construction Toys – Review and Giveaway!

The great people at CSN Stores sent me the following 3 construction toys to review.  Their shipping was super fast and I’ve had no problem with their customer service.  One other product is on back order and they’ve been keeping me up to date on a regular basis, which is so much nicer than having to call or email them!

First off, something I’ve wanted to get M  for a long time – a set of magnetic construction pieces.  There are several to choose from, but I opted for this one because the pieces stick together well and there’s enough in this small set to keep a him happy and interested for a long time.  There are very small pieces, so this is definitely not a toy for someone still in the “put everything in my mouth” stage.  There are a lot of other sets made by Magz that we’ll be adding to this one as we go through birthdays and Christmases… it’s great to have sets like this that can grow along with your child and hold their interest as they get older.  M is fascinated with magnets, and this is a fun way to let him explore the many things magnets can do!

 

We also received two other construction sets – a box of Duplo blocks, and a Kid K’nex Railroad Pals set.  We already have many small Duplo sets to go with this 33 piece one, and M LOVES playing with these.  They are the perfect size for his hands and while they work those fine motor muscles, they aren’t so tiny that he finds it frustrating.  And Kid K’nex – well, what can I say?  We all love them.  We bought a set of Kid K’nex Buddies for M for Easter and we all had a blast putting them together and making all kinds of interesting creations.  And the great thing about this new set (Railroad Pals)?  It is compatible with Duplo!  Some of the pieces for the trains are similar to Duplo blocks and sure enough, they fit together.  So now we have a fantastic collection of various building materials to use in just these two sets! 

Now, for the giveaway part. :)  I am going to send one winner a set of 56 Magz, just like ours pictured above.  These are for ages 5 and up, but I feel comfortable letting my soon-to-be 4 year old play with them under supervision.  The contest is open to U.S. addresses only. (I know.  Sorry!) 

To enter, leave a comment below letting me know your favorite construction toy.  For an extra entry follow me (or let me know you are a follower/subscriber), and leave a comment letting me know.  For another extra entry, blog about this giveaway, then leave me a comment with the post url.

I’ll be picking a random winner on June 23rd!  Make sure to leave me an email address so I can reach you!

Have a beautiful day! :)