Looking for ways to spread love and enjoy your local wildlife? Try making these Rainbow Heart Bird Feeders. They’re a great way to have fun with your child and show them the importance of the world around us.
Plus, they turn out really cute AND it doubles as a snack time for your little. A total win-win for every being involved!
This easy DIY Rainbow Heart Bird Feeders only need three items to make create. Here’s what they are:
Pipe Cleaners
Fruit Loops or Cheerios
Yarn
To begin making these, there’s just a simple prep that won’t take too much time at all. All you need to do is pour some fruit loops in a little bowl. Then, twist the pipe cleaners into v’s. Once you do this, your child will be ready to start threading.
Mila and I had talked about making bird feeders before we started this activity. So, she knew what she was supposed to do. We also have threaded with pipe cleaners before too.
If your toddler has never threaded with looped cereal before, I would suggest showing them, thread together, and then they’ll be able to pick it up by themselves. It’s such a good skill for them to have and tremendously helps with their fine motor development; which is beneficial for so many reasons.
Once they have threading down, you can challenge them to do different patterns too.
For Mila, I lined up the Fruit Loops in the order I wanted her to thread. We just did a simple rainbow patter for one of the hearts. This challenged her to find specific colors and to keep the pattern.
When the pipe cleaners are filled with cereal (or your child has snacked on the rest of it), all you need to do is twist the ends of the pipe cleaner together. Then, pinch where the two heart bumps would be at the top. I had to move the cereal around so I could do this and form it into the shape it needed.
After, we just tied yarn to the tops of the heart. We headed outside to find the most perfect tree that our birds fly too.
Mila was very proud to see her Rainbow Heart Bird Feeders on the tree. Then she played out in the snow afterwards too. We love connecting with nature and being outside as much as we can. Thank goodness spring will be here soon!
This bird feeder was a fun way to play and help the animals we love so much. We hope that you’d love to make one too for Valentine’s Day or spring.
Have you ever fed birds before? What’s your favorite way to do so? Let me know in the comments.
If you’re looking for a fun way to add interest to your front door and celebrate Valentine’s Day, try making this DIY Valentine Ribbon Wreath.
It’s a cute way to be festive AND thin out your craft supplies too.
Real talk. I’m the type of person who saves everything just in case I can use it in the future. Most of this ribbon comes from a project I did in Mila’s room… while I was pregnant.
Now I’m happy I saved it for this quick DIY, but it’s a little embarrassing I kept it for that long, oops.
Anyways, here’s what I used for this DIY Valentine Ribbon Wreath:
Cardboard
Scrap Ribbons
Scrap Fluffy Yarn
The first thing I did was cut out a heart for the frame out of cardboard. I actually cut out a big one then cut a smaller one from it to just get the outline. This can be a little tricky with cardboard, but I promise it can be done!
After the heart frame was ready, I got my scrap ribbons out. Like I said before, they’re from Mila’s nursery, so a ton of pinks. What’s fun about this DIY is you can use any color ribbon or yarn to fit your style.
To secure on the heart, I double knotted the ribbon. Then if the ends were too long, I trimmed it up.
I actually use quite a lot of ribbon. Just keep adding until it’s almost full.
Then, I added my fluffy yarn in pink and cream to the heart. This gave it so much more dimension and interest. When I just had the ribbon on it, it was boring, so I totally would recommend adding something like yarn or anything soft.
When everything on there, you can fluff the ribbon and yarn to make it look fuller.
To make it be able to hang, I attached a run on on both side of the heart bumps (no idea what else to call this). Then, I tied a bow at the top to hang it from my wreath holder. This way it wasn’t hanging at an angle and you can clearly tell it’s a heart.
Now you have a beautiful DIY Valentine Ribbon Wreath and was able to use that extra craft supplies you have laying around.
A total win-win for Love Day.
Have you ever used cardboard to make a wreath? What are some other items you use?
It’s Mila from three years ago. She wasn’t even a year old yet and she had already mastered the orneriest smile. At the same time, she could look right in your eyes and it felt like she could read all of your thoughts. There was so much going on in her head at such a young age — and if you are around her now, you’d still agree to that.
Honestly, it’s been a while since I’ve done one of these blogs. Something that I need to talk about, but pushing it in the back of my head. I keep working on different things, but anytime I go to write anything else, this wants to get out first.
I have a hard time looking at my memories from early 2019. Even when it’s this beautiful little face smiling on my screen, I get a knot in my stomach.
Seriously, there were two before this that almost made me throw up.
During this time, I was fighting so many mental battles after all the nasty things he (her whatever you want to call him) had said about me and her. I was in such a cloud of anger and heartbreak, I know I missed so many small moments during this time of Mila’s life. Even though I was there every single day, the mental take over that was going on clouded what was going on right in front of me.
I’ll never forget when he asked why I sent a picture to him because, “she means nothing to me.” This wasn’t a normal response, it was to hurt me. Now, it hurts to see those pictures and think someone could ever say that about a child, my child. After that, I stopped sharing her with him.
Instead, I shared her with all of you.
I’m unsure if I needed the validation of someone else seeing her the way I did or what was going on there. She deserves to be shared. I know she’s always been important and just… Mila. She’s always loved her picture taken and asks me to do it now. Some part of me wonders if it was rooted during this time in our lives though.
Still… these memories are hard for me. My brain still blocks a lot of this time out. A mix of postpartum depression, grief from Jensen, and heartbreak tugs at my heart in all of them.
The hardest part is knowing I should have been a better mom at this time. I had to take care of myself and she deserved a happy mom. Like in other moments of my life, I wish I could go back and just take over for me. I would go back and birth Jensen for that Danielle and I would go back and take over for 2019 Danielle too.
I just see those pictures and wish I would have soaked them up more. Instead, I knew I had to snap those pictures, even if they brought up bad memories. I had to be able to look back at her toothy smile, those waves hello, and the chunky leg rolls. Believe me, I’m so happy I did and that Facebook has me see them every year.
One day I’ll be able to look back at all those moments and not be clouded by the hurt I felt while taking them. Every day I’m healing through so much trauma I face in such a short time. It takes time. One day I won’t skip over them or remember those hurtful words.
Today I get to say thank you for everyone that let me share her with them. You don’t know how much that helped save me. I am so thankful that Mila is surrounded by love and support from so many people. When she gets older, she’ll know her impact in our little space. Hopefully she decides to keep spreading the love that shines every time she smiles.
I also get to make a promise to myself. I promise to keep healing and to give myself grace. If I would have known better, I would have done better. Every day I try to keep bettering myself and realizing that smile isn’t so toothy, those waves are getting shorter, and the chunky legs aren’t so chunky anymore. Even when being a mom is hard, I try to remember that I’m still learning and growing just like Mila. Instead of taking in all the negative emotions and feelings, I promise to have a positive outlook on our life and always look back at this time as magical.
Deep down, I know I’ll be able to look back at those pictures and remember all the good emotions and things first. Because even though I had to take care of me, I’ve always been a good mom.
To every mom going through a trying or difficult time, you will make it through this. I promise you just have to keep holding on. There are so many people rooting for you.
Is there anything more nostalgic than a school Valentine’s Day Party? The rush of having a cute card box and picking out the perfect Valentine’s Day card for your friends. They’re little reminders to show your friends that they are loved.
Since this is Mila’s first year at school for the big event, we decided to make a DIY Valentine’s Day Cards.
It’s been so much fun creating for Valentine’s Day. If we hadn’t had so many snow days, I’m unsure whether or not DIY cards would be in the picture, but I’m happy they are.
Mila and I talked about different Valentine’s Day cards and gifts. We decided we liked the phrase, “You Color My World.” Mostly because I pushed it really hard because I was already thinking about crayons
A lot of the elements in these Valentine’s Day cards should look familiar!
On the front of the cards, if you can remember to a few blog posts ago, Mila had already painted the tops of her cards. All I did was take the dry pages and cut them out into small rectangles. Then, I wrote “You Color My World” with glitter markers over it.
For the back, I cut the same size rectangle with white card stock and taped them together. If the back of the painted paper wasn’t messy, I would have skipped this step.
Next, I wrote “to” and the name of Mila’s classmate. Then, I had Mila write her name under the “from.” I think it’s important she keeps writing her name and actively participates in helping with these DIYs.
On the back of the card, I made space either on the side of their names or above for a little gift. Since we were doing “You Color My World,” we had to make personalized crayons.
I only have heart eyes for Mila… and her Valentine’s Day LOVE Basket this year!
Happy February everyone. I can’t believe we’re already in the second month of 2022. It’s already flying by and I have a feeling February is going to go just as fast too. To celebrate this holiday and to just show Mila how much I appreciate her, I put together this little basket.
It’s always nice to share some of our purchases and these just scream Mila. She’s already opened this and has already started using them.
Love Baskets could either be opened on Valentine’s Day or I love doing it the night before February or on February first. Either way, I know kids loving getting surprises and if you can swing a few Valentine’s Day items like pajamas, candy, or a little toy, they’ll be thrilled to open it up.
Clothes
If you haven’t noticed, Mila likes to dress up… a lot. We have a ton of clothes at our house, but a girl needs options, right?! It’s so much fun to buy themed items. Although it seems like themed items can only be wore during one time of year, I try to buy items that can be worn whenever.
Valentine’s Day definitely makes this easy for Mila. She LOVES hearts and all things pink. So, these three little items will be worn over and over again.
The “fries before guys” shirt is from Adelynn Mae. Mila reps for them and we’re always buying goodies from their website. We also got another Valentine’s Day tee (I’m a sucker for you) that I posted on social media last week. She’s obsessed with both of them and will be wearing these to her school’s Valentine’s Day party! I cannot wait to see her all done up in both of these outfits.
Another Adelynn Mae plug… she has St. Patrick’s Day shirts for sale and they’re ADORABLE. If you’re looking for whatever holiday shirt, go to their website and make sure to use MILA10 for 10% off!
There are also the cutest heart nightgowns here too. I got them from Carter’s and they’re the sweetest little nightgowns. Anytime we can find nightgowns, I buy them. Mila prefers them over anything, besides her fuzzy onesies on cold nights! Anyways, these are adorable and I know they’ll definitely be in the pajama rotation for quite a while.
Here’s some other cute Valentine’s Day pajamas on Amazon that you can get in time for the big day:
Right now, Mila just wants to make makeup videos when we’re home. I swear she’s going to be turn into a mini-influencer and I’m all for it. She has been telling me she wants different make up and I just had to surprise her with new lip gloss, eye shadow, a Minnie Mouse makeup headband, and a new Minnie and Mickey hairbrush.
Honestly, I bought all of this off the clearance shelf at Marshalls. They had a ton of goodies. When I want to buy makeup for Mila, I make sure it’s real and for a good price. I don’ think I spent more than $5 on any product here.
Why don’t I give her ‘fake’ or ‘kids’ makeup? Well, it’s not tested or as safe as real makeup. There’s a lot less chemicals and she know that there’s a difference between the two too. I want her to feel like she’s appreciated and supported as well as being safe when getting all those Tik Tok fans when she’s allowed to have it (way in the future).
She also received the CUTEST bracelets from our favorite Etsy shop: Sloane and Daisy. We have purchased so many of their bracelets and necklaces and are obsessed. Of course we had to have one in our LOVE Basket.
Mila also reps for Sloane and Daisy and you can use GREYSKIES15 to get your little (or you) a bracelet of your dreams.
Social Media Kit
To further feed her love for social media, I surprised her with this video recording kit!
It comes with different lights to get the perfect video. We didn’t put the tape lights up, but she’s in love with her ring light. Then thinks it’s so cool when I put the mini one on my phone to record her that way too.
I think I’ll end up giving her an old phone without anything but the camera to record herself. She truly enjoys it and it’s harmless. I guess it’ll give her the skills to use technology too.
We’re always looking for learning experiences.
Mila loved everything in her LOVE Basket and I was so happy to give them to her. We’re excited to enter February and get this month under way!
Do you get your littles anything special for Valentine’s Day? Let me know in the comments.
Looking to warm up on a chilly week night? This Minestrone Soup takes a little love, but worth every bite.
Whoever you’re making this delicious meal for, they’ll be sure to love it: especially you!
My favorite soup ay Olive Garden is their minestrone soup. It’s filled with fresh veggies and the broth is always spot on. I knew I had to try to make it at home.
Since I was recently gifted beef broth from Kettle and Fire, it felt like my sign to go get the other ingredients too. Kettle and Fire‘s broth was so easy to work with, tasted amazing, and has all whole food ingredients without any artificial flavors, hormones, or additives. All things I feel 100% happy with giving Mila.
Again, I took a TON of videos and not a lot of pictures. Thankfully the pictures I did get make it look as yummy as it tasted! You can see the video down below.
Here’s the other ingredients you’ll need for this Week Night Minestrone Soup:
First, chop up your vegetables and open the can to the tomatoes.
Then, heat olive oil in a pan and soften the onions and carrots (if you have celery, you’d add it here too). Once they’re translucent, add in garlic for a minute.
Next, add in the broth, a few cups of water, and the tomatoes. Bring this to a boil. Then turn down the heat. Let the broth simmer for an hour.
After the hour is up, add in the zucchini, beans, seasoning., and pasta to the pot. I also added two more cups of water too. The pasta soaks up all the juices and I like the broth!
Cook until the pasta is ready.
Once your noodles are all cooked, take the pot off the heat. Now it’s time to enjoy your soup.
I topped my soup off with parmesan cheese, just like they do at Olive Garden. You can always make bread sticks to enjoy with your soup as well.
We had salad to accompany our soup and it was a nice little meal. Since it’s been so cold, we love warming up with soup.
I know you’d love it too!
What’s your favorite week night recipe? Or let me know your favorite Sooo in the comments.
Pinks, hearts, and love all around. Valentine’s Day is the perfect holiday to craft and create. To start off the fun, we played around with Valentine’s Day Painting Activities that will be helpful for our crafts all February long.
Even if you’re not ‘crafty,’ you’ll love these easy painting ideas and your kids will have fun with it too.
I think it’s a little obvious that Mila (and I) love painting and being creative. Usually Mila’s go-to colors are pinks and purples, so it just makes Valentine’s Day prep a little more fun.
Since we’ve had a lot of snow days lately, we’ve been experimenting with different ideas of how to express ourselves. All of these listed are simple, BUT they can get really messy. I just like to state that beforehand. I highly suggest putting something down underneath your painting area and putting old clothes on your kids.
That way everything stays safe and clean.
We used four different types of painting styles and I’m going to save our favorite for last. Here’s all the supplies we used for the entire day:
Stock paper
Paint
Bubble wrap
Cotton Balls
Toilet paper rolls
Shaving cream
Kraft paper
Tray
Bubble Wrap Painting
One fun way to add texture in painting is to use different supplies. Mila and I used bubble wrap last year for a heart garland, so we wanted to redo it again. I actually loved the little dots it creates. It sort of reminds me of honeycombs.
This year, we used WAY too much paint and didn’t get the honeycomb effect. I love the way it did turn out though.We also popped the bubbles too, which was fun for Mila. It made the paint explode out, so beware of that. I think it just looks like a big swirl, but we had the most fun using this method.
With the extra paint, I put it on another piece of craft paper. We’ll use that for wrapping paper.
It’s also a great way to reuse bubble wrap instead of just throwing it away. Always looking for ways to reuse, reduce, and recycle.
Cotton Ball Painting
With toddlers and preschoolers, using anything but paint brushes makes painting way more fun. Cotton balls are a perfect stepping stone for them. Although Mila just used her hands, you can easily add them on clips to make it less messy and easier for kids to grab.
This one seems a little typical to add, but I want to share the reasons I love using cotton balls for painting.
The circle shape is so cute and stays consistent. Mila talked the entire time how she was making circles and was very proud of them. It also holds the paint really neat. It soaks it up and if you mix colors, it gives a cool ombre pattern. Usually I don’t let Mila mix her paint to avoid making brown, but you can do it with cotton balls. You can tell which colors she mixed together.
Even though this is simple, kids activities do not have to be extravagant to get a cute outcome filled with fun.
Toilet Paper Roll Stamp
I promise I won’t go on and on about reusing things around the house, but here’s another example of it. Most people have empty rolls so they’re accessible to use for Valentine’s Day crafts.
The best part, you can easily shape them into little hearts. All you have to do is push down in the middle to get the indent in the top of the heart and press the sides in. It’s super simple to do! I think they’re the cutest little hearts as well.
This was definitely Mila’s favorite painting. She’s obsessed with hearts and draws them constantly. Being able to paint them just made it a little sweeter.
One issue that we ran into is the heart not being even when you press down. If you don’t get them just right, you have to show your child how to get the stamp fully down. For us this time, we just had to rock it from the bottom point then tilt it to the top arches. I only had to show Mila one time how to get a complete heart and then she was all over it.
We’ll 100% be using this technique for a future craft. I’ll make sure to share and link back here just in case you’d like to keep up and see.
Shaving Cream Marbling Art
Out of all of these methods, this is the only one we’ve done for the first time. I’ve been eyeing this technique for a long time, but didn’t think Mila was ready for it. Now we have peaked in our painting. The outcome of this is my favorite, but it was the messiest of the bunch.
For this, all you have to do is put shaving cream in a tray. I used Mila’s sensory one. Then, Mila poured acrylic paint on top of the shaving cream and mixed it around with a paint brush. She might have swirled it a little too much, but the pattern was perfect no matter how she did it. After you have it the way you like, you push the paper in it. Make sure all of it is covered or you’ll have blank spaces. Peel it off the top and use a popsicle stick or old card to scrape off the remaining shaving cream on top. After, let it dry.
We ended up using the same pattern for three sheets of paper and could have easily done more! It was the quickest way to paint and is so unique.
I personally got a ton of shaving cream and paint on my hands through this. Mila saw how messy it was and dipped pretty quick. I would just suggest having wipes close to you or doing this technique by the sink.
Painting with these different styles was a lot of fun and gives us so many opportunities for future projects too. I can’t wait for you all to see what we’re making with these sheets too! Try to guess in the comments what you think we’re making.
Also, I want to say I know I’ve been a little quiet on the blog this month. I’ve been posting more on Instagram and Facebook the last few weeks, but it’s been nice to have a little writing break. We have a ton of fun recipes, activities, and crafts for the rest of this month and February to bring you though! One of them is about our trip to Florida and DISNEY! Let’s just say Mila keeps asking to go back.
For now, I’d love to hear what your favorite crafts and activities you do for Valentine’s Day are in the comments… and again, let me know what you think we’re doing with these sheets too.
Looking for other fun Valentine’s Day activities? Check these out:
Winter is here and for us, it’s time to stay inside when the temps are so low. To bring the magic of snow inside, we created these adorable Popsicle Stick Snowflakes
They’re easy for toddlers and preschoolers to create and make for an adorable craft as well.
If you’ve read any of my recent posts, you can tell I’m trying to get better at taking videos. They’re fun to make and post as reels too. It gives people who don’t have a lot of time to read a quick glimpse into the crafts and activities we do.
With that said, I forgot to take pictures while making this craft… oops. No fear though, I posted the video below.
Here’s what you’ll need to make these adorable glitter snowflakes.
Popsicle sticks
Paint
Glitter
Modge Podge )you can DIY this with glue and water)
Hot glue
For the first part of this craft, snowflake assembly is required. I would suggest an adult to do this. Personally, I used hot glue for this to be sure the snowflake will stick together. You could use other glue, but I’m unsure how it would hold up in the long run. If your child is comfortable using a hot glue gun, then they can go for it.
The actual snowflake uses four popsicle sticks. Just keep layering them so you can see the ends of the popsicle sticks. The video shows this really well.
After the glue is dried, your child can paint the snowflakes.
Mila chose the colors of her snowflakes. Of course she went for pink, light blue, and silver. She wishes that there were pink snowflakes. Wouldn’t that just be magical?
While they’re painting, I put a little tray underneath so nothing got on our countertop. These snowflakes get a little messy, so protect your area if you need! Mila couldn’t really hold and paint, so her brush kept going on the tray. Just a little heads up.
Now on to the best part: GLITTER!
Before the paint dries, sprinkle glitter over top of the snowflake. This way it gets stuck in the paint. If the paint dries beforehand, you can use modge podge to get it to stick too. I think it takes away an extra step just putting the glitter on the paint. You get similar results.
After the paint and the glitter is dry, use modge podge to seal in the paint and the glitter. If you don’t seal it, you’ll have glitter everywhere.
Once everything is dry, you have your beautiful, popsicle stick snowflakes!
They’re a lot of fun to do and easy to assemble. As you saw in the first picture, I attached them a shelf, but we want to make more to create a snowflake garland. You can potentially make and show these off in a variety of ways.
I also think they’d look cute as a car mirror decoration, but we’re definitely doing garland!
What ways would you show off these Popsicle Stick Snowflakes? Or let me know what snow or winter inspired crafts and activities you do during winter in the comments.
What’s more fun than reflecting on the last year? Going back to that year ten years down the road with a DIY NYE Time Capsule.
In my DIY Mini Cardboard Memory Book post, I shared that I was going to do something special with it. I’ve decided to make another new NYE tradition by doing a time capsule every year. We’re gong to fill it up with a lot of things that made the last year so special. Then, in ten years, we’ll open it up and walk down memory road.
Sometimes I can’t believe how fast time has went since Mila has been born. She is ALWAYS asking what she was like when she was a baby. I feel like she just was a baby and I blinked and there’s a little girl in front of me. Plus, this year has seemed like the fastest yet. She has grown so much and I want to treasure how little she is with what goes in our NYE time capsule. Hopefully she won’t be too embarrassed by her answers when she’s thirteen… let’s get real, she’ll be annoyed with everything then.
Almost everything was easy to put together and I found the worksheets online! Everything else is easy to make at home and it’ll bring up fun conversations amongst your family.
Here’s what we’ll be seeing on NYE 2031!
Year in Review Worksheets
I found the worksheets we used in our time capsule at @whimsicallywonderful on Instagram. Her printables are adorable (and free). I’m pretty sure I’ve shared them on the blog before. Anyways, I was planning on making our own sheets to write on, until I saw the ones I printed off.
Even though these sheets are girly, she also has ones with blues and greens in them. They’re so cute, just a different color scheme. You can find them at Whimsically Wonderful under the Whimsical Prints. It’s the last section on the page. Trust me, if you’re planning on doing a time capsule, these are such a great option!
I printed off:
My Magical Year
Top 5 Best Moments
My Feelings about 2021
There are more options on there too; like handprints and a letter to a future self.
Mila Drawings and Glitter Handprint
Mila loves to draw and always draws our family. Remember the person she drew and I got a tattoo of it earlier this year? So, I definitely asked her to do a drawing of all of us and labeled it too. I think this will be precious to see in ten years. Her drawing skills might be a little better then, but I think these will always be my favorite.
She also chose to do a glitter handprint. We made a little craft with her hand being the 0 in 2022. We traced it out, added glue, and then a bunch of glitter! It’s still drying after twelve hours, but I’ll make sure to update about it on one of my socials.
If it never dries, she also traced her hand on the back of the family drawing too!
A Letter from Mama to Mila
Letter writing is so therapeutic and if you’ve followed my story for a little while, you know I write a lot of them (you can search letters if you’re interested). I actually used to write letters to Jensen every day when I was pregnant with him up until Mila was born. So, it sort of makes sense that I would include a letter in here too.
Honestly, one of my biggest fears is something happening to me and her being without a mom. I want to make sure she knows how much she means to me and maybe I can throw some wisdom in there too. It sounds cheesy, but maybe it’s the last letter or words she would ever get to me. That thought alone makes it important to me to write about this year and how much her at three or in 2021 meant to me.
Again, we’re also going to be opening this up when she turns thirteen, I may need that extra support… I’m joking.
If you do do a time capsule, this would make a precious memory for your child.
Ribbon Height
On Mila’s papers, it asks to write her weight and height. Even though I can easily write that down, I want to be able to visually see it.
Although I’m not going to add bags of rice in her memory box, we collected her height in a ribbon. I just placed one end of the ribbon on her head and then cut it at her feet. Then, I made a little tag saying what the ribbon was for and connected it with a clip.
I love this idea because I can unravel it and actually see how tall she was.
Again, this is a super simple and easy idea you could do too! It wouldn’t even have to be a ribbon, yard or string work well too!
Pictures and Miscellaneous
Since we take thousands of pictures each year, we had to add a few in the time capsule.
The DIY Mini Cardboard Memory Book is snuggled tightly in there. I’m still obsessed with how it turned out. We’ll also be taking Instax pictures on NYE to add to the capsule as well. Maybe I’ll even let her take whatever pictures she wants. This way we can check out how her photography skills have changed too.
Some other items we’re adding are a New Years necklace, a craft, and maybe a toy or trinket. I haven’t totally nailed that last part down.
When we open it, I just want to be blasted back to 2021 and have this magical feeling.
As pretty as everything is out of the time capsule, it’s perfect inside too. We added a ‘Do NOT Open Until NYE 2031’ on the lid too. Just in case I need some motivation to wait!
Even though I bought a pretty jar for this time capsule, you can easily upcycle items you have around the house. I’m thinking mason jars, pringle cans, or even old tupperware containers you don’t know what to do with anymore. You could be as creative as you want to be and even make this a fun part of you time capsule too. For some reason, I’m thinking of a VHS or DVD case. It would have been so clever 30 and 20 years ago.
Anyways, I’m really happy to be starting this tradition with Mila and see how it evolve over the next few years. I hope you enjoyed it too and maybe want to start this with your family.
If you do this tradition or plan to, let me know what other things Mila and I should add.
With the year coming to an end, it’s a fun time to look back on our favorite memories. To keep and showcase them, we made a DIY Mini Cardboard Memory Book. Ours is perfectly pink and full of all the pictures we loved from the last twelve months.
The plus side, this easy craft is fun to make and you can personalize it however you’d like.
Here’s what you’ll need to capture your memories of the year:
Scrap Cardboard Pieces
Glue
Tape
Stickers
Pipe cleaners
Paint
Pictures
Scissors
Honestly, this took me a little while to make, but I’m glad I did it. A little hard work goes a long way!
First, I cut out seven, small cardboard squares to make the pages. You could easily make these bigger, I just want to use this book for another project I’m sharing this week. Then I made little holes on one side of them. I couldn’t find my hole puncher, but I made them with scissors.
After, I painted a little area on the squares pink and let them dry.
While it was drying, Mila and I picked out one picture from each month, besides two months… you’ll see why. Then, I just printed them on stock paper I had at my house. When they were all printed, I just cut the pictures out.
Once that was done, I pulled out MIla and I’s favorite stickers, some glitter markers, and got to work!
Like any type of scrapbooking or picture books, it just takes time. I had a lot of fun looking back at all our favorite memories from the year. With every page, I made sure to write the month out and add relevant stickers. I think they all captured the feeling and emotions of every month. Mila had fun helping me with the stickers as well.
On the back cover page, I had her write down her name with little hearts. Just so I always have her writing. She draws hearts on everything to show love. Just something I always want to remember.
Just to share our pages incase you need some inspo, here’s ours and why we chose them for the month.
January and February
In January, MIla did a fun glitter shoot and they’re one of my favorite pictures of her! She seriously looks magical. Then in February, we made one of my favorite DIYs: I love you frame. It’s one of the pictures from that day and always makes me smile.
March and April
Last March held Easter. I laughed so hard when Mila took off after getting one ‘good’ picture with the Easter Bunny. The running shot is hilarious and I had to add it. April is our big birthday month. Jensen’s is on the fifth and Mila’s the fourteenth. We picked a picture from the day she turned three.
May and June
One month that we look forward to every year is May. We get to go on vacation AND school is usually out too. That means summer! This picture is of her in Myrtle Beach in her yellow polka dot bikini. In June, we went to our local waterpark so many times. I had to capture one of those moments.
July and August
In July, Mila and her friends won the Fourth of July talent show in our town. It was a big moment for them (and us moms). I’ll never forget that day and will always tell Mila the story of what she did after… I’ll make sure to share one day on here. At the end of August, we got Toby! Mila chose this picture since she loves her puppies so much!
September and October
September was a huge change for the both of us. Mila started preschool and has been learning so many new things. Believe me, she tells me all about it. It was also the start of me posting a picture every day of Mila’s outfits. Since we’re obsessed with Halloween for all of October, Mila requested that I added all of this year’s costumes.
November and December
Of course we had to celebrate the holiday season with these last two pages. We still love her turkey headband from Thanksgiving and that Santa picture showcased how December felt all month long.
Back Cover Page
Like I said above, I had Mila add this page. I think it’s a sweet touch to wrap the entire year and how she’s growing up. Makes my heart smile.
I really feel like this will be a yearly tradition from now on. It’s such a cute and quick way to reflect on all the years. Plus, when you see my next NYE activity, you’ll think it’s even more perfect for the mini version. Stay tuned to see.
What are some ways you like to reflect on the year during New Years? Or do you have any NYE traditions you’d like to share? Let me know in the comments.
Grey Skies & Rainbow Highs 