Conference moira::parenting

    
    
    I just bought a book called "365 TV-Free Activities".  It looks
    interesting.  There's another book out by a similar title that was
    more "in-depth" about the activities but I don't know the title and I 
    didn't see it this time out.
    
    We/our daycare does fun things with the kids.
    
    Tie-dying is fun (my son's daycare sometimes gets brave and the two
    year old room does it occasionally).  Making playdough, making
    catapillars out of old egg cartons, making collages from old magazines
    (for instance they'll cut out picture of animals or trees, etc.
    depending on their interests at that point).  Making wind-socks out of
    manila folders and crepe paper (cut folder in a large strip about 5 "
    wide and about 15" long.  Tape into a circle and attach strips of crepe
    paper to dangle in the wind).  Make mobiles.  
    
    It's more fun to use household items (parents can donate these items)
    because it's cost effective and it also allows the child's imagination
    to take over.
    
    NF  
    
    

    Here, here for "365 TV-Free Activities", the cost is about $7 and it is
    one of the greatest resources with games and crafts and things to do
    that I have ever seen. Definitely a keeper for our house! (we kept it
    in the bathroom for the longest time, seems like the only place we can
    get any reading done these days).

    			Wendy

    
    I fixed up what I call a goody box for Brad.  I have costruction paper,
    glue stick, glitter, fingerpaint, watercolors, markers, coloring books
    etc.  Brad loves to do fingerpaint.  All of the paints and markers are
    washable and non-toxic.
    
    They have done a lot of things in Brad's 2 year old class.  On rainy
    days they paste together suns, they make hand prints out of a flour
    dough you bake.  Mainly with two year olds give them crayons and
    scraps or glitter to paste on.
    
    I have been looking into t-shirts for my next venture.
    
    Sasha

I have done this several times successfully with small children.  Mix up a
big bowl of gingerbread dough and give each child a large lump.  It can
be modelled exactly like playdough.  Have nuts, almonds, little candies, 
colored sugar, chocolate chips, etc. on hand and let them model the dough 
into whatever they like (much more fun for little ones than cutting it out).

When the children get a bit older, they can also decorate them with icing 
after they're baked.

And they're good to eat, too!

Juli's daycare/learning center does LOTS of arts/crafts.

In addition to the previously named things, they also:

	.  cut up brown paper bags, decorate them and wear them as
		costumes  (vests) - dinsaurs, indian, etc.  They also
		make the matching hat (out of newspaper or brown bag)

	.  cut out animal pictures and stick tiny multi-colored pieces
		of construction or crepe paper to it (eg. turtle,
		dinosaur, frog, etc.)

	.  cut a white paper plate in half and turn it into a mask
		(use the other halp for ears)

	.  draw an ear of corn (on construction paper) with green husks
		and glue unpoped popcorn to it

	.  make spider webs out of string/yarn - don't forget the
		spider (out of black construction paper)

	.  hand puppets (out of small brown lunch bags)

	.  BIG butterflies (construction paper or cardboard) - finger
		painted

	.  bunnies with cotton-ball tails and pink confetti bodies

	.  animals decorated with confetti or skiny-stringed colored paper
		(glued) -- teddy bears, chickens, peacocks, etc.

	.  dough (that hardens) made into necklace pendants (during the
		Valentine season, Juli made a heart shaped pendant with
		a "conversational" construction paper insert) -- real cute
		(we still have it -- and she still wears it!)

	.  colored macaroni made into a collage or construction paper picture

	.  colored pasta strung into a necklace  (picture macaroni or
		zita is particularly cute)

	.  draw a BIG flower on a piece of construction paper -- it's
		pedals are the child's handprints and its leaves are
		the child's footprints

	.  now's a good time to fill margarine containers with soil and
		fertilizer and have the kids "plant seeds", care for them,
		and watch them grow (green beans are quick and easy)


Cotton balls, macaroni, egg cartons, brown bags (big and small), styrofoam
plates and containers, scrap yarn and string, recyclable printer paper,
crepe streamers (even used and stretched out!), plastic containers (all sizes!),
pringles cans (with lids), a box of oatmeal, a jar of popcorn, newspapers,
"used" greeting and Christmas cards!. ... are but a few things that most 
daycare/learning centers just love to recycle via arts and crafts projects.

Other things we do are:

	.  make up a pan of jello and let the kids "cookie cutter" the jello
	.  make up cupcakes and let the kids frosting and decorate them
	.  make up some sugar cookie dough and let the kids roll and cook it

These are all safe things to do for young toddlers, too  (Juli is 2-1/2 and
has been doing these kinds of things since she was 17 months of age).

One Father's Day, the kids made a shirt and tie (out of construction paper) and
in the "pocket" was a polaroid picture of "his very own kid" -- really cute!

There's lots more ... I just can't think of them right now.

Dottie

    
    I don't know if this should be posted somewhere else...I did do a
    dir/title but didn't come up with anything.
    
    
    I am going to be going out on Maternity Leave May 7th for my second
    child - I was looking for was some ideas of crafty projects to
    do with my 3 year old before/after the baby is born.  I thought it
    might be a good idea to have some ideas and supplies ready for the days 
    she will be staying home (Tuesdays and Thursdays) so that we can spend some
    special time together (hopefully, while the baby is sleeping).  
    
    Some of the things I have already thought of...
    -  Planting flower/vegtable seeds and watching them grow (we have a
       greenhouse window).
    -  Making a wind sock out of paper streamers and colored paper then hanging
       it in her room in front of the open window - maybe even making one for 
       her new brother or sisters room.
    -  Maybe...trying to do needlepoint?  I thought maybe I could find some
       plastic canvas (with large holes) and real thin yarn - she likes to do 
       those sewing cards.  This way she could make up her own design.
    -  And then there is always the all time favorite of homemade
       playdough that we can bake and paint.
    
    Any other ideas - I am also going to X-post this in CRAFTS.
    
    
    	Thanks, Robin
    
    
    
    
    

    
    How about.....
    
    Buying a birdhouse kit that you could build and paint together?
    And then you can watch the birds together.....
    I've seen these in craft stores...
    
    I think the planting flowers idea is great.  I still remember doing
    that with my Mom when I was about four
    
    Good Luck!
    
    
    

    When I was home on maternity leave with my second, my older one always
    liked to join me in cooking something. His attention span was short, so
    we did simple things that we could eat right away as snacks. Cornbread
    was a favorite, and cookies of course.                               
    
    Lucy

    Hi:
    
    Can somebody post the recipe for Homemade Playdough.  My daughter would	
    love to do that. 
    
    Thanks
    Dawn

    
    	1 cup flour
    	1/2 cup salt
    	2 tablespoons oil
    
    	colored water  (food coloring in water)
    
    mix first three ingredients.  Add colored water slowly by tablespoon until
    mixture is like bread dough or the consistency that you want.
    
    (Red works well, you get a nice pink playdough.  I attempted purple and
    it looked horrible)
    
    I got this recipe from a birthday book.  This was called the no-bake
    playdough.

Unfortunately with all the snow we couldn't plant any flowers :-)
but we did do some of the following:

1.  Oobleck - equal parts water and corn starch, makes this really
    weird substance that looks and acts like liquid, but feels
    like playdough.  Makes a powdery mess on the table though.
2.  Paper chains - Christopher loved them.
3.  Body tracing then he would color it in, or we'd turn it into
    one of his favorite characters, ie. Peter Pan or Captain Hook.
4.  We made an obstacle course in the living room, where he'd have
    to crawl under something, somersault, hop on 1 foot, etc.  Got
    the energy level acceptable too.
5.  Jello, Dirt Cups, etc.
6.  Painting, much easier with an easel but we used finger painting,
    watercolors, and tempra paints.
7.  Macaroni art.

All I can think of now, but there is a great book "365 TV Free
Activities" that we have that had a lot of great ideas as well.

- Marji.

    re .10
    
    If you really want to produce a bunch of different colors
    you might want to try using the powder food coloring.  I
    have a great purple (barney purple), bright orange, fuschia,
    peach, bright blue, sky blue, etc. that I use when I decorate
    cakes.  
    
    I haven't seen them in regular grocery stores, but you can 
    generally find them in places that sell cake and candy making
    stuff.  These colors are pretty strong, so just start off with 
    a touch.  It's easier to add a little more until you get the color 
    you want than to 'de-intensify' it because it's got too much!
    
    Conni
    
    

    
    Ditto on the previous notes.
    
    I also found a WONDERFUL book.  
    
    The Mother's Almanac (don't have the authors' names) It is a great
    sourcebook for ideas from 1-6.
    
    You might also invest in a subscription to HIGHLIGHTS magazine for
    kids.  It has a craft corner in each months' issue.  The crafts are
    very appropriate for my 3 yr old - with some assistance, of course.
    
    Jamd

    Slight tangent, but we subscribe to LADYBUG magazine and they often
    have games as well as craft ideas.
    

    My almost 8 year old paces every day until her Highlights
    arrives in the mail. She knows when it's a day or two late!
    As soon as she gets it, the craft page is spread out on the 
    kitchen table and away she goes. Sometimes we get up on a 
    Saturday morning and she's done 2-3 projects. She just
    couldn't live without her Highlights Magazine.
    
    Jodi-
    

    
    When I was a kid, we did a cucumber in a bottle project.  You plant
    cucumbers in the garden and when they start to grow, you put the small
    cucumber in a bottle.  The cucumber grows in the bottle and later in
    the season you pick it.  Of course, everyone want to know how it got
    in there!  
    
    Ok, it doesn't sound like much but it was great fun when I was a kid.
    
    - Cathy

NEAT!  I've got to try that....


a kid at heart
Michael

That's how they make that brandy with the pear in the bottle.

    Something my son and I did recently was make a "MATCH GAME" - we took
    the tops of frozen juice cans (I'd been saving these and had
    quite a few!) and stuck stickers on them.   We had 2 sets of identical
    stickers.   Then we spread them out on the floor and played our own
    version of a Match Game (or memory game).  He really enjoys playing
    with them - the stickers we used were things he likes alot like cars
    and trucks, trains and planes!  Also, I think these lids
    from the orange juice cans would make good refrigerator magnets by
    glueing various things on them and a magnet on the back.  In fact,
    I think we'll do that this week!     Just thought I'd share this
    idea with everyone.    Lila
    

    
    We are in the process of collecting our juice tops for the very same
    reason. It will take awhile for us though as we only seem to go through
    one container of Apple juice a week.
    
    				Wendy

    
    You can alsa paste pictures of family members on them and use as rerfig
    magnets.  My little ones love seeing their cousins, and the extra
    weight of the juice lid givesthem something to hand onto.
    
    Jamd

    Someone here talked about making magnets, does anyone know where I can
    find the strips of magnet.  I think it's like a roll of rubberized tape
    but made of brown or black, and 1/2" to 1" wide.
    
    Somewhere in Worcester County??
    
    Oh my idea was taking cooked spagetti, dip a few pieces in in thinned out 
    elmer's glue which you add food coloring, make three or four different 
    colors, arrange the spagetti flat on wax paper, make one strand into a 
    loop and let it dry.  You've got a kid styled sun catcher thing.  This 
    is one of my son and my favorite daycare crafts!
    Lyn
    

    To respond to Lyn's query about sources of magnets, or any other
    requests for retail outlets, please use Email.
    
    thank you,
    
    Laura 
    for the mods

    
    Does anyone have a good "recipe" for bubbles?  I lost the one I had that
    included the standard dishwashing liquid, and also included some
    proportion of corn syrup.  The syrup seemed to make the bubbles last
    longer.
    
    Jamd

    I was just at a crafts fair and bought my daughter a *huge* bubble
    maker.  The woman selling the stuff said to use Joy detergent at one
    part detergent to ten parts water.  She said Joy is the only one that
    works and that we shouldn't stir the mixture.
    
    Her mix made great bubbles.  She said her mix was 3 years old and she
    stored it in her garage every winter, where it froze.  She just thaws
    it out and then adds more as needed.
    
    I'll let you know if it works when we try this...
    
    judy

    
    A little glycerin added to the Joy sometimes provides longer lasting
    bubbles..also try making them on humid days.
    
    Works for us.
    
    Patrick
    

    
    Humid/Colorado...probably not an option  :-)
    
    I'll try the glycerin!
    THx
    Jamd

    Since I did not see any notes about "how to keep your kids busy at
    home" I had this idea that now that it's summer vacation (it's also
    good for those rainy winter days) we might want to share some ideas.
    I have a few how-to:
    
    1) homemade "finger paints":
       You mix together 1/2 a cup (125 gr. ) washing powder or 225 gr.
      corn startch  (sp?)with some cold water-to melt.add about 4 cups
      (900 gr.) of boiling water and heat up the whole thing to a boiling
      point.take off of the stove and add 40 gr. od soap flakes or washing 
      powder.pour the mixture into several containers,add some food colors
      (the basics are red/yellow/green/blwe and the you can mix colors)
      or use water paints instead.
    It may look like a lot of work but the fact is-it's not and the
    resaults are great.
    
    2) babies' "safe" playdough (the can eat it with no danger!)
       Just mix well 2 cups of flower,1/2 a cup olive oil and 1/2 a cup
       of water.make a dough.If you want "colourful" dough you just add
    few drops of food colours or you can use chocolate powder (for brown)
    finely cooked_then_mashed carrot etc.
    
    I have more and more ideas (home made playdough,bath toys that cost
    almost nothing and so on) but if anyone has any other ideas (those you
    can make at home and maybe let your kids take part in the "making" and
    not just in the "playing")
    Rivka_who_had_to_find_ways_keeping_a_todller_away_from_the_vcr...
    

    
    
    Help!  I need ideas for a "toddler's arts and crafts"
    session I'm hosting in a few weeks.  There will be 8-10
    children, aged 2-5.  We'll have a large work table and
    a sink with running water (it's a public rec room).
    
    Any ideas for a project?  I was thinking of something for
    Christmas, then I remembered that not all of the children
    are Christian, so now I'm not sure.  
    
    Any idea is a good idea.  Paper, paint, fabric, leaves,
    flowers, stencils, etc.  Send one, send all!
    
    Thanks much in advance,
    Lynn
    

    My kids loved to make letter holders for their parents.
    
    *  Take 2 paper plates and cut one in half.
    *  Glue outside rim of 1/2 paper plate and stick opposite way of the
       full paperplate, so it forms a "pita-pocket".
    *  Stick clothes pins on rim to help keep it together.
    *  Have children glue, draw, etc on the "1/2" portion with string,
       yarn, noodles, sand, glitter, crayons, markers, etc.
    *  Give to parents to hold all their bills, coupons, etc.
    
    Hope this helps.....
    
    Gail

    
    
    	Egg carton flowers: Each egg "cup" is the center of the flower,
    paint and glue onto "petals" and stems. Create a winter bouquet.
    
    	Bird houses: decorate milk cartons that have been cut to allow
    birds in (this can be a decoration instead of a real functioning bird
    house so you can use the little milk cartons that they get at school).
    
    	Nature collage - go out now and get pine cones, seeds, leaves and
    use them to create nature collages, the items can be glued or the kids
    can make crayon rubbings of some of the flatter items
    
    	Fruit loop necklaces - string fruit loops on licorice laces to make
    stylish and dee-lish-ous necklaces (trouble with this is that they
    always want to eat more) This is a very special treat in our house much
    better than outright candy.
    
    	Pinecone bird feeders, put peanutbutter on pinecones and roll in
    birdseed.
    
    	Making wrapping paper - get large peices of paper, finger paints,
    poster paints, stamps, sponge shapes etc and let the kids go to town.
    
    				Wendy
    	

    
    re: Egg carton flowers
    
    I have read several cautions against using egg cartons for anything
    other than their intended use as they may harbor bacteria (salmonella?)
    
    Carol

    
    	Although that is a very valid concern (I hadn't even thought of
    that and I'm the resident microbiologist!) it can be overcome.
    
    	Bacteria can not thrive without food on which to grow, if you set
    the egg cartons aside (NO WET ONES) and let them dry out for a few days
    (at room temperature, not in the fridge), any bacteria that was once in
    them will have died. 
    
    			Wendy
    
    

    
    Thank you for the suggestions  --some GREAT ones! Wendy, you really
    outdid yourself...
    
    I'm leaning toward the wrapping paper, or pine-cone bird feeder (since
    I happen to have a dozen lg pinecones at home!).  
    
    Thanks again,
    Lynn
    

    A while ago I read somewhere instructions for making a clay-type 
    handprint ornament and was wondering if anyone had directions to
    do so.  I thought it would make a nice keepsake ornament for
    my kids grandparents this Christmas.  I've also posted this in
    the Crafts notesfile without much luck.  Thanks.

    Childcraft puts out a catalog which has the keepsake ornament kit.
    
    They also have a really nice Snowglobe Kit.
    
    Childcraft's number is (800) 631-5657
    
    ...Lori

    I will check at my children's daycare tomorrow morning.  My youngest
    son made one of these for us for Christmas this year.  They made them
    and put them into aluminum pans.  After they dried, they peeled off the
    pan.  They painted the hand print and his name and date in gold.  The
    also made a little hole at the top and tied a plaid ribbon in it.
    
    He was very excited about it.  I will get the directions and post them
    for you.
    
    Lillian

    You can get plaster of paris at any craft store.  Just mix according to
    package directions, pour into aluminum pie tin, have child gently press
    hand into the mix, and let set.  Be sure to put a straw in the top so
    you can put a ribbon thru the hole for hanging.
    
    We have done this for hand prints as well as filling candy molds and
    letting the kids paint or decorate at they wish.
    
    Lots of fun.  The mix will need to be slighty thick and will take a few
    days to dry - then you can paint it with poly to keep it from "aging".
    
    -sandy
    

    Since he starts 1st grade in September (wow!), he's almost not a
    preschooler anymore, but...

    My son showed a passing interest in knitting over the weekend.  I was
    teaching his 7 year old sister to knit and he wanted to do it too. 
    While I expect that it was a matter of wanting attention, I want to be
    prepared if he pursues it.  With my daughter, I chose a Barbie doll
    blanket.  Somehow I just don't think my son would take to that goal :-)
    Any suggestions for what a boy might enjoy knitting?

    Thanks
    Debby

shoe laces!  Very brightly colored, 2-3 stitches wide.
Try baby weight yarn, or that Coats & clark crocheting
thread (used for doilies or such).  Start with size 3-4
needles.  End result would be sort of stringy, but
will work.

Use glue to hold the ends (dip the end in glue, then
roll it between your fingers).

(Might just be to small for his little hands, tho)

Another possibility:  his own placemat.  Try
macrame cord, and pretty big needles (size 13-15).
Should be a very short project, which is what matters.

Good luck

Pat

    Debby,
    
    How about a ski band?  You know a longis rectange that will go around
    his head to keep him warm in winter?  
    
    This was my first knitting project.  It adapts itself to any size
    kneedles and a variety of yarns.
    
    meg

	I suppose this is as good a place as any for my question.

	Emily's "craft" from Sunday school has me confused.  She
	walked out of class with a small dixie cup (the top 1/2 had
	been cut off).  Inside the cup was a piece of damp sponge
	and a bean (seed).  

	I know this bean is supposed to sprout, but I don't know how
	to properly care for it.  Is the bean supposed to be on top
	of the sponge or under it ?  Should I dampen the sponge each
	day ?

	I think it would be really fun for Emily to watch this bean
	grow.  If anyone has ever heard of this method of sprouting
	a bean, I'd appreciate some help!

	Thanks,
	Karen (of the brown thumb)

    I suppose all that matters is that the bean stay wet.  When I was a
    kid, we used to have projects like this in school all of the time. 
    What I remember most is taking a bean, and putting it between two
    folded up paper towels.  The whole thing was then kept in a plastic bag
    to keep the towels (and bean) wet.
    
    Peggy

Are there any truly washable markers?  My daughters had a great time marking
up their faces, hands and arms (along with _my_ hands) with allegedly washable
markers.  We managed to get most of it off, but it was a lot of work.  Is there
anything that comes off easily?

    
    Hmmmmmm - I have never had trouble with the "washable" ones at all.
    Of course I always buy cheap markers, because they just end up getting
    ruined - the cover in one place, the marker in the other.
    
    I want to say that "Rose Art" are pretty common around my house, but
    basically, go to K-Mart, and pick out the largest package for the
    smallest price, and those are the ones I get.  Unfortunately, the color
    isn't very deep either - maybe that's why they come off easy?
    
    Just a couple weeks ago, Jonathan found a wide blue marker, and he
    wanted to color, and needed paper, and I kept saying "Just a minute
    I'll get you some!", well, he obviously got tired of waiting, comes
    back into my room with his "I'm-so-cute-but-you-should-SEE-what-I-did!"
    smile .... and I went out to the hall to see one whole section of wall
    was BLUE.  I mean *BLUE*!!!  He made huge circles, and then colored in
    a few of them.  Colored all up and down the corner of the wall.  BRIGHT
    blue, on white paint (oh, and I rent this place!).
    
    A couple of swipes with the sponge, and you can't see it at ALL
    anymore!  Of course, we did have to live through the trauma of Mom
    erasing his masterpiece!! (-:
    
    ....I wanted another! (-:  It still beats the heck out of crayons!
    

>    ....I wanted another! (-:  It still beats the heck out of crayons!
    
Actually, the washable Crayolas are pretty good.  But Dina likes markers
better than crayons.  BTW, the markers in question were Toys'R'Us brand
and Crayola.

    
    Anybody got any craft ideas for a toddler (2-1/2) using fabric?
    I have lots of fabric scraps and need some ideas for Lauren when
    I'm home on maternity leave this summer.
    
    Thanks!
    
    Karen
    

    Glue stick and paper and cut the fabric into shapes, geometric,
    abstract or animals, and turn her loose.  Later you may want to take
    the patterns she comes up with and make them into a crazy quilt.
    
    meg

    Get some clear contact paper, pull off the backing, and let her stick 
    stuff on there. Just make sure that the right side is stuck to the
    sticky stuff...  If you cut the contact paper into sizes, you can make
    placemats etc.  If you do't want to back the contact paper it can
    be left as is, just hanging.

    I agree with the previous 2 notes, make a collage from the shapes. 
    
    Another suggestion, although you may need to help a young child with
    the sewing together. (I used to sit behind my daughter and help 'guide'
    her hands to the right spot).
    
    A Caterpiller (sp?)
    
    Cut out circles and join together throught their centres with thread
    - use a reasonably large, but blunt ended needle (eg darning needle). 
    Make some felt eyes and mouth then stick on first circle.
    
    Jackie   

    
    Get some velcro "dots" (get big dots).  Make a "quilt", out of a solid
    piece of material.  On the solid part, draw different shapes.  Circle,
    square, triangle, rectangle, oval etc.  Sew one piece of velcro to the
    solid piece of material, in each shape.
    
    Take all the scraps and cut them into squares, circles, triangles,
    ovals etc.  Sew velcro to them.  Now you have a matching game for your
    daughter.  Try to have her match the square in the square etc.  If you
    have enough, you can make all red shapes, and all blue shapes (or
    whatever) and ask her to pick out all the blue shapes, then maybe all
    the squares or circles.  Maybe even draw numbers on the shapes and on
    the solid piece, to expose her to numbers or letters.  
    
    Along the same line, you could make a large piece with the alphabet on
    it, and make shapes with letters drawn on them.  Match the individual
    letter piece, to the letter on the large piece.  Not sure she'd be old
    enough for that yet, but it's a try.  And it's a game that'd last a
    LONG time!
    
    I *THINK* that you can buy sheets of glue-on velcro that you just have
    to peel off the backing.  Makes it MUCH simpler to construct, but not
    sure if it'd be washable.
    
    Get really creative, and make a cloth bag to keep it all in, or make
    the large piece fold up into a bag.  Sell the idea and make millions!
    (-:
    
    -Patty

    re: .51
    
    Along the same idea, my wife put together some small quilts that were
    in actuallity "dolls".  To these, you add clothing using the Velcro
    dots.  Its kind of an offshoot of paper dolls.  The nice part about it
    is that the clothes don't get destroyed by the younger crowd and you
    can easily place a small clothesline on the wall to hang them up.
    
    Dan

    (1) Crayons - any good projects for leftover crayons...the old broken
    ones...hate to throw them out because I vaguely remember maybe melting
    them into.../???...something....
    
    (2) Refresh my memory - how to preserve, display pretty fall
    leaves...tried the old wax paper bit this weekend...
    
    thanks. 

    Melt crayons in a double boiler.  Separate the colors before melting
    and swirl together into any type of mold.  Put a candle wick in it and
    make gifts of homemade candles.  
    
    Drip wax from candles over an interesting shaped bottle and make a
    vase.
    
    Preserve fall leaves in between 2 sheets of clear shelf paper.  Make
    placemats or put into a frame for a picture.  They make a silica sand
    that is sold in craft stores for drying and preserving the colors of
    flowers and leaves.  Try that.
    
    
    
    

    We made two shirts last week for mothers day.  My son (2 1/2) would NOT
    put his hand in the paint after the first attempt.  He did not like the
    feel of it. (this is the same son who still will not let me make an
    imprint of his hand in plaster!) :-)  Since I was determined that this 
    is what we were making for Mothers Day, I tried a different technique.  
    I traced both of his hands onto paper plates, and then cut out the hands. 
    I then used these cut-outs in the paint, to make the hand prints on the 
    shirt.  He had a great time watching without the 'trauma' of putting his 
    hands in the paint!  And he didn't mind having his hand traced at all.  
    It also took almost 3 days for them to dry!