Sirena Van Schaik
Author's posts
Mar 29 2024
How to Make Blown Easter Eggs
Every year I have boiled those wonderful eggs so that I could spend a few hours coating myself in food dye just for the simple enjoyment of the experience. For all children, egg dying is a wonderful experience and my children look forward to it every year. My biggest problem with dying eggs was that I …
Nov 24 2022
Happy Thanksgiving
Many people have come to the belief that Thanksgiving is a holiday about food. I mean, what do we really celebrate on the day? We gather as a family, or with friends, and sit around a gigantic bird that is slathered in grease and stuffed with bread crumbs and we say thanks before devouring the …
Nov 21 2022
American Thanksgiving: Why Do We Celebrate It?
A few weeks ago, my 7 year old was sitting at the kitchen table and working on his homework. He looked up at me, confusion crossing his face as he said, “I’m supposed to write three sentences on why we celebrate Thanksgiving but I don’t know why we do.” This statement led me to really …
Nov 19 2022
Marking Time: How Thanksgiving Day Became the 4th Thursday of November
Have you ever wondered why Thanksgiving Day always falls on the 4th Thursday of every year? Why was it a Thursday? Why not a Friday so we could have a three day weekend? Was it so the stores could have a Black Friday? Okay, the last one doesn’t actually matter since stores had not coined …
Oct 24 2022
Halloween Gourd Friends
Fall has arrived and pumpkins have arrived with it but today, I’m not really looking at the pumpkins. Instead, I am looking at the cute little bags of gourds that are lining the produce section of your local grocery store. Usually, these little treats are found in a bag of about 12 gourds. They are …
Oct 18 2022
How to Make Cute Halloween Grab Bags
People often say, “Halloween, it’s just about the candy,” and although I often agree with them on some level, I don’t really think it is a bad thing. To me, Halloween is one of the truly whimsical holidays around. There is no deep meaning, although there is a history, and children and adults alike, can …
Sep 24 2022
Crafty Recipes: Whipped Snow
It’s probably a little early to be dreaming about snow but with the muggy weather I had today, I’m almost ready for winter. Well, almost ready…okay, not really, but the thought of winter made me think that it would be an excellent time to share my recipe for Whipped Snow. This is a fun little …
Sep 03 2022
Crafty Recipes: Paper Mache
I love, I mean LOVE, paper mache (aka papier-mâché) but unfortunately, my kids do not feel the same. For some reason, they act like paper mache paste is an acid that once it gets on their skin it will begin to burn. I’m not sure why this is, but the same kids that hate the feeling …
Aug 17 2022
Lunch Box Blues
When my first child started school, I became aware that on an almost daily basis his lunchbox was still full at the end of the day. There might be a bite out of the sandwich, maybe a few grapes missing or a few carrots nibbled on but other than that I was basically unloading the …
Jun 11 2022
Father’s Day Craft: Father’s Survival Kit
With Father’s Day only being a few days away, I thought I should post one more craft to give you a few more to choose from. This craft is great for children of any age and you can actually tailor it to suit the Dad. What you will need: A box that can be opened …
