Cross Post:: looking for advice on pre baby crafts for older sibs

[NEVE and TRISTAN]

I remember seeing a TLC show when I was preggo with T'ster that had the older siblings decorating onsies for their baby bro/sis who was being born...

I have no idea where to begin after buying onesies...
anyone have an idea what brand, where to buy, what to do to maybe have my children decorate some onesies...I know some had hand prints...

Also does anyone have any other ideas to combine their activities with anticipating baby???

Thanks in advance!!!



Neve
Reichen (6), Karsh (3), Tristan (22 months) and baby girl Bronwyn on the way due March 19th!!!!

[Momof3Labs]

Neve, have the kids help you write a book about your family for Bronwyn! My mom just did this for Colin for Christmas, and included photos of family members, him and his favorite things. You could do one page for each of your family members - including the pets - and even out to grandparents, if you want. Each page can have a photo of each family member with their name on it, and the boys can color or decorate it with their favorite stickers. My mom had Colin's put together at Kinko's using a spiral binding - it really is cute, and he LOVES it!

[dowlinal]

Neve,
I did not see that show but I when I was pregnant one of the free magazines I got had an article about decorating onsies. All you need to do is buy fabric paint and stamps at a craft store. You press the stamp into the paint and then stamp the outfit. The ones I saw had the same stamp used all over so you could let each boy pick out their own stamp and color to make it special. I am pretty sure you could do hand prints the same way - just spread out the fabric paint, press their hands into it and them press them down on the onsies.

HTH
Alexis

[MamaKath]

Neve, I am going to put together some directions and try to remember to post them for you. If I don't please email me at mamaslittleturtle @ yahoo.com and I will post them. The dial up is too slow for me to type and post anything long. Hope all is well, you and your growing family are in my thoughts. :-)

[SeekerMage]

My advice is forget the paint and get fabric markers. Michaels or any craft store has them right by the fabric paints. All you need to do is wash the onsies without fabric softner and then when dry let the kids color away. Stick a book or cardboard or something inside the onsie to give it something so it wont bleed through if they color heavily, and it also makes it easier to color, especially if it pulls the fabric tight.
Thats it. To me the fabric paint can be stiff especially if applied heavily. The markers are permanent and you dont have to worry abotu cracking or anything like the paint. I had Miss Moose color a sweatshirt for my dad for xmas....she drew her family...I only used a sharpie and several washes later it still looks like new.

You can have them color whatever they want....maybe write I love you or just draw a picture.

Another project idea....get some wooden blocks from Ikea (cheap there and a nice set) or any other plain wooden blocks and have them paint them. Get waterbased acrylic paints and let them paint away. THen when they are dry spray them with a clear spraypaint to seal the paint in. This project is also great with any wooden things. Michaels, and Walmart for that matter have a large selection of wooden toys, boxes, chairs etc. Im sure you could let each child pick something out they would like to paint to put on a shelf or dresser for the new little one.

Other activities are helping set up the babies room, getting clothes ready, shopping for something special to bring her in the hospital etc. Just day to day things can be made fun if they are included. We did this a LOT and from the moment she was born Miss Moose called her sister HER baby, not her sister but her baby. Even now to this day she is her little mommy. :)

[MamaKath]

As promised here are some ideas. Please email me if you have any questions. :-) Best of luck and have fun!!!!

Sibling T-shirts and onesies- Supplies: Paper (either coated paper or the disposable plastic so it does not absorb all the paint) plates and paint brushes (either the regular kind or foam), smocks, newspaper to cover the table, cardboard or large paper grocery sacks (these are for inside the shirts/onesies to prevent the paint from bleeding from the front through), t-shirts or onesies or even canvas craft totes, fabric paint (I like the Tulip brand), foam stamps. Put the paper on the table and smocks on the kids. Put the cardboard inside the shirts. Squirt some fabric paint into the plate, use the brush to spread it around or to put it onto the stamp. Stamp onto the t-shirt (or other item). You can then paint things like names, or add details using the tip on the paint bottle. Allow to dry 24 hours before using the shirt or other item. You can do hand prints instead of stamps too. Some cute ideas are “Mom’s Garden” with all the hands made into flowers and their names written to look like grass underneath each one. Or “Dad’s Handful” written on a shirt with paint and then all the kids hand prints on it.

Mobile- This is a great project for multiple children to work on. You can do it a few ways. Here are some basic instructions, you could use foam shapes instead which would not need to be painted. You need a craft hoop (like you would use for embroidery, you’ll only need to inside piece which is a complete circle); thin ribbon, wooden shapes, paint, paintbrushes, smocks, glue and other art supplies if you have them like glitter. First give each child a shape or two to paint, glitter, etc. Then use the glue to attach a ribbon to each shape. You attach the shapes around the wooden hoop (evenly spacing them) and use the additional ribbon to create a hanging loop at the top.

Family Book- You can do a scrapbook with a page about each family member. A variation is to do this on index cars instead of in a book. Then have them laminated, punch a hole in each and put the on a loop (from the office supply store) or a rinky link (toy type) to hold them together. We have also done these but made them as flashcard style books. You get an old calendar with smaller pictures, cut them out, paste onto the card, write the info on them and make a book. My oldest knew lots of exotic birds from this type of book. ;-)

Baby Quilt- You can do a patchwork quilt by picking a solid color fabric and a print to alternate in a blanket. Cut the squares, then take the solid color fabric and have each family member decorate it (hand prints work well). Sew the patches together, add batting and a backing, use yarn to tie the quilt in the corners of the squares, and bind the edges. Instant heirloom!

HTH~