Good morning Hive creators and makers!
Although I woke up to 20 degrees Fahrenheit this morning, I am happy the sun is out and the wind has died down since yesterday. Sunshine makes all the difference in the world! And with that sunshine we have hope of warmer days coming and springtime is just around the corner. While I do love the wintertime to catch up on inside projects, February can be hard month sometimes.
So to celebrate the upcoming springtime and renewal, I thought I would share some little beauties I made a few summers ago.
I help and volunteer at a former elementary school now turned into a community center. I live in a rural and sparsely populated part of northeast Kansas. While there are cities about 30 to 45 minutes away from where we live, it is definitely dirt and gravel roads where we are located.
That said, the little rural library that I run singlehandedly is a labor of love. I will uploads some photos of it maybe later today and put a link below. For the past 5 or 6 years, I have helped run the Summer Reading Program. It lasts 6 weeks and we meet for a couple of hours twice a week. Sometimes we have 30 children, sometimes we have 5 children. All ages, so it makes it a little difficult to plan in advance. Typically I will have several arts and crafts projects lined up and ready to go so that everyone will have an opportunity to make and create something fun.
While I knew that the children would not be able to use the VERY sharp needles to make the needle felted wings, I still wanted to make this project. I had several little girls in mind to receive these as gifts from me.
I feel that imaginative play is incredibly important for development. Sometimes creativity is forgotten while memorizing is emphasized more and more. Truly, I feel like my alone time and the use of simple toys helped me develop a creative mind that helps me deal with problem solving and fixing things. We don't always have all the tools or supplies that we need in the country, so making do with what you have is key.
Of course there is always room for improvement but I am happy with how these little beauties turned out. And I do believe the little ones enjoyed playing with them as much as I enjoyed making them. One of my pleasures is to make something for someone that I know they will use and love.
Have a blessed day. Be well and God bless!!
~ All photos taken by me.