How To: be the favorite aunt

I saw this cool paper flag banner on the Papersource website. Great stuff. Check it out at http://www.paper-source.com/ I'm going to watch Matt and Ann's children for a week at the beginning of December and I've started to put some things together for us to play with. It'll be fun when Reid is old enough to do this sort of stuff, but I can wait for it...he's growing too fast already. So, I don't know if I'm actually my nieces' and nephews' favorite, but if I am it's because I love playing with children. Children are still excited about paper and crayons, and they still know how to make-believe and dream up impossibilities. I'm so glad that I have Erik to help me survive in an adult world when I'm not really an adult at all. Long story short, I have some fun ideas of projects to do with the kids. Matt and Ann, don't spoil the surprise, and if David and Darian check out this blog (which I wouldn't be surprised if they do, they are very savvy) you may remember some of these tricks up my sleeve.

I liked the paper banner and figured, "I can do that." (my Arnett Self-assured Syndrome kicking in) I went through my scrapbooking patterned paper and was a little embarrassed at how much I would be willing to give up. Crafters are notorious for hoarding, and it's a sad sign when you've purchased so many of the DCWV stacks at JoAnn's that you are happy to get rid of some of it.

As I was going through these I kept thinking, "but these don't match each other! The colors clash, and they are totally different themes." Then I happily remembered that children don't care. I bet that all this silly paper is going to delight those little ones to no end. In the cookbook "How to be a Domestic Goddess" by Nigella Lawson, she has a recipe for sugar cookies and icing. When she talks about icing the cookies she states, "remember with gratitude that children have very bad taste." Man, isn't that the truth. They don't care if things match, if they mix too many colors of icing together and now it's brown, if things are well-designed or not...they don't care, they're too busy having fun. Thank goodness for the children in our lives.

I also found this little paper stack that I must have thought I had to have last summer and haven't touched since. I think I'm going to try using this paper for a banner to put in our house. I have some Chinese lanterns that I think need to be hung up, and I think a banner would be fun, too. The thing about Erik being gone is that I almost never have company over, I remember that part from last time. I'm sure Reid won't mind lanterns and banners, and by the time Erik gets home I'll probably be ready to take them down anyway.

I am also planning on making paper shadows with the children, painting rocks into people and creatures, melting crayons into stained glass art to hang on the windows, and painting on pre-stretched canvases. I think that when Matt and Ann get home we'll have an Art Show. We could make treats and they could invite their friends over. The little ones could play and look at the art and the adults could hear stories of Matt and Ann's adventures in Hawaii. That sounds pretty good. If you've got great ideas of fun things to do with children that secure your standing as the favorite, I'd love to hear them.