Simplifying the Holidays: ReVAMP those Easter baskets! (Re publish)

Avoid the basket of crap.

Yes, crap. Crap plastic, crap stuffed animals which will collect dust and never be looked at again, crap candy, and commercialized cards and other trinkets. This will save you money, piece of mind, and probably a few pounds on the scale :)

As I read the Eco-Easter basket ideas available through Celebrate Green today, it got me thinking about all of this..... well, crap. 

I described in Crafty Mama, how I simplified the Christmas holiday for my family this year. We, as a family, do not typically celebrate what I have branded as Hallmark holidays like Valentine's Day. However, this year my toddler did make adorable all-natural versions of the Rice Krispie treat at school, which were adorable and delicious (although I only got a bite, since he ate the rest lol)

So for Easter, what do you do? Do your kids really need a bucket full of chocolate and some marshmallow type substance pressed into the shapes of bunnies and chicks? Probably not (just a guess) :)

And no, they also do NOT need a real bunny for Easter! Bunnies and Easter DON'T MIX

Are there alternatives?

 YES! 1, which I did last year- No gifts. Have them paint some eggs with food coloring you already have in your house, then hide them, and my toddler had a blast finding all his eggs! That was enough for him, and my wallet.

My friend Christine, who wrote an article for REThinking Everything Magazine, came up with the following natural option for her toddler;

Other ideas include one natural toy, filling a small basket with some exotic fruits and a small handful of all natural candy or other treats they don't normally get. Grab a coloring book or some recycled paper and a pack of new crayons or markers (there are also natural options, like the ones available at Hip Mountain Mama) and create some Easter-theme crafts together.

You can find a lot to do/make/enjoy this Easter holiday that does not involve synthetic plastics, large stuffed animals, mass produced cards which waste paper, and the previously ever-popular basket full of candy!

Disclaimer: This short blog is focusing solely on the commercialization and artificiality of many holidays, I am well aware that there are religious implications which I am (purposely) completely ignoring.

Lastly, you WILL see me at some point before the end of April, enjoy my one decadent (albeit artificial and probably utterly disgusting if I ever took the time to read the label) Cadbury Cream Egg :) Spring just wouldn't be the same without it.

How do you simplify your holiday(s)? And what's your guilty pleasure?

Crafty Mama: "Pinspired" Projects Edition

 I figured I should share some of my recent projects in hopes that they might assist you in later quick, budget friendly recipes or gift ideas! I shared some of my Thanksgiving recipes and craft ideas HERE.

Here is the NNM Holiday Gift Guide from 2012: 

The last few years we have taken to making homemade gifts for our family. Last year we re used our milk bottles to house our easy granola

The year before that we made heart felt individual ornaments 

Holiday Gift Guide 2012 

This year, the kids made snowflake ornaments out of Popsicle sticks. Somehow, I failed to get a picture of our finished product; but they were like the ones you made in school that looked like this: 

photo credit: mama jenn blog

We used pipe cleaners as the ornament hanger and used permanent markers to write our names on the back. 

My sister is getting married this year, and her and her fiance love Crate & Barrel. I was able to score a setting for 4 from a local yard sale site on Facebook a few months back. The lady I bought it from threw in some extra place mats, so I used those and some inexpensive, washable fabric paint (which was used for multiple gifts as you'll see) to personalize them for my parents and the in laws. 

place mat and fabric paint

For hubby, who is an avid poker player, I decided this idea from Pinterest was perfect! I just used a hole punch and a pipe cleaner to tie them all together. Total cost? A $2 deck of cards ;) and a WHOLE LOT OF LOVE <3 

For the older kids; Spiderman, Baby A, and my niece Phia, I used the kids crayon stubs to make crayon disks. I got the idea and instructions HERE  

After baking at 250 degrees for about 20 minutes, they were done! The "gift bags" were leftover from the $2 pack of red paper lunch bags we got to make our advent bags. I also grabbed a coloring book for each child from the $1 bin at Target. 

Birthdays 2013: 

Hubby's gift was inspired by this PIN  

 

Walk a Little Slower Daddy

I was able to get a 2pk canvas for $7.99 at Michaels' Craft Store, and then we just used the fabric paint we had on hand, a permanent marker, and leftover raffia from our holiday ornament wrapping. 

And now I have another canvas left to use for a later project! 

Sissy's gift was inspired by this PIN  

make up magnet board

We scored a baking dish and some magnets at the same craft store, and just used super glue and the same fabric paint at home. Spiderman saw the little wooden accents, which we just super glued on, for $0.49 each in the scrapbook section! 


And finally, recipe FUN: 

Today we made our own bread to have with just a family size can of tomato soup for dinner... 

crusty whole wheat bread , easy!

 
I'd say it was a success! ;) I only altered the recipe by using whole wheat flour in lieu of white flour. I think next time I'll use a less grainy flour, like almond flour though to make the bread a bit less dense. 

We had flour in the pantry, and always have sea salt; so total cost? $1.99 packet of yeast. Result? An entire loaf of bread which fed 4 of us for dinner, 2 slices each! <3 

Last night I also used up some ripe bananas, but realized I had no loaf pan- so improvised and used this recipe to make muffins. What I liked about it is that it uses honey and applesauce instead of sugar and oil! 

Mine look dark because, again, I use whole wheat flour. They are good, but dense due to the whole wheat flour and the applesauce. Total cost? NOTHING because I was using up stuff we had! <3 Perfect. 

What are some of your favorite budget friendly, easy projects??? Food or otherwise?? 

Find NNM on Pinterest @mymackey

 

I'm baaaaack... again! :)

It has been a while since the last time you have heard from me here at NNM! For that, I am so sorry! But we have a  lot to catch up on which should keep me busy in the coming months! <3

Spiderman and Baby A are getting HUGE <3

 Crafty Mama- Installment II

Let's start with something easy & fun that's also eco friendly AND budget friendly! Here is what WE did at our house for our family members during the holidays;

As you know, we as a family (as I'm sure many of you have also experienced)  have struggled with finances over the last several years; getting back on our feet in this unsteady economy. You can check out my hand made gifts from last year HERE, in Crafty Mama. This year, I opted for something a little less hands- on, as I know I have two kids to chase after, and one on the way! So here's what I did:

Step 1_ in lieu of turning in the milk bottles we had been accumulating for the deposit as we normally would, I held on to them and cleaned them out to use as decorative containers. Cost? essentially free, because we drink the milk anyways :)

Step 2_ Next, I had the kids use their favorite color finger paints and paint their hand prints on the jars. Once they were dry, I just used a black Sharpie to go over each hand print with the appropriate child's name. Adorable and FREE (given that we used materials we already had at home).

Step 3_ homemade granola!

I used the recipe found HERE  from the Food Network site

I ended up making two batches to accommodate all my jars, and merely added some honey and cinnamon once it came out of the oven. The end result looked like this;

And it was DELICIOUS! Baby A and I just haaaaaad to sample some- you know, to make sure it was edible! :) 

Step 4_  Once the granola cooled, I placed a small amount in each jar, and stuffed in the top some decorative holiday tissue paper to fill the gap in the tall milk jugs ( I would have had to have made, like, 6 batches if I had wanted to FILL the jugs!) I placed the cap back on the jugs and placed them in gift bags made out of recycled paper that I purchased at Target for 99 cents each!


Somehow I did not get a photo of the finished product- hmph! but they came out great! and everyone thought the granola was delish! So overall, total score, for only the cost of the gift bags, gift tags, and granola ingredients!

Did YOU make any hand made gifts this holiday?