Life is Gourd: Spider Senses

Give Jesus a round of applause for fall weather.

Fall is an amazing excuse to make an obscene amount of soup and to get together and destroy the inner workings of a pumpkin. I love getting on Pinterest and looking at the cute little fall decorations I can attempt to DIY… if I can find what I did with the glue sticks last year. And then I remember one very big thing: I have a kid.

And she is my copycat in all things crafty.

I love it, but this means my DIY crafts or plans have to include her. So, today, I have the first of a few easy fall activities you can do at home. So grab your glue gun and glue sticks, popsicle sticks, pillow stuffing, an apron or two, your kiddo, and let's get crafting!

First off, set aside your expectations. Yes, that little voice in your head that tells you this experience has to be just like the Pinterest photo for it to be good. It may, and that is awesome! However, if it's not, acknowledge that and then look at the little person next to you that just had the time of their lives because you chose to include them and they got to get messy. That’s the goal of these activities: spending time with your little one. Second, grab the vacuum. You are 100% going to need it.

Spider Senses

My favorite Fall craft is making hand spiders. This easy craft can grow with your kids, works for all age groups, and is time-friendly as well! It brings the joy of learning and crafting about the outside world without needing a shoe or the scare of seeing a spider where one should not be. Our spider activity is always a favorite to make at this time of year!

What you’ll need: Fishing line, markers, scissors, glue, safety pins, black foam paper, and the fluffy white stuff that makes great spider webs. Optional: googly eyes, glitter (yup, the vacuum), stickers, or fuzzy colorful pom poms.

1. Once you are at the table, start by tracing your hand and your kiddo’s hand on your separate pieces of black foam paper. If you want to make them bigger trace both hands and glue them together like pictured above. However, it's important to only trace one of your hands!
2. Using child-safe scissors, cut out the hand(s) and use your safety pin to pierce the foam at the top of the palm. This is so you can string it later!
3. You’ll decorate the spider! Have the kiddos decorate their spiders as you decorate yours. You can make a whole family of spiders.

Once finished, let them dry. This step could take a few hours up to a day depending on what decorations your kids did. Give them plenty of time as they will be vertically hanging. You don’t want the details to fall off! Once dry, take the artificial web and find a piece of furniture, light fixture, or mantle that could use some spookifying features.

Make your web and hang the spiders above or inside it. Step back with your kids and enjoy what you just did. Point out little details on each spider, the googly eyes, the fun glitter, the shape, whatever it is and compliment it. These words of affirmation will connect you to them, bolster them, give you a lasting memory. And the best part… you can do this as many times as you have the material to use. ‍

Have fun!

Just make sure you set yourself a reminder for the morning so you know there is a new family of spiders living in your house.  

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