Mermaid Counting

A still has a hard time with number recognition, and I'd like her to have that down before she starts pre-K in the fall. Going along with our mermaid theme this week, I made these cards for her to practice with. She has to recognize the number and then add the correct number of "bubbles" around the mermaid.

A Mermaid Picnic

To go along with our mermaid theme this week, I made my girls a surprise mermaid picnic.

A Mermaid Hunt (and lots of fun mermaid crafts)

It's our first week of summer break and we're celebrating with mermaids!

A Mermaid Tea Party

The Book - Mermaid Cookbook by Barbara Beery

Are you familiar with Beery's cookbooks? If not, you're in for a treat, literally! Her books are full of eye candy and delicious recipes kids love to make and eat. I have given several of her cookbooks as gifts to my nieces, and they loved them. Although geared towards older children (9-12), I see no reason why preschoolers wouldn't enjoy helping to make - and consume - these recipes. The Mermaid Cookbook is on-par with Beery's other books, containing sea-themed recipes like sea turtle cookies and maiden mermaid salad.


The PARTY!!! - An Under the Sea Mermaid Tea

I can't finish off our mermaid week without telling you about the party we had a few months ago. When Little Page turned 4 I threw a party combining two of her loves: mermaids and a tea party. We invited all the ladies in her life (grandmas, aunts, cousins) and had a wonderful time celebrating Little Page's birthday.

We dined on mini muffins, multiple types of tea sandwiches, caprese skewers, and delicious scones, all served on tiered platters made from plastic vases hotglued to plastic platters.

Crepe paper streamers formed the waves and paper fish swam above our heads.

A mermaid cake completed the tea. My sister made this cake, baking it in a bowl to create the rock. She had a mermaid barbie in her house, which she decorated with icing and placed on top of the cake. You could also use a regular barbie, insert the legs into the cake and pipe a tail onto the rock. After icing the rock, she piped waves along the base, added some flowing icing seaweed, and stuck in a few goldfish. It looked phenomenal and Little Page was over the moon about it!

Edited: I'm linking up this oldie but goody at ABC and 123

Mermaid Dreams

The Book - Mermaid Dreams by Mark Sperring

We got this adorable little book from the library this week. In the story Meriam hates getting ready for bed. As her mother brushes her crazy, curly hair strange things keep falling out. Shells, crabs and pearls drop from her curls. Meriam stalls bedtime - and explains the sea creatures - by telling of all the adventures she had playing at the beach and swimming in the ocean. You assume throughout the story that this is all in Meriam's imagination. The very last page reveals the truth - Meriam is a mermaid.


Little Page read this book to herself on the way back from the library (did I mention she's a crazy-advanced reader?) and cried out at the end "Mom, she's a mermaid!" with a look of pure joy in her eyes. The illustrations are colorful and fanciful, and the story itself would probably hold the attention of children as young as two.

The Craft - A Mermaid Tail Towel


I saw a mermaid tail towel in the Chasing Fireflies catalog, but unfortunately didn't have a spare $50 to spend on a towel for my preschooler. I searched Etsy, but those were only a little cheaper at around $40 a piece. So, being the ridiculously incompetent seamstress that I am, I decided to make my own! Here's how...

What you'll need:

1. 2 towels
   Although beach towels would work best, being thinner, I couldn't find any plain colored ones. Instead, I picked up a couple bath towels from Walmart at $4 each. I chose a light pink and dark pink one, but you could use any two coordinating colors.
2. bias binding that matches the towels
   You can buy bias binding from any fabric store or you can make your own. How do you make bias binding? Well, I used the tried and true method of calling up my mother-in-law to do it for me. If you don't have a MIL who loves to help you with sewing projects, then you can try this tutorial.
3. 12' of matching 1.5" (or wider) ribbon.
   
4. Sewing machine

The steps:

1. Measure and cut the dark towel to be 41" long. The lighter colored towel should be cut to 26" long.
   
2. Match the towel's ends and pin. Sew together with a 1/4" seam. Spread out this new long towel and fold over the seam, hiding it. Sew another 1/2" seam to finish off the edge.
   
   
   
3. Lay the towel out on the floor. With a marker, freehand a mermaid tale shape (think whale) on one half of the towel. Cut along this line. Fold the towel in half, mark and cut the matching side. You now have a basic mermaid tale shape.
4. Pin your bias binding around the edge of the towel. You can use one color around the entire tail or coordinate your bias binding with the two sections of tail. Since my MIL was doing most of this part for me (oh, the bliss!) I opted for two colors.
5. Sew your bias binding around the edge of towel, eventually doing both sides so the entire edge of the towel is finished off.
   
   
   
6. Pin the center of the ribbon to the center of the top of the towel so 1/4" to 1/2" hangs over the top. Meet the ends of ribbon together to create a giant loop and sew the ends together. Pin and sew the bottom edge of the ribbons onto both sides of the towel to finish off that edge. Sew the ribbons together as close to the edge as possible for the full length of the ribbon, top and bottom.
   
   
   

Congratulations! You have a beautiful mermaid tale towel for less than $20. If any of these steps didn't make sense to you, then simply ask your mother-in-law to explain. She might get really into the project and even make an extra tail out of the scraps!

Mermaid Mania!

Little Page loves all things mermaid. If it has long hair and a fish tale, my child goes ga-ga. In honor of this obsession, I have chosen MERMAIDS as my first "theme of the week." Yes, I'm trying something new on LPT and choosing themes for the week's book selections. I also hope to include more crafts and activity ideas, so stay tuned.

The Book - The Mermaid's Bracelet by Beth Harwood

Little Page received this book as a gift for her 4th birthday. It's the story of Hannah, a little girl who is lonely during her summer vacation to the beach. She sends a message in a bottle hoping to find a friend and is surprised when a mermaid responds. The two become friends and together find a secret treasure.

Honestly, there's nothing particularly special about the plot or pictures in this book. Both are what I would call nice. What makes this book stand out is the correspondence between the two girls. Each page contains an envelope which holds a letter from Hannah to Shelley (the mermaid) or vice versa. One envelope contains a treasure map, another page holds a pop-up treasure box, and the very last page includes a large envelope containing a real charm bracelet (which Little Page lost months ago) and an "honorary mermaid" certificate. LP loves opening the envelope flaps and pulling out the different letters, each of which are written on sea-themed stationary. I love the book's emphasis on friendship and kindness.

The Craft - Message in a Bottle (an encouragement jar)

To go along with the book, Little Page and I created a "Message in a Bottle" encouragement jar. Here's how we did it.

1. Take a glass milk jar (you could use a regular mason jar) and modge-podge torn pieces of purple, blue, and green tissue paper on three sides.
   
2. Once it has dried, fill the bottom third with sand and small sea shells. Use a funnel to pour in the sand, or make one by rolling up a piece of paper.
   
3. Write a message of encouragement on a small piece of paper. I chose to tell Little Page how proud I was of how kind she has been to her little sister recently.
4. Take a length of twine or string and tie the end into a loop. Roll up your message and fit it through the loop.
5. Lower the paper into the bottle until it almost touches the sand, then wind the extra around the mouth of the bottle and tie loosely.
   
   
   
6. You can decorate the lid of the bottle with hot glue and small rocks or shells. (I'm always looking for ways to deplete Little Page's enormous collection of rocks!)
   
   
   
7. Be sure to replace the message often to encourage your children when they have behaved, done something well, or just to let them know you love them!