Frugal Parenting: DIY Father's Day

For Father's Day this year, I wanted to continue to impress upon my daughter the importance of ownership of the gifts she gives. Gifts, thank you notes, and various cards hold more meaning to the giver and receiver when made more personable, so I helped my daughter create some cards for her daddy, and both grandfathers this year.

Lesson learned: Glue the construction paper to the cardstock FIRST,
to prevent the glue from interfering with the paint!

We sat down, working bit by bit over the span of a few days, creating these cards. I brushed washable paint over her hand to create the "flower". (The paint acquired, by luck, at a garage sale -- a pack of 10 small tubs for a quarter.) Then, while she colored on a few sheets of construction paper (to be used later), I asked her "why do you love daddy?", recording her responses and offering prompts (basically rephrasing the question) to redirect her when needed.


She helped put down the glue for each step (reciting our glue motto of "just a dot, not a lot!"), then placed the strips with her responses on the paper. It was all glued down to card stock, to make it sturdier. The card stock also served as a quick and simple way for my son (6 months old) to contribute, too. :-)

We repeated this for a single-flowered card for each of her grandfathers.

The sheets she colored were used as wrapping paper for the two small gifts we got for her daddy. (Since he had actually requested something specific, we indulged him.)

Each card was greeted with great pride by its intended receiver-- so much so, that first thing Monday morning the card for her Daddy was proudly displayed at his office. :-)


Do you have any crafty gift ideas to share? Please leave a comment here or contact me. I'd love to hear all about it!