Glitter Ball

This is my favourite playgroup project thus far. Thanks to Debz who shared this idea with us. Brought back memories on how I used to play with glue on my hands as a kid... kind of messy but lots of fun ;)

Supplies required...

1. Balloon

2. Glitter, paper scraps, thread, ribbons etc. (anything you want to stick on it as embellishment. what you see on the one above is ribbons and glitter from Tesco-party confetti)

3. Glue (we used the glue from Tesco... paper glue that's white in colour sold in a bottle with a scrapper)

4. Scissors (to cut the threads etc.)

The way to do it...

1. Inflate balloon to about the size of your palm. You can certainly have a bigger balloon but I'd suggest you start with a small one first to see if you like the result before proceeding with a larger project. Especially if you are doing it with kids, you might want a even smaller balloon ;)

2.Tie balloon up

3. Spread glue all over balloon. You can also choose to do it in parts if you are afraid the glue will dry up too soon.

4. Stick glitter, ribbons etc. (and whatever else you have) all over balloon

5. Add strings all around for a proper structure

6. Tie a piece of string to the knot (this is for you to hold your masterpiece)

7. Hang it dry

8. Deflate the balloon by poking a pin into it

9. The balloon will shrink but the dried up glue stays with all the embellishments and...

10. Voila! You've got yourself a transparent glitter ball!

Now, start peeling the glue off your little one's hands ;)

Structured Playgroup

Together with a few other like-minded Moms (that does not want to send their children to kindy/nursery at an early age), we have started 'structured' playgroups and been doing it once a week since the end of last year.

Many have been asking about what exactly it is and how does it differ from the normal 'playgroup'...

For one, most playgroup is only 'play'. We put some kind of 'structure' into ours so our children can get the opportunity to learn/explore together other than just playing together (though I am pretty sure they learn lots when they play together, too).

So, what exactly do we do? Once a week, we meet up for 4-5 hours. We will usually meet around 11-11.30am at someone's place. Lunch is usually the first agenda, unless we were to swim for that day or the host has some activity in mind that is not suitable for after lunch.

Lunch and chit chat (while the children play freely with each other) usually takes around 90 mins to 2 hours, after which, the host for the day (or someone) will share with us the activity of the day. The sharing is totally up to the host and it can be something from reading a book to having fun with crafts (I will start posting about play ideas later). Depending on what exactly we are doing, this can take about 1 hour to 90 minutes.

The playgroup usually ends around 3-4pm.