Beach Art -- Crafty Sundays

 

Every summer we spend at least one week at Cape Cod. My parents live there and my family has a house that we rent out but we get a week at the house every year. We always try to have at least one beach day and sometimes walk on the beach in the evening. My favorite thing about walking the beach is picking up shells and rocks. I love finding the pieces of quahog shells which is what wampum is made from. We have a rock and shell collection. Some are found, some gifts and some bought. I took a combination of our collection from this year and past years and made some crafts. I started with one I was inspired by the Coastal Seashell Wreath over at Amy Latta Creations. I saw her creation last week on Facebook and fell in love with it. I headed over to Michaels and found the grapevine wreath and a wooden plaque for about $6 total. I also picked up some wooden framed shapes for my other project. They were 99 cents each. So I took our collection and created these fun pieces of beach art.

Classic Paperbacks 1,000-Piece Puzzle -- Mommy Time Review

 

Disclosure: I was sent this puzzle in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

I haven't shared a puzzle in awhile. I have been holding onto this one because I was afraid it would take awhile. I brought it to our vacation house last week and actually finished it in two days. The puzzle is Classic Paperbacks 1,000-Piece Puzzle by Richard Baker. 

Favorite Colors--Mine is Pink! -- Activity Book Review & Fun Facts

 

Disclosure: I was sent a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

What is your favorite color? It is a question we often ask children and occasionally adults. My favorite color is pink, in case you couldn't guess. It always has been pink. Growing up my favorite flavors of ice cream were strawberry and bubble gum. I still love strawberry ice cream and strawberry cake. I believe Hazel's obsession with flamingos when she was little was because they are pink. It is her favorite color as well. Today I get to share one of the books in the My Favorite Color Activity Book Series. And, yes, I get to share My Favorite Color Is Pink illustrated by Mei Støyva.

Kyle's Little Sister -- Review of New Middle School Graphic Novel

 

Disclosure: I was sent a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own. 

Do you have siblings? Where do you fall in the order? I am the youngest of three girls. I went through my elementary school being called my middle sister's name and then in middle school one of the art teachers kept calling out my oldest sister's name for an end of the quarter review and when he finally used our last name I realized he meant me. He had never taken the time to learn my first name and my oldest sister is truly an artist so he remembered her. (She earned a degree in art.) So I can completely relate to today's book. The book is Kyle's Little Sister by BonHyung Jeong. It is a graphic novel for middle school ages (age 8-12).

Firekeeper's Daughter -- Powerful YA Novel with Native American Ties

 

Disclosure: I was sent a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

It is hard to find a contemporary story with strong Native American people in it. It is even harder to find a good one written by a Native American. Today I am sharing a powerful young adult novel that is just that. This book is definitely for young adults and older. There is sex, rape, drugs, violence, and swearing in it. However I found the story to be fascinating and learned some things about Native American life today that I did not know. The book is Firekeeper's Daughter by Angeline Boulley.