Parent Projects

Sometimes it seems that the excitement and anticipation that builds around Christmas gifts can be even better than the presents themselves, especially for kids! My husband and I have many little nieces and nephews who already can’t wait for Christmas morning, a feeling I’m sure our new baby will share when he’s old enough to know who Santa Claus is.

Writing a letter to Santa was always a big part of the holiday build-up in my house. Sometimes the list would be endless (much to my parents’ chagrin!). Other times it would only include one super-special item…you know, something totally unattainable like a pony or a puppy, causing my parents to raise their eyebrows even more than they did the Christmas before! Regardless of whether or not my Christmas wishes were fulfilled by Santa, it was always fun to participate in the age old traditions surrounding the annual wait for his arrival on Christmas Eve.
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Halloween is the perfect time to take advantage of the FedEx Office^® services when making cute gifts for friends, family and teachers. Who wouldn't love a sweet gift of candy with these fun candy bar paper wraps? I designed wrappers for both large and small candy bars which would be great for the kids to give out to classmates at school Halloween parties.  

 

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Guest blogger Lynsey Purl is a senior communications specialist at FedEx Office®. She is a very creative mom of two and has previously blogged for Out of Office. 

As a mother of two, I am constantly struggling for creative crafts and gift ideas. My children absolutely love to color and their poor crayons are worn down to nubs. At ages five and two, they have flown through countless coloring books, the contents of which are proudly displayed on the fridge (and let’s face it, eventually tossed in the trash).

But why continue to stare blankly at random coloring book characters on your fridge when you can have a personalized piece of art at your finger tips? Creating personalized coloring books is a fun and easy way to entertain or yes, even educate your children. The books also make for a fantastic birthday gift that you can be certain no other child will bring to the party. No duplicate gifts here! (Hint- this is also great for helping younger children associate faces of family members and friends in a fun way. See, I said educational!) ...read more

We have a great idea for teachers to spruce up the classroom (or parents to use at home to educate or inspire). Window clings are a good way to utilize space and get noticed. It’s also an excellent way to prominently display everyday items such as classroom rules, daily task lists or schedules. 

In these money-conscious times I think that “staycation” vacations are becoming more popular. But it can be difficult to keep kids entertained during the long summer months. One thing I found to pass the time is a summertime scavenger hunt. Since my son is developing his reading skills, I used photos I took to accompany the words so that he can play the game and learn to associate the word with its matching photo. I also chose summer themed objects for him to find on our adventure – some that are kept inside the house and others kept outside. 

Everyone who sees my son does not believe he is 3 years old. In fact, for a year people have been telling me he is the size of a 5 year old! The doctor has placed him in the 99th percentile for height since he was 6 months old – and I wanted to keep track of my little beanpole!  I created a growth chart to measure his progress, but the paper one I received at his baby shower just wasn’t cutting it. I wanted to design something more durable and unique, something just for him.

I used Adobe® Illustrator to design my chart. I wanted to create something that he could use as he gets a bit older and his tastes change (for example his walls are now BRIGHT superhero red – a color he picked himself!)  I used many bright colors and bold shapes. (Tip: the ruler tool was very helpful in making an accurate scale.)
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Something you hear parents say on practically a daily basis is that their children grow up way too fast. It seems as though I blinked and my little man is turning 3 years old! Baby jungle animals are being replaced by superheroes and I am just trying to hold onto every moment I can.

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Guest blogger Lynsey Purl is a senior communications specialist at FedEx Office. She is a very creative mom of two, and recently transformed her four-year-old’s room using a FedEx Office product. She shares details with us below.  ...read more

Remember being a kid and the excitement you’d feel right before your family left for a vacation? It wasn’t just the anticipation of your destination, but the possibility of seeing so many new things from your backseat window along the way. For me, that excitement typically faded about an hour into our trip. By that time I was fidgety, a little car sick and definitely disappointed by the lack of exotic sites (which were, of course, right outside our city limits).

It comes as no shock to parents that children like to put things into their mouths. My son has even gone so far as to eat an entire puzzle at nap time! Since he likes doing puzzles – and some time has passed since the “incident” – I decided to make a homemade puzzle using a piece of his artwork. And because it is his own masterpiece, I think it will be easier for him to recognize how the final puzzle should look.

Here are the steps I followed to create my puzzle: