Handmade party treat bags for kids

Yummy-looking heart crayons ...



... plus tiny dinosaurs ...

... in handmade paper sacks = party treats for the preschooler set.

Now, I know dinosaurs and hearts don't usually go together, but in this case I needed a couple things that would appeal to both girls and boys in my son's preschool class.

First, I asked my four-year-old son whether he would help me make the party sacks. I wasn't sure how we would make them, but it had to be something he could do and I didn't want to use tape (too messy and ugly) or staples (too dangerous for little kids). We settled on pink and lime green rice paper (I had lots left over from my wedding!), which we then "hand-stitched" together using contrasting ribbon.



It took us a few sessions to finish 30 bags, but my son was so enthusiastic about the project that he never complained. He just really loved the idea of giving his school friends something he had made.

Then, it was my turn to do a little project I had been wanting to do for a while.

For months, I have been waiting patiently for just the right occasion to make melted crayons. I'm not sure what the appeal was, but I have always loved crayons, even the smell. I've seen these melted crayons many times in round muffin shapes, but really wanted to make them in this heart-shaped pan I had found for 99 cents at the thrift store.

The hardest part was peeling off the paper wrappers. Sometimes, they would slide right off the crayons, but other times, I found myself struggling, wondering why I ever got myself into such a mess. It did feel good, however, to put to use all the broken bits of crayons I'd been saving.

I decided to stick with two colors for each crayon so that the kids could have two colors on each crayon and, well, because I thought they looked prettier. Think of what happens when you blend too many colors while painting. The colors turn muddy brown. I sure didn't want that to happen to these crayons.

Yum! Don't they look like candy? I guess I can't blame my two-year-old daughter for wanting to eat them. Here's my son handing out the bags during the party at his school:

Each bag had a tiny dinosaur, a crayon and a page of dinosaurs for them to color. I had originally wanted also to include a copy of a dinosaur poem, but couldn't find the book at the last minute.

Yaay! My daughter actually did some coloring with these heart crayons, not just try to put them in her mouth.

She actually began using the crayons right after the party and, since then, often pulls them out just to look at them, as though they are her little treasures.