The Owl and the Peacock: Crafts - for crying out loud!

I am always trying to find fun things to do - that entertain my girls for longer than 30 secs, and that don't require a massive clean up afterwards! Keeping in mind that I have 2 fairly young girls on my hands, I feel my options are limited. Ok, so what you need to know is that I really love tapping into my creative side, I find it quite therapeutic. BUT...when I attempt to do crafts with my girls, I feel I need therapy when it's all done. Take yesterday's project for example. One of my less inspired ideas, necklace making. I know, what was I thinking, small beads in tiny hands - and mouths - not to mention our old home has a slant to it. [At least the beads all roll to the same spot on the floor]

The plan: The girls would sit happily and make their own necklaces, while I would create personalized aprons for them with iron on transfers. We would laugh, sing songs while we crafted and it would be a great bonding experience.
Reality: Beads on the floor, the girls fighting over beads, and lot's of "MOMMY I MEED[sic] HELP!", "Mommy, MOMmy, MOMMY!!". I promptly looked at the clock. Sadly it was too early to pour myself a glass of wine.

We all pushed through, picked the beads up off the floor, wiped away the tears (mine included) and finished the necklaces together. While they were enjoying their new jewelry, I was able to finish making their aprons. Yes it was chaotic, yes it was loud, and yes it was fun (just look at their faces).

Here are some pics from our crazy crafts!