Fall in love with fall by doing these simple crafts with your kids! They'll have a blast (and you'll get free autumn decorations for your house.)

Gobble Gobble Turkey
Nature Notecards
Painted Pumpkins
Mini Maracas
Turkey Can Centerpiece

When I was little, I wanted a play kitchen so badly but I never got one. I’m not complaining, I wasn’t emotionally scarred or anything, but maybe it's not too late to fulfill my dream of flippin' toy pancakes over a fake stovetop. There are some instructions over on marthastewart.com that show you how to make a beautiful toy oven out of a cardboard box. Since I'm not crafty at all, I am sure my oven would look nothing like this. But is anyone out there up to the challenge? Send us a picture of the finished product -- we might feature it on the site!

Plus:
5 Creative Crafts for Kids
5 Adorable Food Toys
6 Super Science Toys

My wanna-be crafty self made a sock monkey for a friend’s new baby recently. And I thought I was very clever, using a cute green striped sock instead of the traditional brown and red sock-monkey sock. (Btw, I found the pattern here.)

I had a really good time making it, but I’ll be honest: Since I’m no genius with a needle and thread (though I proudly own a sewing machine in my little NYC apartment), it took me, oh, an entire three-day weekend to gather the materials and make the thing. That’s why I love these Monkeez from Colonial Candle (someone else made them!):

I mean, could they be cuter? Granted, they don’t have the lopsided-head effect of my homemade monkey, but adding the hat would have put me over the edge.

Yes, they’ll love the Peeps and the jelly beans, but you’ll totally make their Easter basket with something unique and handmade (hey, no one says it needs to be handmade by you). Check out some of these affordable picks from Etsy:

Bunny Slipper Baby Booties, $26

Bunny Finger Puppet Set, $12

Fabric Easter Baskets, $12

Organic Cotton Baby Hat, $25

Spring Bunny Wood Puzzle, $16

Silk Dyed Easter Egg Kit, $8

Necktie Applique T-shirt, $17

French Belle Dress, $27

Bunny Rabbit Earrings, $4.50

Photo courtesy of Zakka Life

Reason #756 why we love kids: they get really psyched about holidays, even the second-tier, don’t-get-a-day-off-school ones. We surfed the blogosphere to find the cutest, easiest crafts and foods to make with your kids, even if you don’t have a drop of Irish blood in you:

Jello Shamrocks from Zakka Life

Leprechaun Pudding from Gourmet Mom on the Go

Leprechaun Beard from French Knots

Shamrock Necklace from The Small Object

Shamrock Shirt from Once Upon a Holiday

Printable Shamrock Origami Paper from Tricia-Rennea