Remember this awesome faux gumball machine my BFF Linds made me?
 |
| (A tutorial can be found HERE) |
Well, after we ate all that sugary candy fruit, we filled it with 7 pounds of M&Ms.
 |
| (1/2 gone...) |
And then ate it ALL.
In a week.
And then it sat for a few months, empty. The problem with this is that I wanted to either (A) fill it with candy and eat, fill and eat, rinse and repeat, which would NOT help me lose weight, or (B) fill it with gumballs--which I don't even like, honestly. So candy sitting for months in the "machine" didn't bode well with me, either. And keeping it empty did no good and was a waste of a perfectly beautiful birthday gift.
Well, I FINALLY got inspired. That's the first time in a WHILE, craft-wise, so as soon as I thought through the details I went right to WalMart and bought 4 dozen ping pong balls and a Sharpie.
Oh, the magic that happens with a Sharpie! :)
So, I give you...my faux bubblegum machine centerpiece/conversation starter!
(Yeah, I should probably come up with a shorter name for it.)
ANYWAY, I just took those ping pong balls, and painted them in six different colors. Conveniently, the ping pong balls fit right into my plastic painting palette, so I could easily paint and dry them one half at a time.
Then I used the Sharpie to write a different question on each one. They actually normally sell colorful ping pong balls already, but WalMart was out of them and I was impatient...not to mention I already had the paint and the white ones were WAY cheaper. 48 questions, none too nostalgic so even kids can play along, to get conversation going around the dinner table.
If you're needing ideas, here are my 48 questions:
1.
What’s the verb you want to spend your life
with?
2.
If you could have any superpower, what would it
be and why?
3.
What would you do with a million dollars?
4.
If your life had a soundtrack, what are some of
the songs that would be on it?
5.
If you could vacation anywhere in the world for
one month, where would you go?
6.
Five of your favorite things?
7.
If you could have picked your own name, what
would it be?
8.
What is the funniest joke you know?
9.
What would you do today if you knew you were going
to die tomorrow?
10.
What fictitious character is most like you?
11.
What thought would you like to put in a million
fortune cookies?
12.
If your life had a remote control, which button
would you press most often?
13.
What do you (secretly) wish you knew how to do better?
14.
If you could take in any 3 animals as pets, what
would they be?
15.
What is your biggest “claim to fame?”
16.
If you could win a shopping spree to any store,
which would you choose?
17.
What do you want to be when you grow up?
18.
Do you (or have you ever) collected anything?
19.
If you were a punctuation mark, which would you
be and why?
20.
What are some of your biggest fears?
21.
Which TV family would you most like to belong
to?
22.
What would you like your famous last words to
be?
23.
What is the most common compliment people give you?
24.
If you could swim in a pool of any food or drink
item, what would you choose?
25.
Finish this sentence: “Love is…”
26.
Do you have any scars? How did you get them?
27.
What was the best day you’ve ever had?
28.
If you hosted a dinner party for 5 guests
(anyone goes), who would you invite?
29.
Would you rather live under the ocean or on the
moon?
30.
If you had three wishes, what would they be?
31.
What one work of fiction do you wish was true?
32.
Which friend (besides family) have you had the
longest?
33.
Who in your family are you closest to?
34.
If you could only eat one thing for the rest of
your life, what would you pick?
35.
Where do you see yourself 20 years from now?
36.
If they made a movie of your life, what genre
would it be? Who would play you?
37.
Who is/was your favorite pet?
38.
What is a favorite family tradition of yours?
39.
What is one thing you learned today?
40.
What do you think is the greatest invention of
all time?
41.
Would you rather be blind or deaf?
42.
What is your biggest pet peeve?
43.
If you were President for a week, what 3 laws
would you create?
44.
What is your favorite room in the house?
45.
If you were in a yearbook now, you would be
voted “Most Likely To ______”
46.
What sport do you enjoy playing/watching the
most?
47.
What item would you put in a time capsule for
someone to find 100 years from now?
48.
What about your life (to date) are you most
proud of?
You could modify this in a ton of ways, of course, which makes it even more fun.
AT HOME:
- This could be your "boredom buster" jar.
- You could write Sunday-appropriate activities on each ball and that could be your go-to place on the Sabbath.
- You could write a different chore on each one and have the kiddos pick different jobs to do.
AT SCHOOL:
- use these prompts as morning meeting starters
- creative writing/journal prompts
- reading response tasks
- alternative assessment ideas listed on each one...like instead of a book report, do this...
- "early finisher" tasks
- alternative to the popsicle stick names/jars
- use as a "prize box," with a different incentive/reward written on each one
The possibilities really are endless! I'm so happy that I have found a use for this adorable faux gumball machine that won't interfere with my weight loss goals. It is a TRUE CONVERSATION PIECE, and I am happy with the final result. :) I'm also happy to finally have something to show off, since I haven't had much of that lately. Here's to good things to come!
