Day 19: Backyardigan Style Letter Fun with Capital B

Hello hello Summer Soiree readers! (Don't you love that word "soiree"?!)

I'm Sky from Capital B and I'm thrilled to be a part of this series! I LOVE summertime!! Because my kids are so young, it's all the same to me, but I love being able to get outside with them. In fact, the project I chose to share with you today is a little something that will help you switch it up in your own backyard!

Last summer I got pretty tired of being on the receiving end of my son's water gun. So, I had the thought to create some simple targets for him to aim at instead! We enjoyed them so much and I've been excited for some new versions this year!

I used the Sweet Cakes Kit from Summertime Designs to cutesify some basic free clip art and simple letters that I'm helping my son to learn (M for Mom, G for Grandpa/ Grandma, D for Dad, etc.). If you want to create your own, anything that your child is interested in would work- the possibilities for what to aim at are endless! If you want a faster option, you can click the links below to download the animal and letter versions that I created. Then print on card stock!

Animal Water Gun Targets (preying mantis, bee, snake, bear and monsters)

Basic Letters Water Gun Targets (Mm, Dd, Cc, Gg, Rr)

Other materials you'll need:

clear Contact Paper

packaging tape

something solid and sturdy to adhere your targets to

(jugs or bottles of water, large buckets, tall wooden dowels, etc.)

Laminating the sheets also works great. This year, my friend suggested Contact Paper and I thought I'd try it since I haven't ever used it in a project before! It was easy to work with and cost $6 for the whole roll, which, you'll see, I have a ton of still! 

One of our favorite ways to play with our targets is a game called "Mr. Fox." I set the targets up all over the yard, then sit somewhere in the middle with my youngest son (who is too young to play along yet). My older little guy runs around asking "Mr. Fox, Mr. Fox, what time is it?" I respond with "Time to shoot the (insert specific target here)." So, if I wanted him to find the letter C, I'd answer, "Time to shoot the C!" and he would run around the yard until he found the right letter and shoot his water gun at that one. Repeat your requests quickly to keep them hopping! This is also fun on the tramp, with the targets perched all around.

I hope this is an idea you can use and enjoy yourself in one way or another! I also hope you'll visit me at Capital B and let me know you stopped by so I can come get to know you too! Thanks Aimee for the opportunity to participate and for your great blog! Happy Summer all!