Bloomin Rewards

Today is day three with Joan Bardee and I am so excited about this post! I just fell in love with this idea and as a mother of four children this is just pure genius in my book. I can't wait to make a pot for my kids and I am thinking about a no homework flower pot for the teachers.

All Moms know that positive reinforcement of good behavior is a whole lot more fun (and often more effective) than punishments, right??? So, with that in mind, I decided to take advantage of the versatility of the JustRite Stamper and make a fun Pot of Rewards.

Each “flower” contains a reward — for this one, I selected “Your Earned a Sleepover,” “You Earned 1 Day with Dad,” “You Earned 1 Day with No Chores,” and “You Earned 1 Ice Cream Cone.” Obviously, you could choose rewards that fit your children's tastes and your family’s values. What fun to set this out as a centerpiece and explain to your kids how they get to win a “flower.” I see homework being done and beds made on time!! (Ok, my kid would still need much nagging, but he’s 17 and has outgrown “Pots of Rewards!”)

For this Pot of Rewards, I made 12 rewards, 3 each of 4 rewards. It is best to do this assembly line. Here is how I made mine.

1. Stamp the rewards with your JustRite Stamper on paper. To keep it easier, I used the same “You Earned” on the top of the flower so I wouldn’t have to create an entirely new saying for each flower. After stamping, tap the ink off onto a wet paper towel, and replace the lower words.
   
2. Stamp a center image. I used flowers, but you could use stamps that relate to the reward or you could have your kids color in a picture, or have your kids find pictures in magazines that fit the reward or gift.
   
3. Punch out the circles. I used a Small Circle Nestability Die. Punch out the scalloped circles — one in a color for you to place the center image on and other one (I used white) to cover the back of the stick and flower.
   
4. Add an embellishment to the center of each flower. Anything with texture will work, and again, if you are making these with your kids, consider gathering items from the yard or garden, glitter, chipboard, extra game pieces, tickets, etc. I used shiny brads from SEI and a variety of buttons.
   
5. I bought already stained craft sticks in the wood department of my local craft store (for some reason my husband thought this was crazy -- “Popsicle sticks in a wood area?” Hmm. I explained that craft sticks are many levels above the quality of a popsicle stick! You could use anything firm, but I was looking for easy, so went with pre stained.
   
6. I stamped the sticks with a design to add a little interest and wrapped each stick in polka dot ribbons, to coordinate with the flower pot.
   
7. Assemble the flowers — I used Scotch double sided tape and adhered the flower to the stick, then adhered the backing to the whole thing, making a nice finished look for the back of the flower.
   
8. Anchor the sticks with heavy glass beads in the pot and wrap the pot with some ribbon (using some double sided tape in the back to keep it from slipping)

This Pot of Rewards is perfect for a variety of occasions including Valentine’s Day (just change the “rewards” to ones you might give your husband!) or for Father’s Day, a birthday, etc. I’ve included some tips on how to get your kids involved in case you decide to make one for Dad.

You could also make a similar Pot, but not have it include Rewards. How about Bible verses, topics for dinner table discussions, your kid’s names (to pick who gets to sit where in the car!), etc. Really, the uses are limited only by your imagination because the JustRite stamper lets you stamp anything you want!

Keep us in mind....."When it needs to be JustRite".


Supplies:
JustRite Do It Yourself Monogram Stamper Kit Curlz Font with 3 Borders and Wooden Stamper; JustRite Small Letter Set for Round Monogram Stamper;
Papertrey Ink Stamper’s Select White Cardstock and Garden of Life Stamp Set;
Stampin Up! Yoyo Yellow, Lovely Lilac, Real Red, Pixie Pink, Ballet Blue, and Only Orange Classic Ink and Cardstock and Linen Thread;
Brads from SEI; Assorted Buttons from Oriental Trading Co.; Ribbon from Tsuruta Designs; Craft Sticks from AC Moore; A Stitch in Time from Clear Dollar Stamps; Black Staz On ink;
Mega Round Scallop Punch from Marvy Uchida (the pink one);
Small Circle Nestability Die and Wizard Die Machine from Spellbinders.