Ladybug and bee table decorations sound just right for a picnic-themed birthday party! These little cute things will be displayed on red plaid tablecloth covered picnic tables, standing tall in burlap ribbon wrapped mason jars.

Birthday party decoration or not, these are a fun little summer craft. These ladybugs and bees make a fun little puppet, window decoration, fridge magnet, or room garland.

One of the most valued aspects of crafting to me is "do I have all of the supplies already at home?" And the answer to this one, was "YES!" You probably have all of the supplies too, whether or not you realized it!

You will need:

• Willing 4 year-old or older (the more the merrier!)
• Empty cereal boxes
• Black, Red, Yellow, and White-ish construction paper
• Wooden kabob skewers
• Kid-sized scissors
• Glue
• Pen
• Small Bowl for tracing

This ladybug and bee were made for a double birthday party for our son and niece. Possible picnic party menu: "ants on a log", watermelon on a stick, and dirt dessert topped with gummy worms!

Step 1:

Open your empty cereal box up all the way so it is laying as a sheet. Then trace your small bowl onto the paper as backing for your bugs. Your kiddos can cut out the circles as you finish them.

Step 2:

Trace the same sized bowl onto your black construction paper. I let my guys cut those out too. We made the bodies black and then added the colored pieces on to add more detail. For extra parts you need rounded yellow stripes, white-ish oval bee wings, red ladybug wings, and small black circles for dots. 

Step 3:

Lay your cereal box circle down first, glue on your wooden skewer, black bug body, then bug parts. Sandwich them together and press down firmly. Let dry and enjoy!

Tips: 

• Lay down a tablecloth or newspapers to prevent glue spills
• Give each kid a job (cutting can be done by an older kid and gluing can be done by someone smaller)
• Place out of reach to dry (which we are figuring out now)

It's so fun to craft with kids, especially the older ones who are more precise. This is a great activity for following instructions, teamwork, cutting with scissors, gluing, and there is still room for more creativity.

Would you make bug friends for your ladybugs and bees like; jewel beetles, ants, spiders, or butterflies? Once completed, maybe you could even go on a bug scavenger hunt with your new collection of critters!