Whether you are a spouse, child, sibling, parent, or friend of someone with cancer, it is important that you never stop expressing your love. Showing how much you care is not only important on holidays and special occasions, but every day of the year. Here are a few simple and special ways to show a person with cancer that you care.
Crafts
Making a card
Cards are very easy to make, and you can decorate them any way you choose. You will need construction paper and any other supplies that you wish to use. Take a piece of construction paper (any color) and fold it in half. Keep it folded and decide which side will be the front. Here are some ideas for decorating your card:
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Using crayons or markers, write a message on the front and the inside of the card (for example, "I love you," "Get well soon," "I miss you," or anything you feel like writing).
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If you have glitter and glue, you can lightly draw a picture or design with the glue and then sprinkle the glitter over it. Once you have covered all of the glue, shake the extra glitter off. Be careful not to make a mess!
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You can use paints and paint a picture on the front of the card. You can use a paintbrush, or you can finger paint your picture.
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With help from an adult, you can trace different shapes on a separate piece of paper and then cut them out and paste them onto your card. You can also cut different pictures, shapes, and words out of a magazine and paste them onto your card.
Once you have decorated the outside of your card, let it dry if it needs to and then decorate the inside, too!
Memory book or photo album
You will need a few sheets of construction paper (any color), some yarn, a hole punch, and any other supplies you may wish to use. Decide how many pages you will want your book or album to be and use that amount of construction paper. Stack the paper in a pile and, using the hole punch, make 2 holes in one side of the stack of paper. One hole should be near the top and the other should be near the bottom. Then take 2 pieces of yarn and string 1 through each hole. Tie each piece in a knot or a bow and you now have a book or an album. You can put whatever you want to in your memory book or photo album. If you are going to use family pictures, you should ask an adult if it is OK first. You can also cut pictures out of magazines and newspapers. You can decorate your book or album in any way that you choose. For ideas, read the directions on how to make a card.
Tissue paper flowers
Cut squares of tissue paper (at least 10 sheets) and make them a little bigger than you'd like the flower to be. They can be different colors or all the same.
Stack the squares and make a crease down the center to create 2 rectangles. Take a pipe cleaner and wrap it tightly along this line so that the tissue paper gets cinched together. The tissue paper will look like 2 fans, or butterfly wings. Next, pull the tissue paper upward 1 sheet at a time until all the sheets are fanned out and you will have a beautiful flower. If you wish, you can spray the flower with perfume to give it a real flower scent!
Easy recipes
Cat's eyes
½ cup peanut butter
8 Ritz crackers
1 banana, cut into 8 slices
8 raisins
Spread peanut butter on crackers and top each with a slice of banana. Place a raisin in the center of each banana to form a cat's eye and repeat for all banana-topped crackers.
Cheese puffers
2 cups unbleached (wheat) flour
1 cup unsalted butter (2 sticks)
2 cups grated sharp cheese
4 cups Rice Krispies
Preheat the oven to 400° F (204° C). Cream the flour, butter, and cheese together in a large bowl. Add Rice Krispies and mix into a sticky dough. Using your hands, shape puffers into small balls. Bake until golden, about 10 to 15 minutes. Let cool. Makes about 4 to 5 dozen.
Chompin' chow
½ cup peanut butter
½ cup butter or margarine
6 oz. chocolate chips
10 cups Corn Chex cereal
2 cups powdered sugar
Melt peanut butter, butter or margarine, and chocolate chips in a saucepan over medium heat. Pour over Corn Chex and make sure that all cereal is coated. Put 2 cups powdered sugar in a large paper bag. Put cereal in bag and shake gently until all cereal is coated. Pour out onto wax paper to cool.
Chocolate no-bake cookies
½ cup butter
2 cups sugar
½ cup water
2 tablespoons cocoa
½ cup peanut butter
3 cups oatmeal or 1 cup coconut
Mix butter, sugar, water, and cocoa together, bring to a boil for 30 seconds. Remove from heat and add peanut butter and oatmeal or coconut. Drop onto wax paper and let harden.
Monkey cookies
1¼ cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
¼ tsp salt
1 cup sugar
2/3 cup butter or margarine, softened
2 eggs
2 bananas, mashed
1 tsp vanilla
Combine flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar in a large bowl and mix well. Add the butter or margarine and mix well. Then add the remaining ingredients and mix well. Drop by the teaspoonful onto cookie sheet and bake in a preheated 400°F (204°C) oven for 12 minutes. Makes about 3 dozen.
No-bake peanut squares
1 cup light corn syrup
1 cup sugar
1 cup peanut butter
4 cups corn flakes
4 cups toasted whole-grain oat cereal
1 cup peanuts
In a 2-quart pan, melt together just until smooth the first 3 ingredients, stirring constantly. Do not boil. Remove from heat. Measure the last 3 ingredients into a large bowl. Pour over peanut butter mixture. Stir, coating cereal and nuts. Spread in buttered large pan and let cool, then cut into squares and serve.
Painted heart sugar cookies
1 egg yolk
1 tsp water
Food coloring
Slice and Bake Sugar Cookie dough
In a small cup, mix the egg yolk and water, then add drops of food coloring until you've reached the color you want. Slice a roll of Sugar Cookie dough and place slices about 2 inches apart on a cookie sheet. Using a small, clean paintbrush, paint egg and water mixture on unbaked sugar cookies and then bake them according to the package directions.