Be a Hero

This is the second page, or I should say pages, I ever made. It was with this project that I knew I was on a roll and having fun.

These pages are titled Be a Hero. In the bottom right hand corner, there is a fire station that lifts up to reveal a fire truck velcroed in place. The fire truck is interactive as you will see. The wheels are attached with brads so they can turn if the child wants them to.

Our Hero has a busy day ahead of them. The first emergency call is for the classic cat stuck in the tree. The ladder detaches from the fire truck so the kitty can be brought down safely. The cat is a finger puppet inserted into a large button hole in a tree.

As you can see, needlework is not my forte. I just dont have the patience for it.

The next stop is a four alarm fire at a house up the road. The fire rotates out on a brad from behind the house. The firetruck has a pocket in the middle of it where a 'hose' is stored. This is made from the handle of an old recycled gift bag that has seen better days. I sewed on thin strips of blue ribbon on one end to represent H2O.

After the fire is out, the flames can be rotated back under the roofline. 

Just down the road there is puppy stuck in well. (Wasn't there an old Lassie episode similar to this?!) Out somes the ladder again to save the puppy. Diego has nothing on our Hero.

The next call in is a response to a car accident. There is a bad accident. And a bad hair day. I told you that needle work was not my favorite. The medics are on their way but our Hero can reattach the tethered front wheel with Velcro.

This is a great time to briefly talk about the possibility of using Iron-On Transfers in your pages. The above photos show how it looks.

The Pros: You can choose whatever font or images you want applied to your project.

The Cons: The transfer paper on felt looks opaque, like Scotch Magic Tape. The paper is pricey ($15 for 5 sheets at Office Depot) and you have to remember that everything needs to be printed in reverse. This is easily done in Word. Type out whatever you wish, then pull up the print menu. Click on properties, then find the basics tab. Under orientation there is a button to click for mirror image. Done. I just saved you half an hour of pulling your hair out and a wasted sheet of transfer paper.

The final emergency is a blocked road. A lightening bolt has hit a tree and snapped a large branch which is now blocking the road. Never fear. Our trusty Hero opens the pocket in the fire truck and pulls out an axe. A few chops later and that velcro attached limb is out of the way.

We live in part of the country that is dubbed the lightening capital of U.S. We have daily thunderstorms in the late afternoons during the summer. This last emergency will have a ring of truth for my little ones. You can create emergecies that are common in your area. Floods? Forest fires? Anything that adds in an element of current events in your region will help bring the page to life for your little ones.