Wreath Bird Feeder

Posted by Nicole Carney on Dec 20, 2013 in Christmas Activities, Gift Ideas, Picture Book Activities, Winter Activities, Winter Picture Book Activities | 0 comments

We were browsing at our local farmer’s market last weekend, when I came across a vendor selling winter bird feeders in the shapes of stockings, wreaths, and other festive motifs. They reminded me of the spring bird feeders M and I made over a year ago, and I thought to myself, I could totally make those! So, a few days later, we did :).

Stranger in the Woods

Before making our winter bird feeders I read Stranger in the Woods, by Carl R. Sams II & Jean Stoick, to my bugs.

This story is unique in that it uses wildlife photography to capture the reactions of different animals to a snowman in the woods. The reason why I thought this story tied in nicely to making our own winter bird feeders is because the children in the story decorate the snowman using food the animals can eat such as nuts, seeds and a carrot nose. I explained to the boys that some birds fly south for the winter, while other birds stay here. The snow makes it more difficult for them to find food so, by making our bird feeders, we are helping them out.

Materials:

Bundt Pan
Cooking Spray
4 packets of Knox gelatin
1 1/3 cups of water
4 cups of birdseed
Cranberries (I used Craisins, but I think frozen cranberries would look way prettier)
Ribbon

Wreath Bird Feeder

First I dissolved 4 packets of gelatin in 1 1/3 cups of water, brought it to a simmer, then removed it from the heat.

Next, I mixed in 4 cups of birdseed.

M sprinkled some Craisins into the bottom of the bundt pan, which had been sprayed with non-stick cooking spray, and then I spread the bird feed mixture over top.

M poked a few more Craisins into the top of the wreath and I popped it into the fridge to set for about 2 hours.

When it was ready, I flipped the bundt pan over onto a cutting board and let it sit for a few hours, before tying a ribbon through the wreath and finishing it off with a big, festive bow.