diy : love for the birds

Today I want to share a cute project me and the girls did the other day. It’s a sweet one to teach the little ones just how it’s necessary to show Love all around us even in nature ~ and this time the little birdies get a special treat. A craft diy that gives Love for the birds.

You’ll need a few simple ingredients: aluminum foil, heart shaped cookie cutters (or any shape will do ~ but the hearts are extra special wouldn’t you say?), pork lard (the real 1 ingredient lard – not a Crisco product or any other ‘lard’ that is mixed with preservatives and toxins), a mix of bird seeds, natural twine (I love this one from hemp), scissors, bowl, mixing spoon and a large tray.

First you need to melt the lard over low heat in a dry pot. Decide if you want a big batch or a small one to make a few feeders. I melted the whole container of lard and made way too much of the mix. You can melt about 1/2 cup and mix that in with 1-2 cups of birdseeds – and that should be a good batch for some fun.

Before you invite the kids over for playtime, prep the cookie cutters by wrapping the bottom with aluminum foil. As shown:

The girls had a blast! Make sure you give them a bowl of melted lard that’s already cooled slightly. Supervise the mixing and just watch the excitement!

Spoon into the prepared hearts until evenly covered.

I went in a drizzled some of the lard over to set the shapes better. And then took them outside into the cold (we do have a real winter now) to set completely.

Pierce the centre with a stick or a chopstick and feed the twine into the hole and tie on top.

Get outside, hang on a few branches and just wait for the hungry birds….

This was a lot of fun and the hearts look beautiful ~ while we still have some ;) Here birdies birdies….. we have some Love for you!

You do need a colder winter climate to do this project ~ so my friends down in the South – it’s a toughie for you, for once – we get to have more fun ;)

Speaking of pork lard. Gross. I do not eat animal products, however I realize this could be a bit hypocritical of me, as I am calling myself a semi-vegan and here I go using lard in a project. My family still eats meat and I do purchase meat and meat products for my family – although never lard to actually eat (only my mom thought it was a waste and she would have enjoyed putting some of that into her mouth ;P yuck.) So I do not buy this product as a food for us but for the birds. Still, I do hope I’m not offending anyone in the vegan community. I have researched that animal fats, such as lard provide great nutrients for some wild birds especially in the winter, see more info here.

Whether you’re for or against the support and/or consumption of animal products, the point is that birds are not vegan and will enjoy this beautiful bounty that will energize them and keep them warm.

Hope you’ve been having a Love-ly Valentine’s week!