George and I have been doing a lot of projects around the house: making a mess, making waffles, and making a flying car. I love working with hot glue and upcycling all of the cardboard that gets delivered to the house. Online retailers just give you the cardboard for free!

With my silicone fingertips on hand, George and I designed and built a flying car using free cardboard. It was one of those designs that evolved over an afternoon. We kept adding little details and features as we built. We added a license plate, lights, wings, a control panel, and a wireless speaker engine.

I found an engine simulator app on the Google Play Store. This app was perfect to be used as the control panel. You could switch gears and rev the engine. The app plays the engine sounds on the wireless speaker connected over Bluetooth and adds to the overall experience.

As usual, I have some tips:

Don’t worry about mistakes. You probably have a lot of cardboard sitting around. You can just make a new part.

Involve your little one. I let George in on the design. We talked it through at the beginning and I tried my best to accommodate his ideas as we build the car. try the, “Yes, and…” technique. Enjoy the process.

Protect your fingertips. Hot glue is… hot. I like using silicone fingertip protectors. They have saved me more than once while working with glue.

Use a drywall jab saw for cutting cardboard. I find a serrated saw is better than a utility knife and way safer. With a jab saw, you are much more deliberate with the cuts and can also make shapes. A drywall jab saw is also really handy for pumpkins. Pro-tip.