Unfinished Projects

I have disappointed myself this week. I have so many unfinished projects and some near finished but not yet photographed. I lost a whole weekend working a trade show for my son's construction company. Then it took me several days to recover and be able to even think creative. Getting old sneaks up on you. Suddenly one day your simply too pooped to pop,and what can pop,also snaps and crackles.
So all I can show this week is an unfinished new Campfire Pit for my Etsy shop. I have added a couple of River birch logs to my new set. I need to finish the sticks with the removable marshmallows, and I think I'm going to add a yummy smore's,and a few other campfire foods to the set for a limited time.

Nearly completed.

The very first Campfire I designed.

I just think in this age of TV and video games that kids need more toys that make them use their imagination. I wonder sometimes if they will lose their ability to be creative. Having said this I must confess that my husband and I have fallen prey to the video game monster as well. We did spurge and buy an Xbox game system and a kinect. Strictly for medicinal purposes only. To get our lazy behinds up and moving.Yes you can find us many a night competing in bowling,table tennis and boxing.

I do hate to brag, but while I am not sportsy in any sense of the word, I remain undefeated in table tennis, and boxing(between my husband and myself). Sadly, I must admit my 15yr old grandson just recently beat me senseless in table tennis. If you haven't tried this game system yet you are missing out on something that young or old can enjoy together.

So I will finish this post with some goofy photos of the ones who make me smile and laugh out loud daily. Hopefully I will have more projects completed soon. We are preparing for our grandson's 8 yr old birthday party,in a pirate theme.....so....arrgghh...maties, I have loads to do!

He is always making us laugh

So happy I was lucky enough to catch this face on camera

Batman was so tired from a long day of dress up

We were shoe shopping,this is what we turned around and saw

I think he's saying go faster!

Someone wasn't ready for family photo day!

We just weren't sure he liked driving the boat with his Uncle

I've included this post over at Fab Friends Friday at a great blog called For the Love of blogs Go check it out and visit all of their Fab Friends!

Fun Paper Toys

My grandchildren know that I have a passion for Alice in Wonderland, and especially the Mad Hatter,but they also know how I get a kick out of the Bad Girls of Disney movies. My office is getting more and more crowded with little trinkets from my kids who now feed my passion for these fun characters.

What's not to love about these bad guys and girls!

When we went to Walt Disney World a few years ago I noticed a trend developing.It seemed I had collected, with the help of my daughter in law, a large amount of Villain Disney pins. I mean after all they do add the pizazz to their movies. They give the good guys a reason to be good.

In addition to these little goodies I'm slowing becoming over run with another fun passion and that's paper toys. I first discovered these a few years ago and began folding and gluing and making them for my grandson's. They just didn't seem to share the same love for them as I do. So I would put them in my office once they grew bored. Here are a few from my office I discovered on one of my favorite blogs, called How about orange.

These Paper toys are so much fun they make me smile every day when I walk into my office. There are always fun things to discover at How About Orange,from printable calling cards, to how to make a gift bow from a magazine page,to printable gift boxes. The paper toys below are the design of Marshall Alexander from his web site marshallalexander.net. There are even more to discover there than these little cuties.

http://www.marshallalexander.net/

 I have so much more to do right now with tax time just around the corner,but when I saw this new free printable calendar for my office I got excited. It's a Yeti calendar and is just too much fun. The Curiosity Group has launched a new calendar of the month and you can sign up to receive these each month. Just go to The Curiosity Group and download this fun calendar and sign up for the next eleven months to be sent to you by email. I can't wait to see next month's design.

Here is my latest discovery from the Disney family and the movie Tangled. She will be a great addition to my ever growing collection.

From http://family.go.com/

 If this isn't enough fun there is still another place to find free printable greeting cards,scrap booking papers,and paper toys. It's Hp.com. I have found so many photo frames, greeting cards,even recipe cards,and the best part is, it's all free! If I suddenly realize I've forgot a birthday card no problem,just click and print!

Another awesome place to find printable, ready to assemble paper treats is Canon Creative Park.
There you can find paper animals,toys,architecture,science related items,vehicles,and even bugs and plants.

Believe it or not this cathedral is from the architectural section. There are so many items to pick from it can be tough to narrow it down to which one. So there should never a boring snow day with all of these great web sites available at your finger tips.

Maybe I can find a small desk plant that will be impossible for me to kill in under a week.

A Candle Cozy

        Always a good feeling when you finally finish a project. I recently agreed to donate a prize to a wonderful blog that I have enjoyed for quite some time,called Whimsy-girl.
She had asked her readers on her face book fan page if anyone would be interested in donating a prize to her monthly craft night. So I thought why not! After all the wonderful and creative ideas she has shared with her readers it seemed like a small thing to do.

Her Pipe Cleaner Tiaras,or as I call them Kings Crowns since I have boys. Several of our company parties I have sat with the children of our employees and made the girls pink and silver crowns,and black and gold kings crowns for the boys. We even got super creative and added beads and then hot glued jewels for an extra pizazz.

So I thought and thought and of course could not think of a single idea of what to make. Then it hit me maybe something for Valentines Day. I was in the middle of finishing my table runner for my coffee table when I decided to make a candle cozy.Sort of like a little rug or coaster for a candle.

The blurred edge is from trying to remove the date from the picture

A close up of the unfinished table runner

 So I decided to add some of my favorite items to the cozy, candy....or felt candy to be exact. After all what's Valentines Day without candy. This way it's low calorie and decorative. I plan to make others using other felt food,like cinnamon rolls with a cinnamon candle,or cookies and a cookies and cream candle. Well that may just be torture to those of us trying to diet, or trying to start to diet.

Photography sometimes boggles my mind,I still struggle with every shot.

Finished candle cozy

So it's off to the post office tomorrow.Thankfully the roads are now clear, and from the recent weather report it could be just a lull before the next snow storm. I sure hope whoever wins this prize enjoys it as much as I have enjoyed my visits to Whimsy-girl blog.

A Yummy Gift For Me

 With all the running, cleaning,decorating,and now gathering tax info for work,I am just plain bone tired. So I mustarded up the energy to put away many of the wonderful gifts I received for Christmas. I tend to leave them in a bag for a while, it makes the holiday's last a little longer for me. When the hustle and bustle is over I can open my bag again and enjoy each item. I don't ever want to grow up,or old for that matter!
 I'm hoping now I will have some time to relax, and read,watch movies,and even enjoy a hot bath with some of the best soaps that I bought for myself. A nice winter snow storm would be awesome right now.An after Christmas, Merry Christmas to me,falalala!

Sunbasil Garden  soaps are so beautiful, and just such fun! A real feast for all the senses, to coin a phrase! I had been enjoying all of her photos on my face book page for some time and when the holidays approached I thought what a perfect stocking stuffer for everyone.

Creme Brulee GRANDE Soap

Lemon Squares Soap

Pomegranate Paradise Salt Bar Soap-BEST SELLER

Creamsicle Soap

 I have found a zillion more that I must have. I love all of the colors,so bright and vivid. I call myself a Crayola person. A big box of 64 has always been a treat to me and still is,and her color choices are so attractive.Eye candy for sure. Everyone has certain scents that they love,that brings back wonderful memories. Scents and colors can be relaxing and healing,science has shown us that. For me it's citrus. Second to citrus is peach and mango. Now add in my favorite dessert in the whole world,Custard pie and I am in heaven.

Well if you're like me and are trying to lose "the annual weight" and are avoiding yummy comfort foods,here's some delicious soaps that could hold you over.....until you cave and give up ( or maybe that's just me). Well lets see today is the 9th of January,yep I'm about ready to cave and eat a creme brulee,or an apple strudel. Now that's sad because I haven't really started dieting yet...ha ha.

Apple Strudel Bon Bon Soaps-Final Sets for 2010

Now seriously who wouldn't go crazy for a cupcake soap like this on Valentines day. It really could make bath time a lot easier for kids who always put up a fuss. Oh maybe I should tell her to make some Super Hero soaps ,or Lego's soaps that my little grand kiddo's would go crazy over.

Sweetheart Cupcake Soap -NEW

Water Ice soap

Well I think I may have found one the boys would love, bright blue Water Ice soap! She makes all of these look so real and yummy. I have had a blast with the ones I kept for myself....and I kept more than I had originally planned to.

Ice Princess Soap- ON CLEARANCE

Right now she is having a clearance sale in her Etsy shop. Follow the link and start checking out her products. You will be amazed at the choices she has. I know one of my favorite things to do is surf Etsy and especially Sunbasilgarden.

Gift Wrapped Chocolate Kisses

With Valentines Day just peeking over the horizon I thought I would share a quick and easy craft. This such a sweet way to give a little treat to friends, family....co-workers....or just about anyone. Maybe even your bank teller or school teacher would enjoy one of these teeny, tiny, Hershey Kisses delivered to them on Valentines Day or any day.
I must apologize to whoever gave me this pattern and idea nearly 10 years ago. I have used it zillions of times.I lost my original pattern in our move two years ago and had to redraw it from memory.

http://mail.aol.com/33069-111/aol-6/en-us/mail/get-attachment.aspx?uid=27693420&folder=NewMail&partId=1&saveAs=20110105132744088.pdf

First cut out the pattern. Then select the type of card stock you want to use. This is where you can decide,do you want to use it for a holiday,a birthday,or just to make someone smile.

I hope the above address will give you the exact pattern size

Draw the pattern on the back side of your chosen paper and cut it out. At this point you will need to fold up each side,making a nice crease with a bone folder or your finger nail.

Sometimes I use the black papers for the fellas,and of course there's glitter on the paper.

Then just place your little chocolate kiss inside and add glue to the tabs to close them up.

These make great party favors too. I wish now I had made some with a ribbon tied at he top to show you. They look really cute if you punch a tiny hole at the top and thread a ribbon through to close. I forgot to add the tiny piece of paper I usually add to the top like the Hershey Kisses have poking out. You can type of hand write a blessing or a funny saying for them to discover when they open it.

How cute would these be hanging on a Christmas tree,or used as an advent treat each year. So many ideas for these, just be creative.Let me know what you come up with.Email me any photos you might have if you try them for yourself. Think how many smiles you could give away with a whole bag of chocolate kisses and a few pieces of card stock. Certainly is an affordable gift idea. Let me know what you think.

How fun would this be if you could use a photo or a business card.....Hummm...I may have to try that!

Pennies from Heaven

For many, many years I have diligently kept a dish for all of the coins I find on the ground. At the first of each year I remove all of the coins and tally up how much I've found. To me it's like pennies from heaven,and sometimes nickles,dimes and quarters dropped down from heaven too. I have seen a slight difference in this latest economy.....fewer coins,especially quarters.

 So this year I added it up and I discovered I have a whooping $1.59. I know, I know.... whatever will I do with all of this money. But it's not about that. It's about the thrill of the find. I can not walk by a coin on the ground and leave it. Well that's not totally true,I will if it's tails up. This all may sound goofy but there are rules to this science.
I just have an odd feeling about picking up a coin that is tails up. It's rather like defying the good luck balance of the whole system. I will however give it a good kick and see if it will flip over. If after two kicks it doesn't flip over I will have to walk away.Rules are rules!

9 cents already this may be a good year after all!

 It's all fair game if it's a nickle or higher is on the ground.I haven't given it much thought as to what the difference is. Maybe bad luck just won't stick to a higher denomination of coin. Oh who am I kidding,It would just be insane to not pick those up,and until just now I hadn't ever wondered if I was insane.The jury may still be out on this issue.

I also have a secret about something I like to do on my birthday( which was in November). Each year I like to write down three birthday wishes on a piece of paper. Then I fold it up and tape it to the under side of a drawer, or in a place out of sight,so it will be forgotten until next year. Since wishes are free you could ask for as many you want. I just prefer the old traditional Jeanie in a bottle set of three wishes.

Last year's wishes and this year's before it was hidden away

 On your next birthday remove the paper and read the three wishes. I have sat there and looked at that paper before with the most perplexed look on my face. Wondering what on earth I was thinking I wanted that particular item for. Sometimes after realizing that item has come and already gone within that year,and it really wasn't all that grand to start with.

It makes you realize how silly some of our desires really are. You know the"I can't live without it" item. Also I have realized that once the item has come into my life and gone,(usually in a yard sale) what the big deal was all about.

As I get older I have started to notice that my usual selfish wishes have turned to more of prayers for family and friends. Things just don't seem to hold the same value or importance it had when I was young, and thought I had forever. So even though it is a silly trivial thing to do, it has opened my eyes to how fleeting desires are. Who knows someday I might even out grow the whole process.....but not until I get an Ipad.Whew! I guess I'm not as insane as I thought.

Oh and for a totally unusual, but fun thing to do pertaining to our US currency. Here is a web site I discovered in Real Simple Magazine. www.wheresgeorge.com. You can put in the serial number of any $1 bill and see where it has been.The process it is rather new so not all bills have been added to be  tracked. Once you put in yours you give them an email address and you will be notified when it is found again and where.
You can also find them on face book. I think this could be a lot of fun in a school class room too. One lady on face book commented that two years ago she put in her $1 bill and it just turned up in Guam. If only these bills took talk what stories they could tell.

Crazy Hat Fun

This year we were excited that as a family we were able to be together on New Years Eve,well most of us. There were still several members that couldn't attend and were missed greatly. I don't think we have ever all been together on New Years Eve in all of my adult years, and that surprises me even now as I write this.

I have always lived away from my home town,away from my parents and siblings. So this was a real treat to have a family party on such a festive night. We had family in from Florida and from Arizona, and I think they brought unseasonably warm temperatures with them. Instead of our usual cold, frozen white holiday,we had 58 degrees. The kids loved it, and were able to run and play outside in light weight jackets. Crazy weather,fun crazy family so it makes sense the theme of the night would be a Crazy Hat Party.

It was a lot of fun to see all the different hats,some homemade some store bought.
At our family Christmas party this year we played a game I came up with called How Well Do We Know Each Other Trivia Game. I had each family member send me 3 questions and answers of topics that may not be commonly know about them. I didn't play, I read the questions and answers to everyone else. It was so funny to realize that even though we are a close knit family,we still have so much to learn about each other.
So now seeing each persons hat design whether made or store bought, was a fun insight. I think kids enjoy any activities that combine a common game or adventure with all ages. Young and old participated and made the night great.

My brother's nostalgic political hat

My niece in her colorful store bought hat

My grandson made his out of Legos....A genius idea

After the evening was over I realized I had missed many hats and photo opportunities. It is a tough job to sit and visit with family, catching up and remember to take photos. This I often fail at. I can start out great and then spend the rest of the evening trying to find where I've left my camera.

Even my 81 year old Father got into the spirit of things

This is what happens when one forgets their hat!

Even my 81 yr old Dad got into the whole theme of the party with his chefs hat. After all he is the
Head Chef of our annual popovers at Christmas. The kids were really into the fun of it all. My 15 yr old grandson made an entire hat of Legos. I wish I had photographed it from the side because he made it hollow like a hat would be ,and it had a bill in the front.

The star adds a little extra something I think

My hat was a giant cupcake. I made the cupcake paper out of the inside of a light bulb box. I glued it onto an old baseball cap,with a pink wool sweater as the cupcake. The whipped cream was white felting wool and a metal red Christmas bell for the cherry.

My Daughter-In veiled hat had a real pizazz to it

Oh yum! Lo-Cal Cupcakes my favorite

My husbands hat was designed around a long standing joke. We tease him about all the trivial knowledge he has gathered in his life,from traveling and being a vast reader. We really can't play Trivia Pursuit any more, because he always wins. So I took an old ball cap and glued definitions and quotes to it with some scrapbook stickers. He got a real kick out of it and so did the family.

My husbands hat which was full of knowledge and laughs

A clever way to turn a headband into a hat.

Two cousins being goofy

Birthday hats and uptown cowboy perhaps

 

 

 

The important thing is we made memories. Fun, happy memory's of letting down our guard and just being goofy. I think that's what being together is all about.


So here's to 2011......and to memory's, may we all make some everlasting ones together!