Christmas card books

I love Christmas cards, both sending and receiving.  They are on display the moment they arrive at my house, and they are usually the last bit of Christmas decorations that come down. 

For the past few years, I've been saving the cards rather than throwing them out. I'd bundle them up with a rubber band, slap on a post-it denoting the year, and tuck them into a small storage tote.  But those days are over. 

I found a better way to store them on Pinterest:  punch holes in the cards and secure them with clasping rings to make a fun Christmas card book.  This idea is from Michelle Allen at Close to My Art, and it's a brilliant one! 

I took it a step further and made a front cover for my Christmas card book.  The snowflakes were made using a Martha Stewart Crafts punch, and the year is stamped on.  So crafty!

The clasping rings I got for this project are too big, but I'll swap them out for some smaller ones before I tackle this year's cards.

Using two hole punches was sufficient for the cards.  Now I have all the cards, pictures and even Christmas letters secure for next year. 

To include the Christmas letters, I folded them in half with the writing on the outside. This way I can turn the page and not have to undo the clasping rings to read the whole letter.

I am really happy with how this project turned out. It was really easy to do, and the clasping rings only cost about $0.50 each at my local Ace Hardware.  This is going to make a great coffee table book for next year!

Manda Monday--Merry? Very!

The television-turned-puppet-theater is a hit!  Little Guy performs productions using many of the 28 puppets the kids received yesterday, while Little Miss has commandeered it as her very own playhouse.  Project Sony was a total and complete success!

We had a great Christmas, and I hope you did, too!  

Puppet Masterpiece Theater

A year ago, Handy Freddy and Big Guy brought home a huge TV left on the street by a neighbor.  It didn't work very well, so it sat in our basement for quite some time.  My idea was to have Handy Freddy gut it and turn it into a puppet theater for the kids.

Fast forward to November: Little Guy was sick and laying on the couch and said to me, "Mom, do you know what would be cool? A television that I could climb inside and do puppet shows."

Jaw. Hit. The. Floor. "Wow, what a great idea! That would be really cool!"

Little Guy has actually been inside a huge television doing a puppet show before.  It was last November, when the Jim Henson exhibit came to the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago.  The exhibit included a huge television that could fit a dozen or so kids, plenty of puppets, backgrounds and costumes, and small television monitors inside the larger stage television so the kids could see their production as the audience saw it.  It was an awesome exhibit and a fun experience. Little Guy talked about it for days.

Now, in all fairness, I might have mentioned the possibility of turning the broken television into a puppet theater once to the Little Guy over the summer.  I truly don't remember.  It could be that he remembered the Jim Henson exhibit and wanted to recreate the experience--after all, Little Guy is very into puppets and play acting.  I do know that I decided that this should be the big Santa gift sometime in the fall, and it certainly wasn't discussed with the kids past that. 

So whether Little Guy came up with the idea on his own, or remembered that I said something about it months ago, this gift is obviously going to be a hit.  He even asked the Blackberry Farm Santa for a "television he could climb inside and do a puppet show in."  Score!

Handy Freddy gutted the television last month, and I spray painted the inside over the past few weeks. It took several coats of white primer and a few coats of color to get it smooth and even.  MOM2 made cushions and curtains for the theater in coordinating fabrics.

The above picture shows the fabric, but the curtains aren't in yet. They'll be held up by a tension rod just inside the frame of the television. Everything will be fully assembled tonight. 

Little Guy has also been asking for elf and reindeer puppets.  Done and done!

The elf puppets are from the Fiesta Toy Company.  I looked all over for handmade elf puppets, but had no luck.  Luckily, I found some adorable reindeer puppets on Etsy.  These are from Val's Various Creations, and she did an amazing job with them.  Lovely Val even sent a nice note with the puppets, saying she hoped my kids enjoy them.  I am sure they will, Val!

Needless to say, I am so excited for this Christmas, maybe even more so than my kids!  Little Guy is going to get exactly what he asked for from Santa, and I am so happy that I can give it to him.  I realized this does leave Little Miss out a bit, though she loves playing with puppets just as much as Little Guy does.  Little Miss is still too young to understand everything, and since she is still mostly babbling she hasn't made any specific Christmas requests.  I hope that they both love this puppet theater, and maybe next year when Little Miss is speaking clearly I can make a wish come true for her as well.

And I owe a huge thanks to Handy Freddy and MOM2 for helping me make this very special request become a reality. Thank you! 

Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Joyful Kwanzaa, Happy Holidays to all.  Whatever you celebrate, I hope all of your dreams and wishes come true.  Have a wonderful holiday!

Christmas wishes

We've seen Santa Claus twice this season. The first time was at Blackberry Farm's Polar Express event. 

We immediately stood in line to see Santa, only to have Little Guy chicken out when it was almost our turn.  We rode the train a dozen times, saw Santa's sleigh, attended a reading of The Polar Express and finally worked up the nerve to see the Jolly Old Elf.

Little Guy delivered his Christmas letter (that's what Mrs. Claus is reading) and told Santa he wanted a television set he could climb inside and do puppet shows.  Santa said that was a very unusual request and that he'd have to get some special elves to work on it. 

We saw another Santa at Phillips Park Zoo.  There, the Little Guy asked Santa for elf and reindeer puppets.  Just an FYI: Little Miss is not yet talking coherently (at least, we are the only ones who can understand her language), so while she babbled away to Santa, we really have no idea what she asked for.  Let's hope it wasn't a pony, because that's not going to happen.

But what is going to happen is the television-turned-puppet-theater with the elf and reindeer puppets.  I'll give you the details tomorrow!

Last minute gift ideas

Christmas is only three days away...are you ready?  I have only one more gift to purchase, and I know exactly what it is so I'm not freaking out.  I do, however, know several people who are freaking out.  If that's the boat you're in, have no fear. Here are some super-duper last-minute Christmas ideas that are easy to buy and won't break the bank:

For her: gift certificates for manicures/pedicures.  You can't go wrong with this!

For him: new gloves, hat, scarf and a super-fancy heated windshield scraper. Cozy, yet technologically advanced. Win!

For kids: board and card games.  In a world where too many kids are plugged in too early and for too long, an old-fashioned board or card game is a nice break. How about a poker set?

For the couple:  chocolates and champagne.  No need to say more.

For the family: a family-friendly movie, popcorn, candy and a six-pack of high-end root beer.  Instant family movie night!

Need to buy a bunch of gifts?  My advice is to pick a theme and shop at a quality department-type store.

For example, let's say you are exhausted with all of this Christmas preparation and craziness. All you want to do is sleep, am I right?  THERE'S YOUR THEME!  There are lots of great gifts out there (for kids and adults) that relate to "sleep":

Pajamas (these are especially fun for kids)
Fancy sheets
New pillows
Fun and functional alarm clocks
Nightlights (again, especially fun for kids)
Cozy bathrobes
Throw blankets
Stuffed animals (for kids)
Night time reading materials (for kids or adults)
Slippers

Any of these items can be easily found at any major store, and at affordable prices. 

Here's another theme (and one of my favorites)....the kitchen!
What kitchen gifts would be suitable for a wide variety of people?

Cookbooks (good for kids and adults)
Popcorn maker (include popcorn and seasonings)
Blender (include drink mix)
Aprons
Food gift basket
Food kit--think cake pops, cupcakes, cookies, etc.
Platters and serving dishes
Vases and centerpieces
Tablecloths and placemats
High-end kitchen gadgets, such as a rotary cheese grater, omelet pan, food processor, etc.

Again, these are all items that can be purchased on a budget in any department-type store. 

Get an idea, make a list, check your budget and then get to the nearest store that suits your needs. Grab everything, check your list, make your purchases and go home to wrap.  At this point in the game, there's no reason to spend any time stressing out over what to get for whom...Christmas is right around the corner, and there are better things you could be doing with your time.  Such as sipping a nice Riesling while watching Miracle on 34th Street for the millionth time. 

And if all these ideas aren't working for you, head to Walgreen's or CVS and get everyone on your list a Chia pet.  Everyone loves those things!

Martha Monday--Whoopie!

Whoopie! Christmas is almost here, making it the perfect time for Christmas Whoopie pies. Yum!

I followed Martha's directions for chocolate Whoopie pies. For the filling, I whipped up a quick buttercream (one stick butter, 3 cups powdered sugar, 2 tablespoons milk...more or less) and added 2 teaspoons of peppermint extract and pink food color.

To up the peppermint flavor, I rolled the sides in crushed candy canes.

Martha's recipe claims to make 24 sandwiches, but I easily got 27...and as you can see, these were huge Whoopie pies!  The next time I make this recipe, I'll halve the ingredients and make smaller cookies for the sandwiches to make the Whoopie pies more bite-size.

These chocolate-peppermint Whoopie pies are a great offering for a Christmas party.  If you have the time (because we all have oodles of spare time just before Christmas, right?) and need a show-stopper dessert for a party, give these Whoopie pies a try!

Handmade at its best!

Little Guy gave me some handmade gifts he had created at preschool.  I am a sucker for this kind of thing and I immediately melted! Take a look:

He even made the gift wrap.  Love it.

It's a sled ornament!

Little Guy also made this penguin ornament, complete with his thumbprints for the penguin's feet.

Finally, there was one last gift that he put a lot of time and effort into...

It's a framed picture, and he decorated the frame. It had magnets on the back so it immediately went on the fridge.  Darling! 

After a ridiculous amount of 'oohing' and 'aahing' over his obvious artistic talents by this impressed Mommy, my Little Guy proudly hung his ornaments on the tree. 

I just love, love, love stuff like this.  These ornaments will be on my Christmas tree for as long as I have one, and after that I demand to be buried with them.  Sniffle.

Thanks so much to my son's preschool teacher, and to all teachers, who help their students make gifts for their parents for Christmas and other special holidays and occasions.  This truly made my day. 

Martha Monday--Oooo, sparkly!

Inspired by Pinterest, I decided to get my holiday craft on with Martha Stewart's glitter and some old Christmas light bulbs to make a fun, festive, and frugal centerpiece.

I bought the glitter (on clearance!) and the glittering glue (with a coupon!) at Michael's. I'd never really glittered anything, save for grade school art projects, so I bought the smallest bottles of glitter in case the whole thing turned out to be a big, sparkly disaster. I will say this to the good people at MS Crafts: Glitter is intimidating!  Put some directions on these things!

Fortunately, I got an astonishing number of those huge Christmas light bulbs from a coworker for free.  Most were dead by the time I received them so they were perfect for the project. 

The glittering glue comes with a brush inside the container. I simply brushed a coat of the glue on...

And then covered the thing with glitter.  I did this over sheets of waxed paper so when I was done with a color I could pour the excess glitter back into the jar. Less waste!

Not that I have a lot of experience with glitter, but I have to say the texture and colors of MS Craft glitter is amazing.  I doubt my pictures do it justice, but trust me when I say these colors are incredible!

I made 12 bulbs with each color, and that only took up half the jar.  My estimate is that you could do 22-24 large bulbs with one small vial of glitter.  A little bit goes a long way.

Once the bulbs were glittered, I began preparing the vessel. The outer vase is from Wal-Mart and cost less than $5.00. The tall glass candle in the middle is from The Dollar Tree. 

I waited a few hours for the glue to dry before putting the bulbs in the vase. Once I started moving them around, I realized that I should have waited overnight to give the glue more time to dry.  Again: some directions on the products would have been handy here. 

Because of my haste, there is some smearing and smudges on some of the bulbs which is unnoticeable unless you are right on top of the display.  I had plenty of glittered bulbs for the main centerpiece, and I put the remaining bulbs on another glass tray with another white candle to complete the scene. The glittered bulb display is on the mantle now, but it will be on my dining room table in time for Christmas dinner. 

Overall this was a very simple and frugal centerpiece project.  I estimate the entire project cost under $17.00, and I still have plenty of glitter and glue left over to tackle another project.   Which is great, since a few more projects are needed to take me from glittering newbie to sparkling expert.  I hope.

Have you glittered anything lately? Or ever?  I'd love to hear about it!