Jewels of the Lake

As a last minute gift idea for my sisters I decided to take our jewels of the lake, beach glass, and turn them into key chains. Living close to the shore of Lake Erie gave us a place to have endless treasure hunts all summer long. It is relaxing for me to sit in the sand and dig and the kids really do think they are on a treasure hunt! It is so fun to find the next jewel and imagine where it came from. Next I am going to try and make some anklets.

Santa Arrived

Just stopping in to see if Santa was good to everyone. Santa arrived here and everyone seems to be happy with his selections. Daddy was so happy that little Miss A asked Santa for a big TV for him. It is strange that there has been projects on the "list" for him to do but the TV ranks first. - HA!

One more day of traveling tomorrow and then I think we are done for this year!

Holiday Soap

This "recipe" came from Miss A's Highlights High Five Magazine. You were suppose to put the soap mixture into ice cube trays but we opted for our jello molds. Her Nana loves different shapes of soap so we are going to sneak one in her stocking. SHHHH . . don't tell!

Baking Challenged

Let's just get it out now - I am baking challenged. I will bake if I have to, I would rather not though. So with that being said, this morning Miss A asked to make cookies. So I quickly thought how can I get out of this one. It is Christmas. So I looked in the pantry found some graham cracker cookies covered in chocolate, got my frosting out of the can and this is what we came up with and she LOVED them. I am sure at some point in time I saw these in a magazine and put it in my memory bank.

Christmas Blessings

I make my Christmas cards every year. This year I challenged myself to not purchase anything new to make them. I borrowed the stamp set from a friend and all paper and inks I had on hand. I used liquid applique on the sheep and when heated with a embossing heat tool it gives the neatest texture.

Special Christmas Memories

Everything about Christmas brings up memories from getting the decorations out to making that special recipe handed down over the years. The one that gets me is decorating the tree and putting the final touch of the Christmas tree skirt on. My tree skirt is 7 years old and reminds me of a very special day - my wedding day. My mom turned my wedding dress into a tree skirt for me. I know a lot of brides like to preserve their dress in a box or hang it in a special place. Mine gets placed under my tree every year to enjoy ( who REALLY gets there dress out to look at once a year ???). When those Christmas lights sparkle off the beads, it just makes me so happy!

A new Project

Do I really need a new project. I feel like something is ALWAYS going on around here. But I also thought with all the blogs I read maybe I should join in and make myself a little more accountable for everything I do.

This week is busy with Christmas things. Christmas party at school, Christmas concert at school, hubby's work luncheon that we cater every year. Did I mention gifts to make, gifts to buy, cookies to make for concert, cookies to make for Santa. Projects to do. . .

Today, my 4yr old daughter, Miss A and I made Christmas ornaments for a few gifts. Here is the scoop -

~take a disposable lid ( we used the lids off a crystal light container)

~sprinkle glitter in the lid to make a thin layer

~squeeze some liquid glue until you can't see the glitter

~press sequins, or gem type things into the glue

~let dry ( this will take SEVERAL days)

peel out, punch hole, string a ribbon and hang it in a VERY SPECIAL place :)

What are you working on?