Tuesday, December 16, 2014

Hand Print Christmas Tree

I was looking for some fun artsy Christmas-y crafts to do with the kids so I decided to see what Pinterest had to offer (where else would I go!?!?!?).  No huge surprise that I already have a "Christmas Crafts" board that's been collecting internet dust for years.  So, I took a look and, lo and behold, I found something that looked fun and simple.  Simple being key!
 
All I needed was paint, a canvas and little tiny toddler hands. 
Check, check and check!
 
 
 
 
All you need to do is paint their hand, then carefully place them onto the canvas forming a "tree".  I alternated their handprints by rows using a different shade of green for each child.  I don't have any photos of the process because, well, I was a little occupied making sure that they didn't touch anything with their green hands!
 

Redmond did the first and third row in the dark green, Ashlyn's is the second and top row in a lighter, sparkly green.  I painted on a yellow star and a trunk once the tree was dry.
 

 
That's it!  It was simple and a super cute decoration and keepsake!


Sunday, December 14, 2014

E.L.L.'s Second Week














Well, it's week two since Eekey Locky Luke has come back to visit.  His first week he was pretty well behaved and basically just explored different rooms of the house.  This week he got into a little bit of mischief which the kids thought was so cool!

He must have been jealous that he wasn't invited to decorate and/or pick out our Christmas tree this year because the next morning he had put up one of his own! 

 
The following day he kept a close eye on the kids as they ate.  He was hanging on to the light over our dining room table!
 

Wednesday morning we woke up to find that we'd been TP'd!  Apparently E.L.L. thought our tree needed a little more decorating!

       

Went for a ride on Ashlyn's dinosaur the next morning....


Ended the school/work week with a little light Christmas reading....

    

The kids thought it was hilarious to find that Eekey Locky Luke had to go potty.  When you gotta go, you gotta go.  Even elves!


Then, last night E.L.L. thought he'd be silly and draw faces, hair and a hat on the kids picture.  Redmond was quite excited that he grew a beard :)
Who knows what we're in for this week!

Tuesday, December 9, 2014

Christmas Tree Time!

Keeping up with one of our favorite Christmas traditions, we headed to Loveberry's Tree Farm this past weekend.  It's such a fun place to go and the kids love running around the tree 'forest'.  We do lots of exploring and always end up with the *perfect* tree!
 
This year was no different.  We probably walked around for a at least 15 minutes, searching for our perfect tree.
 
 
And then, there it was!  Our tree!
 
 
And of course, the best part, watching daddy do all the hard work and cut the tree down!
 
 
 
We love the wagon ride that takes us to and from the trees!
 
 
We got the tree wrapped up and strapped to the top of our car and headed home to decorate!  The kids had so much fun putting the ornaments on the tree, especially Redmond.  He oohed and aahed over all of the ornaments....and only broke one!
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
Finally, all the ornaments were on and we were finished.  Best tree yet :)
 
 
 
Can't wait to celebrate Christmas in our new home this year.  So much to be thankful for!

Sunday, December 7, 2014

Welcome Back, Eekey Locky Luke!

He's back!!  And boy, was he missed!!  The kids are having so much fun looking for Eekey Locky Luke every morning.  He's found some good spots to hang out and watch and, thankfully, hasn't been naughty....yet....

He made his entrance this year on December 1st perched on top of our Christmas Counter-Downer (yes, that is a technical term, just ask Elmo).  
 

He was a huge hit that morning!  
 
Here's where else we found him during his first week of visits:
 
Fishing in the bathroom sink:
 

He does a lot of traveling for such a small guy so he took a much needed, relaxing bath in Ashlyn's dollhouse:


Hanging out with Redmond's Cowboy (and before you ask, that's a saddle in his hand.  Our elf isn't that impressive!)
 

Hanging out with Oscar in the bathtub on the Bubble Guppies Boat:


Chillin' with the wildlife in the MSU room:
 

And lastly, patiently waiting to make pancakes on Sunday morning.  He even got out (most of) the dry ingredients.  Thanks ELL!!  (This is how he made his debut last year)
 

Side note:  Redmond has become quite the pancake pro.  He can almost recite our entire recipe from memory!  Look at him whisking like a pro:


Can't wait to see where Eekey Locky Luke ends up next week!

Does your family have an elf?  What have they been up to?

Saturday, December 6, 2014

Light Up Holiday Sign

 
A few weeks ago, my girl Marie and I went to a DIY workshop at our local Home Depot.  It was so.much.fun!  We had absolutely no idea what we were getting ourselves into when we went, but we both went home with a festive, beautiful, holiday decoration. 
 
It still amazes me just how easy this project was.  No, seriously, it was.  The most difficult part was trying to figure out what word/phrase I wanted on my sign.  For real.  It took me so long to decide.  Oh, the anxiety!
 
To make this, you only need a handful of supplies: a piece of wood, paint, stencils and, if you want your sign to light up, a drill and Christmas lights.  Easy peasy.  Check it out:
 
First, paint your piece of wood whatever color your little heart desires.  I chose a simple white background with red lettering.  You know, keeping it Christmasy.
 

Once your base coat dries, arrange your stencils.  I think the most important thing I learned at this workshop was how to paint with stencils.  You need to blot and not "paint" when using stencils.  This keeps the paint where it needs to be and it won't creep under the stencils.  Also, be sure that you get any excess paint off of your brush before blotting.  Less likely to be messy that way.
 
If you're not adding in any Christmas lights then congrats!  You're done!  See?  Wasn't that easy!?!?
 
If you do want to add lights, you just have two more steps to go! 
 
Mark your letters where you want holes drilled.  Then, get to work!  Or, if you're like me, have the guy at Home Depot get to work!  Thanks, dude!

 
Once your holes are drilled, it's time to start putting in the lights.  I decided to take mine home to do that part since it was waaaaay past the time that this shindig was supposed to be done.  I told you I wasted a lot of time trying to figure out what word I wanted to use!
 
Here is a pic of Marie and I with our masterpieces, sans lights:

 
So cute, right!?!? 
The signs aren't too bad either.....
 
Once I got home, I got to work putting in the lights.  This was a little time consuming because I had to unscrew each bulb since the bulb itself wouldn't fit through the drill holes.  Which, really, works out well because the lights won't fall out the back.  It only took me about 20 minutes to get all the lights in and I just love how it turned out!  I still can't believe that I made it!
 
Have you been crafty lately?  Let's see your stuff!