That Thing Called Life...A Day in the Life of a Crafty Mom

We usually put our gingerbread house together on Christmas Eve, but with a long weekend this year I decided to let the kids start early.  I had already made these cute peppermint trays that I thought maybe we could use with them.  Actually, I saw the idea on Pinterest and had to give it a shot. Peppermint Trays Starlight or Peppermints Baking Tray Parchment Paper Preheat oven to 350.   Arrange mints in pattern you decide on.   Bake for 10 minutes.   Let cool.  Mine had some air bubble come up and I found that if you don't pop them immediately then they are not going away.  I just used a toothpick to smooth them out.   I think this would have worked better if I would have had some kind of mold to put them in because, as you can tell in the pic, the edges began to run.  Once it was cool enough to touch, I flipped it over and let it settle on that side, which was perfectly smooth.  I did about 3 just to ...

Buy the Elf on the Shelf & Book, find unique places for it all season. DONE! Have all shopping done by December 1st. NOT BY THE 1ST BUT BY THE 14TH Make/Sell 10 Christmas outfits FINISHING #10 RIGHT NOW! Go to McAdenville to see the Christmas lights.   DONE! Finally WALK through McAdenville instead of just drive thru it. BOO-TOO COLD Make a gingerbread house with the kids. THIS COMING WEEKEND Read 1 Christmas book with the kids every night. PARENT OF THE YEAR-NOT! Watch as many Christmas shows and movies as possible. TV STAYS ON ABC FAMILY!! Have Christmas Photos made early. HAHA-ON THE 18TH! Get Christmas cards mailed by 2nd week December. ON THE 19TH Go see Christmas House in Kings Mountain more than once. ONCE SO FAR, BUT WE GOT TO WALK AROUND IT THIS TIME! Find new places to see Christmas lights. NOT YET Have a Christmas get-together. DONE & 1 MORE! Add 1 thing to outdoor decorations. WINDOW LIGHTS Finish painting bedroom. YES BUT IT WAS A DISASTER ...

You've seen me post on my Bucket List about going to see the Christmas Lights in McAdenville-aka Christmastown USA.  It's a small little town in North Carolina made up mainly of small mill houses and gradually shifts towards new homes on one end.  In the very middle is this beautiful pond with a fountain in the center.  The fountain lights up in all different colors and the trees surrounding the pond are all decked out in lights as well.  There is even a Santa Claus blowing snowflakes.  Here's a picture.   We also go to a couple's house in Kings Mountain, NC.  The man that owns it, Grady, has hand made Christmas lights and decorations.  I'm not sure of the full history on it, but it is amazing.  There is a circle driveway around the home and he stands at the entrance in a Santa suit handing out candy canes to everyone in each car that comes through.  We usually drive through it twice, but this year we noticed people out walking.  I...

Hi, my name is Amy.  Not only am I a craft hoarder I am a procrastinator.  I "like" to do things at the last minute. I thought this year I was on a roll with Christmas.  All of my shopping done, everything wrapped, baking and cooking supplies ready.  Then it hits me: there are 2 days left of school and I do not have any teacher gifts!!  I need 4 super quick and inexpensive gifts for these great teachers now!  Ideas are spinning through my head and I check my stash of supplies, but I don't have enough equal parts of anything.  I had fully meant to order these customizable mirrors from my great friend Laura at the Purple Alligator  ( called Look It's ) and now I don't have enough time (unless of course I could borrow Santa's sleigh & could go get them ;-) ).  These make wonderful gifts and she has them available in all styles.  Look for a feature on her soon, in the meantime, here is what they look like: They even come with t...

We first heard about the Elf on the Shelf last year and watched the short TV show on it.  So cute and the kids loved it.  I decided to get them one, only to find they were no where to be found!  This year however they seem to be in vast supply.  Do you have one yet? There are so many different versions: the standard elf , the plush elf and even some very creative hand made elves.   My kids were over the moon when they found out Santa made an early visit and dropped on off outside by our Christmas lights.  Not sure it was the best idea though; my 7 year old nearly had a meltdown when we reminded her the story says she cannot touch him.  Holy cow, I thought for sure the elf would report back to Santa with her on the naughty list.  He was delivered inside his package, hardback book and all.  Next year though, he better just show up where they can't be tempted to reach him.  Sheesh. The purpose of the Elf on the Shelf is that he si...

How many of you had your trees up before Thanksgiving?  Any of you still waiting to put up your tree?  If so, this is an idea you should try. From my favorite time killer, Pinterest, I found these nifty little mirror ornaments.  You hand them on the tree before adding the lights and ornaments and they become reflectors of the lights, and are supposed to double your light effect.  Supplies: Craft mirrors (mine were about 1" but you may want slightly larger ones Ribbon or twine Hot glue   Take 2 matching mirror pieces, put hot glue and a piece of ribbon on one...   add a little more hot glue and add the matching mirror to sandwich in the ribbon.   Now add to your tree and that's it! Again, I wish I would have used larger mirrors, but these worked pretty good.  I just had to be careful not to burn my fingers! Do you have any tricks to making your tree look fuller?  I would love to hear your ideas, and feel free...

Similar to the Hair Bow Gift Basket , I came up with this one as a gift for 3 teenagers that were very helpful to the little Mighty Might Cheerleaders, running errands and babysitting my 4 year old (that will wear out even the most energetic youth).  It's really easy to make and a great idea when you are past the toy stage and would still like to get them a gift instead of just money or a gift card (however, teenagers do love that gas money!). Supplies: Gift basket or pot Floral foam Skewers Candy Duck tape   I used snack size candy bars.   Put the floral foam in the base of your basket.  I have also used flower pots before; you can paint them to match the theme of your gift or holiday.   Next I took the candy bars and used small amounts of duck tape to secure them to the skewers.   Arrange them as you desire.   And that's it!   What types of gift baskets have you made?  I'd love to hear all a...

The original title of my blog is, "That Thing Called Life", because let's face it: it happens.  I realize I have been MIA for a while and I have a long list of reasons why, but we'll save that for later.  Why don't we get back to some great gift ideas?  First, let me show you what I woke up to this morning... Just as the sun was coming up, so beautiful. Ok, let's make a hair bow basket.  If you already make hair bows and are anything like me, you have a stash of them.  If you do not make hair bows, find someone you know that might make them for you or dabble in making some yourself.  There are some great tutorials on You Tube. Supplies: A basket or flower pot Floral foam Skewer sticks Duck tape Hair bows I had these great round floral foam pieces I found at the Dollar Tree a while back and stocked up on them.  Also in my stash was this really cute basket with the inside round and a perfect fit for the foam. All you do next is...