Tuesday, December 13, 2011

Mini Hershey Bars dressed as Reindeers

I found this cute idea of course on Pinterest and I tried to follow the link but once I got to where you'd find the instructions the link was broken and took you to a non-existent page. Here is what I originally found which was so cute http://pinterest.com/pin/266697609152908311/.




I decided to do mini Hershey bars instead of the large ones which was used in the picture. I bought a few sheets of dark brown paper at Joann's and 1 sheet of a sparkly red they had (I had a sheet of the light brown already at home), I bought some mini googly eyes and some brown pipe cleaners. I first cut the paper into approx 3.50x3.25 pieces (just measure your candy and then double the size so it will wrap around). Then I took a pipe cleaner and cut (2) 2 inch pieces and then (2) smaller pieces probably 1 inch pieces and twisted those around each of the 2inch pieces for the antlers. I use a little tape and glued them down on the already cut dark brown paper. Then I layed the chocolated bar in the middle and wrapped it up. I used a little tape on the back and then I printed up labels that said Happy Holidays From, Keagan and adhered those to the back. I had paper punches at home I had a 1 inch and a 5/8inch you could use any size and any means of cutting the circles out! I used the 1 inch to punch the light brown circles and the 5/8 inch to punch the sparkly red paper. I glued down the light brown with my tape runner and I used a pop up dot to raise the red nose (gives it a 3 dimensional look). Then I glued on the googly eyes and that was it!

They came out super cute! I hope the kids love them!

Monday, December 12, 2011

Easy to make magnets

The girls and I came across these super cute homemade coasters on Pinterest and we've been busy making them for everyone we know! Here is what they look like http://pinterest.com/pin/237705686551777325/ and they turned out super cute!

I wanted to do something for the kids in Keagan's class from me...I work in the class several times a week and I wanted something from me to them so I decided to make magnets for each of them. I already had pictures of each of them from an earlier project so that part was already done. I took the pictures into Picasa and make collages, I made the collages 8x10 and I was able to get all 23 kids on 3 8x10's. The tricky part was reducing the size of the pictures to fit basically a 2x2 square. I tested it a few times on my computer just printing in black & white and it worked! So I sent them to Sam's club and it cost me about $3.50 to print the 3 8x10's. I cut each picture down to a 1.75x1.75. I went to Lowes and bought what I think is a backsplash (about $2.50) in plain white (it's stuck together squares with some glue that just peels off). I separated each piece and brushed each one with mod podge and then placed the picture down on the tile. Then I added a felt square to the back of each tile (I attached it with a glue gun)...felt can be purchased at any craft store...Hobby Lobby sells them 4 pieces for $1 (so $.25 each). Then I bought magnets which come about 12 per pack for a few $'s and you can use a coupon usually for those! I started out only using one magnet but because the tiles are heavy I've added another magnet to the back. They are turning out super cute!






Hand Print Tree

I LOVED this idea I found on Pinterest for a handprint Christmas tree! There are so many cute ideas for handprint crafts! I made this in just a few hours with my son! So fun and I think it looks adorable! I got the idea from Pinterest but couldn't find any instructions so I just improvised here is what it looked like on Pinterest and then below is my version! http://pinterest.com/pin/237705686551773681/
I just went to Joann's and bought a canvas board, some green, brown & yellow paint and a few of the sponge brushes. I painted one hand and just kept going across the canvas until it looked ok with his hand prints. The great thing about canvas if you drop any paint you just need a sponge and before it dries it wipes right up! So when working with a messy 5 yr old I had no troubles cleaning up any of the spills, etc. Once I got to the top I overlaped a little on the handprint (I bought a smaller canvas). The star was a little tricky so the best thing to do was print one out and trace it and then color it in with paint. It was very easy and completed in a few hours!

Cheese Balls

My mom has forever made sausage & cheese balls! Anytime we had a party she would always make those as an appetizer! I found a new version on Pinterest so I decided to try it out! I guess I should have stuck to my original recipe because by the time I took these out of the oven they were all burnt on the bottom! It for sure was not my most favorite but I still LOVE sausage & cheese balls!

http://www.plainchicken.com/2011/09/cream-cheese-sausage-balls-football.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+blogspot%2FwJJTP+%28Plain+Chicken%29&utm_content=Google+Reader

Mac n Cheese

I had been looking for the perfect Mac n Cheese for a rainy day! I posted it on Facebook and everyone responded with their favorites and then I decided to give a try to something I'd seen on Pinterest of course! It did not have the flavor I wanted but everyone in my house LOVED it! The said it was one of the best they had tasted...I'm sorta ehh on it still...but here is where I found the recipe Mac n Cheese Recipe

Saltine Toffee

I was stuck at home one day with a sick kid so I decided to bake something I had seen on Pinterest that looked super simple! It was really easy to make but I'm not 100% sure I totally loved the end product! I think I'll give it another try but for me it seemed to chewy at the very end. I brought it over to my mother in-laws for Thanksgiving and they ate it up! She said her and her sister pretty much ate the entire tray in a few days! I'm glad they liked it!!!

http://asoutherngrace.blogspot.com/2008/12/saltines-have-never-had-it-so-good.html

Thanksgiving Turkey

This vegetable tray was super easy and a HUGE hit! The picture I took doesn't do it any justice but it really turned out so cute & fun! I found the idea over at http://www.livinglocurto.com/2011/09/vegetable-trays/

Enjoy!