Easy gift ideas

I meant to have this up a lot earlier but tis the season. 

I love making homemade gifts, my problem is I don't usually have time to make them. That is why I try to find some fun simple, easy ideas that can fit into anyone's schedules...and in my case...abilities. 

The first was what I call the Grandpa Book. We made this for my dad for father's day and for Christian's dad for his birthday.  We just got pictures of each individual grandchild and printed them off on the computer. The kids then each drew a picture or wrote a note explaining why they loved their grandpa. After I just went and bound the books with a cover sheet of all the cousins on it. 

These were a lot of fun to make and so super easy.

The second thing was friend gifts for the girls. I thought of just going to buy candy for them to give but when you have three kids with friends that can start making them very pricey. So I ran across a fun easy craft that cost as much as three Christmas candies but we made 14 gifts for the same price. 

This is simple to make and do. Just get those metal washers and paint them with nail polish. We painted them with white nail polish first then the girls went to town designing and painting (still with nail polish) whatever they wanted. After they dried we put on a a coat of clear polish and then tied it with a ribbon to make a necklace. They were simple and quick, and the girls loved it.

Christmas crafts

I have been rather neglectful of this blog the past few weeks. I have a list of things that I wanted to blog about but the madness of the season got to me and all the things that I wanted to blog about got left behind in the wake of the madness.

So here they are the Christmas crafts I did with the kids this month. I want a disclaimer out there that though I appear crafty, I only play one on this blog. In truth I can barely sew a straight line, wield a glue gun without burning my fingers, and drop so many knitting stitches that I have to get creative. So really these are easy crafts to do and require NO talent whatsoever.

1- Nativity Wreath

Okay so as a teacher I knew the greatness of Oriental Trading. I bought so many things from them- pencils, bouncy balls, toy cars. It is amazing what a 17 year old boy will do for a die cast car. As a mom I have found they have some great crafts for kids. We have tried several different items from them and each one has been a hit. This one I did by myself and then gave them to the kids to hang up. It was simple and easy and I only got one blister from the hot glue gun.

2- Friends gift
Another Oriental Trading find. It was a simple glue the sticks together and glue on the face. The snowman was supposed to have cheeks but I thought it was easier to put together without them. After putting them together I went to the store and found some awesome Christmas Push Pops and tied the pins on. The girls loved giving these out to their friends.

3- Chocolate Caramel Pretzels
I wanted an easy neighbor gift that the kids could help me with this year. In the past I have done fudge or caramel but both are hard to have kids help you with. So this time we went the pretzel route. The girls loved helping with these. They dipped them in the caramel then waited and dipped them in the chocolate. They also came baring sprinkles to add a bit of holiday cheer. Even James got into the fun. I was impressed that we were able to use all 5 lbs of caramel.

4- Chocolate covered Oreo's

I started making these last year and realized that I needed to get a lot better. This past Halloween I worked on my technique and started using multiple colors on the same mold to great success. This year I made these for James's preschool teachers and coupled them with a small Christmas mug and candle. These were so much fun to make and James was able to help. Expect more chocolate colored oreo's coming out of the Bradley kitchen in the coming months.

I'm going to be killed by a Christmas tree

There is a great episode of Doctor Who (remember I said I was a sci-fi junkie) in which it is Christmas and the world is dire straits. At one point a mechanically controlled Christmas tree is let loose and tries to kill the inhabitants of the flat (it is not as hooky as it sounds, I promise. Come over sometime and we will watch it, it is one of my favorite episodes). While the tree limbs are spinning around, breaking through walls and furniture, one of the characters cries out, "I'm going to be killed by a Christmas tree." I felt this way this weekend.

This weekend didn't get off to a great start, I was just grumpy from the get go. I tried to shake it off by attending a visiting teaching brunch but even the company of good women and wonderful food couldn't shake the grinchy feelings I was having. I came home a bit excited I got to have a date for the rest of the afternoon with my husband only to find the Christmas tree had toppled over in my absence. Now usually this would be something that I took a picture of and then blogged about. I was a bit to angry and sad and furious to take that picture.

Instead of the lovely afternoon date my husband and I had we ended up trying to fix the Christmas tree. There came one point where I was lying under the tree trying to get it centered in the base when I gave up. I decided that we just needed to take the tree down and cancel Christmas. Luckily my husband kept pushing. Eventually with some help from my dad we were able to get the tree back up. It is bent and the lights are a tad out of control but it worked out.

Of course with a Christmas tree toppling there were a few casualties. Below is a list of the maimed whose prognosis will be determined when I get the glue gun out this week...

Wiseman #2 (I don't know his name but it wasn't Balthasar)- decapitated. His head was recovered though.

Hermione Granger- hand and wand lost. Location of hand and wand still unknown.

Mickey and Minnie- Minnie arm broken off. Arm has been located.

Owl- one foot broken. Foot has been recovered

Cinderella- top gone. It is somewhere on the tree but location still unknown.

So yeah this year it won't be the bills that get to me. Or the crowds. Or addressing all the Christmas cards. Nope it will be the Christmas tree.

Oh Christmas Tree

Growing up finding a Christmas tree was the pinnacle of Thanksgiving weekend. I remember driving from one Allied tree lot to another looking for the perfect Christmas tree. This would take a full two days. Rain, snow, or sub-zero temperatures we would trudge out and drive from one end of the valley to another looking for a tree that would fit our needs.

Then came the year that for one reason or another I decided that I would start naming the trees we looked at. You have to give me a break- I was nine or ten and very silly. I named every tree I ran across that year. One of the saddest moments was when my then six-year- old brother decided that he needed to use the restroom thus ruling out Arthur as a family tree choice for the year.

As the years went by we changed our traditions. Instead of one tree we started getting three to put next to each other creating a forest. Then we started going to the forest service and cutting down our own trees. But the naming of the tree has always continued. I have cycled through many names. Names from literature, names of British monarchs, names from kids at school, and one year names from The Magic School Bus.

This year we started a new tradition. I love having a fresh cut tree in the house. Since I put the tree up so early I like having something that will last to the New Year. Christian likes the ease of going to the tree lot. This year we decided we would go to a tree farm.

This is the perfect idea for our family. It just works for us. So without further ado I introduce you to our tree...
He is a wonderful Spruce but he is a tad prickly. When I texted a picture to my dad the first thing he asked was "What's its name?"

Now here's the thing. I hadn't even thought of naming the tree yet. But my husband and kids left me alone with the tree so when they returned it did have a name. So I present to you....

Brem the Christmas tree.