These were easy, fun, and frugal. And all of that pencil sharpening provided an excellent fine motor activity. (Did you know there are pencil sharpeners just for carpenter pencils?)
Something about these just made me smile. What's making you happy lately?
My husband has been holding out on me...
I discovered this giant accumulation of carpenter pencils from the local lumber yard in his truck the other day. What's a girl to do?
I knew right away. For me, those things had Valentine written all over them! (Not really, but just go with me on this one, okay?)
I'm writing a message on them with a white pen, and using them to pierce Jack's little hand-stamped, hand-signed Valentines just like a bow-and-arrow. Cupid would be proud (if he were a carpenter, that is). We're busy cranking them out today.
The best part? Totally free! Yippee! Not to mention some complimentary advertising for a local business. Oh, and, of course, the opportunity to write one's name twenty-some-odd times.
These are making me happy today. It's the little things...
Indulge me in one more gift-giving post... and then I'm going to give you the scoop on some writing- related activities we've been doing around here lately.
Speaking of writing, our present for my sister Megan (or Mega as Jack calls her) was a blank leather journal that we embellished with inspiring quotes about writing (journal courtesy of the always-inspiring Anthropologie) using journal tags (kind of like these, but with a slightly different design).
We inserted the tags so they stuck out a little past the page, so they could be easily flipped through all at once, if she ever needs a mega-dose of inspiration.
I wrote the words (and read them aloud),
and Jack glue-sticked them to the pages.
All the quotes pretty much speak for themselves; encouraging words for an up-and-coming young adult finding her wings. Just a little place to stash her deep thoughts and a way for a (pushy?) big sister to say: wherever you go, whatever you do, I hope you write.
I'm not a scrapbooker, so there might have been an even more creative way to embellish this journal that I didn't think of. And I'm sure the idea could be expanded to other areas of interest, to make a gardener's journal, a travel log, or a book for a cook.
Whichever kind of book you make, if it inspires someone you are fond of to put pen to paper, then, in my book, it's just right.
If anyone tries this (or has any other ideas on a simple way to structure an inspiration book like this) please share it here!
After having seen them just about everywhere, I finally decided to try making some silhouettes as a gift for my Mom.
Here's the basic how-to: Take a picture of your child in profile in front of a light background. Print picture onto photo paper or white card stock and cut all around (try to leave in some subtle yet interesting details like cowlicks, wisps of hair, or, in Gracie's case, an adorable double chin). Using this cut-out as a stencil, trace picture onto black paper and cut it out again. Mount on white or off-white paper. Frame.
And there you have it. Admittedly, I did all of the cutting for this project. But Jack enjoyed posing for his picture (making his serious face, of course) and amusing Gracie while she posed for hers. He also liked critiquing my work: "Her nose isn't that big." "Her hair is too messy." "Aren't I handsome?" (He was right about that one!)
I think silhouettes are a vintage-y, old-school way to tell a story of a moment in time. Next year we'll look back at these and say, "Oooh you were so little," and "Look how you've grown."
It's been said that a picture is worth a thousand words. But, to me, these pictures simply say one word each:
{Jack}
{Courtney}
{Gracie}
(And yes, in case you're wondering, Gracie's head does smell as sweet as it looks.)
Here's a peek at one of our (many) holiday highlights. My son and I rigged up this ornament hoist with a pulley, some rope, and a carabiner. The idea is this: hook up an ornament, climb up six or seven stairs, pull the ornament up, and hang it on a high tree branch.
Repeat. And repeat some more.
And then unhook the ornaments, lower them down, and do it all over again.
If I told you this kept him busy for hours on end for the last few days before Christmas, it would be an understatement. While listening to Christmas carols on my husband's jobsite radio (as I bustled about), he hooked-up, hoisted, and hung to his heart's delight.
And so what if almost all of the ornaments were jammed on the two or three most reachable branches? Our tree was definitely a labor of love this year.
Lopsided, yes. But a labor of love nonetheless.
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