Pinterest has my Interest!

Have you checked out the new Pinterest website? Awesome.  I have been compiling tons of grandma ideas there. Save yourself some time and check out my creative grand parenting board. Visit my other boards while you are there too. I have a Grandkids Christmas Day Camp board...... so much fun!!! Great Fall holiday board too. You can follow me if you like so you don't miss out on any of my creative finds! Best of all. It's free.

Holiday Tissue Box Cover

Tissue Box Cover

I saw this idea on line and I tweaked it to make is simpler to use supplies that you probably already have in your home or in the classroom.

Supplies you will need:  Construction Paper, graphics print out for the occasion of your choice,  Scissors, Glue Stick, and Crayons or Markers

I created a coloring page of graphics sized to fit on each side of the box. Have the child color the coloring page and cut the graphics out.

Cut the construction paper to the height of the tissued box. It should be about 5 1/2". Glue your construction paper together (overlapping 1/2") to get the length you need to cover all sides of the box and a little extra length to overlap on the end  ( about 18 1/2") . If you use the oversized construction paper you only need to add approx. 1 1/2" to the length.

Make crisp folds on the corners and lightly draw a line where the final corner will be once the paper is overlapped to create the box.

Lay the creased construction paper out. Center and glue one graphic between each of the folded lines. Add any other details you would like to decorate the box.

To create the " tissue the box cover" glue the extra length you allowed to the underneath side of the opposite end of the construction paper.

There you have it. A reusable tissue box cover for the occasion of your choice. This would be a great project for kids to make as holiday gift for teachers or grandparents. They could be made for Mother's Day or as a get well gift for someone. 

This could be an inexpensive and simple service project for your youth church group, a girl scout troop, or as a family. How about making some up for a local senior home or a homeless shelter?

You could tweak the quality and quantity of your supplies depending on your budget. 

You could add: Stickers, jewels, ribbons, lace, buttons, glitter, silk flowers, and more ....

Little Thing...BIG Delight

I must share a fun find this Christmas season. Maybe my find has been around for a while but it is something new to me. My first find was rolls of polk-a-dot packing tape (clear 2" wide tape that came in a variety of poke a dot colors) on the clearance table at 80% off at Michael's. It had originally been in the dollar section so it was only .20 cents a roll! I chose red and green dots knowing that I could surely come up with a fun use for them at this year's Grandkid's Christmas Day Camp and if not who cares what color the packing tape is if you are actually using if for packing AND it was only .20 cents!

More recently I was in Michaels and I could not believe my eyes! It may not be a big deal to you but I am always on the look out for HoHoHo Christmas decor because we have a family tradition that we call the holidays and all of our Christmas traditions that we do together the Ho...Ho...Ho...lidays. Yes, we even have a tradition to name our traditions!

Check this out!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 

Can you believe that someone can be so delighted over a $1 find?

Ho...Ho...Ho... packing tape.

I have little to no interest in actually using it for packing.

It is going to be a craft supply in my 

Ho...Ho....Holiday's Christmas tub.

I have already found one use for it.

We have already been on our annual adult night out with our adult children.

This year I had all of my married kids hire a babysitter for their kids rather than having them all stay at my house with sitters.

At the end of our night my husband and I presented them each with (no, not a cd) a hand made card that slipped into a cd envelope with  "Ho...Ho...Ho... babysitter bucks" tucked inside as a party favor.

I created the "Babysitter bucks holder" out of white card stock and my HoHoHo packing tape. (Yes, another tradition to hand the adult night out babysitters their cash with some kind of Ho...Ho...Ho... bling!)

You will have to check back to see how many different ways this very delightful roll of packing tape will be used this holiday season. I can't wait to see too!

Our Thankful Tree Bursting with Color and Gratitude

The bare branches of our thankful tree was filled with hand cut leaves and hand written words of gratitude on Thanksgiving Day.

The kids had to climb up a step stool to reach the top branches.

I loved reading all of their leaves.

This picky little pre-schooler chose to add pizza (one of the few things he will eat well), Mini Bears (the name of his pre-school), and kisses!

Even the youngest of my grands wanted in on the activity.

My three year old grandson chose his words of gratitude.

He had his mom write them in pencil.

Then, he wrote over the letters with a marker.

Some of the words of gratitude that fill our tree are:

Flowers, friends, soap, cars, teachers, parents, school, church, family,

 house, power, doctors, hugs, television, grandkids, earth, apples,

body, Jesus, bananas, trees, grandmas, inhaler, papas, 

money, and the Dollar Tree Store!

Why Not, A Fall Corsage?

I must start out by saying that I am not a floral designer but I am a willing volunteer for all kinds of creative tasks.

We wanted to do something to show our appreciation to our music people who had worked for months to prepare the children's organization for a special program. We decided that we would present them with corsages that they could wear during the performance.

I volunteered for the task. I went to Michael's Craft Store for inspiration. I decided to go with the season and create fall colored corsages using silk flowers.

Here is what I purchased... and all at 60% off!

A multiple flower, multi color fall bush with greenery

Fall colored bead garland (wired)

Wired Ribbon to match

Matching scrapbook papers (for packaging)

Floral Tape

I already had:

Raffia

Pearled corsage pins

I'm sure I did not have all of the floral supplies needed for a florist quality corsage but somehow it came together.

I cut the wired stems of the two flowers twice the length I wanted for the base of the corsage.

I then bent them in half and wired the stems of the flowers and a couple of leaves together.

I then covered all of the wires and stems with a thick layer of florist tape. (It is all hidden underneath, and it gives you a soft place to pin the corsage on.)

I then became a crafter and pulled out the glue gun.

I wired some pieces of raffia together and tucked them in here and there using hot glue for some fun fall texture.

I then added pieces of wired bead from the bead garland with hot glue to add some fall colored bling!

I finished it off by making a wired ribbon bow and attached it to the base of the corsage with wire.

Once the corsages were complete I packaged them

for a polished and festive presentation.

I tucked them inside a clear bag and created

a matching Thank-You tag using scrapbook paper.

Our music people loved their corsages and

they looked beautiful on 

their black and dark purple dress.

We see corsages on Mother's Day, Valentine's, Christmas, and Easter but, I don't know that I have ever seen corsages made for our Fall holidays. I'm thinking, why not? 

How about making one for great grandma for the family Thanksgiving Dinner gathering or for the widows that attend your church. I think they would be adorable with a printed ribbon or a pick that says something like "Blessed", "Be Grateful", or  "Giving Thanks".

Create a Custom Guest Book

A custom guest book can be easily created for any kind of event or special occasion. With the use of scrapbook paper, a computer printer, a glue stick, an old book, and some paint any old book can be transformed into a perfect first impression at the entry of your next party or event.

I used an old encyclopedia to create this old world guest book for an event with a royal theme.

If you choose, first paint the edges of the book with craft paint. I used an antique gold paint on this project. Lightly apply the paint using a 1" sponge paint brush.

Measure the book page. 

Using your favorite computer program set the page size and the margins to the exact size of the existing page in the old book you are using.  (Thrift stores or yard sales would be a good place to find an inexpensive used book.)

Create a custom header and the layout of your guest registry. Choose a font and ink color that best coordinates with the theme you are creating. Print.

Cut the computer printed page to fit the page in the book.

Glue the printed page (using a glue stick) to the center left page in the opened book.

Add an additional page so that the two open pages coordinate.

Add additional pages if needed for the number of guests that you are expecting. I would suggest making another header page for the next two pages so that your guests can see the header too once the page has been turned. (A third page would be glued to the back side of the second page with the original book page between them.)

Add any extra touches you would like. This book was being used at a function with a lot of shiny gold decor so I added the strips of gold glittered scrapbook paper to divide the columns. I also added some gold gems at the top. Be sure to supply the perfect pen too. Stick pens can be covered with scrapbook paper and a glue stick so your options are endless.

Party decor needs to flow from the invitation to the guest registry to the parting favor. So, keep that in mind when you are planning your next special event and when you are creating your very own custom guest book. Your guests will love your creativity!

4th of July Fun

Every 4th of July I treat my grandchildren to some kind of small gift, goodie, or activity to help celebrate our time together at the fireworks show. This year I put together small gift boxes for each child.

The small patriotic decorated boxes include a few Tootsie "Pops", kid safe TNT "Pop-its", always fun Party "Poppers", a glowing light stick, a small bottle of bubbles that will provide lots of "Popping" action, and a glittering red, white, and blue necklace which also serves as a eye "Popping" burst of color and shine to top of the gift boxes!

To add to the fun I will arrive with their gift boxes in a large basket lined with patriotic linens and some festive red, white, and blue tinsel party picks. I will also have the supplies for face painting. Face paint, glitter, patriotic stickers, and sparkling stars will provide some holiday fun while they are waiting for the fireworks to begin.

Very simple and inexpensive gifts such as this will help to make the time you spend with your grandchildren just a bit more fun, festive and memorable! 

Make sure to watch the 4th of July clearance sales and you too will find inspiration for just pennies on the dollar that can be stored away for the year and used to create your own memories when you make the 4th of July holiday "Pop" for your grandchildren too!

Have a happy and safe 4th of July !

St. Patricks Day Tic-Tac-Toe

This tic tac toe game was created for a group game but it can also be used for just two players to play the traditional way. For a group game the blocks were numbered. Each numbered block had a matching question that was folded up and placed in a jar. Teams would draw the question and earn the matching square with a correct answer.

The children loved this BIG holiday version of tic-tac-toe. It is a very easy and inexpensive project to make.

You begin with an inexpensive foam poster board (from the dollar store). To create the tic-tac-toe board cut four strips from a sheet of 12"x12" holiday or special occasion scrapbook paper making them
1 1/2"x12".  Attach the strips to create the game board using a glue stick. Use the remaining 6"x12" piece of  scrapbook paper to create a border at the top for the game name. The game name and shamrocks were designed and printed out on a home computer using free online clipart. If you are crafty you can create your own fun design using colored markers.

Shiny shamrock coins in gold and green were used for the  playing pieces by placing a bit of tape on the backs of the coins. Paper shamrocks cut from two colors of construction paper is another idea that could be used.

This game idea can be used for any holiday or occasion. You can even make your poster board do double duty. How about, one side for St. Patricks Day and the other for Easter. A trip to a local scrapbook store would be an endless source of inspiration.

By tweaking the questions and the scrapbook paper the options are endless. Just thinking about it .... my mind is bursting with ideas. How about making one for Valentine's Day, a family Christmas party, a classroom Halloween party, a birthday party, a baby shower, a bridal shower, 4th of July, or even ones for the seasons!

Please share your ideas too. If you create one please send me a pic!

Prepping for a Massive Heart Attack this Valentine's Day!!!

Papa and I are prepping for a massive Heart Attack this Valentine's Day. A while back we returned from a trip to our entire bedroom and bathroom being "heart attacked" by all of our grandchildren. Hearts of all sizes and colors had been cut out, loving messages had been hand written, and each heart was lovingly placed by the hands of our grandchildren. It was hard to find a surface without a heart!

Well, this Valentine's Day is going to be pay back time in a very good way. We loved the surprise and we know our grandchildren will too. We have gotten permission from all of the parents to "heart attack" our grandchildren. We have been gathering our supplies, writing our messages of love, and cutting out hundreds of hearts. I have made cookie sheets full of rolled low stick painters tape to attach our hearts to the surfaces so not to cause any damage.

Instead of doing all of the bedrooms we are going to do their shared bathrooms. So, we will only be doing three much smaller rooms instead of their seven big bedrooms! I am also very excited about the big mirrors in the bathrooms ..... they will easily give us twice the love. We have gathered some fun supplies and Papa and I are very anxious to make our attack!

See more photos and ideas here of the actual heart attacks:

http://www.grandmaslittlepearls.com/2011/01/massive-heart-attack-for-valentines-day.html

http://www.grandmaslittlepearls.com/2010/02/valentines-heart-attack.html

http://www.grandmaslittlepearls.com/2010/02/more-heart-attack-preparations.html

http://www.grandmaslittlepearls.com/2009/02/heart-attack-someone-for-valentine-day.html

4th of July Gift Boxes

I created these small gift boxes for my nine grandchildren for the 4th of July. I found the boxes in the dollar store "Dollar Tree" in the wedding section. They were 12 for a $1. They are solid white and they could be used for any occasion or holiday by adding your own decor to them.

I decorated the boxes using patriotic stickers that I found in a Michael's Craft Store. The stickers were adorable and a great price. The book had 316 stickers for just .70 cents! The regular price was only $1 which is still a great price.

I also like getting the small white bottles of bubbles from the same section of the dollar store. They are 9 for a $1. I added a patriotic sticker and they became a 4th of July party favor for the small gift boxes. The boxes are a perfect size for a few goodies and favors. These boxes were filled with candy, party poppers, a light stick, a bottle of bubbles, and a red, white, and blue tinsel necklace!

Popping 4th of July Fun

Every 4th of July I treat my grandchildren to some kind of small gift, goodie, or activity to help celebrate our time together at the fireworks show. This year I put together small gift boxes for each child.

The small patriotic decorated boxes include a few Tootsie "Pops", kid safe TNT "Pop-its", always fun Party "Poppers", a glowing light stick, a small bottle of bubbles that will provide lots of "Popping" action, and a glittering red, white, and blue necklace which also serves as a eye "Popping" burst of color and shine to top of the gift boxes!

To add to the fun I will arrive with their gift boxes in a large basket lined with patriotic linens and some festive red, white, and blue tinsel party picks. I will also have the supplies for face painting. Face paint, glitter, patriotic stickers, and sparkling stars will provide some holiday fun while they are waiting for the fireworks to begin that I am sure they will enjoy.

This project and these ideas are all very simple and inexpensive but they help to make the time you spend with your grandchildren just a bit more fun, festive and memorable!

Make sure to watch the 4th of July clearance sales and you too will find inspiration for just pennies on the dollar that can be stored away for the year and used to create your own memories in helping to make the 4th of July holiday "Pop" for your grandchildren too!

Have a happy and safe 4th of July !

St. Patrick's Day Cupcakes

Not a great picture. Not a great presentation YET!. But, these cupcakes are going to be used in a great presentation later today. I am assisting with an activity for girls 8-11 at my church.  It is going to be a treasure hunt with clues along the way. The clues all have a bit of "Irish catch words" in them to add a bit of holiday fun. 

The girls will be divided into two groups. One will be looking for nine golden coins, and the other for nine green coins that have been hidden and have the clues attached to them. Before they are able to read the clue they have to complete a task of some sort. The theme of the activity is "Count your Blessings, and see How Lucky you Are".

The tasks require such things as naming blessings of family, home, education, friends and such. We will meet up at the very end for the final clue to be read. This clue will require listening to their leaders and working together doing the hot and cold game to find the hidden treasure. 

The cupcakes will be the treasure and the treat for this activity day. They will be hidden inside a really, really cute Treasure Trunk. I cannot disclose the location yet since it is still a hidden treasure! It is going to be fun.

A Visit From the Leprechauns

My soon to be eight year old grandson called me this morning to tell me about some Leprechauns that created some mischief throughout the night at his house. They awoke to a tiny note on the kitchen counter that was written so little it had to be read with a magnifying glass. The note said that they had hidden the car keys that were needed for a planned trip to the zoo today. They had  left tiny clues around the house to lead them to the keys. They had played with his mommies favorite angel collection and had knocked one over but didn't break it. One of them had thrown up some green goo on the bookcase.  They had used the toilet and left very green water that needed to be flushed, they had flown down two flights of stairs on a toy helicopter, crashing it into the window blinds where they jumped out of the helicopter and left it still dangling from the blinds. They found the keys near the crash site downstairs.

One of the tiny notes requested that they eat Lucky Charms for breakfast. When they went to the fridge for the milk the silly Leprechauns had turned the milk green too!

The visit from the Leprechauns made for a very fun and exciting St. Patrick's day morning for him, his brothers and his cousin visiting from Idaho. 

Just a little something to file away in your mind .... perhaps the Leprechauns can visit the little ones you love too!

Saint Patrick's Day Tic-Tac-Toe Game

 I created this fun Saint Patrick's Day Tic-Tac-Toe game for the children's singing time activity at my church. It was a group activity with two teams. Each of the squares on the game board were numbered. When they (one child from the team) placed their colored coin on the board the entire group would then sing the song that matched the number. After singing, it would be the next teams turn. The next team would place their coin of the opposite color on the board trying to get three in a row. The entire group would then sing the song matching the number of their choice. The goal was to get three in a row with the prize being getting to sing a song of their choice.

The base is a foam core board from the dollar store. Scrapbook paper cut in strips created the 12" game lines. The computer generated shamrock tic-tac-toe header is placed on a backdrop of matching scrapbook paper. Everything was put in place using a glue stick.  The coins can be found in party, craft, or maybe even dollar stores. I used blue painters tape on the back of the coins so they would easily peel off the board without damaging the game.

This idea could be used for a Saint Patrick's Day Party or a family activity. Instead of singing, you could have the children to do something silly, answer a question about themselves, or just take turns playing a BIG game of Tic-Tac-Toe.

This idea could be used for any holiday by making up the game board and the game pieces to fit the holiday.  

Happy Valentine's Day

My Valentine goodies and cards are ready to be delivered. I had a great time baking mini cupcakes in Valentine wrappers, whipping up a batch of delicious butter cream icing, and hand frosting and decorating a bakers dozen for each of my grown children and their families.

Once the icing was set I wrapped them in festive pink cellophane and tied them with a Valentine ribbon for a fun presentation. The Valentine cards have been sealed and I have prepared  a cute heart shaped container with a few candies inside for each of my grandchildren. 

My gifts aren't much but a little something extra to say  "I Love You" this Valentine's Day.

A BIG Valentine Surprise!

I promise this was NO set up. Just before I left on my trip I posted about "Heart Attacking" someone for Valentine's Day. Papa and I found a very happy surprise waiting for us when we returned home from our trip.

Our first clue was a long hallway that leads to our bedroom was scattered with hearts. Our bedroom door and doorknob, the bedroom walls, furniture, lamps, shutters, bathroom walls, shower walls, mirrors, my bathtub, and even the toilet were all covered in hearts of  all sizes and Valentine colors. Precious personal notes had been written by our nine little Valentines to let their grandma and papa know how much we are loved.

The welcome home surprise brought a big smile to our faces. I laughed and smiled as I read their little notes and as I pictured them in my mind choosing all of the very creative spots they had chosen to stick their hundreds of handmade hearts. 

They were all very excited to hear about our surprise and how much we enjoyed it. They all asked if we saw this one and that one that they had carefully chosen to place. They had been anticipating our return and reaction for a couple of days. Today when we all spoke after school it was very clear that they had had a lot of fun creating this very special Valentine memory for Papa and I!

It is indeed a "Heart Attack" that we will long remember as a very special time. 

Last Year Hanging on Our Christmas Tree

This ornament along with many others will be packed up in their own special box this year. My youngest daughter is engaged and is planning to be  married next summer. She will be taking the ornaments from our tree that she has made and collected since she was born to start her own family collection.

She made this ornament when she was in preschool and it has been hanging on our tree for many years. Her very first ornament was collected at just three months old.

All of our ornaments are very special to us and the memories of each of them bring us  so much joy each year as we unpack them and hang them on our tree. It is a bit sad to think that all of the handmade ornaments that my children have made over the last 32 years will all be gone next Christmas. 

It is however fun to see them bringing joy to the next generation in their own homes where they are all starting their very own family Christmas  traditions and memories.

True Reason for the Season

You cannot have too many reminders of the true meaning of the season in your home. This simple nativity is a favorite of mine for two reasons. I think it is adorable and it also brings me great joy when I think of the dear friends who made it and gave it to me.

Deck the Halls

I may be a bit over the top in my holiday decorating. I completely clear out my china cabinet every year and decorate it in glittery gold decor and lights. This year I added some huge gold sequined balls that really pick up the lights and add a lot of extra holiday sparkle which I love, love, love.

I set these trees in front of my large mirror in my entry. The mirror makes it look like we have twice the lights and ornaments on the trees!

Fresh Fruit Wreath

This picture does not look as beautiful as this wreath does in person. This year I placed this huge lighted wreath in the center of my kitchen island where I usually keep a wire basket of fresh fruit. I decorated the wreath with the fresh fruit. The apples, oranges, lemons, and pears are not just beautiful accents on the wreath but they are edible too!