Happy Birthday, Jesus!

"For unto you is born this day a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord."   Luke 2:11

The best gift ever.  Merry Christmas!

Practicing my Surgical Skills (when I should be doing other things)

Minnie looking none the worse for wear.

I've always wanted to be a doctor.  But I hate the sight of blood (and other parts of the human body not meant to be seen).  I also long to be a skilled crafter, but I find my talents lie more in the collecting of cool crafting tools and not so much in the creation of beautiful objects (with the exception of my children--how, genetically speaking, did that ever happen???!!!)

For several years now, I've had this cute Minnie Mouse ornament that I insist we hang from our tree every Christmas.  (I love all things related to Disneyworld, which is my ultimate escape from reality.)  So imagine my horror when my husband informed me that some unknown person (or dog, or slight breeze) had knocked my precious ornament from our dying Christmas tree.  Minnie had lost an ear in the process.   Something came over me: maybe it was a touch of Christmas spirit or maybe I just wanted to prove I could find a use for all my dust-collecting craft supplies.  Or maybe I just couldn't bring myself to do another load of laundry.  Whatever.  I was determined to restore Minnie Mouse--if not to her previous glory, at least to a condition acceptable for hanging out in a tree.

I had to think about it for a while.  Not only can I never remember what crafting supplies I have, but I'm hard-pressed to remember how to use them. 

After much contemplation (and quite a bit of internet distraction), I thought of the Mold-n-Pour I just had to have because I knew some day it would come in handy for something.  Well, that day was here.  I also gathered my black Ultra Thick Embossing Enamel (UTEE) and my handy Ranger Melting Pot.  And I knew I could depend on Aleene's Jewel-It glue to hold everything together (too bad I can't use it on my fragile psyche).

My neglected supplies finally called to action.

I started by mixing the two components from the Mold-n-Pour and forming it around Minnie's one good ear.  I allowed the mold to set, then removed it and placed it on my craft mat.  I heated some UTEE in the Melting Pot, then carefully poured it into the mold.  After it had cooled, I removed the new ear from the mold and trimmed it with scissors as necessary to make it fit neatly over the gaping hole in Minnie's head.  I used Aleene's Jewel-It glue to attach it, and although a close-up look reveals Minnie's disfigurement, from a distance she looks as good as she did in her prime.  If only I could be so lucky.

Making a mold of Minnie's one remaining ear. 
(Yes, she also sustained a cracked skull,
which I repaired with Aleene's Jewel-It.)

Minnie after reattachment surgery.

O Christmas Tree

The weekend after Thanksgiving my husband and granddaughters carefully chose our Christmas tree from a nearby retailer.  We all assumed that if we kept it watered it would easily last through Christmas.  Wrong.

Too late to save this one.

I'm not sure when the tree was cut (apparently it was sometime during the summer), but within three weeks of bringing it home it had become kindling.   The dog was using it as a back scratcher. 

The aftermath

When the branches started to resemble a brittle weeping willow, it was time for a replacement.  (I hope my husband doesn't make the same decision with me.)

New and perky. 
I hope my husband doesn't realize he can just as easily replace me
 with a newer, less droopy specimen.

Aaahhh, nice and fresh!  And less flammable.

Dianna's 50th Birthday Card

First things first.  Happy 50th birthday, Dianna!  Your secret is out.

If you're looking for simple, you came to the right place.  The banner and numbers were made using the Cricut cartridge "Martha Stewart Birthday Cake Art".  The border is from an American Girls Crafts punch, cut from both green and red paper, trimmed and layered.  Looking at it now, I wish I had taken it a step further and made the flowers a third color.  Oh well, I'm lazy and Dianna knows it.  I'm sure she's just happy that I finished the card and got it to her on her actual birthday.