A Little Organization

I've been pinning all these organization ideas on Pintrest.  I so need to incorporate them.  Sadly, I have pinned them, but not even looked at 90% of them.  Then I noticed my sister (whom I dragged into Pintrest) was actually USING the things she saw online.  It got me thinking more about ways to organize my house.  Yesterday I had an inspiring idea.  I was going to organize all the board games.  I went from this:

To this:

And in the second picture there are FIVE more board games and EIGHT more card games.
I purchased eight 12x12 paper keepers from Michaels (they came in a 4 pack - normally $30, but on sale for 50% off) and a few plastic 4x6 photo holders and some travel soap holders.  I'm using these to store some of the card games.  Right now I have many of the pieces in plastic bags.  I'm still trying to decide if I should get containers or leave them in bags.


Here are some pictures to show you what I'm talking about:

  

This one actually has two Uno games in it and there is plenty of room.  If you have just one package the soap dish would be your best bet.

This one has two games in it as well.  An oversized Curios George Uno is on the bottom.  And a Go Fish game on the top.  Under the cards is instruction to Go Fish that wouldn't fit into the soap dish (but also works as a separator for the two games):

 Here is Phase 10 in the soap dish:

I have one more Uno game (think we have enough Uno cards?), Dice Game (Greed), and some regular playing cards that I need to pick up soap dish containers for.  Then my games should be organized.

FYI - I bought the 4x6 containers at Michaels.  They are $1.49, but are 40% off right now.  They are sold in the scrapbook organization aisle.  The soap dish you can get at Walmart or Target for $.99.

I arranged the games into the 12x12 containers just by the way they fit the best.  Since I was getting rid of the boxes I cut out their names.  I put the smaller names on the front and the bigger names on the top.  I just taped them on with packaging tape.  Some of the games already didn't have boxes anymore and some where in metal containers (all bent out of shape).  For these games we just wrote down their names and taped them on.

The five games pictured on top of the containers had game boards too long for the containers.  I was hoping would fit into a legal size hanging folder and I was going to file them away, but alas they are too long.  Hopefully their boxes won't be destroyed and they can sit nicely on top.  I also may purchase one more 12x12 container to put that red game into (pictured between the stacks of containers).  So if you like this idea you can go from this (plus 5 board games {Chess, Parcheesi, Chess, Jambo, Buckaroo}, lots of card games {Phase 10, Uno, Go Fish, Uno, Crazy 8's, Uno, Old Maid, and did I mention Uno?} and a dice game {Greed} and minus a toy laptop & art station):

To This:

Oh, and did I mention the 12x12 containers are made to stack so the won't just slide around like my games were before?  They should stay in two nicely stacked piles ~ until the kids forget to put them away :).

Linked to:

Tatertots and Jello 

A Seussy Kind of Day

Since it is almost Dr. Suess' birthday and Read Across America day (March 2nd) I thought I should post what we did last year.
I had so many things to post (or so I thought, but a year later I don't remember).  I will post pictures of some of the things we did.
At school we dress as a Dr. Seuss character.  We aren't very original and use some common characters.  This year I might have to read a few more books, but for some reason Dr. Seuss is one that we don't have a lot of.
Boo was Cindy Lou Who:

My poor daughter (and myself) hardly has any hair so this hairstyle isn't the easiest, but with too much hair it may be hard too.  I rolled a piece of paper into a cone shape then lifted top section of her hair over it and put an elastic at the top (put it over the top of the cone too - it gives it a little more stability).  Leave enough hair at the top.  You are going to need to put in another elastic just a little way up and then curl it out in pieces.  The bottom half of the hair you split into two and braid it.  I also took some hair putty to separate out the bottom of the braid & curl up the pieces.
Bugs was thing two:

I just printed out a round sign saying Thing 2.  He wore all red and we used a colored spiking gel to dye his hair blue.

At home this was part of our dinner (not sure why it looks so yellow - doesn't look very appetizing, but it was!):

Green Eggs: just make some deviled eggs using your favorite recipe.  Mix some blue food coloring to the yolk and  you have green centers.
I also found these blue skies with white clouds.  I can't remember what book it is from nor were I found it (if you know leave me a comment):

To make these follow the instructions here (I loved them so much I used them for St. Patrick's day too.  I was able to use the left-over whipping cream). 
And for desert:

Yep, more green eggs.  A scoop of Lime Sherbet with whipping cream sprayed around it.


That sums up last year.  Guess I should figure out this year before it sneaks up like last time.

Night Owl Spa Party - Part 1

We've I've been slaving away getting ready for Boo's 8th birthday party.  Slaving away because I tend to a) overdo things and b) want to make every cute thing I see - oh, wait isn't that part of reason a?  The party is going on right now as I type.  It is about 10:45 and I'm hoping a bunch of girls fall asleep shortly.  Because I overdo the parties (and don't have the time I want/need to do it all) I've stayed up way too late this week.

Anyway, here is the scoop of what I did (and remembered to take pictures of).  First the invitations.  I used my cricut and cut out some owl shaped cards.  I found some adorable cards online, but by the time I actually got around to making them it was this or nothing.  I was simply out of time.

I also made some sleep masks.  I found the idea and template here. 

I stopped off at the fabric section in Walmart (I didn't have time to go anywhere else) because I figured they should carry felt, even if it was felt sheets.  The kids were helping me find the felt in the small sewing section, and when we found it they commented on how scratchy it is.  I agreed so for the bottom white layer I bought fleece.  I purchased pink felt for the top layer to add a little stiffness to the mask.  I used various ribbons because I wanted the kids to be able to tell them apart if they brought them and because I used up the end of a couple rolls.  The picture above isn't one of the better ones made, but it was the one lying around.  We just slipped the mask inside the invitation and put them in a pink paper sack.


Then it was onto all my craft projects.  I saw this on this idea on pintrest and needed to make them just because they were so cute! 

To see how I made them click here.  You need a Sizzix machine with the pillow box die cut (or purchase pillow boxes if they sell them).  You will need circles, ovals, and hearts.  I used my cricut for them, but the lady I borrowed the idea from used punches.
Boo loved to help make them.  She was in charge of the eyes.  We made them all have their own little crazy personalities.  I still think they are so cute!  I played around with having the feathers nearly the same color as the bodies and some with a little more color.  What do you like best?  

We filled these owl boxes up with M&M's and used them as prizes for the Bingo game.  Every girl received one.  They just played Bingo and the winners got to select their owls first! 

To make the Bingo game I just used different owl pictures I found online.  Each board had the same owls, just in different places.  The middle square are all the same for the free space.  I made these the night before the party so they aren't anything fancy.  If you would like to download them, click here.  There are eight different boards.  I printed one extra copy of one board and cut it into squares.  My son drew them out of a bowl and the girls covered their matching picture on their board with M&M's.
 

We also took the owl toppers we made for Boo's class and used them as toppers for the goody bags.  To see the Tutorial go here.  The only change I made is that I used the diamonds and folded them in half for the beaks.  I can't decide which I like best. The triangles are definitely faster to make.

We filled each bag with lotion (I had found awhile ago on a super duper clearance sale at The Children's Place), bracelets & rings (purchased after Valentine's Day a couple years ago, homemade lip gloss, and fingernail polish (also purchased on clearance at Claire's).  I had everything on hand except the lip gloss.  I found another tutorial we had to try, but if the truth be told I had plenty of lip gloss we could have used too.

I found the lip gloss tutorial here thanks to Pintrest again.  Isn't that one of the best inventions ever?  The lip gloss only has two ingredients: Kool-aid and Vaseline.  The basic instructions is to microwave Vaseline at 30 second intervals until it melts, making sure you stir it well every 30 seconds.  When it is melted let it cool, but before it sets stir in the Kool-aid.  I never did let it melt all the way before I mixed them together.  I'm not sure if that was smart or not, but it seemed to have turned out okay.  I didn't want to pay a fortune for lip gloss containers so I went shopping at Michaels with my 40% off coupon.  In the bead section I found a 24 pack of jars that had screw on lids.  I thought they would be perfect.  We decorated the lids with an owl sticker (you can see it in the picture above - it has a green owl on it).
That sums up part one of the owl party.  Shortly there will be another part to see the rest of what we made/did, but I need to get this part up so I can work on Valentines stuff!
I decided to come back and add some pictures of what I made the lip gloss in:

To see part two click here.

New Neighbor Gifts

We have two neighbors that moved in recently.  I searched the web looking for ideas.  I couldn't find anything that popped out of me until I saw this Christmas gift on Pinterest:

I thought that it would be a great gift for the new neighbors.  I wonder why I didn't think of that before!  I have used the same saying for teachers.  I pulled up the site ~after I bought the soda and made the cookies ~  to find out that it costs $5 for the tags.  Well, I'm cheap enough that I made my own.  They are nearly as pretty as hers, but they are free.  I also changed up the colors so they didn't look like they were intended for Christmas:

There are two to choose from if you would like to use them.  I found some cute one liter bottles.  I bought a Sprite and an Orange Fanta.  Then we made some homemade cookies and attached them in a plastic bag to the sodas.  

Another idea I saw was to include a family picture.  I had some left from Christmas I was going to include, but I think they may have been tossed in the weekend cleaning.  They turned out cute and it was a great excuse to pop over and visit the new neighbors (who by the way are very nice).
If you would like my free tags click below. 

Download your tags here!

Owl Treat Toppers

I'm currently working on an owl birthday party for Boo's 8th birthday.  I came across a picture of some owl toppers on Pinterest and fell in love.  I loved it so much we are using it for her party and she used it for her classroom treats.  I can't link to the site where the picture originated because you have to have a log on to get in.  I couldn't get to it either, but it isn't hard to figure out how to make.  But if you are one that prefers step by step instructions, I will tell you how I did it.
I the head is actually a Sizzix die cut found through Stampin' UP: the top note die.  I used my cricut & gypsy to cut out the shapes.  You can use punches to cut out the shapes.

First use the top note die cut and brown cardstock. Score down the middle of the die (in the picture the score line would go vertical - top to bottom).

Fold it in half.  This makes your owl shaped face.

Cut out the eyes.  I used the gypsy because I liked the size of the circles I could do.  I used the cartridge called George and Basic Shapes.  I cut out tan eyes 1.45 inches, white at 1.07 inches, and black at .44 inches.  Then you glue them all together.  I just used a glue stick.

Then glue on the eyes.  I made them look a little crazy eyed.   Black towards the center, but the eyes don't need to match.  They look cuter that way.

 Next you need to cut out the beaks.  I used the rounded triangle shape on the same cartridge at 1/2 inch (I didn't use the gypsy for this shape).  You could also use the diamond at 1 inch and fold them in half.  We may do this for the birthday party, but I didn't have time to do it for the class.  I really like this look though.  When I make more I'll try both ways and post a picture for you to decide what you like it best.

Here they are in stacks of five so I could keep track of how many I made.  Aren't they cute?  Be careful with the glue stick or they will look like that poor owl in the front left.

Fill up a treat sack with your choice of treats and staple them on!  Fun, cute, and easy!

I linked to:

I {Heart} Nap Time

Sock Lollipops

These were supposed to be for Sis's Candyland birthday party (that I have yet to post about), but alas I was still moving into the craft room and the supplies were misplaced in the shuffle.  That, and I ran out of time.  I seem to do that every year!  The supplies had been uncovered and we thought they would make great presents for her friends at Christmas.  I found this idea somewhere on the ole world wide web, but I haven't a clue as to where (I wasn't on pintrest yet ~ nuff said).  I also need to work on my photography skills.  It doesn't help that most of my pictures are taken late at night after children have gone to bed and I have some time to my self.  I promise these are extra cute in person.  
Supplies: 2 pairs of different colored socks for each lollipop, 6 inch lollipop sticks and shrink wrap basket bag (you should be able to find it at Dollar Tree - that is where I found it, anyway).  Cello wrap would work too, you just can't shrink & tighten it around the sock. 
Here is how I made them.  I tried a couple different ways and this is what worked best for me.  We bought two packages of socks - one were striped and one dotted.  I had Sis pick out the colors she wanted to go together. 

First, fold one sock in half (I tried folding it only 1/4 of the way, but that made the lollipop thick on one side and thin on the other).  The toe should be on the left, the heel on the right (this will be the same for each sock).

Next fold the second sock - same color - in half.  They need to overlap a little.  Look at the picture above - the fold is at the bottom for the sock on the left and at the top for the sock on the right.  After trial and error I found that this looks the best when it is rolled.

Fold the 3rd sock in half (different color) and place it on top of the one on the left.  This time the fold is on the top.  Also scoot it over to the right a bit.  There should be some of the bottom sock sticking out.

Fold the last sock in half.  Place it to the right and on top of the sock.  It should hang over the bottom sock a little bit.  Tuck the toe in between the fold of the fold of the sock on the top left.  

 
Sorry about the change in colors and don't look how these socks are laying.  Follow the instructions above and the end result will look better - I promise.  Anyway, start on the right side and roll it up.  At first it will just be the top color and then the bottom will join in.  In a couple areas the sock will be a little thicker (at the heal & where you insert your foot) and you may want to tuck it down a little so it rolls a little more even.

When it is all rolled take a piece of scotch tape.  It doesn't need to go all the away around, but at least half way.  You could wrap it all the way around if you would like.

Pull and tuck as needed to make it them as even as possible.  They should look similar to those above.

Take some hot glue and on the scotch tape glue on the sticks.  You will need to hold the stick straight while the glue dries.  
I didn't take more pictures, but the next step is to cut the wrap the size you want to go over your sockpop.  Just place it over the sock, gather it at the bottom of the sock/top of the stick.  Twist a little then knot a ribbon around it.
I held my hand over the ribbon for the next step and covered up as much of the hanging plastic as possible.  With a hair dryer blow warm air on the plastic just around the sock.  It will shrink tight around the sock.  Don't melt it and try to only get the heat on the part around the sock.

You now have a fun gift to give to that fun girl(s) in your life.

If you have any questions leave me a comment.  Hopefully it all makes sense (and I don't have too many grammatical errors) because yet again it is way past my bedtime :)