Category Archives: arts and crafts

Easter Crafts: Keeping it classy since 2013
21
Apr

Easter is a big deal in our family.

Every year we hold Easter competitions, and not to brag, but last year I took home first place in the Easter bonnet category.

However, this year I had to work all weekend. Nightshift. Blech!

I arrived home from work Easter morning as Brantley and Luke were just waking up. Luke wasted no time tearing through his Easter basket. I enjoyed watching his excitement as my Ambien kicked in and my eyes glazed over.

Suddenly, I was hit with a great idea.

(Stay with me)

Since I wouldn’t be there to participate in the games and watch the egg hunt I should MAKE SOMETHING for all of the kids. YES!!!

What happened next resulted in a craft destruction that I would later wake up and discover in the dining room.

The place was ransacked. Had we been robbed?

Nope. The only gun involved had required hot glue and the room was covered in shrapnel.

Finally, I understood why Brantley kept insisting, “Go to bed!” and “No one wants that!”

UglyBunnies

Say what you want, but it’s amazing how quickly I whipped up these Easter rabbits (out of maracas I had previously made out of Christmas decorations).

Industrious much?

Like most people, I keep a well-stocked supply of pipe cleaners, bandanas, googly eyes, and baby doll hair in my craft cabinet. The only difference is, I know how to work it.

(Barely) Surviving The Polar Vortex of 2014
22
Jan

I’m writing to you from a place called Monkey Joe’s. It’s a place where kids can run wild with reckless abandon while their parents sit in massage chairs and use the free wifi to watch episodes of Breaking Bad on their laptops. 


I’m thankful for this place because there aren’t THAT many at-home, indoor activities I can come up with. I thought there were. I was wrong. 

Earlier this morning Luke asked me to help him make a jet out of a cardboard box. I said, “Of course.” 

Two hours later we were both crying. 

He complained that I cut the holes in the wrong places and that his whole body wouldn’t fit into it. 

“That was NEVER a possibility!” I cried.

“Dad could make it work,” he said.

“Ok, look. I can attach something to the bottom of it so your legs don’t show.”

A short time later I noticed that our Yorkie, Baxter had retreated to a safe place- free from box cutters, hot glue and burlap. I should have done the same.


I’m no engineer, but I was pretty proud of the finished product. It had wings on either side. There were handles on the top for him to maneuver the jet from inside (I crafted them from pipe cleaners, dammit!!). It had two exhaust pipe thingies made from toilet paper rolls that stuck out of the back. Yes, the eye holes were too far apart, but I cut exactly where he had traced them. The final addition was the fabric that hung down to cover his legs, keeping him completely concealed in his “jet.” 

Did he say, “Gee thanks, Mom!” or “I love it!”

No. 

His response was, “I can’t wear a jet with a skirt on it! I’m not a girl.”

I was done. 

“Get dressed. Arts and crafts are over,” I said. “We’re going to Monkey Joes.”

Forget the Polar Vortex. I needed a massage and some grown up TV shows.

Lori