The Ornament Casualty Count and other ideas

We've sent two more ornaments to the Kitchen Counter Trauma Center for a current total of four casualties.  Unfortunately the last two victims sustained injuries that were fatal, so off they've ascended to the Great Christmas Tree in the sky (also known as: the trash can).

Speaking of ornaments, on Sunday the boys and I made cute handprint ornaments to give to both sets of grandparents as Christmas presents.  I am not going to post the photos here because I don't want my mom or Meme to see them.  I will, however, link to the blog where I found the idea.  (Grandparents are NOT allowed to click on the link!  Wait.  Grandparents can click on the link, just not MY children's grandparents.  Had to clarify.)  We made slight adjustments to ours and I really love how they turned out!  If you are looking for a gift idea, they were very easy and fun to make.  And if you live in close proximity to me I have supplies left over and am happy to share!

These peppermint candy wreathes that hang from our dining room chandelier are one of my very favorite Christmas decorations.  Harrison and I made them four Christmases ago.  Even though he was not yet two years old at the time he was very good at unwrapping the candies and placing them in the ring of a tiny pie tin.  He was also good at eating the broken pieces!  I simply put them in a 250 oven and watched closely until they melted.  Each season when I lift them from the storage bin I say a little prayer of thanks that they have held together to sweeten up our December for another year.

A new decoration this year was this beautiful advent calendar, lovingly handmade by Meme.  Last year I emailed her an image (I have absolutely no idea where I found that original idea) of a very similar advent calendar and suggested it would be a fun sewing project for her.  Heh Heh Heh  :-)

Little did I know she actually started working on it and surprised me with it last weekend!  The boys have loved lifting the ornaments from the pockets and attaching them to the tree.  One of their favorites - a cute penguin - took a fall and was sent to the Kitchen Counter.  Thankfully, he was a resilient patient and recovered beautifully.  He is now back with his family, tucked away safely in the plaid pocket of the advent calendar. 

No doubt I'll be back later with another ornament casualty update!