12 Days of Christmas (Day 2)

As I promised, today's post is MUCH easier.
The poem for today reads:
The 2nd Day of Christmas
Your students are busy like hens
You can correct their papers
with these two red pens

Like I mentioned before, the original post had 2 red sharpies as the gift with a slightly different poem.  To get 2 red sharpies, I would either have to buy a dozen for $10 or 2 multi-color packs for $6/each.  Also, I just didn't think that teachers would get as much use out of 2 red Sharpies, as they would 2 red regular pens.  I did purchase a 'nice' red pen pack (with an ergonomic comfort grip) by Zebra.  It was a pack of 7, so I have 3 left over for me (with 2 for each of my girl's teachers).

I kept it simple, but nice.  I took curling ribbon and tied first a red ribbon around both pens and slid it up the shafts, just under the clip.  Then, I tied a white curling ribbon the same way and slid it next to the red ribbon.  I then wrapped the red and then white around the 2 pens to create a candy cane effect.  Last, I added a bunch of curling ribbon and curled it.  Adding the tag to the mix.

And, you are done!

Hope you are enjoying these.  Be back for tomorrow's Day 3

12 Days of Christmas (Day 1 - embellishing a clipboard)

Welcome back!
Now that you have all your supplies and you have created your labels with your 12 days, it is time to start working on the days.  I must admit that today's (Day 1) and the last day's (day 12) are really the ones that  I spent time on.
I went ahead a bought inexpensive, generic recycled hardboard Staples clipboards.

The first step is to measure your paper to cover the surface.  I found that the board was just a tiny bit too tall to be covered by the 12x12 paper that I purchased.  I cut the paper to fit side-to-side.  Since it came up a little past the part that connects the silver clip to the board, I cut out a little rectangle out of the top for it to fit around it.  Make sure to trim off the rounded corners on the bottom, too.  I covered the back as well, so I cut another coordinating piece to fit the back.  This leaves a 3/4" at the top of the front and back that is uncovered.
The next step is to attach the paper to the board.  I first tried to do it with my regular scrapbook tape - bad idea.  When I tried to seal the top with the Mod Podge, it buckled badly.  Instead, lay down a good and complete layer of Mod Podge on the board and attach the paper that way.  Wait for it to dry.  Another tip for this step.  How do you get the Mod Podge under the clip without sealing it to the surface?  Using ribbon or thick string, tie the top hole to the bottom with it open as far as you can get it.  Don't forget to protect your surface so that you do not get it on anything else.

Step 3 would be to add any other additional decorations.  Since my front paper was already very busy, I only added a ribbon to cover that top 3/4" that was blank.  The back was fairly busy, too, but I wanted to personalize it, so I used my Sizzix to cut out the letters of their name in red paper.  To attached the individual letters, I ran them through my Zyron to add adhesive to the back and stuck them on haphazardly.
Step 4 is to then seal the top with Mod Podge.  You are going to want to add at least 3-5 layers, letting it dry in between.

After it is completely dry, you could use a sealer to make sure that it is no longer tacky, but I didn't do that.  I just went right ahead to step 5

Step 5 - package it up for giving.  I kept it pretty simple by making a bow out of the same ribbon that I used for the top of the clipboard.  I added my pre-made tag and walla - Done.

I already posted what the front of #1 looked like, but here is the back.

*sorry, I did not take a picture of the whole thing bow and all. 

That morning, I coached my girls about sneaking it onto their teacher's desks since it was supposed to be a surprise.  What I did not reckon with, is that other kids in class ratting us out.  BOTH my girls were able to sneak this first surprise onto the desks and BOTH of their teachers went "oh, where did this come from?" and BOTH of them had someone in class go, "that is from ____".  Darn!  So, maybe making it a secret from everyone would help.
Either way, I think that it is a fun gift.
Stayed turned for tomorrow much more simple gift.

12 Days of Christmas (the set-up)

By now, you should have gotten all of your items.  Most of these gifts take little to no work.  So today's post will be longer since it is all about the set up.
The biggest thing that I wanted to get ready was all the tags with their sayings.  First, I wanted to change some of the original sayings to be more personal and some I had to change because I didn't find what they had.  This is one big reason to shop for your items all at once.  For instance, I found gum in an 8-pack and they had it listed as #7 (meaning you would give the teacher 7 pieces of gum).  So, I needed to swap the gift for #8 (which was paperclips on the original blog).  Another change was #12, I really didn't want give the teacher 12 apples.  I have heard that teachers get sooo many apple things, that they get a little tired of it and 12 apples seems like a lot for any one person.  So, I decided to do hand-made thank you cards with an apple/teacher theme. Day 2, listed Sharpies as what a teacher would correct papers with and most teachers don't correct with Sharpies (plus they are more expensive), so I switched it to regular red pens.  One last change was the wording on #3, the binder clips.  I didn't like the image of a teacher wanting to binder clip my child's lips, so I re-worded it.
Here are the poems for each day:

There are many ways that you can create these tags.
I created each tag to be about 3"w x 2"t.  I used my SBC+ software to "cut" out the green paper into a tag shape and then again with the cream paper slightly smaller.  Both digital papers are from the digital free downloads from Scrap Orchard's Advent.  I added a text box to the center and typed in the phrase.  Then, I added holly and berries to each corner from the same kit.  I printed these phrases on white card stock and hand cut them out.  Then, printed the backs with the countdown numbers and attached them to the front with scrapbooking adhesive.
With something like a Cricut, you could cut them out a little easier.
Another method would be to use traditional supplies with a tag punch or hand cut them out.  Print the phrases onto cream paper and then cut out and attach. You could even hand write them if you want or have your child do it.
The method that you use is not nearly as important as the thought and that you are letting them know each day's poem

At first, I was only going to do the poem on one side and nothing on the back, but I got a little carried away and did a cute back with the number.
While the front was the same with each poem, the back, I made unique.  The Advent freebie was perfect for this, since it came with a mixture of fonts.  Here is day 1:

It was so easy to do with the kit that I have gathered so far.  It had all of these digital elements, papers and alpha.
After I attached the front to the back, I punched a hole in the top and attached them with ribbon.

My next post will talk about Day 1 and how I took the plain brown clipboard from generic to special.

12 Days of Christmas (for a teacher)

Hello all of you out in Digi Land!

The months have flown by and while I have 'thought' of updating my blog, it just honestly got away from me.  So, here I am months later with a post about the holidays.
I will just right to it. ;)

First, for those of you that digitally scrapbook (or even if you don't), have you been checking out the Scrap Orchard's Advent Calendar freebie.  Each day, they "open" a new door to a coordinated freebie and the designer that designed it is 50% for that 24 hours.  If you download each free mini, you end up with a HUGE, gorgeous Christmas kit.  The best part is that you can start now (on day 8) and have a great kit.  You have to get it while it's there, because it is too cool to pass up and if you forget, you miss that day's download.  The best way is to sign up for their newsletter and they send you an e-mail each night at 9 pm (pacific) with the download link.  It is so cool, that I have already been using it - twice!

What have I done with it?  Well, the first thing, is that I am creating my annual Christmas Newsletter with it, but more importantly, I am creating a gift for my daughter's teachers with it.  I found the cutest little idea on, what else, Pinterest.  Here is my link to my board, it is an idea for a 12 Days of Christmas for your teacher over at How Does She.  I pinned it a long time ago, but knew that I wanted to do it sometime.  I love that it is small little gifts for the teacher, but things that they can really use.

So, for the next couple of weeks, I will show you each of the days and how you can do this gift, too.
The first thing that you need to do, is to hit your local office/stationary store.  Some of these items could be found at a discount/Dollar store as well.  I also added some items from a my craft store (JoAnn's).  I really wish that I had planned ahead and got these items back in September, when most of these items were on sale!  I had 2 teachers to do this for, so some of my items, I bought a bigger package and got a better deal.
Here is your shopping list:

• 1 Clipboard - $2.29/each generic Staples brand, but then I embellished it (see Day 1 later)
• 2 Red pens (the original post had 2 red Sharpies, but I thought that regular pens would be of more use) -$4.79/7, enough for both teachers to get 2, plus 3 left over for me
• 3 Binder Clips -$3.99/15 pack of cute red ones.  I split these between the 2 teachers and am keeping the rest
• 4 Dry-Erase marker set - $5.29/4pack
• 5 pkgs. Popcorn $4.99/10 at grocery store
• 6 pkgs Hot Cocoa & marshmallows $2.29/package 10 packets cocoa + $1.99 marshamallow at grocery store
• 7 (times 10 = 70) Paperclips - $1.99/100 red plastic coated ones.  Generic ones would have been cheaper if cost is an issue.  Have your kiddos help count out the 70 that are needed and maybe not tell them that it would be easier to subtract 30, then to add 70 ;)
• 8 Chewing Gum (the original had this as #7, but I couldn't find a package of 7 pieces of gum) $1 at dollar store for a double pack of 8
• 9 Candy Canes - $2.24/ box of 40 minis at JoAnn's, you could give big/regular ones instead.
• 10 Magnets - I chose a ten pack of white board magnets -$3.99
• 11 Pencils - $5.29/24 Ticonderoga (the good ones, you could get the Dollar Store ones, but many times they are more trouble than they are worth, this was enough for both teachers)
• 12 Apple Thank You cards (the original post has 12 apples, I really couldn't see my kids dropping a dozen apples on the teachers desk, so I thought they could find more use out of some hand-made thank you cards.)

optional:

• white card stock (to print your labels on) - I bought a big package since I use it a lot.  $13.99 at Staples.  You could use whatever you have.
• ribbon and/or clear bags- to wrap your gifts
• Package blank cards and and envelopes to stamp/embellish for thank you cards - $6.99/48 cream colored at JoAnn's
• Teacher paper pack - I used to embellish the clipboard and I will use it to make the cards.  I got this one DCWV Grade School at JoAnn's for $9.99.
• Mod Podge - to seal an embellished clipboard. I already had this
• Die-Cut letters - for clipboard.  I used my Sizzix and cut them out with red paper that I had
• Adhesive, hole-punch, scissors, etc.

I will be back tomorrow with how to embellish and decorate the generic clipboard to take it from "whatever" to "how cute".

Mousescrapper Minnie Marathon

Phew!
This weekend was AWESOME!  I participated in 9 Speed Scraps (creating a scrapbook page LO, or layout, based off of rules set up by a moderator in a certain quick turn-around).  They started Saturday morning at 7 am and I went until 9 pm (with a small break in between for a cute 2 yo monster birthday party).  Then Sunday, starting again at 7 and going until late once again.
Eight of these LOs were part of the Mousescrappers Minnie Marathon.  For each LO that I created in the appropriate time limit, I received a Disney-themed digital gift from one of the awesome designers.  Then, when you complete at 8 by this morning, you receive an even bigger Disney "Goodie Bag" full from all the designers.  As an added bonus, if you were in the chat rooms with each Speed Scrap, a lot of the designers would give out discount codes to their stores or even gifts.
It was SO much fun, and my hubby was so good about me being glued to the computer all weekend.
Here are the pages that I completed:

It feels so great to have gotten this many pages done for my Disneyland Album.  I even did a 2-page spread of the one of Luigi and I was able to work within the rules to make my page of Stanley (the Founder) match the one of his sweetie, Lizzie's store.

Haven't done it before?  Now is the time.  Jump in the next time and give it a try. You have nothing to loose!!
TTFN!

Disney Speed Scrap Weekend (or how to complete a lot of pages over the weekend)

Man, I wasn't kidding when I said that my life is centering around Disney right now!  Just this morning, one of my favorite sites - Mousescrappers, posted that they are hosting a Speed Scrap Minnie Marathon this weekend.  YAY!!!
So perfect!  I have all of these pictures from our two trips to Disneyland that I need to get scrapped and this is the perfect opportunity to get some done.
For those that don't know a Speed Scrap is a hosted event, where they give you certain criteria for a LO and you create your page based on those "rules" in a certain allotted time.
For this specific Minnie Marathon, there are 8 separate speed scraps, each with their own participation prize for completing it in time.  Then, as if that isn't great enough, if you complete all 8 in time, you get a goodie bag full of digi scrapbook stuff.

So head over there and check it out.

Now, onto my next 4 pictures for the August Disney Photo-A-Day Challenge
Day 4 - Sport
I chose our speed cone (Racing is a sport)

Day 5 - Fast
I chose, Lightning McQueen.  If anyone is fast, it would a race car!

.

Day 6 - Nobody's Perfect

Since we are potty training mode (for the 4th time), I immediately thought of all the accidents that happen and how some days are Pull-up days and some are Big-Boy-Underwear days.

Day 7 - Child

Have fun and Disney On!

Meagan

Fun Disney Photo Scavenger Hunt Challenge

One of my favorite sites is Mousescrappers.  It is a great community of people that love Disney and Scrapbooking - 2 things that I love.  You mix that with photography and scavenger hunts - 2 more things that I love and you have me quite giddy!
This year, for the first time, we have gotten the Annual Passes to Disneyland and have already gone twice.  We went in April for Spring Break and again in June for the Grand Opening of Cars Land and Buena Vista Street.  For each of these trips, Mousescrappers had photo scavenger hunts.  If you are planning a trip to Disney, I highly recommend printing out the list of things to find and participating.  It is a lot of fun.
In April, the challenge was to find the alphabet in the park by taking pictures of the signs.  You didn't need to find the whole alphabet, but once I got started, I wanted to find them all.
Here is the layout that I did for that one

Then, for June, the Challenge had a new list of items, of which you needed to find 15:

1. Take a photo of something that starts with the same first letter as your first name. It can be a letter itself or an item or character (ie. J for Jasmine, Jammitors, Jar, or Jewel).
2. Since Mid-May marks the end of the Flower and Garden festival take a photo that showcases how well Disney uses plants to decorate the parks. It can be a topiary, or just an arrangement of flowers in a vase, but try to be creative with your photo.
3. Since Mid-May is also the start of Star Wars weekends take a picture of someone with a lightsaber. Can be a character, one of the members of your party, or the Jedis in the Jedi Training Academy. Use your imagination!
4. Take a photo of a wishing well.
5. Take a photo of a bicycle.
6. Try to take a photo with as many Disney rides in it as you can. It will be fun to see how many we can get in one photo (please label the rides in the photo).
7. Take a photo of a restroom sign. Try to find unusual or themed ones. I can’t wait to see how many different and interesting ones there are.
8. Take a photo of some kind of wooden statue. It must be wood! Think of a totem pole or the Indian in Frontierland.
9. Take a photo of a street performer.
10. On my last trip I became obsessed with all of the different trashcans in Disney World. Take a photo of one you find interesting.
11. Take a photo of you and a cast member who helped you in some way.
12. Take a detail photo of something you have never noticed in the parks before. Detail means close up or highlighting one aspect of an item.
13. Take a photo of a meal, snack or drink that you didn’t like so much, try to get you or a party member in the photo with the offending item.
14. Take an up close photo of one of the major icons of the park you are in. If you are on a cruise take a photo of the ship or a major icon of the ship up close (figurehead, aquaduck, main entry chandelier etc..)
15. A photo of some fastpasses, extra kudos if you can show them and the fastpass time clock over the machines in the same photo.
16. Get a photo of something reflected in the water at a park or on a cruise, be creative.
17. Take a photo of Mickey ears of some kind. It doesn’t necessarily have to be a hat, I want to see what you can come up with.
18. A photo of Disney Balloons. Yeah I love Disney balloons.
19. Take a photo of the same spot outside in the morning and again at dusk to see how different they can look. Place them side by side on your layout.
20. Take a picture of a flag of some kind.
21. Take a photo of an umbrella.
22. We all like a good laugh so take a photo of something you find to be funny (a moment, a character acting out, a sign etc..)
23. I love seeing fireworks, so take a photo of some fireworks.
24. I also love night time photos. Take a photo of something at night. Try to be creative.
25. Try to find a merchandise display that really wows you and take a photo of it.
26. Take a photo of the park schedule or tip board. I don’t know if they have this on the cruise ships, but if you can find a schedule of the daily pool games or of the daily activities offered that day on the 

ship then that will work too.

Since we were going for the Cars Land Opening, I tried to do as many of pictures of that as possible.

Here are my 2 pages:

Such fun.  It definitely added a fun element to our Disney trip to be on the look out for these hunt items, so next time, you are traveling to the happiest place on earth, be sure to check out the current list of photo scavenger hunt items - I know that we will! :)