Fireworks Wreath

Okay...I've sort of recovered from our Dominican trip,

(click here if you missed hearing about it)

and now I'm ready to jump into the 4th of July Festivities!

Today I'm sharing my

Fireworks Wreath!

This is a super simple wreath to create...

the only hard part is remembering to save your fireworks!

These fireworks were from a TNT 'party popper pack'

I had saved from this post on New Year's Eve.

Supplies Needed:

-Used fireworks.  (The small ones work the best.)

I also used a few party blowers and the paper shreds from the party poppers.
Note:  You could make this wreath with new fireworks if you wanted.

-One wreath form.  (any size, big or small)

-Ribbon to wrap the wreath.  (my ribbon came from the DollarStore.)

-Hot Glue.  (every wreath requires hot glue, right?)

Secure the end of the ribbon to the wreath with a dab of hot glue.

Wrap the ribbon around the wreath form, overlapping and covering the form completely.

To keep the ribbon secure, use a bit of hot glue as you go.

Make a big loop with the ribbon to create a hanger.

Hot glue the end to the back of the wreath.

 Now the fun part!

Arrange the fireworks on the wreath. 

Once you like what it looks like, start hot glueing each piece on.

After everything is secure, go back and glue the paper shreds

into any gaps in the wreath.

(I also glued some paper shreds coming out of the poppers.)

And there you have it!

Your very own

Fireworks Wreath!

I know it's a little flashy and a bit loud,

not my usual decor style...

but hey, it's the 4th of July and I'm celebrating!  Aren't you?

Don't forget to stop by my Red, White, Blue & You Holiday Link Party!

I'd love you to link up your 4th of July projects!

Here's some more 4th of July ideas for you!

4th of July Decorating   Fireworks Wreath      July 4th Festivities

Quick Red, White & Blue Parfaits             Uncle Sam Photo Shoot

Red, White & Blue Chip Mix                 Layered Crispy Treats on a Stick


Washi Tape Cup Markers

4th of July Decorating

A collection of 4th of July Wreaths

American Flag Crafts

 

Linking up to: Uncommon, HouseOfHepworths, HappyHourProjects, AtthePicketFence, FrugalGirls,
Whipperberry, SassySites,  IHeartNaptime,

CONTINUE READING

A Trip to the Dominican with COTN

Hi Friends!
I've been missing from 'blogland' for awhile...
why, you wonder?

My family and I have been having some fun

in a beautiful country,

playing with precious children,



surrounded by severe poverty,


in hot, humid weather!

We've been in Barahona, Dominican Republic with Children of The Nations International. 
Children of the Nations (COTN) is a wonderful organization that shares Christ's love, educates and provides care to the poorest nations of our world. 
Their focus is on the children:  Raising Children who Transform Nations.


We packed up our family and traveled close to 24 hours
(due to delayed flights and bus rides)
to reach Barahona, Dominican Republic.

Our 11 person group included church friends and family. 
[brother in-law, sister in-law, a cousin and friend.]

To say our eyes were opened, would be an understatement.
The poverty was like none we had ever seen.
The heat and humidity was very uncomfortable, yet
the Dominican people were delightful!

Their culture is so different than our fast paced, high pressured lifestyle in the States. 
Sad to say that it was actually hard to adapt to this slower pace.
However, by the end of the week we were loving 'Dominican time' and siestas...

not to mention the dominoes--a favorite of the Dominicans!


We came to serve, and we did.
My AH (Awesome Husband) and part of our team poured cement floors for three families in the 'barrio' (neighborhood) of Don Bosco, Barahona.

Nearby, my kids and I were part of the group that worked on painting
three classrooms in the Don Bosco COTN school.



Our favorite part of the trip...playing with the Dominican children!
So much joy, so many smiles and lots of laughter.

Of course, I should mention that much of the laughter occured from us trying to speak Spanish to them.  Thankfully the COTN provided us many translators.

Both our kids friended a 'special' Dominican child that they wanted to sponser through COTN.
They are excited to start writing letters to each other.

Want to learn more about COTN? Click here.
Want to sponser a COTN child? Click here.
Want to read my brother in-law's day by day (& often comical) account of our trip? Click here.

Sooooo...now we're at the hardest part of this experience...  Being home.
Laundry, kids arguing, grocery shopping, appointments, errands, etc.

I'm praying that our family will be able to take this Dominican experience
and let it change our hearts and our minds and our actions. 
I'm praying that we can allow the things we saw and felt
to really 'take hold' in our lives.

{...I'm not asking for too much, am I?}


Deut. 4:9
Be careful and watch yourselves closely so that you do not forget the things your eyes have seen or let them slip from your heart as long as you live. 
Teach them to your children and to their children after them.

CONTINUE READING

Card Makings with Shoplet.com and Esselte Products

A package full of office supplies from Shoplet.com landed on my doorstep the other day.

Wait until you see what office supply products I received...

I used one of the products to make these cute cards.

Sorry, you'll have to wait until the end to see just what office supply product I used...

(or you could always just scroll down to the end... no wait-- I have some cool things to show you!)

First up, the Ampad Project Planner.

This particular project planner benefits breast cancer research and education.

  A portion of the profits are donated with each purchase.

The cover is decorated in fun pink and white stripes.

Each page has numbered spaces with a heading space.

Below the heading is a notes section and an action column.

I'm a big fan of the action column...

I love writing little notes to myself about what I need to do!

The pages of the notebook are very thin and light, but you can still write on the back of each page.

I really like the metal spiral binding,

it makes it so easy to fold the book back and just write on the top page.

To check out all the daily planners Shoplet.com has to offer, click here.

You're not going to believe this next product--why didn't they develop this years ago?

It's the Pendaflex Divide it Up File Folder.

It's a standard size file folder with 3 pockets!

How cool is this?  Way cool!

The sections are closed on two sides to prevent papers from falling out.

How great would these divided file folders work at planning scrapbook pages?

Take a look at this.

I can organize out my entire scrapbook page. 

Coordinated papers in the first pocket,

stickers and rub ons in the second pocket and pictures in the 3rd pocket.

I'm thinking I need a ton of these file folders!

They come in boxes of 12 for the assorted colors and boxes of 24 in manila color.

Click here to see all of Shoplet.com file folder products.

OK!  Are you ready to see this 'secret' product I used in my card makings? 

Of course you are...it's the Esselte Copysafe File Jacket.

It's a double-sided dotted transparency style folder. 

It's designed to 'hide' important documents, yet allow you to see what's inside.

The CopySafe file folder makes it pretty difficult to read what's inside. 

Perfect for keeping a document private, but really, if you wanted a document private, wouldn't you put it in a sealed envelope?

If my kids saw this with a document inside, it would be a tempting invitation TO look at it.

Sooooo...instead of using it as intended, I cut the folder up!

 I simply used a rectangle piece of the folder and adhered it to a blank card.

I added a dotted ribbon and a stamped saying.  Quick and easy.

Can't you see some spy-themed or game night invites being made with these? 

They would be perfect for Halloween with eyes on them!  Oh, the possibilities!

These folders are sold in packs of ten. Click here to see Shoplet's file jackets.

Remember to head on over to Shoplet.com for all you office supply needs.

Don't forget to keep linking up to the Red, White & Blue Link Party!

CONTINUE READING

Bus Driver Thank You Gift

It's finally time for school to be out for the summer!  Whooohoo!

Once again, I put my son in charge of a thank you gift for the bus driver. 

This time I handed him a bag of those yummy, fattening Lindt Chocolate Truffles...

and said, "Can you make this into a school bus?"

He looked at the bag for awhile and said, "Can I open it?" 

"Open it?  No, it's a gift.  You don't open someones gift...what are you thinking?"

(I totally thought he wanted to pop one of the chocolates into his mouth!)

"Mom, I want to make the candies into the wheels."

"Ohhhhh!"

So off to the store I went to buy another bag of chocolates...

...and here's how my crafty boy made this school bus thank you.

Take bag of chocolates and turn it on it's side...now do you see a bus?

Open another bag of chocolates and use 4 of the chocolates to make wheels for the bus.

Glue candies right onto the package with hot glue or Glue Dots.

(You're starting to see a bus, aren't you?!)

Take one sheet of yellow cardstock and

fold it in half to go over both sides of the bag of chocolates.

Keep paper folded to cut out a squarish shape for the front engine of the bus.

On one side of the bus, draw windows and color them in with a black Sharpie.

Apply masking tape 'bubbles' to the candy package on both sides.

Press paper onto the package.

Using a circle punch, cut out a few circles for the heads.

Fill in the faces using markers and glue onto the windows of the bus.

The back side of the bus can be used to write a thank you note.

We added an extra chocolate 'wheel' in the front of the bus to help it stand up.

We also added a few paper scraps to put clothes on the faces.

And there you have it...

What a great year we had!  Thank you Bus Driver Dan.

Take a look at some more of our bus driver thank yous...

Click here for sausage bus link.

And here's last year's thank you.

Click here for Mr. Goodbar bus thank you.

Don't forget about the Red, White, Blue & You Link Party.
I can't wait to share some of the fun creations!

CONTINUE READING