Easy Burlap Christmas Tree Skirt

We have a slim line tree who's home is right beside our patio door.

With 2 little ones and 2 huge dogs, someone is always running in and out.

I needed a tree skirt that could get "messed up"

or a better way to put it....

kid and dog friendly"

So I made this 

Easy Burlap Christmas Tree Skirt

My Favorite Aspects of this skirt....

Less than 30 minutes to make (perfect naptime project)

Less than 10 dollars to make 

If it gets messed up....OH WELL (I can whip out another one)

Kid Friendly

Dog Friendly

HAPPY MOMMY!

You will need:

A long piece of burlap (will really depend on how big of a skirt you need to make)

Scissors

Yarn

Floral Wire (because I did not have a knitting needle)

Cut a super long piece of yarn and tie it to a piece of floral wire

Then start sewing

It does not have to be perfect to be beautiful

"The Nester"

Yours should look like this.

I promise this is not a long project

When you get to the end start cinching it up 

by pulling the string taught through the fabric

Should look nice and tight when you have fully cinched the fabric

Take it over to your tree and start positioning

I tied a knot at the both ends of the burlap string

Then I just fluffed the burlap a bit and made it look nice

View from the top

Yes some of my lights are out.

Gotta get the hubby to find the blown fuse

View from the bottom

Nice, tidy, pretty

and most importantly....

Part of our KID FRIENDLY CHRISTMAS!

Whimsical Gift Bags

My kids and I were invited to a Happy Birthday Jesus party yesterday.  Many thanks to my friend Ashley who hosted a fun kid friendly party.  I took these little treats with me for the mommy friends.

I took a white paper sack and folded the top over

I punched two holes side by side at the top

and secured a pom pom to the top

through the two holes. 

I taped a card to the front...

and there you have it!

Something cute, fun, whimsical, and kid friendly too!

Kid Friendly Christmas Tree

Our tree this year is filled with handmade pom poms, pinwheels and foam reindeer and is draped with colored lights.  Our family tradition is to get a real tree.  I love how each year our tree has different character.  This year is no exception.

In my POM POM Wreath post I told you about my second born chunking an ornament across the room and me scratching our memorable/sentimental ornaments from going on the tree this year.  Here is what we ended up with this Christmas and I must say.....it feels like home!

I made these pinwheels out of scrapbook paper

My kids love them and call them "stars"

No one has attempted to take the "stars" off of the tree!  SCORE!

I bought these foam reindeer at Micheal's years ago.

I found them while cleaning out my closet last year 

and decided to make them an art project for my first born.

The reindeer were a success!

And because I made so many pom poms.....

the tree is adorned with green and white pom poms

Here are a few pics of our tree.

Simple and Kid Friendly.

Someday we will pull out the sentimental ornaments

but for now.....we will enjoy Christmas

with our children!

I linked this post to

http://honeywerehome.blogspot.com/2012/12/christmas-tree-link-party.html

Christmas Mantel 2012

 For the last few years I have searched high and low for the perfect stocking holders

and......I finally found them!!!!

In my previous post on the POM POM Wreath, I told you that I secured 

them to my "glass wall" with clear M3 hangers.

So the other night while laying in bed, I thought,

"Why not secure clear M3 hangers to the top of my mantel and hang our stockings from them"?

I tried it! 

I LOVE it! 

And I saved a TON of money!

They are easily disguised and will not fall off and hit my kiddos in the head.

To me they are part of a Kid Friendly Christmas!

Yes, each of our doggies have a red stocking.

We LOVE doggies!

My husbands favorite Christmas song is 

O Come O Come Emmanuel.

So I used my cricut to fill in this frame for the Christmas season.

Love the Holy Family under these words.

See...M3 hangers easily hidden

These guys I have had for several years.

I love the way I can bend them to fit the mantel each year. 

I linked this post to

 http://www.tenjuneblog.com/2012/12/rustic-glam-christmas-mantel-mantel.html

Pom Pom Christmas Wreath

This Christmas I have a 2 1/2 year old and a 16 month old. 

Christmas has to be shatterproof and kid friendly.

I unpacked a lot of my Christmas decor to pack it right back up.

Especially after my second born pushed a kitchen chair over to my slimline kitchen tree, 

climbed up on the chair, grabbed an ornament and CHUNKED it across the room.

Thankfully....it was a shatterproof ornament!

That experience led me to making a lot of decorations this season. 

Boys are so different from girls.  My first born was satisfied with a simple 

"No Don't Touch. Just wave Hi to the Tree" last year.  My son....NOT SO MUCH.

Over the next two weeks, I will share with you some of the things I have made

to help get me through this season.  I do miss our memorable ornaments but not enough

to sacrifice them!  I am proud of the whimsical touches of kid friendly items that

mark our Christmas season this year.

Here is one of my first projects.

POM POM Wreath.

I owe all credit to this idea to my sister.  When I saw her at Thanksgiving she was

making POM POMS hand over fist.  I decided to make red, white, and green POM POMs

as well.  And after I made A TON I decided to put some red ones on a wreath.

I thought....if it falls off the wall....it won't break

And....if I don't like it next year....I can take the POMS off  use the wreath for something else.

SO here is the TUTORIAL should you choose to make one of these POM POM WREATHS!

ENJOY!

Supplies: Wreath/Push Pins/Scissors/Yarn

Wrap the yarn around your hand

I wrapped mine around my hand 40 times

Pull the yarn off of your hand and hold together like so

Cut a piece of yarn to tie around the middle of the pom

Here is what your POM should look like after you tie the middle

Slip your scissors up each side of the POM and cut

This is what it looked like after I cut the first side

This is what it looked like after I cut the opposite side

Use a push pin to secure it to your wreath

Here is what it looked like after I secured the first POM

Gather the rest of your POMS and start pinning. 

The number of POMS you will need will depend on the size

of the POMS you make.  The smaller your POMS the more

it will take to cover the wreath

First, I pinned a front layer of POMS around the front of the wreath 

Then I pinned a top layer of POMS around the top of the wreath 

Then I pinned an inside layer of POMS around the inside layer of the wreath

Here is my end result.  You may have to trim a little

once you get your wreath made.

I made two wreaths and hung them on two glass windows

that separate my living room from my sunroom/playroom.

I secured them to the glass with clear plastic M3 hangers.

They are great touch to our home

and best of all.....

ARE SHATTER PROOF!

ENJOY!

Let me know if you end up making one!

I Shared this post over at......
http://www.thenester.com/2012/12/the-best-christmas-diys-and-crafts-ever.html

Winner of the #8 Giveaway

Jennifer from GA

You are the winner of the #8 Giveaway.

I have enjoyed the 

The month of Novemeber allowed me to give away...

The Circle Maker by Mark Batterson
Don't Make Me Count to Three by Ginger Plowman & $10.00 Starbucks Card
God Enough by Kasey Ewing
Book Page Wreath
The Total Money Make Over by Dave Ramsey
One Thousand Gifts by Anne Voskamp
Share.Save.Give Stickies
What Women Fear by Angie Smith 

So if you count it up you will notice that that is only 8 GiveAways.  I have decided to save my 9th giveaway for the month of December.  I think that it will fit more appropriately into the month of December.