Ornament Storage Box

Save that wrapping paper and create an ornament storage box to keep your tree decorations safe until next year. You'll need an empty wine or liquor box with sturdy cardboard dividers. I got this one near the front door of the liquor store.

Mix about one part water to one part white craft glue, or any glue that dries clear.

Brush the box with glue one section at a time. Then place a torn piece of used wrapping paper on the box. Brush over the paper with glue before moving on to the next section. Work your way around the entire box, except for the bottom.

I used the front of a Christmas card to create this label and glued it onto the completed box.



Keep all your little one's ornaments safe in a sturdy and festive box that should last for years to come. For extra durability, you can give the whole box a coat of clear paint sealant which can be purchased at a local home repair store.

You can also coat other boxes and lids to make re-usable gift boxes for next year.

Personalized Gift Idea

Need a last minute gift idea for Christmas or a Birthday? I love gift sets, and this is a quick way to make a personalized gift for a child of most ages. BabyGirl got this book from a friend of mine. It is a really fun book about a little owl who wants to go to bed early like his friends but his parents want him to stay up late like a good owl. While at the mall I saw that the 'make your own stuffed animal' store had owls. I used some gift certificates and made a companion Little Hoot to go with the book. If I had a better memory, I would have given him a red hoodie like in the book instead of his argyle vest, but I still think it is great to give BabyGirl her owl to hold while we read the book.

To turn this into the perfect gift for someone you are thinking of, select a book with a unique character, perhaps one that doesn't already have its own stuffed animal line. Then go to your local Make a Stuffed Animal store, for example Build A Bear, and pick out the animal that best fits your book and dress them up similarly. The gift recipient will hopefully love having such a unique and personal reading buddy. For a grown up, the Vermont Teddy Bear company has some very elegant bears and stuffed animals that could be dressed as a character from a classic novel.

Christmas Vacation

We will be visiting family until January, so please excuse the infrequent posts that are to come. I will have a few ideas for you, especially some helpful ideas for post-holiday crafts and solutions.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Laundry Tip for Apartments

This is a shout out to all those apartment living parents out there. Doing laundry is probably the most complicated task I accomplish in a week with a 6 1/2 month old. It usually involves some combination of the stroller or baby carrier backpack, a large basket of laundry, and lots of trips. What I hate the most is coming back up the stairs and finding a sock lying in the hallway after already starting the laundry. Thus, I offer a solution, a quick fix to keep those socks, onesies, and unmentionables in the basket and not on the floor for all your neighbors to see.

Cover the laundry basket with the changing pad cover. It works so well, and I'm really wishing I had thought of this 6 months ago. The elastic fits around the rim perfectly without obstructing the handles. I still have to manage to get to the basement with a basket and a baby, but any little thing can be a big help. Hope that helps you too!

Christmas Cake

I love holiday baking: cakes, cookies, gingerbread houses, all of it! Here is a Christmas Cake I made the other day for a dinner gathering. The new part for me was trying to take the Rainbow Cake technique and use Christmas Colors instead. I would totally agree with the original author and double the recipe for better striping, but I think the ribbons of color still turned out pretty festive.

The decorations were sugared jellies from the bulk section of the grocery store, Keebler fudge covered graham crackers, and some marshmallows stacked up to be snowmen. The peaked icing look was done using the back of one of BabyGirl's spoons. I tapped it gently all over the cake, pulling up the little peaks and giving a bit of a snowy feeling. The decorating took most of one nap, so 30 to 45 minutes, but didn't seem like too much. Just another fun holiday cooking experiment. Enjoy!

Christmas Eggs

We celebrated Christmas a little early this year. We will be traveling to see family soon, but wanted to have our own little celebration with just us and Babygirl. While she was down for a morning nap, my husband and I had breakfast. I made Christmas Eggs. See, they are red and green! Essentially, they are just scrambled eggs with avocado and tomato, but you could also use red and green bell peppers, red onions, green onions, chili peppers or anything else that you might enjoy and is a festive color.

I also added a little whipped cream and red and green sugar sprinkles to the hot chai. For an added treat, you could put a holiday shaped marshmallow, like a Peep, in your cocoa. We did this occasionally at a tea room I waitressed for and the kids loved it!

My mom was great at creating fun holiday dishes, and usually all it took was a creative menu, a color theme, and a little food dye. I'll share a lesson learned though... green milk, for St. Patrick's Day, looks horrible.

Making Snowflakes

Remember cutting out snowflakes? Here is a great website where you can do it online. Pay close attention to the folding process in the beginning and you can turn your virtual flakes into real ones. Use a real piece of paper and mimic the folds and then you are ready to cut. You can also save and email your creations to friends. Visit Make-A-Flake to get started and Enjoy!

Finding the Best Mall Santa

Santa pictures are somewhat of a tradition for my family. We have pictures of my dad as a child visiting Santa with his siblings. My parents have pictures of me and my sister seeing Santa over several years. So, of course, I had to scope out the Santa options for BabyGirl. There are 2 major malls nearby and all sorts of other Santa appearances in our neighborhood. Occasionally, your local paper may print a list of the Santas in your area, and most community gatherings will advertise if Santa is taking a break from toy inspection to hear a few Christmas wishes. Here are a few tips from our Santa visit, which I have to say, resulted in a precious photo of BabyGirl's first Christmas.

Before you go for pictures:

• While shopping or mall walking, ask the information center when Santa will arrive, or check the mall's website. Some start as early as mid-November.
• Once Santa does arrive, check out the packages and prices. For us, one local mall only had a small package with 1 5x7, a few 4x6's and wallets for the same price as another mall that offered more pictures in the package. In terms of cost, the decision was pretty easy.
• Figure out how many pictures you'll need to share with family. We wanted to include a picture for us, her grandparents, her great-grandparents, and siblings. This will help you pick your package more quickly.
• Ask about substitutions. We didn't need quite so many wallets, but more medium sized pictures. Since I was there on a weekday when Santa and his helpers were not busy at all, they were more than happy to answer a few questions.
• Does Santa's look make a difference to you? I've seen the traditional red suit with white fur trim, an elaborate Father Christmas with silken brocade vest, and what I'll call the Workshop Santa. His button down shirt had images of teddy bears flying planes and driving cars; his red pants were held up with suspenders; and his socks had great red, green and white stripes. He looked like he had truly taken a break from the toy workshop to visit the kids. Of course, the most important detail: real beard vs. fake beard. Workshop Santa had a handlebar mustache he must have worked on all year.

Once you've decided:

• According to Santa's photographers and helpers, the best time to go is before Thanksgiving. When we went, there was only one child before us, and no one in line after us. The stress level was way low and BabyGirl loved looking at the decorations for the few minutes we had to wait. If going before Thanksgiving is a bit early for you, try first thing on a Sunday morning. Our church service isn't until 4pm, and it was great to walk the mall on a weekend with so few crowds early on a Sunday.
  
• If you have other errands to run at the mall, visit Santa first. Why pay money for a picture of your tired, hungry child? Its easier to finish shopping a bit early than to get out of line after waiting 10 or 20 minutes to handle bathroom breaks or get home for a nap.
  
• When preparing the outfit, leave the topmost layer for last, as in "just before it's time to see Santa put on this sweater". The kids will be more comfortable, and you won't have to worry about spit up or spills.
• Finally, if your child is small or is still an infant, see if Santa will let him or her stand on his lap. The Santa we visited suggested this and the picture is adorable. BabyGirl is happy, you can see her dress, and in Santa's words we have "a picture of the baby instead of a big, fat man."

Even with all these ideas, it's not about 'the perfect picture.' Santa is fun, even magical and there is something about Christmas that awakens a little something special in many hearts. If your child is scared, try taking a picture in front of a decoration around Santa's Village: the pretty trees, the oversized ornaments, and candy canes. You may look back and have a gap of Santa pictures, but it will at least be a picture of a happy child. Although, the 'terrified of Santa pictures' can still be pretty funny.

Photo from Scared of Santa from the Chicago Tribune

Digital Paper Chain

My parents and my husband's parents live pretty far away, as in across the country far away. We try to send lots of pictures and video so that they can see their granddaughter as often as possible even though it's not in person. For Christmas, we will actually be able to visit, and everyone is really excited.

Now, when I was a kid, I loved to make paper chains. I would cut the thin strips of paper and tape them into an interlocking chain, one chain for each day until Christmas. I did one too for my wedding with pictures from bridal magazines, counting down the days until the ceremony. That alone should be evidence enough that I still love paper chains.

Today, my sister-in-law sent me a text rejoicing that it is only 10 days until we see them, and I got to thinking. Why not create a digital paper chain-a photographic countdown with pictures of everyone's favorite BabyGirl. So far, it's been a big hit. Since BabyGirl is currently down for a nap, her stunt double will have to fill in.

If you'd like to create a digital photo paper chain, grab your little one, four-legged friend, or love of your life and find creative ways to take a digital picture near a number representing the number of days left until your exciting event. Here are some other examples:

Enjoy!!

And so it begins...

Welcome to Mommy Brain Brilliance. After 6 1/2 months of being a new mom (and loving it), I've finally taken the advice of so many people and opened a public forum for all the crazy ideas I have while taking care of my sweet baby girl. This site will hopefully help other moms or those inclined to craftiness to enjoy themselves and their time with little ones.

Here's a preview of some upcoming topics:

• How to find the best mall Santa
• Fun and easy photo projects
• Links to my favorite free crafts
• Unique and personal gift ideas
• Fast and simple cooking

... and hopefully much, much more.

The world may think mommy-brain makes us all a little scattered, but I think there is plenty of room for a little brilliance!