Garfield Pool Noodle Wreath

                                           

My aunt Rene, who turned the big 5-0 on Sunday, is a HUGE Garfield fan (to say the least). Every household item that could possibly be transformed into this adorably, grumpy, fat cat she owns. and her Facebook friends can count on reading a new quote or picture every Monday, depicting Garfield's thoughts on the beginning of the work week. Because Garfield decorations are hard to come by and Rene planned a huge shindig (which happened Saturday night and was sooo much fun), I took it upon myself to make her some fat cat-inspired things that could be used throughout the party! I will be posting pics of the party and the Garfield decorum soon, but, for now, here is the how-to for the pool noodle, Garfield wreath I made her...

Materials:

-orange, pool noodle

-black, duct tape

-craft foam in orange, yellow, pink, white, and black

-2 black, pipe cleaners

-black, permanent marker

-scissors

-low-temp glue gun and glue sticks

Directions:

 1. Form pool noodle into circle and wrap black, duct tape around the ends to connect the circle.

2. Wrap pool noodle in black duct tape in four spots to create Garfield's stripes

3. Cut Garfield's ears, mouth, eyes, eyeballs, and nose out of foam in the corresponding colors shown

    below. Use black, permanent marker to embellish the mouth and ears.

4. Using a low-temp glue gun, adhere ears to the back of the wreath and Garfield's face to the front of the

    wreath.

5. Use two black, pipe cleaners to cut out 4, 3-inch pieces and 2, 5-inch pieces. Stick 2, 3-inch pieces and

    1, 5-inch piece into each side of the wreath, as shown in the picture below.

I will end this post by simply saying

HAPPY 50TH BIRTHDAY, RENE!!!!!

Children's Craft-Panda Visor

Make new friends, but keep the old (sing it if you know it!) one is silver and the other’s gold. As a child/teenager, I had the privilege (yes, privilege!) of being a Girl Scout for 13 years. Scouting allowed me to meet people from all walks of life, try activities I would never have tried otherwise, perform community service projects for those less fortunate than myself and experience the joy of giving back, and travel around the country and world (That’s right, kids..my troop went on a two-week journey to London and Paris!). About a year and a half ago, I decided that it was time for me to start giving back to the Girl Scout program. I met up with someone from my local council and, before I knew it, I was the new troop leader of a Daisy (Kindergarten-1^st grade) troop!

One of the events held by the council was Thinking Day, which teaches the girls about Girl Scouts and Girl Guides in other countries. We were asked to represent a specific country at this event, so our troop chose China. With one week to plan and zero kimonos in my possession, one of the moms suggested having the girls dress like pandas…Done! I told the girls to wear a black and white outfit of their choosing and simply decorated white visors with black, hardened felt, and a black Sharpie to transform them from girls to China’s most well-beloved animal!