December's not so Nerdy Craft Time and other miscellaneous things

December will not have Nerdy Craft Time posts. Not because I ran out of things, but because I've been extra busy this month and now it's almost the end. I have 2 Nerdy Craft Times set up for January, it's completely possible that I will add in an extra one.

We ended up springing for all new LED lights for our tree this year, I can't get over how bright they are! 

Christmas preparation has been crazy for me and my family, we started early but it just feels like I'm going way too slow and time is passing way too fast. I can't wait to cook on Christmas Eve, large family meals are what I live for! There has been plenty of snow, hot chocolate, and How the Grinch Stole Christmas this year though which I think makes it extra awesome.  I'm so excited for Christmas! It ties with Halloween for my favorite holiday. My family has always been huge on Christmas so it is super special for everyone. 

We made these super fun little ice "marbles" a couple of weeks ago when it was really cold. All you need are balloons (we used dollar store birthday ones), water, and liquid food coloring. (and freezing temps either outside or a spacious freezer)  I put a couple of drops of food coloring into the balloon (about 5-10 drops), then filled it up slowly with water from the faucet until the balloon was the size I wanted. I tied them off and placed them gently in a bowl. I transferred them in 4's because I didn't want to put them on top of each other and risk breaking them inside my house. I gently set them in the snow and let them sit for a few days. If you want your color a little more evenly distributed you may want to wait 6 -8 hours (depending on how cold it is) and flip them over. Then I cut the tops off the balloons and peeled it off the newly formed ice ball. Then you can sit back and enjoy your new ice marbles!
Word to the wise, do not place them on concrete if your temperature will get above freezing, the colored water will stain. You could certain do what we ended up doing though and place a plastic sheet underneath them, just remember to move them into the yard once it starts to warm up so they can melt without the chance of ruining anything.

After 9 months of flirting with platinum, I'm back to being a ginger. It's a bit lighter then my natural ginger hair but I'm pretty much in love with it. Blonde was nice but I do enjoy being a red head. Although I hated growing up with it, that was before "ginger" was a thing and it was all about certain horrible names that I won't type ever. Ginger is funny as long as people don't take it to a physical level. Nasty names are not. What I find the most interesting about being blonde though is hearing every time I tell someone I'm a natural red head, "Oh I LOVE red heads!" as opposed to every time I hear that rocking my natural color... Oh wait, that's never. I never hear anything about how people love red heads when I have my red hair. Most people like gingers in theory, until they actually meet us and realize most of the rumors about us are true. I also love when people tell me the red looks so much more natural on me.. well... I am a natural red head, I'm literally made to have red hair, of course it will look more natural. But I appreciate the compliments all the same. Red head problems.

Before with the blonde

And back to being a magical gingery unicorn. And yes, those are ghouls on my window, around Christmas... I may never take them down. They look hilarious when the sun hits them and they are silhouetted through my blinds. 

Aside from everything, I'm so excited for 2013 to end. This year has not been so kind to my family and we are so ready for a fresh new year. I can't complain too much, we still have food in our bellies, a roof over our heads, and family around us. But we've have a year marred by major health issues and strange mean spirited occurrences.

So, I'm sorry that I haven't thrown up 2 new Nerdy Craft Times including a new food edition. I promise I have one in the works for next month!

I probably won't have anything new up until January so I hope you and your family are having a wonderful time during the holidays, whatever you celebrate or traditions you have, I hope they are filled with joy and love. Have a lovely new year and I hope 2014 is the best year for all of us!