Getting ready ...

for 2 parties tomorrow.

My theory is you just get all the fun stuff done in one day.

The next day .... you take a nap.

Or go out 4 wheeling with hubby if it all works out.

I was going to show you the magazine page ... printer/scanner says I have "no computer connection" ... oh well.

The idea was to take a styrofoam ball and glue on cupcake liners. I picked up the balls and had oodles of cupcake liners. We were a bit over ambitious, I'd have to say. Should have done oodles of tiny ones, but we did 2 of the large ones.

1. Get a white stryofoam ball (or a wet a green one and do this with flowers). We used a 3 inch styro ball and it took about 3 hours with 1 1/2 of us doing the gluing to get them done. A smaller one would almost work better.

2. Place a pencil (non sharpened end down) on the middle of the cupcake liner and lift the liner up around the pencil.

3. Apply a bit of hot glue and press onto the ball.

4. How close you put them depends on what you're using and how the material opens up and hides the white ball underneath.

5. Just keep on keeping on gluing and gluing some more. Cleaning up glue strings and the table ... if you're like me and forget to put down paper first.

6. Before you're done attaching the liners, you need to attach a loop to hold a ribbon. I used a curved needle and strung a loop of fishing line through the ball. Tie the fishing line and then attach your ribbon. Easily done.

7. Give willing helper a break in the middle. She helped, did a work out video, took a shower and came back to help again.

8. Listen to something that creates noise or your own thoughts. This gluing is rather monotonous work. I started with Deborah Crombie's A Share in Death (have come to be a fan of Scottland Yard's Duncan Kincaid and Gemma James detectives)  and then moved on to learn about Jill Price in her book The Woman Who Can't Forget. Maybe I don't mind my loss of memory.

The project was done before I went to sleep. :) Why I bite these things off to chew I have no idea, but they look great. Now I've decided that we need to do all kinds of little ones for Christmas. My girls are going to love me! I would like to try and do several small, maybe even tiny ones before tomorrow afternoon. Those we are going to do with tissue paper. I'll share them all when they are up and hanging!

In the meantime, I need to get to work. Jari is out somewhere in western Alaska. The B&B they are staying in is in St. Mary's ... check out the photos. US Census put the population at 500 in 2000. Today ... no internet service, no cell service ... one of those quiet places on earth. He won't be home until sometime Saturday nite. We're going to have to have a party without him. :(

Still have a few things to get done on my list before 2 pm tomorrow. Two of the kids are walking the Relay for Life all nite tonite. The honoree of one of tomorrow's parties is working tonite and doesn't get home until nearly 11:30 pm. Hoping to take a break at about 9 tonight and head over to another graduation coffee. I must think of an appropriate incentive for Tia today ... she is going to be working her buns off for me today and tomorrow.