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Thursday, December 29, 2016

Christmas Traditions and Christmas Creatures

The holidays are all about tradition. Whether it's a special pie, your auntie's fruit cake, holiday linens, or an annual trip to cut down a tree, it's the traditions that make the holidays special. In 2009 or 2010, a new tradition began in our home, Christmas Creatures. Each year I make a new ornament for my husband made from sticks, seeds, and any other natural bits that I happen to find. If you would like, HERE'S a link to the history of the ornaments.

Each year when a new creature comes to life, I always think that there is no way I'll be able to come up with a new one the following year, and yet they just seem to materialize.

This year's little creature, a little duck with a big acorn hat. 


The head and the body are tiny little gourds. When I was in Galveston, Texas back in November, I visited a favorite antique store, Somewhere In Time. She always has interesting and unique things. While I was there, I saw a big basket filled with extremely large acorn caps and these tiny little gourds. They looked interesting, so I purchased a number of the acorn caps and 2 of the gourds.  After playing around with the gourds for some time, the little duck began to come to life.


I used pine cone leaves for the wings.


As well as his little duck feet. His "skis" are a milkweed pod that I cut in half. 


Somewhere along the way, I picked up the tiny little acorns that I used for the tips of his ski poles.


There were some little divots in the acorn cap. I had a few more of the tiny acorns, so I decorated his cap. The eyes were marks that were on the gourds, so I didn't need to add anything more.


Just to give you an idea of how big he is.


 The crew :)


And a complete "family" photo. One is missing, Rudolph. He fell and broke apart, so maybe a new Rudolph will appear in an upcoming year.

I absolutely love making the creatures. It's a part of me that until 6 or 7 years ago, I had no idea even existed. 


Before I go, I thought I would share a few holiday memories. The boys pictured below belong to a very dear friend of mine. They came for a visit and fell in love with Gracie. Gracie was the BEST babysitter too! There were actually 3 little boys here. At one point I thought I was going to see 1 of them riding the dog! What is it about boys and dogs? :)


One of the quieter moments of the evening ;)


Not the best picture, but you haven't seen me in a while. I'm sitting in my favorite room, my dining room. It really looked so pretty this Christmas.   


The decorations are now down and the New year is just around the corner. I hope that you had a lovely holiday, and I wish you the absolute best year to come!

16 comments:

  1. Love the duckie! He's one of my faves, I think. I was just thinking about your little creatures the other day, wondering what this year's addition would look like. So cute!

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    1. Thanks! I just can't choose a favorite. But if I absolutely had to, I think the one that's all mouth would be it. I'm beginning to wonder if I should start calling them Christmas monsters since a new one is required every year!!! Happy New Year Lisa 😊

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  2. Replies
    1. Thanks 😊 It's always fun to see what evolves.

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  3. What a cutie this year; he fits right in with the rest of his family! Pretty decorations in your dining room and a pretty YOU too!

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  4. Love the duck (he is a little daffy! HA!). Love the pictures, too...our gang (daughter and husband and two grandchildren and two dogs) just left this morning and are heading back home; the house is weirdly quiet after the wonderful chaos of three dogs playing (senior citizen Tilly loved running with the pack) and a nine- and ten-year-old. We usually refer to the day when they leave as "Black" (Thursday, in this case), but it's also our son's thirtieth birthday today, and it wouldn't be nice to refer to his day as "black" in any regard, so instead of being mired in the pain of saying good-bye, I'm thinking back thirty years to what I was doing then: laboring and rejoicing in a new baby boy! Okay, I'm no Pollyanna; I'm going to be sad for a while, but I am so grateful for family and friends, even though I am living far away from them. I'll struggle to greet the New Year in an attitude of gratefulness with the hope of maintaining it throughout the year. There are sure to be some opportunities for joy coming up, too...Happy 2017, everyone! Looking forward to what you'll be sharing with us in the days to come, Rhonda!

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    1. Hi Cathy, thank you for sharing your highs and lows of the holidays. Even through our heartbreak, we can find joy 😊 Wishing you a VERY Happy New Year!

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  5. It is so cute. A fun tradition for sure. Happy New Year!

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    1. Happy New Year Vicki! I'm not a late night gal, so celebrating the Australian New Year sounds great to me 😉

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  6. The duck is cute! I'm glad you shared this year's creation. I enjoy seeing what you make each year. Good picture of you too. Glad the boys had a fun time. Happy New Year!

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    1. I wasn't going to share it, but I had dinner with my niece a few nights ago, and she asked if there was a new creature. She encouraged me to share it, she wanted to see it too 😉
      Gracie was such a good sport. The only problem is that the boys went home asking for a dog!!!
      Happy New Year Ginger!!!

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  7. Gorgeous duck Rhonda, and he fits into the family beautifully! I can't believe how much planning goes into these creatures - shopping and finding well in advance of making. I would send you some stuff from Wyre but I'm not sure how happy they would be about that at customs (I'll have to check).
    Wishing you a magnificent 2017 😃.
    P.S. I learned to ride on my aunts boxer dog.

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    1. This is the first time that I actually purchased something that I used for a creature. Since I enjoy hiking, I just keep my eyes open when I'm out, so it's really not a lot of work. Besides, if you enjoy doing it, it's never work 😊
      So...when it comes to dogs, it's not just boys 😄
      Happy New Year to you and your sweet husband Kim. It's going to be a great year!!!

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