So it has taken a little longer than expected, but I finally have for you the final game gift promised from this post. Here’s a little project I did with my kids as a follow-up to our Tahoe vacation.

I am always looking for ways to use pictures from favorite trips or memorable periods of our life. I like the pictures not only of the people but of the details that were important to us at that moment that we could easily forget.

Did anyone play with shrinkie dinks as a kid? I remember having a Rainbow Bright set. Did you know you can get blank sheets of them for your printer? It’s almost more fun than I can handle.

We printed off a few pictures from our trip. For photos to work on shrinkie dinks, they  need to be a bit washed out to make the final color true. We had fun picking out the pics. For this project we picked out several subjects that were in transit.

We added a little hand-drawn detail with a water-based marker.

Then cut along the lines.

And then came the fun part, we popped them in the oven. It is so much fun watching them curl up and become itty-bitty versions of themselves. Note, if you have an emergency and some curl over themselves, don’t panic! Just put them back in a little longer and they should flatten. Use a butter knife to carefully and gently flatten them a bit if you need to.

We added stands and have a pretty fun final product. Candy Land, anyone?

One reason I love writing this blog is that I find out about some of the coolest companies and their offerings. This sponsor is one of those. When I found out about Audio Heirlooms, I had to run here and share. Just wait, I’m sure your mind will be racing like mine, running through possibilities and people who you could completely delight with this new find.

Meet Evan Roberts.

Evan has pieces on radio stations  across the U.S., and has worked for a couple places that may sound familiar, like WNYC and the New York Times. He’s worked on some weighty pieces, ranging from refugees in the Middle East to exonerated prisoners in California. You can see a few more shots of Evan at work on the Audio Heirlooms Facebook Page. Including a shot of him gathering audio in a chicken coop (Evan?) I’m telling you, the man takes this job seriously.

Now I’d like to introduce you to what Evan does.

Evan makes personalized Audio Heirlooms. Do your realize what this means? You can have a personalized audio documentary (ahh! I love documentaries!) An audio documentary with crisp audio, artful timing, and all of that good stuff, made just for you. Audio Heirlooms has dropped in and recorded a baby’s early moments, bridesmaids prepping for a wedding, a pre-wedding manicure (how great is that?), and more, which you can check out on their site.

I love that Audio Heirlooms makes the whole process simple and fun. With an audio card, for example, Audio Heirlooms will give you a toll-free number to pass out to all your friends and family who you want to make an audio appearance in your piece. Everyone can dial in from home and leave their fond wishes by  phone, simple as that. This would be so ideal for my family, we are spread out everywhere.

Audio Heirlooms has all kinds of happy customers, including Scott Hamilton (the Scott Hamilton) and Kimberly Williams-Paisley (wife to Brad Paisley, the Brad Paisley). I already feel cooler just for knowing about this company.

If you’re like me and are stowing this idea away for a few big upcoming celebrations and honorees, you can subscribe to the Audio Heirlooms newsletter to stay posted and get some samples and inspiration. Or contact Audio Heirlooms and get a free sample CD.

I’ve already started putting together my Audio Heirlooms wish list.
I would love an audio of memories of each of my grandmothers. One I’m really close to and the other I never got the chance to know. (These are a couple pics of them. Aren’t they lovely?) Would love to pass this on to my daughter.

I’d love to get an audio card of wishes either for my baby or for my daughter when she is baptized next year.

Do you know whate else I would love? An audio cookbook. I have some relatives who can share a recipe the same way some people tell a good story or joke. Would this not be the perfect grad gift?

Also, would really love to get a series of bedtime stories for my little ones to drift off into their dreams to the sound of beloved grandmas and grandpas, uncles and aunts.

I’d love to hear, who would you like to get on tape? and what would you want them to share?

Here, just a few of my very favorite ideas for something yummy to make this Sunday.

—Dad wants homemade Twix. Trust me, he does. If you need a good caramel recipe, I know a place where you can get one.

—I know where you can get a pretty amazing deep dish pizza recipe too.

—Am a huge fan of chicken tikka masala, and am overjoyed to be told I can make it in the slow cooker. Don’t forget the naan.

—Go all out and design dad his very own cheesecake (thank you, circle b kitchen).

—Would love to start the day with some prosciutto eggs Benedict.

—Have been wanting to make a Parisian hot dog for years. Hmmm. I might have to splurge on the hot dog maker. I wonder if a pipe on the barbecue would do the job.

—Tried this method for steak last Father’s day and, trust me, it is this good.

—Am definitely going to need a Mr. Crunch with gruyère dripping all over it.

—Would also love to crunch on some popcorn with a kick.

—This one’s for the s’mores fans. Make a full pie’s worth, or put it all in a milk shake (you can do that!?)
(btw, I found jumbo marshmallows while shopping at Winco a few weeks ago. You have got to try putting one of these things in the microwave. It is a spectacle.)

—And finally, a cinnamon roll that’s a pancake? You can’t argue with that.

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Find fun ways to package up your goodies right here. I am thinking I will need a few berry baskets for picnicking this summer.

A few more gifts for dad that are small, but not cute. (See part 1 here).

a whole case of miniature things to stow in his glove box

a portable water sterilizer, and cable yo-yos for organizing his office

a good documentary or a super cool book

a ratchet kit and gel to clean anything

a little version of New York

mini laser tag and a spy camerafor the dad who thinks he’s Bond

a mini version of a ceiling fan to put in your tent, portable salt and pepper

mini mini golf

a sweet pair of shades, a pocket lantern

thumbprint cookies from Whimsy & Spice, a pocket fishing pole (this one is pictured, though this onehas better reviews)

While we’re talking Father’s Day food, here’s one more edible surprise for Dad. This is something we put together for my husband’s old college roommate to use at his desk. He really, really likes curry. So we gave him a salt, pepper, and curry shaker, plus a little hand mixed garam masala, to have on hand for lunch breaks. The curry was pre-mixed store-bought, but next time, I’m making my own. I know many men have a spice they favor, and unless it’s garlic, I figure it’s worth encouraging.

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If you haven’t had the chance to stop by the new shop for  Whisker Graphics , make sure you schedule a stop today. So many fun printables and paper goods. Not to mention the famous Divine Twine.

We have this great supplier here in Sac that collects vintage soda from everywhere. They’re called Blue Dog Beverages and they’re fantastic. I had a chat yesterday with Bob Lake, one of the owners,  about what he might recommend for a good soda sampler. He put together a little tour of root beers for me (a little bit like this one, from Erin), starting with River City Rootbeer, which is brewed here locally. I thought I’d share Bob’s recommendations with you, incase you’d like to put something together for dad for next Sunday.

After I hung up with Bob I headed right over to a Nugget to pick up my loot, but Bob mentioned that you could probably find most of these at BevMo too. I’ve also put together some tags to add to the overall effect, and I’m posting a few blanks labels incase you want to write your own message. You can download them here.

(helpful hints: You might have to right click and choose “save link as” or “download linked file.” Also, you can resize these once downloaded by inserting them as a picture into a Word document. And finally, if you need printable label paper, I bought this kind and have been very happy with it.)

River City, from here is Sacramento, California. Bold and hearty, like Dad.

Dad’s, originally from Chicago, Illinois

Abita, from Louisiana

Olde Rhode Island Molasses Root Beer, I’ll let you guess where this one’s from

Capt’n Eli’s, from Maine

Waialua, from Hawaii (note, this one was not on Bob’s list, but I had to throw it in after reading reviews)

A few favorite small surprises that I’m considering for Father’s Day. Plus a few I’m not considering, but am loving.

a bulletproof hankie “for the promiscuous idealist whom lives in elegant danger” (thank you, MAKE) and another with a map of NY

the 4-in-one tool and the pocket worst case survival guide

a couple things to make dad smell manly

a Morse code kit and the pocket MAKE guide

a pen and pencil all in one and a hip case to put it in

a ping pong set and a pocket fire starter

a pinhole camera kit and a pocket knife worthy of a true mountain man

I love this idea for anything, but especially for Mother’s day. Inspired by vintage tinted photos, Unplug Your Kids made this simple project. You are looking at photos printed on standard copy paper, then colored with colored pencils. Wouldn’t this be beautiful with lovely pictures of grandma in her heyday or surrounded by her grandkids? Get the full DIY here (found via here).

I am not a black-licorice person, though I do love a good bag of green apple licorice. It is the perfect road trip food. But for those of you who are licorice lovers, or who have licorice lovers in your life, here are a few hard-core licorice treats that may take your love of licorice to the next level.

Kookabura licorice (in the first pic). This stuff is from Australia and comes in amazing flavors like Mango, yum, and even comes enrobed in chocolate.

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Sambo licorace. I found this at a favorite online shop, and love the description “Sambo is the brand of Kólus, the most well-known licorice manufacturer in Iceland. We had a meeting with the 70 year old “Mr. Kólus” and as much as we begged and pleaded he refused to let us see the factory.”

Fazer’s Salmiakki Licorice. A quick FYI, Salmiakki is a type of salty licorice. Sounds intriguing, right? You can read more about it here. This one is also available at kioskkiosk, and here’s what they have to say about it “While in Finland, in search of the perfect licorice and other things for KIOSK, I found this yummy on our first day at a very basic Kioski. Mainstream all the way, the perfect balance of salt and licorice flavor, no added flavoring of any kind.”

Finnska licorace. Another imported version that has a milder flavor, available on Amazon.

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Dubbel Zout. It’s just what it sounds like, double salted disks that are “firm but chewy.” Available here.

Tyrkisk Peber. These sound crazy. “Very hot and salty liquorice sweets with a liquid centre and powder coating.” Available here.

Panda licorice. This brand has a huge following and is probably a great place to start for the person who loves licorice but may not be up for trying the Finnish salted Salmiakki. It’s available on Amazon,and you may also be able to find it in stores at REI.

Golia. This one is an Italian licorice candy that’s hard to come across in the US. I found an online distributor here.

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Darrell Lea & RJs both make some delicious flavors of licorice (the strawberry Darrel Leais popular) that come with rave reviews. Get them at Amazon hereor here,or visit their websites here and here.

Licorice Altoids. how fun are these? Also, this shop looks great for finding several other imported versions of licorice.

Ever since high school, I have always carried a blank notebook with me almost everywhere I go, for recording bits of inspiration as they strike. I also like carrying a black pen and a pencil. And only recently did it occur to me to have a pencil sharpener to carry around too. It’s the simplest but greatest thing. To have a sharpened pencil anytime I need it is such a joy. So we recently started giving pencil sharpeners to other people too (you may have noticed it in this post). We found it to be the perfect teacher gift, and with teacher appreciation day fast approaching (it’s May 4), I thought you might like the how-to.

I simply decided to buy wooden pencil sharpeners and follow the directions for making a scrabble tile pendant. Here’s what you’ll need:
—A wooden pencil sharpener
(I was turned on to KUM pencil sharpeners after reading this hearty endorsement)
—Modge podge
—Diamond glaze
(can be hard to find, so shop around in advance, you can also use epoxy resin, which is more permanent and is water resistant, but you won’t want to use it around kids)
—A piece of artwork to add to the pencil sharpener

It’s true, KUM sharpeners are the best.

We’ve used a couple different kinds of artwork to apply to the pencil sharpener. I printed an initial for one, and my son drew a picture for his teacher for another sharpener. I took a photo of it and reduced its size.

I sanded off the paint from the sharpener.

I painted the surface of the sharpener with Modge Podge, then added my artwork and painted again with Modge Podge. I decided to give the sharpener a little extra time to dry.

I flipped over the sharpener and used a craft knife to trim the overhanging edges of the artwork.

Then I added the diamond glaze. This part can be a little tricky. I added a bead of glaze the size of a dime to the center, then tilted the sharpener until the glaze covered most of the surface. I used a straight pin to guide the glaze to the corners of the surface. And finally, I set up the sharpener on a bottle cap so the sharpener was perfectly level as the diamond glaze dried (which takes a few days, so be prepared to wait).

Once the glaze was dry, we had a personalized pencil sharpener ready to go.

Don’t you think everybody should get their own fan club? Really, on some days, wouldn’t it be great to have your own cheering section? Or maybe…to open your mailbox and find fan mail?

You might want to try sending some fan mail this week. We thought we’d send some, and had a lot of fun doing it. Incase you want that fan mail to take the form of a foam finger, like ours, here’s the how-to. And if you have no occasion to make a foam finger today, trust me, there is going to come a time when you are going to want to make your own. And when that day comes, you will know how.

This has to be one of my favorite projects yet. We started with some leftover foam we’d bought at the fabric store. Thinner is better. We snipped out the appripriate shape, a front and a back.

We used a permanent fabric glue, Gem Tac or Liquid Stitch both work, and glued the front and back pieces together, then let them dry.

Next we pulled out our acrylic paint and mixed up some pink, fabric paint works too.

We made a few discoveries about working with the medium of raw cushion. It has to be damp to be painted. Aren’t you glad you have me to fill your mind with such important details? So we got the whole cushion wet and squeezed it out so it was just damp, painted onto the surface, then squeezed it out again.

I was very pleased the ty-died effect. You like?

Then, while the finger was still wet, we painted on our special message. If you’re planning to mail, remember to give this days to dry. You want it to be fully dry before you fold it over on itself.

And finally, the result. This goes out to all my readers, the very coolest readers and dearest friends in the world! I’m your fan.
If you’re just joining, today’s post is from a series I’ve started on GiversLog that has become my personal favorite. I’ve been mailing gifts that are 13 ounces or less (because in the U.S., they qualify for inexpensive, first class postage). If you come up with any fun mail and send it for 13 ounces or less, be sure to add it to the flickr pool, we’d all love to see.

Do you make a big deal out of landmark birthdays? We have a few of these coming up in our families. So I’m collecting ideas. Have you done anything fun or had anyone give a great gift for a 30th, 40th, 50th, or 60th birthday? I’m looking, so if you think of something, won’t you stop by and let me know? Nothing is too big or too small.

Vic of lost had friends draw pictures for her dad, portraits or otherwise, then posted them all on a blog for his birthday. Brilliant. They’re a must-see.

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I wanted to let you know, I took action with the mosquito situation. I had the county mosquito handler (not sure what to call him?) stop by, and I now know ev-ery-thing about the local bug population. I know what week to expect what breed of mosquito, in fact, I think I’ll jot down these unwelcomed guests on my calendar, like I do with the welcomed kind. It could come in handy for planning barbecues.

Also, someone I know pretty well was in the NYTimes yesterday. It was something I’ve been wanting to tell you about since Monday, but want to collect my thoughts first. I’ll try this weekend. In the meantime, I’m looking forward to a nice one. We’re starting today with some yummy food, clams and chocolate. (Not together.) I hope your weekend is great!

Yesterday we decided to combine two of our favorite things about Valentines: paper + cake (singing along to sappy love songs is also on that list).

We stopped by a local bakery and asked if they had any wafer paper. They did. We’d never tasted it plain before so we all snipped of a slice. It tasted like, um, paper.

When we got home we poured out a little food coloring. I dug out my calligraphy pen…

and the kids ran for their paintbrushes.

We made and frosted some cakes (we baked them in ramekinsand used this trick for keeping the frosting smooth), snipped our designs
a bit, and found ourselves with

three edible Valentines.

I think my 4-year-old’s turned out to be my favorite.

Stop by tomorrow to see what we came up with to display them on.

UPDATE: Since this was our first time every playing with rice paper, I thought I’d add a few extra words of advice from here: “In order to make the rice paper stick to the cake…, you need to use some clear gel.” (Note, I didn’t use anything! I just stuck the paper right on the frosting.) “Carefully cover the bottom (the rough side) of the paper evenly with a layer of clear, edible gel. Then, turn the rice paper over and position it on top of the iced cake. …The rice paper should disintegrate after a short time of being on top of the cake, but even if it doesn’t completely disappear, don’t worry! It is completely tasteless and odorless, so it won’t be detected.”

A few gifts you can leave behind at your friends’ cabin the next time you go, that everyone who visits can enjoy.

1. A nutcracker that doesn’t send shrapnel when you crack the nut (available here in the U.S., don’t hesitate to bring along a bag of chestnuts for roasting over the fire).
2. A pizza cutter that’s will respect your host’s nonstick pans.
3. A bowl that is just begging for popcorn
4. A first aid kit you can grab on the go (and if you have pups on the trip, you can pick up one for them too).
5. Fun mittens
6. A few pairs of thirty below socks (okay, maybe this one would be better if you hosts kept them for themselves)
7. An apron or two that will make a chef out of anyone (I love group cooking, it’s one of my favorite reasons to go on vacation).

I have a lot of valentine fun coming this week, so be sure to stop back and get in the mood. Also, it’s been a while since we’ve had an interview stock full of gift ideas, so you can look forward to one of those too. I also wanted to say a quick thanks to Joy for her kind words last week. These things keep me blogging. Hope everyone’s week is starting out great.