Since last March’s great car breakdown left us with one semi-functional car for the entire family, I have been stuck at home Monday through Friday. I love being home. Really. What I don’t love is the hamster wheel of dishes and laundry that defines my days. You have no idea how much you depend on running out for a coffee or buying groceries to break up the monotony until you no longer have that freedom. So, I entertain myself by arranging the clean wet dishes on the counter in upside down displays or sorting the folded laundry by color. The fact that these things go unnoticed only makes them funnier. When I’m really lucky, I get to add a little web project for a friend or a fluffy craft project to my day.

The year that Sawyer was born, Starving Artist made our family Christmas stockings. Since then, I have been unable to part with the pile of tiny fleece scraps that remained. I didn’t want to blanket stitch ornaments, but I knew there had to be a way to use the scraps in our Christmas decor.

We have used two dozen mittens on a lighted garland as our Christmas countdown for several years. Last year, the lights on the garland refused all attempts at a repair and it was used sans lights. This year, I decided to put the twinkle back on our mitten wall with the popular Pinterest rag tye light string as the garland. I had almost everything on hand, but did go buy tulle to create the effect I was seeking. Regrettably, the store only had glitter tulle. Glitter is the herpes of craft supplies. The day after I made the garland, the floor of the bath tub looked like a mermaid had barfed green glitter.

The project is ridiculously easy, but surprisingly time consuming. If I repeat it for other holidays, I will have an entire season of an unwatched tv show to keep me entertained while I do it. A rotary cutter would probably reduce the time needed. Also, did I mention the glitter mess? Skip the glitter.

There’s one last thing I need to say about entertaining myself. For many years now, we have included a shelf elf in our Christmas routine. The elf moves to a new location every night. Each morning, the children race around to find the elf’s new spot. They love it. Sometimes, it’s somewhere creative. Usually, it’s just a shelf. In the past, I could post pictures of the elf in sparkly holiday decorations or doing something silly. It amuses me. This year, there is a HUGE amount of shelf elf hate out there. If complaining and criticizing entertains you, go for it. I’m still going to do the things that keep me and my family entertained.