A Woodland Themed Christmas

It is Woodland Christmas week on the blog!  Woodland animals are definitely a trend right now.  Long time readers will know that we have been loving woodland animals for a few years now.  That sweet hedgehog in the picture, he is Kara's pet Silver. She got him for her birthday a few years ago after a year of begging.  That summer she chose  a Woodland Themed Birthday Party Even her Halloween costumes for the past three years have been woodland themed.  In 2011, she was a fox, the next year a raccoon, and this year a bunny.  (originally going to be a hedgehog, and then a squirrel, before settling on the bunny)  So having a woodland themed Christmas week on the blog was a pretty easy decision.   

When going through an old box of Christmas items  that I had not gone through in a very long time, I found a bag of partially finished mini bird nest wreaths.  I thought they would be perfect to turn into a woodland themed ornament.  They already had glittery nests, and a few random ornaments glued on.  I added a few more, and the glittery ribbon, so I could hang the wreaths.  I  still might add a little bit more of the glittery stems to the nest. ( I just remembered where I have them stored as I am typing this post.)  If you have a mini wreath, and a craft bird, this is a very easy ornament to make.  All you need is a glue gun, and some items to embellish the nest.   These birds will give my woodland themed Christmas tree, a real sense of nature since they look realistic.  

Here is a fun video of Silver enjoying a warm summer day. I know it is sideways, I have looked all over and can not find where I can rotate it. Enjoy!  

I will be linking up this craft on these wonderful linky parties here. Be sure to stop by and check them out.  Also be sure to follow by email, so you don't miss a post!

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Watermelon Hedgehog

I am sharing another oldie, but goodie that could be a lot of  fun to make today, or really anytime you eat watermelon. 

Last year I made this watermelon hedgehog for my daughter's Woodland Party in honor of her new pet hedgehog.  It was so much fun, and the kids loved it.  This would be a great way  to present your watermelon today or any time you serve watermelon.  It actually is pretty easy to make. You can see my full tutorial HERE.

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Hedgehog Watermelon

Our woodland party is just under 2 weeks away, and we are busy prepping and planning.  We had a watermelon that we did not eat on the 4th, just sitting on the counter. I thought it might be a good idea to do a practice melon to know what to expect during the actual party. .

Here is what our real hedgehog looks like, so the design is actually pretty close. 

Disclosure: This post has affiliate links to items that help to make cutting this hedgehog watermelon easier. 

The watermelon I had was pretty big and on the longer side. I might go with a slightly smaller one for the party.  

I started by slicing a little bit off the bottom of the melon to keep it steady.

Using a dry erase marker to make the lines, I cut out the center section.   

I scores the center part of the watermelon and then scooped out several cubes.   This picture was after the first layer of melon was removed.  If you would like to make the cutting easier and neater, you might prefer to use a watermelon slicer, cutter, corer like this one. 

Some of the pieces of the melon toward the bottom were too small to cube.  Instead I placed the smaller pieces and liquid in another bowl, so we can use it for something else.   

On each end of the melon, I cut small triangles using a paring knife.

I cut a triangle shape from the rind that had been removed from the melon for the nose. 

The feet were rectangles that were then rounded off to an oval shape. 

The ears were cut from the smaller, thinner slice that was removed from the bottom of the melon 

The nose, ears, and eyes were added with toothpicks broken in half.  I did not attach the feet on the practice melon, but might on the real one. 

I added the watermelon cubes back inside the melon, and then Kara added the toothpicks to look like the quills. 

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