Puppy Brothers and Christmas Crayons

Mo thinks he is one of the boys.  Unlike the cats, who know they are cats and therefore far superior to all other creatures, Mo hangs with the kids.  I can't believe how much we love this dog after 5 short months.  He's getting quite bushy - even his previous rat tail is full of hair.  He loves to ride with us and will jump about 4 feet in the air when I get his leash.  He went with us to pick John Campbell up from school.

This evening, we were snuggled on the couch, watching a Christmas movie and Mo was right in the middle of it.  Had to sneak some pics.

We also worked on a craft this afternoon.  We sorted through the big crayon box and removed all the icky, broken crayons.  We unwrapped them and I chopped them into small pieces.  Then we added some to a silicone star pan and baked them at 350 degrees for 15 minutes.  The make star-shaped multi-colored crayons.  I have poked holes in them and will string them with a little tag for the boys to take to school and give as little gifts.  Pics after we finish.

Finished crayon stars:  Remove paper from broken crayons.  Break crayons into small pieces.  Take silicone muffin pan or candy mold and put crayon pieces into molds.  I didn't want really thick crayons, so I filled about 3/4 full.  When they melted down they were about half full.  Baking times vary.  I baked mine at 350 degrees for 12 minutes.  The wax crayons were liquified.  Allow to cool for an hour and then pop out and allow to cure for a day or so on flat surface.  I wanted to make them into ornaments, so I baked them, then let them cool for 20 minutes.  I took the blunt end of a toothpick and pushed it into the crayon, making sure it went all the way down.  Give it a gentle spin or two.  Allow to sit upright in crayon for 40 minutes and then gently wiggle and remove.  It should leave a hole large enough to use a small needle and embroidery thread to make string it for hanging.