Where has the summer gone? Falling leaves and crisp, cool mornings have been driving home the point that it is indeed behind us. Autumn is Douglas' favorite season, and October is his favorite month... quite fitting for the spookiest possum we know! Read along for some recycling-friendly Halloween decor ideas as well as a short recap on what everyone was up to over the summer, including an introduction to a new friend - Penelope Possum. Summer fun for Douglas and FriendsThe crew had quite an action packed summer full of outdoor adventures. They spent plenty of time camping, hiking, and even floating in the Allegheny National Forest .... as well as some two wheeled adventures on mountain bikes and dirt bikes. Did you know that Allegheny National Forest is Pennsylvania's only national forest, and became so in 1923? It spans four counties and reaches elevations of over 2,000 feet. There is plenty to do here and plenty of space to do it! You can even glimpse some creatures not seen in other parts of the state, such as elk and timber rattlesnakes. While there were many choices when it came to vacation housing, we chose to sleep under the stars...well, with a tent roof between us and the stars, of course. (And how bright those stars are in a place so wild!) Now, tent camping might be considered "roughing it" by some, but rest assured that this bunch of adventurers did not rough it when it came to meals. Earl the Squirrel graciously tagged along as camp cook and DJ, serving up fresh dishes and tunes for all. Snapshots of fun times below! Who is Penelope?Penelope Possum (aka The Seedling) is a very small possum who is a very big friend of Hedgie's. Little Penelope traveled all the way from New Orleans to meet Hedgie and begin a new chapter in an entirely different part of the country. Hailing from the French Quarter of New Orleans, Penelope started life as a seedling in the Cocoally shop where she was surrounded by all the good art and good vibes a little possum could want. Her mentor Scott knew that when friends of Hedgie's stopped in to chat about hedgehogs and possums, that it was Penelope's moment - it was her destiny to leave the shop with her new friends and help spread words of possum goodness. When she isn't getting into some sort of project or exploit, she can be found hanging out with the adventure crew and chatting up her new acquaintances. Her Uncle Douglas always keeps an eye on little Penelope, making sure that she isn't reading too fast or overdoing it on sugar intake... or asking Corrs too many questions. We hope to see Penelope guest star in a future story from Douglas and Friends! If you have a moment, check out all the other seedlings and their friends at www.cocoally.com! Simple crafts to help keep plastic out of the trashWe all know that plastic doesn't belong in the ocean. Talk about SCARY. The best way to prevent that is to use as little as possible, but it can be difficult to cut it out of your routine completely. So instead of trashing it, recycle it. Simple! But what if you don't have readily available access to recycle all of your plastic, though - like your plastic bags and clean plastic wrapping or packaging? We presented this question to Douglas, who promptly consulted Creeker Car Parts for expert reincarnation advice, and one of the results was a cute little sock gourd stuffed with soft plastic wrap (in this instance, plastic from individually wrapped paper towel rolls). See below for instructions on how to make this easy autumn decor. NO-SEW, PLASTIC-STUFFED SOCK GOURDSTEP 1: GET YOUR MATERIALS You'll need.. - One old sock - Any soft/flexible clean plastic; one small plastic bag (we used wrapping from individual paper towel rolls, but deflated packing pods, tiny bubble wrap, or even clean shrink wrap will work) - Something to tie with (string, yarn, shoelace, a thin sliver of plastic, twisty tie, etc) - Scissors - Glue ** Pictures below follow steps 2 - 10 ** STEP 2: Cut your sock in two through the heel area. You will be using the toe end of the sock. STEP 3: Make downward cuts through the toe of the sock, then cut across through the end. STEP 4: Fill your small plastic bag with your clean plastic scraps. You'll want this to fit in the sock to fill it out but not be so big that you cannot pull the sock over it. STEP 5: Without tying the top of your bag, pull the sock over it (cut end up) and shape it to fit snug. STEP 6: Once you've got your sock fitted over the plastic sack, tie it off at the top. STEP 7: Use your scissors to make downward cuts into the top of the plastic sticking out of the sock so that it matches the top of the sock. Then tie the entire top of the sock shut. STEP 8: Make a face! Peruse your recycling stash to dig up your choice of eyes, nose, mouth etc. STEP 9: Glue your face embellishments onto the sock and let dry. STEP 10: *Optional* Dig further through your recycling bin to find a simple base for your gourd. If you wish, you can glue the bottom edge of the sock to your base and even decorate the base itself - a hot glue gun may be best for this task to keep the sock attached, depending on the base you choose. Enjoy!! We referred to these little sock creatures as gourds due to the high variability in shape, size, and color. Get creative and use any old clothing item... stuff an old orange hat for an easy pumpkin! P. S. What about the other half of that sock? Keep it handy for another craft that we'll share as we approach colder months of the year - an activity that happens to be a favorite pastime of Douglas'. More crafts and spooky goodness to continue...Expect Douglas and his buddies to check in often this month, sharing more reincarnated trash crafts and spooky vibes. You can count the days until Halloween, but for Douglas every day is Halloween!
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Tales of Douglas Furr (and his friends)narrated by Crissy Clossin Archives
February 2024
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