Well, in a couple of days it will be September. Fall will officially be here on the 22nd. However, the leaves have been turning colors for a bit now. And I use the term ‘turning’ very loosely.

Are the leaves brilliant orange? Nope.

Vibrant red? Nope.

Gorgeous golden yellow? Nope.

They are brown, brown, brown.

Not a yummy milk chocolate brown. Nope. No siree, Bob.

Dismal brown. Dirty, dismal brown.

Why, I ask you, can’t the leaves where I live be as brilliant as they are in New England? Huh?

So. I thought that if there weren’t brilliant fall leaves outside that I’d bring the glorious fall colors inside — inside with the help of my grandkids by way of a craft. I give you glitter leaves!

Here’s what you need to make them:

• Fake leaves from a dollar or craft store (mine were silk)
• School glue
• Glitter
• Sponge paintbrush

Be sure to protect your work area with something such as paper towels or newspaper.

Squirt some glue on a leaf and spread it around with a sponge paintbrush.

(Let me pause here to make a comment about dollar store glue. YUCKY! Enough said.)

Then sprinkle on some glitter. We used gold and silver.

Let me pause here for a moment and talk about glitter. My silver glitter was in a bottle with holes in the lid so you could shake the glitter out. The holes were super small and it took FOREVER to cover the leaf.

I had tons of gold in a tall tube. I emptied some into a small bowl so that the kiddos could grab a pinch and sprinkle it on. That worked okay. But, they got glitter all over their fingers. (Which then went into their hair, on their clothes, on the floor, on the chairs, and all over the house. Sigh.)

Ta da! Great job on your glitter leaf, Simon. (These pictures don’t do the leaves justice. They look so sparkly pretty with the glitter!)

Elliot does a fantastic job, too!

Now a word about glitter. (Okay, okay. ANOTHER word about glitter . . . )

Boy howdy! It’s a bugger to clean up. I wiped off the table. And wiped. And wiped.

I swept the floor. And swept. And swept.

I used a shop vac. Still couldn’t get it all up!

Glitter was everywhere. All over the kitchen where we did the craft. In the front room. Down the hall toward the bedrooms.

Dear daughter-in-law, please don’t strangle me! Next time I do a glitter activity with your kids, I’ll do it at my house. Promise!

So a word to the wise. If you’re doing this when the weather is nice outside, DO IT OUTDOORS! That is unless you enjoy having glitter up the wazoo for eternity! (And unless you like having an unhappy daughter-in-law . . . )

Even though the kiddos didn’t spread the glue evenly and even though they didn’t sprinkle the glitter on evenly, they loved their leaves.

And I love them! (The grandkids — not the leaves.)