That’s a Wrap!

General 1 Minute

This Christmas consider some creative wrapping alternatives I found at the Sarah Scoop website!

Chalkboard

Matte black paper and white pens create a cute chalkboard effect that’s perfect for artsy kids, teens, and anyone who loves a modern look. You can doodle snowflakes, write names, or add little messages.

Photo Gift Tags

Use small printed photos instead of traditional name tags to make each gift feel personal. This is a fun Christmas gift wrapping idea for close friends, grandparents, and kids.

Brown Paper and Rubber Stamps

Turn plain paper into custom Christmas designs using rubber stamps. This is a relaxing project to do with kids and gives your gifts a handmade feel.

Sheet Music

Perfect for music lovers, this idea turns sheet music into beautiful wrapping paper. Use it for choir directors, piano teachers, or anyone who loves holiday carols.

Map Paper Adventure Wrap

Use old maps or map-printed paper for the traveler in your life. It’s a creative way to hint at travel-related gifts or experiences.

Plaid Blanket Scarf Wrap

Wrap a gift in a cozy scarf so the packaging becomes part of the present. This is especially fun for teens and friends who love winter fashion.

There are lots more ideas and directions at this website:

25 Unique Christmas Gift Wrapping Ideas
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Published by pat frederick

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70 thoughts on “That’s a Wrap!”

      1. Good Morning Filly!

        I would love the warmer temps…but at this point, there is a whole lotta ice on the path behind the house that also leads up to the woodshed. anything that melts? runs right down the driveway and pools in front of the garage door and freezes making it an ice skating rink. we’d need a week of 50* to get rid of that mess!

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    1. Republicans are demanding full restitution for Rudy Giuliani, who was charged with 13 felony counts and fined $148 million after contesting Georgia’s 2020 election, following Fulton County’s admission that 315,000 votes were fraudulently counted.

      “We don’t dispute they were not signed. It’s a major violation of the rules.”

      Give this man his money back.

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  11. Rest in Peace, Sir!

    Ira “Ike” Schab has passed at 105.

    FTA

    World War II Navy veteran Ira “Ike” Schab, one of the dwindling number of survivors of the 1941 Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor, has died. He was 105.

    Daughter Kimberlee Heinrichs told The Associated Press that Schab died at home early Saturday in the presence of her and her husband.

    With his passing, there remain only about a dozen survivors of the surprise attack, which killed just over 2,400 troops and propelled the United States into the war.

    https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/wwii-navy-veteran-ira-ike-schab-one-last-remaining-pearl-harbor-surviv-rcna250283

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  12. for the love of Mike!

    FTA

    Lawrence, Massachusetts, Mayor Brian DePena appeared in court on Friday, where he required a translator to participate in proceedings at a Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST) Commission proceeding on Friday.

    The hearing concerned former Lawrence Police Chief William Castro, a political ally of DePena, who was stripped of his policing credentials following an improper police chase. Castro was accused of driving the wrong way down a city street during the chase and filing a false police report, claiming he was responding to an armed bank robbery when he had actually been responding to someone attempting to cash a bad check.
    DePena testified on Castro’s behalf during the commission proceeding, but it was the mayor’s request to use a translator that drew significant attention.

    According to Mass Daily News, the presiding judge declined to allow DePena’s personal assistant to serve as the translator, citing concerns that anything interpreted privately could not be independently verified. Since neither the judge nor the opposing counsel speaks Spanish, concerns were raised that mistranslations could affect testimony and thus influence responses or distort the official court record.

    The incident sparked criticism online, with many arguing that elected officials should be able to communicate directly in English during proceedings that pertain to their office. Massachusetts does not currently require elected officials to speak fluent English.

    DePena is a native of the Dominican Republic and immigrated to New York in the early 1980s before settling in Lawrence in 1989. Over 80 percent of the city’s population is now Hispanic, according to the US Census.

    https://thepostmillennial.com/massachusetts-mayor-asks-for-translator-in-court-hearing-due-to-his-poor-english

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  15. EXCERPT: “The Department of War is calling for an ethics inquiry into Rep. Eugene Vindman, D-Va., over business deals he and his brother — retired Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman — struck in Ukraine while Eugene was simultaneously part of a State Department-funded inquiry into Russian atrocities in Ukraine. 

    The Pentagon’s General Counsel Earl Matthews sent the November letter to House Ethics Committee Chairman Michael Guest, R-Miss., as well as to the leaders of the House Armed Services and Oversight Committees.

    The letters urged an ethics-related inquiry into the efforts undertaken by Eugene — elected to Congress in 2024 — and by his brother Alexander as the brothers each worked with U.S. defense companies and the Ukrainian government to pursue potentially lucrative contracts in the war-torn country at the same time as Eugene was also being funded by the State Department for Russian war crimes work in Ukraine.

    Rep. Vindman’s authorized biography says that “On July 25, 2019, Eugene’s twin brother, Lieutenant Colonel Alexander Vindman, who also served on the NSC, listened in on President Donald Trump’s call with Ukrainian President Volodymr Zelensky,” during which time Vindman claimed that “Trump attempted to extort Ukraine into investigating Joe Biden. Alex reported the call to Eugene, and together they reported it up the chain of command. Trump was impeached for this attack on democracy but was never held accountable. Two days after he was acquitted by the Senate, he fired Alex and Eugene from the White House.”

    Brothers sought to perform services for Ukrainian government, Pentagon says

    “They founded their company to perform services for the Ukrainian government in exchange for money and to represent American companies seeking to do business with the Ukrainian government for money,” Matthews wrote in his ethics letter. “They were required to seek the pre-approval of the Secretary of the Army and the Secretary of State.”

    Matthews added: “As retired U.S. Army officers, just as they could not become direct civil employees of the Ukrainian government without obtaining the prior approval of both the Secretary of the Army and the Secretary of State, they could also not lawfully provide ‘consulting’ or ‘defense services’ through their ‘consulting firm’ to the Ukrainian government without first obtaining the permission of the Secretary of the Army and the Secretary of State. If any U.S. military retiree could simply form a ‘consulting firm’ and immediately start providing services to a foreign government without the required Secretarial approvals, it would make a mockery of the law.”……”

    https://justthenews.com/government/congress/pentagon-wants-ethics-inquiry-vindmans-ukraine-business-efforts-while-funded

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  16. Just The News: “Erika Kirk, CEO of Turning Point USA (TPUSA) and widow of the late conservative activist Charlie Kirk, publicly recognized Jeannie Beeman at the AmericaFest 2025 conference on Saturday, praising her response to a widely shared confrontation at work earlier this month. 

    Beeman, 72, a Target employee from Chico, California, went viral after a video showed a customer challenging her for wearing a red “Freedom” T-shirt, a design associated with Charlie Kirk, who was wearing a similar one when he was assassinated.

    The customer accosted Beeman and said she supports racism. During the encounter, Beeman chose not to engage in an argument and ended the exchange, drawing widespread attention online. 

    At the TPUSA event AmericaFest in Phoenix, one of the organization’s largest gatherings of the year, Beeman was brought onstage where she received applause from attendees. Footage shared on social media showed Kirk embracing Beeman and thanking her for her composure and courage, Newsweek reported. 

    In an X post shared after the appearance, Kirk wrote that the interaction with Beeman was “such a precious moment.”

    The confrontation at Target sparked significant public reaction and fundraising support for Beeman after the incident went viral on social media. The woman seen confronting Beeman later apologized for her conduct. Beeman has reportedly received more than $250,000 in donations, according to Newsweek.”

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  20. Bill Clinton after the Clinton-Epstein Files release Friday


    “You can see his ‘defense’ starting up already. Reports are saying that accused killer Nick Reiner had been diagnosed with schizophrenia and that his new medication had made him “out of his head” before the brutal murder of his parents. So they’re gonna cop out saying the meds made him do it. That was fast.”

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  25. “ACIP – Advice or Policy? Clarifying fundamental misunderstandings”

    Dr. Robert W. Malone, Dec 22, 2025

    EXCERPT: “Corporate media, many of the medical guilds, and even certain Senators apparently do not understand what the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) actually is and what it is not. Based on my personal experience, even some current ACIP members misunderstand the charter and scope of responsibilities of the ACIP. This essay seeks to clarify and correct these misunderstandings explicitly.

    Speaking plainly, the ADVISORY committee on immunization practices (ACIP) is one example of a Federal ADVISORY committee, constituted under the Federal ADVISORY Committee Act (FACA). The ACIP does not make policy, it provides advice to policy makers. Federal health policymaking is the responsibility of elected officials or those appointed by the executive (POTUS or his designees such as the Secretary, HHS). FACA committees do not make policy; they provide independent advice to policymakers. This is a critical function and role.

    Policy makers receive information from a wide range of sources – lobbyists, public interest groups, individual members of the public, industry organizations (such as medical guilds), and their respective bureaucracies- a long list of stakeholders whose interests often compromise their independence and objectivity. Accessing advice from an independent group empaneled by relevant policy maker(s) is essential to avoiding various forms of bias, groupthink, and sycophants. This is true in both industry and in government. Good decisions require diverse, independent thought and advice.

    The ACIP does not establish vaccine policy for the Federal Government. By Federal Statute (FACA), the ACIP may only provide advisory recommendations (no decision-making authority). The Director (or acting Director) of the CDC holds that responsibility. The ACIP ADVISES the CDC Director. Functionally, the ACIP serves as an independent ADVISORY panel to the CDC Director. Using a private-sector analogy, the CDC Director would be akin to an executive-level client who has contracted an independent consultancy to provide advice on questions the client may have regarding vaccines and vaccine-preventable diseases.

    Neither the ACIP nor the Federal Government establishes vaccine policy for the States. Each State has the right and responsibility to regulate the practice of medicine in that state (see for instance Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, 597 U.S. 215 (2022)). If a State wishes to adopt or not adopt Federal (CDC) vaccine recommendations is up to each individual state. According to the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials’ review of over 600 state and territorial laws and regulations that reference ACIP, such laws may direct the use or consideration of ACIP recommendations in several circumstances, including in defining the scope of

    (1) immunization requirements for school enrollment and attendance,

    (2) vaccine coverage by certain health plans, and

    (3) immunizations certain health care professionals (such as pharmacists) are authorized to administer.

    What is the ACIP?……”

    https://www.malone.news/p/acip-advice-or-policy

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  26. “How Successful Has The MAHA Movement Been? The Wins Keep Stacking Up: A list of the major MAHA moments after Kennedy’s first year leading the Department of Health and Human Services”

    Jordan Sather, Dec 22, 2025

    EXCERPT: “Big Pharma and Big Ag are some of the most biggest, corrupted, and deeply entrenched industries in our country. Together they bring in multi-trillions of dollars per year, and if we count the major corporate food producers that numbers rises even higher. Scientific institutions are corrupted, studies are paid for, and mainstream media lapdogs promote Pharma’s propaganda without a second guess.

    Our country is sick and weak, incredibly sick and weak. Statistic after statistic shows how degenerative diseases are rising exponentially, mental health issues are growing, cancers are rising, and obesity and general injuries are far too commonplace.

    Something must change, everyone knows this – and thankfully the System has been changing with the help of RFK Jr. and the MAHA movement.

    Robert F. Kennedy Jr. took charge of the Department of Health and Human Services less than a year ago, as well as Dr. Marty Makary at the Food and Drug Administration, and they have been moving at a blistering pace with their team to change how the Medical Industrial Complex operates and help raise consumer awareness on a myraid of health issues.

    My goal for this piece is to detail as many issues as I can where RFK Jr., Makary, Trump, and the MAHA Movement are making headway against the Big Pharma/Ag/Food establishment. I have seen some doomer mentality online thinking RFK Jr. has barely done anything (“All he’s done is ban food coloring! Big Deal!”), but when you put the list together and understand the step by step approach needed to purify the massive Pharma industry, I think it’s safe to say MAHA is doing a pretty darn good job. Plus the attacks against RFK Jr. from the mainstream media (as well as the alternative media!), and the calls by both Democrat and corrupted Republican politicians for him to resign, only proves that…..”

    https://jordansather.substack.com/p/how-successful-has-the-maha-movement

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  30. Cruz for President? no thanks

    FTA

    Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) has reportedly told Morton Klein, the president of the Zionist Organization of America, that he is considering a run for the presidency in 2028, after the latter held a meeting with him to discuss “Jew hatred and Israel bashing” on the right. This would likely pit Cruz against Vice President J.D. Vance, who has said he will discuss a potential 2028 run with President Donald J. Trump after the midterms.

    Cruz recently clashed publicly with influential conservative commentator Tucker Carlson, who has become increasingly skeptical of Israel since his ouster at Fox News. Cruz has accused Carlson of having “decided Jews are the source of all evil in the world,” and has been pushing the GOP to support Israel more uncritically in general. These moves suggest any 2028 bid may focus on a return to an unconditionally pro-Israel, neoconservative-type foreign policy. Notably, Cruz has faulted Vance, who said he regards Carlson as a friend despite some disagreements over the weekend, as overly isolationist on foreign affairs.

    Last month, reports suggested the Trump administration was frustrated with Cruz for using his position in Congress to disrupt aspects of the Trump agenda, such as appointments. “The roadblocks that Ted is putting up in front of the President’s nominee for NASA administrator… only serve as a desperate attempt to relaunch a political career as a protest candidate,” a source said, adding that “Ted has been terribly unserious as of late.”

    https://thenationalpulse.com/2025/12/22/ted-cruz-weighs-challenge-to-vance-for-presidency-in-2028/

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  32. “Ugly but cute in a bugs Bunny Bulldog kind of way”

    “If mental illness was a haircut….”

    “Sent the damn thing to the fridge for a beer 3 times and he came back with nothing….”

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  42. Just The News: “President Donald Trump announced Monday afternoon that the United States Navy is creating a new class of battleships, dubbed the “Trump-class,” and will begin with the construction of two ships. The president made the announcement alongside War Secretary Pete Hegseth and Navy Secretary John Phelan at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, where he is spending the holidays. 

    Trump said the new battleships will be part of his Golden Fleet and will be building up to 25 new battleships. The ships are expected to be the “largest we’ve ever built.”

    “They will have 100 times the force, the power, and there’s never been anything like these ships,” Trump said. “We envision that these two ships will be the first of a whole new class of battleships that will be produced in the years to come.”

    The first ship will be called the “USS Defiant,” and comes a month after the Navy scrapped its plans to build a new, small warship because of high costs and long delays.”

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