Meet Me Under the Mistletoe

Can I make a confession?

I love Christmas decorations.

Our snow globes, Nativities, the handmade decorations, the garlands and stockings, the ornaments on the tree.

But my favorite Christmas decoration is the mistletoe.

I grin like a child in a candy shop when my Handsome Husband places our little mistletoe'd bell above the entryway to our dining room.

A few nights ago, the above-mentioned Handsome Husband stopped me above the bell and pointed up.  We had a nice smooch, and it wasn't even interrupted by little boy voices and tugging at pant legs (the boys were nestled all snug in their beds).

Do you think it would be alright if we just kept it up all year round?

I could figure out a way to make it work in our decor.

Love is enjoying a little kiss under the mistletoe.

Nativity Book and Project

When I was listing some of my favorite Christmas books for our reading advent, I forgot one that I dearly love, Wombat Divine by Mem Fox.  It tells the story of Wombat, who desperately wants to be part of the Nativity Play.  It is difficult to find a part for this lovable little guy, but the solution is perfect.  It is sweet and simple, just like so many of her other books.

After reading, my kids love playing with our magnet Nativity to tell the story of Jesus's birth.  The magnets were super simple to make.  The pictures are actually a set of stickers* I stuck on yellow cardstock, laminated and added a magnet to the back.  My boys love playing with them on the fridge so much, we are missing a few pieces.  (I need to go on a magnet hunt!)  Hopefully, they will show up soon.

I think giving children materials to act out stories is so important.  It helps them more deeply understand their messages.  I want my children to internalize the real meaning of Christmas and to think beyond presents and getting and think of others and of the Savior during this season.

*If you can't find Nativity stickers (I googled "nativity sticker" and found bunches, especially on Oriental Trading),  you could use clip art or cut up a nice Christmas card or two to get your figures.

Candy Canes

Here are two sweet projects to do with your little ones, a candy puzzle, and a sweet treat or two!

Candy Cane Mosaic

You will need:

green construction paper
glue
red and white construction paper cut into 1 inch squares

Make a candy cane shape on your green construction paper with white glue.

Have your child place the squares onto the glue line to make a candy cane.
For older children, have them glue the squares individually with a glue stick to form the candy cane on their own.

Tri-Bead Candy Cane

You will need:

1/2 red pipe cleaner

red and white (or clear) tri beads

Before starting, decide on a pattern you will use (ex:  red, white, red, white or red, red, white, white, red, red, white, white).

Take one bead and twist it onto the bottom end of the pipe cleaner up and around this bead to secure the bottom (you could use also use some hot glue to secure the bottom bead to the pipe cleaner).  Then, have your child string the beads, one at a time, in the chosen pattern.  When you get to the end, twist the pipe cleaner up and around the top bead to secure (or use a bit of hot glue instead).  Bend into a candy cane shape.  Hang on your tree.

These are great activities to strengthen fine motor skills as well as practice patterning.

Here's a sweet number puzzler for your older preschooler:

I think this idea came from an old issue of The Mailbox Magazine.  I printed out candy cane pieces onto cardstock and laminated them.  I used a piece of red construction paper and wrote numbers 1 to 30 on the paper and laminated it as well.  Use your candy cane pieces to construct the numbers and mark the ones finished with a peppermint candy.  This is pretty challenging, but a good thing to work on together. 

When you're done, make your own peppermint bark.

Peppermint Bark

You will need:

melting chocolate (or almond bark)

candy canes

double boiler

waxed paper

Melt any white chocolate or almond bark you prefer in a double boiler (this will help you to not burn your chocolate).

Crush several candy canes.  Our favorite method is putting them in a plastic bag and smashing them with a rolling pin or ladle.

Pour candy canes into melted chocolate.

Spread out on waxed paper and let cool.  When cooled, break into pieces and enjoy.

Sweet!

*And if I'm feeling a bit ambitious, I might be making these while my babes are asleep.  Peppermint Candy Cane Brownies from the girls at Our Best Bites, yum!!

More Sticker Fun!

If you read my blog regularly, you know we love stickers at our house.  Here is an idea that I originally found somewhere else, I just can't find the link.  I'm so sorry to not be able to give credit for a great idea!  I love making activity bags for my kiddos to keep them busy while waiting at doctor's offices, in stores, at church, while I'm cooking dinner, etc.  I hope to do a better post on this later...

Back to the activity:

I cut xerox paper in half and drew simple shapes onto the half sheets with a sharpie. (Do you love the old-school copy paper I'm using?)  Then, I give the kiddos cheap stickers (you know the ones from dollar spots, etc.) and have them fill in the shape with stickers. 

If you are sitting and waiting somewhere while your kids are doing this activity, use the time to engage in conversation about what they are doing.  What shape is this sticker?  What animal is this?  Which is your favorite?  Can you find a letter A?  This is a great easy way to help build your little one's vocabulary.

For Mr. Two, he is just mastering the art of peeling the stickers off of the sheet, so I let him stick away however he wishes.  Mr. One is old enough to stay within the lines and fill the shape.  I also encourage him to use the smaller, chart stickers.  Do not peel the stickers off for your kids.  Let them do it themselves.  I sometimes help Mr. Two by bending the sticker sheet down so he can pull up a corner.  Using those cute little pincher fingers is a FANTASTIC and fun way to strengthen those fine motor muscles. 

This is really a favorite activity for both of my boys and will keep them happy for long stretches of time.  (This is a huge lifesaver while waiting in doctor's offices!)  As an added bonus, it is something you can easily throw into your purse and have on hand.  Just make up a stack of paper outlines, add a sticker book and throw in a ziploc or zipper pouch.

I Believe...

 (image found at about.com)

This is a synopsis of a conversation between Mr. One (who is four) and my brother, his uncle.

1:  "Do you believe that Santa is real?"

Uncle:  "What do you think?"

1:  "Well, last year, I asked Santa for a Corvette McQueen and my wish came true." (a very specific Lightning McQueen die cast car that Santa had to do some real searching for...)

I think he still believes.

I do too.

I love the magic of Christmas.

(By the way, we did get our decorating finished and our home is full of holiday cheer.  The boys loved decorating the tree with all of their ornaments.  And, if I do say so myself, the tree does look magical.)

100th Post Reflection

I cannot believe I am already at my 100th post!  As I thought about why I blog and what I have learned through blogging, a few things have come to mind.

First, I blog for my family.  I want to remember what we did, the little moments, the funny little sayings, the activities, the big life lessons, firsts, traditions, failures and successes.  I want my family who are far away to know what we are up to.  I want to create a record for myself, my husband and children.  I want us to remember the good times and to appreciate the struggles and to see Heavenly Father's hand in our lives.

Second, I blog with the hope that someone, be it family or friend or random stopper-by, can learn something from what I write.  I think it's the teacher in my veins.  I feel compelled to share and hope I can inspire.  Maybe I can give someone hope or faith to carry on who is in a tough spot.  Maybe I can brighten someone's day with my family's antics.  Maybe I can share a tip or two about teaching young children.  Maybe I can inspire someone to try something new, whether it be a craft, or recipe, a new book, or learning activity.  I have seen so many wonderful ideas on other blogs and websites that have encouraged and helped me learn.  I learn so much from others:  from my children, my husband, my family and friends, and even complete strangers. I feel compelled to share in my own small way.  I will continue to learn and share, and I sincerely hope that others can benefit from this little corner of the world of mine along with me. 

I also wanted to thank a couple of sweet gals who have given me awards in the recent past.  I truly appreciate the thought and their compliments, and love to see what they blog about as well.

Thank you Kristi!  I love your sense of humor and your great crafty ideas for preschoolers, plus we share a love of California!

Thank you Cindy!  You have an adorable crew and I enjoy seeing what fun things your family does together.

With the Honest Scrap award, you are supposed to list 10 things about yourself and the pass it along to 10 other bloggers.  I will give you my 10 facts.  To be honest, I hate the idea of choosing just 10 blogs that I love and singling them out.  I hope it doesn't seem like an easy way out, I just cannot decide...  Know I love you all! :)

1.  I love doing laundry, the sorting, the smell of detergent, the clean, warm piles of clothes, but I don't really like putting away the laundry.

2.  I love to sew and craft, but it doesn't always turn out the way I want it to.

3.  I am trying to let go of some of my perfectionist ways.  Having 2, soon to be 3, boys helps.

4.  When I'm upset, I clean. And cry.

5.  I am into trying new recipes, but they don't always turn out. While making pecan pies for Thanksgiving with my mom this year, we burned all three and had to go back to the store at 10:30 pm to buy more pecans and butter.  At least the second round turned out.  And they were delicious!

6.  I love girly things: pink, glitter, vintage prints, pastels, ribbon, and white furniture.  This is a problem with so many boys in my home.  I strive to find a balance between the masculine and feminine.

7.  I cannot stand beans.  Any kind of bean:  pinto, black, lima, green, even jelly beans!  (I will tolerate fresh green beans on occasion...)

8.  I do not enjoy driving.  I love that my husband does, so I rarely have to on family trips.

9.  I love to read and have a large collection of children's books.  I could sit in Barnes and Noble for hours.

10.  I love being pregnant.  Despite the back aches and heartburn, I think it is such a magical time.  Losing the baby weight afterwards is a different story...

Thanks for reading, and Happy Holidays!!!

A Corny Post

A few corny ideas for Fall..
(even though it is now December 1st, but still officially fall...  oops, this little idea got lost in the Thanksgiving shuffle, but I thought I'd post it anyways...)

Finger Painted Indian Corn

You will need:
orange, yellow and brown paint
white construction paper
lunch sack
glue stick
scissors

Have your child cut out a pre-drawn oval corn shape out of construction paper.  Cut out two ovals using the same pattern out of the lunch sack.  Let little fingers dip into the paints and dot the construction paper oval to look like corn kernels.  After dried, glue another oval shape cut from the lunch sack onto both sides of the corn cob.

Corny math:

This activity was shared with me while I taught kindergarten several years ago.  On yellow cardstock, draw a large oval and divide it into 10 sections.  Type numbers 0-9 into the sections, in random order.  Add green cardstock leaves behind corn cob.  Laminate.  Give your child a handful of popcorn kernels and have them pick them up one at a time and add the correct number of kernels onto each section.  This not only is great one-to-one correspondence and number recognition practice, but picking up the tiny kernels is great fine motor practice as well.