I am 33 weeks along and getting very excited about meeting our little girl. Things have been busy and my energy is starting to disappear, like gone after 6:00 p.m.
I can sense the holiday stress/frenzy on the road, I see it in people’s eyes and I can feel it just starting here in my home. It’s a shame that consumerism is the focus of this time of year robbing people of their money, peace and sanity. I know it is a choice.
We all make choices how to celebrate this time of year and my husband and I have chosen to keep it simple and give our boys three to four affordable things on Christmas day and that’s it. It is what they have always known and experienced so they don’t expect more. We also intentionally have them focus on family, neighbors and Christ's birth throughout the month of December so they begin to think outward during this time of year and not merely focus on themselves.
I wrote about this in a post a while back but it is a great reminder for me as Christmas is right around the corner.
On November 30th, after the kids are asleep, I put up a ribbon and hang 25 little envelopes on it. Inside are little things to get the kids thinking about family, neighbors, friends and those in need. The next morning, the kids take turns opening and reading the cards inside and we follow the instructions. These are some of the things the cards say:
- Make and hang edible gifts for the birds
- Make potato stamp cards for family and friends
- Collect some toys and clothes of your own and give to someone in need
- Bake cranberry oatmeal cookies and share with neighbors
- Sing Christmas songs together as a family and drink some eggnog!
In today’s culture there is so much emphasis and focus on one’s self and I think it has gone a bit overboard. To counteract this tidal wave of materialism and consumerism I try to get the kids to focus on giving, getting them excited about ways serve others and enjoy simple family activities together!
This simple advent calendar activity is a way to implement all of those ideas in easy ways that work for our family. I customize each day’s activity according to who will be around and available that day. If it is an especially busy day, I slip in an easy peasy activity that doesn’t take up a lot of time and energy.
Here are a couple other things we did here, here and here!
This is where I got the inspiration to do this! There is an envelope template included!
Having three boys stretches me. It stretches me to grow beyond my circle of interests and I love it. I often peruse the internet to find videos or websites that take them to the next step in the things they are interested in. They love what I find and share with them. It inspires them (and me) to think out of the box, to build something or it merely starts turning another gear in the back of their growing brains and it shows up in a completely different way than I expected. They are sponges and soak up everything at this age and I try to take full advantage of it!
Over the next week or two I’ll share some links that the boys and I really like. So check back and if you see something you like, pass it on to a friend. I think the more collaborative parents can be the better it is for all of us!
We Loooove LEGO®!!!
The boys often check the LEGO® websiteto play games and check for new products.
Some other cool things on the LEGO® website are:
~ You can download any LEGO® building directions for free here! This has come in handy many times as we have picked up a box or two of LEGO® at yard sales and didn't have the directions to go with them.
~ If your LEGO® set is missing some pieces you can order the pieces here!
~ You can sign the kids up for the LEGO® Club where they receive a free magazine every other month.
If you have a reluctant reader who loves LEGO® I would encourage you to check out some LEGO® beginner reader books at your local library. If they don’t have them, ask the librarian if they could order them.
Also, my boys look forward to getting the LEGO® magazine and read the entire magazine from front to back. They get stuck on some words but their desire to read the whole magazine has really helped their reading skills.
We bought a couple Power Functions motors and the kids love them. We plan on buying more as their ideas keep expanding on what they can build next. These are great for budding engineers. There are also LEGO® leagues for kids to join where the missions is
“…to inspire young people to be science and technology leaders, by engaging them in exciting mentor-based programs that build science, engineering and technology skills, that inspire innovation, and that foster well-rounded life capabilities including self-confidence, communication, and leadership.”
My sister and I loved playing with paper dolls growing up. I had The Sunshine Fun Family paper dolls and Alice had The Ginghams paper dolls. We spent hours upon hours playing with them until one day my sister had the brilliant idea to make our own paper doll clothes for them. And then we spent hours upon hours tracing, drawing, designing, coloring and cutting out paper doll clothes. We loved it!
Well, here she is again with another creative and brilliant idea for doll clothes!
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Adorable Doll Clothes From Leggings? - by Alice
This is a quick and fun little project that you can do with your daughter.
What to do with those little girl leggings that have a hole in the knee? Re-purpose them.
1. Cut the leg of the pants off just below the knee hole. The ankle opening of the pants leg will be the top or chest part of the doll outfit.
2. With the pants leg inside out - measure, pin, sew and trim back of dress to desired tightness.
3. Pick a cute button and felt flower, sew to front of dress as seen in photo.
4. Snag an elastic band from a broken hair-tie. Measure the elastic band so that it will go around the dolls neck and slip under the button.
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I know, I love this idea too! Thanks, Alice!
If you missed Alice’s darling, first post; check it out here!
As the cold settles into November and the sun slips out of sight earlier and earlier each evening, I begin to wander and search for a cave like a fluffy, little bear. The cold makes me desperately want to hibernate. Around two o’clock, I want nothing more than to take a nap and snuggle deep under covers in a dark, quiet room, for a long, long time.
Alas, at two o’clock, I have, what seems to be – two “spring chickens” hatching and flapping their wings, hunting for ways to burn off energy.
So, I bought a swing.
A swing for inside.
I know…inside?
We are fortunate enough to have a basement and I have had my eye on this IKEA swing for several years. I finally bought one and attached it to the steel I-beam in the basement.
The boys love it. The cousins love it. My kitchen floor loves it. I love it! After a full week my husband loves it!
Now, on a rainy day, the little ones can burn off that energy constructively.
It is nice to hear them laugh and giggle downstairs and negotiate whose turn it is and how many minutes they get this time. They have of course come up with one safe game – throw the “yarn sea urchin” at the person on the swing. And because they are boys; the unsafe game – throw-the-cool-paper-airplane-that-‘only-Grandpa-can-make’ at the person on the swing. What is the saying…."It’s only fun and games until someone loses an eye!" well, I’ll keep you posted.
And I will leave you with a song my mother used to sing to me when she pushed me on a swing.
A swing, a swing is the best of fun, For taking a ride in the sky.
You need no engine for a ride, Just give a push and away you go,
Look out below, Away you go, You’re taking a ride in the sky.
I didn’t grow up celebrating Halloween so I am always caught off guard as far when and what to put up around this time of year.
On the other hand, my husband grew up very involved in the Halloween festivities. His father worked actively in an organization that raised money for Special Olympics. Their most popular fundraiser was designing, building, and running a haunted house that drew thousands of people and thus raised a lot of money for a very special cause. My husband talks about going to the haunted house as a young boy, years later - helping to build sets and then when he was old enough, acting in some of the rooms. It is more nostalgia for him then for me, so we compromise.
As a mother of young boys, I am also sensitive about what images I want displayed in my house. Most of the Halloween decorations available in stores are either too expensive or too gory.
So I came up with my own Halloween decorations/crafts that won’t wake my kids up in the middle of the night and it can save a little money too.
I made this owl out of brown, black, white and orange construction paper I had in the art supply area. I love his cute little eyes.
I also made a brown branch for him where he can keep an eye on things!
He’s a real hoot!
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I love cats. I actually really want a cat of my own, and I can’t (one family member has asthma). I tend to improvise when I can.
So, I decided to make a cute, black, paper cat of my own. I drew an idea of the kind of shape and expression I wanted of the cat. When I got as close as I could to the idea, I put some black card stock paper underneath and traced it again really hard with a pen.
This left an imprint on the black paper which I cut out with scissors and then the eyes/mouth with an X-Acto knife.
Green tissue paper was perfect for the eyes as it let some light come through.
I just glued them on the back.
I think my little black cat is purrrrfect!
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These little, black bats are so cute you might be tempted to take one home. I cut them out of black poster board and then traced them with a white colored pencil.
The eyes were easy to make with a hole puncher.
I was happy I finally found a reason to use the patient, white colored pencils that never get used.
These bats look great on windows or hanging from a ceiling!
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I like to set out battery-operated candles on our ledges so I made this little owl cover for one. I folded brown construction paper in half and then in half again, drew a little owl and then cut it out.
I used the hole puncher for it’s eyes too!
After I unfolded it, I added more details, then taped the two ends together and dropped a little, battery-operated candle inside.
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I wanted to do a simple Halloween craft with the kids using things I already had around the house. I pulled out some Styrofoam egg cartons, toothpicks, an inkpad and a clear stamp block. They drew some pictures on the Styrofoam and then we cut out the shapes. We taped them onto the clear stamp block and pressed them on the ink pad and then on paper. They turned out really cute.
The boys really liked making ‘their own stamps’. After they skipped away from the table I tried the same technique but on craft foam. They turned out much clearer. Here are the ones with the craft foam.
(Please notice the one nail I got painted that day!)
Here is a darling mummy craft I did last year with the boys using string and popsicle sticks.
I wrote about a breakfast I make for my boys called, “Pirate Eye” which got a lot of positive feedback. So I thought I would show you another way to throw food together to jazz up mornings for little ones and yourself. It is so easy you can practically make it in your sleep.
Grab a sundae glass or any small see through cup.
Cut up fresh fruit.
Then alternate layers of your favorite yogurt and fruit.
If they like granola you can sprinkle that on top or you can use their favorite cereal. I put chopped pecans on top of mine this morning.
It is healthy alternative to the boring cereal and my boys love it. This adds variety to morning routines that I tend to get stuck in. I hope this helps!
Yes, I am still alive. I’m just busy having summer fun and trying to avoid any more doctor visits (yes, we have had more). Our days are filled with swimming, cousin sleepovers, zoo visits, Twister competitions, movie nights, impromptu baseball games and nature walks, birthday celebrations, blanket tents in the living room, going to concerts, setting up and taking down the pool, stayin’ cool and organizing to prepare for the busy school season.
This is my dollar store ribbon organizer:
It is so not fancy, but it works for me.
I can slide it in and out of a cabinet when I need to.
Now, at a glance, I know I do not need any more green ribbon.
Here are some other ways to organize all those pretty ribbons.
Hi! I hope that today you are making the most with what life has given you! I like to see the glass half full and find the humor and patience when it isn’t! I try to enjoy the little things and see beauty everywhere. I am married, have three boys and enjoy being in the moment!
