Tis the Season

I have been very busy for the past few months. I live very near the ground zero of Sandy, my husband has been help so its been just me and the girls. But the house is all decorated, we cut our own 100% naturally grown tree. Today we made bird treats to give to some friends (I will post the recipe if they turn out okay, still drying)

We also made gingerbread men. I've been busy knitting nice warm headbands for the girls. I do enjoy this season and am so excited for Christmas day, I don't think I've been this excited since I was a child. Hearing my little Liv talk about Christmas, Jesus and God and seeing the light in her eyes is amazing, and makes me feel I must be doing something right. Merry Christmas

Christmas Cheer

This is the first year where my daughter, Liv, gets Christmas. She understands that Santa comes and bring presents at night. She gets that you leave cookies and milk for Santa and a carrot for his reindeer. She every night she asks me if Santa is coming. She has been cracking me up with some of her Christmas ideas and sayings this year.
"Santa wears boots 'cause he likes to splash (in puddles)", which is one of Olivia's favorite things to do.
"I wanna cook and eat the snowman." Took me about 5 minutes of her saying that to realize she was talking about the Snowman cookies we saw earlier in a cookbook.
When she told Santa what she wants for Christmas she told him "presents."
After watching a video that showed elves making toys she got all excited and said "they are making presents for me?!?" "yup for you and all the other boys and girls" I replied "yes and me!"
"Santa likes red."

"Santa likes cookies, chocolate cookies"
Tonight she asked to say a prayer for Santa.
I have tried to explain to here that Christmas is not just about Santa, but about Jesus and his birth. But I think that idea is lost on a 2 year old. But it doesn't mean I will not try and keep telling her what Christmas really is about.
I'm not sure if tonight she got it a little more or if she was just thankful that Santa comes on Jesus's birthday since she said "Thank Jesus for Santa"
I'm sure the later, but hopefully I will think the first.

Holiday Crafts with Toddlers

I just love Christmas crafts, but most are above the ability of my 2 year old. And I don't have too much time to really help with a newborn on me most of the day.
I found one craft in one of the many books I checked out from the library that show activities and crafts.
The first thing we made was snow. All I did was get a black sheet of paper and gave her a white piece of chalk to color snow on the paper.

The second craft I took a red piece of paper and cut it in the shape of santa's hat. Then I glued it on a pink piece of paper and let her color in his face. We also glued on cotton balls to decorate it.
The next day we decorated gingerbread men. Decorating cookies is easy enough and she loved eating the results. We will do more cookie decorating closer to Christmas, and make enough to leave some out for Santa.

Happy Holidays!

My Christmas Home

Image via Wikipedia

I am still keeping my promise to myself to fill my home with seasonal scents through natural things, not candles.
Christmastime has some of my favorite scents. I love the smell of a Christmas tree. I have never had a fake tree and don't think I could go with out our tree. I love the smell the pine needles bring into my home. Today I bake Gingerbread men, the first time ever. Usually I just do Sugar cookies, but since we are hosting Christmas Eve and a Christmas brunch I wanted extra cookies. I love how they turned out, they taste so yummy.
And now my house smells of gingerbread cookies. It was so nice to come back into the house and smell our baking and hard work.
Tomorrow we will light a fire and the smell of the sweet burning wood will fill our home.I love the natural warmth of a fire and the sights of it. It is so beautiful to sit and look at a fire. Much more entertaining and warm then the t.v.
Happy Holidays, and enjoy the scents and warmth of the season.

Christmas Traditions

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This is our second Christmas, our first one that Liv is more aware of what is going on. I am very excited to start some Christmas traditions for our family this year.
One I am really excited to start is my husband reading The Night Before Christmas to us Christmas Eve with a nice fire light. It sounds almost magical to me. Then when Liv is older we can leave out home made cookie and some milk for Santa.
When I was a child Christmas Eve was always crazy. My dad owned a flower shop and Christmas Eve was one of his busiest days of the year. My Christmas Eve memories are of my mom rushing me to bed, since she had to do it all herself since dad was working.
I am hoping to create a more peaceful, and less stressful memory of Christmas for my kids. As a young child I can even remember the stress my mom put on herself to shop shop shop. Christmas was always a fun time, but peaceful, no.
I hope to make Christmas less about gift-giving and more about the birth of Christ and spending time with your family and friends. This really, to me, is what Christmas is all about.
I don't want my children to think of Christmas as a time to be greedy and want, want, want. Last Christmas we bought Liv only several things, and this Christmas we are doing the same. I don't want to get into the "Keeping up with the Jones" aspect of Christmas. I hope to not fall into that when Liv is older.
For now our traditions will be sweet and simple, but hopefully they will create a lifetime of memories.

Related articles

• A Christmas Eve Carol - When a Family Tradition Comes to an End (chicagonow.com)
• Holiday Activities for Kids (thehappyhousewife.com)

This the Season..of shopping

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Today I went to Target to get some much need baby supplies and that place was screaming Christmas.
Every year it seems earlier and ealier this stuff comes out so you have a longer season to buy.
But really isn't Christmas everyday for most American children?
An American child an average receives 70 toys a year. That is almost 6 a month, and you know that is not all just from Christmas and their birthday.
This Christmas Liv is only getting about 5 toys from us. So her Christmas she will get receiving less toys then the average child gets most other months. Well realistically lots of those toys for other children are from Christmas and birthdays, but they are not getting 35 toys from each of those holidays.
As a child I only got toys on my birthday, Christmas and an Easter basket with some toys and candy. That is it. When I got my Nintendo for Christmas I played Duck Hunt and Mario Brothers till my birthday, we I got some more games for it.
We have become a nation of consumers we are addicted to it.
Children will learn to appriciate gifts and toys if they do not get one everytime they leave the house or everytime they get an A.
In addition to the problems I see in child-rearing when children receive so many toys the Green "tree hugger" gets disgusted by the amount of waste wwith all of these toys.
Most of the toys children play with are disposable, plastic, and poorly made. They are not made to last. They often end up sitting in landfills once a child grows bored with them. And really what does this teach our children?
That they can not be happy with out lots of stuff or the newest items out there.
It start younger and younger. And as a parent it is your duty to prevent this from a young age.
Liv has a very limited number of toys. Part of the reason is with me not working we can not afford lots, but I do make a conscience effort to limit the junk in our home.
I try to limit the amount of plastic toys. I think just about every plastic toy Liv has was received as a gift.
I also limit her tv, right now it is to zero! I do not need her seeing commercials that are just designed to make her want and find happiness in material goods.
I hope I can teach her to appriciate the gifts she receives, material and other gifts that we see daily, and those other gifts are what I focus on.
The smell of fresh made blueberry bars, mixing them together and tasting our work. Being close and spending our days together. Sitting on the couch reading or just watching the wind blow through the trees. These are truly enjoyable things, that don't hurt my wallet, my mother earth and leave me with a healthing longing, not an addiction like longing for more then I need or can afford.