Sunday, December 25, 2011

Spiritual Sundays: Merry Christmas

from our family to yours
Christmas 2011

“We all can make the choice to give thanks in prayer and to ask God for direction to serve others for Him—especially during this time of year when we celebrate the Savior’s birth.”
—President Henry B. Eyring, First Presidency Message

Thursday, December 22, 2011

10 on Tuesday (on Thursday)

1. I haven't been posting because my back has been so badly lately I just can't sit that long at the computer. And I've just been sitting around trying to get comfortable or getting Christmas stuff done!

2. Speaking of Christmas, it's almost here!

3. I hung up some stuff in my house again and I looove it. I'll have to take a picture and share! I did a plate wall.

4. Another crazy happening this past week, was Lucy trying to walk home from school, getting lost and someone we go to church with finding her in a ditch playing in the snow. After I had been to the school and multiple people were phoned, multiple teachers were driving around to find her. It was just GREAT.

5. I got Regan a fun present.

6. We finally caved and the kids are getting a Wii for Christmas.

7. Oliver is sleeping AMAZING lately.

8. I need a massage so I can sleep but none of the massage therapists in Raymond can fit me in til at least next week.

9. I love paper snowflakes this year.

10. We've done lots of other Christmasy stuff that I didn't put up on my blog.

Monday, December 19, 2011

On the Bookshelf: Advent 2011

Since I am not keeping up with posting my books each day, instead I'm gonna list all the ones we have and reuse each year!

1. Snowmen at Christmas
2. Sam's Snowy Day
3. Fluffy's Christmas
4. Follow the Star
5. I spy a Candy Cane
6. Cinderella's Fairy Tale Christmas
7. What star is this?
8. Russell's Christmas Magic
9. Mary Engelbrett's The Night Before Christmas
10. Merry Christmas Little Critter
11. I've seen Santa
12. My First Story of the First Christmas
13. Snowmen at night
14. The First Night
15. Christmas Trolls
16. Father and Son
17. This is the stable
18. The story of christmas
19. Gingerbread Pirates
20. Mr. Finnegan's Giving Chest
21. Christmas Wishes
22. The Polar Express
23. When Jesus Christ was
24. Come and see

Other good ones we've got that go along with the season:
Usborne's Christmas Activities
Usbonre's Preschool Christmas Fun

Tuesday, December 13, 2011

10 on Tuesday

1. I am working on Blurb books today. Something I should have done like last week, but I didn't :).

2. Yes my shelves are AWESOME :) Thanks be to Brad for building them, DAve for painting them and Abby for designing and dreaming them up!

3. I love that it snowed now that Christmas is close.

4. I wrapped one present last night. Yep. All done that ONE. HA!

5. Me and my friend Jodi went down across the border to pick up packages and we came back across and didn't have to pay any duty. :)

6. Did I mention I want to fill my shelves but I'm trying to be patient?

7. Oliver is super duper cute.

8. Eli is sleeping horrible again.

9. When my shelves were getting painted I had Dave paint my bedroom dresser too. and I lloooooooooove it white.

10. I am obsessed with white painted things!

Monday, December 12, 2011

Monday Madness

Whoops there went a week hey?! We have been in a bit of shambles around our house. Things are in piles all over the place and we can't put them away. And we couldn't decorate for christmas, so all the containers with decorations were sitting around the house too. Perfect. All cause some painting and building was being done.

It was all thanks to these lovely shelves my talented brother was building and someone named Dave was painting. So now they sit waiting to be filled but I can't yet because the paint is supposed to harden. Technically it's supposed to be for a month. But technically I can't let them sit there looking all nice and white and not decorate for Christmas. So I am going with a week.... that should work.... right? Until then I want to do my tiling around the fireplace... but I need a wet saw - anyone know someone who has one I can borrow?? No I don't know how to tile but I expect someone on you tube does and they can show me!

Dec 10: living room... in progress

I did add our stockings just cause i HAD too.... although I need to get some names embroidered on them. Although Regan says I should do that by hand and I say no way. That's what machines were invented for!
stockings hung

Our tree is finally up and decorated!
Christmas 2011 Tree

This wall is in progress too.... My prints are done now and ready to pick up and I have to add a few more frames. I love it.
Photo wall
I did decorate the railing. Cause nothing is changing on that. We have been keeping up with Advent things and books. I'll update all the books we've read and the activities we've done that I missed. Since I KNOW you all are on the edge of your seat :)
christmas decorations 1

PS won't my living room look great when my shelves are finished, fire place tiled, curtains hung, frames filled? Yep. Love a talented brother and a talented Abby who suggested the idea of the shelves that I hadn't even THOUGHT of doing!

Monday, December 05, 2011

Advent Calendar days 3, 4 & 5

I just not going to be able to keep up posting our books & activities every day. But that is okay.

Our books we've opened in the last three days (well including today) were...


And I couldn't find the other book's image but it's called the Christmas Story and it's a huge board book.
The crafts and activities were....

...a snow man pizza (yeah the one on pinterest looked way cooler but this one my kids would actually eat!)
Snowman pizza

... writing stories in Christmas shapes. I just found some christmas shapes that were empty and let the kids pick which ones they wanted and let them free to write whatever stories they wanted. Alden's was called Yoshi's Christmas. And Lucy wrote one called the Snowman.
Lucy writing her christmas story
Alden writing his christmas story

....Eli decorated his Santa face instead of writing a story in it.... for obvious reasons!
Eli writing his christmas story

... Lucy's Paper plate Christmas tree from a couple days ago that I forgot to take a picture of
Christmas tree

We all hung around the table for quite a while and relaxed and the kids did crafts. It was great.
Dec 3: morning

On Sunday night we hung out with family and enjoyed a baby blessing.
Tonight we had a short Family Home Evening using this idea from latter day homeschooling.

Sunday, December 04, 2011

Spiritual Sundays

"Oh, parents, we would plead, give good and happy memories to your children - not pampering or overindulging, not satisfying everything they take a fancy to - but memories of love, encouragement, of peace and harmony and happiness at home - memories that will bless and lift their lives wherever they are, always and forever." - L. Tom Perry, Dec 1970

Friday, December 02, 2011

Advent 2011 Day 2

Today's books were:


Well yesterday Shannon's comment was how do you remember to take pictures of all the stuff and haha I forgot to take pictures of their crafts.
They made paper plate Christmas trees and wreaths. (like these and then just a plate with the middle cut out and painted green with red dots on)

Then we attended Raymond's Old Time Christmas. They served donuts and hot chocolate, lit the tree outside and sung christmas carols, had a wishing well, and Santa came to town on a Fire engine.
Old Time Christmas
Here's THE tree.
Old Time Christmas Tree
My older kids were okay with Santa, but Eli no way! Although right before we got up to him (after waiting in line for WAY too long) Lucy turns to me and says, "but mom, won't we actually be sitting on a stranger's lap?"
Meeting Santa

It was a good day. And we ran into Lethbridge and Regan picked up my birthday present. An old vintage camera to add to my collection :) LOVE it.

Thursday, December 01, 2011

ADVENT 2011 Day 1

Our Advent activities this year are a little adjusted. Well it seems each year I do that a bit. But this year we are going again with the 24 Christmas books all wrapped up (I forgot to take a picture so I'll take it today!)
We had two books today since we've got more than 24 - some are wrapped with 2 in the package. We opened these two books...
Polar Express and Gingerbread Pirates





And then this.
Advent Activity Jar
This year instead I put all the activities inside the jar and each day the kids pick out two or three.

Our craft pulled from the jar was this. A very simple santa hat. Red construction paper and I wanted to use cotton balls but I couldn't find them, and these cotton pads worked just as well!
Santa Hat Craft
Lucy's Santa Hat Craft
My kids plus two neighbor kids who were over while we did our Christmas craft today.
Dec 1 - Santa Hats

And then we opened some pjs and went driving around town to see all the lights.
Christmas Lights

They also have a Lego Christmas Advent Calendar all the kids are sharing and one of those chocolate ones each. That way they always get to open one with chocolate and each third day they get a small lego guy.

What are YOU doing for your advent calendar this year?