Anyone who knows me, knows I love fun traditions and will do just about anything to make our daughters childhood fun and magical! I read about this on Tip Junkie's blog and I LOVE this idea! When you have the first snow (or anytime it snows) you take some peppermints and "plant" them outside. If you want to add even more magic you can sprinkle on some magic fertilizer (perhaps left by your Elf on the Shelf!) The fertilizer I am using is multi-colored nonpareils since Bella likes che...| Trendz and Traditionz
It has been a very, very long time since I have posted on this blog. I just can't seem to find a rhythm:(| Trendz and Traditionz
Do you have a large painting/portrait above a mantel or in a prominent place in your home? I have a canvas that is 35"x35" and I love it, but it really shouts out "Spring/Summer" more than Fall/Winter/Holiday. I certainly don' want to spend a lot of money to replace it several times a year. So, I have found one way to get around this issue ~ at least for Christmas. I purchased a vinyl tablecloth at Walmart for $3 and I used that to cover the painting like a Christmas present. I used...| Trendz and Traditionz
As a way to thank our guests for coming to our Packing Party this weekend I wanted to give them a little gift and a momento of thier participation in OCC. You can easily make an Operation Christmas Child ornament by using one of the plastic photo ornaments at Michael's ($1.99, but if you have a coupon you could get it 40%-50% off...or make sure you stock up after Christmas to use for next year!)| Trendz and Traditionz
Our Elf on the Shelf arrives the day after Thanksgiving. This year I wanted to do something fun, but I also wanted to pack more shoe boxes for Operation Christmas Child this year and invite others to join in the effort. So, we are hosting an Elf on the Shelf Shoebox Shindig! I thought it was a great way to combine both of our family traditions! Our daughter is in preschool, so the kiddos will enjoy the Elf on the Shelf movie while eating some pancakes in their pajamas!| Trendz and Traditionz
I have been struggling to teach our daughter about prayer. She is only three and a half, so I certainly don't expect her to truly understand the concept or power of prayer, but I really want her to have some understanding of why I pray with her. I started explaining to her that prayer is like water and sun for people! She knows that we water our flowers and plants and knows that it helps them to grow. I told her that when we pray it is like we are watering the people we love so they w...| Trendz and Traditionz
Needless to say, I am all about traditions! This year for Thanksgiving, I wanted to focus on GIVING THANKS to those people who touch our lives each day. So many people, myself included, go about their day often wondering "Am I making a difference?" I say YES! Too often those who make a difference in our lives in small or big ways, go unnoticed. For example, there is a woman who frequently serves us at Dunkin' Donuts who is always so kind and courteous and has a smile and a kind word...| Trendz and Traditionz
We just hung up our Halloween advent calendar! I searched for some fun Halloween activities to do each night and not all of them fit what I wanted, so I decided to make my own borrowing from others' ideas and adding my own. I also used a spidery font. The "Watch a Halloween show or movie" and "Read a Halloween book" are listed more than once since we are just more likely to do that on more than one occasion. It also helps for nights when you won't be able to cook or make a craft becau...| Trendz and Traditionz
It is officially fall and I am SO excited for the holiday season this year! As I mentioned in my previous post, we moved in June, so this will be the first year celebrating the holidays in our new home. Isabella started preschool and, thank God, it has been a smooth start. I prepared her for weeks by role playing (I pretend to be the child and she leaves me at school, etc.) and I can't begin to tell you how much this helped her. I also made a photo book of her classroom prior to the s...| Trendz and Traditionz
It has been a while since I posted...we have moved into a new house and we mostly settled in now :) I can hardly believe it myself, but I resigned from my teaching position and I am officially a SAHM for the time being. Isabella is 39 months and we are going to give Preschool another try this year. She will go five days a week in the mornings from 8 to 10:45 am. I am VERY nervous! We tried Pre-K two days a week when she was two, but she cried and cried. My mother was watching her full t...| Trendz and Traditionz
I do my best to make every day a little special for our daughter, but when we have a holiday or an occasion I really go all out. We took our daughter to see Elmo live and I made sure it was ELMO day! She had an Elmo dress and Elmo purse too. I also made an Elmo cake for when we came home. Our Pickle doesn't really like sugary sweets like icing. She does like cake and, in particular, she loves banana flavored cake. So I baked a banana cake and instead of frosting I used fruit to ma...| Trendz and Traditionz
Valentine's Day is right around the corner! I created this sweet little "Nuts About You" treat bag topper as my TREAT to YOU :) I hope you love it! I suggest filling your treat bag with...NUTS! | Trendz and Traditionz
I realize that few people truly celebrate Groundhog Day, but I absolutely LOVE it! Did you know that Groundhog Day was actually Candlemas? Candlemas is a Christian holiday which celebrates one of the earliest events in the life of Jesus Christ ~ his presentation at the Temple 40 days after his birth. This was also the time that Mary was "ritual purification". Jesus was presented to Simeon. The significance of the presentation to Simeon in particular is that it was prophesied that Si...| Trendz and Traditionz
Befana comes tonight! This holiday really involves very little as far as preparation. Befana comes and leaves a basket of goodies (and some small toys if you wish). I made a broom bag with candy that I saw on Pinterest. I also left a poem/letter from Befana. Lastly, our daughter is getting three more animals to add to her Little People Zoo Talkers. Here are some pictures:| Trendz and Traditionz
Very few people celebrate what was originally the Christmas season of Christmastide. This time was traditionally celebrated from December 25th through Epiphany on January 6th. I always feel so sad when all the Christmas decorations come down and I really prefer using Christmastide to gradually take down the decorations. As I blogged about earlier, our Christmas tree is transformed into a New Year's tree. I decorate with clock faces and these adorable little ornies I purchased from Ets...| Trendz and Traditionz
The Christmas decorations are down and the mantel is now all set for New Year's Eve! I created four bags: one for each hour from 9 to 12 (of course this is 12 NOON since we do NOON Year's Eve for our toddler). The first bag is filled with fun things to wear: silly glasses, beads, hats, etc. The second bag has noise makers such as horns and clappers. The third bag has games: Pin the Nose on Frosty, the Year-in-Review BINGO I spoke about HERE, the Scavenger Hunt I blogged about HERE and...| Trendz and Traditionz
I have been crafting (and shopping!) all day long and I am really excited about what I have come up with to add to our NOON Year's celebration. First, I made this awesome centerpiece. Our daughter LOVES M&M Candies...so, I had to find a way to incorporate them into the fun! I found a HUGE champagne glass at Michael's and I had a 40% off coupon so I got it for $8. The M&Ms were on sale at Target and the party horns were a rip-off at Party City :) Here is the M&M Masterpiece"| Trendz and Traditionz
I can hardly believe that Christmas Day has come and gone! We had a fabulous Christmas this year. On Christmas Day we brought cookies to the fire department and they were so gracious and sweet. They invited our daughter to sit on the fire truck but she was too afraid. Maybe next year :) | Trendz and Traditionz
Around here the "Christmas Season" begins the day after Thanksgiving with the arrival of our Elf on the Shelf. Her name is Elfie and she joined our family for our daughter's very first Christmas. I immediately turned her into a feminine elf with a skirt, earrings, and a decked out hat. Naturally, she didn't really have a clue what this elf was, but now she is becoming aware of our little elf friend and looks for her in the morning. | Trendz and Traditionz
Just about everyone has head about The Elf on the Shelf and is partaking in this new tradition. I eagerly jumped on board the elf bandwagon and our elf, Elfie, made her first appearance the night of Thanksgiving 2009 for Isabella's first Christmas. It is a fun tradition, however, I have to admit it doesn't really fit in with what I want the focus of our Christmas season to be and what I want our daughter to learn about: Christ.| Trendz and Traditionz