MERRY CHRISTMAS 2013

I hope and pray that everyone has a very Merry And Blessed Christmas!!  I have really enjoyed making homemade sweets and gifts this year with the kids.  I hope and pray this is a tradition we will continue and they will have find memories of these times.  I know I have been extremely inspired to continue making homemade gifts throughout the year and possibly getting a jump start on next Christmas!!

One thing we made this past week was a  sugar scrub, I found the recipe on Pinterest!  We used three different scents: lavender sugar cookie and cinnamon. Not sure which I enjoy the most. 

Several years ago someone had given me some glass baby bottles. Whatever formula was in them had long expired but  I knew I would fin a use for those glass bottles one day!! They were the perfect size. I also had some small tins that are used for wedding favor candies. Got those on sale a few years ago as well. The tins came with round labels which fit perfectly on my jars. I also had white tags in my scrapbook stash.  So I inked the edges if both and stamped them with a blocked Christmas stamp. They turned out AMAZING!!  I cannot wait to hand them out tomorrow- or I guess later today!!  

Again hope everyone has a very Merry Christmas and may God bless you today and throughout the coming year!!

Christmas 2013 crafts and such

We have been so busy the last month making sweets and crafts.  Tonight JoAnna and I made some homemade sugar scrub.  So much fun and so easy!!

I hope my kids will remember the last few weeks and hopefully we will make this a family tradition every year.  We have made more crafts and sweets than all the previous years put together!  This year I just really wanted to slow down and make some memories with my children.  Memories that they will look back on fondly andante even continue with their families in the years to come. 

I have many memories of Christmas time making goodies with my family. 

I have also tried to make my children aware that there are others that are less fortunate than us. Those that don't have homes,a closet full of clothiers and toys, pantries full of food. Etc. I want them to be compassionate and want to help others around them, not just at Christmas but all year long. 

Hopefully I have planted a seed in their hearts this Christmas to not only think of themselves and to remember the true meaning of Christmas. 

Angel Tree and Beautiful Feet

The daycare chose two children to sponsor from the "angel tree" at church. The children were having a contest between the boys and girls to win a pizza party.  The group that brought the most money won the pizza party. Unfortunately we only raised enough money to sponsor one child.  So I decided it was a great time for my family to participate in a more hands on way-instead of just donating money. 

So last night the kids and I went shopping for both of the children. It was so difficult for me to decide what to purchase. I wanted to be practical so I was looking for toys that didn't require batteries. The girl we had wanted an easy bake oven which I really wanted to give her but I debated back and forth about the practicality of the gift. Would she be able to get more kits after she uses the ones that come with the oven?  Would she be able to use on hand ingredients to make things in the oven?  On and on and on. Then there was the issue of clothes. What kind of clothes would they like? Need? Etc, etc. Anyway after an hour and a half of shopping we had a buggy full an came in just a few dollars over budget.

After getting the kids to bed I got busy wrapping everything. These were the first gifts for me to wrap this year. We had to have them wrapped and ready for delivery by Wednesday so I wanted to make sure I got them to the church today. 

After posting about it on FB a friend told me they pick a child every year that is the same age their child would have been. They had a miscarriage several years ago, she said they never knew the gender so they pick a boy one year and the next year they pick a girl. So next year I am going to pick a girl that is the same age Hope would have been. This year she would have been 7. For those that don't know I had a miscarriage at 16 weeks in 2006. 

Also our church volunteers at Beautiful Feet in Texas. They provide services to the community and homeless in the area.  One thing they had requested was backpacks. This summer while at Walmart they had backpacks on clearance for $1. So of course I bought 20!!!  So we brought them to the church today because a group will be leaving out Thursday to Beautiful Feet. 

One great thing about AHG is their emphasis on community service. I love it because my children are so blessed and have anything they could ever need or want and I want them to realize this is not the norm.  I want them to understand that there are children that don't know when their next meal will be, or that don't have new clothes, or that can't go to Walmart when the milk runs out. I want them to have compassion for others and want to help others.  A serving  heart is what I hope to instill in my children. 

Christmas Sweets 2013

We have been busy at my house making Christmas sweets.  We had our annual baking day the Sunday after Thanksgiving.  There were 9 of us total at different times during the day.  

My kids were at their grandmothers so I decided to bake with them over the next couple of weeks. 

JoAnna also needed to make something for her cooking badge and learn about some of the common cooking utensils.  So it was a great way to make some memories with the kids and help JoAnna along on her cooking badge. 

We also made a few ornaments.  The first one JoAnna made was with a plastic ornament. We filled it with Pledge floor was then glitter. She then doodled on it an writer her name. The second is a candle. The bible verse was Isaiah 9:2-7 and the main idea was Jesus is the light of the world. Very cute.  I found a website that has a verse and ornament for everyday leading up to Christmas.