DIY Service Themed Christmas Countdown

A few days ago my sisinlaw posted a link on facebook. It was to a blog where a sweet person had set up a countdown of 25 days of Christ. I loved the idea of this. Focusing on Christ for the full month of December sounded like an amazing idea. I didn't want to buy the ornaments (although they are super cute), so we have just been following along with the scripture reading each night. It has been a great way to end our busy days. I always feel like come 7 pm I am at my wits end. I am one tired mama, who still has to make it till that 8 pm bed time. During that last hour, before my mommy quiet time, we are brushing teeth, reading stories, doing pajamas, and all that goodness. There are usually fights to break up, cups that have been spilled, and everything else you could imagine. In the past few weeks that hour has seem to have gotten crazier and crazier. I knew we needed a little help.

While watching this video, the idea of a 10 days of service came to mind. I had already received some amazing goodies from Joann Fabric and Craft Store and DCWV, which I knew would be perfect for this project.

I don't want my children or myself to get caught up in the commercialism that is found with Christmas. I want us to remember that Christmas is about Christ. I figured 10 days of service would be a great way for my littles and myself to remember the birth of our Savior and to focus on serving other.

Whether you want to make yours a religious countdown or not, that's totally up to you, there are some many fun activities/acts of service your countdown could have in it. The possibilities are endless, which is why I love it!

Once I had my plan, I got out all my crafting goodies....ribbon, glitter, glue, and some DCWV paper stacks. I love all their coordinating papers. It made pattern mixing so easy!

I used The Winter Basic Stack and The Christmas Basics Stack, both in the 6x6 size, for the paper pockets. I also used The Christmas and Winter Glitter Stack for the pocket inserts.

This was a simple project to make. I used one 6x6 piece of paper for the back of my pocket. I then took another sheet of 6x6 paper, in a coordinating pattern and ripped it in half to make the front of the pocket. I used my sewing machine to keep everything together. Glue would work too, but I love the extra goodness the stitches add to each pocket. I also added a few odds and ends too!

Once my pockets were completed I added inserts, using the glitter stack pack.
My kids are very excited to start our countdown. I taped my pockets onto our chalkboard wall and we can't wait to start counting down with our acts of service. Below is a list of what we will be doing during our countdown. 

10 Days of Service 

bake cookies and share them with a friend
make and send a card to a relative
make a meal and share it with a family at church
do yard work for a neighbor
donate food to the local food bank
donate toys to charity
make pillowcases for ConKerr and deliver them
Donate to Operation Smile (all donations double this month)
Buy a present for a needy child (donate to firefighters to deliver)


I'm missing one more act of service. Any ideas?

 

XO Danielle 

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Christmas Countdown

Every year I do countdowns with my kids. I think it is a great way to celebrate each day and do something fun with them. When I get ready to make a countdown, I look at what we did the previous year. I started when my kids were toddlers, Keagan was about 3 and Libby was barely walking. I keep the activities we really liked and then add a few new ones.

 I then check out my library's website. They have an activity calendar for each month posted there. I check and see what fun activities they have going on. We have a few libraries that are close to us, so I have a pretty good selection to choose from. I also check out my parks and recreation site. They usually have some fun, free things for families to do. I always look for free activities. Doing a countdown doesn't have to cost a lot. I choose simple activities, which I will usually have the stuff on hand to do.

Sometimes it is easy to browse pinterest and see all the fun countdown activities and such. This can leave you feeling like you have to rush out and buy craft supplies and what not. Resist that urge. Always base your countdowns around what you already have. When your kids look back, they will not remember the money you spent. They will remember the moments shared together. I always remind myself of this when the urge to spend rears its ugly head.

After the list is made, we make a countdown chain. All you need is construction paper and a pencil. Write your activities on the chains or the days till Christmas. It's a free, easy way to countdown to the Merry day!


  
Now that you know how I make my countdown lists,
 let's check out this years Christmas activity countdown.

1. Visit Ethel M. Chocolate Factory

Every year we have a tradition of visiting Ethel M. Chocolate Factory. You get to go on a small factory tour and then see all the lights they set up in the cactus garden. It is fun for the whole family. Makes for a great Family Home Evening too. Oh and did I mention it is FREE. Oh yes my favorite thing!

2. Make gingerbread houses


3. Make reindeer pancakes

I have some fun molds I found on Ebay. 
They are great for making festive pancakes. 

4. Deliver treats to friends

5. Go carolling

6.Drink hot chocolate

7. Drive around and look at Christmas lights

This is an easy, free activity. Just pop some popcorn and go for a drive after dinner. It is a perfect time to check out all the fancy lights in your neighborhood

8. Watch Dr. Seuss' How The Grinch Stole Christmas and have a "Grinch Feast"
Our Grinch Feast" will consist of who-roast beef sandwiches, fruit, and who-chocolate pudding. Simple and yummy! 

9. Bake Christmas Sugar Cookies and frost them



10. Play pin the nose on the reindeer

11. Go Christmas shopping for siblings
This is where we give each of our littles $10. They then get to shop for their sibling. They have to stay within budget. We also have them earn the money by doing extra chores around the house.

12. Ice cream cone treat

13. Elf Breakfast

 We watch the movie Elf and have a special Elf worthy breakfast. Powdered dough-nuts, marshmallows, and fruit. Not nutritional at all, but a lot of fun for the kids. Hey they are only this little once:)


14. Christmas mega movie night + living room camp out

We bring the kids mattresses out into the living room, pile up the blankets and pillows, and have a camp out. We watch 2-3 Christmas movies, eat pizza, and snack on popcorn treats. We do this for Halloween too and my kids love it!

15. Christmas Story Time @ Library
I try to participate in as much stuff at the library as I can. It is fun for the kids and FREE. What more can you ask for? Just check out your library's website and see what activities they have going on.

16. Make a Christmas Star
When we do this activity we always talk about the new star that appeared in the sky when Christ was born. This is a simple way to do a craft with them and teach them as well.



17. Make Snowflakes
They love making simple paper snowflakes and hanging them throughout the house. These stay up till after January. They double as winter decor as well.

18. Set up the manger and read Room for a Little One


19. $5 Crazy Dinner
I write "main course", "side dish", "drink", and "dessert" on slips of paper. We each pick a slip from a hat and then go to the store together. We each pick something to go with our type of dish, but we can only spend $5. Once we get all our food, we come home, cook it, and do a movie night. My kids love this one. We do it each year.

20. Watch Charlie Brown Christmas and have a treat

21. Make a hand print Christmas Tree



22. Make a new ornament for the tree

23. Donate toys to charity
We let the kids each pick out a new toy at the store. We then donate it to a charity. We also have them go through their old toys and donate a few as well. This is a great time to talk to your kids about how some children may not get toys this Christmas. I try to do this, so that my children know how important it is for us to help others. We started this with them as toddlers and now they look forward to donating items at Christmas time. They are happy they are able to make someone's holiday brighter.


24. Read the Christmas Story and have a family brunch
We do this every year with my husbands family. We all exchange our secret Santa presents and have a Christmas Eve brunch. It is always so fun. We also talk to the kids about the Christmas story (birth of Christ) BEFORE presents are opened. It is a great reminder for them and me. I never want to forget why this great holiday is celebrated.

25. Christmas Day!

Each day we do one of these activities. I always try to chose simple things that we can do, even when busy schedules occur. I always try to remember it is about my littles enjoying the holidays. It has to be fun for them. That is the most important thing for me. We also do a Christmas Book List (I will post this year's list soon).

Some other fun Christmas activities are


Cookie Wreaths 


M and M Syllable Trees


Addition Christmas Tree


Make Snowman Pancakes

Are you ready to make a Christmas countdown for your family? Go on...you will have such a fun time celebrating this joyous month with your littles!. Let me know what you all do to help celebrate the season. I love hearing what others do...it is a great way to get some more ideas :)

Have a wonderful day lovelies!

XO Danielle

Holiday Traditions: Making Gingerbread Houses

 











 Every year we get together with some of our favorite people. We have a potluck dinner, make gingerbread houses, and eat WAY to much candy. It ends up being a pretty sweet night.

Have you made your gingerbread houses yet?

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How Does She Do Santa...

Today I wanted to share what we do to make the Christmas season special and how we share the gospel principles behind it. For those of you who are of a differing faith or belief, I ask that you be kind. I try to keep things light and fluffy here on Blissful and Domestic, but today I want to share something close to my heart. I am a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. I know my Savior lives and loves me. This post is for those Moms who were once like me, wanting to find a way to make their Christmas holiday more Christ filled, but not knowing how to go about doing it. This post is for my 20 year old self. 

Read on lovelies......

Santa Claus....That big, jolly man with his white beard and rosy cheeks. He is everywhere this time of year. We see him in commercials, in store advertisements, in Christmas TV specials, and even on food packaging. Santa Claus and Christmas go hand in hand every holiday season. As adults we can remember being a child and waiting to hear Santa and his reindeer on our roof tops. I can remember sneaking into my parents room and snuggling up to my Mom. I had to be around 5 or 6. I swear I heard hoof steps on the roof. I nudged my mom to tell her, but she grumbled for me to go to sleep and rolled over. I listened for more steps. My six year old self was just beaming with excitement. I knew I had heard Santa. He had come and brought presents for my brother and I. Santa is a part of all of us. He is a part of our youth. Eventually we get older and either learn for ourselves or from our friends that the jolly St. Nick is not real. I was dropped the “Santa Bomb” by my friend Stevie. Yes Stevie you crushed my Santa dreams with one phone call...haha :) Eventually I got over my No-Santa shock and moved on with my life. I still always loved Christmas, even though no more hoof steps would be heard on my roof. This is true today as well. Christmas holds a magic for me. It is like a big ball of glittery fun, which just has to be shared. I LOVE Christmas. The wrapping of presents, the jingle bell carols, the treats, and of course all the family gatherings. It just puts my heart in overdrive, happy mode.

When I had children I knew I wanted to pass this love for the holiday on to them, but how would I do it? I wanted them to know the real reason we celebrate Christmas. Christ is the reason for the season.

After having my son, I talked to mother after mother. I wanted to know what they did to make the Christmas holiday special for their little ones. How did they teach them the true meaning? One sweet mother told me that they didn't do Santa. I was astounded. What? You can NOT do Santa? I didn't even know that was allowed. How does that even work? Well she enlightened me. Her children were hardcore Santa fans, until they decided one day to pray to him. Their little selves understood that they had been told that Santa could see them when they were sleeping and when they were awake, so he must be like God....Right? Well this Mother knew she had to do something fast. She sat those children down and dropped the “Santa Bomb”. You know the “He isn't real” bomb.The thinking of her little ones made sense. We teach our children the gospel everyday, and the holidays should be no different.

After hearing her story I decided what I would do. I would not discourage Santa, but I wouldn't encourage it either. Hubby was on board with my plan. We would do fun holiday things, string Christmas lights, give presents, but we would teach the gospel principles behind everything we did.

Anytime I discipline my children, I do it through the gospel. When they have made a wrong choice, I remind them that those are things that make their Heavenly Father sad. By learning how little things can be unpleasing to the Lord, they are able to understand how bigger, poor choices can be just as bad. They begin from toddlerhood to realize that everything has an eternal, spiritual consequence. We continue this teaching at Christmas time.

Every year we do a countdown. When my kids were toddlers we used the Alphabet to help us countdown to Christmas. For 26 days we crafted, created, baked, sang, and skipped our way to Christmas. This was such a fun way to get my then 3 and 18 month old into the spirit of the season. We started off slow with the gospel principles we taught. We mainly focused on a cliff notes version of the Christmas story. We wanted to make sure they knew who Christmas was for.

As it gets closer to Christmas we start The Twelve Prayers of Christmas. We get out our book and the nativity. We read a poem each night and add one piece to the nativity. On Christmas Eve is when we read the whole Christmas story again and add Christ. I love this book because it breaks down the nativity so simply for us. We are able to talk about why we give presents. We do this when we add the wise men. We give presents to remember how the wise men brought Christmas gifts after he was born. We bake star cookies when we talk about the new star that shone in the sky. We make every moment count. I am going to write up a post with a breakdown of the 12 prayers of Christmas, just in case anyone is looking to start a new tradition with their family this year.

We still have fun with Santa. We make Santa crafts, Santa treats, and watch The Santa Clause Movies. We do this because it is a fun, magical part of Christmas. I get to have fun with my kids and be one myself for the whole month of December. I look forward to it. By not “doing Santa”, you're really just taking the focus off the man in the red suit and putting it back on the Savior. Because after all, you can't have Christmas without out Christ.

Thank you all for always being such amazing supportive readers. I would love to hear what you do to make the season brighter for your family. How do you focus on Christ during this season?

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Christmas Countdown: Simple Activities to Make Your Holiday Brighter

Every year I do countdowns with my kids. I think it is a great way to celebrate each day and do something fun with them. When I get ready to make a countdown, I look at what we did the previous year. I started when my kids were toddlers, Keagan was about 3 and Libby was barely walking. I keep the activities we really liked and then add a few new ones.

 I then check out my library's website. They have an activity calendar for each month posted there. I check and see what fun activities they have going on. We have a few libraries that are close to us, so I have a pretty good selection to choose from. I also check out my parks and recreation site. They usually have some fun, free things for families to do. I always look for free activities. Doing a countdown doesn't have to cost a lot. I choose simple activities, which I will usually have the stuff on hand to do.

Sometimes it is easy to browse pinterest and see all the fun countdown activities and such. This can leave you feeling like you have to rush out and buy craft supplies and what not. Resist that urge. Always base your countdowns around what you already have. When your kids look back, they will not remember the money you spent. They will remember the moments shared together. I always remind myself of this when the urge to spend rears its ugly head.

After the list is made, we make a countdown chain. All you need is construction paper and a pencil. Write your activities on the chains or the days till Christmas. It's a free, easy way to countdown to the Merry day!


  
Now that you know how I make my countdown lists,
 let's check out this years Christmas activity countdown.

1. Visit Ethel M. Chocolate Factory

Every year we have a tradition of visiting Ethel M. Chocolate Factory. You get to go on a small factory tour and then see all the lights they set up in the cactus garden. It is fun for the whole family. Makes for a great Family Home Evening too. Oh and did I mention it is FREE. Oh yes my favorite thing!

2. Make gingerbread houses


3. Make reindeer pancakes

I have some fun molds I found on Ebay. 
They are great for making festive pancakes. 

4. Deliver treats to friends

5. Go carolling

6.Drink hot chocolate

7. Drive around and look at Christmas lights

This is an easy, free activity. Just pop some popcorn and go for a drive after dinner. It is a perfect time to check out all the fancy lights in your neighborhood

8. Watch Dr. Seuss' How The Grinch Stole Christmas and have a "Grinch Feast"
Our Grinch Feast" will consist of who-roast beef sandwiches, fruit, and who-chocolate pudding. Simple and yummy! 

9. Bake Christmas Sugar Cookies and frost them



10. Play pin the nose on the reindeer

11. Go Christmas shopping for siblings
This is where we give each of our littles $10. They then get to shop for their sibling. They have to stay within budget. We also have them earn the money by doing extra chores around the house.

12. Ice cream cone treat

13. Elf Breakfast

 We watch the movie Elf and have a special Elf worthy breakfast. Powdered doughnuts, marshmallows, and fruit. Not nutritional at all, but a lot of fun for the kids. Hey they are only this little once:)


14. Christmas mega movie night + living room camp out

We bring the kids mattresses out into the living room, pile up the blankets and pillows, and have a camp out. We watch 2-3 Christmas movies, eat pizza, and snack on popcorn treats. We do this for Halloween too and my kids love it!

15. Christmas Story Time @ Library
I try to participate in as much stuff at the library as I can. It is fun for the kids and FREE. What more can you ask for? Just check out your library's website and see what activities they have going on.

16. Make a Christmas Star
When we do this activity we always talk about the new star that appeared in the sky when Christ was born. This is a simple way to do a craft with them and teach them as well.



17. Make Snowflakes
They love making simple paper snowflakes and hanging them throughout the house. These stay up till after January. They double as winter decor as well.

18. Set up the manger and read Room for a Little One


19. $5 Crazy Dinner
I write "main course", "side dish", "drink", and "dessert" on slips of paper. We each pick a slip from a hat and then go to the store together. We each pick something to go with our type of dish, but we can only spend $5. Once we get all our food, we come home, cook it, and do a movie night. My kids love this one. We do it each year.

20. Watch Charlie Brown Christmas and have a treat

21. Make a hand print Christmas Tree



22. Make a new ornament for the tree

23. Donate toys to charity
We let the kids each pick out a new toy at the store. We then donate it to a charity. We also have them go through their old toys and donate a few as well. This is a great time to talk to your kids about how some children may not get toys this Christmas. I try to do this, so that my children know how important it is for us to help others. We started this with them as toddlers and now they look forward to donating items at Christmas time. They are happy they are able to make someone's holiday brighter.


24. Read the Christmas Story and have a family brunch
We do this every year with my husbands family. We all exchange our secret Santa presents and have a Christmas Eve brunch. It is always so fun. We also talk to the kids about the Christmas story (birth of Christ) BEFORE presents are opened. It is a great reminder for them and me. I never want to forget why this great holiday is celebrated.

25. Christmas Day!

Each day we do one of these activities. I always try to chose simple things that we can do, even when busy schedules occur. I always try to remember it is about my littles enjoying the holidays. It has to be fun for them. That is the most important thing for me. We also do a Christmas Book List (I will post this year's list soon).

Some other fun Christmas activities are


Cookie Wreaths 


M and M Syllable Trees


Addition Christmas Tree


Make Snowman Pancakes

Are you ready to make a Christmas countdown for your family? Go on...you will have such a fun time celebrating this joyous month with your littles!. Let me know what you all do to help celebrate the season. I love hearing what others do...it is a great way to get some more ideas :)

Have a wonderful day lovelies!

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