Christmas 2011 Collage

I hope everyone had a blessed Christmas and that the joy of the season is still with you and your family!

Christmas Piano Recital

Happy Birthday, Jesus! 

(Muffins in my 3's and 4's Sunday School Class)

Church Staff (Ministerial/Office) Christmas Luncheon at our House

The little houses I made as dessert/place cards. 

(Confectioners sugar covers a multitude of sins!)

The making of gingerbread houses...

Rolling out the dough...

Cutting out the parts of the house...

The finished products! 

The boys had the best time making these. 

(Big bonus for making homemade gingerbread: man, my house smelled good!)

One of my favorite parts of Christmastime: our Advent story/lighting of the candles each night.  It really helped us all to slow down and savor the season.



"Box Day" is a lot like Christmas at our House!

     The other day, we received our big box of books from Sonlight (Homeschool) Curriculum.  This is a very exciting day for our family--and other "Sonlighters" around the world! In fact, the Sonlight company has officially named it "Box Day".  

 
  In one of my earlier posts, I shared how we are borrowing a lot of the Sonlight books, but these are the rest I had to order: 

The boys always start looking at the books right away!

One of my favorite parts of the curriculum...the Timeline Stickers!  We've been filling up our book of time for the last 5 1/2 years.  A wonderful learning tool.  The boys just love looking through it.

Just one of many of our Science books.

Just a few more weeks and we'll start this new core!  (World History, Part 1)

4 Ways to Use Old Christmas Cards

I LOVE finding uses for old Christmas cards!

1)This is in my laundry room. The old chalkboard is always there, I just added greenery to the top. The cute little gingerbread-shaped people are cut out of old Christmas cards. I used my cookie cutters as templates. I simply punched a hole in the top and tied them on with some ribbon I already had. If you have kids, this would be a fun project for them...they would also look cute on a tree.

2) My kids used some old Christmas cards just the other day to cut-up (and they used one of my Christmas punches) to make new cards for their teachers at church. I gave them cardstock, construction paper and glitter glue. They had the BEST time.

3) I used Christmas nativity cards a few weeks in an activity with my preschoolers at church. We made a large "birth announcement" for Baby Jesus.

4) Nametags for gifts. Punches work great for this. You can also cut on the fold to have a nametag you can "open". (This was the reason my parents always saved our Christmas cards.)

Do you have any creative uses for old Christmas cards? I'd love for you to share! Leave a post/link below!

Making Butter (Yummy Science)

     
     The whole family had a great time last Friday making butter!  (I like doing my "experiments" on Fridays.)  Dad even got in on the action.  This is one of our books we use for Science, and where the activity for making butter came from :



We poured the cream into a jar. (I read the directions a little more carefully AFTER we finished.  We were supposed to use a larger glass jar.  oops!)

After Lots of shaking, we had a creamy type butter.  The boys went ahead and tried that on crackers, loved it. (I've made that before when I taught preschool.)  The directions in our book told us to add water  3 different times, pouring off excess liquid each time.  I really thought we had ruined our yummy creamy butter, but--Alas solids!  So exciting, truly! 

Butter!

The boys enjoyed homemade butter on their mama's homemade bread with soup for lunch.

To Bee or not to Bee?

     For the last two years, my children have participated in our cover school's spelling bee competition.  I have encouraged/required them to do this. Both times were really great experiences.  The best part was the comradship with other homeschool kids.

      I firmly believe most children need practice being up in front of an audience.  I always tell my boys there will be times in their life they will have to stand up in front of a group of people and speak.  It may be in their job, or just at a church business meeting.  To me, it is a life skill. 

      I have to admit---I love competion.  I grew up competing in 4-H most of my childhood.  So, when it comes to things like a spelling bee, I can get really excited.  Last year was a real nail-biter.  One of my sons was in a round where these 4 kids-- then 3-- then 2-- spelled for 45 minutes without anyone missing a word.  My son ended up being runner-up, but we loved it just the same.  What a thrill!  

     WELL---yesterday I asked my kids if they wanted to be in the spelling bee this year.  They didn't.  But, I figured that's okay.  They had the great experience for 2 years.  Instead, they want to put their time toward other interests.  I am both relieved and disappointed.  Getting ready for a spelling bee takes lots of practice, but, oh, how I enjoy the day of the "bee"!  

My View from the Front Pew: Personal, but not Private

          I am adding the new label "My View from the Front Pew" to my blog to share with my readers some things I learn, see, or experience as I minister alongside my husband.  I figured out a long time ago (while we were still "young" in the ministry) that many times as a minster you get a "front row seat" to what God is doing in people's lives.  I remember discovering this first-hand as a youth minister's wife when I was on a mission trip with a bunch of teenagers.  What a joy it was to see up close God at work in their lives.  As a pastor's wife, people will sometimes share with me how God is speaking to them.  That happened today, in fact.  That's what I call getting a "front row seat".  (In reality, I actually DO sit on the front row in church, right next to my husband!)  There will always be trying times as we serve the Lord, but it is those "front row seat" moments that make it all worth-while.

     ~~~A little something from my notes I took during my husband's sermon: 

Luke 2:17-18 says,

    
     "When they (the shepherds) had seen him (Jesus), they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them."

     We are called to have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ...but NOT a private relationship.  Many times those two words are used interchangably in our vocabulary, but when it comes to our relationship with Jesus Christ, there is a vast difference in meaning.  As Christians, let us not confuse the two.  May we be like the shepherds and not keep the good news to ourselves!!

(Handmade) Snowy Villiage Christmas Ornament

    
     Tomorrow my family is attending a Sunday School Christmas party.  We will be having an ornament exchange, so I thought I'd make one of these adorable ornaments that I'd had in my "holiday ideas" notebook for a few years.  I got the idea from Better Homes and Gardens Magazine.  (Here is the link) There is another link from there to be able to print out the pattern.  (You may have to join BH&G first...it's free and easy.) 

     Once you get your pattern (there are 3 to choose from), copy it onto cardstock.  If you like the color of your cardstock, great.  My cardstock was white, and I wanted a little more color, so I glued some scrapbook paper on top. (I left the base white to look like snow.) There are lines on the pattern to show you where to fold.

     The thing I love about this craft is that you can really use your creativity!  Each house you make can be totally unique!  (How fun it would be to give as a gift, creating it to look like the home of the recipient!)  I decided to add a wreath (chenille stem) and I also cut out a little door and windows.  

     It didn't look quite finished, so I added a little bow and put ribbon around the bottom edge.  Much better!

     With the glue gun, I attached a clothespin to the base.  This way it can just be clipped to the tree.  I also added to the bottom of the base the reference in Joshua: "....As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord."  I then sprayed it with some "Santa Snow".  Here is the finished product on my tree:   (Okay, I'm not keeping it...I wrapped it up, ready for the party tomorrow night!)

     

Note: I think I may be addicted to this craft, so you may see more in the future!

Note #2:  I'm all about saving $$---I made this with just things/scraps I had in my craft closet.  (All except the Santa Snow, that was $1.25 at the Dollar General.)