Holiday Survival Guide for WAHMs

Tags: busy moms, busy parents, Christmas, holidays, time management, WAHM, work-at-home mom, working mom

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Tips to Keep the Joy in Christmas while Working at Home

My desk is an eclectic mix of notes for clients, my daughter’s Chemistry books, and the 2013 calendar waiting to be updated. Stranded between two job assignments are my Christmas to-do lists, waiting patiently for a few spare moments. Spare moments? Are those still available during the Christmas season for work-at-home moms? Yes – we just need to know where to search for them – and how to claim them.

Give a gift to yourself – time off

If you are fortunate enough to have projects for work that fill your time schedule, that also means that you have the added need of scheduling yourself a vacation. Let clients know in advance that you are unavailable (if only from the virtual workroom) for a specified amount of time around Christmas. As a cloud commuter I have clients from around the world from various cultures – but one thing seems to remain constant – clients are people, too, and they understand the need for holidays and vacations with families. Just be honest and reasonable (don’t leave them hanging with a project they thought would be finished before the New Year).

Divide and conquer

This mantra might not seem like the Christmas spirit, but sharing the load with others in your home can help to make the holidays more enjoyable for everyone. If your kids are old enough to handle chores, give them chores. But also enlist the help of everyone for the fun stuff, too. Holiday baking, decorating, and gift wrapping can all be shared tasks, and when you break tasks down into manageable pieces you’ll be surprised at how quickly the whole project is finished.

• Use these printable badges and lists for your little on to become an Elf in Training – helping you get projects finished and feeling a part of the magic. Have your little ones cut out and wear the badges, and give them their own Elf in Training to-do list.
• Set reasonable expectations. I used to do two entire days of baking for Christmas in one swoop. Now I have to be content with sneaking in a batch of this here, a pan of that there. Today was a pan of fudge made between helping the kids with schoolwork and doing the dishes. Then I cut and placed the fudge in decorative plastic baggies and put them in the freezer. I can add to my stash of goodies until I have enough varieties to start assembling for gift packages.
• Have a Let’s Wrap it Up! party with girlfriends. Invite everyone to bring small containers of one kind of Christmas treat for a cookie swap, and laundry baskets or totes filled with the secret stashes of packages that need to be wrapped. You’ll have help creating a tray of cookies for Christmas Eve, get your presents wrapped, and still feel like you got to celebrate with your friends.

Fill Your Office with Joy

Whatever space you claim as your home office, add some Christmas spirit to your space. Set up a miniature nativity scene, keep a Christmas mug with mini candy canes (love to stir my coffee with these!), or just wear some festive and funky Christmas socks (the joy of cloud commuting).

For Convenience’s Sake…

Let go of your preconceived notions of how Christmas is supposed to look in your home, and be prepared to allow for some simple substitutions and conveniences.

• Keep a selection of deli meats and salad toppings on hand for make your own sub night – no cooking required.
• Turn on the Christmas movies with the kids, and curl up with the laptop next to them or work on your Christmas lists while listening to the Grinch. Multi-tasking is the saving grace of a WAHM.
• Set up a card table for a Christmas work-station. When you have just a few moments to spare, you won’t feel like by the time you get everything out on the dining room table the moment is already gone.

She’s making a list and checking it twice…

Nothing makes me as giddy as a notepad, dribbled with my schedule, plans, and things to be completed. Christmas planning is almost impossible without making a list and checking it twice (or twice multiplied by fifty). If you’re a WAHM like me, some well-organized lists can make all the difference during the holidays.

• Work projects for December – arrange these week-by-week so there are no surprises the Friday before Christmas. Make sure to account for the week after Christmas, especially if the kids will be home from school and you still have to log in some hours.
• Shopping and running errands – I keep 4 separate shopping lists going during the Christmas season: gifts for family, special items and extras for friends, groceries for baking, and errands I need to complete (like getting to the post office).
• Christmas fun and games – don’t look back at December with regrets because you chose to stay home and finish one more project when you really wanted to be ice skating with the kids or attending a Christmas play. Today I am taking the afternoon off of work to attend a Christmas music concert with my kids – not because I will be finished with work – but because in a few weeks the kids will be back to their regularly scheduled chaos and I want to make sure that the craziness is tempered with treasured memories of the season. Make a list of some of the things you want to do with your family this Christmas season, and take time to do at least some of them.

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Somewhere along the line I found myself moving in parenting from searching for discipline methods that really work to trying to teach self-discipline. As the kids get older and I as their mom get a tad bit wiser, those naughty little moments and tantrums with full-frontal flailing on the floor moments have subsided. They are being replaced by lessons in self-discipline. I’m certain that part of it is age (for them as well as for me), but I think a larger part of it has to do with the outlook we have. I was reminded recently of the difference that parental mindset has on things such as discipline when I read Gentle Ways to Encourage Good Behavior Without Whining, Tantrums Tears – the no-cry discipline solution, by Elizabeth Pantley.

If your kids cry when you lay down the law, when they can’t have their way, or just because the wind blows the wrong direction, Pantley claims to have some discipline solutions that will help dry the tears and end those behaviors. According to Pantley, discipline for children requires three “Big Cs” of parental discipline:

3 Cs of Parental Discipline

Cooperation – Parents need to have a “bag of tricks” that will help enlist the cooperation of their kids. Cooperation games might include friendly challenges to see who can unload the groceries the fastest, telling a story where cooperation was needed for a happy outcome, or using the 5-3-1 Go! technique.

• 5-3-1 Go!

This technique is a fair warning system where parents give a countdown (i.e. – You have 5 last minutes before we leave the park. Now you have 3 final minutes to choose your last activity here. OK – 1 minute left, so please choose to go down the slide or cross the monkey bars one final time.). This technique teaches kids that you are aware of their want to stay, so you are giving them fair notice of their remaining time – no surprise announcements.

Communication – Pantley describes several principles of effective family communication that I have found to be solid foundations in our home.

• Make it brief, make it clear – The more I talk the less the kids seem to hear, so I need to pare down my sentences and make sure I get the point across in the first minute.
• Think it, say it, mean it, do it – One of the biggest stumbling blocks I have had is not requiring the follow-through on the things I have communicated are important to me. Then I get frustrated when the chores aren’t done or the behaviors didn’t change. When I think it, say it, mean it, and do it, I make sure there is follow-through before the frustration sets into my home. When we don’t have follow-through our kids learn that their responses to us are optional.

Consistency –From the first day we bring them home, children rely on predictability. Eating, sleeping, and bathing are the first routines we give our children, and this grows from there into predictable patterns of our behaviors and reactions. Our kids need to know what to expect from us – it is how they learn to trust us and form secure relationships.

• Think ahead about the things in your home that you just don’t want to waiver on when it comes to expectations, and be firm with those. Then consider which things can allow for flexibility. And somewhere in between, be ready to pick your battles.

No-cry Approach Doesn’t Mean No-Emotion Approach

When I read Pantley’s books (her work often has “no-cry” in the titles), I honestly take a little bit of offense to that. Maybe it’s because I’m a crier – or as I call it – an emotionally responsive person. Yep. I weep at commercials and cry when I sing a song that holds a memory. Maybe it is because it is not my goal as a parent to raise a child who doesn’t cry. It is my goal to raise a child who is happy, generous, emotionally intelligent, faithful, and self-disciplined.

However, if you ignore the phrasing in the titles, or if you dig a little deeper into her books, you realize that Pantley is promoting an approach to discipline that means teaching emotional intelligence so that things like tears and tantrums don’t become blockades to communication, cooperation, and consistency. There is about as much possibility of communicating clearly with a preschooler who is screaming, crying, and kicking the floor as their is believing that parenting is easy. If we use these three Cs in our parenting approaches we can move a little further from the Drama Queen tears and closer to self-discipline.

Article source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/BetterParenting/~3/bGbeIowSGJ4/

Printable Christmas Activities

Tags: Christmas, gifts, giving, holidays, printable, printable activities

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We love reading the tale of the Grinch each year, and how his heart magically transforms from greedy to full of gratitude. But real life isn’t as easy as standing at the tip of Mount Crumpit and hearing the Whos voices to bring about a change of heart. Every day when we get the mail there are advertisements pulling kids’ eyes to the pictures of toys they never knew they couldn’t live without. The Oohs and Aahs start to resound a little louder during the Christmas season, and I fear that our own little Grinch’s will appear if we’re not careful about falling into the traps of “the gimmies”. So in every effort to keep the real spirit of Christmas in our home, we use the following ways to focus on the things we give of ourselves.

Printable Christmas Crafts and Activities

To Help Keep the Spirit of Christmas Alive

Tree of Gifts – Print this learning activity and bring the spirit of Christmas to your home. The idea behind this growing craft is simple – by the time Christmas morning rolls around, the Tree of Gifts should be filled, both on the branches and beneath the boughs, with the gifts we give that can’t really be wrapped and topped with a bow, and those we receive from family, friends, and faith.

Elf in Training – I love the magical idea of elves – helpful, swift, and plentiful beings who could assist with tasks of all kinds and able to bring so much joy to so many children. Help get your kids excited about helping others by enlisting them as Elves in Training.

Print these “official” badges (use a sticker maker or just print and use a piece of tape) and give one to each child.

Print a list for your Elf in Training and fill it in with practical and helpful tasks to get your little elf in the spirit of doing this Christmas season. You could include things like:

• Read the Christmas story to a younger sibling.
• Help mom bake cookies.
• Make a Christmas card for Grandma.
• Help my neighbor shovel snow.

You can even use this idea of Elf in Training for the week, encouraging your kids to help a little bit more, and then celebrate with a family night of Reindeer Games.

Reindeer Fun Games

• Paint a small paper plate brown and let dry. Make antler handprints with your kids by lightly covering the palms and fingers with brown paint, then pressing these onto sheets of white paper. When the prints dry, cut them out and glue them to the plate (the reindeer’s head) as antlers. Top it off with googly eyes and a red pom-pom nose.
• Watch the movie Elf as a family.
• Print this page and have your kids get creative describing how they would spend their day as an elf (younger kids can just draw themselves as an elf). Don’t be afraid to get into the action with your own dreams.
• Take a candy cane (wrapped) and hide in somewhere in a designated room of the house (i.e. living room). Then have the kids start seeking for the candy treat, and signal them that they are getting close by ringing sleigh bells – the close the kids get to the prize, the louder you can ring the bell.
• Read the Elves and the Shoemaker (before you watch the movie version with the kids).

As excited as the kids get this time of year, just try to remember that they really will remember the time and the things that we do with and for them more than the things we wrap as gifts and put under the tree.

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Stressed Out Kids

Tags: anxiety, coping with stress, dealing with anxiety, dealing with stress, emotiona IQ, kids and stress, stress

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Helping Kids Deal with Stress and Anxiety in a Busy World

Our kids are bombarded every day with technology, activities, and a fast-paced life that makes my own head swim. Many daily stresses are to be expected, but sometimes the culminating effect of them on kids can take a toll and make them move from facing stress to dealing with distress.

Taking a timed math quiz, anticipating the results of a test, changes in friendships, and handling the strained family dynamics that can occur after the death of a loved one are just a few of the examples of things that can cause stress for kids (and the entire family). These are also examples of things that have caused stress in my own home this last year – ranging from the small to the more significant. Just as each situation is unique, so is the way that each child handles stress and anxiety.

When should we worry about stress?

According to Karen DeBoard, Ph.D., a Child Development Specialist reporting with the North Caroline Cooperative Extension Service, stress is a typical, normal response we have in reaction to disruptions that are not considered typical. DeBoard’s definition is a great one for parents to remember, because she highlights that the need to be concerned is when normal stress becomes too much stress, resulting in distress. It is this distress that can cause multiple signs and symptoms in our kids, many of which are dependent on the age, maturity, and experiences of our children.

• Increases in heart rate and breathing
• Muscle tension
• Headaches and stomach aches
• Eating problems, such as extreme lack of appetite or overeating
• Compulsive behaviors
• Regression behaviors (i.e. thumb sucking or bathroom accidents after they have already moved beyond those developmentally)
• Behavioral issues such as outbursts or withdrawal

Stress vs. Distress

It is normal for our kids to experience one or even a few of these symptoms occasionally due to stress. However, repeated or prolonged displays of these types of behaviors can signal a deeper problem. This is when stress, according to DeBoard, becomes distress. It is this distress that manifests itself in these physical, emotional, and psychological ways that can negatively affect our kids.

Helping Our Kids Deal with Stress and Avoiding Distress

We can help our kids manage their stress and avoid that stress building into harmful distress by giving them tools for coping. Think of these tools as the buffer zones – the stress might still be smacking into our kids (we can’t put them into a bubble of protection) – but the coping tools can minimize the impacts.

Building healthy communication habits – When we work with our kids on communication skills, we can help improve their emotional intelligence and strengthen the likelihood that our kids feel confident in expressing their concerns. Even though I don’t necessarily like it when one of my kids is facing a stressful situation, there is some sense of relief and comfort when they can come to me or my husband and talk about what is occurring – the first step in solving most problems.

Acquiring a sense of personal accountability – Even though accountability can be stressful (Hey – what do we have to worry about if it is someone else’s problem?), it is also needed if our kids are going to learn how to manage their own anxieties and issues.

Learning coping strategies – Here is where I have learned so much about each of my kids. Not all coping strategies are going to work for all my kids, and their needs change as they grow and mature.

• The Wholistic Stress Control Institute has a great program they outline here for helping kids develop coping strategies at young ages. Even if you don’t partake in their program, some of their ideas for stress coping skills are available online.

According to Novella Ruffin, Ph.D., helping kids deal with stress should include:

• Acknowledging their feelings of stress and give them vocabulary that matches how they are feeling (i.e. butterflies in the stomach versus a stomach ache).
• Promoting a positive environment where kids feel good about themselves.
• Setting a good example. How do we deal with stress? If we yell, slam doors, turn to substances like alcohol or tobacco, our kids will learn that those reckless decisions are coping mechanisms – probably not the real lesson we are hoping to convey.
• Helping kids learn through stories. I love this piece of advice! Kids are so effectively reached through storytelling where they feel safe and can relate to characters. The pressure is off of them and they can see the situation through the eyes of someone else safely.
• Being aware of our children’s temperaments. It isn’t our job to try to change their temperaments, but to help them learn how to make the most of who they are and manage their own tendencies.
• Teaching them calming skills – counting, deep breathing, visualizing, journaling, etc.
• Giving them plenty of time and opportunities to just be kids. Sometimes our kid are so stressed out because they are taking on responsibilities and dealing with situations that make even adults uneasy.

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Printable Christmas Books

Tags: Christmas books, Christmas gifts, gift giving, homemade gifts, printable, printable books, recipe books

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Wrapping paper, ribbons, tinsel, carols, candy canes. I can almost smell Christmas. That means at our house we are in the full swing of the preparation for this holiday, and I am doing what I can to help foster the spirit of giving with the kids. We love spending time making homemade gifts that will hopefully speak to the heart of the holiday, and as my kids will readily tell you, if I can combine the gift giving with a learning experience (the eternal homeschooler in me), it is the best present ever.

Free Printables for Christmas Gifts

When I was a little girl, my father always told me he only wanted me to give him gifts that I created with my own hands. This tradition we have been carrying on to our children, and encouraging them to give of themselves during the holidays. The following two printable books encourage kids to write, create, and give of themselves. Dad would be happy!

Christmas Recipe Book

Print these pages and have your little one compile all of his favorite recipes to present to someone as a Christmas gift. There are different styles of pages from which to choose, and room on each page for your child to either draw or take, print, and paste a picture of the finished product. Then staple, hole punch and tie with ribbon, or put into a folder.

Memory Book

Have your little one use this printable memory book to create a personalized gift for someone special – Grandma, an aunt or uncle, or even a special neighbor. There are pages on which to record special memories, and boxes where your kids can draw illustrations for each memory. Print all of the pages or just the ones you want – even just one page of a special memory is a great gift.

Coupons

My kids used to love to give coupons – for hugs, loading the dishwasher, making breakfast in bed, or anything else they thought the recipient would appreciate. Just print these basic templates and let your child decide what each person on his or her gift list might like.

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Nurturing Healthy Relationships Between Dads and their Little Girls

Your daughter’s dad is her GPS – Gender Positioning System – at least according to Peggy Drexler, Professor of Psychology at Weill Cornell Medical College and author of Our Fathers, Ourselves: Daughters, Fathers and the Changing American Family. According to Drexler, girls grow up to be women who have learned how to orientate themselves in a “…fluid landscape of gender expectations.”

Fathers, intentionally or not, teach their daughters:

• How to interact with the opposite sex, including flirting
• How to communicate with men
• How to view themselves from a male perspective

The research conducted by Drexler, along with Dr. Margo Maine – author of Father Hunger: Fathers, Daughters and Food – all shows that a disconnect between fathers and daughters can be responsible for things such as negative self-body images, anxiety, and even depression. As much as modern families are changing the landscape of family structures, the research continues to demonstrate that daughters seek out approval from their fathers, even when they are adults and can cognitively and logically determine that the relationship might not be a positive one. The emotional connections that daughters want from their dads seem to transcend the evolution of families.

How Can Dads Build Connections with Daughters?

One of my favorite memories as a mother was the day my husband and I brought home our first child – a daughter – as young, inexperienced, and awestruck new parents. Snuggling on the sofa with our tiny cargo, my husband looked into her sleeping face and said that this exact moment reminded him of the memories he had of childhood Christmas. Excitement, wonder, and total anticipation.

Somewhere along the way my daughter grew up to be a beautiful young woman who is preparing to graduate from high school and go on to college, and it is even more important than ever that she has a solid relationship with her dad. Researchers have long been studying the father/daughter connection and keep coming back to the same conclusions: daughters need their dads. So how can moms help encourage those relationships?

Don’t give a choice – Make sure there are opportunities for your little girl’s dad to be the caregiver, even (maybe especially) during those first months. I was still attending night classes, so my dear hubby had to care for our little girl. Bathe her, feed her, soothe her, and begin to build the relationship that she would need – will need – for the rest of her life. This also helped to build my husband’s confidence as a parent, something that would come in handy for our children to come.

Don’t force him to be you – Dads have a different way about them. They sing different songs (in my case a little old school rock), maybe care less about coordinating outfits, and might not understand that fruit snacks generally have little actual fruit value. The trade-off for your toddler singing AC/DC while visiting Grandma, wearing a hideous outfit, with a fruit snack in her hair, is a relationship she can lean upon when she needs that male rock.

Be a gentle interpreter – Through the tween and teenage years dads sometimes need a little help interpreting. They don’t always understand that when their 13 year old daughter comes home slamming doors but says nothing is wrong, and then cries because there is no peanut butter left, that it is likely not about the peanut butter. Many times, when the look of horror crossed my husband’s face because he just had no idea how so few words could be so confusing, I would gently pull him aside and explain what I think might be going through our daughter’s mind. I don’t need to tell him how to react to it, I just need to interpret it so he can make a plan – whether it is buy more PB or ask her if she wants to go for a bike ride.

Give him a behind the scenes preview, not a play-by-play – Try to help keep your daughter’s dad up to speed on your daughter’s friends, boyfriends, academics, athletics, and all of the things that keep her so busy 24/7, but don’t give him the play-by-play unless he asks for it. Sometimes dads just want to know the facts – not how people were feeling about the facts.

Thank him – When you see your daughter’s dad extending his thoughts, energies, and affection to your daughter, tell him how much that means to you. Dads are doing this for the first time, too, and a little encouragement can go a long way. Remember – it doesn’t have to be perfect, it just needs to be present.

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Raising Writers and Readers

Tags: free printable, lesson plan, poetry, poetry lesson plan, printables, reluctant writers

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Free Lesson Plan and Tips

You don’t have to be raising a Robert Frost or Emily Dickinson to feel the joy of poetry in your home. And not only is poetry fun for kids to hear you read (and for them to read to themselves), poetry is an excellent way to encourage reluctant writers to explore their creativity. Poetry can be less intimidating to write because you aren’t required to write tedious things like introductory paragraphs and closing sentences. When you introduce your kids to some of the basics in poetry, it can help give them the structure they need so they don’t feel like they have to rhyme all the time.

Use this free, printable lesson plan for introducing your kids to poetry. It covers:

• Vocabulary related to poetry
•  Acrostic poems
• Cinquains
• Haikus
• And includes printable forms for your kids to use to write their own poems

Why is Poetry Important?

Poetry is a time tested branch of writing and literature that still attracts readers. A study of poetry in the United Kingdom revealed that children appear to be drawn to poetry because of:

• Rhythm and rhyming (62%)
• Humor (36%)
• Repetition of sounds helps improve kids memories (34%)

Poetry is also attributed to sparking the imagination of kids, bringing families together and creating new memories, expanding vocabulary, and providing an outlet for stress.

Poetry Foundation – This wonderful organization promotes poetry for the young and old (and everyone in between), and their website includes a wonderful section for children. Check out some of their videos that explore the imagery of poems – ones that kids will want to watch again and again.

Poetry4Kids – This is a wonderful resource for parents and teachers, offering descriptions of poems, games, contests, and opportunities for kids to publish their poems online.

Mr. R’s World of Math Science – You might not think that science and math have much to do with poems, but this is a great resource site for poems that aid in kids’ memories related to science and mathematics. It might also inspire your budding scientists to develop their own poems that will improve their studying habits. Science Poems

Great Poems for Kids

I’m a firm believer in reading classic poetry to kids – like Frost and Dickinson – but I also incorporate lots of modern poets that help grab the kids’ attention and set their imaginations in motion.

• Shel Silverstein
• Song lyrics
• Eric Carle
• Dr. Seuss (my dad even used The Cat in the Hat as an example in the junior high English class he taught)
• Jack Prelutsky
• Lilian Moore
• Billy Collins
• So many more – go to your library and find the fun!

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Giving Kids the Ability to Discern

The more rules you create, the more opportunities your kids will find for loopholes through which they can jump like trained acrobatic monkeys. And believe it or not, some rules are made to be broken. Think of some rules in your own home – there are likely those that are there for safety, moral and social development, and personal preferences. Rules tend to be those rigid, solid expectations we put forth in our homes, tempered with expectations and guidelines.

A researcher from the University of California, Kristin Hansen Lagattuta, PhD, has studied the correlation between rules, rule breaking, and childhood development. The results of her studies indicate that between the ages of 4 and 7 children go through a transitional phase that takes them from rule breaking for selfish reasons (I want to), to more complex reasons (I feel I need to). By age 7 children also start to recognize the differences in the types of rules that are established – those they feel can’t or shouldn’t be broken for moral reasons they understand, and those rules that sometimes need to be broken because they intrude on a sense of self-worth, value, or intrinsic need.

By age 7 children also start to discern for themselves those feelings that are associated with rule breaking – the turning in the pit of the stomach because you know you just did something you shouldn’t have, and the satisfaction of self-control that you feel when you know you want to break the rule but you don’t. Kids are also at this age developing the maturity (developing – not mastering) needed to recognize when it is OK to break rules.

Why is Rule Breaking Important?

Children are the masters of “the exception to the rule” – playing those games and asking questions that challenge the basic rules. “What if a bear came in the house – would I really have to stay in my chair during dinner?” What kids are asking for is an out – a get out of jail free card. And it is OK to give that to them. Think of all the rules we have, but we don’t want our kids to live by them so extremely that the rules put their safety or their development at risk.

Be Careful of the Always and Nevers – They are the Most Dangerous Rules

Always do what your coaches/teachers/leaders tell you to do.

My 1^st grader (and us as parents) got caught in this rule that we reminded him of every day before t-ball practice. And then one day after he practice he came to me and said, “Mom – I think I did something wrong. But I was just listening to Coach like you tell me to do.” When I asked him to explain I found out that “Coach” – a high school boy – had asked my son to deliver a message to the high school girl who was helping at practice. Unbeknownst to my son, the message had sexual overtones (and undertones), and the high school girl began yelling at “Coach”. My son knew from the reaction that he shouldn’t have said what he said, even though he didn’t understand all of the words. He said he also had a “feeling in his stomach” that he should deliver the message, just from the way “Coach” said it. From that day forward we had a new rule in our family. Listen to your coaches, use your best judgment, and question authority if you really feel it is needed.

Never break promises or secrets.

The truth is that there are some secrets and promises that kids shouldn’t be asked to keep. We need to teach our kids the differences between those secrets that are safe to keep (which Christmas presents are hidden away for Dad), and those secrets that are dangerous.

• Adults should never ask kids to keep secrets from their parents about where they go, who they see, and what they do.
• Secrets that give kids the “turning stomach feeling” are probably not good secrets. Encourage your kids to come to you if they are asked to keep secrets that make their tummies turn.
• Don’t punish or criticize kids for breaking these kinds of secrets. It takes bravery to come forward and ask adults if secrets are OK.

Rules are needed for a reason – traffic safety, moral compasses, and even business matters all require rules and standards. However, if we only teach our kids to be rule followers, they won’t be able to grow to be trail leaders.

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5 Homemade Gifts Your Kids Can Make

Tags: Christmas, gift giving, gifts, gratitude, holidays, homemade gifts, presents

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The only gift is a portion of thyself. ~Ralph Waldo Emerson

It’s that time of year again when the gift lists start rolling in and the kids are scrawling their secret notes to Santa. But it is also the best time of year to encourage kids to focus on making gifts for others and sharing their own talents and treasures.

All that is left of Thanksgiving are the last crumbs of pumpkin pie and some green bean casserole you’re just not sure you want to save for another day’s leftovers. For some, this means it is Cyber Monday Mania – virtual shopping carts are overflowing and they’re ready to make the Fed Ex man work overtime. In our home, however, the Monday after Thanksgiving represents Make It Yourself Monday – the day we kick off our Christmas gift giving with a plan for all of the gifts we want to make this year. I want the focus in our home to keep close in our hearts the real reason for Christmas, and encouraging the kids to share those portions of “thyself” is a great way to do this.

1. Bookmarks

Each year everyone in the family receives at least one book, so for years my kids have been creating homemade bookmarks to give as gifts. These can be as simple as a rectangular piece of paper that they kids decorate, or an elaborate jewelry bookmark like this kind my daughter made one year. You can also try these ideas that my kids have enjoyed making (and are planning to make this year).

• Favorite quotes – Have your kids write the favorite quotes that remind them of the gift recipient. Maybe Grandpa always greets your boys with, “Ahoy, mates!” – or you daughter shares a special goodnight saying or prayer with her dad. These things can be written on the bookmark on one side, and leave the other side for decorating.
• Special memories – Take the same idea of the favorite quotes and encourage your kids to write down a special memory of the gift recipient. The gift becomes so much more than a bookmark – it is a reminder of the impact that person has on the life of the child.
• A picture is worth a thousand words – Have the kids take pictures of things up close (so large details show) with a digital camera and then make a collage of them. Print these as a rectangular bookmark and laminate them. Your kids can then hole punch the top and attach a ribbon or yarn.
• Corner page bookmarks – This is on the agenda for my kids to make this year. Even though the picture shows a monster theme (maybe not quite a Christmas theme), these are still adorable for kids, and they can be presented over the curve part of a candy cane – as if the monster is eating the treat – and then used as a bookmark.

2. Wooden Christmas Tree

Inspired by what he saw shopping one day at Target, my 11-year-old is making these for some special people in his life, and he can make 3 for the cost of buying one (even though making it homemade is priceless).

Supplies

• 1×1 or 1×2 strips of wood (the lengths of which depends on the size tree you want)
• Dowel rods (to hold the tree together)
• A piece of wood for the base (my son plans on make a mini tree skirt to cover the base)
• A star or angel for the top (look at the thrift store for miniature ornaments)
• Paint
• Extra – we have large wooden beads that my son is using to separate the layers of wood and give the tree another dimension
• A drill

3. Button ornaments

The same craft son who is making the wooden Christmas tree has also made Button Buddies, and these cute ideas for button ornaments at the Martha Stewart site are an easy way to use up old buttons. If you don’t have buttons, look at the thrift store or the clearance section of the home décor store.

4. Patchwork journal

Try this cute idea for a patchwork journal. You can use themed fabric, such as comics, flowers, or even character fabrics (they have everything from Mickey Mouse to Dora and in between) you can find at your local fabric store. Search your scrap fabric drawer or the remnant aisle for the best bargains – you only need small bits of fabric.

5. Quotable quotes

My kids and their friends are always sharing inside jokes, repeating their favorite “sayings”,reciting lines from movies, and using their own slang versions of words. These magnet gifts are clever ways for kids to make personalized magnets that represent these quotable quotes.

If you’re still short on ideas, take your kids shopping for inspirations. You might find a Christmas tree craft you could make on your own like my son did, or perhaps become inspired to come up with your unique gift ideas. Making homemade gifts with your kids helps to keep the focus on the giving, builds gratitude, and it also teaches kids about intention and purpose of gifts.

It’s not how much we give but how much love we put into giving. ~ Mother Teresa

Article source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/BetterParenting/~3/uREpF4RwgZ8/

5 Homemade Gifts Your Kids Can Make

Tags: Christmas, gift giving, gifts, gratitude, holidays, homemade gifts, presents

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The only gift is a portion of thyself. ~Ralph Waldo Emerson

It’s that time of year again when the gift lists start rolling in and the kids are scrawling their secret notes to Santa. But it is also the best time of year to encourage kids to focus on making gifts for others and sharing their own talents and treasures.

All that is left of Thanksgiving are the last crumbs of pumpkin pie and some green bean casserole you’re just not sure you want to save for another day’s leftovers. For some, this means it is Cyber Monday Mania – virtual shopping carts are overflowing and they’re ready to make the Fed Ex man work overtime. In our home, however, the Monday after Thanksgiving represents Make It Yourself Monday – the day we kick off our Christmas gift giving with a plan for all of the gifts we want to make this year. I want the focus in our home to keep close in our hearts the real reason for Christmas, and encouraging the kids to share those portions of “thyself” is a great way to do this.

1. Bookmarks

Each year everyone in the family receives at least one book, so for years my kids have been creating homemade bookmarks to give as gifts. These can be as simple as a rectangular piece of paper that they kids decorate, or an elaborate jewelry bookmark like this kind my daughter made one year. You can also try these ideas that my kids have enjoyed making (and are planning to make this year).

• Favorite quotes – Have your kids write the favorite quotes that remind them of the gift recipient. Maybe Grandpa always greets your boys with, “Ahoy, mates!” – or you daughter shares a special goodnight saying or prayer with her dad. These things can be written on the bookmark on one side, and leave the other side for decorating.
• Special memories – Take the same idea of the favorite quotes and encourage your kids to write down a special memory of the gift recipient. The gift becomes so much more than a bookmark – it is a reminder of the impact that person has on the life of the child.
• A picture is worth a thousand words – Have the kids take pictures of things up close (so large details show) with a digital camera and then make a collage of them. Print these as a rectangular bookmark and laminate them. Your kids can then hole punch the top and attach a ribbon or yarn.
• Corner page bookmarks – This is on the agenda for my kids to make this year. Even though the picture shows a monster theme (maybe not quite a Christmas theme), these are still adorable for kids, and they can be presented over the curve part of a candy cane – as if the monster is eating the treat – and then used as a bookmark.

2. Wooden Christmas Tree

Inspired by what he saw shopping one day at Target, my 11-year-old is making these for some special people in his life, and he can make 3 for the cost of buying one (even though making it homemade is priceless).

Supplies

• 1×1 or 1×2 strips of wood (the lengths of which depends on the size tree you want)
• Dowel rods (to hold the tree together)
• A piece of wood for the base (my son plans on make a mini tree skirt to cover the base)
• A star or angel for the top (look at the thrift store for miniature ornaments)
• Paint
• Extra – we have large wooden beads that my son is using to separate the layers of wood and give the tree another dimension
• A drill

3. Button ornaments

The same craft son who is making the wooden Christmas tree has also made Button Buddies, and these cute ideas for button ornaments at the Martha Stewart site are an easy way to use up old buttons. If you don’t have buttons, look at the thrift store or the clearance section of the home décor store.

4. Patchwork journal

Try this cute idea for a patchwork journal. You can use themed fabric, such as comics, flowers, or even character fabrics (they have everything from Mickey Mouse to Dora and in between) you can find at your local fabric store. Search your scrap fabric drawer or the remnant aisle for the best bargains – you only need small bits of fabric.

5. Quotable quotes

My kids and their friends are always sharing inside jokes, repeating their favorite “sayings”,reciting lines from movies, and using their own slang versions of words. These magnet gifts are clever ways for kids to make personalized magnets that represent these quotable quotes.

If you’re still short on ideas, take your kids shopping for inspirations. You might find a Christmas tree craft you could make on your own like my son did, or perhaps become inspired to come up with your unique gift ideas. Making homemade gifts with your kids helps to keep the focus on the giving, builds gratitude, and it also teaches kids about intention and purpose of gifts.

It’s not how much we give but how much love we put into giving. ~ Mother Teresa

Article source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/BetterParenting/~3/uREpF4RwgZ8/