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December 27, 2010 by: Kara Noel Lawson

Reindeer day…

If you aren’t sick of Christmas yet… or you need something to do while the kiddos are on school break, have Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer Day!

First, paint on Rudolph noses…

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Then grab your art stuff! You’ll need: construction paper in dark brown, light brown & red, black buttons, red pom poms, pen, pipe cleaners, glue and lots of glitter!

Reindeer craft #1:

Trace you lil’ one’s foot (sans individual toes) on the light brown paper.

Trace both their hands on the dark brown paper.

Cut.

Glue the hands (aka antlers) to the top of the foot (aka reindeer head).

Us a red pom pom for the red noes and 2 black buttons for the eyes and let your lil’ ones draw on a mouth.

Add (loads) white or silver glitter to the antlers for snow.

IMG_5729  IMG_5739

Our reindeer right before we put the snow on the antlers.

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Reindeer craft #2:

Trace hands on brown construction paper.

Round out the wrist area while cutting out the hand.

Glue on pipe cleaner antlers and a red nose.

Add a glitter bridal…

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Watch this like 20 times…

Then head on over to etsy and fall into the etsy vortex looking at awesome reindeer stuff…

Cute lil’ reindeer toy by MollyChic…

reindeer toy

I loved this sweet stitched reindeer hair clip from Felting Mama…

reindeer clip

I fell in love with this gold reindeer necklace from Future Fashionista… (don’t you think it can be worn year round??)

reindeer necklace

December 26, 2010 by: Kara Noel Lawson

Merry Christmas (a day late)

xmas card 2010(If it wasn’t late it wouldn’t’ be from me)

December 24, 2010 by: Kara Noel Lawson

Candy cane day…

For candy cane day we made this awesome layered jello treat (thanks for the tutorial Kyla!)…

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We also talked about the legend of the candy cane…

Many years ago, a candymaker wanted to make a candy at Christmas time that would serve as a witness to his Christian faith. He wanted to incorporate several symbols for the birth, ministry and death of Jesus.
He began with a stick of pure white hard candy. The white symbolized the virgin birth and the sinless life of Jesus.
He made the candy hard to symbolize the that Jesus is the solid rock and the foundation of the church. The firmness also represents the promises of God.
The candy maker made the candy in the form of a "J" to represent the name of Jesus, who came to earth as our Savior. He thought it could also represent the staff of Jesus, the Good Shepherd.
The candy maker then added red stripes. He used three small stripes to show the stripes of the scourging Jesus received, by which we are healed. The large red stripe was for the blood shed by Christ on the cross so that we could be forgiven and have the promise of eternal life.
The flavor of mint is similar to hyssop. In Old Testament times, hyssop was associated with purification and sacrifice. It was also used at the cross as they gave Jesus a drink of vinegar before He gave up the Ghost.

 We love the Candy Cane Legend but like all things Christmas it’s made-up.

Here’s a great Candy Cane Legend book…

candy cane book

Some fun candy cane crafts here.

Happy Christmas Eve!!

December 22, 2010 by: Kara Noel Lawson

Snowman day…

…as in Frosty!

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Frosty day consisted of creating the snowfamily above (lil’ marshmallows, chocolate chips & peanut butter) and learning the words to this song…

December 21, 2010 by: Kara Noel Lawson

Gingerbread day…

This year I thought I would do Christmas themed days with the kiddos. Yesterday we did Gingerbread Day. (I posted about Christmas Tree day on OC Family last week.)

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I got the Gingerbread Village instead of our usual large house and I’m so glad! There were 5 lil’ houses so everybody got to do their own thing. (I got it at Jo-ann’s with a 40% off coupon)

Tip: Hot glue the houses together ahead of time. I’ve found that when you use frosting you have to hold the pieces together a LONG time before they actually stay together. As in, too long for kiddo attention spans.

IMG_5430   IMG_5429

Eli said he felt like “the Cake Boss,” and I thought that was hysterical.

We also watched this on you tube…

Earlier this month Cora Jane and I had a girls night out making gingerbread houses with the folks from the Taco Bell Discovery Science Center. (Is the Taco Bell thing new or have I just been on planet baby for the last few years!?!?) Check out our house. I had to release my inner perfectionist and just let her work her magic on the house…

IMG_4226 IMG_4223IMG_4224 IMG_4225

 

 

Did you know the Discovery Science Center has an awesome exhibit right now called…

gingerbread bannerThere was a fun contest with awesome prizes. You can see all the houses till January 2nd… and you know you are looking for stuff to do this week while the kiddos are home from school!

gingerbread coupon

(Click here to print the coupon!)

Now that you have the coupon you have to go! I mean, check out how fantastical (it’s a word) the exhibit is…

December 20, 2010 by: Kara Noel Lawson

You may be wondering…

What the heck I’ve been doing???

The short answer is…

Holiday stuff!

The longer answer is…

…taking family photos for the Christmas card…

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(Kristen managed to get some cute shots even though Cy cried the whole time.)

…having Christmas tree day…

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…checking out the lights over at the Newport Dunes…

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…getting highlighted on my all time favorite blog, Nie Nie Dialogues…

my feature on NieNie

(This means Stephanie may have clicked on my blog… eek!!)

 

…hauling the kiddos to LA to get more Lid fabric…

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(super fun announcement coming mid-January!!!)

Buying this kick a&$ dress for the Christmas Eve service from the Shabby Apple…

shabby apples dress(Which Hot Hubby saw charged to our account and thought I got him something from the Apple store.)

…baking cookies from scratch…

IMG_5542(Kyla from the Funky Polkadot Giraffe made me do it!)

That about covers it now. More coming soon!!!

December 15, 2010 by: Kara Noel Lawson

Holiday Gift Guide for 4-year-old Lil’ Boys

To make holiday shopping easy Eli’s Lids has compiled a Gift Guide of the best for Lil’ Boys! Separated by age – 1-year-olds, 2-year-olds, 3-year-olds & 4-year-olds – and filled with tried and true classics alongside unique finds, you’re sure to find the perfect giftie for the lil’ guys in your life!

Toys:

You all know pirates are hot ticket items around here. Eli asked for a pirate ship that we can “sail The 7 Seas” in… but since we didn’t win the million dollar raffle we had to think smaller. We are huge fans of playmobile. They have every play world a little boy can dream up – see for yourself! Warning: There are some REALLY tiny pieces and the rule at our house is, “If it’s left out it might get vacuumed up!”

And Lego… lots of em’. We got this bucket at Sam’s Club but if you don’t have a membership you can find them at Walmart too!

(This is exactly what we are getting Eli this year!)

4 yr pirate playmobil4 yr lego

Clothes:

Old Navy is running some awesome sales right now!! Loads of boys shirts for $5. Check out the Old Navy sale page. And if you love matching (like I do), you can usually find stuff in all sizes!

I got this and this, sized to fit both my boys…

4 yr hounds tooth4 yr collar shirt

Book:

(you should already have all the Dr Seuss books)

Now that your lil’ guy is getting older it’s time for more “wordy” books. We are digging the Berenstain Bears. The books are a great price and there are SO MANY BOOKS you can find a topic on just about anything.

From everyday family issues… 

4 yr bears messy room  4 yr bears TV  4 yr bears dentist

…to more serious topics like…

4 yr bears guns      4 yr bears pollute      4 yr bears strangers

Movie:

Um… yeah. Toy Story 3. That’s it.

(Eli and Cora Jane’s first real movie experience. Though we’ve had a few more since hearing about the UltraStar Cinemas Kidtoons)

4 yr toy story4 yr toy story watching movie

TV Show:

You have to check out Shaun the Sheep. It’s awesome. If you’re partial to Claymation and British humor (like me) you will like this show as much as your kiddos! Shaun the Sheep makes Eli laugh out loud. (My favorite episode is the hiccup one)

4 yr shaun the sheep

Games:

UNO Moo is the perfect game for preschoolers. The game is played just like traditional UNO except with animals instead of numbers. I love that everything fits nicely in the barn carrying case (don’t you just love toys that do that??). Cora Jane picked out for Eli for Christmas. I can’t wait to play it with them.

4 yr animal uno

December 14, 2010 by: Kara Noel Lawson

MOMday Morning extended!

Because of the holiday hustle & bustle we are extending MOMday Morning another week!! Head on over to Blessed Nest Perch and enter to win…

…an organic Nesting Pillow ($87)…

blessed nest flower pillow

…awesome organic stuff from Peek a Green…

MOMday peek a green

…and $100 cash!! (not organic)

MOMday cash falling

Head on over to Blessed Nest Perch to enter the giveaway… like now!!

A little about Peek a Green:

Peek a green has handpicked the most baby-friendly and eco-friendly products and created unique gift sets for all occasions: baby showers, birthdays, holidays and every day gifts for babies and their older brothers & sisters. Peek a green is a wonderful place to do your holiday shopping; for each item you purchase, they will have a tree planted, thanks to their partnership with Trees for the Future.

December 10, 2010 by: Kara Noel Lawson

Holiday Gift Guide for 3-year-old Lil’ Boys

To make holiday shopping easy Eli’s Lids has compiled a Gift Guide of the best for Lil’ Boys! Separated by age – 1-year-olds, 2-year-olds, 3-year-olds & 4-year-olds – and filled with tried and true classics alongside unique finds, you’re sure to find the perfect giftie for the lil’ guys in your life!

Toys:

If you haven’t seen a Pacific Strider bike, get ready to be amazed! In case you can’t tell from the picture the bike doesn’t have petals – young kiddos glide on the bike! I’m so impressed with this bike. It’s lightweight, durable and the wheels are filled with foam so you don’t have to worry about flat tires. Click here to see why you should get a Pacific Strider bike!

3 yr strider bike3 yr strider in action

Clothes:

Now that your little man is doing more and more for himself why not let him with these etnies. The faux laces are actually velcro…

3 yr etnies

Book:

We discovered Harry and the Dinosaurs at our local library Story Time and Eli loved them. Harry carries around his bucket-o-dinos and they have fun adventures. The pictures are awesome – almost like a seek & find on every page looking for all the dinos. I just discover they have a show too so I thought I would add a clip.

3 yr harry and the dinos2 3 yr harry and the dinos 3 3 yr harry and the dinos 1

Movie:

The new Curious George movie – Curious George 2: Follow That Monkey is awesome (though I’m a bit partial to the original style on PBS) and it’s only $8!

Side Note: If you are a So Cal local don’t forget about UltraStar Cinemas is screening Curious George: A Very Monkey Christmas this month at the Anaheim Garden Walk! I think we are going this weekend!

3 yr cuious george

TV Show:

I mentioned PBS above and I have to say their shows are always the best. Have you seen the new Cat in the Hat Knows A Lot About That and the not so new Martha Speaks??? You can buy these for stocking stuffers or stream them live on Netflix!

3 yr Martha Speaks3 yr cat in the hat

Music:

Imagination Movers. Love them. Everything about them. At 3 Eli memorized all the words to Playing Catch. We don’t have cable so we don’t watch the show (though I’ve heard it’s great), but we do have their Movers Indie 3 CD pack. Its awesome and only $30 for all three… including shipping!!

3 yr Imagination Movers

Games:

(FYI You should already own Candy Land… I mean can you really raise a child in America without Candy Land!?!? And it’s only $4)

Boys are good at puzzles and 3-years-old is a great time to venture away from the simple wooden shapes puzzles. Try a big floor puzzle like this one…

3 yr animal puzzle

This game just looks awesome! In What’s in Ned’s Head each kiddos gets a picture card then has to try to find what’s on the card while digging around Ned’s Head!! Gross, I know.

Awesome, for sure! 

3 yr neds head3 yr neds head plush

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Here at Small Things I share how we can all do Small Things to positively impact our families, our neighborhoods, our communities and the world. I also freelance for local and national publications.

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