Cute Christmas Ornament for Preschoolers (Gifts Kids Can Make)

Every year at Christmastime I try to help my children look outside of themselves by encouraging them to make gifts that they can give to family and friends. (For more ideas be sure to check out my gift guide HERE.) While homeschooling my daughters co-op preschool last year we spent a month talking about serving and helping others. We talked about how when we serve our family it's like giving them a little gift. Giving a hug, helping mom or dad, or telling a story to a sibling are all little gifts we can give. When we do these things it's like we're a present! One week at preschool I wrapped each of the kids up in wrapping paper, put a big bow on their heads and took their picture. They though that was so much fun! This was in preparation to make a gift they could give their parents for Christmas and as a reminder that they can help and serve others.

The kids each got to paint a little frame for their picture to go in.

I printed off the pictures and placed them in the frame, strung a ribbon through the top, and placed some lyrics that I remember from my childhood--about how we are like a present when we serve others--on the back.

 

A previous year I did a similar thing with my son's preschool group. I wasn't up for a painting project that year so I let the kids color their wood frames with red and green crayons to keep it simple and not have to worry about drying time.

The kids were SO excited to see their little ornaments all put together the next time we met. They each got to put their ornament in a box and wrap it up to put under the tree when they got home and give to their moms and dads on Christmas morning. It was so much fun to see the excitement in their eyes as they prepared these gifts to give away. I think they turned out adorably cute!

To see more ideas of gifts that kids give check out my gift guide HERE.

Snow Globe Ornament (Gifts Kids Can Make)

I ran into these laminated snow globe ornaments on Crafty Morning last year and thought they were so cute and clever. My kids helped me to make some to send to their grandparents for Christmas and I think they turned out great! I'm always looking for ways my kids can think outside of themselves at Christmastime and have opportunities to give to others. Be sure to check out my gift guide of gifts that kids can make and give for more ideas!

To make the snow globe ornaments I started out with a picture that I had taken earlier in the year of my kids. I copied it into a Word document and shrunk in down to be approximately three inches long. I then printed it onto card stock using a high quality print setting.

Then came the tricky part of cutting out around all the fine details.

I then opened a laminating pouch and on the inside drew a 3 1/2 inch circle using a pen. My kids helped me paint the lower half of the circle using craft paint and then we sprinkled on some fine glitter. We placed the picture in the center of the circle and after giving the paint a few minutes to dry closed the pouch and ran it through the laminating machine. Once cool we cut out the circles and cut the bases from blue card stock, two for each ornament.

Using double sided tape we overlapped the blue base slightly over the laminated snow globe making sure the edges were even. We then turned it over and applied a second base to the backside to give it a more finished look and a little more stability.

The final touch was punching a hole near the top, stringing through some bakers twine, and tying a knot. The kids were excited to then wrap them up and send them off the Grandma and Grandpa. I think they did a fabulous job! They turned out so cute!

And because we wanted to have some more fun with this snow globe idea a few of my kids made one of their own. It was fun to see what they chose to pick to go inside their snow globe, although I can't say I'm surprised--they picked some of their favorite things!

We had a fun afternoon crafting together!

To find more ideas of gifts kids can make, check out my gift guide HERE.

Gifts Kids Can Make: Nativity Wood Slice Ornament

For those of you that have been following Serving Pink Lemonade for a while you know that Jeanine and I love having our kids make DIY gifts for Christmas. We've found that when our children have opportunities to give they learn to love giving! It's so rewarding to see my kids focusing more on what gifts they're going to give for Christmas than on what they're going to get. You can find our Gift Guide to Gifts Kids Can Make HERE!

In our backyard we have a huge pile of logs that we use for campfires. Last year I had my husband cut up several of the smaller logs into thin wood slices. I thought the kids would have fun using the wood slices to create a little fairy home or village in the backyard. As Christmas rolled around and my kids and I were brainstorming what they could give their grandparents for Christmas we decided that we could use some of the wood slices to make ornaments. 

I let each child pick out what they thought would be the perfect piece and then they used a pencil to design an image of their choosing on the surface. When they were all done we used a wood burner to etch their picture into the wood.

Adding an eyelet to the top and some red and white bakers twine completed the gift.

 My kids were so excited to send their thoughtful creations off to grandma and grandpa to hang on their trees. We were so happy with how they turned out!

Want more ideas of what your kids can make and give as gifts? Check out our gift guide HERE!

Christmas Time Service

Last Christmas I was trying to think of ways my 3 year old could give service and see the immediate results from it.  I tried to convince Jeanine and Amy to put together a post sharing ideas of how young children can give service and help others but they turned around and convinced me to do it instead! I've been brainstorming some ideas and its been a great experience.  Here are a few of the thoughts I've collected.  Some of these ideas I can do with my kids now while they're young and others will be perfect for when they get a little older.

Service at Home

I really believe that our home is one of the best places we can teach our young children to serve.

Do you think it's a coincidence that my son received a talk assignment in church last Sunday with the topic "When I serve my family I serve God"? We had a great conversation together about what service is, ways we can serve, and how serving others is how we show Heavenly Father we love him. We talked about how serving and showing love is the most important thing about Christmas. I've been trying to point out those simple ways he can serve and already does serve!

As I was thinking about serving in our home I remembered a Christmas service star that I had made at church as a teenager.  It's a pay it forward type of idea.  You make/find a star and when you have completed an act of service for someone in your family you leave the star there and then that person has 24 hours to complete some service for someone else, and so on.

After a quick search on the internet I found this better explanation of it.  I think it's definitely something young children will enjoy participating in and an act of service where they can see the results.

I also saw a similar idea in the book "Christ Centered Christmas" by Emily Freeman.  She suggest keeping a bell in your pocket and when you hear it jingle it will remind you to be aware of ways you can serve.  This might be a fun thing for smaller kids to do but you'll have to decide if your sanity can handle constant jingles before you start handing out bells!

Here are a few ideas of ways children can serve in the home:

Make someone's bed

Clean up your toys without being asked

Do dishes or make dinner

Make a card for someone

Give a hug

Complete someone else's chore for them

Share a toy

Hold the door open for someone

Share a treat

Wipe down the counters

Sweep the floor

Play a game with a younger sibling

Give a back rub

Say something nice to someone

Make a bookmark with a nice quote on it for someone

Listen to someone that is having a hard day

Give your mom or sister a manicure

Service in Your Community

I always enjoyed serving others as a family growing up. Some of the things we did as kids were:

• Caroling and bringing treats to neighbors at Christmas-time.  This is what I looked forward to most growing up and can't wait to continue the tradition with my own kids.
• Sing at a retirement home. Growing up we always went to the Life Care Center. There are several around the country but I'm sure with a quick search you can find any type of retirement home near you.  My sister-in-law did this one year and also brought around tissues to those she sang to.
• Write letters to missionaries. It's hard being away from friends and family during the holidays and a little note can make a big difference for someone. In our church congregation growing up big sheets of paper were set out at Christmas-time giving everyone an opportunity to write a message to those missionaries that were far from home. You can do this as a family as well.
• You can also write those that serve in the military. If you don't personally know someone in the military this is just one place you can go to contact those in the military to express your gratitude.
• Often during the month of December we would drop off a big box of food and presents to someone we know needed it. What was most fun about this activity was leaving the gifts on their doorstep, ringing the doorbell, and then running away before they could answer. It added a fun element of mystery and exhilaration.
• A few years ago we did a 12 days of Christmas for a neighbor.  I've seen it done a lot of ways through the years. There's some ideas here and here and here.
• I randomly come across this subscription site called Crafting It Forward and fell in love with it.  The basic idea is you subscribe, they send you a craft, your child makes it, enjoys it, and then mails it in a pre-addressed envelope to someone whose day it will brighten (a child in a hospital, a retirement home etc.) The only down side to this is that young children don't get to see where their gift ends up--but I still love the idea.

There are so many other ways we can serve those around us.  I love these ideas at the Random Acts of Kindness Foundation.

There are even more service ideas here.

12 Months of Christmas

Last year when I was contemplating my service ideas I came across this idea from my great friend Angela.  She is a single mom with young children (ages 1-7 years old).

Angela had a rough year and was so touched by the love and outpouring of support that was given to her she was inspired to give back. She started a new tradition with her children where they came up with a simple act of service at the beginning of each month. Once they completed the service they would each write (or draw depending on their age) about their experience and how they felt. They then place their experiences in a wrapped box. These acts of service are their gifts to the Savior. On Christmas Eve they get to open the box and reflect on their gifts. You can read more about her experience here.

I love how she placed the box in an open area where they have a physical reminder every day of the service they had given and a chance to reflect on the Savior. I love how this tradition focuses on the Savior and giving all year and I can't wait to start this in January with my family.

We're excited to have a month and year of service and hope you do too!

-Elise

A New Holiday Tradition: The Christmas Star From Afar

December is practically here!  My family and I decorated our tree yesterday and it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas.  I love this time of year and all the traditions associated with it.  I'm especially excited to start a new tradition this year.  One that focuses on the true meaning of Christmas.  I was thrilled to be introduced to a new book and game called The Christmas Star From Afar.

This beautiful gift set comes with a book that tells the story of the wise men following the star and also a lovely, child friendly nativity.  After reading the book with your children set up the nativity together--and then the fun part--each night the star is hid in a new place to be found by the children each morning.  When the star is found all three wise men are moved to that location.  On Christmas morning the wise men reach their final destination when the star is found above the stable.

Does the whole hiding an object to be found by children the next morning sound familiar?  Yep.  It's sort of a Christ centered Elf on the Shelf alternative.  That's what I love so much about this.  The magic and joy of finding and object each morning but still keeping focused on why we celebrate Christmas--because I don't think we can get too much of that.  I also love that the book includes daily scripture verses that you can incorporate into the daily star finding if you choose to.  

Want your own Christmas Star from Afar to celebrate with your children?  Find it HERE.

Also, LIKE Star from Afar on Facebook to learn about giveaways and more.

How do you celebrate the true meaning of Christmas with your children?

12-Day Nativity Book + a Giveaway! ***Giveaway Closed***

November has just begun but I'm already half way through my Christmas shopping and holiday planning.  The truth is as soon as July hits my brain is on Christmas and I'm brainstorming gift ideas for everyone.  I just love the Christmas season.  I love buying gifts for my family, making gifts with my children to give away, and most importantly having a whole month for focusing on the Savior as a family.

Every year I try to incorporate new traditions into our family that help us think of the Savior during the month of December.  A friend of mine told me about this brand new book that just came out called 12-Day Nativity.  I was excited to get my hands on a copy.  This book was everything I hoped it would be.

The book takes a twist on the popular 12-days of Christmas and shifts it into a 12-day nativity focusing on the Christmas story.  What I love most about this book is how the author, Marilee, thinks of everything!  It's well thought through to the very last detail.  That doesn't mean it's complicated or hard to pull off though.  Marilee offers a variety of ideas and suggestions so that you can adjust the experience to what works best for your family.

Not only is the book chalk full of ideas for a 12-day nativity experience but it offers several other nativity related ideas as well.  From advents, to celebrating with neighbors, nativity activities and crafts, explanations of how the nativity is celebrated around the world, and even a list of children's books that focus on the nativity story.  This book includes it all!

One of the activities in the book was making a nativity bracelet.




I pulled my kids together and we got our minds on Christmas a little early this year and made one.



This project was simple but meaningful.  Using some dollar store pony beads and pipe cleaners we made our nativity bracelets.  We reviewed the nativity story and each of the characters in it.  Each child then chose a bead to represent each character in the nativity story (pink for Mary, dark blue for Joseph, and so on).

After each character was assigned a color, the beads were strung onto the pipe cleaner in the order that they appear in the nativity story.

The pipe cleaner was then turned into a bracelet. The beads can be slid across the bracelet as the nativity story is told and each character is mentioned.

My kids had a great time each creating their own nativity bracelets.  This is just one of the many fabulous Christ centered activities found in the 12-Day Nativity.

Today I have one copy of the 12-Day Nativity to giveaway. To enter to win by leaving a comment telling me what your favorite Christmas tradition is.  You can enter to win by leaving a comment below or by leaving a comment on our Facebook page.

Don't want to wait to win? Grad a copy (or two) over at Amazon. One for you and one for a friend or family member. I think this book would make a thoughtful and meaningful Christmas gift. Don't you?

Check out the 12-Day Nativity over on Facebook too.

Good luck!
Giveaway ends November 6, 2015.

Service Manger

Note: This post was originally published back in 2010.  I've had several requests for a template to the manger.  I have created a template and decided to re-post this idea to allow more of our readers access to it.

This simple idea makes an inexpensive and meaningful gift to give to children in a Sunday school class or church setting.  It would also be a fun project to make and work together on as a family.  We have used this little homemade manger for years and really enjoyed the spirit of service that it created in our home.  This year we decided to finally upgrade to a nicer (sturdier) version that I came across on etsy.  You can find it here.

Be sure to check out this fun little story called Straw for the Manger to go along with your service manger too.  Find it HERE.

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Are you looking for ways to help your children remember the true meaning of Christmas this time of year?

This service manger is a fun and easy way to do just that!

This little manger started out empty, but each time someone in our family does a good deed or act of service they get to add a straw to the manger to make it soft in time for the baby Jesus to arrive for Christmas.

Want to make your own?  These simple mangers can be put together in minutes!

First I found some sturdy card stock (or thin cardboard will do also) and drew these images on it.

I then cut them out and pieced them together. See. Easy project. I didn't even use glue. Just fold your rectangle piece in half, cut the slits and insert the legs of the manger.

Find some straw (or raffia, or even paper shreds) and let your kids add them to the manger good deed by good deed.

Now for the baby Jesus.
I picked up these wooden pieces at Hobby Lobby for under $2 the other day. Perfect for our baby.

I then found some white scraps of flannel for a blanket and a sharpie to draw on the face.

Here's the baby all wrapped up and cozy.

I can't tell you how much my children have loved filling this manger with straw. It's been fun to see them being so helpful and offering to do all kinds of wonderful things around the house.


Just perfect for helping to remember the true meaning of Christmas.






(To print template: Click on picture below to enlarge, then right click and copy.  Open a word document, reduce your margins to zero and paste.  Expand to 100% and print.)





Merry Christmas!