Homemade Christmas Gifts

We started a new tradition this year.  Homemade Christmas gifts.  All the gifts we get and give are wonderful but it just doesn't seem quite from the heart to take the kids shopping for each other and then pay for the gifts ourselves.  I thought it would all be far more meaningful if, in addition, we all made something for each other.  It could be anything I told the kids.  The kids loved this ideas and had a lot of fun making the gifts.  Tyler disappeared for a while and came down with all his gifts completed and wrapped.  I think they were all very special.  

To Mom.....from Tyler

To Hailey....from Tyler

To Tyler.....from Hailey

To Daddy......from Hailey (snowmen) and Tyler (ornament)

To Hailey......from mom

 I thought I was so crafty making sled ornaments out of popsicle sticks for the kids.  And then when they were done I showed them to Dave and he said.  You know, they might not know what that is (their sleds look nothing like this) which, of course, is exactly what happened. 

To Tyler...from Dad

Christmas 2011

I think it's best to start Christmas with Christmas Eve where there were cookies, a note to Santa from Tyler, and setting out Langley so he could return to the North Pole with Santa.    Tyler worked really hard on his letter for Santa.  He didn't ask for any help, just worked away.

Waiting for Santa by the stockings

 The letter is a little bit hard to read in the picture and there is some decoding that needs to be done....here is what it says....followed by my translation:

Dear Santa,
thank you for sending Langlay.  he wus mischeves wones he rapt toylit papare arawnd awar Crismis tree.  Here is a poum.  I made miself a snobol as prfict as cod be.  I thot I'd cep it as a pet and let it slep with me.  I made him sum pajamus and a piloe for his hed but then lasnight it ran uwae But frst it we the bed.  I hope yo injoye the cokes.  I worct hard on them.  give one to Langlay he wos a good elfe.  I hope you injoade this letar.
Love Tyler

Dear Santa,
Thank you for sending Langley he was mischievous.  Once he wrapped toilet paper around our Christmas tree.  Here is a poem.  I made myself a snowball as perfect as could be.  I thought I'd keep it as a pet and let it sleep with me.  I made him some pajamas and a pillow for his head, but then last night it ran away, but first it wet the bed.  I hope you enjoy the cookies.  I worked hard on them.  Give one to Langley.  He was a good elf.  I hope you enjoy this letter.
Love Tyler

Next to his stocking Tyler also left a picture of Langley that he drew.  It was titled Langley, the best elf ever.  Santa left him a note on his drawing.

Tyler,

What a fantastic drawing!  You keep this to remember him till next year.  I thought the toilet paper on the tree was kind of naughty too :)

Ho, ho, ho

S.C.

The living room was all ready before we went to bed.

And when we woke up, Santa had left quite the pile of gifts.  I guess Tyler and Hailey were pretty good this year.

 All Hailey really really wanted for Christmas this year was a yellow stuffed animal angry bird and a newborn calico kitten.  Santa came through on the angry bird and Hailey was SO excited.

and she got a baby puppy that wags it's tail.

going through the stockings

comparing gifts

Santa also left angry bird ornaments in their stockings

 Hailey turned into a unwrapping whirlwind.  She was so excited to open gifts but Tyler was still faster than her.  I think they unwrapped gifts in record time this year.

some of Hailey's gifts

 I didn't get a lot of pictures of Tyler unwrapping.  He was going so fast it was hard to see him through all the wrapping paper.  He did set up all his gifts into a little fort though. Both kids got lots of games this year....battleship, apples to apples, zarts, dart guns, Tyler got a lego book.  Hailey got a dinosaur encyclopedia.  They each got a lego kit.  Tyler got a Lego MBA kit which comes with lots of building tips etc.  And they each got some drawing books.  Hailey got some stuffed animals

Hailey was very proud as Tyler opened her gift.

and when he was done opening her gift (a little reading light) he hugged her

running for more.

Hailey set up all her stuffed animals on her new bolster.

the aftermath

The kids also got a bunch of plank blocks from us for unlimited creation building.  Tyler has already been building with these.

As soon as all the gifts were unwrapped Tyler had to get to work on the legos!

And we had a waffle breakfast

 In the afternoon we headed out to Monroe to celebrate Christmas with Dave's family.  Some how I managed not to take any pictures.  We had a great time.  In the evening we went to Aunt Gerry's house to visit, wish everyone a Merry Christmas, take part in the annual Christmas play, and have dessert.

Tyler and Hailey were both sheep this year.



A great day!  This girl is tired and happy with her "angry birds".



Tyler proclaimed it the best Christmas ever and is so happy with all of his presents.  He was so thankful for everything.  It was very sweet.  He has been anxious to play with all the new things every day when he wakes up.

Ordinary Days

This and that from our every day

Vacation mornings spent comgy on the couch watching a show



putting on a nutcracker show.  The kids rigged up string to the levers in the back and them moved their mouths with the string while the kids sang christmas songs.





hanging out on the couch



Hailey's pile of stuffed animals she brings down EVERY morning.




evidence of lego building



he loves reading books when he's supposed to be cleaning his room



Hailey mad and going to be by herself

the tree

Snowflakes

On another one of our busy days before Christmas the kids decided they wanted to make snowflakes and decorate the house.  We would have needed a lot of snowflakes for that so they settled on decorating their rooms.  So now they get to go to sleep to snow every night.

Present giving

One thing that is important to me is that the kids learn that Christmas is about giving not just receiving.  They get lots of gifts but I want them to feel the joy of giving to others as well.  So we continued on with last years tradition.  PArt of our "week before Christmas" was filled with making crafts that Hailey and Tyler could each give to all of the aunts/uncles, cousins, and grandparents.  WE also did a number of giving tree gifts earlier this month for their schools, church, boy scouts, etc.

And I got to have my moment of pride as we were packaging them all up and Hailey said, it makes me feel good to make these mommy.  And Tyler agreed.

We took it a bit further this year as well and decided that we all would make one handmade gift for each other in addition to the gifts we had purchased.  Tyler was all over this and did it all so secretly.  Hailey needed a little more prompting but did well in the end.  Another blog post on those gifts.

preparing to make finger print snowmen

Tyler really like this project...bringing the snowmen to life.

Hailey even did really well on this.

One of Hailey's completed presents.

 Since we they had to make 14 gifts each, we tried to do several different crafts.  It's only fun to make the same thing over and over so many times.  So we also made some candy canes and wreaths (the wreaths were later decorated).

 I saw this idea for marshmellow snowmen which looked so cute but ended up being a total flop.  The snowmen fell over and it was impossible to package them.  Se we ended up making some cookies to give away as well.

the snowmen flop

the final product, wrapped and ready