Hello magical you! So sorry for being a day late (and a dollar short?). We went on an impromptu mini-trip to visit Grandma and Grandpa and help put up their tree on Sunday, and while I could have sneaked off to post a list I was too busy swimming and playing. 🙂
I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving (for those who do Thanksgiving) and that the winter storms are missing you.
Enough yapping, though. On with some magical suggestions for the week…
1. Serve snowmen for supper. Make some mashed potatoes and scoop out three mounds per plate, stacked flat like a snowman lying down. (Mash in some butter beans if you want to up the protein.) Put out all sorts of veggie props to decorate the snowman — steamed carrots for limbs, peas for eyes and buttons, black olive slices and so on. Try some steamed broccoli trees for background too!
2. Make a wreath for the door together. It can be made of anything — grapevine wreaths decorated with ornaments and ribbon, pine boughs wired in a circle with a big bow, or simple colored paper hand prints. Do it together and hang it proudly.
3. Got snow? Bring some pans inside and spray paint it. When it’s too melted or colored up, dump it and get new! No snow? Try crushed ice!
4. Decorate something silly for the holidays. Hang ornaments on the chandelier, stick bows all over the refrigerator, or hang garland in the car.
5. Take time off with each child to give each other manicures or pedicures. Boys too, if they like! My Jack is secure enough with his 7 year-old manliness to have painted toes quite often. 😉
6. Dress in a holiday theme. Put everybody in red and green or silver and blue, add curling ribbon to hair, don jingle bells and so on.
7. Make jeweled princess bracelets. Crafts by Amanda shows you how to use cardboard tubes, felt, craft glue and some baubles in this child-friendly craft.
8. Leave silly notes in hiding places all over the house. It may take months for somebody to stumble on all of them, but it’s a wonderful way to break up an ordinary day to suddenly stumble on a note that says “Mama loves you” or “Kisses! You must come give your grandma 18 kisses immediately upon finding this!”.
9. Assemble a feast for the birds and beasties outside, and leave it where you can watch them nibble. Ears of dried corn, peanuts in the shell, berries, seeds and sliced fruit are all favorites.
10. Learn a song together and videotape yourselves singing it (as flamboyantly as possible!). Send the clip to loved ones and spread some smiles.
And with that, chickadees, I’m off to do the not-so-magical task of cleaning the living room and washing 85 loads of laundry.
LOVE your TEN! I wish you the most magical and marvelous holiday ever!!!