The Month Where Every Day is Counted by Kids...

...December. Every day is marked, noted, anticipated. My boys have been telling me how many days until Christmas since October. At the beginning of the month I posted their Adventure Advent Calendar we are doing this year. Some of their fun has been holiday projects.

We made a sticky mess with gumdrops, making gUmDRoP sNoWFlaKes.

I wanted to kill the toothpicks when we were done.
Those hurt.

We read the book, Snowflake Bentley the other day
and learned that most snowflakes have 6 sides, while some have only 3 sides.
The boys made snowflakes with both 3 sides and 6 sides.

My littlest heartthrob.
He is really concentrating.
I want to SQUEEZE this picture.

Ta Da.
They came apart and into little mouths
as quickly as they came together.

This photo below is of the boys LAST SEASON. We made a Star Cookie Tree with gumdrops. We always try to do something different in the gingerbread kitchen each year. It's been a few years since we've done the classic gingerbread house...maybe next year...

The craziest thing I noticed about this photo is how much they've changed in 12 months. Seize every moment with your babies. Because they are truly just moments.

last year, 2009 making the Star Tree

My kitchen is decorated with gingerbread for the holidays.

Decorated with childhood treasures: my old childhood tree candy garland and a papersack gingerbread I made at our dear neighbor's house growing up.

More gumdrops and sugar...

If you don't spend much time in the kitchen but still want sweet gifts to deliver, this one is adorable. I simply filled a clean craft paint can with large gumdrops and tied a ribbon around it, sealing it with a playful sticker. And it's good to go.

You can take this same idea and fill the can with anything, even healthy stuff. {wink} It's simply an effortless way to show someone you care.

Because our house was full of gumdrops, we used some to decorate cream cheese sugar cookies.

Slice and press onto the dough before baking. These cookies don't hold their shape very well because of the cream cheese but seriously...I would rather have the cream cheese than nice edges.

Then the boys helped make
some classic Peanut Butter love.

Once again, in deep concentration.
This is serious stuff.

At my Mom's house they each got to create their own gingerbread snowglobe. We are all about the gingerbread here.



A little tip with holiday project for kids: I shop for activities and projects the day after Christmas and SAVE them for the next year. It is super inexpensive. So I try to never buy kids holiday books, movies, crafts, ornaments, etc until AFTER Christmas. When I save them I include a post it note so I remember who and what they are for as I pull them out of storage the next year. ;)

Their Uncle bought them caps
and I can't get these caps off of them now!

I share a lot of Kotah's creativity here because he NEVER stops! It makes my heart smile to watch his busy hands work in his own creative way. Last year, he made Chris and me this tall tree and taped it to our bedroom door as a surprise. He told us he wanted it on our door every season. So here it stays.

This year, he made more door art for his brother, Titus.

Always saving the best for last, my most loved holiday pastime as a little girl was coloring in Christmas coloring books under the tree with my brother. I put the colors and books in a visible spot so the boys can enjoy that same love.


December is the shortest but most loved month of the year for me. I am fully appreciating this season of life as a mom and wife in a little house with a little family making little memories. I know it won't stay so we capture what we can, give lots of hugs, share laughs, and own every TODAY that we're blessed with because tomorrow may not carry the blessings that exist today.




This post is linked to: Centsational Girl, Somewhat Simple, DIY Showoff, Home for the Holidays, Deck the Halls, Southern Hospitality, DIY Showoff, The Lettered Cottage, Dare To, DIY Living, Seasonal Sundays, , Strut Your Stuff at Saturday Mornings, Making the World Cuter, Motivate Me Mondays, Market Yourself Mondays, It's So Very Creative, Tasty Tuesday, Tempt My Tummy, Tuesdays at the Table, Topsy Turvy Tuesday, Tuesdays Unwrapped, Toot Your Horn Tuesday, Get Your Craft On, We're Organized Wednesday, Outdoor Wednesday, Works for Me Wednesday, Show and Tell, Whatever Goes Wednesday, Tablescape Thursday, Spotlight Yourself, Show off Your Stuff, Strut Your Stuff, Friday Favorites*, Show and Share Day, Foodie Friday*, I'm Lovin It*, Funky Junk Interiors*, Fabulous Friday Finds*, Tickled Pink*, Be Different Act Normal, Weekend Wrap Up