Start Your Own Christmas Traditions
Yesterday, I suggested that you carve a little more than just the turkey on Christmas Day. If you can carve out some time from your schedule to spend with your kids, you're on your way to reclaiming the big day from the consumerism that constantly threatens to engulf it. The ideas you find here can be adapted for use throughout the year, and are great for small group use, too, like that Brownie or Girl Guide troupe you lead, or the daycare charges you have. Try some or all of the things you'll find here today and in the previous entry (cards and small gifts), and your family might decide they've found things they'll want to do every year ... your own traditions.
Finger Licking Fun
The house should smell good on Christmas and home baking can scent the whole domicile! However, if you don't have the time or the talent for the baking, don't despair. There's a way around the problem that the kids will love. Make some old-fashioned pomanders and place them in every room of the house for the same festive fragrance. Use lemons, limes, oranges, or grapefruits, and whole cloves that you bought in bulk for this project. Poke holes first with skewers or nut picks or the ends of metal nail files. (For the younger artists, Mom or Dad could poke the holes under the artist's supervision.) Make the holes in designs or make them at random. Of course, that hole poking is going to result in juice dripping onto small hands, but it's totally edible, so let the finger licking begin! Push a clove into each hole.The more cloves you get into that fruit, the better your pomander will do at scenting a room, and the longer it will last. While it is still sticky, roll the fruit in cinnamon, and it will smell even better.Make a couple for each room, even the bathroom! Tie ribbon or plain string around them to hang them,or nestle them into a basket to display. Even the basket can be a source of pride if you have any of the small green plastic mesh baskets like the ones that cherry tomatoes are sold in. Buy some "wraphia" at Michael's, or use wool leftover from that sweater you knit last year, or some pretty ribbons. Have the young artisan weave the material of choice in and out of the basket sides and you'll have a work of art in which to display those pomanders.
Wrapping Paper
Start with a roll of kraft paper, or use butcher paper, shelf paper, or newsprint. Lay down a work surface of old newspapers and then spread out your soon-to-be wrapping paper. If your son or daughter has a small gift to present to someone (like yesterday's "Smell Pretties" or Soapy Soap", they can prepare paper lunch bags for their wrapping.
Sponge Painting Use cookie cutters, or freeform, to help you cut sponges into Christmas shapes, or any other favourite. Dip these into paint (kids' tempera paints work well, or use poster paints) and print away! Straight down and straight up works best, but smudges can also be regarded as artistry. If you let the first layer dry, you can then use the same shape or another to do a second layer. Use a darker tint of the same shade, or layer on a whole new colour. When the masterpiece is dry, wrap those gifts and put them under the tree.
Vegetable Prints Have you ever cut an apple in half across its width? Try it and find the surprise hidden inside! Dip that into poster paint thickened with just a little cornstarch, and press it on your paper. Magic waiting to happen! Don't stop with that apple, though. Let imagination guide you and the whole crisper drawer becomes an art depot. Cut the top off a green pepper and you have a handle provided for your "paint brush". Slice an onion and paint away! Time is your only limit.
Funny Paper Use the weekend's coloured comics and you have exactly that - funny paper! It's amazing how much kids love this idea, and it requires the least clean-up of all!
Seamingly Sew Easy! No mistakes there, the spelling is intentional. This idea is for the older kids and the families with a sewing machine. (My two first headed to the controls of the machine when they were ten.) Head out to a store like Zellers or Wal-Mart and buy some inexpensive dish towels, in plain fabric or Christmas prints if they have them. You can also go to the fabric outlet and buy a variety of festive prints. If you buy ready-made, you have a minimum of finishing to do, because all the edges are already finished for you. If you buy fabric, plan on cutting 40 x 70cm (16 x 28 in) pieces. Of course, size is something you can vary, according to the dimensions of the gifts you want to wrap.The width of the fabric will determine how many you can get out of a metre. Take the ready-made towels to the machine, fold them over in half with the right sides together, and sew a straight seam down each side, leaving the top open. Turn it right side out, and there's a bag ready to be used as wrapping paper that can do an imitation of the energizer bunny. It keeps going and going, Christmas after Christmas. That will really save some trees! To close them, just tie off the top with some bright ribbon. For the fabric bags, once you've cut your basic shape, fold it in half too, with right sides together and then stitch straight seams up both sides. When the sides are done, fold a little edge down all the way around the top, and then fold it once more. It's like the motion of rolling up your sleeves. Now sew that edge down all the way around. Remember to backstitch a little at the end of each seam so that the stitches are locked and it never unravels. Sit beside the kids and talk them through the project. (A little practice on some scraps first will let them get used to the feel of the machine and the way to control it.) Then sit back and watch the pride on their faces on their when they see their finished creation. Giving your son or daughter the chance to feel accomplished is a gift that shouldn't be limited to Christmas only. Who knows? If you take the time for this one, you may be starting the next
big- name fashion designer on their way!
All of the above ideas come with an ecological bonus. When children are involved in the making of anything, they tend to be more receptive to the idea of using it carefully. Use this activity as awareness raising about the value of trees and the thought that needs to be given to cutting them down. If your child really gets involved in this idea and they're a reader, it could be the basis for one of their gifts. Give them a book written by, or about Dr. David Suzuki and you may be helping to inspire one of our next environmentalists, who could help to save the Earth.
Speaking of books, (and keeping your sanity too), reading aloud is always a very calming pastime. Too many people tend to think of it as something you do only at bedtime and only with the younger set. That's a sad misconception. Resurrect this idea, but add a new twist. Have everyone get comfy in the family room, or the den, snuggled under afghans or stretched out on their tummies beside Fido or Fluffy. Now get out that book and give it to one of the kids to read. Let the whole family take turns with the reading, especially if it's a chapter book. My two are now 19 and 22 years old, and our family still gathers for reading. We read books like the "Lord of the RIngs" that way. Your family may like it so much, it will become a year-round activity. For the festive season, there are all kinds of titles available. You can try "A Christmas Carol" by Charles Dickens, or "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" by Dr. Seuss. The Bible account of the Nativity can be practised for reading aloud on Christmas Eve by one of your family's young readers. This way to spend time together is so much better than endless time in front of the TV, and it helps to bond families like the TV simply can not. Give it a go!
Finger Licking Fun
The house should smell good on Christmas and home baking can scent the whole domicile! However, if you don't have the time or the talent for the baking, don't despair. There's a way around the problem that the kids will love. Make some old-fashioned pomanders and place them in every room of the house for the same festive fragrance. Use lemons, limes, oranges, or grapefruits, and whole cloves that you bought in bulk for this project. Poke holes first with skewers or nut picks or the ends of metal nail files. (For the younger artists, Mom or Dad could poke the holes under the artist's supervision.) Make the holes in designs or make them at random. Of course, that hole poking is going to result in juice dripping onto small hands, but it's totally edible, so let the finger licking begin! Push a clove into each hole.The more cloves you get into that fruit, the better your pomander will do at scenting a room, and the longer it will last. While it is still sticky, roll the fruit in cinnamon, and it will smell even better.Make a couple for each room, even the bathroom! Tie ribbon or plain string around them to hang them,or nestle them into a basket to display. Even the basket can be a source of pride if you have any of the small green plastic mesh baskets like the ones that cherry tomatoes are sold in. Buy some "wraphia" at Michael's, or use wool leftover from that sweater you knit last year, or some pretty ribbons. Have the young artisan weave the material of choice in and out of the basket sides and you'll have a work of art in which to display those pomanders.
Wrapping Paper
Start with a roll of kraft paper, or use butcher paper, shelf paper, or newsprint. Lay down a work surface of old newspapers and then spread out your soon-to-be wrapping paper. If your son or daughter has a small gift to present to someone (like yesterday's "Smell Pretties" or Soapy Soap", they can prepare paper lunch bags for their wrapping.
Sponge Painting Use cookie cutters, or freeform, to help you cut sponges into Christmas shapes, or any other favourite. Dip these into paint (kids' tempera paints work well, or use poster paints) and print away! Straight down and straight up works best, but smudges can also be regarded as artistry. If you let the first layer dry, you can then use the same shape or another to do a second layer. Use a darker tint of the same shade, or layer on a whole new colour. When the masterpiece is dry, wrap those gifts and put them under the tree.
Vegetable Prints Have you ever cut an apple in half across its width? Try it and find the surprise hidden inside! Dip that into poster paint thickened with just a little cornstarch, and press it on your paper. Magic waiting to happen! Don't stop with that apple, though. Let imagination guide you and the whole crisper drawer becomes an art depot. Cut the top off a green pepper and you have a handle provided for your "paint brush". Slice an onion and paint away! Time is your only limit.
Funny Paper Use the weekend's coloured comics and you have exactly that - funny paper! It's amazing how much kids love this idea, and it requires the least clean-up of all!
Seamingly Sew Easy! No mistakes there, the spelling is intentional. This idea is for the older kids and the families with a sewing machine. (My two first headed to the controls of the machine when they were ten.) Head out to a store like Zellers or Wal-Mart and buy some inexpensive dish towels, in plain fabric or Christmas prints if they have them. You can also go to the fabric outlet and buy a variety of festive prints. If you buy ready-made, you have a minimum of finishing to do, because all the edges are already finished for you. If you buy fabric, plan on cutting 40 x 70cm (16 x 28 in) pieces. Of course, size is something you can vary, according to the dimensions of the gifts you want to wrap.The width of the fabric will determine how many you can get out of a metre. Take the ready-made towels to the machine, fold them over in half with the right sides together, and sew a straight seam down each side, leaving the top open. Turn it right side out, and there's a bag ready to be used as wrapping paper that can do an imitation of the energizer bunny. It keeps going and going, Christmas after Christmas. That will really save some trees! To close them, just tie off the top with some bright ribbon. For the fabric bags, once you've cut your basic shape, fold it in half too, with right sides together and then stitch straight seams up both sides. When the sides are done, fold a little edge down all the way around the top, and then fold it once more. It's like the motion of rolling up your sleeves. Now sew that edge down all the way around. Remember to backstitch a little at the end of each seam so that the stitches are locked and it never unravels. Sit beside the kids and talk them through the project. (A little practice on some scraps first will let them get used to the feel of the machine and the way to control it.) Then sit back and watch the pride on their faces on their when they see their finished creation. Giving your son or daughter the chance to feel accomplished is a gift that shouldn't be limited to Christmas only. Who knows? If you take the time for this one, you may be starting the next
big- name fashion designer on their way!
All of the above ideas come with an ecological bonus. When children are involved in the making of anything, they tend to be more receptive to the idea of using it carefully. Use this activity as awareness raising about the value of trees and the thought that needs to be given to cutting them down. If your child really gets involved in this idea and they're a reader, it could be the basis for one of their gifts. Give them a book written by, or about Dr. David Suzuki and you may be helping to inspire one of our next environmentalists, who could help to save the Earth.
Speaking of books, (and keeping your sanity too), reading aloud is always a very calming pastime. Too many people tend to think of it as something you do only at bedtime and only with the younger set. That's a sad misconception. Resurrect this idea, but add a new twist. Have everyone get comfy in the family room, or the den, snuggled under afghans or stretched out on their tummies beside Fido or Fluffy. Now get out that book and give it to one of the kids to read. Let the whole family take turns with the reading, especially if it's a chapter book. My two are now 19 and 22 years old, and our family still gathers for reading. We read books like the "Lord of the RIngs" that way. Your family may like it so much, it will become a year-round activity. For the festive season, there are all kinds of titles available. You can try "A Christmas Carol" by Charles Dickens, or "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" by Dr. Seuss. The Bible account of the Nativity can be practised for reading aloud on Christmas Eve by one of your family's young readers. This way to spend time together is so much better than endless time in front of the TV, and it helps to bond families like the TV simply can not. Give it a go!
1 Comments:
You know, if today's parents spent just a little more quality time like this bonding with their kids, there would be greater hope for the future.
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