by tascha
Except for some specific items for my hubby that we will shop for together, our Christmas shopping is done. I am working on a few home-made things for the girls. More on those AFTER Christmas.
My Kyria [7] made home-made gifts for her class party coming soon. We had lots of fun… googly eyes will do that!
I have been finding a few ideas of crafts to do during the days school is out.
We are also going to make our own wrapping paper! [more on that later, too]
We have no plans other than a school party, a staff luncheon and making cookies together with my girlies. Both sides of our families live far away, so I am sure we will try to video-chat with them sometime during the few days before Christmas day.
We have Christmas cards to mail. I am sure the girls will make pictures to send the Grandparents [just pretend you didn’t read that, Mom!] Every couple years we try to do a craft for them-such as handprint clay or picture collages. I have an idea for this year… but it may be a New Years gift instead. If we lived closer, I am sure we would do more together.
We love just being our little family. Most of our friends have family near. and, of course, spend the special holidays with them. Thus we have the privilege of learning how to take the slow path.
Teaching by doing – that there is more to this time of year than rushing to buy the biggest and best of everything we don’t really need. Trying to be a part of every party and activity available can create stress. and I am trying to stop teaching ‘stress’ to my children. [easier said than done!]
So, I will [try to] sit back and enjoy. spending time doing only what is necessary with a few nice things thrown in… instead of wondering how we will fit it all in before December 25th!
MERRY CHRISTMAS!
and Be Blessed with HIS LOVE!
**except for the
Advent Readings and the next
Keys to Emotional Health which are mostly already typed and scheduled, I will probably not post much more between now and Christmas. The Owl Ornaments were inspired by a lady named
Disney and my Kyria’s school teacher, Mrs. Moore-sweetest lady and a most wonderful teacher. The theme of their classroom this year is “Making WISE Choices”… thus, the owl!
by tascha
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| semi-done for 2 1/2 months |
And now I have FINALLY finished it!
long[ish] screws with caps on them
for the hair bands and elastics
{I have no idea where to acquire them as they were just in our stash of odds/ends}
double ribbon for hair pins
one strand ribbon for smaller clips
tied to very small screws
small clips {smiles}
fewer empty spaces now!
it hangs from a hook at the top of their bedroom door
as I do not want to put a hole in the door
and there is not really any wall space available for it.
YEAH!!!
Just in time for making some Christmas bows.
EDITED to add [January 2012]:
The head bands were having trouble staying on with the board since it is hanging on a frequently used door, so they now have a home in a basket, but all other clips and bows stay in their place when not in use!! YEAH
by tascha |
{almost} nutri-grain bars [original recipe/link no longer works]
My girls enjoy {nutri-grain} cereal bars [and the generic equivalents], but I really wanted to know that they were actually getting good nutrients out of it [especially when it was breakfast!], AND I was wondering about cutting the cost. So I googled it [lol] and found the above recipe to be the closest to something I was looking for. After making it according to that recipe, I made a few tweaks and made another pan -and they are [both] YUMMO!
breakfast {in a bar}:
[preheat: 325. grease: 9×13. bake: 30 min]
[dry] stir together:
1 1/3 cup wheat flour
1 1/3 cup rolled oats
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp each salt/baking powder
1/4 tsp allspice
[wet] mix together:
1 egg
1/2 cup [homemade] applesauce {what I used was homemade apple/pear butter}
1 tsp vanilla extract
[filling]
10 oz [aprox 1/14 cup] jelly or jam [homemade is wonderful here]
{I omitted the water and simply warmed it on the stovetop to help it be spreadable.}
1/4 cup mixed dried fruit and 2 Tbsp nut chopped {I used dry, roasted edemame as we have a nut allergy in the house.}
directions:
Combine dry and wet ingredients. proceed as the other recipe: 1/2 spread in the bottom of a 9×13 greased pan. spread out the jelly. sprinkle with the dried fruits/nuts. cover with other 1/2 of the oat mixture {the oat dough is quite sticky and is not really spreadable so it can be a slightly messy process}.
Bake at 325 for 30 minutes. can make 12+ bars depending upon how large you cut them.
Wrap individually in wax paper for easy grabbing. place in plastic bag/container.
Currently, they have kept about 5 days at room temp, but I am sure they would keep longer in the refrigerator. though I am not sure you will need them to!
ENJOY!
I have not yet figured out the cost per bar [equivalent size to the prepackaged], but I do know that these TASTE so much BETTER.
linked up at
raisinghomemakers
by tascha |
This creation was born of a desire for peach cobbler and no fresh peaches and no way to get any right then. {smiles}
so –use what you have!
[great for mid-winter when fresh fruit is not readily available…or affordable.]
Preheat oven to 375*.
1 can of sliced peaches [in natural juices or light syrup], spread out in a 9×13 pan & cover with 1/2 [or so] cup of rolled oats [not the quick cook kind]
looking yum already!
2-3 very ripe apples sliced thinly [about 16 slices per apple for me]; layer over the peaches and oatmeal.
Sprinkle your own mixture of cinnamon and sugar… [I like to make my own mixture so it can be more cinnamony and less sugary than the store-bought].
And then for a extra special holiday flavor I sprinkle about 1 -1-1/2 tsp allspice on it.
For a topping I have used several different things:
Store bought cresent rolls: self-explanatory
My favorite was pie dough.
And have also used a streusel type dough, but that’s a LOT of oatmeal.
Cover with your desired [or available] dough
Bake at 375 for about 30 minutes …or until juices are bubbly.
sorry it’s blurry
Allow to cool at least 20 min. [yeah right!]
blurry again -ugh.
and consume.
My latest addition was about 1 cup of frozen blueberries sprinkled on before the dough topping. If you have a child that is fond of brightly colored foods… it makes the WHOLE oatmeal part very purple. {smiles} It was VERY yum.
And if you like it more fruity-use 2 cans of peaches [but drain 1 of the juice] or 1 can of peaches and 1 can of apricots or pears.
Serving options include: warm, ala mode [vanilla or REAL strawberry-YUM], whipped cream, with other fresh berries.
ENJOY!
by tascha |
taming the hair bows
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| a cork board with no home |
[and extra ribbon]
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| lightly spray painted white |
[craft glue]
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a pack of magnets
[from the craft store or walmart] |
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| add hair bows |
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| lots & LOTS of hair bows! |
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[going to put on pegs]
[to hang head bands and elastics] |
And hang on the wall. Ours is not permanently hung anywhere yet, but it is very helpful for the girls to have a place that their bows BELONG. The decorativeness of it is just a bonus-that makes it FUN to put them away. oh YES!
AND, as you can see, we have plenty of room for MORE bows
-guess I’d better get busy. {{smiles}}
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| for hanging hair bands |
[inspiration from another project]
EDITED TO ADD:
[places to buy bows]
