Holiday crafts are a great method of getting into the season.  These projects provide a beautiful opportunity to spend some creative and sharing time with your children or grandchildren. Making gift tags can be a fun project that doesn’t have to take too much time or involve too many materials or tools. Since these tags will be attached to presents, there is a built-in level of excitement for this family project.

To begin,  collect bits and pieces of cloth, felt, yarn, buttons, old holiday cards, cotton balls, threads and anything else that may have some potential.

Then get your craft tools– glue, scissors, stapler etc.  Have the kids contribute items of their own for the project such materials they have left over from another project or an original painting that can be cut up.   Now the real creativity begins. Snowmen, Christmas trees, Santa Claus, Mistletoe–the list of possible designs is limited only by the kids’ imaginations, so probably there is no limit at all. 

Handmade holiday tags are sure to enhance even the most modest gift. Another idea for a project is to make personal place cards for your family Christmas dinner.  You could include an individual blessing on each of the place cards.

It takes little space or time to collect an array of project material.  Save those old holiday cards, trinkets, and bits of material. They very well may contribute to a magical day with your children.

Blessing to your family during this Holiday Season,

Elaine

Grandmother to three

This is a truly inspiring video. A sound engineer recorded a street musician in Santa Monica singing “Stand By Me.  ”no matter who you are, no matter where you go in life, you’re gonna need somebody to stand by you.”

  He then took this recording all around the world having musicians in each place add a layer to the recording until at the end, there is a joyous choir comprised of the far corners of the earth. A heartfelt way to start this holiday season.

As Americans we often take for granted a level of consumption that is the highest in the world. If there is any upside to the recent economic crisis, it may be that we now have to be more careful about how much we buy, how many resources we consume. Here is a quiz that will calculate for you the size of your global footprint or the size of your child’s global footprint. Taking the quiz can be fun as well as informative as a family activity.

Often kids are ahead of their parents in their desire to live an ecologically sustainable life. As responsible parents and responsible citizens of the world, we would do well to encourage our children’s love of the planet and understanding of how natural resources are used.  

                                                   photo by Chor Ip

Earthways: Simple Environmental Activities for Young Children, a papeback book by Carol Petrash, has a lot of developmentally-appropriate, imaginative activities in science, nature and art designed to empower young children to feel a joyous kinship with nature. Organized by seasons, this resource book devotes large sections to various nature crafts and natural toys with which young children can celebrate the gifts of the seasons and experience the rhythms and changes of their world. Spark your children’s imagination with over 90 environment-friendly activities. These instantaneous art and nature activities encourage the understanding and appreciation of the earth and other living things. 

                                                                                                                       photo by Shahram Sharif 

Two to three weeks  of school vacation for the holidays. What’s a mom to do? There are some great videos available on the internet that promote the spirit of love and giving that is the essence of this holiday season. Here are a few of our favorites and can inspire meaningful conversations with your children. 

The Girl Who Silenced the World at the UN is the story of Severn Suzuki who has been working on environmental and social justice issues since kindergarten. At age 9, she and some friends started the Environmental Children’s Organization (ECO), a small group of children committed to learning and teaching other kids about environmental issues. They traveled to 1992’s UN Earth Summit, where 12 year-old Severn gave this powerful speech that deeply affected (and silenced) some of the most prominent world leaders. 

Doctor with a Big Heart    is the story of Ingida Asfaw who came to America in a cargo ship at age 16 from Ethopia. He made a promise to himself that he would give back to his homeland when he was able. Now a world-renowned surgeon, Dr. Asfaw has created an international  coalition to address Ethopia’s medical crisis.

Dance Like No One is Watching  is a video of some guy named Matt doing the Gratitude Dance in 42 different countries. Guaranteed to make you happy. Matt dances with people all over the world and he is clearly quite a character and a beautiful fellow.. For a lot more information about his journey, see Matt’s blog.  

Christian the Lion  In 1969, two Australians living in London purchased a 35-pound lion cub from the exotic animal division of Harrod’s department store. For a full year, John Rendall and Ace Bourke raised the cub as their pet, permitting him to lounge freely in the furniture shop they co-owned and even join them for an occasional meal at a local restaurant. In 1972, after the lion had grown too large to properly be cared for, he was taken to Kenya and reintroduced to the wild. Two years later, Rendall and Bourke paid a visit to Kenya to see their old friend. They were told the lion would never remember them. Watch what happened.