Today is pure and simple joy! We’re going to have a picnic beneath the Christmas tree! That’s right…. We’re going to order our favourite take-out, turn on the fire, and use the Christmas tree skirt as our tablecloth. Heck, we might even throw a few holiday films on the “big screen” while we munch! Aaaaaaaaaaaaannnnnnnd…That […]
Hello, again! And again! There are certain things we do over and over, because, well, they are fantastic! Today, we’re making our famous Whisky Fig Cranberry Sauce and Carrot Cake Jam to serve at the holidays and to give away as last minute gifts, you know, for the whozits and whatsits who show up at […]
The kids have really been enjoying their card games this year, especially Pinochle. So, I thought, why don’t I get them some holiday playing cards? Well, beware the Google… Look out, kids! Run! It’s the giant U. S. Game Systems’ Santa with a mistletoe whip and a cone of flame! After looking at that, I […]
Today, we’ll be watching two movies featuring the spunky Jean Arthur, who reminds me of my grandma Geraldine! Tonight’s Classic Comedies with the Christmas Spirit are The More the Merrier and The Talk of the Town. To go along with our films, we’ll make last year’s fabulous recipe for Punch & Judy Cookies [with a […]
Merry Christmas! Thanks for joining us for our Advent Shadowbox 2012 Calendar! __________ Here’s a recap! Advent Shadowbox 2012: An Introduction: We (re)introduce our Advent Shadowbox Calendar Tradition and include some tips for how you might create a similar tradition of your own. Advent Shadowbox 2012: Day 1, Have a Tree Trimming Party, Make Cinnamon Glitter […]
□ Make sure there are enough cookies for Santa. If not, make some more! □ Prepare the Cannoli Buche de Noel for tomorrow’s Christmas dinner. □ Go to Family Mass □ Indulge in the Feast of the Seven Fishes □ Drink Hot Chocolate and Sing Carols. □ Leave Cookies, Milk, and Maybe Even Some Reindeer Biscuits by the Fire
Since we have some plans for this morning, we’re going to have a bit of a late night cookie-making party in our pajamas. It’s time to make a few of our classic family recipes: Santa Baby Cookies & Cookie Meteors. Here are reprints of those recipes. The Cookie Meteors recipe has been amended to include […]
Tonight, we’ll order Fish & Chips and settle down to watch a Christmas classic on the darkest day of the year! Our Friday holiday Film Fest Continues with The Bishop’s Wife!
Make a Deck of Constellation Cards! The kids are really interested in astrological signs and constellations. For some time now, I’ve been admiring the gorgeous, read-it-by-candlelight constellation book on the Keep Moving Forward Blog (at left) and the lovely constellation books at Quince and Quire: Starry Drafts. So, when I found easy-print consteallation templates over […]
Today, we’re making our quick and easy thin-crust pizzas for a little supper before the kids’ Christmas Concert at school. adapted from thekitchn makes 4 5.5-in pizzas DOUGH PIZZAS
Today, the kids are going to make Silhouette Self-Portraits and send them to family members with handwritten holiday greetings and a few words about what they’ve been up to over the past few weeks inside. Silhouette Self-Portraits Materials Black Construction Paper White Paper White Chalk Scissors Glue OR Pre-Printed Silhouettes Made from Digital Photographs [See […]
Today, we make an online contribution to The Daily Bread Food Bank. The kids suggest that everyone look around for food banks in their communites and support their efforts today!
We’ve turned the corner from tragedy to comedy! It’s time to illustrate the romantic scenes from Shakespeare’s play! I really hope the kids enjoy today’s installment of The Winter’s Tale. I’m quite looking forward to the kids’ illustrations of “TIME” and of our young lovers. [And, Act Four Scene Four is the second longest single […]
Today, the kids are going to have a Gingerbread Party. They’ll cut, bake, and DECORATE some gingerbread cookie cutouts. Then, they’ll use paper and charcoal pencils to DESIGN the ultimate gingerbread house. Finally, they’ll use store-bought royal icing, graham crackers, ice cream cones, some of those gingerbread men, and candies [even a few leftovers from […]
George Cukor’s Holiday (1938) is one of our favourite movies. It was high time we showed it to the kids! To go along with the excitement, we decided to design a special new cookie to add to our repertoire. At first, we thought of creating a Linda Seaton “If he wants to sell peanuts” Peanut […]
I really enjoyed reading about my friend and former colleague Nathalie’s experiences knitting with her son in the September 2011 issue of Today’s Parent Magazine [see her blog post: Teaching Griffin to Knit for a quick precis]. I thought it would be fun to get my own kids started by introducing a family knitting project: […]
Today, the kids will get into the spirit of play-acting. We’ll be asking them to dream up a Christmas story featuring their favourite characters from Suzanne Collins’ Hunger Games trilogy and to improvise a performance of that story somewhere in the house. It will be interesting to see where and how they choose to set […]
Today, we’re asking the kids to create Christmas Collage Post-Cards with bits of paper we keep around for collaging, a slew of photocopied vintage Christmas cards, pen and ink. Then, we’ll ask them to write a collage-style poem about a Christmas Memory by relating a series of impressions or images associated, if only subtly, to […]
