Holidays Archives - Page 32 of 130

Are you looking for a new tradition that helps your family practice gratitude during the holidays? Families get caught up in the chaos of the holiday season and lose sight of what the season is all about. Focus on what you’re thankful for this Christmas eve with the Angels in the Snow Christmas candle tradition.

Affiliate links may be used in this post. Ordering a product through these links may result in a commission. Read the full disclosure here.

It’s the most wonderful time of the year – time for the annual 25 Days Of Christmas Movies Blog Hop! #ChristmasMoviesHop

We have 25 talented bloggers gathered together to share with you all the wonderful crafts and recipes you can make this Christmas season, based off of some of the most beloved holiday films. There are 25 films to be inspired by for your holiday season, and 25 talented bloggers to aid your inspiration! If you love Christmas movies, you have come to the right place!!

It’s the most wonderful time of the year – time for the annual 25 Days Of Christmas Movies Blog Hop! #ChristmasMoviesHop

Let’s Meet The Hosts!

Megan ~ C’mon Get Crafty | Marie ~ The Inspiration Vault | Carmen ~ Gross to Grandiose

Christine ~ My Kitchen My Craft | Crissy ~ It’s a Wonderful Life | Emily ~ Domestic Deadline

Stephanie ~ The Tip Toe Fairy | Rebecca ~ The Moments at Home | Marianne ~ Songbird

Ashley ~ Attempts at Domestication | Sue ~ A Purdy Little House | Roseann ~ This Autoimmune Life

Kim ~ Kimspireddiy | Jaime ~ Love Jaime | Terri ~ Christmas Tree Lane |Lyne ~ The Paper Addict

Nicole ~ For the the Love of Food | Marie ~ DIY Adulation | Paula ~ Paula Tisch

Lara~ Love on a Plate | Jaclyn ~ The Dotted Nest

Thankful Spirit

I noticed that my kiddos (4, 6, and 9) were getting super spoiled. They are so concerned about what they are getting for Christmas instead of excited about giving to others, spending time with family, and enjoying the simple things in life.

I wanted to shift the focus but wasn’t entirely sure how. Then I remembered the tradition from the movie Angels in the Snow where they pass a candle around and say what they are thankful for. In fact, the entire movie focuses on making the most of what you have and being grateful for it.

This Christmas candle tradition is exactly what you need to shift the focus of your family and embrace an attitude of thankfulness, appreciation, and joy.

[bctt tweet=”This Christmas candle tradition is exactly what you need to shift the focus of your family and embrace an attitude of thankfulness, appreciation, and joy.” username=”diyadulation”]

Angels in the Snow

Materials

Cream LED Pillar Candle
Candy Cane Ribbon
Christmas Pine Floral Pick
Hot Glue Gun and Glue
Scissors

Step 1

First, remove the label from your pillar candle.

Step 2

Next, glue the end of your ribbon to the center of your pillar candle. Make sure that it is going horizontally, not vertically.

Step 3

Then wrap your ribbon around the center of your candle until it slightly overlaps the glued end of ribbon and cut it from the rest of the spool. Add a dab of glue and secure it in place.

Step 4

Next, cut a sprig of pine from your floral pick and glue it over the seam of your attached ribbon on the candle.

Step 5

Cut the gold baubles sprig off of your floral pick and glue it over your pine sprig as well.

Step 6

Then cut another small length of ribbon from your spool.

Step 7

Fold up one end of the ribbon and glue it to the center. See the picture above for reference.

Step 8

Repeat step 7 with opposite side of the ribbon length.

Step 9

Cut another length of ribbon and place your glued piece on it, right sides facing as you see in the picture above.

Step 10

Next, tie the ribbon around your glued piece of ribbon with a knot.

Step 11

Then trim the ribbon ends to look as they do above. Try to turn the ribbon ends so that they are both facing forward.

Step 12

Glue the ribbon bow onto the candle over the pine sprig.

Christmas Candle Tradition

Once you have made your Christmas Candle, keep it on the mantle until Christmas Eve. That evening, take turns passing around the candle and saying what you are thankful for. We get so caught up on the gift giving and receiving (and the wrapping and preparing) that we forget how lucky we are. This tradition is the perfect way to practice thankfulness and remember how blessed we are.

How excited are you for this Angels in the Snow Christmas candle tradition? It might take some practice but this new Christmas Eve tradition will shift your little ones focus to all that they have to be grateful for. Store it with your holiday decorations so that it is at your fingertips every year. Display it throughout the entire season as a beautiful and festive reminder of what this time of year is truly about.

Now it’s time to check out all of the other awesome Christmas movie projects for this year’s 25 Days of Christmas blog hop! Find awesome ideas from all of your favorite holiday movies below!

See where I’m linking up!

Don’t Forget to Pin It!

An InLinkz Link-up

Yay! It’s day 3 of the 12 Days of Christmas blog hop and today is all about Advent calendars. If you are looking for something super fun and adorable this year then you will love this printable gingerbread man Advent scavenger hunt!

Affiliate links may be used in this post. Ordering a product through these links may result in a commission. Read the full disclosure here.

[bctt tweet=”Take your Advent to a fun and hilarious new level with this printable gingerbread man Advent scavenger hunt! It’s perfect for customization and fun!” username=”diyadulation”]

Welcome to Day 3 of the Fourth Annual 12 Days of Christmas Series!

We have teamed up with 50 plus bloggers to bring you a oodles of DIY Ideas and Recipes to make your holiday season merrier. There are 12 different posts in the series and we have spread them out over a four week period with three posts per week. Now is the time to subscribe!

GO HERE for the complete list of Dates and Topics plus a collection of most popular holiday ideas including ornaments, games, recipes and more from all 50 plus talented bloggers!

It’s Day 3 and we are sharing DIY Christmas Countdown Calendar Ideas!

New Take on Advent

This year I wanted to try something totally different for our Advent calendar. This is partly because in October we were having trouble with the youngest getting out of bed at night and sneaking into food in the kitchen. It seems best not to tempt fate by having the treats accessible to tiny hands until the day of the treat.

I also wanted to make it more of a game for the kids. They get so excited about their Advent calendars but then they open it and it’s done for the day. Now, they get a clue and have to find their treat. In addition to that, since we do a lot of activities for Advent, they get to spend the day trying to figure out what activity those treats go with.

It simply adds an extra layer of fun for the whole family. After a while, you will start trying to trick them which is so much fun. Give them paint brushes but use them for cookie decorating. Little surprises like that truly make this so much fun!

Printable Gingerbread Man Advent Scavenger Hunt

Part of what makes this Advent idea so great (besides the face that they are absolutely adorable) is that it is easy to customize. Since the clues only lead to the hiding places of the treats, you can choose any treat you want. Give your kids a new book each day or get one of those toy assortment kits. Easily do whatever works for your family.

Printable Gingerbread Man Advent Scavenger Hunt

Blank Gingerbread Man Advent Scavenger Hunt

How to Use

Just as these cards make it easy to customize your Advent treats, they can also be displayed (or used) in a variety of ways. Here are just a few ideas for you:

Use magnets to attach them to cookie sheets and hang them on the wall.
Skip the cookies sheets and use magnets to attach them directly to your refrigerator.
Place them in small, numbered envelopes and display on the wall or place in a basket.
Clip the cards to ribbon using clothespins.
Staple the cards into a booklet that kids rip one clue from each day.

Then, on each day, hide the corresponding treat for that day’s card. For example, if you are looking at Christmas lights one evening and the card is where the milk lives, then hide some mittens in the fridge that morning for your kids to find.

Advent Treat Ideas

Once you know how you will use your Advent calendar, it’s time to pick the treats. Again these can be anything you want but I have a few tips to help keep you organized throughout:

First, get a small box or bag to keep all of the treats in one place. The last thing you want is to scramble at the last minute because you can’t find a gift.
Second, write down which treats are on which days in your planner. Knowing what’s coming makes it so much easier to prepare. This is also important if you do activities so that they do not conflict with kid’s extracurriculars.

Advent Treat Ideas – Activities

Our personal favorite is to include a lot of family activities in our Advent calendar. Because of that, we have treats that coincide with those activities. Since most of those activities happen in the evening after school and homework, the kids have the added fun of trying to figure out what activity the gifts go with.

Keep in mind that for activities, the treats don’t necessarily have to be new since the activity is technically the treat. For example, a board game for game night can be one that your family already owns. This is a great way to save money on your holiday.

Glow Sticks

The activity for glow sticks can be playing glow stick tag, taking a glow-in-the-dark bath, or a Christmas-themed living room dance party.

Craft Supplies

Gather the materials for a specific craft that you will make together like these Christmas noise makers.

Apron or Cooking Utensils

These treats are the perfect lead in to baking cookies, making gingerbread houses, or designing a Christmas-themed homemade pizza.

Hats and Mittens

Use these to represent going to look at Christmas lights, visiting a winter festival, or going on a sledding adventure.

Movie or Popcorn

This is a super simple treat idea for a Christmas movie night.

Board Game

Surprise your kids with a family game night by hiding a board game for them to find.

Advent Treat Ideas – Things

Of course, some days you are too busy (or tired) to enjoy a family activity for Advent. On these days, I like to supplement with small gifts and treats for the kids. The trick here is to keep it small and sprinkle them throughout your Advent countdown.

Books
Art Supplies
Die Cast Cars
Doll Accessories
Stickers
Activity Books
Candy
Small Toy Assortment

Take your Advent to a fun and hilarious new level with this printable gingerbread man Advent scavenger hunt! You can change it up each year with a different treat theme or use it to build up to a surprise vacation gift on Christmas. This is truly a versatile Advent calendar idea.

Now it’s time to check out what my talented friends have created for their Advent calendars this year. See all of the awesome ideas below!

See where I’m linking up!

Don’t Forget to Pin It!

Scroll down for many more DIY Christmas Countdown Calendar Ideas for your holiday season!

Are you trying to save money on your holiday gifts without giving up on style? Don’t think you’re limited to sewing an elaborate quilt or making coasters. These DIY candy clip-on earrings are absolutely adorable, super easy to make, and the perfect handmade gift for any of the little princesses on your list!

Affiliate links may be used in this post. Ordering a product through these links may result in a commission. Read the full disclosure here.

[bctt tweet=”Save money on gifts without losing style when you make these DIY candy clip-on earrings! They are the perfect fun gift for the girls on your list this year!” username=”diyadulation”]

It’s our Second Day of the Fourth Annual 12 Days of Christmas Series!

GO HERE for the complete list of Dates and Topics plus a collection of most popular holiday ideas including ornaments, games, recipes and more from all 50 plus talented bloggers!

It’s Day 2 and we are sharing DIY Gift Ideas!

I love clip-on earrings for little girls because it keeps you from making the choice to pierce before you’re ready. My daughter absolutely loves those plastic ones that come in dress up kits but they aren’t very durable. They also aren’t always practical for school, holiday gatherings, or other occasions she might want to dress up.

These DIY candy clip-on earrings are an easy solution that makes a great gift! Your little girl will love getting dressed up with these babies immediately after finding them in her stocking on Christmas morning.