Christmas Around the World: Ecuador

I have been happy to feature several South American countries during this month, but it unfortunately always initiates an enthusiastic round of "Feliz Navidad" from my children. Today we focused on Ecuador and the kids learned of the great pride the Ecuadorians take in their nativity scenes.

Christmas Around the World: India

This is probably my worst costume to date. I posted the picture on instagram and one of my friends commented: "Master Splinter?!" Touche. I will give myself credit that after spending a summer in Nepal I know the proper way of putting on a sari. I have no defense as to why I put it on a (male) stuffed mouse.

Christmas Around the World: Norway

Norway (and Sweden) is home to Monty's favorite Christmas cookie - pepperkaker! The girls start asking around Halloween when we'll be making Pepperkaker.

Christmas Around the World: Netherlands

St. Nicholas Day is December 6th. In the Netherlands, they celebrate by putting out wooden shoes with a gift for Sinterklaas and a carrot from his horse.

Christmas Around the World: Australia

Merry Christmas from the land down under, where Christmas falls in the middle of summer holidays. The girls found Monty soaking up some rays. 

Christmas Around the World: Ghana

Did you know the official language of Ghana is English? So, Merry Christmas! Today the kiddos learned that Ghana is a grower of cocoa. 

Christmas Around the World: Germany!

Frohe Weihnachten! Our first stop around the world was Germany! My grandfather's side of the family was German, so many of the German traditions just feel "right" to me. Here is what Monty had to tell the girls about Christmas in Germany...

Christmas Around the World with our Christmas Mouse!

It's December 1st which means our beloved Christmas Mouse has returned! (For those of you unfamiliar with the Christmas Mouse - an elf on the shelf alternative - you can view my original post here.)

Montgomery, our mouse, travels throughout the year and send the girls pictures, pins, and information about the places he visits. This last year he toured Europe.

The Christmas Mouse: An Elf on the Shelf Alternative

 

We don't "do" Santa at our house. (Jen Hatmaker sums up how I feel about Santa, probably better than I could.) So when the Elf on the Shelf became popular, I ignored it as an option for our family. What I wasn't expecting was that every one of my daughter's friends would have a family elf, and that those elves' antics were the daily talk on the playground. And I'll admit it, I was also getting a little jealous of what fun those families were having. Thus the Christmas Mouse was born!

First Day of School!

My baby started kindergarten today! Our city does full-day kindergarten, so it's going to be quite the adjustment for everyone. We both managed not to cry at drop-off, but we gave each other some pretty watery smiles. I was so proud of how brave she tried to be. What a difference a few years make!

It's Spring!

I've disappeared for the last few months. It was entirely unintentional. I blinked and three months had passed. Months filled with extra projects for work, ballet lessons, gymnastics practice, and lots and lots of cups of hot chocolate and games of Ticket to Ride. It was a long, cold winter.

But now it's finally Spring! And the warmer weather and sunshine has me almost giddy. The girls have gotten so big. E turned 8 in March and A will be entering Kindergarten this fall.

We celebrated a wonderful Easter, participating in a traditional Seder ceremony with the whole family.

  

Leading up to Easter, we did several activities as a family, including creating a confession station where the girls could write down what they were sorry for with the intention of burning them on Good Friday.

With Lent behind us, Easter celebrated, and winter melting in the spring sun, I'm looking forward to a new season full of soccer games, ballet recitals, and hopefully lots of new books and crafts!

Polar Express Party

Grab some friends or extended family and throw a last minute Polar Express Party! First gather the kiddos together and read the Chris Van Allsburg classic. Then tell them to run and put some jammies on... they're going to get a ride on the minivan express!

Hop over to Confessions of a Homeschooler and print off her adorable minivan express tickets. I wrapped a bandana around my neck and punched holes into each child's ticket, giving them a train whistle to take along.

Then pile into those minivans, turn up the Christmas music, and go see some lights!

When you get back, stir up some hot chocolate and do a simple activity like decorating Christmas cookies. (Just pick up some refrigerated dough and canned icing.)

Then settle everyone on the couch for a viewing of Robert Zemeckis' version of The Polar Express (Netflix has it on streaming). What better way to enjoy a chilly December evening then with friends, cookies, and one of the best-loved Christmas stories?

An update on Montgomery, our Christmas Mouse

If you remember, we currently have a little mouse living with us for the Christmas season. Each morning the girls run to see what Montgomery has been up to, and to receive their daily assignment from him. I thought you might like to see what sorts of things Monty has been up to...

One morning it appeared as if he spent the night teaching the princesses all about mice. He told my girls to do something nice for someone that day.

Meet Montgomery! (Our Elf Alternative)

Meet our adorable Christmas Mouse, Montgomery! This handsome little guy showed up at our house this morning, accompanied by this letter:

Play Plymouth Village

Thanksgiving is hands-down my favorite holiday. What could be better than a day devoted to giving thanks for all of God's good gifts? I love the food, the fellowship, and the retelling of the first Thanksgiving.

Star Jars: Cure for Complaining!

Okay, so "cure" might be overstepping it a bit, but this has been a great method at controlling the amount of complaining that goes on around our house.

Pirate Adventures

Each summer our local botanical garden puts on a special kid-friendly exhibit. While I doubt they will ever be able to top their Enchanted Storybook Forest, this year's Voyage of Discovery came pretty close.

Colonial Williamsburg with Kids

My mom and I recently took my eldest daughter (7) on a day trip to Colonial Williamsburg. We live only about 40 minutes away from this popular tourist attraction, so we're well-familiar with the town. This was my first time touring with a child, however, and by the end of the visit I had a much better idea of how to do Colonial Williamsburg with Kids.

Easiest 4th of July Craft Ever

Lorie @ Reading Confetti seriously deserves an award for this craft idea. It's my favorite kind - super quick, easy, and nearly every mom will already have everything they need for it.

Mermaid Counting

A still has a hard time with number recognition, and I'd like her to have that down before she starts pre-K in the fall. Going along with our mermaid theme this week, I made these cards for her to practice with. She has to recognize the number and then add the correct number of "bubbles" around the mermaid.