Christmas countdown with Christmas themed activities for each day

Our son LOVED our thanksgiving g countdown. It was one of his favorite parts of the day. The day after thanksgiving he asked for another countdown.... I was empty handed!

This was an emergency. Luckily he has a crafty momma.

I wanted to make it special and exciting like the thanksgiving one so I knew I had to incorporate Christmas themed activities.

I sat down at Pinterest and with my husbands brain in ear shot and came up with 25 activities! 

Some activities are at home and some are out and about. Some require me to help, some require my sweet kiddo to do something on his own. Itś perfect and helps me keep off my tushie and get into the Christmas spirit with him! 

What you need:

This printable

8.5 by 11 scrapbook paper, holiday themed

Scissors

Tape

What to do:

Print out tasks on white side of scrap book paper

Cut it out. They won't all be the same size... I thought it looked more fun this way

Put the activities in the order you want them

Bend a task into a circle... Decorative side out.. And tape.

Do this (looping them through) until you're finished!

Hang and have fun!!

Extremely simple pajama pants for kids

Since our daughter was born we have been spending a lot of days in our pajamas. This makes my son extremely happy. He loves pajamas... he doesn't care that he looks adorable in the wool vest, button up shirt and jeans. He would spend forever in pajamas if I let him. That being said, we have worn through some pajamas lately. We have wood floors and my son likes to slide, roll, run, wiggle and sit on them. The wood floors are REALLY old so they have some spots that are pretty rough. This has lead to holes in some of his favorite jams. 

Q: How do you convince a child to throw away his old Pjs and embrace the new ones?

A: You take them to the fabric store and let him pick any fabric he wants and then let him help you make some new pajamas!

I have pretty limited time for sewing these days. Our daughter has officially left the sleepy baby stage and entered the alert and nap fighting stage, so I needed something that would be comfortable for him and fast for me to make. 

That is where I discovered the site fleece fun. It is fantastic and has tons of free patterns for kids, babies, accessories and adults. This is where I found the pajama pattern for these pants!

What you need:

This pattern-- choose your size!

1/2- 1 yard fabric depending on your kiddos size

size 1 inch elastic.. enough to go around your kids waist, plus 1/2 inch

matching thread

one safety pin

What you do:

Cut out your pattern and then your fabric (x2)

Fold your leg sides together with right sides together and sew just the leg shaft (stop sewing at the curve). Used 1/4 seam allowance-- do this for both legs

Now, Turn one of your legs right side out and insert it into the other leg (still wrong side out). Make sure you have the front of one leg matched with the front of the other. You can pin it together, but I find it easier (and faster) to skip out on the pins since fleece is pretty easy to work with.

Sew the legs together. Do a few extra stitches in the crotch area for re-enforcement.

Pull the other leg out so that the whole pant is inside out. Roll up the waist band about an inch and a half then call your kiddo over. Ask them to stand tall and then put the pants up to their waist and see how much you will need to roll up on the pant cuffs. My son (who is tall for his age) needed the 4t/5t pattern rolled up a little over an inch. Sew both pant cuffs. You don't have to worry about it fraying if you are using fleece so don't bother turning it under to cover the rough edge. If you are using cotton or some other fraying fabric, turn it under again-- making sure to keep it the right length for your kiddo!

Now you need to sew up the waistband. You need to leave about an inch or inch and a half open to insert your elastic. 

Put a safety pin on your elastic and thread it through your waistband.

overlap your waistband 1/4" and sew it with a zig zag stick in two spots (where the raw ends are on each side)

Sew up your opening and Tah-dah! you have your PJ pants and a happy kid!

Balsamic delicate squash and quinoa

So honestly... I hardly ever cook. It isn't because I don't know how or what I cook is bad but because my husband is an amazing cook.

That being said, he works nights so when he has to go in earlier for some reason, I cook.

I love it because I get to expirament. I get to try new things and cook things he hates (like quinoa).

This is where this beautiful, delicious meal comes into play!

My husband used to work at an organic farm and I still follow their instagram. They kept posting pictures of a squash I had never had before so I decided to try it! 

I read that the squash was sweet so I decided to pair it with something acidic... Balsamic vinegar.

It is a very simple recipe. 

What you need:

Delicate squash

Balsamic vinegar (3tbsp total)

Olive oil (2tbsp)

Garlic powder (or olive oil infused with garlic would work too)

Quinoa (one cup)

What to do:

Preheat your oven to 450 degrees

Cut up your squash in 1/2 inch sections

Cut them in half and de-seed them

Pour 2tbsp of vinegar and olive oil into a bowl with a sprinkle (to taste) of garlic powder.

Add the squash and coat it completely with the mixture.

Put the squash on a baking sheet or stone

Bake for 25-30 min

A after you put that in, cook your quinoa. I cook it in a rice cooker. I use 1 cup quinoa and 2 cups water and press the on button! 

After the quinoa is finished, add the last tablespoon of balsamic vinagar to the quinoa.

Mix in the squash and enjoy!

Toddler approved.

DIY Burlap Rudolf Wreath

So I saw the rudolf wreath on pinterest and fell in love! I thought it was shabby chic,  elegant but also kid friendly. Unfortunately, it cost WAY more money than I was willing to spend. I had a friend who posted an adorable burlap wreath on Instagram. I told her I wanted one but she told me it was super easy to make!

This is where my eyes light up and my husband cringes. Haha. Craft time!

I knew I wanted to make rudolf so I used the picture, some advice from a friend and my own intellect to make him! I am so happy with the result!!!

What you need:

40ft burlap 

A wire floral wreath

One sparkly ornament

Sparkly things that can resemble antlers (mine were smaller than I wanted but it was all the craft store  around me had)

Floral wire or a pipe cleaners

What to do:

Take your wire or pipe cleaner and weave it through your burlap.

Secure your burlap to the wreath so that it won't slide.

Unravel your entire roll of burlap and weave it through going under, over, under, over.

You then need to pull your burlap up and fluff it. Make sure to fluff in 3 spots: the top, middle and bottom.... You don't want it wrapped tightly at any turn. I'm stressing this because I didn't know this until I figured it out on accident half way through. 

I do 4 rows of weaving in every section on the wreath. This is what it looks like if you were to have if snug.

The long tail of burlap can be a pain to deal with it just try. Ot to snag it while you are up,long it through. It also makes a typical burlap mess. My OCD husband wasn't a fan but it's really not bad... Just warning you! If you're allergic to burlap I suggest doing it outside or using the plastic wreath stuff they have out these days... No idea what it is called but it's at most craft stores. 

Secure the end of it like you did the beginning (weave the wire through then secure it).

Now secure your ornament on with wire also! Weave your antlers through the metal wreath... This should hold well but you could do extra securing if you want!

Hang and Enjoy!