Ramblings of a Crazy Woman

The girls and I made these great candles tonight. I think they are so festive and they were so easy. You will need: Candle in a jar, tacky craft glue, beads or foam pieces and a small bow. Decorate the jar by gluing on the beads and bow. Cheyanne glued on foam pieces to her candle.

Tonight we made this wall hanging. I like this craft because each child can decorate their own stocking their way. We used foam pieces, glue, scissors, ribbon, a bow, scissors, markers and glitter glue. I pre-cut the stockings and let the kids decorate themselves. I glued everything together and this is the finished product.

Cheyanne, her friend, Sarah and I made these easy paper plate angels today. Materials needed: Paper plate, scissors, glue, markers and glue. And is you do the standing angel, you will also need a stapler. Cut the paper plate to look like an angel. Draw on the face. For the standing angel fold the bottom and staple. You may need to cut the bottom evenly to make it stand. Add the glue and glitter. I also used a gold chenille stem for a halo. Our wings had a lot of glitter, so I glued a craft stick to the back to hold the wings flat. Here are the girls so proud of their angels.

The girls and I made this Christmas tree candy dish. It was so simple and only took a few items I already had around the house. Materials used: Small paper plate, plastic cup, paint , brush, beads, hole punch, 8 chenille stems, glue, yellow construction paper, and scissors. Punch 8 holes around the paper plate. Paint the plate and allow to dry. We strung 8 beads on each chenille stem. Wrap the chenille stem around each hole in the plate. Bring all the chenille stems together at the top. I twisted a small piece of chenille stem around all 8. Cut out star and glue to the top. Glue cup to the bottom of the plate. Add candy.

These are simple, but cute ornaments almost any one can make. Materials needed: Rudolf: Craft sticks, glue, brown paint, hole punch, black construction paper and red pom-pom. Icicle: Cut crafts sticks, white paint, glue and glitter. Tree: Craft sticks, green and brown paint, beads, glue and yellow pom-pom. Rudolf Ornament: Paint the sticks or not. Glue the sticks together. Punch out 2 eyes. Glue on eyes and nose. Icicle Ornament: Paint the sticks. Glue them together. Add glitter. Christmas Tree Ornament Paint sticks. Glue them together. Add beads and pom-pom.

We have not had much time to craft the last few days because we went to Williamsburg, Va. My husband had a conference, so the kids and I got to see all the sights. We went to Colonial Williamsburg, Jamestown and Yorktown. If you ever get a chance to go, please go. It is great and such a kid friendly environment. It is fun and you learn sooooo much. Colonial Williamsburg: Jamestown: Presidents Park: Yorktown: Yorktown Battlefield:

I did a bulletin board at school that has the symbols of Christmas with their meanings. Even if you do not have board to decorate, you could make a book with these ideas. I know I have a blank area, I am going to add a Candy Cane with it saying, " Upside down "J" shape stands for Jesus. The white represents Jesus washing away our sins and the red represents the blood Jesus shed for us. " I cut out all the pictures from construction paper. The Symbols of Christmas The Star was placed in the sky for the wise men to follow. The Wreath is a circle without any end, the same as God's love for us. The Candles shine brightly, to tell us that Jesus is the light of the world. The Baby in the manger shows the birth of Jesus, the savior of the world. The Present are given to remind us of God's gift to the world. The Tree points to heaven, and reminds us that God is eternal.