Too Cute Not to Toot!

Lets start right out with an advent idea that is very original and would be fun to do in a few years.  It is all based on an idea from Chica and Jo and is based on the book "How the Grinch Stole Christmas".

This next idea is just that - more of idea then a Craft but I love it and it would be a great thing to do along with reading "The Polar Express".  Check out this great plan for surprising the kids with a "golden ticket" to go see Christmas lights from Confessions of a Homeschooler.  (We don't have a mini-van but I don't think the kids would notice that for quite a while LOL)

Here's another book idea - this one is from 1+1+1=1 and is for the book "The Mitten".  This book was not in our original list of 24 but, I may use it especially since she created adorable printables to go along with the story. 

There are tons of really cute snack ideas out and about in blog land but this one was too cute not to post and is so original.  There is a full tutorial over at Comfy in the Kitchen

A blog that I used to follow a lot, A Bowl Full of Lemons, recently added a "Free Printables" section to her blog.  This is a place where people can link up free printables but the best part is that it isn't just a weekly linky party - it is something she is keeping up all the time so you can just search there.  I like that it is in one place (I should say I don't follow her as much as I used to because her family did a huge cross-country move and she doesn't post like she used to due her schedule)

2 Teaching Mommies have a few printable packs created for the holiday season.  These are great not only for working with kids at home but also for Sunday School or even in your classroom.  The first one is their Nativity Pack.

There is also a Christmas Symbols  pack as well

One more - a pack on Christmas Trees.  I also want to add that if you go to her site by clicking on any of these links and then look both before and after the dates of these posts, you'll find other items including coloring books you can print and some great nativity ideas.

I don't know about you, but every year I say "Next year, I'm going to wrap up the gifts REALLY nicely in a great theme."  Then "next year" rolls around and just slap gift wrap on the gifts once again!  Well, I saw this idea over at Allora Handmade and just think it is too adorable.  I might skip the newspaper and just get a solid paper - like maybe red - but I love the twine and the monograms!

This next idea is one of those "simple" ideas but I love the perfect tutorial from Confessions of a Homeschooler.  She shares how to make a no-sew fleece blanket.  Josh received one as a gift when he was a baby and I've been meaning to make Nate one but I really need great instructions before I conquer anything.  This tutorial is perfect. 

This next idea is actually from an Etsy Shop called The Wright Wreath.  I love the colors and, I have seen tutorials for this type of wreath in the past.  BUT the best part is if you really love it, and don't want to make it, you could buy it LOL 

Another wreath idea that comes with a great tutorial comes from Little Birdies Secret.  I love that it is made from scrapbook paper and is something that older kids could help with or even create on their own.

When I read this post by I Heart Crafty Things I had to save it just for the reminder about this book that looks so adorable.  I will be ordering this one for the boys - maybe for Easter :-) (I know, I know - it isn't even Christmas but I'm DONE shopping so this has to wait!)

 Another book idea, this one about Rudolph!  This are adorable puppets from I heart Crafty Things! too!

Last week I shared some links from Sassy Sites.  She is doing huge link-up parties on specific Christmas topics.  This one relates to decorating outside.  Every Christmas I think about what I want to do but it is too late to prepare and get what I need so I say "next year".  Well, this time, I'm making reminders already of what I need to start doing in JUNE to get ready for Christmas.  That way we can make the outdoor stuff I want to make while it is warm and we can budget for other things.  This link-up should offer great inspiration too!

This is another list of great ideas from Sassy Sites but this one is for all kinds of snowman Ides.  I'm actually reserving these ideas for our January activities.  I'm sure I can find lots of inspiration :-)

Pinterest Challenge!

I know it is hard to believe but I actually did complete a couple of things from my boards on Pinterest . .. well it was kind of easy since I had a birthday party and Christmas to make things for, right?

Just check out the recent Birthday Party Post to see all kinds of inspired things.  From the cake to the huge caterpillar hanging from the ceiling, to the free printables and food ideas.  I really used Pinterest to my advantage for that party!

One other idea that I used.  I LOVE Christmas cards.  I love receiving them; I love reading them; I love sending them; I have never figured out a way to hang them.  I went looking on pinterest for all kinds of ideas.  Like This One

: I like the idea but . . . I don't really have anywhere to put it.  We don't have an entrance table or a coffee table to set it on plus I like to put the photo cards in our holiday scrapbook. 

So then there was this idea

Again, really cute but I don't really have a mantel or even a wall to hang this up on . . .so it just wasn't going to work.

Then I saw this idea from Budget Wise Home and new it would work perfectly in our home.

I love that I can use my cupboards, which are usually bare during the holidays, as they are all year, so it is the perfect place to display the cards.  I added some ribbon and it really made them look nice.  Here is my version:

I will do a couple of things differently next year - I like the solid red ribbon in the inspiration photo but I didn't want to spend money so I used what I had which was some thicker, wired ribbon.  It has not wanted to stay up well due to the weight of the ribbon.  I will buy the plastic, red ribbon next year to use.  Also, I only did ribbon on 4 of the doors (because that is all I had) it looks nice and very intentional.  I've run out of ribbon to hang cards on (which is good thing!) so next year I will make sure to do all of the cupboards.

At this point, I highly doubt I will get anything done over Christmas weekend so there will most likely NOT be a post of this type next week but I already have my next projects picked out!

Christmas in the Koll House

This year, we will be celebrating Christmas with my entire family - all three of my brothers, my sisters-in-law and all of the nieces and nephews.  This gathering only happens once ever 3-5 years because one of my brothers is a missionary in Brazil and is only in the states that often.  With that going on next weekend, we decided that we would celebrate Christmas with the boys on Sunday, the 18th. 

Our traditions begin on "Christmas Eve" so, after all of the birthday party things were put away, we brought out the boys special Christmas Eve gifts.  Each year we get them a new pair of PJ's and a fun toy. 

 The boys in their new PJ's in front of the tree - it was after bath so they have some pretty slick hair going on.  Their special fun toy this year was a Cell Phone (a toy of course) but the phones are awesome.  Darryl and I can record messages to each of the boys in the phone and, when it sits for a moment after they close it, the phone rings.  It makes them SOOO excited to hear it ring. 

 This is a tradition from my side of the family - growing up, my brothers and I always faced the tree and my mom took a "backwards" photo.  So, we worked to get the boys to face the tree - they thought I meant to SIT in the tree so they tried climbing in it HA! 

Once the boys went to bed, we finished wrapping some gifts and filled their stockings.  Everything was set out, ready for Christmas Morning!

 My boys are young enough that they don't wake up at 5:00 AM yet for Christmas - as a matter of fact, Josh woke up at 7:00 and came into our room.  We all snuggled in and watched cartoons until Nate got up at 8:00.  I even managed to sneak to the kitchen and get breakfast going.  Now, once Nate was up though, they noticed their stockings and I almost didn't get photos! I love "packing" stockings :-)  The boys got cars, slippers, flashlights, socks, new cups, and Josh got a puzzle while Nate got a book.

 After we had breakfast (I am going to post our Christmas recipes on Friday - in my weekly recipe post!), we started with the gifts.  It was so much fun watching them - but we had to keep reminding them they had more!  They just wanted to play.  It was so much fun to see them interact with their new stuff and to see how they gravitated towards certain things - sometimes the things that weren't ever their gift.

 I saw this idea last year on a blog I follow - once we were done, I gathered all of their gifts, and had each boy get their photo with their gifts.  I think it will be fun to look back at this in future years and see how their interests change and grow.  What were the big hits with Josh?  The Melissa and Doug Pizza set and Cutting Food set.  He played with that stuff for hours.  I highly recommend those sets - they are really great.  He also loved the Sketch and Doodle thing.  Of course, the guitar was a favorite too.  I was kinda surprised that he didn't go after the camera more - he is always asking for mine and loves to take photos but he was not impressed (yet!)  Now Nate LOVED the camera and has already figured out how to play the games that are on it too.

 Here is Nate!  Nate loved the Sketch and Doodle as well as the guitar.  He also got a Pirate Thomas the Train set that is the Take and Play version .  Josh had gotten one for his birthday so we thought it would be nice for both to have a different "piece".  Now they can hook them together and play OR they can play by themselves with their own train set.  We got each of the boys a Bounce-Back-Racer.  Nate LOVED IT.  We are actually going to put those away and let Darryl play with the boys on the weekend with those until they really learn on to use them.  By the spring they will be ready to take them outside to play. 

Once the gifts were opened, we just enjoyed the day.  The boys played with ONLY their new toys all day long and we played too!  Later in the afternoon, Josh got very interested in his new puzzles.  They are actually jigsaw puzzles.  Both Darryl and I worked with him on how to look at the pictures and then put the puzzle together.  (Notice Nate is playing with the camera??) 

When I put the boys to bed tonight, I asked each of them "Did you have a fun Christmas?" And they both replied YES!!  Josh told me that he Loves Christmas because he gets presents and gets to play with Eat (Nate) and Daddy.  Isn't that the best???

We still have more "Christmas" to look forward to!  On Friday, we'll be gathering with Darryl's family at the nursing home to celebrate Christmas with his Grandma and then we'll be with my family on Saturday and Sunday. 

I apoligize for slightly blurry photographs.  My camera seems to be going that direction.  I'm holding out for tax time so I can finally buy my nice camera :-)



The Very Hungry Caterpillar - Nate's 2nd Birthday Party

Saturday was Nate's 2nd Birthday Party and we chose the theme "The Very Hungry Caterpillar" because that is one of his favorite books! 

We started out the excited of this party by sending out adorable invitations that I found at LuvBugdesign on etsy. 

Isn't the design adorable?  I asked to have a photo of Nate added and she did a fabulous job.  I love how bright and colorful the invites are - how can you NOT smile when you look at them?  (Obviously, this is NOT Nate's invitation - it is the photo for the etsy shop!)

For the decorations, I used several ideas/inspirations.  Our main focal point was a giant Poof Ball Caterpillar that hung in the middle of the living room.

The picture doesn't do him justice (and you can't see his eyes!) but this guy is fantastic.  I found the idea over at Catch My Party and fell in love with the idea so I headed over to Martha Stewart.com for the full tutorial.  I learned a few things.  One, I used a mix of never before used tissue paper and used tissue paper - next time I would buy all new.  It is much easier to fold it when it is all lined up.  The used paper tends to be slippery and want to slid out of the folds.  Two, it doesn't have to be perfect - either the folding or the rounding of the edges - once you "poof" it, no one will every know!  They really are easy to make and make a huge statement in a room.

I used two different sources for the printables I used to decorate with around the house.  First, one of the inspiration parties I looked at was over at Polka Dot and Puppies.  Her party was fantastic and she shared some free pintables to use with the food or just as decoration which stated what the Caterpillar ate each day. 

I hung them on my fridge and on the cupboard doors. 

Then, I also ordered a packet of items to print from another etsy store called The Party Project.  This pack was designed for me but she has tons of stuff in her shop and it is great quality. 

Here are just a few samples - the items above the arch could also be made into a banner but I used them flat against the wall.  Then I used napkin wraps also.  There was banner with Nate's name, pinwheel patterns, party hat patterns, cupcake toppers and wraps and more. 

Now for the food!!!  I meant to take pictures of every item but somehow, only managed to get these two shots. 

Don't you love the cake?  I found the inspiration over on Pinterest and was looking for an excuse to make it.  It fit in perfectly with the them because the book has dots all over the front and back covers.  My boys always start on that page and say "dot, dot, dot" :-)  All of the food that was at the party came from the book.  The Caterpillar eats through LOTS of food through the week until he gets REALLY big! 

On the first 5 days (Monday-Friday) he eats through different fruits such as apples, pears, plums (I could not find plums anywhere!), strawberry's and oranges.  I took all of those fruits plus watermelon, which he eats through on Saturday, and made Honey-Lime Salad from Mel's Kitchen Cafe.  This fruit salad is fantastic and you can use any fruit that you want in it.  This salad was a favorite of Josh's - he couldn't stop eating it :-)  Then, on Saturday, he eats through TONS of things:
1. Chocolate Cake - notice that some of the little cupcakes are Chocolate?  Well, the cake was supposed to be chocolate but when I made the first cake, it totally flopped.  I've never had a cake mess up as bad as that one did so I ended up running to the store and buying a yellow cake mix to use for the cake. 
2. Ice Cream - we served ice cream with the cake :-)
3. Pickle, Swiss Cheese and Salami - I made a cheese tray (but I didn't use Swiss cheese)
4. Sausages - We had Bratwurst and I did them in the crockpot - they were so good.  As a matter of fact, my dad said they were the best he's every had.  All you do is brown the brats in a pan on each side.  Slice some onions (as many as you want).  Layer some onions in the bottom of your crock pot, lay the brats on top, and more onions.  Then add apple juice until the brats are covered.  Then cook on low for 5-6 hours or until they are cooked through. 
5. Cupcakes - I cheated :-)  I bought those cute little Christmas cupcakes at our local grocery store
6. Cherry Pie - I knew we didn't need big cherry pies so I made these little cherry pies inspired from Bakerella (This is her photo too since I forgot to snap a photo!)

7.  Lollipops - yes, the caterpillar actually ate through a lollipop!!!  I used them as my centerpieces and did a very easy version of the Lollipop Bouquets.  I just used some glasses (they are McDonald's Coke glasses that they have been giving out!), stuffed some tissue paper into the glass and added some Tootsie Pops.

Isn't that fun?  I also used Nate's copy of the book as part of the centerpiece - it is very well worn! 

There are TONS of ideas out in blog land/pinterest for more ideas about food and decorations.  Yes, you could really go overboard!

One last food item - on Sunday, Mr. Caterpillar is recovering from his stomach ache due to all he ate so he ate through a leaf.  We had my "Famous" taco salad :-) 

Don't you love his shirt?  I really enjoying picking out shirts for the boys for their birthdays and when I saw this design on etsy.com, I knew it was the one.  SAMEmonogram was great to work with and went above and beyond for me :-)  I was so thrilled to get Nate's shirt - it was just way too adorable!

Because I love games (even though everyone else acts like they don't HA!) we did play a little game.  I just put together a quiz with some basic facts about caterpillars and then they had to try and put all of the food in order.  Games are a great way to get people talking :-)

Now for the fun stuff :-)  All of the photos!

 Nate, waiting to open his birthday presents.  Yes, he can be serious!

 Josh is really loving getting his picture taken so when I started snapping photos of Nate, he had to get in for one too. 

 Papa, Josh and Nate - the boys went CRAZY when Papa arrived - they love him very much !!

 Nate decided to play the game with Nana - I think he really wanted to read the book she was using :-)

 I love this photo!!  He is standing in the dining room pointing up to the cut outs on the wall from the book and naming all of the food items.  I love hearing that little voice.

 Time to open gifts :-)  This was the movie "Cars" - and yes, we even watched it after every one left the party.

 Ok, this ball was the hit gift of the day.  It lights up, spins around and plays music.  Once we showed them how to use it, the boys didn't want to put it down.  As a matter of fact, Nate didn't even want to finish opening his gifts HA!  Nate's Uncle Kel and Aunt Deb sent this too him and he just LOVED it!

 Once we could sneak the ball away, he did discover his gift from Papa and Nana - this great new work bench with lots of tools.

 Josh wanted a picture with his "glasses" - the safety goggles from the tool bench.

 Finally, time for the cake!  We had to keep the boys out of the kitchen after I made it because they kept trying to steal the kit kats off the sides. (Should I mention that my mom and my sister-in-law picked M and M's off the top - so many that when I brought it to the table, there was frosting showing where their used to be M and M's!!!  )

 Papa had to help Nate blow out the candles - Nates "blow" tended to go up instead of out HA!

Needless to say this was one happy little boy.  He pulled lots of kit kats off the cake and ate them, licked lots of tootsie pops, and just had an all around great day.  At about 6:00 both boys said "Mom, I'm tired" HA!  So we shifted gears, and started our Christmas activities with their Christmas Eve gifts since, in this house, Christmas Eve was Saturday night but, I'll save that for another post :-)

Weekly Menu - The one with a birthday party and our Christmas

Isn't it just crazy that Christmas is just one week away?  It seems like it was so far away and now, it's all almost over!  We have a busy weekend which will impact our menu this week too!

Saturday - Today is Nate's birthday party - I'll share our menu when I post about his birthday after this weekend!

Sunday - Christmas weekend will be very busy with the McMaster Family Christmas gathering so Darryl and I are celebrating our family Christmas with the boys today.  For breakfast, we are going to have Orange Julius and Cinnamon Rolls, both items from Darryl's childhood Christmas tradtions.  To go along with all of that sweetness, I think I'm going to make Biscuits and gravy.  I plan on making the gravy up on Saturday night so we just have to heat it up in the morning.  Then, our big Christmas dinner will be Pork Shoulder, Parsley Potaotes, Green Bean Casserole, Cherry Fluff Stuff, and Rolls.  For Dessert - my plan is just to have leftovers from the birthday party

Monday - Spaghetti, Garlic Bread and salad OR Leftovers from the weekend depending on what is left!

Tuesday - The boys are having a Frozen pizza - I'm planning on finishing up shopping.

Wednesday - Baby Mama Casserole, muffins and the last of any leftovers or just fresh fruit

Thursday - Today is Nate's actual birthday - we are having mac and cheese and Hot Dogs because Nate loves them.

Just a quick post :-)  Another busy week!