december 2014
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5 Ways to Help Kids Avoid “the Gimmees” at Christmas by Alexandra Kuykendall
Christmas, the time of year when it feels like the world is telling us what we need to buy to make us happy. As rational, grown people we know things don’t really make us happy and yet it is so easy to get caught up in believing “the perfect Christmas” is dependent on the perfect pile of gifts under the tree. Let’s just all agree right now that is not the case. If it’s difficult for adults to fight the “I wants,” it’s even more difficult for our kids who don’t have the filters or self-control to push back against the advertisers’ messages. So how do we keep our kids, much less ourselves, from getting sucked into the Christmas frenzy? How do we help the little people in our charge fight the gimmees this season can quickly cultivate? Here are a few practices I do to help my kids - because I want Christmas to stay a little more sacred and a little less about stuff:
1. Cut out the commercials.
The catalogs go straight from the mailbox to the trash. I don’t even open them because I don’t want to be tempted, and I certainly don’t want my kids thumbing through to impact their ideas of what Christmas is “supposed to be.” When possible I do movies and On Demand shows that are commercial free. Marketers know our kids are crafting their Christmas lists, but we can be the buffer between marketers’ messages and our children’s eyes and ears.
Announcements Our next meeting will be on Friday, January 9. Have a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year with your family! Remember to bring family photos to this meeting for our creative time! Playdate at Bouncin’ Craze at Noon on Friday, December 19.
2. Watch my talk.
I admit I’ve been known to pull out “Santa is watching!” in December to help curb my girls’ naughtiness. Why not capitalize on the naughty versus nice motivation, right? Unless it’s emphasizing the gift opening as the most important part of the Christmas experience. I limit my talk about money, wish lists, gifts and shopping in front of my children even though it may be on the forefront of my mind. I want to guide my children’s hearts toward the true meaning of Christmas, and I don’t want my own words to be a barrier.
3. Focus on the meaningful.
Our kids follow our lead. Whatever we’re excited about, they’ll get excited about too. Choose the memories apart from opening gifts you want your children to enjoy and remember. Is it decorating the Christmas tree? Attending a special concert at church? Hosting an ornament decorating party? Create traditions around Christmas that aren’t about stuff, but about your family’s values, and then get really excited about those!
4. Help them give.
When kids are young it’s helpful to have them give to people they know. So making Christmas cookies for neighbors and delivering them helps kids see the process of giving from beginning to end. They learn when I think of someone, put in some effort, and give, I add joy to another person’s life. Siblings are a family’s built-in opportunity to practice giving. Save some of your family’s Christmas budget for sibling gifts. Take each child on a special shopping trip to pick out gifts for siblings, and then together wrap them up and hide them until the big morning.
5. Repeat the Christmas story.
From plastic nativity sets to board books, there are many tools to introduce the story of Joseph, Mary and baby Jesus to our children. When we reinforce why we celebrate Christmas, by telling the story,acting it out, or listening to Christmas carols, we are recalibrating our hearts away from the noise of the marketing machine to the Prince of Peace who came as a baby. This will not only help our children remember why we “do Christmas” in the first place, it will remind our grown-up hearts too. Our kids will want all the things, but as the adults who set the tone in our families, we can make Christmas about so much more than stuff. Because it is!
Snowball Cookies
From http://www.cookingclassy.com/2012/12/snowball-cookies/
INGREDIENTS
1 cup butter, softened 2/3 cup powdered sugar 1/4 tsp salt 2 tsp vanilla extract 3 Tbsp cornstarch 2 cups all-purpose flour 1/2 cup finely chopped Pecans (I just used Pecan cookie chips so I didn’t have to do any chopping, just poured them in right from the bag). 1 1/2 - 2 cups powdered sugar, for coating
INSTRUCTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In the bowl of an electric stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix butter on medium speed until creamy, about 20 seconds. Blend in 2/3 cup powdered sugar and salt. Mix in vanilla. Sprinkle cornstarch over mixture (just so it doesn’t blend into one area) then with mixer set on low speed slowly add in flour and mix just until combine. Stir in Pecans. Scoop dough out 1 Tbsp at a time and roll into a ball, then place balls on Silpat or parchment paper lined baking sheets and bake in preheated oven for 16 - 18 minutes, until bottom edges are lightly golden (these are a cookie that I think are best when they aren’t moist in the center so I’d say don’t under bake them. These actually are a cookie that are meant to be dry. Dry but a melt in your mouth kind of dry). Remove from oven and allow to cool several minutes then while cookies are still warm, pour 2 cups powdered sugar into a bowl and roll cookies in powdered sugar. Transfer to a wire rack to cool then once
From http:// peppermintplum. blogspot. com/2010/12/ miniaturechristmas-symbolskit.html
Cut out this poem and attach to a candy cane
Take advantage of this Christmas season to teach and remind your children about the truths of Jesus using a few of the common symbols found this time of year.
http://blog.delightfulorder.com/2011/12/free-printable-candy-cane-poem.html
cookies are cool, roll in powdered sugar once more, this time to generously coat (I pressed it into the powdered sugar to give it a thick coating. Store cookies in an airtight container.
Alisa Nelson Studio
Newsletter Submissions If you have any ideas of articles, recipes or tips you would like to include in upcoming newsletters, please submit your ideas to mopsedmondfpc@gmail.com.
Paintings * Lettering * Children’s Art * Art Lessons * And More! alisanelsonstudio.com alisa@alisanelsonstudio.com facebook.com/alisanelsonstudio 405-921-1883
Teaching Your Child the Christmas S tory From BSF International - https://www.bsfinternational.org/christmas-and-easter
For those who understand the true meaning of the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ, Christmas is significantly more than just a festive holiday. Unfortunately, our world is overflowing with people who know only of the hustle and bustle, the partying, Santa Claus and shopping. In some countries, the delight of honoring the birth of the eternal Savior is overshadowed or forgotten. God gives Christian parents the responsibility to make clear to a child the real reason for gifts and celebrations at Christmas. Children learn much from their parents’ attitude and lifestyle throughout the Christmas season. However, reading or telling the Christmas story to your children is invaluable. Start at an early age to teach the truths of Christ’s birth to help your child discern the valuable parts of the Christmas celebration. Choose a Time Designate more than one time to teach your child about the first Christmas. You cannot expect to sit down one night, tell your child of the birth of Christ, kiss him good night and assume you have accomplished your aim. Such significant truth demands repetition and clarification over days, weeks, months and years. Select a time, such as after meals or at bedtime. Begin early in December, and establish a meaningful plan for sharing the Christmas narrative. Plan the Content Plan to take a number of times to cover the entire Christmas story from beginning to end. Divide the story into small parts. The younger your child, the smaller the parts should be. (See the suggested divisions at the end of this lesson.) Tell the Story Using the suggested divisions and Scripture references, tell the Christmas story to your preschool child. Hold your Bible, or his, as you speak. Use words he can understand. Watch his expressions. Be factual, but make the story come alive. Use dialogue and descriptions, but be brief. Allow your schoolage child to read aloud the story from the Bible to you. If you have preschool and school-age children, your older child may enjoy telling the story to the younger child. Include Biblical Truths As you read and tell the story, incorporate the biblical truths that you want your child to begin to understand and believe. Insert a truth in the story line, in the midst of an action sequence or after a descriptive scene rather than by lecturing before or after the story. Discuss the Story After telling a story, allow your preschool child to talk about what she has heard. Ask her questions. (What is the name of Jesus’ mother? Who is Jesus’ Father? Where did God promise that the Savior King would be born?) Let her ask you questions. Talk about the characters in the story. (What do you think the angel looked like? What kind of a person do you think Mary was? How did the wise men look?) Talk about what God did and what the people did. Letting your child talk about the story helps her remember it and helps you perceive what she has understood and
what needs further clarification. Repeat the Story As with any good and favorite story, your child is likely to ask you to “tell it again.” Be ready to repeat this wonderful story. Take your time in the telling and retelling of each portion. Repetition is a tool for learning. Encourage your children of all ages to tell it to you or to tell parts of it to you. Let the beauty of the gift of Christmas be seen in the attitude you hold toward even the telling of the story. Read Aloud from Scripture In addition to telling the Christmas story to your preschool child, it is extremely significant and appropriate to read portions of it to him from the Bible. Many parents who read Luke 2:1-20 daily throughout the Advent season are delighted to discover their children — young and old — have memorized the Scripture just by hearing it read. Memorize Verses As you talk about the true meaning of Christmas, introduce your child to the promise God made in Isaiah 9:6 and the record of the fulfillment of that promise in Luke 2:11. Whether you are able to read Scripture aloud together as a family or not, make every attempt to help your child memorize these two verses of Scripture — Isaiah 9:6 and Luke 2:11. Sing Christmas Carols Singing Christmas carols together is another effective way to teach and reinforce the truths of Christ’s birth. Using your church hymnal or a book of Christmas music, select pieces that reiterate the focus of each day’s section of the Christmas story. Sing a different carol with each reading. Planning a time to sing carols in the neighborhood will help reinforce the story of Christmas and give the opportunity to tell the good news to your neighbors. Ask God to reveal the best way for you to begin this year to teach the truths of Christmas to your child. Telling (or reading) the Christmas story during the Advent season can become a tradition your children will anticipate and treasure as the years pass. Perhaps your entire family will be able to recite it together on Christmas morning as a gift to the Savior!
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Make a DIY Advent Calendar
Perform RACKS with the kids
Put together a children’s chemo kit for cancer patients
Don’t forget to Make pizza night festive!
breathe
Poinsettia Day
Snap holiday photos with the fam
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ank a sold Th Make no bake cinnamon ornaments
Plan some memorable Christmas gifts for the hubs
Try on some shimmery eye shadow for holiday parties (or just for fun!)
Share the M&M Christmas story with your littles
National Chocolate Covered Anything Day
Read a beloved Christmas classic with your kids
Put on Your Own Shoes Day
Sing Christmas carols – at home or around the neighborhood
today
Trim the tree
Thinking
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Family Game Night (or afternoon)!
Take the family on a Christmas lights drive
Help the kids say, “Thank you!”
Exercise together as a family
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t ho Make an old fashioned pomander
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Snuggle up with your sweetie and a holiday flick
(Encourage your toddler to do it himself!)
Christmas Eve
Start a f a
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Drop in at an assisted living facility to spread holiday cheer
Out with the old! Toss your expired makeup
New Year’s Eve
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Community Events
FIND MORE ACTIVITIES http://www.metrofamilymagazine.com/ November-2014/Oklahoma-City-Holiday-Events/
Until December 31 // FREE Festival of Light The Chickasha Festival of Light is known as one of the best festivals in the country. Featuring carriage rides, live nativity, camel rides, live animals, photos with Santa, gift shop and food trucks. Monday-Thursday 6-10pm, Friday-Saturday 6-11pm.
Sundays until December 28 // FREE Admssion 6 - 9 PM // Crystal Bridge Enjoy FREE admission on Sunday evenings in December to the Crystal Bridge Tropical Conservatory. From 6-9 pm, come enjoy charming holiday light displays and beautiful plant exhibits designed especially for the holiday season.
Dec. to Feb. // FREE Mondays at the Zoo 9 AM - 5 PM // Oklahoma City Zoo The Oklahoma City Zoo will be offering free admission every Monday from December 1- February 23.
December 19 // FREE Movie Night at the Park 7 PM // The MAC at Mitch Park Enjoy a free showing of “The Grinch” at the MAC in Edmond. Food and drinks will be available for purchase.
December 13 & 20 // Saturdays with Santa 10 AM - 4 PM // Devon Tower Children can enter Santa’s Workshop to create a variety of holiday crafts, send letters to the North Pole, enjoy live holiday music and take a ride on Devon’s Polar Express (weather permitting). Visits with Santa are available on a firstcome, first-served basis.
December 20 // Christmas in Edmond 11 AM - 4 PM // Downtown Edmond Free visit with Old Saint Nick at the Edmond Police Department on First, just east of Broadway. Enjoy free horsedrawn carriage rides with Santa through downtown Edmond.